NOVEL NEXT Chapter 22: Chun Fei's Exploration
When Lin Ping returned to the cold palace, he saw Chun Fei and imperial maid Yun Su throwing various gift boxes outside.
These were gift boxes that included food, clothes, and other objects.
They had been brought by the Emperor when he came to visit.
The two of them did not talk. The Emperor was not willing to investigate the truth behind the matter and did not agree to punish the Empress. Thus, Chun Fei could not possibly forgive him and was not even willing to use the items he had brought over.
When Chun Fei saw Lin Ping return, she immediately stopped. Then, she walked up and greeted him, "Lin Ping…"
She looked as if she wanted to speak but had stopped herself.
It had been eight years since Lin Ping had arrived at the cold palace. Apart from the first one-and-a-half years, Lin Ping had been quiet and did not display any special characteristics. Chun Fei had not paid any attention to him and had stayed in her room during the day. Thus, they had only seen each other a few times.
Only when Lin Ping stepped in and killed grade-7 Directorate of Ceremonial Assistant Manager Zhu Dayong to save Chun Fei did they grow closer to each other.
In the beginning, Chun Fei was filled with reverence towards Lin Ping, who had a grade-7 cultivation base.
With more than six years of interaction, Chun Fei had realized that Lin Ping was actually easy to get along with. He did not have any strange hobbies nor the arrogance of a master and was typically very low-key. As a result, Chun Fei's feelings towards Lin Ping unconsciously changed.
Chun Fei did not see herself as an imperial concubine, but a disciple of the Taixu Sect. Meanwhile, she treated Lin Ping as a Jianghu expert.
There were even times when she would consult Lin Ping regarding some difficulty in her martial arts.
Over the past few years, Chun Fei's strength improved rapidly. She was able to advance from grade-5 to grade-6 partly because of Lin Ping's guidance.
Thus, their relationship inclined more towards being "friends".
However, today, Chun Fei saw that there were obviously some changes in Lin Ping's gaze. There were more suspicion and disbelief. Thus, after greeting him, she did not know what to say, and tried to speak but stopped.
"Your Majesty, is anything the matter?" Lin Ping asked.
In the end, Chun Fei was not someone who could hide things. After hesitating for a moment, she eventually nodded her head and said, "Just now, the Emperor came to Changmen Palace. You must've seen him when you came back, right? This is the first time he has visited Changmen Palace in the past decade."
Lin Ping merely nodded in response.
Chun Fei looked at the pile of gift boxes on the ground with a strange gaze and said, "In reality, ever since a few days ago, he has been continually sending people over to deliver things. I knew that something was wrong then. After all, on that night at Changchun Palace, he had left me no room for maneuver and clearly stated that he would take the Empress's side. But now, he actually wants to rope me over! He even put away his arrogant attitude and actively came to Changmen Palace. This is just too strange!"
"I know Xia Jianshen very clearly. He will definitely not do so for no reason, nor was he trying to make up for his remorse towards my sister back then only now. He definitely must have felt that there is some value in using me for him to do so!
"I suspect that all this is related to Black and White Impermanence's deaths in Changmen Palace that night!
"It seems like the mysterious grade-9 master who killed Black and White Impermanence was not the imperial family's guest elder! Xia Jianshen himself doesn't even know who this mysterious expert is. Thus, he is now guessing that this expert has some relation to Changmen Palace! After all, Black and White Impermanence died here.
"Since Xia Jianshen sent gifts and even personally came to Changmen Palace, his final objective must be to rope in the mysterious grade-9 master who he thinks is supporting me!"
While Chun Fei was explaining her guess, her gaze constantly focused on Lin Ping's expression to see if it would provide any clues.
However, it was a pity that there was no change in Lin Ping's expression throughout. He looked as if he was simply listening to Chun Fei.
Upon seeing this, Chun Fei could not help but feel disheartened.
This Lin Ping was truly calm and would not be shocked even if the sky collapsed.
For the past few years, he always seemed to have this indifferent expression. Those who did not know him might even think that he was a monk who had renounced his family.
However, Chun Fei was still not willing to give up. She widened her eyes and asked, "Lin Ping, since the mysterious expert who killed Black and White Impermanence was not the imperial family's guest elder, who exactly do you think is the killer?"
In reality, before this, Chun Fei had firmly believed that the mysterious expert who had killed Black and White Impermanence had nothing to do with Lin Ping.
It was possible that Lin Ping's cultivation base had improved over the past six years and he had broken through to the grade-8 realm. However, if one were to say that Lin Ping had become a grade-9 master, that would definitely be idiotic nonsense!
An ordinary person did not even need to think to know that this was impossible.
However, from Emperor Xia Jianshen's strange behavior recently, she could not help but have her doubts!
If the imperial family's guest elder had not killed Black and White Impermanence, who else could have possibly killed them?
She had now given it some careful thought. That night, there was no one else at Changmen Palace. After all, she only saw Lin Ping after she woke up.
Putting aside all other objective and subjective factors, Lin Ping did seem very suspicious!
Lin Ping furrowed his eyebrows. After some seemingly serious thought, he responded, "If it wasn't the imperial family's guest elder, then it could possibly be an unknown expert hiding in the imperial compound who has a sense of justice and happened to pass by! He is low-key and aloof from the world. He simply deceives others and does not easily attack, instead, spending his time sweeping the ground like me. This time, what Black and White Impermanence did was simply too much, and he could not take it. Thus, he stepped in to kill these two demons."
When Chun Fei heard this, she was dumbfounded and nodded. "Indeed, that guess seems more reasonable."
Since Lin Ping, a grade-7 master, was hiding in Changmen Palace, who could say for sure that there were no other hidden experts in the enormous imperial compound?
There were 100,000 eunuchs in the entire Grand Xia Dynasty!
Such experts would not care about position and wealth. Perhaps they were like Lin Ping and swept the floor all day. To Lin Ping, this person would not be interested in the solicitation and rewards from the Emperor.
"Ai…"
Chun Fei sighed.
Immediately after, she looked at Lin Ping and could not help but laugh. Then, she said with some embarrassment, "In reality, I was just thinking whether the mysterious expert who killed Black and White Impermanence could be you, Lin Ping! Even though this seems very absurd, this is just like how you stepped in to kill Zhu Dayong back then. I never thought that you were behind that. If I hadn't seen it right in front of my eyes, I would not have believed it if anyone said that you had the strength of a grade-7 master.
"That's right. Lin Ping, after so many years have passed, has your cultivation base advanced? Have you broken through to the grade-8 realm? You give me the feeling that you are no longer limited to the grade-7 realm."
Lin Ping did not confirm or deny. He simply said, "More or less."
Chun Fei did not get to the root of the matter and ask him until she understood.
Regardless of whether he was a grade-7 or a grade-8, it was almost the same for the Changmen Palace currently.
"In reality, I was just imagining how great it would be if you were that mysterious grade-9 master. The barbarian envoys are bearing down menacingly and are about to enter the capital. This is the time when Xia Jianshen needs a grade-9 master most urgently. If that were the case, I could ask you to help me exert pressure on Xia Jianshen and make him redress the neglected injustice my sister suffered from back then," said Chun Fei with some regret.
Lin Ping was indifferent. Instead, he felt that he had made a wise decision.
Luckily, he had not exposed his identity. Otherwise, it would have been really troublesome.
Exerting pressure on the Emperor and participating in the battle with the barbarian envoys? These were not necessary at all!
He had not reached a stage where this was his last resort. Before Lin Ping could "revive" himself, he had no interest in participating in these fights at all.
…
Three days before the barbarian envoys were about to enter the capital.
The grade-9 master of the General Who Stabilizes the North, and who was also famous in the Jianghu, Shi Chengtian arrived at the capital. Emperor Xia Jianshen and the Empress personally received him to express their respect.
As the Invincible Iron Fist, Shi Chengtian could not possibly be a simple grade-9 master!
He had made a name for himself in a battle over twenty years ago, where he was not at a disadvantage even when he faced three grade-9 masters by himself!
As matters stood, Shi Chengtian's cultivation was unfathomable and unpredictable.
Perhaps he was no match for those famous Jianghu veterans or Shaolin masters, but he could definitely win against a majority of grade-9 masters!
On the day Shi Chengtian arrived at the capital, the gates of Changmen Palace were knocked on once again…