Journey to the West: Treasure Vase of the Great Dao-Chapter 701 - 350 Zhao Pu

Kyushu Xianyang, once the unsurpassed Great Qin, had already turned to ashes in the long river of time, with the faint echo of its ancient Qin winds still lingering among these mountains and forests.

The people of the world could no longer find any trace of its former glory on this land, as the ancient fires had devoured everything, and the gods had buried it all.

Mr. Lu and his group came to this ancient city, casually strolling within, their ears filled with phrases passed down through the ages as if they could once again see that magnificent era.

"Mr. Lu, is the place we're looking for here?" At this moment, Sun Shier, using a Deceptive Technique to disguise himself as a young lad, was hopping and skipping around Mr. Lu, asking.

This was his first time casually touring a human city so freely; because the last visit was on his own, he had been too anxious to linger, but now with Mr. Lu as a guide, of course, he wanted to enjoy himself thoroughly.

Row upon row of shops along the streets caught the attention of this little monkey, each shop enlivening him to take a look around, only causing the people around to gaze at them with astonishment, speculating they were wealthy country bumpkins from some remote place.

"It's not here. This used to be the capital of Great Qin, but sadly, it has already been dissolved into the river of history. The place we're going to is not far from here, so I'll take you around first and see if we can find some clues."

"What clues are we looking for?"

"To fool the public, His mausoleum was hidden away. What we have been able to find is nothing but decoys. The real mausoleum has been concealed in a special space, shielding it from the gods' perception," Mr. Lu said softly.

Of course, this information all came from Lu Yu's account; otherwise, how could Mr. Lu, still so young, possibly know about these things.

"If the gods can't find it, how can we?" Sun Shier couldn't help but sigh, feeling somewhat dubious.

"You obviously can't rely on yourself for that, but we have Mr. Lu, don't we? Since he sent us here, he must have his reasons. So, stop your incessant chattering and irritating me already." The Rakshasa Princess didn't give Sun Shier any face, immediately dressing him down.

"Humph, I obviously knew that, you needn't say anything, you little woman," Sun Shier retorted haughtily.

Ever since Sun Shier heard someone say that women and petty men are difficult to raise, he has been using "little woman" as a term and generously bestowed this "honorable" title upon the Rakshasa Princess, who was always bickering with him,

The Rakshasa Princess was not someone to be trifled with. She immediately hit back just as hard, never missing an opportunity to strike, tease, and mock Sun Shier. Scenes of their bickering had played out countless times in front of Mr. Lu, but often Sun Shier ended up defeated. He was not discouraged, however, engaging in their verbal duels again and again, never tiring of it.

Mr. Lu rubbed his forehead, which had begun aching; he knew that bringing along these two would lead to nothing good.

"Stop arguing, we're almost there. Don't scare everyone else!" Mr. Lu said in a deep voice, finally settling down the two quarrelers. freewёbnoνel.com

"Whom are we looking for?"

"Someone who carries the bloodline of the First Emperor. With his blood, we can find the true location of the mausoleum," Mr. Lu said softly.

Between conversations, they arrived at a dilapidated house. The walls were mottled and everywhere the peeling plaster threatened to fall off. Over the courtyard wall, luxuriant grass grew unchecked, and a severely paint-peeled door was tightly shut, its iron rings covered in rust.

Sun Shier took the initiative and approached, slowly knocking on the door with a thud, thud sound. In less than a moment, someone came to open it.

This was an extremely frail youth, with delicate, handsome features, but his pale face told everyone of his physical weakness.

"Didn't I tell you I don't have a penny to my name?" the youth said while opening the door. "Give me a few days' grace, I will definitely pay off the debt in a couple of days."

When he saw it was Chen Xiang and the two others, a puzzled expression immediately appeared on his face, and he asked with surprise, "Who might you all be?"

"May I ask if this is the Zhao Pu household?" Chen Xiang greeted formally.

"I am Zhao Pu. Who are you, and what business do you have with me?" the youth asked somewhat warily.

A pleased smile spread across Chen Xiang's face, relieved to have found the right person, before he said, "I have a matter for which I need Brother Zhao's assistance, may I speak to you inside your home?"

Upon hearing this, the youth hastily stepped aside, welcoming Chen Xiang and company in as he said, "My apologies, please come in!"

Only when he entered the courtyard did Chen Xiang realize its extreme level of disrepair. Judging by the size of the courtyard, its master must once have been wealthy, but alas, family fortunes had dwindled, and now the yard was overrun with weeds, and the houses were in tatters. If it rained, it likely already leaked everywhere.

The youth seemed to notice Chen Xiang's assessment and showed a touch of embarrassment as he said, "You have caught us at a bad time. My family has suffered a great misfortune; nearly all my elders have perished or been injured. I have been studying away from home since childhood and haven't tended to this place in a long time."

Chen Xiang spoke softly, "The moon waxes and wanes; people have their days of fortune and misfortune. Such is common since ancient times."

Unexpectedly, this gentle remark touched Zhao Pu's heartstrings, who sighed deeply, "What you say is true. I have read this line as well, but could never truly empathize until both my parents fell ill and passed away. I rushed back from afar to arrange their funeral, incurring a mound of debt in the process. Just when I finally laid my elders to rest, I discovered that these people had covertly altered my contract. The debt collectors came to my door like malevolent Spirits, demanding money and threatening to force me to sell the family home."

"Having been educated since childhood, I have never witnessed such a spectacle. These people have complex and deep backgrounds, influential in both black and white networks; I didn't dare to seek justice rashly and have been driven to utter embarrassment."

Zhao Pu softly recounted his past. Once carefree, for the first time, he had witnessed the evil of people's hearts—as though they were ravenous beasts fixating their eyes on his property, determined to tear a piece from it.

"This is outrageous! How could these people act like this? Is there no justice in the world?" the Rakshasa Princess exclaimed indignantly.

"The way of heaven is to diminish the full and augment the empty, the way of humanity to diminish the empty for the prosperous. Greed is human nature. It is precisely for this reason that the sages established rules, wrote books, to lead people to goodness, to teach people to abide by their duty," replied Chen Xiang, who had naturally come to understand the underlying principles after such lengthy exposure.

Zhao Pu's eyes lit up at the words, staring at Chen Xiang he said, "Brother, your words are indeed the highest truth. It seems you are also a learned person. Should there be an opportunity, Zhao Pu would definitely like to seek your guidance."

"I'm but a humble commoner, hardly qualified to teach you; I've merely picked up on the wisdom of others," Chen Xiang modestly replied.