Still, the news about Sun Hongye needed verification. Well, that wouldn't be difficult.
He looked up; dusk was falling.
There was still one person he needed to see.
Leaving home, He Lingchuan walked toward the back. Two streets over, where tall kapok trees lined both sides of the road, he knocked on the door of a house beneath the trees.
Birds of a feather flock together; those who could afford to live here were all well-to-do families.
The person who opened the door started in surprise, then quickly stepped aside. "Oh, Master! What brings you here?"
This was none other than the master of the house, Ding Zuodong.
He had originally been an old steward of Dunyu's Shu clan. After being recruited by He Lingchuan, he had acquired and managed properties in Dunyu for the Eldest Young Master, performing consistently well.
He Lingchuan peered into the courtyard and smiled. "Nice house. How long ago did you buy it?"
An ordinary family's home naturally could not compare to the He Manor, but this small courtyard was open to the sky and earth, shaded by several fruit trees whose branches were already spreading out. In summer, relaxing in the shade and eating fruit would be quite delightful.
"I've only lived here about seven days. Things aren't fully in order yet." Ding Zuodong stepped aside. "Please come in, Master."
"No need." He Lingchuan caught sight of a child peeking out from inside. "Find a convenient place to talk."
"Right!" His master would not come calling without reason. Ding Zuodong's expression grew serious. He called out a quick instruction inside, then pulled the door shut and stepped out. "There's an abandoned house nearby, long deserted. No one's there."
In less than twenty zhang, they arrived at the abandoned house.
Adjacent to the bustling center of the Yuan capital, an abandoned residence sat neglected. The local economy and livelihoods had truly fallen below where they were two years ago.
He Lingchuan expanded his divine sense and swept the area with the mirror. Indeed, no one was around.
His opening words were: "Shan Youjun has become compromised."
Ding Zuodong was shocked and hurried to ask why.
He and Shan Youjun were relatives; in fact, Shan Youjun had been the intermediary who brought him into the Eldest Young Master's service.
He Lingchuan briefly recounted what Shan Youjun had done.
Ding Zuodong's eyes went wide. "Master, please see clearly! I knew nothing of what Shan Youjun was doing! Over these past dozen days or so, he only came to my house for a single meal!"
Master He was Master He, and Eldest Young Master was Eldest Young Master. Though father and son, servants could never afford to pledge their loyalty to the wrong one.
Eldest Young Master had already returned, yet Shan Youjun had hidden things from him while doing Master He's bidding. That was deceiving one's former master—something no one could tolerate.
Having served as a steward in prominent households for over a decade, Ding Zuodong knew full well what superiors abhorred, and he immediately severed any ties with Shan Youjun's actions.
He Lingchuan waved a hand. "I know. How could I blame you? But Shan Youjun has already chosen another master. What about you?"
Cold sweat immediately beaded on Ding Zuodong's forehead. "Naturally, I follow only you, Master, without the slightest disloyalty!"
Seeing him about to swear an oath to Heaven, He Lingchuan caught his arm. "Don't be so quick to swear oaths. I have something to tell you."
He paused before continuing, "Once the journey to Blackwater City is over, I will not remain in the Yuan Kingdom. You are a man of Yuan, with a home and property. You should consider what is best for your family's future."
Ding Zuodong startled. "Where do you intend to go, Master?"
"I plan to head east and make my own way. The exact destination isn't settled yet, but leaving the Yuan Kingdom is set in stone." He Lingchuan cautioned him, "And I likely won't be returning."
After He Lingchuan vanished into the river, Ding Zuodong had no choice but to turn to He Chunhua; but once He Lingchuan returned to the Yuan Kingdom, Ding Zuodong promptly tendered his resignation to He Chunhua and returned to He Lingchuan's side. It was clear he cherished old ties.
That was why He Lingchuan had come to extend this invitation.
Ding Zuodong forced down his swirling thoughts and, after pondering for several breaths, asked, "On such a long journey, does Master truly need me?"
"I truly do!" He Lingchuan nodded. "Going somewhere new, I will naturally need someone to handle affairs and build up property for me again. Such a person is hard to find."
First and foremost, he needed someone he could trust.
How could someone hired on the spot have any foundation of mutual trust?
"However, you have children and grandchildren now. Think it over carefully." For ordinary folk, such a departure truly meant leaving their ancestral home behind, perhaps never even to be buried in native soil after death.
Ding Zuodong took a deep breath. "No need to think it over. I will go with you, Master."
He Chunhua was undoubtedly capable, and staying would ensure an easy life. Yet Ding Zuodong believed even more in the Eldest Young Master!
Moreover, the master had said that this departure was to strike out on his own.
Since they would be starting from scratch, a veteran like Ding Zuodong who joined him from the ground up would surely be the most trusted and heavily relied upon—perhaps even rising with the wind.
He, Ding Zuodong, was not content to remain merely a comfortable commoner!
He Lingchuan was not surprised. "What about your family? How will you settle them?"
A man with Ding Zuodong's drive almost always harbored an inner fire.
Ding Zuodong replied without hesitation, "They listen to me."
Pleased, He Lingchuan clapped him on the shoulder. "Good, very good."
Few men nearing fifty still possessed such daring ambition.
"Then take your family south to the port of Baisha Bay. Within three months, I will meet you there." He Lingchuan instructed him, "Do not speak a word of this to outsiders."
"Understood!"
Ding Zuodong bowed to him and hurried home.
He Lingchuan's request had come so abruptly that he needed to consider how to explain it to his family.
As He Lingchuan walked back, the soul-snatching mirror in his robe asked, "Hey, do you really plan on leaving?"
"Yeah."
Given the mess the Yuan Kingdom was currently in, it was rotting down to its roots. Furthermore, He Lingchuan had a premonition that its troubles were far from over.
As a transmigrator, he held no deep affection for this country. Why stay?
A tree moved dies, but a man moved thrives.
The world outside was vast and boundless. What was the point of exhausting himself on this tiny plot of land in the Yuan Kingdom? Starting from scratch in an auspicious new territory was far better than starting from a deficit here.
"Why not go back to Mount Rong?" asked the mirror. "It's always nice to enjoy the shade of a big tree."
From what it could see, Mount Rong was great—not only prosperous, but sharing the master's values.
Remembering a famous saying from his original world, He Lingchuan couldn't help but chuckle. "How can a true man dwell beneath another for long?"
If you enjoyed the benefits of an established system, you had to endure its rules.
But an untamable, freewheeling spirit like him despised being bound by rules and refused to walk the beaten path.
In that case, his only option was to start fresh on his own.
Better to build a system of his own and bind others instead.
Curious, the mirror asked, "Then where do you want to go?"
He Lingchuan was pondering that very question himself.
No matter, there was still plenty of time. "You'll know when the time comes."
...
Heavy dew gathered as a gentle evening breeze blew.
The chorus of frogs in the pond was so loud that Madam Ying tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
With a whoosh, the window blew open, and a gust of wind swept in, blowing out the Everlasting Lamp.
With a clatter, the dressing mirror on the table toppled over.
Scraps of paper flew everywhere.
"Xiao Lan!" Madam Ying's senior personal maid normally slept in the outer chamber; whenever there was any disturbance in the room, she would come running immediately.
Yet tonight, no matter how Madam Ying called, Xiao Lan did not come.
Madam Ying had no choice but to get out of bed and close the window herself.
She set the mirror upright, and just as she shifted it slightly, she saw a second figure clearly reflected within!
A woman in white.
Chapter 801