Chapters
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Chang’an County Office.Rear Residence. It wasn’t until he saw Li Nuo eat two full bowls of dumplings and then gulp down a bowl of dumpling soup before leaning back in satisfaction and letting out a loud burp—without showing any extra interest in his wife—that Pei Zhe finally relaxed. So, he really was just here for the dumplings. Still, Pei Zhe couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled. He’d been eating his wife’s dumplings for nearly twenty years and never thought they were anything…
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The imperial palace. As the morning court session ended, countless officials streamed out of the great hall in succession. Although His Majesty hadn’t personally attended court in over a decade, the meetings on the first and fifteenth of every month still followed tradition. A prince would preside over them, and all officials of fifth rank and above in Chang’an were required to attend for the discussion and resolution of major state affairs. Today’s morning court had been routine as usual,…
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Early the next morning, when Li Nuo woke up, he found that the bedding on the floor had already been packed away and Song Jiaren was gone. After a simple wash, he sat in front of the mirror and effortlessly fixed his hair. He mentally noted the steps—styling a man's hair was much easier than a woman's. Even if his abilities expired tomorrow, he figured he wouldn’t need the household maids' help anymore. Another day passed. According to the Law Codex, he had only twenty-four days of life…
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After the banquet ended, Song Jiaren led Li Nuo to a room in the Song estate. In the Great Xia Dynasty, there was a nightly curfew, though it started a bit later—around ten in the evening. After that time, without a legitimate reason, no one was allowed to loiter on the streets. Violating the curfew could result in a beating if caught by patrolling guards—or worse, imprisonment. Though it wasn’t quite curfew yet, some guests lived far away, and others were too drunk to leave. As a result,…
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*[Author's Note: In the next few chapters, you might notice some inconsistencies in character details. That’s because I often revise earlier drafts while writing later chapters. Some parts get updated while others might be missed, causing contradictions. If you catch any, feel free to point them out—I’ll revise them. As for that controversial poem everyone roasted, I knew it might get criticized, but it truly fit the scene, so I kept it. Changing it would break the continuity. Still, since so many…
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Li Nuo’s gaze sharpened. The gift his wife had prepared was supposed to be a pair of jade ruyi scepters. Now, it had been replaced with two slabs of stone. Someone had swapped their birthday gift! His first reaction was to glance at the maid who had stepped back. Her expression seemed completely normal—it probably wasn’t her. As a servant of the Song family, she wouldn’t have dared to pull something like this. But the real issue right now wasn’t who did it. At this very moment,…
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Song Estate. Rear Courtyard. Inside a quiet room, Li Nuo stood before a mirror, doing the hair of a delicate, porcelain-like little girl. Her rosy cheeks were still stained with tears, and she sniffled softly from time to time. Beside him stood another girl who looked exactly the same, arms crossed and lips pouting in displeasure. By now, Li Nuo had learned that the two girls beside him were Song Ning’er and Song Mu’er, twin sisters and daughters of Song Jiaren’s fourth uncle. It all…
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Being told by a six- or seven-year-old girl that she’d protect him left Li Nuo with a strange, indescribable feeling. But when he thought back to the way she had stood up for him earlier, he couldn’t help but feel a little touched. Children often had the purest hearts. This adorable little girl truly saw him as a friend. He smiled, showing he didn’t mind at all. “Let’s keep playing shuttlecock.” “Mm!” Song Muer nodded eagerly and tossed the shuttlecock toward him. Li Nuo…
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The carriage traveled down a broad avenue for about half an hour before stopping in front of a large residence. Since the birthday banquet would likely run late into the night, Li Nuo would be staying at the Song estate for the night for safety. Steward Wu dropped them off and returned home, planning to come fetch him the next morning. A sixtieth birthday was considered the most important milestone in a person’s life in ancient times. Even in an ordinary household, it would be celebrated with…
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After letting out a sigh, Li Nuo finally accepted reality. So what if he was just a working man? Being exhausted was still better than being dead. He picked up a copy of the Code of Law, intending to study it thoroughly. The path of Legalist cultivation wasn’t all that complicated. The first step was to earnestly study the writings of the Legalist sages, understand their principles, and grasp their philosophy. Of course, much like the Confucians, simply memorizing texts wasn’t…
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