Wait a minute, where is my master?

Imperial City, Taiji Palace

Xia Xuanmin didn't speak further and left Xia Yunzhao time to herself.

He, on the other hand, reminisced about what he had seen through the Glazed Wisdom Eye that day.

...

In his early years, the heir Xia Xuanmin had in mind was not the Seventh Princess before him.

It was her brother, the current Crown Prince Xia Yunmian.

It was only after the Seventh Princess demonstrated her exceptional talent in cultivation that she caught his attention.

The Great Xia Dynasty currently did not have a Crown Prince. Xia Yunzhao's father felt that he was still in his prime and that there was no need to determine his successor just yet.

However, what he probably didn't expect was that, without making a choice, his father had already made one for him.

And it wasn't the Crown Prince, but the kind that went directly to being Emperor upon succession.

As for why he ended up not choosing the Crown Prince but switched to Xia Yunzhao instead,

One reason was that the former had flaws.

The second was that he saw a vision too horrific for words through the Glazed Wisdom Eye.

Even now, recalling it still makes Xia Xuanmin want to gasp in shock.

The Crown Prince Xia Yunmian was gentle, respectful, and generous in character.

He bore a resemblance to Xia Xuanmin, and he was also extremely supportive of the current national policies of Great Xia. A faction within the Qingmu Academy's Confucian cultivators had always been the staunch supporters of the Crown Prince.

Seeing this, Xia Yunmian would seem a perfect fit, but unfortunately, he had one flaw.

His talent in cultivation was mediocre, extremely so.

To what extent? Even after spending hundreds of years piling up cultivation resources in the Great Xia Dynasty, the Crown Prince remained stuck at the Ninth Layer of Nascent Soul Realm.

With such cultivation, what sort of Emperor could he become? After ascension, he would probably not live long before dying of old age.

Thus, after realizing that his eldest grandson was unhelpful in cultivation, he gave up.

And then there was that day, in the river of time yet to come,

Xia Xuanmin, driven by curiosity, peeked into what the future would hold if he chose the Crown Prince as his successor.

Then... he saw the pitiful Crown Prince nailed by the Demon Sect and his own imperial uncles to the coiled dragon pillar in the court on the day of his ascension.

Those former staunch supporters didn't make a peep!

In contrast, the situation with Xia Yunzhao was vastly different.

Although she too was only at Nascent Soul Realm, she was young with unlimited prospects, and she might be able to go higher and further in the future.

It was very likely that she could take that step and not be trapped like her Emperor grandfather.

Of course, the main reason was that in the river of time, he saw Xia Yunzhao reaching the Tribulation Crossing Realm and sitting steadily on the imperial throne.

Although for some reason, he couldn't see the entire process, no matter how much of his lifespan he consumed, the concrete outcome was right before his eyes.

That process then seemed not so important after all.

So today, he had made up his mind to summon Xia Yunzhao and ask her that question.

...

In the grand hall, Xia Yunzhao, whose mind had gone blank for a good while, finally regained her composure.

She tried to calm down, making her voice sound less panicked.

"Grandpa Emperor. Mother said she has sent for the Great Elder of the Shui Clan to come to refine a healing elixir for you. He's one of the best alchemists in the Nine Provinces Realm, you... you will definitely be... you won't have anything to worry about," she said.

By the end of her speech, the Seventh Princess still couldn't hold back, her voice choking slightly.

She didn't know why, but despite the limited interaction with the old man before her, she just couldn't control her sadness.

Seeing his granddaughter's state, a smile spread across the increasingly aged face of Xia Xuanmin.

"The Great Elder of the Shui Clan won't be able to come. Her clan is also facing a lot of troubles lately.

Besides, even if she could come, she wouldn't be able to save your Emperor Grandfather's life. Injuries that have been hidden for thousands of years, if they could be healed, relying on the Xia family's strength, would have been healed long ago."

The founding Emperor of Great Xia spoke with detachment, then waved his hand to the Seventh Princess, who was at a loss for words.

"Yunzhao, come closer, let your Emperor Grandfather get a good look at you."

At this point, his thoughts had changed somewhat. Originally, he intended to coax or compel by force if necessary, to ensure that Xia Yunzhao would inherit the throne of Great Xia.

Now, Xia Xuanmin had decided to make the pros and cons clear, allowing his beloved granddaughter to choose for herself.

As for the Great Xia Dynasty...

"Ning'er, if you saw this child with your own eyes, you'd probably do the same as me."

Xia Xuanmin thought to himself, looking at his granddaughter who was walking up to him.

Then, he began to explain the current situation of Great Xia and the important relationships to Xia Yunzhao.

...

In the Imperial City, the harem.

Jin Xu pushed open the palace doors and exited, with a beautiful woman in white bidding farewell behind him, saying, "If you have the time later, brother, you should stay here for a few more days.

Zhaoer is usually reserved and doesn't have many friends. It's only after her return from Gusu City this time that she's shown more smiles on her face.

As her uncle, you should spend more time with her."

The little Taoist almost stumbled as he walked out and then frantically sent a message to the jade token in his chest.

Telling the maid Little Huan to come and meet him.

Jin Xu had a PTSD fear of being detained, terrified that as he walked, a Water Prison would fall from the sky.

Behind him, the lady in white watched the little Taoist's reaction and covered her mouth to chuckle lightly, her face revealing a touch of playfulness. It seemed that in her youth, she must have been a whimsical and lively person.

Fortunately, Little Huan hadn't gone far and arrived quickly.

After bidding farewell to this sudden older sister, who was actually his aunt, Jin Xu hurriedly followed the maid to leave.

The woman in white stood at the entrance of the palace, watching his hastening steps as he left, but the playfulness recently present on her face was gone, replaced by a trace of melancholy in her eyes.

"To think Zhaoer has taken a liking to such a blockhead, how will she manage in the future. It would be better to find someone like her father, who, although unremarkable, knows how to please a girl's heart."

As a mother, she was very worried at this moment.

"Oh well, let it be; grandchildren have their own fortunes. I wonder what matter brought Zhaoer to be summoned by grandpa today."

She thought to herself as she turned and headed straight for the Imperial Study.

It was a busy time, and if it weren't for the visit of a friend's disciple, she truly wouldn't have been able to take a break.

...

On the streets of Shangjing City, Jin Xu sat inside a carriage.

The maid Little Huan hadn't followed; only the coachman was responsible for taking him back to Yanyu Building.

This trip to the palace yielded some gains, but not many.

From Xia Yunzhao's mother, the little Taoist learned that his master used to enjoy wandering among the secular world and acted rather uprightly.

Then...

That was it.

Xia Yunzhao's mother knew nothing about the disappearance of Taoist Tianxing, nor about his life and past, and the Taoist name left to the Chen family by Jin Xu's master wasn't even "Tianxing."

If it hadn't been for Guan Ling's insistence that the token was unique to his master, the little Taoist would have doubted that he was tracking down the wrong lead.

Even so, the Chen family indeed never used the token afterward. The old Chen patriarch passed it to his daughter before his death, and it was then passed down to her daughter.

The time Xia Yunzhao went to Gusu City was the first activation of this token.

And it didn't even work.

If Jin Xu hadn't been fished up in time, there could have been a serious accident.

"So, the lead on my master has broken again, huh."

The little Taoist sat dejected, and then heard the coachman outside the carriage call out,

"Taoist, we've arrived at Yanyu Building."

Jin Xu politely responded, and then thought to give the coachman something to express his thanks, only to realize his storage magical item was not on him.

So he gave the jade token that Little Huan had given him to the coachman instead.

"Anyhow, it's a piece of jade, so it should be worth something, right?"

The little Taoist stepped into Yanyu Building.

Leaving behind a very confused coachman.

...

Inside Yanyu Building, as soon as Jin Xu entered, the servant who had received him that day hurriedly came to greet him.

"Little Taoist, you have returned!"