Elder Remer
Having been in the Four Continents Sect for so long, Han Jiang has only met the Grand Elder once.
On the day of the election, all the elders gathered at the outer mountain, and the first elder to emerge from the Hidden Cloud Hall was an elder.
After Han Tian lost his position as sect leader, the old sect leader chose Lei Mo to become the new sect leader. Lei Mo was a kind person, but he was in poor health, and after only a few years as sect leader, he began to go into seclusion for many years.
Although he still takes on disciples, he rarely instructs them personally. Lei Shan's disciples are taught by their senior brothers and sisters, and many disciples are even taught by Elder Chi Cheng.
Leishan has many disciples, unlike Hanshan which only has Han Jiang and Han Qi, so each disciple has their own separate residence. Leishan disciples live in courtyards with five or six people per courtyard.
The lights are all off now, so looking for someone would definitely cause a huge commotion.
The dark figure disappeared after landing on Leishan Mountain.
"Are they in cahoots with the rebel shadows from before?" Han Jiang asked.
Cang Jingqi lowered his folding fan, which was too conspicuous as it flew in mid-air.
"No, they seem to be from your Four Provinces Sect."
"Then we'll have to report to the Second Elder tomorrow. Let's head back tonight," Han Jiang said. "By the way, what are you doing in the forbidden book section?"
"Me? It was clearly you in the forbidden book section; I followed you in," Cang Jingqi retorted.
Han Jiang was speechless: "I was chasing that shadowy figure! Let's not talk about tonight, why did you suddenly disappear in the alley in Yinzhou that day? And then you reappeared in the illusion of the mansion? And where did you go after the explosion?"
Cang Jingqi coughed twice, feigning annoyance: "Something suddenly came up. What could it be? I'm actually more interested in you."
Han Jiang frowned, clearly trying to change the subject.
"You weren't close to Miss Wen before, were you? How come you're always together now? You even spoke up for her during the Three Gates Treasure Hunt. Is she from another world too?"
"The Han Jiang of the past is dead. I am not the same person as her, so naturally the friends I make are different."
"So the Han Jiang of the past liked Crimson Gold, so you don't like him now, right?"
Cang Jingqi's amused expression made Han Jiang feel somewhat uncomfortable.
"What's it to you? Do you treat everyone like this?" Han Jiang asked.
"Do you want me to be like this with everyone?" As before, if he didn't want to answer a question, he would throw out another one.
Hanjiang didn't know how to answer, and couldn't think of any other question to replace it, so he stopped talking.
We walked down Leishan Mountain in silence.
Han Jiang turned and headed towards Hanshan, with Cang Jingqi still following behind her. They were probably going to Hanshan to find Han Tian.
Cang Jingqi walked beside her casually, one hand fanning himself while the other was behind his back. He was much taller than Han Jiang, and from the side, Han Jiang couldn't see the expression on his face.
A voice came from above: "I was trying to lighten the mood, but it seems I've made you angry instead."
"I'm not angry," Han Jiang said. "We're not that close, so there's no need to force a conversation."
"Not familiar? I think we're quite familiar. You've saved me twice already. I should apologize to you, I'm sorry." Cang Jingqi held his fan, bowed slightly, and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.
Unlike a joke where he turned a blind eye, he stared intently at Han Jiang with both eyes.
Han Jiang turned to look at him. Moonlight shone through the clouds, illuminating the road ahead and also his eyes.
—The characters in romance novels are all quite good-looking.
"I forgive you!" Han Jiang didn't want to argue with Cang Jingqi.
So you like red gold?
Han Jiang found Cang Jingqi's question inexplicable and said, "What, are you going to complain to my master? Free love is encouraged now!"
What does "free love" mean?
"That's right—" Han Jiang deliberately dragged out her words, "I can like whoever I want!"
With a "mind your own business" expression, Hanjiang skipped into "Hanjiang Villa" and waved to Cang Jingqi.
She's inside; you can leave now.
Cang Jingqi was actually fine; he hadn't come to find Han Tian. But it was strange that he turned around and went down the mountain after getting here, as if he was deliberately escorting someone home. So he simply continued up the mountain.
Even in the cold winter, we did not go to bed, but strolled together in the courtyard.
"Don't tell me you came to see me in the middle of the night just to take a walk on this cold mountain top." Han Tian said through gritted teeth, fighting off his sleepiness.
Cang Jing chuckled: "How could that be? I'm here to give you a heads-up. Your little apprentice will be making a move tomorrow."
Han Tian said, "You're being far too attentive to my disciple. I just told you to keep an eye on her and observe her privately, not to get so close to her!"
"I was just observing in private!"
He secretly observed Han Jiang under his own eyes.
Han Tian's tone was serious: "I'm not joking with you. Xiao Man is so different from before, it's like she's a completely different person! Can you sense her spiritual energy? Is it the same as before?"
“I didn’t have much interaction with her to begin with, I’d only met her a few times occasionally, and I didn’t think there was any difference in our spiritual energy.”
Having promised to keep someone's secret, Cang Jingqi naturally kept his word; he was a man of his word. The only one to blame was that Han Tian contacted him too late; he had already made a deal with someone else.
Hearing Cang Jingqi say this, Han Tian decided to stop doubting Han Jiang.
In this world, only Cang Jingqi can use spiritual power to perceive the identity of others. If he says that Han Jiang is still Han Jiang, then there is no controversy.
Could it be that Cang Jingqi would lie to his longtime friend? Han Tian believed Cang Jingqi.
The next morning, just as Cang Jingqi had said, Han Jiang came to see Han Tian for something.
Wen Xu followed the shadowy figure last night, but after leaving the restricted book area, the shadowy figure vanished as if it had evaporated.
Distracting tactics.
To avoid alerting the enemy, Wen Xu only summoned Elder Chicheng to Hanshan to discuss the matter with Hantian.
"Are you saying that someone sneaked into the forbidden book area last night to steal books? And then escaped to Leishan?" Chicheng didn't believe that the disciples of the Four Continents Sect would break the rules.
The books in the restricted area are only for the elders to read, and borrowing books requires registration.
Chicheng didn't believe Wenxu and Hanjiang were the type to lie. Although he disapproved of Hanjiang's unambitious attitude towards learning, he trusted the character of every disciple in the Four Continents Sect.
“Since that’s the case, Elder Chicheng, why don’t you come with me to check the books in the forbidden book section?” Hantian suggested.
"Alright, this is a very important matter, so please do not spread it outside."
The forbidden book section of the Shishu sect contains a considerable number of banned books.
In the early years, those forbidden books were stored in the Vermilion Bird Pavilion and the Demon Palace, but the number was too large and difficult to manage, so a considerable portion was transferred to the Four Continents Sect and a barrier was set up.
The barrier around the forbidden book area showed signs of damage, and Han Tian, led by Han Jiang, found a breach in the barrier.
Han Tian's expression immediately turned cold.
There's a reason why every book is banned, so it shouldn't be consulted except in special circumstances. A breach in the barrier of the restricted book zone could very well mean that banned books could be exploited by unknown individuals.
The problem of the Four Prefectures Sect failing to properly supervise the forbidden books is minor; however, if someone uses these forbidden books to harm the people, the trouble will be much greater.
Chicheng swiftly ordered the library to be sealed off and summoned all the elders to verify the forbidden books.
Even the Grand Elder Remer, who was still in seclusion, forced himself to come out and deal with the matter.
The seven elders inspected the barrier from day to night, repairing it and adding two new barriers on top of the original one.
"The forbidden books are not missing. It seems that the shadowy figure only came to check the books and did not take them away." Elder Chicheng breathed a sigh of relief.
Han Tian cautiously said, "We must not let our guard down. Xiao Man said that the shadowy figure escaped to Leishan. We should go to Leishan to investigate."
"Go ahead and investigate! If you find that my disciple has been reading forbidden books, I will not tolerate it!" Elder Lei Mo rarely lost his temper.
A thorough search of Leishan revealed nothing unusual; no disciples stayed out all night, and no disciples visited the forbidden book area.
"Are they outsiders?" Han Jiang asked.
Lei Mo said, "Lei Mountain is heavily guarded, with people on guard every night. How could there be any outsiders?"
"The night before last, the entire Leishan Mountain was dark, without even a lamp lit. Where would disciples have come from to keep watch?" Han Jiang retorted.
"Nonsense! You followed that man up Leishan that night, yet you didn't catch him?" Lei Mo questioned Han Jiang. "Han Jiang, why were you in the forbidden book area back then? Are you trying to cry wolf?"
"What does the sect leader mean by this? Does he doubt my disciple?" Han Tian defended his own.
"If you can suspect my apprentice, why can't I suspect yours?" Remer said. "If you're going to investigate, investigate your apprentice too!"
The group arrived at Hanjiang's villa, opened the study, and found several sheets of paper on the desk, torn from a book.
Elder Shu Qing, who was familiar with all the books in the library, said, "These are not ordinary books; they must have been torn from forbidden books."
Han Jiang looked shocked: No! This is a complete frame-up!
There was nothing when I left this morning, but when people arrived, there were a few more pages of paper!
"Master, I'm innocent! I've been framed by villains!" Han Jiang cried out.
Wen Xu, who was following behind, was also confused. This part wasn't in the original book!
Remer said, "Slandering fellow disciples and stealing forbidden books—"
Han Jiang interrupted urgently: "I didn't! His Highness was there that night too, he can testify!"
Cang Jingqi suddenly appeared out of nowhere, or perhaps he had been following the group the whole time: "No, Miss Han, I've been chatting with your master all night!"
"I can't fly on a sword, how could I have chased the shadow without you!" Han Jiang stared wide-eyed, his eyes clearly saying: Cang Jingqi, whose side are you on?
Lei Mo added, "That makes sense. Han Jiang can't fly on a sword, so she didn't come to Lei Shan that night at all. She's just trying to frame my Lei Shan disciples!"
Who's framing whom?! Han Jiang, constrained by his status, couldn't openly curse, but could only rage in his heart.
"I don't believe my disciple would do such a thing. I urge the sect leader to reconsider," Han Tian said.
Remer said anxiously, "There's not much to say. Han Jiang has committed academic misconduct and made a serious mistake. He should be expelled from the Four States Sect."
"If I committed academic misconduct, how am I supposed to break through the barrier of the restricted book area!" Han Jiang wasn't exactly a patient person; he was about to kick her out, so why was she still pretending to be a pushover?
"Perhaps you have accomplices?" Remer's eyes swept over Wen Xu.
“I only saw a dark figure the night before last, but I didn’t see where it went,” Wen Xu said.
Even Wen Xu wouldn't help her. For a moment, Han Jiang felt like dying.
Remer seemed quite satisfied with Wen Xu's answer and said, "Han Jiang, is there anything else you want to say?"
“Xiaoman is not wrong.” Han Tian stood between Lei Mo and Han Jiang.
"Since Elder Hantian is unwilling, how about this: let Hanjiang follow me into seclusion to cultivate, reflect on his mistakes, and repent?"
"No!"
"don't want!"
Cang Jingqi and Han Jiang spoke at the same time.
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