Chapter 47: Two Years (Please add to favorites and keep reading)

After returning from visiting the Shan family for the New Year celebrations.

A month and a half passed.

Wei Tu received an invitation to the wedding banquet sent by Shan Yanguang to celebrate the taking of a concubine.

Seeing that the address on the invitation was the Shan residence in the prefectural city, Wei Tu couldn't help but sigh at the cleverness of Lady Shan Min. He wondered how she had managed to persuade Shan Yanguang's wife to agree to the addition of a concubine.

During the months he had stayed at the Shan residence last year, he knew that although Shan Yanguang's wife appeared gentle and lacked the fiery temperament of Shan Fang, she possessed a strong character to her core.

Otherwise, Shan Yanguang would not have dragged things on until now before finally taking a concubine.

"What a coincidence. Just as my eldest brother Kou Liang sent a letter, inviting me and Wei Fei to gather at Xuanhe Tower to reminisce about old times..."

Wei Tu glanced at the date on the invitation and mused to himself.

Nearly a year had passed, and just as Fu Zhizhou had mentioned in the prefectural office, Prefect He was approaching the time of his reassignment.

In recent days, this bit of gossip had spread throughout the entire county magistrate's office.

Wei Tu guessed that Kou Liang's letter, gathering the four of them together, was likely intended to discuss this matter.

Wei Tu sought out Wei Fei, and the two of them agreed on a time to travel together to the prefectural city.

...

A few days later.

Xuanhe Tower, Room No. 3 of the Heaven Grade.

"Second Brother, Third Brother." Upon hearing the conversation between Wei Tu and Wei Fei outside the door, Kou Liang proactively stepped out to greet them.

With a smile on his face, he patted their shoulders and exchanged a few words of pleasantries.

"Eldest Brother."

Wei Tu and Wei Fei exchanged a glance, bowed slightly, and cupped their fists in salute to Kou Liang.

More than a year had passed, and Kou Liang had not changed much; he wore a white martial outfit, was tall and broad-shouldered, and possessed a vigorous, heroic bearing.

However, both Wei Tu and Wei Fei noticed a trace of weariness in the corners of Kou Liang's eyes—an aura of frustration and unfulfilled ambition.

The two immediately understood that, like them, Kou Liang was also being suppressed by the local authorities of Xiaoyi Prefecture.

Yet, compared to the two of them huddling together for warmth and crossing the same boat, Kou Liang was undoubtedly much more solitary.

"Where is Fourth Brother?" Wei Fei entered the private room and scanned the area. Seeing no sign of Fu Zhizhou, his brow furrowed slightly.

All along the way, he and Wei Tu had traveled almost without pause, arriving at Xuanhe Tower ahead of the appointed time.

Since Fu Zhizhou was the Fourth Brother from their sworn brotherhood, there was no reason for him to make his three sworn elder brothers wait while he arrived late.

"Fourth Brother has gained the favor of Governor Wang and is now one of his Imperial Guards. He is rarely free during normal times. Let us wait a bit longer," Kou Liang explained, sitting on a stool and shaking his head.

"Second Brother, let's drink first to quench our thirst."

Wei Tu also sat down. He gave Wei Fei a meaningful look, signaling him not to be impatient and to wait calmly.

He knew exactly why Wei Fei was restless.

Ever since they received the first letter sent by Fu Zhizhou, they had not received a second letter from him in over half a year.

Fu Zhizhou... seemed to have forgotten the oath they made that day, and forgotten his two sworn elder brothers.

The three waited patiently.

The waiters at Xuanhe Tower brought up one pot of wine after another.

It wasn't until evening—

That the crisp sound of clashing scale armor echoed from outside the door.

Hearing the sound, the three men in the room looked toward the door simultaneously, finally seeing the long-awaited Fu Zhizhou.

Fu Zhizhou was clad in bright silver armor and wore a helmet adorned with a red tassel. He looked majestic and commanding, possessing the bearing of a great general.

The contrast between him and the three men in the room was stark.

The former was triumphant; the latter were dejected.

"Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother..."

Fu Zhizhou removed his armor, revealing a dark inner robe. He cupped his fists and bowed to the three of them with a respectful attitude, showing no hint of arrogance.

Seeing this, the three men breathed a secret sigh of relief, and their hearts began to once again accept this "late-arriving" Fourth Brother.

The four of them exchanged greetings.

At that moment, Kou Liang instructed the long-waiting waiter to serve the dishes and warm the wine.

"I apologize for making my three sworn brothers wait so long. Because I was assigned a mission, I have been staying at the Governor's mansion for the past few days..."

"To maintain secrecy, I did not dare to send anyone to deliver letters. If I have been negligent toward you all, I hope for your understanding."

As if sensing the thoughts of the three men, Fu Zhizhou took the initiative to explain the reason for his coldness over the past half-year.

"A mission?" Hearing these words, Kou Liang's heart stirred, and his gaze toward Fu Zhizhou turned inquisitive.

If Fu Zhizhou were merely a martial officer in the Governor's Imperial Guard, there would be no reason for him to "sever ties" with the three of them.

"Since Eldest Brother is asking, then as your Fourth Brother, I shall speak plainly."

"I only hope that once you three know, you will not spread word of it."

Fu Zhizhou thought for a moment and then spoke through gritted teeth.

—He understood that if he did not make things clear today, after this banquet, the four of them would surely go their separate ways.

In terms of brotherhood, Fu Zhizhou felt he had not yet reached the level of life-and-death solidarity with Wei Tu and the others, but since they had made an oath, sworn blood, and become brothers...

Then they should stand together through life and death!

As for feelings... those could be cultivated slowly in the future.

"If Fourth Brother has something difficult to say, you may choose to keep it hidden. Do not force yourself..."

Seeing this, Wei Tu quickly spoke up to stop him. He knew that sometimes, knowing too much was not necessarily a good thing.

He did not want to suffer undeserved calamity or invite a death sentence.

"Third Brother is right."

"If Fourth Brother has a difficulty, there is no need to tell us."

Hearing this, Kou Liang and Wei Fei immediately understood the implication of Wei Tu's words and nodded repeatedly.

If a secret were leaked, when a先天 (Xiantian) Martial Master used a mental secret technique to deal with the aftermath, they wouldn't just punish Fu Zhizhou alone.

They would follow the trail,

And it would lead back to the three of them.

Hearing this, Fu Zhizhou shook his head and explained, "This matter is closely related to the future prospects of my three sworn brothers. If you do not know this intelligence, you will inevitably be at a loss when the time comes."

"Furthermore, with my current status, as long as my three sworn brothers keep it secret and do not speak recklessly, the authorities will not easily trace it back to me."

As his voice fell,

The three men looked at each other, but ultimately agreed to let Fu Zhizhou reveal the "secret" he knew.

"Last year, the four of us resisted Prefect He because of the Wuyun Tower incident. Therefore, we formed a sworn society, swore a blood oath, and promised to support each other and advance or retreat together in the future."

"The secret I am about to tell is also related to this Wuyun Tower."

"Governor Wang agreed to let Prefect He dispatch the Martial Scholars to go undercover at Wuyun Tower last year. That was merely an open move; the true hidden move was laid by Governor Wang long ago..."

"He is simply waiting for the day Wuyun Tower commits a crime that provides evidence, so he can close the net..."

"When that time comes, the Shannan Circuit will likely mobilize the local militia to attack Wuyun Tower together. And since my three brothers possess high martial arts skills, you will naturally be within the scope of conscription."

"Governor Wang's Imperial Guards will be the elite force for this attack on Wuyun Tower."

"And this timing will be, at the earliest, in three or four months, and at the latest, in one or two years."

Fu Zhizhou spoke slowly.

"Attack Wuyun Tower?"

This intelligence did not sound unfamiliar to the three men.

As early as last year, they had anticipated that the authorities would inevitably move against Wuyun Tower; Wuyun Tower was a sinking ship.

But they had not expected that Governor Wang's attack on Wuyun Tower would involve the local militia.

Wei Tu and the others knew better than anyone what the local militia was like—they were mostly just common laborers and errand boys; if they encountered a strong enemy, they would surely collapse instantly.

If the local militia were conscripted, they, as militia martial officers, would certainly not escape.

"This is our chance to earn merit. If we return to the county seat and diligently train the soldiers, we might even secure a chance for promotion."

Kou Liang and Wei Fei were full of fighting spirit and were very optimistic.

In contrast,

Wei Tu was somewhat worried.

Unless absolutely necessary, he did not want to involve himself in the battlefield. After all, blades and spears have no eyes; it would not be good to lose his life on the battlefield.

"My three sworn brothers, once you know this news, go back and secretly train your soldiers and purchase fine armor. When the war breaks out, you will surely be able to establish great achievements."

Fu Zhizhou smiled.

Providing this intelligence was his way of fulfilling last year's promise—to find an opportunity to help Wei Tu and the others.

"Thank you, Fourth Brother."

Wei Tu sighed inwardly, composed his emotions, and along with Kou Liang and Wei Fei, offered his thanks to Fu Zhizhou.

He was a "Commander of the Army"; although he had a few soldiers under him, they did not constitute an army, so the matter of training soldiers was irrelevant to him.

This opportunity to establish merit had little to do with him.

"However, knowing this intelligence in advance is a good thing for me as well. By preparing fine armor ahead of time, I can save my own life at a critical moment on the battlefield..."

Wei Tu thought to himself.

Half an hour later.

Fu Zhizhou donned his bright silver armor, excused himself, and left the private room. He departed Xuanhe Tower to return to the Governor's mansion for duty.

Subsequently,

The three men also departed one by one.

...

Returning to the Shan residence in the prefectural city.

Wei Tu stayed for two or three days until Shan Yanguang's banquet for the new concubine was over, and only then did he return to Qingshan County with Wei Fei.

After returning to the county,

This time, Wei Tu did not dwell on the matter of borrowing money and incurring favors. For the sake of a set of fine armor, he approached Wei Fei and borrowed fifty taels of silver from him.

Next, Wei Tu approached the Huang family once more, wrote an IOU, and borrowed thirty taels of silver from his second aunt, Wei Hong.

A total of eighty taels of silver.

Wei Tu brought all this money to the militia's blacksmith shop, requesting the blacksmith to forge him a set of high-quality armor with thorough protection.

Time passed slowly.

In the blink of an eye, it was the twenty-sixth year of Qing'an.

This year,

It was the fifth year of Wei Tu's cultivation of the "Turtle Breath Qi-Nurturing Technique."

In the small courtyard, after Wei Tu finished the twelfth repetition of the health-preserving stance training, he suddenly felt a wisp of drifting breath within his meridians.

This drifting breath was completely different from the warm currents that surged through his body during his usual stance training.

He seemed able to use his will to control this drifting breath, making it exit his meridians and move outside his body.

Seeing this, how could Wei Tu not understand?

He had finally, through the health-preserving technique, progressed from the outside to the inside and cultivated his first wisp of internal Qi.

Thinking of this, Wei Tu immediately immersed his consciousness into his "Late Bloomer" destiny to observe the changes in the characters of this gold-purple destiny.

「Turtle Breath Qi-Nurturing Technique (100/100): Nine practices a day; completed in five years.」

"I've done it!"

"Not only did I enter the Qi-Sensing Realm before the five-year mark, but I also managed to significantly increase my strength before the authorities attack Wuyun Tower..."

Wei Tu's face lit up with joy.

He remembered clearly that he had begun practicing the health-preserving technique in the late autumn of the twenty-first year of Qing'an, and now, entering the Qi-Sensing Realm was in the summer of the twenty-sixth year of Qing'an.

The time elapsed was several months; although not long, it was enough to prove that his efforts were effective.

He could complete the progress of the "Late Bloomer" destiny ahead of schedule; he did not necessarily have to wait until the fixed years indicated by the prompt.

...

PS: This chapter is three thousand words, a bit late in updating, please keep reading.

(End of Chapter)