Chapter 178

Chapter 178

“Everyone, the reason why I decided on so is so as to attract more Imperial Army instructors to offer their services in the future . If others were to think that I don’t pay remuneration for their hard work, no one will think of coming here in the future . How about this then? If you all truly find the matter hard to accept, why don’t we reduce the original price by half then . ”

Wang Chong smiled .

“This… alright then!”

The eight Imperial Army instructors stared at one another, and feeling that Wang Chong’s words were logical, they finally nodded in agreement .

Upon seeing this sight, Wang Chong smiled .

After which, they had to finalize the details .

Wang Chong’s training camp would be built on the spirit vein; this matter had already been decided beforehand . His teacher, the Demonic Emperor Old Man, would be there to guard the area . Furthermore, considering the incredible strength these Imperial Army instructors possess, there was no need to worry about its security .

Smaller powers wouldn’t even dare to dream of touching Wang Chong’s spirit vein .

As for the construction of the training camp…

Wang Chong had already invest money into it quite a long time ago . Even though it probably wasn’t completed yet, there should be a rough outline of it already .

“Great! To think that gongzi would even find a spirit vein! That explains why you wish to recruit so many Imperial Army instructors . Don’t worry, we’ll travel there tomorrow and do as you say . ”

The eight powerfully-built Imperial Army instructors were excited . Even though the Wang Clan was influential, its accumulation and strength in various aspects were lacking .

They had only come in awe of Wang Chong’s character . They did not think that Wang Chong’s preparations would be so thorough .

A spirit vein was not something that just any power could obtain .

The Imperial Army instructors were trustworthy and reliable people . As soon as they agreed to Wang Chong’s request, they immediately headed off to the spirit vein under the lead of a group of Wang Family Residence guards .

…

“Wang gongzi, it has been long since we last met!”

Not too long after the eight Imperial Army instructors left, a white-robed, middle-aged man wearing a silk hat and carrying a refined disposition walked into the room .

Wang Chong’s memorial had shaken the world .

As such, various powers had turned their eyes to him, and they had been waiting in anticipation for his release . Thus, he was destined to be unable to enjoy tranquility, at least for this period of time .

“You are?”

Wang Chong frowned in bewilderment when he saw a foreign man walking in .

Wang Chong didn’t think that the residence guards would allow any stranger to walk in easily . However, Wang Chong truly didn’t recognize the person before him .

“Hahaha, Wang gongzi, we’ve just met a few months ago . Back then, you gifted me with a thousand gold taels . Have you forgotten the matter already?”

The guest chuckled heartily .

“A thousand gold taels?”

Wang Chong was getting more and more baffled . Even though he was wealthy in the truest sense now, a thousand gold taels wasn’t a small sum at all . It should be impossible for Wang Chong to send out such a huge sum of money .

“How is that possible? Who is this man?”

Wang Chong narrowed his eyes in doubt . He didn’t think that he was a forgetful person; if he had seen this man before, he would surely be able to remember him .

However, Wang Chong truly had no impression of him at all!

“Hehe, gongzi, you sure are a forgetful person . Do you remember the man whom you helped near Bluebottle Pavilion back then?”

The guest finally retracted his smile and asked slowly .

Boom!

As though a strike of lightning, Wang Chong abruptly widened his eyes as he stared at the white-robed man in disbelief .

“It’s you! …”

Wang Chong finally knew who the guest was . However, this only left Wang Chong in greater disbelief .

Yang Zhao!

This person was Yang Zhao! The man whom he met outside the Bluebottle Pavilion, that unkempt, thug-like man!

The future Imperial Uncle of Great Tang!

The reason why Wang Chong had such a deep impression of him was due to another resounding alias that he would assume in the future:

Yang Guozhong!

Yang Zhao was his original name whereas ‘Guozhong’ was the alias he took on when he was at the peak of his power .

However, other than Wang Chong, no one knew about it at the moment, not even Yang Zhao himself .

“It’s actually him! But how can a person’s disposition change so much?!”

Wang Chong suffered a tremendous shock .

This was the first time Wang Chong saw a person’s disposition changing to such a huge extent .

He had seen Yang Zhao in his worst state; back then, he was no different from a gangster .

However, the current Yang Zhao looked no different from a refined academic . His every movement exuded grace that would leave even the influential officials in the royal court red in embarrassment . He was even more scholarly than the scholars!

“It’s no wonder why he’s able to make a name for himself in the royal court later on . Just by his appearance and disposition itself, he wasn’t inferior to the other officials already . ”

Wang Chong knew about Yang Zhao’s background .

But even so, he couldn’t help but feel impressed by the other party at this moment . Even he himself was incapable of making such an abrupt, massive change .

“Hahaha, gongzi still don’t know who I am, right? My surname is Yang and my name is Zhao . Consort Taizhen is my close cousin!”

Bending his back, Yang Zhao introduced himself with a gleeful smile .

It was a pity that his glee ruined the refined image that he had built up with great difficulty . On the inside, Yang Zhao was still an oaf .

“I see, so you’re Consort Taizhen’s cousin!”

On the surface, Wang Chong looked surprised, but on the inside, he was chuckling .

He had already known Yang Zhao’s background the first time he met him . However, he couldn’t possibly reveal it before the other party .

“I’ve been wanting to thank gongzi for your generous gift back then . Thus, I’ve prepared a thousand gold taels on my carriage outside, and I’ll have my men carry it in later on . ”

Yang Zhao said with a serious expression .

“I’ll be a fool if I believe you . ”

Wang Chong scoffed within . Knowing the character of the man before him, it was impossible for him to have a thousand gold taels in his carriage .

In his previous life, Yang Zhao’s reputation as a scrooge was known throughout the world .

While Yang Zhao was uneducated and inept in all other aspects, perhaps due to the result of him frequenting gambling dens, he showed exceptional acuity in matters regarding finance .

And his acuity seemed to have built to his calculative nature .

It was impossible for a person of his character to spit out something that he had accepted .

“Lord Yang is being too polite . Since I’ve already given it to you, it’s yours . It’s also a gesture of goodwill on my part so there’s no need for you to be so formal . ”

Wang Chong replied .

“Since that’s the case, I won’t be polite then . ”

Yang Zhao was just speaking for the sake of politeness . If Wang Chong really intended to collect the sum from him, he didn’t have a single tael to give him .

“Right . Actually, I came here bearing a mission . Gongzi, this is a letter from Her Highness so do look through it . ”

“Oh?”

Wang Chong glanced at Yang Zhao in astonishment .

He didn’t expect that the only who was truly interested in meeting him was Consort Taizhen .

He took the envelope from Yang Zhao’s hands and glanced at it . The words on the envelope were elegant, possessing the refinement belonging to a distinguished family .

“It is Consort Taizhen’s personal handwriting!”

Coming to a realization, Wang Chong was taken aback .

Consort Taizhen had the habit of having others write in her place . As such, there were very few people who possessed Consort Taizhen’s handwritten letters in his previous life .

Wang Chong didn’t expect to receive such a rare commodity .

Consort Taizhen’s strokes were slightly slim, bearing some resemblance the crane script . However, there was a feminine touch to it . Taking a slight whiff, one could vaguely smell the fragrance belonging to a demure lady, causing one’s heart to flutter .

Wang Chong’s heart jolted . He hurriedly calmed his heart and tore the envelope to take a look .

The content of Consort Taizhen’s letter was extremely ordinary .

She first berated Wang Chong for his boldness in impersonating King Song before complimenting him on the poem .

She said that his poem was extremely beautiful and soulful, and complimented his verses .

And the final line wrote:

“Since the poem is named Song of Purity and Peace 1, there must be a second part to it . Gongzi is a talented poet and your work is exceptional . Thus, I would like to urge you for the latter portion so as to savor it!”

“There isn’t just a second part to the Song of Purity and Peace, there are three parts in total!”

At this point, Wang Chong finally understood Yang Zhao’s purpose here . It seemed like the prowess of the 《Song of Purity and Peace》 was indeed formidable .

From the looks of it, Wang Chong wasn’t the only one who suffered from the three months of imprisonment . If that wasn’t the case, Consort Taizhen wouldn’t have hurriedly sent Yang Zhao over to request for the poem as soon as Wang Chong was released .

After all, that person was a true poem fanatic!

“Hehe, I don’t know much about poems, and I don’t know how to appreciate them either . However, Her Highness said that the poems you made are extraordinary . If gongzi is free, I do hope that you can pay Yuzhen Palace a visit . ”

Yang Zhao said sheepishly as he rubbed his nose .

What Yang Zhao was interested in was money, but Consort Taizhen just had to send him here to request for a ‘poem’ . Yang Zhao possessed no talent whatsoever in this field so there was nothing much for him to talk about .

If Wang Chong were to start talking about poetry to him, he would only be exposing his own shortcomings . Thus, he felt a little awkward and embarrassed .

“Hehe, Lord Yang is being too polite . If Her Highness is interested, I’ll write it right now . ”

Wang Chong didn’t jab at the other party’s shortcomings . Instead, he contemplated for a moment before using the tools in the study to write down Song of Purity and Peace 2 .

The reason why Wang Chong was hesitant to pass this poem to Consort Taizhen wasn’t to leave her hanging or to brag his talents . Rather, it was because the content of this poem was treading on the dangerous zones .

In another time-space continuum, a verse in the second part mentioned ‘Zhao Feiyan’, and that nearly caused Li Bai’s death . It was due to this reason that Wang Chong was hesitant to write the second part .

(Li Bai -> Original poet of Song of Purity and Peace)

However, in the past three months, Wang Chong managed to find a solution .

It did not take long for Wang Chong to finish writing the acclaimed Song of Purity and Peace 2 .

“A branch of crimson glamor, the peony appears embalmed in dew . ”

“A reverie of a reunion with the goddess of Wu Mountain woefully illudes . ”

“Who of the Spring and Autumn could match her grace?”

“Alas, pity the lovely Xi Shi’s crestfallen silhouette . ”

…

Four lines consisting a total of forty-two words took only several breaths to complete . Yang Zhao couldn’t help but feel impressed . He might be uneducated, but he was not completely ignorant .

Even a genius would require some time to build up their emotions and sieve their words before they could write a poem . Despite the very few words in this poem, it would still take at least an hour usually .

However, Wang Chong finished it in just a few breaths . This astonishing capability left even Yang Zhao dumbfounded .

He finally understood the extent of Wang Chong’s ‘poetry talent’ .

The young man before him was not a person who could be comprehended through common sense!

“Incredible!”

Yang Zhao complimented . He was uncouth, but that didn’t impede him from respecting capable people .

There are various styles to calligraphy, and crane script is one of them .

Zhao Feiyan was an empress during the Han Dynasty .

(Her name translates into flying swallow)

She was known to be a great beauty, and there was a saying ‘The plump Huan and the slim Yan’ to refer to these two beauties, Yang Yuhuan and Zhao Feiyan .

The poem should have meant that only Zhao Feiyan could match up to Consort Taizhen’s grace, but Zhao Feiyan happened to have a horrid reputation . Thus, some found the poem offensive .

Thus, Wang Chong replaced the poem with another one of the Four Great Beauties of China during the Spring and Autumn period, Xi Shi (Xi Zi) .

“A branch of crimson glamour, the peony appears embalmed in dew . ”

“A reverie of a reunion with the goddess of Wu Mountain woefully illudes . ”

“Who of the Spring and Autumn could match her grace?”

“Alas, pity the lovely Xi Zi crestfallen silhouette . ”

The first verse was a reference to peony .

The second verse refers to one of the Chinese legends, depicting the legend of Chu Wang (King Chu) with a goddess at the top of Mountain Wu, and it is lamenting that despite everything, it was just a work of fiction .