My Enemy Became My Cultivation Companion-Chapter 65 - 50 Demon Map of the Capital

The Imperial City, Jingren Palace.

It was already late autumn, with the chill becoming more pronounced. Coupled with the approaching Demon Extermination Day, the pervasive yin energy had grown heavier. Over the past few days, the temperature had dropped considerably, prompting the Jingren Palace to ignite the underfloor heating system, warming the golden bricks of the imperial kiln.

"Mammy, look, he’s sealed off Yuxiu Manor."

The Empress Dowager placed a swiftly delivered memorial from the Directorate of Ceremonial on the desk, pushing it toward the nameless old mammy.

The nameless old mammy took up the document but did not open it. By protocol, she was not qualified to unseal such a dispatch.

"Your Majesty, I’ve already heard about this matter through the magpie spies. The Manor Master Feng, who carved out his territory with his sixteen-barrel musket, is dead. As for Feng Luo, he’s practically a cripple now. The former means little to me, but the latter is somewhat regrettable. After all, he was my godson—a half-talented one at that."

The nameless old mammy’s tone was calm, devoid of joy or anger.

"So then, Mammy, how will you handle this half-talent?"

The Empress Dowager inquired.

The nameless old mammy replied slowly,

"I’ll follow Your Majesty’s instructions. As long as he doesn’t die, it will suffice. I’m over seventy now, and if there’s one thing I have plenty of, it’s godchildren. When one has many descendants, they naturally divide into those favored and those not. He... does not count as favored. As long as he survives, so as not to chill the hearts of the others, then all will be well."

The Empress Dowager nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

The nameless old mammy had originally been her close attendant, an orphan abandoned at the gate of An Mansion with unknown parentage. Thus, she was nameless. Initially, she was a lowly, insignificant figure within the mansion, yet no one had expected the remarkable twist of fate that befell her at age forty. Entering the path of martial arts through a fortuitous encounter, she advanced with astonishing speed: reaching the Fourth Rank at fifty-two, the Third Rank at sixty, and achieving the rank of Grandmaster at seventy-three. She now stood as a stabilizing force in the Capital City.

If the nameless old mammy chose to absolve Feng Luo, the Empress Dowager would not look the other way. While many within the court accused her of being heartless, the ties of long-standing relations still carried some weight with her.

"Speaking of which, Chen Yi’s progress in martial arts has been rather swift. He reminds me of your former vigor, Mammy," the Empress Dowager remarked.

"Your Majesty overpraises me."

"Has he now reached the level of a Fifth-Grade expert?"

"Perhaps. By protocol, his name should already be entered in the Astronomical Supervisor’s registry."

The mammy responded.

The Empress Dowager paused briefly in thought before continuing,

"The difference between the Sixth and Fifth Grades is but a fine line. Who can truly say? No need to rush. For now, let him act as he deems appropriate."

The old mammy nodded slightly, then, as if recalling something, asked,

"Your Majesty, should we send someone to test his blade? To see how sharp it truly is?"

The Empress Dowager pondered for a moment before giving her reply, one word:

"Yes."

"Then I’ll send someone skilled with a blade to weigh his capacity."

The mammy agreed.

With an elegant and refined demeanor, the Empress Dowager rose and began pacing within Jingren Palace.

"He dares greatly indeed, sealing off Yuxiu Manor entirely. It seems he has utterly severed ties with King Jing’s Mansion."

She paused momentarily, her gaze flickering with calculation as though lost in thought,

"Perhaps this is for the best... For wiping out an entire clan, one must have courage. However..."

The nameless old mammy interjected,

"However, does Your Majesty still... harbor some suspicion? That his actions are guided by the Lin Party?"

"Exactly. This young man attained his Hundred Household rank through Elder Lin’s recommendation and later rose to the Thousand Household rank. Mammy, tell me, is his loyalty to Elder Lin or to this Jingren Palace?"

The old mammy responded slowly,

"Logically speaking, it should be to Elder Lin. However... did not Wu Qingsheng report that this young man has repeatedly declined the appointment as Grand Overseer, refusing to collaborate with the Lin Party?"

The Empress Dowager replied indifferently,

"Such refusals can be staged. How many instances of ’thrice declining and thrice insisting’ in the annals of history were genuine?

Besides, Elder Lin’s focus has shifted far from state affairs now, obsessed with achieving immortality. With the Lin Party on the verge of collapse, and having broken ties with King Jing, if he doesn’t wish to die, he must rely on the Heavenly Family."

"And Your Majesty’s intention is?"

"If he is to serve us in the future, then first let him tread dangerous ground—assign him to investigate the Chancellor’s case and uncover the cause of the Grand Empress Dowager’s mysterious death."

Even the nameless old mammy shuddered slightly upon hearing these words.

The Chancellor’s case was an intricate web of entanglements. If it merely involved Grand Secretary Zhang, who had long since fallen from power, it wouldn’t warrant such apprehension.

However, only a very select few in the city knew that the Chancellor’s case implicated not just the Grand Secretary but also the late Emperor, as well as the enigmatic demise of the Grand Empress Dowager!

The Empress Dowager’s tone, however, remained calm,

"Aside from these matters, he ought to be rewarded as well. Here’s an idea: that Dong Guifei languishing in the inner palace, endlessly composing poems of longing, unwilling to properly mourn the late Emperor... One must admit, she remains a captivating beauty. Mammy, make the necessary arrangements."

The Empress Dowager’s voice betrayed neither joy nor sorrow, her words impassively determining Chen Yi’s fate.

The nameless old mammy responded affirmatively, understanding that this was both a reward and a potential leverage. From this moment onward, Chen Yi’s ties to the Heavenly Family would be bound ever deeper.

....................

The investigation of Yuxiu Manor unearthed a substantial amount of Five-Stone Powder. Regardless, both the personnel within Yuxiu Manor and the associated officials would undergo a storm of blood-soaked purges.

Having orchestrated such a tremendous affair, Chen Yi’s reputation among the men of both the Eastern and Western Factories grew. He was now regarded as a Thousand Household known for his decisiveness and harsh enforcement of laws. After all, nearly everyone was aware that Yuxiu Manor was backed by King Jing’s Mansion and the Ding’an Party.

On this day, Chen Yi was summoned to the West Factory by Director Wu.

"Petitions to impeach you have been pouring in like bamboo shoots after the spring rain. The Directorate of Ceremonial is practically overwhelmed."

Director Wu sighed, gazing at the Thousand Household before him.

"You’ve stirred up too much trouble this time. Why didn’t you consult me beforehand?"

Chen Yi cupped his fists and responded,

"Director Wu, it’s not that I distrust you, but I feared that if the walls had ears, the information would leak, and the culprits would escape."

Director Wu nodded in acknowledgment, seemingly accepting the explanation.

After some time, he rose to his feet and turned to look out the window toward the horizon,

"Do you realize? It’s not only the Ding’an Party accusing you this time. Even the eldest son of the Lin Family has filed a petition against you."

For Yuxiu Manor, whether they were from the Ding’an Party or the Lin Party, they always welcomed scholars and literati with open arms.

Chen Yi nodded slightly and said,

"Of course I know. My investigation of Yuxiu Manor was not carried out under Elder Lin’s orders."

Director Wu nodded slightly, understanding that Chen Yi was demarcating himself from the Lin Party.

The atmosphere eased, and Director Wu joked,

"Killing Feng Ying in public—you’ve likely already stepped into the Sixth Rank. Previously, I suspected you of using unethical means to climb the ranks, thinking you were nothing more than a useless idler unworthy of advancement. Now it seems I’ve been completely wrong. My eyes are no better than a blind man’s."

Chen Yi merely responded with a modest, "You overpraise me."

Director Wu turned back, patting Chen Yi’s shoulder as he said,

"For now, focus on investigating the events around Demon Extermination Day. According to the real men of Taoism from Yin Sword Mountain, it’s linked to the Outer Heaven Demons, yes? Investigate thoroughly. If you uncover the truth and gain great merit, who would still dare to accuse you?

Here, take this ’Demon Map of the Capital’ sent by Yin Sword Mountain. It marks all the places with concentrated yin energy. Use it to carry out your investigation."

As he said this, Director Wu handed him the Demon Map of the Capital. Chen Yi accepted it and, after a brief glance, put it aside without further study.

He had already committed the map to memory long ago.

On Demon Extermination Day, spurred by malevolent intent and concentrated yin energy, demons had wreaked havoc. Among them were three prominent Great Demons occupying three directions. In the outskirts resided Ghost General Deng Ai, the weakest of the trio. The East City was home to Donkey-Headed Crown Prince, rumored to be the offspring of Wu Zhao during the Tang Dynasty, abandoned at birth and later turning into an avenging specter. Meanwhile, by the northern riverbank lurked a vicious flood dragon, a descendant of Suo Jieluo Dragon King, the protective deity of Guanyin, whose power flowed along the waterways of the Capital with ambitions of transforming into a true dragon.

In addition to these three, another demon resided in the Praying Place.

Its origins dwarfed even the combined stature of the aforementioned three...

It was a fox demon—none other than the Ancestor of Fox Demons, the wife of Dayu, mother of Xia Qi—Tushan Clan.

It was she...

who enmeshed the Chancellor’s case and the Praying Place into an inextricable knot of intrigue.