Royal RoadCh7 - Sabotage

We're recruiting a translator for this novel.
Join us!

Embroidered shoes, silent on the stone steps; wide sleeves reaching for the ground, fluttering in the wind; his departing figure seemed especially ethereal.

Liang Feng had left blithely, but Li Lang was dripping with cold sweat. More than half the gazes that had followed Liang Feng’s exit now landed on him. Only now did Wang Wen notice Li Lang, slouching in a corner looking as if he’d seen a ghost. He’d overlooked him, as the Li family wasn’t prominent by any measure. He almost couldn’t believe this wretched creature was Liang Feng’s cousin! And what did Liang Feng mean by his last remark? WzdECd

Being a highbred aristocrat, Wang Wen only needed a moment’s thought before he frowned and asked, “Was Liang-lang recently living in your residence?”

Li Lang quivered, “Yes….”

Chrysanthemum Garden.

“Why did he miss the assembly?”

“I, I was afraid the stress would damage his health…..” eTA wo

Wang Wen waved his stuttering explanation to a halt and questioned, “What was the reason for Yan Sheng’s death?”

“He… he stole his master’s cold-food powder, h-he’s the Liang family’s servant!” Then, as if he’d grabbed hold of a lifeline, he suddenly blurted, “H-he was caned by Liang Zixi…..”

“Silence!” Wang Wen exclaimed. Although he hadn’t fully raised his voice, Li Lang nearly crumpled on the spot. Wang Wen’s distaste deepened upon witnessing his unseemly behavior. He gestured to a nearby servant, “This cur is tainting my assembly; drag him away.”

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

“Jbcagbiifg! Jbcagbiifg, obgulnf wf….” Ol Ojcu rbyyfv lcvfmbgberis ja atf ecfzqfmafvcfrr bo yflcu yjclrtfv ogbw atf jrrfwyis. Dea atf Qjcu ojwlis’r rfgnjcar yglrxis tjeifv tlw bea bo atf qjnlilbc; atfs kfgfc’a ublcu ab ifa tlw obei atflg wjrafg’r olcf wbbv.

VokBCg

Gfrqlaf yflcu mberlcr, atf vloofgfcmf lc atflg vlrqbrlalbc kjr rajgx jr cluta jcv vjs. Ufgtjqr fnfc Oljcu Mfcu’r rlmxcfrr mbeiv yf alfv ab atf Ol ojwlis. Qjcu Qfc ajqqfv tlr rmfqafg jujlcra tlr qjiw qbcvfgberis jcv rlutfv. Po tf kbeiv qjgalmlqjaf lc atf jrrfwyis, tf’v yf ugjvfv “rfmbcv-gjcx fzmfqalbcji” ja atf nfgs ifjra. Pa kjr bcis j qlas atja tlr tfjga kjr rfa bc batfg wjaafgr. Ktfc jujlc, tbk mbeiv ojwf jcv obgaecf fnfg wbnf rbwfbcf ilxf tlw? Ct kfii, tf’v rff lo tf mbeiv ifnfgjuf rbwf mbccfmalbcr ab tfiq tlw qgfrfgnf tlr ijcv jcv alaif…

After meeting a person of such excellent caliber, the others sullied his eyes doubly so. Wang Wen wearily glanced at the remaining highborn brats, humphed, and unenthusiastically continued the evaluation.

“Master!” Lüzhu cried out when she saw her master stagger down the stairs and rushed to steady him. q4JOVA

“Don’t fret, I’m alright.” Liang Feng’s robes were soaked with cold sweat. His illness had left him frail and feeble. Forcing himself up and down hundreds of steps whilst having to stand straight as a soldier had exhausted all his strength. The young girl was too small to put much weight on, so they only stumbled for a few steps before Liang Feng called for ah-Liang’s help and climbed into the carriage. As soon as the curtain fell, he collapsed onto the cushions, his last bit of endurance spent.

It seemed his posturing had paid off more than he’d expected. Too weak to even lift a finger, Liang Feng laid there, gasping for breath, still faintly smug as he let the maidservant remove his outer robe and wipe his sweat away. He’d really made the right move this time.

The Jin dynasty was particular about putting on aloof, reclusive airs; whether one frolicked about the bamboo forests or retreated into the mountains, the precondition for being a “renowned scholar” in this era was to leave the political arena and all its filthy, impure power struggles far, far away. It didn’t matter whether one secluded themselves because of their inability to enter the bureaucracy or out of genuine integrity; as long as he expressed the right tendencies, his sophistication score would instantly shoot up. The tactic was infallible. And besides, half the stories in A New Account of the Tales of the World shared a central theme: “the smart are stubborn!”

So, when faced with the nobles of the Jin era, especially those from families that took pride in their learnedness, acting like a conceited smart aleck worked every single time. He’d made a show of being so uninhibited that he’d gone to take a farewell visit in his nearly bedridden state, despite being apathetic towards the evaluation. The excerpt from the Diamond Sutra was just the icing on the cake, prepared just for Wang Wen. rUNo3y

In truth, Liang Feng wasn’t familiar with Buddhist teachings, nor did it hold his interest. He’d memorized the Diamond Sutra because when he was little, his grandfather had forced him to learn Liu-style brush calligraphy, and the Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra was among Liu Gongquan’s finest works. He’d copied it forwards and backwards countless times that of course it was ingrained into his memory. He even knew which parts contained the most essential elements. The phrase “are like a dream, an illusion,” was the most important line in that gatha, elucidating the concepts of “emptiness of body,” “emptiness of mind,” “emptiness of essence,” and “emptiness of Dharma” to the highest extent.

The full Diamond Sutra wasn’t due to appear in China until the Later Qin; that was decades after the fall of Western Jin. One could only imagine how alluring it was to Wang Wen. After taking lead of the situation as soon as he arrived and pressing his advantage with ample backup preparation, he’d successfully built his desired image. As for the last sentence that he’d addressed to Li Lang – Liang Feng sneered, as long as Wang Wen wasn’t an idiot, Li Lang would be eating his just desserts.

A warm towel dabbed at his neck. Lüzhu looked at her master, who was still smirking, and finally couldn’t resist asking, “Master, is it really okay to miss the assembly? The next one isn’t for another three years…”

“It’s fine,” Liang Feng answered simply. 9SryKg

He didn’t know how far along the Sima clan’s internal conflict was, but he knew that Western Jin’s downfall was certain. It would last for several more years at most until the fall of Luoyang, and the Jin people’s exodus to the south. What would be the use of becoming a “pure official?” Could it buy him a few more days of survival? As such, Liang Feng couldn’t care less about the scholars’ assembly and that flock of showboating peacocks. If he was going to be trapped in this era, he’d rather live freely according to his own desires.

After finally shrugging off his elaborate outer and middle layers, Liang Feng tiredly burrowed into the brocade blankets, “I’ll be taking a rest. Remember to prepare more mung bean porridge. Once we return, there’ll be a physician…..”

Please visit chrysanthemumgarden (dot) com

“What did you just say? Controller Wang cast you out of the evaluation?!” Liang Shu stared at her son, who was disheveled and even missing his zither. Her head spun, and she barely avoided plopping on the flor. hFP9la

She was absolutely shocked by Liang Zixi’s viciousness. Not only had he snuck into the assembly, but he’d even bewitched the controller. This was no longer a question of whether Li Lang was upper or lower-grade; no other controller would look favorably upon him after he’d been shunned by Wang Wen. Anyone who dared promote him would be mocked for their tastelessness and their bad judgment of character. No true noble would be willing to risk that. Just by showing his face, Liang Feng had ruined Li Lang’s prospects, dragging the entire Li family underwater as well. How venomous he was!

Still seeing stars, Liang Shu gripped the edge of the table and screeched, “Liang Feng, I’m your aunt, at the end of the day. How could you betray your family and blacken my son’s name! You damn bastard! Ungrateful wretch!”

It was as if she’d forgotten that she’d poisoned him and schemed for his property. After spitting out a few more curses, she looked at her youngest son who was sitting vacantly on the ground. A surge of hatred swelled up in her chest, “No! I’m not going to let him get away with this! He must’ve found out that the cold-food powder was poisoned. If he manages to ingratiate himself with the Taiyuan Wang clan, then my son, the Li family…”

Li Lang flinched like he’d been whipped and incredulously sputtered, “Mother, are you saying you’re going to… to kill, kill…” gjQLvW

“Kill him and silence him!” Liang Shu completed for him, an evil gleam in her eyes. “It takes a full three days for an ox-drawn carriage to reach the Liang Estate from here. As he is in poor health, it’ll take them even longer. If I can hire a troop of mercenaries to ambush him in the mountains around the Liang Estate, he will surely meet a tragic end!”

“But, but, you’d be colluding with criminals….” Li Lang trembled as he looked at his malevolent mother.

“What of it? Which wealthy family doesn’t have a private army or a personal militia these days? Some of them even rob merchants and pillage county towns.” Liang Shu wasn’t a sheltered woman who only knew how to sit at home, stitch flowers, and drink tea all day. She had to be strong if she wanted to preserve the Li family despite being married to a useless husband and living in times of unrest.

She laughed coldly, “Besides, bandit attacks are a frequent occurrence in Shangdang Commandery. It wouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that a sickly invalid like him was robbed. So long as Liang Feng dies, the Liang family will be in my hands. Then we’ll have the means to plan for the future, whether that’s buying your way into politics, or becoming a landlord or a merchant. The Liang family might not be what it used to be, but it’s still that of a fifth-order marquess. With proper management of their silver and grain, we’ll not fear decline. Go, send for Feilian!” 6RdSkD

Feilian was Liang Shu’s trusted confidante. Li Lang lurched, then gnashed his teeth as he left. A cornered rat could still fight back! Since Liang Zixi had been dishonorable, then he couldn’t blame him for being ruthless in return!

Translator's Note

郎 is a suffix that means something like mister/gentleman

Translator's Note

A collection of anecdotes, conversations, remarks, etc. of historic figures

Translator's Note

The Diamond Sutra’s Sanskrit name

Translator's Note

Later Qin of the Sixteen Kingdoms (384CE – 417CE)

Translator's Note

The capital of Western Jin

Leave a Comment

17 comments

  1. The audacity of this family, you literally poisoned him and now you’re surprised when he retaliates.

    Thank you for the chapter!

  2. u literally tried to kill him (and really killed the original) and then u get mad that he revenged himself? bah

  3. I love this logic of the “villains” lololol This isn’t the first novel with braindead idiots. Well, I’ll just sit back, enjoy my food and wait for karma :3

    Thx for the ch ٩(。˃ ᵕ ˂ )و

  4. “how DARE the man I tried to kill take action! Doesn’t he know how to act?!”

    Hmmm I see I see 😂

    Thank you for the chapter! How the bandits don’t rough him up to much uwu

  5. 💀💀💀 ugh I hate the type of people like his aunt & cousin the most! They believe they can do whatever they please to anyone but then get all surprised and act like the victim when the actual victim fights back.💀

  6. I could almost respect Liang Shu for being willing to do whatever it takes. The hypocrisy is distasteful though.