Martial Cultivator

With the Right Guard's concession, this minor incident passed by. The Left Guard's carriage continued forward until it reached outside the palace gates, where it then entered its designated parking area. Exiting the carriage, they saw Ye Dayuan and Yao Dao behind them. When Song Lian and Ye Dayuan locked eyes, their expressions differed. Song Lian withdrew his gaze and looked at Chen Chao. "Next time you encounter that guy Ye Dayuan, especially when you have to work with him, remember to keep your guard up. He's the kind of person who can stab you in the back."

Chen Chao nodded, not asking further questions. Either way, he believed that Song Lian would not lie to him.

The two followed the other court officials toward the palace gate. However, it seemed some court officials ahead quickened their pace intentionally, while those behind them slowed down, inadvertently creating a gap that separated the two from the Left Guard.

Song Lian sized Chen Chao up and down and also teased, "Looks like you've managed to offend all these court officials. They seem rather scared of you."

Chen Chao wore an innocent expression. "I only followed the Lord Warden Commander's orders to catch a few spies. If I truly offended anyone, it's that teacher from the academy. How could I have offended them all?"

Song Lian laughed and scolded, "Kid, either you're genuinely clueless or pretending to not know. A single teacher from the academy can have connections with numerous court officials. Remember, you previously locked him up in the dungeon. Now, most of the civil officials probably think you're a lunatic, a rabid dog. If you walk the path of a civil official, this would likely have been the end of your career. The political landscape has many pitfalls for you."

Chen Chao rubbed his cheek and asked, "So, what should I do now? Surely you can't be asking this lowly official to go and kowtow to them to apologize?"

Song Lian shook his head. "That's not necessary. In our warden faction, promotions don't go through the Ministry of Personnel. It's solely the Lord Warden Commander's decision. If you become the Lord Warden Commander in the future, the only person you need to answer to is His Majesty, there's no need to worry. But I advise you to tread carefully in the Divine Capital. If those impoverished scholars decide to write some scathing reports about you, you can't just cut them down, can you?"

It was unsure whether whether Chen Chao had taken the words to heart or not, he just spoke to himself, "This lowly official has no tail to tuck. If they want to scold someone, they may not be this lowly official's match."

Song Lian felt a bit dazed, then suddenly remembered how Chen Chao had initially come from Tianqing County to the Divine Capital and had insulted that hag from the foreign lands in the Ministry of Penalty's hall so much that she spat blood.

Later, by the lakeside at the academy, this fellow had talked until it left the students speechless.

When it came to scolding people, it seemed this fellow was not afraid of anyone.

As the two were chatting, suddenly there was a court official in a red robe waiting for them ahead.

Song Lian was taken aback, looking at the person, raising an eyebrow slightly.

The person waited for the two to approach before saying with vicissitudes of emotion, "It's been a while. Now both of you have become pariahs."

Song Lian chuckled, not paying any heed.

The person then turned to Chen Chao and smiled, "Long time no see."

Chen Chao quickly bowed, "Greetings, Lord Han."

The person in front of them was none other than Han Pu, the Chief Judicial Officer of the Court of Judicial Review who had previously been in charge of adjudicating the case of Chen Chao's unauthorized killing of several qi Refiners. At that time, if it were not for Han Pu's willingness to help him buy some time, the outcome of that case might have been different.

Han Pu walked alongside them, smiling as he said, "Who would have thought that the unusual young man back then could really walk out of this official's dungeon alive? How about it, do you want to revisit that old place?"

Chen Chao smiled bitterly and waved his hand, "I never want to set foot in that place again if I can help it."

Han Pu smiled and did not say much more, only asking, "How are things going with that young lady now? Have you thought about when to get married?" Chen Chao was taken aback. How could he have ever imagined that Han Pu would bring up such a matter?

For a moment, he actually did not know how to respond.

Han Pu smiled and said, "The Xie Family's genius daughter, she's admired by countless young men. This official has even heard that many young generals at the Northern Frontier are interested. Now that the conflict in the North has subsided, they might come back to vie for her hand at any time."

That was indeed a straightforward statement. A girl like Xie Nandu, if not fond of Chen Chao and vice versa, would actually be highly sought after by everyone in the Divine Capital, from princes to ministers' children.

"But in my view, that girl's temperament is extraordinary. She's unlikely to fancy the average youngster. Since she's close to you, do you perhaps have some outstanding qualities?"

Han Pu spoke with a smile, appearing rather ordinary at the moment; like a typical uncle at a street corner chatting casually with Chen Chao.

Song Lian frowned and said, "He's still a child. What rubbish are you talking about?"

Chen Chao also looked puzzled. However, the phrase "outstanding qualities" made him vaguely feel that it was not a compliment.

Han Pu chuckled and said, "You have to grow up eventually."

Song Lian snorted coldly, saying nothing more.

Han Pu then patted Chen Chao on the shoulder, saying with a smile, "Today might be a bit different. Pay attention and learn well during this first grand court session. Perhaps in the future, you'll be indispensable at every court session."

After saying this, Han Pu quickened his pace and left the two behind.

Chen Chao was still a bit confused, not quite understanding the sudden appearance of Han Pu and the meaning behind his words.

Was it to build rapport?

But it seemed too informal and direct, no?

On the other hand, Song Lian paid no heed. Among the court officials, there were few who could be considered solitary, and Han Pu was considered one of them. He was known for not forming alliances or friendships easily. Even if he genuinely thought highly of Chen Chao, reaching the point of their current interaction was already not easy. Wanting to become his friend would likely be as difficult as becoming the Lord Warden Commander.

The two soon walked a considerable distance within the imperial palace, finally approaching a long corridor where they veered left towards a column of military officers.

However, Chen Chao quickly spotted a familiar face at the front of the queue.

Eunuch Li Heng.

This eunuch was most trusted by the Great Liang Emperor, responsible for managing various affairs within the palace. Even court officials of significant status had to show utmost respect and address him as "Eunuch Li." No one had expected him to appear personally at this grand court session.

Song Lian kept his gaze straight ahead and followed the queue, but Chen Chao noticed Li Heng sizing him up.

Li Heng's gaze was gentle, lacking any sharpness. Chen Chao smiled at him, and Li Heng responded with a slight smile. However, as they passed each other, there was no exchange between them.

Once they passed through this corridor, the court officials, both civil and military, fell silent. They were about to enter the square where the grand court session would be held, so nobody dared to speak.

It was incredibly quiet.

……

……

When Chen Chao and Song Lian arrived at the square, just as Song Lian had said, the two of them, along with the other officials of the warden faction, stood in the most remote corner.

However, their positions were rearranged according to their ranks. Song Lian, as one of the highest-ranking members of the warden faction, naturally stood behind the Lord Warden Commander. Behind him was the Commander of the Right Guard, Ye Dayuan, who looked somewhat unhappy. But with the Lord Warden Commander standing in front, he naturally did not say anything.

Chen Chao was originally going to stand in the front, but upon seeing the Deputy Commander of the Right Guard behind him, he voluntarily stopped and let the other proceed.

Yao Dao was taken aback but did not move forward. Instead, he lowered his voice and said, "Deputy Commander Chen is promising and should be at the forefront."

Chen Chao glanced at this Deputy Commander Yao, then humbly replied, "Lord Yao is my senior, this junior dare not vie for precedence."

The two were of equal ranks, so Chen Chao did not address himself as this lowly official.

Yao Dao pondered for a moment but did not say anything further. He simply walked past Chen Chao and stood in front of him.

Chen Chao did not say anything either. Currently, he was just observing his surroundings. The grand court sessions were rare occasions, and not all officials present could be seen daily. However many he could remember at this point was ultimately a good thing.

As more and more officials arrived at the square, the vast plaza was nearly filled with people.

At the forefront of the officials, in the row of civil officials, was naturally the Premier, while the Lord Warden Commander occupied the forefront of the military officials. However, there was an empty space in the other row.

Chen Chao thought for a moment and realized that the position was reserved for the Great General who had not returned from the Northern Frontier.

As the officials continued to arrive, the entire square fell silent.

The Great Liang Emperor disliked extravagance, so the grand court sessions were almost never convened unless necessary. However, if any insensible officials caused trouble on this day, the consequences would be very severe.

In the first few years of the Great Liang Emperor's reign, officials who showed disrespect during the grand court sessions were directly flogged to death on the spot.

With such fatal consequences, everyone naturally behaved with great caution.

After all the officials had assembled, an attendant responsible for taking attendance walked around with a roster, asking each official for their name, and marking their presence.

Once the attendance was completed, Li Heng walked out of the great hall and looked at the officials gathered in the square. He announced loudly, "Announcing the return of the Great General of the Northern Frontier, Xiao Hezheng!"

Upon hearing these words, all the officials in the square were shaken.

Shouldn't the Great General of the Northern Frontier currently be stationed at the Northern Frontier Great Wall? Why did he return to the Divine Capital at this time?

The Lord Warden Commander had a calm expression, seemingly unsurprised by this news.

Chen Chao glanced curiously in that direction, very curious about that peerless martial artist who was the only one among the top three martial artists of the Great Liang Dynasty whom he had never seen before.

The other officials contemplated a lot in their hearts. They had considered many things that might happen today, but they had not expected that the first thing to happen would actually be that the Northern Frontier Great General returning to the Divine Capital.

If the Great General had returned to the Divine Capital, then who was currently defending the Northern Frontier?

If the demons launched another large-scale attack at this moment, could the Northern Frontier be defended?

If it were not for today being the grand court session, it was likely that many court officials would have stepped forward to offer advice.