2026-09-15 21:00:11The burden was not merely gold. Within it lay an admission, a threat, and an invitation to step deeper into a great house already beginning to decay.
He looked at the black mask in his other hand. It had just listened to the disgrace of the imperial family, and before the night ended, it had to disappear once more.
Rong Tian folded the cloth covering his face, placed the mask inside a small concealed case within his robe, and secured it carefully. Onc
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
The Mourning Road
“Then why did you come?”“To see the coffin of a man who once helped me.”The answer silenced two nearby listeners. Cities were full of many kinds of relationships, and simple bonds like that were often the hardest to defend before the gates of great households.Not long afterward, the servant who had gone inside returned. His face was tenser than before.“Miss Zhao has heard,” he said. “But the mourning residence is full. People like you do not need to enter the inner hall.”Uncle Wu narrowed his eyes slightly. “If we cannot enter the hall, then let us leave the flowers in the courtyard.”The servant held his breath. “I am only delivering the words of the household.”A collective breath moved through the crowd around the gate, not loud enough to be called protest but
Voices at the Door
The second guard clicked his tongue. “People like you do not need to make an effort to embarrass anyone. Just standing here is enough to ruin the view.”Several nearby townspeople frowned at that. Not everyone enjoyed watching an old man treated like refuse, even if few of them were brave enough to intervene.Uncle Wu looked at the guard without smiling. “Watch your mouth. Words like that spoken at a mourning house can stain your master as well.”The guard was about to answer when a household servant hurried out from the courtyard. His face was tense, as though he had just received an unpleasant order.“What is happening here?” he asked.The first guard gave a brief salute. “These lowborn men are trying to force their way inside.”Rong Ma lowered his head slightly, but his voice remained steady. “I am Rong
The Waiting Gate
Zhao Hua lowered her head toward the servant as though grief were weighing on her, while beneath her mourning clothes her thoughts were already moving quickly. Those people from her father’s old connections could become a source of sympathy, but they could just as easily become mud dragged into the house.She knew that some of them had once been close to the Rong family. Even before that name was spoken aloud, the thought alone was enough to chill her chest.“Let them wait outside for now,” she said quietly.The servant hesitated. “If they ask why…”“Tell them the residence is full of guests,” Zhao Hua cut in. “People of their station will not die simply because they stand at the gate a little longer.”The words were spoken softly. The servant bowed and withdrew at once.Guang Jiang had heard everyt
Under Watchful Eyes
Zhao Hua lowered her head further. To those watching, she looked like a grieving daughter holding herself together only because the words of a great sect had given her something to lean on.Inside, however, she understood perfectly well that she was being examined like a piece of raw iron. As long as Guang Jiang had not turned his face away, she still had a chance to turn her grief into position.Chang Zhong finally spoke. His voice was not loud, yet because he used it so rarely, everyone near him fell silent almost at once.“Vengeance is easy to speak of before a coffin,” he said. “What is difficult is enduring when a great household begins losing its people one by one.”His words offered neither comfort nor approval. Their coldness only made Zhao Hua feel as though she were being forced to prove herself.Guang Jiang glanced at Chang Zhong before looking
Under Watching Eyes
Inside the hall, the sect disciples exchanged glances. One or two looked genuinely moved, while others appeared to be considering how useful the oath might become later.Chang Zhong watched Zhao Hua without praise. There was no visible sympathy on his face, and that cold scrutiny only made Zhao Hua straighten further.Guang Jiang released a long breath before speaking. “Vengeance can destroy a person, but in someone strong enough, it can also sharpen them.”His words carried the weight of approval without ever becoming an explicit blessing. Zhao Hua lowered her head again, and this time real tears fell onto the back of her hand.Outside, a servant hurried in through the side gate, then stopped halfway when he realized the hall was still heavy with the aftermath of the oath and the attention of countless watching eyes. He bowed and waited to be acknowledged.Guang Jian
Beneath Three Sticks of Incense
The whispers in the outer courtyard immediately shifted.“Those are core disciples of the Radiant Sword Sect.”“They came in person.”“So the Zhao family’s connection to the sect really is as deep as people said.”“If a great sect sends people here directly, Vice Minister Zhao’s death cannot be a small matter.”Inside the hall, heads lowered more deeply and even officials who normally kept their distance from Jianghu gave way.Guang Jiang stopped before the coffin, cupped his hands respectfully, and bowed deeply enough to make everyone behind him understand that the Radiant Sword Sect had not come merely to observe formalities.“Vice Minister Zhao was a man of clear judgment and steady resolve,” he said. “My sect will not forget that.”
You may also like
My Scourge Wife can't be this Cute
HikaruYa1.2K viewsHeavenly Illusions
TSETH330 viewsLegacy of Blood: Reclaiming the Lost Throne
Robert Jennifer2.6K viewsStormpine Chronicles
Victor raja1.0K viewsBeneath the Ashes, He Rose
Frank Torrey2.9K viewsCoffin Shop of the Destiny Ruler
Swahy_Sw207 viewsThe God-Slayer's Trash Manual
Maddison117 viewsDark Ruler’s Blade
Hieronimus1.1K views