Chapter 357 - 340: Awakening

Chapter 357: Chapter 340: Awakening

"Huh?"

Chen Shouheng looked up abruptly, his face a mask of astonishment.

’Don’t swallow it all?’

’Then what was all that effort, all those calculations, for?’

"Shouheng, your dad... I don’t have any great skills. I’m just from a common farming family and never went to a proper school. I only learned to read a few characters and some primers by following your mother back in the day. I can’t compare to you. You attended the He Niu Martial Arts Academy, so you’re well-read, with broad knowledge and a wide perspective."

Chen Li’s gaze rested calmly on his eldest son’s face, but to Chen Shouheng, it felt heavier than any harsh rebuke. "Now, let me ask you. An old saying goes: ’To know contentment is to avoid disgrace; to know when to stop is to avoid danger and ensure longevity.’ Another says: ’Haste makes waste, and an eye for petty gain will prevent great achievements.’ Tell me, what do these two sayings mean?"

"Well..."

Chen Shouheng opened his mouth to speak.

Of course, he understood what the two sayings meant.

"Father, the first one means that a person who is content will not suffer humiliation. Only by knowing when to stop can one avoid danger and thus endure."

He answered in a low, hoarse voice, "The second means one should not be impatient for success. If you covet small profits, you will never accomplish great things."

He understood his father’s point.

His father was warning him to be content and know when to stop.

Chen Li sighed softly. "Shouheng, these Sects and Noble Families have built their prestige over several, even a dozen, generations of careful accumulation and management. What makes you think that our Chen Family, with just the two of us across two generations, must not only catch up but surpass hundreds of years of their accumulated work in a single bite?"

Chen Shouheng’s head sank even lower. "I... was wrong."

"No, you don’t."

But Chen Li shook his head, his tone certain. "You only understand the literal meaning. You haven’t truly grasped it, much less realized your mistake."

A flicker of embarrassment crossed Chen Shouheng’s face. He gave a bitter smile. "Please, Father, enlighten me."

"Then let me ask you another question."

Chen Li’s gaze was like a torch, staring directly at him. "Where did you go wrong?"

Chen Shouheng pressed his lips together and said, "I was wrong to be so greedy. I was blinded by profit and tried to swallow the Sun Family’s entire estate in one go."

"That is only one part of it."

Chen Li’s voice remained steady, yet it pierced the last shred of wishful thinking in Chen Shouheng’s heart. "Your greater mistake was pinning all your hopes for success, betting everything, on the Cao Family."

"What would you have done if the Cao Family went back on their word? What if their show of goodwill was actually a trap concocted with the Jiangzhou Government Office, a net spread wide, just waiting for you to walk into it? How would you have saved yourself then?"

Chen Li’s tone grew heavier. "The Cao Family has no ties of friendship or kinship with our Chen Family, and they hold an old grudge against the Zhou Family. How could they be so eager to help without some ulterior motive? Have you seen clearly what that motive is? The past incident with your wife, Zhou Shuwei, is a bloody lesson right before your eyes! Two years ago, the Cao, He, and Liu families conspired together and nearly destroyed her entire family. Did that not set off any alarm bells in your mind?"

"If you were vigilant, why would you still risk your neck on something with only a one-in-ten chance of survival?"

Chen Li’s voice carried an inexpressible weight. "You are now a Divine Hall Grandmaster. If things truly became impossible, you could rely on your Cultivation and simply walk away. The Jianghu is vast; where could you not find a place for yourself? But, Shouheng..."

He stared at his son. "But what about your mother? Your younger siblings? What about everyone in the Chen Family, and the hundreds of servants who depend on us? Where could they possibly flee? Should all their lives and fortunes be forfeit because of your wishful thinking?"

These words struck Chen Shouheng’s heart like a bolt of lightning from the heavens, like the blow of a ten-thousand-ton hammer!

A roar echoed in Chen Shouheng’s mind.

Chen Li’s words had finally torn away the veil of immense profit and soaring ambition that had clouded his judgment for days.

From the very beginning, he had only calculated the glory of success. Had he ever truly considered failure? Or the consequences of it?

His wife, Zhou Shuwei, had been forced to flee far away. His niece, Zhou Qingyi, had been made a prisoner, exiled, and still did not dare to return home...

These images flooded his mind uncontrollably, overlapping with his father’s words about the family’s tragic demise.

In an instant, cold sweat streamed down his spine.

On this cool evening, it brought a bone-chilling cold.

His face was ashen. Shame, lingering fear, self-recrimination... a storm of emotions flickered across his face, finally settling into dejection.

THUD. He fell heavily to his knees in the courtyard, his voice trembling but clear. "I... was wrong. I was rash and greedy for merit, nearly causing a disaster that would have implicated the entire family. Please, Father, punish me."

Chen Li helped his eldest son to his feet. "Get up. You don’t need to blame yourself too much. When you come to me with every matter, I worry about the hardships ahead of you. But if you never came to ask, I would worry even more that you might fall into an abyss. That would be truly terrifying."

Chen Shouheng stood up, his eyes much clearer now. He took a deep breath and asked respectfully, "Dad, what should we do next?"

Seeing that his son had calmed down, Chen Li sat down again. "Go back home and withdraw one million one hundred and twenty thousand taels of silver. Have it delivered to the Liyang Commandery Magistrate’s Office. Don’t overthink anything. First, settle the payment for the two properties you’ve already won at auction, complete the transfer procedures, and arrange for our people to take them over as soon as possible."

"What about the Cao Family?" Chen Shouheng asked.

"The Cao Family?"

A faint, cold smile touched Chen Li’s lips. "Their proposed partnership... no need to refuse it outright. Just stall. If they ask, use excuses like needing to carefully review the contract terms. Drag it out until they become impatient, until they can’t hold back any longer. Whatever it is they’re plotting will naturally reveal its flaws."

"And the Celestial Sword Sect, the Commandery Magistrate’s Office, and the Jiangzhou Government Office...?"

Chen Shouheng hesitated.

Chen Li sighed. "Since we’re already on their radar, there’s no hiding. But there’s no need to be overly alarmed, either. Just act with caution. On the surface, they still have to maintain the Government Office’s decorum, so they won’t dare to act brazenly. For now, you and Shuwei just need to secure the family business and manage it prudently. It’s better to suffer a small loss than to get into a dispute and give them leverage against you."

Chen Shouheng took a deep breath and answered solemnly, "Yes! Dad, I understand. I will follow your teachings and act with caution."

"Wait."

Just as Chen Shouheng was about to take his leave, Chen Li called him to a halt.

"Dad, do you have other instructions?"

Chen Shouheng stopped and turned around, puzzled.

"Sit down cross-legged, relax your Heart Spirit, and don’t resist with your cultivation technique."

Chen Li pointed to a flat bluestone slab in the courtyard.

Although Chen Shouheng didn’t understand, he did as he was told, sitting cross-legged. He adopted a meditative posture, gaze lowered, focusing his awareness inward. The Inner Qi throughout his body gradually calmed, and his spirit relaxed.

Chen Li walked up behind him and gently placed a palm on the Spirit Platform Acupoint on his back.

"Quiet your heart."

As soon as he spoke, Chen Shouheng felt an indescribably condensed aura slowly flow from his father’s palm into his body.

This aura was completely different from the Inner Qi he had cultivated himself. It was heavier, purer, and seemed to contain some deeper level of power.

Before he could examine it closely, the influx of aura captured a small stream of Inner Qi that was circulating automatically in his meridians.

There was no violent clash, no painful tearing. Chen Shouheng only felt that stream of Inner Qi rapidly dissipate and assimilate, eventually vanishing into nothingness as if it had never existed.

’Is Dad... dissolving my Inner Qi?’

Chen Shouheng was shocked, but recalling his father’s instruction, he immediately forced down the instinctive Intention to resist.

The process was quick, lasting only a few breaths before the immense aura receded like a tide.

Chen Shouheng opened his eyes and immediately turned to look at his father.

He saw Chen Li standing there, his brow slightly furrowed, a look of confusion and deep thought on his face.

The wisp of Inner Qi that had been dissolved was insignificant; he could recover it with a day or two of meditation. What astonished him was his father’s sudden action.

"Dad, what was that...?"

Chen Shouheng couldn’t help but ask.

Chen Li emerged from his reverie. He glanced at his son, and after a moment’s thought, he briefly explained what had happened: Linglong’s request to switch her Cultivation, his discovery of strange black runes within her Celestial Fragrance Scripture Inner Qi while helping her dissolve her previous technique, and his own speculation about Cultivation Techniques serving as vessels for underlying rules.

Chen Shouheng’s Heart Spirit trembled as he listened.

He had never imagined that Martial Dao Techniques held such profound secrets.

He suddenly recalled something and blurted out, "Dad, now that you mention it, I remember hearing Master Duan Mengjing say something rather strange back when I was at the He Niu Martial Arts Academy. It seems... it might be related to what you were talking about."

"Oh? What did he say?"

Chen Li’s gaze sharpened.

Chen Shouheng recalled carefully, then relayed what Master Duan Mengjing had said: that within Theravada, there was no Dragon Suppressing and Tiger Subduing Fruit Position, and that one needed to realize it for oneself.

"Fruit Position..."

Chen Li repeated the term in a low voice and fell into thought, a glimmer of understanding in his eyes.

Duan Mengjing’s words indeed confirmed his suspicions.

’It seems the problem really does lie there.’

’In other words, if I want to advance further, to comprehend the rules and manifest a Dharma Aspect...’

’I either need to create my own Cultivation Technique that contains those rules...’

’...or I need to establish my own principles within my foundation, turning it into a vessel for the manifestation of those rules...’

He sank into deep thought, contemplating the various possibilities.

Chen Shouheng stood by respectfully, not daring to disturb him.

Just then, the door of the wooden cabin to the side opened with a soft CREAK.

A slender, delicate figure emerged.

It was Linglong.

She had changed out of her fine dress and was now wearing the simple coarse linen of a common farm girl. Her jet-black hair was simply tied up with a wooden hairpin, and her face was free of makeup.

Yet even in such simple attire, her natural beauty was impossible to hide. Rather, stripped of all artifice, she exuded a unique kind of pure elegance and gentleness.

Seeing Chen Shouheng in the courtyard, she paused for a moment, then a smile blossomed on her face.

She walked forward, gave a graceful curtsy, and said in a soft voice, "Young Master, it has been a long time."

Chen Shouheng looked at her, even more surprised.

"You’re...?"

Chen Shouheng was taken aback.

With his Divine Sense Cultivation, he could naturally tell that her body was now completely devoid of Cultivation, no different from an ordinary woman who had never practiced martial arts.

Linglong lowered her head slightly, her voice soft but clear. "Young Master, my real name is Qin Yirong."

Chen Shouheng understood instantly. She must have resolved to make a clean break with her past and begin a life of her own.

"Congratulations."

Chen Shouheng said sincerely.

Qin Yirong’s face lit up with a smile. She said softly to Chen Shouheng, "Young Master, the young masters and young miss will be getting out of their lessons soon. The Master is in the middle of contemplating profound mysteries. Why don’t you come with me to the private school to pick them up?"

Chen Shouheng glanced at his father, who was still deep in contemplation, and nodded. "Alright. Thank you for your trouble, Miss Qin."

One after the other, the two of them quietly left the small courtyard.