Chapter 651 — Ruthless Means
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 4
The greatest difference perhaps was that his village had an old thief who never came away empty-handed. The Lame Old Man had seen every sort of treasure, and his thinking was unlike others'; he could often conceive what no one else could. Shen Mu had been taught by him since childhood, so naturally he seemed like a veteran old thief.
After the earlier testing of the treasure, everyone was covered in filth and went off to change their clothes. Before long, Emperor Yanfeng returned and said with a smile, "Is Master Chixi planning to return to the Hovering Realm? It would be proper for Us to send envoys to accompany you.
Master, please wait a moment.
" Chixi nodded, his gaze flickering. "Your Majesty, this outer subject wishes to exchange the Crimson Bright Heaven-Suppressing Tower for the Wheel of Creation.
May I ask whether that is permissible? " Emperor Yanfeng laughed heartily.
"The weather today is fine indeed… Dear Subject Shen, you have turned Our imperial garden into a shambles.
We shall have your head! " Ban Gongcuo looked expectant, but Emperor Yanfeng was smiling; clearly he was only joking, and in high spirits. Ban Gongcuo was disappointed.
Chixi glanced at Shen Mu and said, "This outer subject believes young friend Shen to be clever and quick, and that he might accompany us to the Hovering Realm.
" Something stirred in Emperor Yanfeng's heart, and he looked toward Shen Mu. Shen Mu hastily shook his head.
"Beat me to death and I still won't go; if I go, I'll be beaten to death.
" Emperor Yanfeng said with a smile, "To go to the Hovering Realm, one does indeed need an envoy who can hold the situation steady. If the Jingping Imperial Preceptor were here, We might send him.
Unfortunately, he must preside over the war in Taihuang Heaven and cannot easily free himself. Apart from the Imperial Preceptor, the only one who can keep Jingping's character unblemished is Dear Subject Shen—even We fall short of him.
" A wave of pleasure swept through Shen Mu's heart. He said with a smile, "Not going. " A young eunuch beside them held paper and brush and presented a small booklet. Emperor Yanfeng took up the brush, moistened the ink, made a stroke in the booklet, and said, "Even when We flatter you, you still won't go? " "What is Your Majesty writing?
" Shen Mu leaned in and saw that the booklet was filled with many names, most of them court ministers, among them his own.
After the names came six or seven tally marks, with one tally only four strokes complete. On this page, his name bore the most tally marks of all.
Emperor Yanfeng hastily covered the booklet, but Shen Mu, with his deft empty hands, stole it away and flipped through it.
The booklet had more than a dozen pages, and the one with the most tally marks was not him but Her Majesty the Empress, whose name bore several dozen. Emperor Yanfeng hurriedly snatched it back and said in anger, "Stealing Our property—We shall have your head! " So saying, he added another stroke after Shen Mu's name.
Shen Mu suddenly understood.
He stole a glance at the Empress beside them and thought, "They must quarrel often, so His Majesty has already beheaded the Empress several hundred times. She probably does not know of this; if she did, the Emperor's inner palace would know no peace. " Emperor Yanfeng carefully put the booklet away and said to Chixi, "Dear Subject Shen is Our right arm; he cannot lightly leave the court.
May I ask how long this journey to the Hovering Realm will take, Master? If it takes too long, We cannot bear to let Dear Subject Shen go.
" Chixi said with a smile, "Rest assured, Your Majesty. This outer subject originally led his clansmen, steering a star as we drifted through the cosmos, not knowing where our ancestral land lay, and so it took several thousand years to find it. This time, if I bring only young friend Shen, a round trip will take a year at most.