That night, Pu Zongji and his family disappeared from Tongren Province forever. Ye Xiaotian had no idea of this. He was sitting in his study, deep in thought.
Ye Xiaotian did not pay attention to his hypocrisy. He lightly shook his head and said, "There is a limit to one's strength. Heaven's will cannot be disobeyed. Who could have predicted such an accident? Teacher does not need to blame yourself. I was just thinking … "
Ye Xiaotian pondered for a while and slowly voiced out the doubts in his heart, "This case is indeed difficult for me, but is it difficult for Magistrate Zhang as well? He is the ruler of Tongren, a local tyrant. Why does he have so many misgivings and want to push this matter onto me? "
Li Qiuchi put down his sleeves, not a single tear was shed, "Dongweng is unable to see clearly because he is closely involved. No one in the world can truly do as they please. Even the most revered Son of Heaven has civil and military officials, relatives of the royal family and all sorts of other powers to restrict him.
The chieftains also have a premier, housekeeping, and even the more powerful chieftains and headmen to restrict him. If he is stubborn and goes against the will of most of the nobles in the tribe, it will not work. It is the same among the tribes. Even the most powerful chieftain, there will always be some powers below him that can threaten his existence.
Perhaps under normal circumstances, these powers may not have the ability to contend against him. But as long as there is external support, or if the most powerful chieftain is weakened by others, then these dormant powers will have the possibility of catching up. "
Ye Xiaotian immediately understood. Under this kind of structure, the most powerful chieftain will always maintain a sense of danger. He will not blindly use force against the outside world, nor will he dare to do whatever he wants. This kind of structure is the most stable. Therefore, regardless of whether it is the will of heaven or the will of man, it will lead to the formation of this power structure.
Of course, there are special cases. There will always be strong people who transcend this balance. But because it is not balanced, even if the special cases were glorious, they would quickly perish. The survival of the fittest must be the most stable and full of vitality. Even if a powerful person could break it temporarily, it would eventually return to its original nature.
Emperor Hongwu and Emperor Yongle were both wise and powerful. One unified the world and expelled Northern Yuan, while the other conquered the desert five times, scaring the Heaven's Chosen Ones of the grassland into fleeing at the mere sight of them. However, neither could they occupy the desert, nor could they bring the southwest under the rule of Liu Guan in one fell swoop. This was the law of Heaven that he had to follow under the objective conditions of not having advanced conditions.
The eight prefectures of Si Zhou and Si Nan had lost their supreme rulers. After more than a hundred years, the original structure was no longer stable. The former Lord of Tongren gradually lost control of the chieftains. The present Tong Ren. Si Tong. Perhaps not only Tongren, but also the other seven prefectures of Liangsi, just like the crumbling Western Zhou Empire. Would the "Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period" appear? Would the "First Emperor unite" and complete a cycle of history …
The more Ye Xiaotian thought, the more profound his gaze became. He said to Li Qiuchi, "We did not light the first fire of being the Prefectural Judge well. But who knows if it is a blessing in disguise? At least we know that Dai Tongzhi is not a playboy who only knows how to chase after women. Magistrate Zhang is not as powerful as we thought.
Tongren is a place ruled by local officials. Many of the experiences and methods applicable to Hulu County are not applicable here. Here, the imperial court, the law, and the will of the people are not to be relied on. Here, the one with the strongest fist is the boss! "
Li Qiuchi looked at Ye Xiaotian in shock. To be able to come to such a conclusion, it was clear that what Ye Xiaotian wanted was not just to be a good Prefectural Judge. It turned out that while he was still brooding over a momentary loss, Dong Weng was already standing on a higher level and thinking about the problem.
This was a good thing. Li Qiuchi was not afraid of Ye Xiaotian's ambition. He was afraid that Ye Xiaotian had no ambition. Seeing Ye Xiaotian like this, Li Qiuchi was immediately delighted. Ye Xiaotian seemed to have made an important decision. He took a deep breath and said to Li Qiuchi, "It's late. Teacher, please go to sleep."
After Li Qiuchi left, Ye Xiaotian also left the study and rushed to Ye Yao's residence. Because Ye Yao was researching venomous insects, which were too dangerous, Ye Xiaotian built a house for him near the back of the mountain.
Ye Xiaotian also thought about the last time the venomous insect accidentally escaped. If it did not happen to be hiding in his bedroom, if it did not happen to harm Qian Qingqing, who was armed to the teeth and obviously wanted to harm him, Ye Xiaotian really did not know who it would have harmed. So he specially ordered Ye Yao to set up a restriction around the courtyard to prevent the venomous insect from escaping.
As for the venomous insects that had been successfully refined and brought out of the courtyard, there was no problem. This was because the last step of every successfully refined venomous insect was to recognize its master. Once it recognized its master, it would not act on its own, and would not leave its master without orders.
In Ye Yao's courtyard, there were four disciples that he brought with him to serve him. There were no other servants. At this time, it was already late at night, but Ye Yao's residence was still lit.
Ye Xiaotian rushed to Ye Yao's courtyard. When the four disciples saw Lord Venerable arrive, they hurriedly knelt down in fear and trepidation and kissed the tips of his boots. Ye Xiaotian helplessly waited for them to sincerely bow before saying, "You guys rest, I have something to discuss with Elder Ye."
A disciple hurriedly said, "Yes, yes, yes, disciple will ask Shizun to come out and greet him."
Ye Xiaotian said, "No need, it's late at night. You guys rest, I'll go see him!"
No one knew what Ye Yao was busy doing in his room at this moment, or what kind of venomous insect he was refining. So even his disciples did not dare to rashly go in without notifying him. That was a very dangerous action. But Ye Xiaotian was immune to all venomous insects, so he did not have any taboo.
Ye Xiaotian entered the room and closed the door. He saw light coming out from the inner room. Ye Xiaotian walked around the screen and saw a lamp on the table. Ye Yao was sitting on a stool, supporting his chin with his hand. He was deep in thought without moving, and his mouth was still mumbling something.
Ye Xiaotian coughed. Ye Yao turned his head and said in surprise, "Venerable!" Ye Yao hurriedly jumped up and covered the bottles and jars on the table. He said somewhat awkwardly, "Venerable, it's so late, why have you come?"
Ye Yao was one of the two replacement elders. Unlike the original six elders who had been in high positions for a long time, he had interacted with Venerable a lot and was already familiar with him. So when he saw Ye Xiaotian, he couldn't help but feel a little awkward. Ye Xiaotian saw him like this and couldn't help but feel suspicious. He blurted out, "Why are you so flustered? You … you didn't steal Madam Qian's corpse, right? "
When Ye Yao heard him mention the female corpse that wouldn't rot for ten thousand years, he couldn't help but say dejectedly, "That woman who was poisoned by the Gu was wrapped in a coffin by Zhao Yi Cheng and transported back to Bo Zhou. I don't even know where she was buried, so how can I get it? Sigh, what a pity! It's really a pity! I tried for a long time, but I couldn't find a Gu with such a miraculous effect. "
Ye Xiaotian heaved a sigh of relief and consoled, "Where there's a will, there's a way. Elder Ye, keep up the good work, there will be a day when you succeed."
Ye Yao smiled bitterly, "Thanks to Venerable's auspicious words, I will definitely work hard. Ah, I wonder if Venerable is here in the middle of the night to learn Gu refinement? I will immediately … "
Ye Xiaotian quickly stopped him, "There's no hurry, it's Gu refinement, wait until I'm free. I came to see you today because I have something to discuss with you. "
Ye Xiaotian sat down on a chair and said to Ye Yao, "You sit down too, let's talk slowly."
Ye Xiaotian closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, then he took out a map from his chest pocket and slowly spread it out on the table. He pointed and said, "This is Ti Xi, this is Mercury Mountain, this is … Myriad Mountains …"
…
Ye Xiaotian and Ye Yao talked for close to two hours before getting up and leaving. It was already close to the fourth watch period. Normally, when he returned late, Ye Xiaotian would return to his bedroom to rest so as not to disturb Duo Ni. But this time, he stood silently in the courtyard for a moment before turning towards the courtyard where Duo Ni lived.
Once he entered the inner courtyard, it was completely the world of women. Other than him, the owner, there were no other men. Even his sixteen personal death guards all lived in the outer courtyard walls of the inner courtyard. It was quiet along the way, only the moonlight was like water. As he walked, his mood also unknowingly calmed down.
Ye Xiaotian turned into the courtyard where Duo Ni lived, pushed open the door of the main room, and turned into the bedroom with familiarity. In the side room, the little maid was sleeping sweetly and did not notice the arrival of the master. Ye Xiaotian smiled, lightened his footsteps, and gently lifted the curtain to enter the inner room.
There was an oil lamp on the table, the wick was pressed very low, emitting a weak light. In the past, Duo Ni was not used to lighting a lamp when she slept. The people in the mountains did not have such luxurious conditions, but after staying in the Ye mansion for a long time, she also felt that it was more comfortable to sleep with a dim light. If she woke up at night, she did not need to light a lamp in the dark, it was very convenient.
Ye Xiaotian glanced at the bed again. It was early summer, cool and slightly warm. This courtyard was also located at the foot of the Eastern Mountain, with its back to the mountain and its face to the water. Therefore, the temperature was lower than the bustling and prosperous areas in the city, so even the windows had not been changed with green gauze.
Duo Ni lay on her side on the bed like a bow. Perhaps she was afraid of suffocation, so she did not put down the curtain. Her smooth and white thighs and smooth and pink arms were also exposed outside the quilt. Ye Xiaotian gently took off his clothes, lay down on the bed, lifted the thin quilt, and crawled in. A delicate fragrance of high quality hit his face, and then he touched a smooth and warm body.
Duo Ni was startled awake by him. Opening her sleepy eyes, she turned her head and saw that it was Ye Xiaotian. Then she quietly closed her eyes again, mumbling something like a child. Her buttocks arched into his embrace, and she chose a more comfortable sleeping position to continue sleeping.
Duo Ni was wearing an ice silk (silk with wrinkles). Among silk fabrics such as silk, this was one of the most expensive. It was light and thin, comfortable and cool to the touch. The delicate fragrance on her body was also a top quality perfume that cost one tael of gold. If Duo Ni were to return to the mountains now, this beautiful mountain spirit might not be able to adapt to her previous kind of life. As long as there was a better choice and experienced that kind of comfort, perhaps one would often miss the simple and wild life of the past, but no one would still choose that kind of crude mountain life.
The environment can change people. Temperament, habits, and even thinking can be changed. What Duo Ni had changed now was not only her living habits. She took the initiative to ask to study with Yaoyao, which was a change in thinking.
Through the thin undergarments, Ye Xiaotian could easily feel the liveliness and youthful vitality of Duo Ni's body. He gently hugged that warm and fragrant jade, and thought contentedly, "Duo Ni has unknowingly been changed. So what if it's the Gu God Sect? So what if it's those stubborn old men? I should be able to subdue them without a fight … "
