Chapter 118

“This is the Lingxu Sword… It is indeed a fine sword. It is worthy of being the sword used by the strategist Zhang Liang. What a sword of a hermit!” Ye Gucheng looked at the Lingxu Sword, which was low-key and restrained but powerful, and liked it more and more. He felt that this sword was very suitable for him. It was a pity that it was already taken. He could try to kill and steal it from anyone else, but Zhang Lingyu’s woman was not worth it.

Ximen Chuixue clearly preferred Jing Ni, especially after hearing that the sword’s ultimate technique could leave wounds on a person without bleeding. As a top swordsman, Ximen Chuixue knew very well what this meant. As for the sword being pink and somewhat girlish, Ximen Chuixue didn’t care much. However, he could tell that this sword was a divine weapon tailor-made for female swordsmen.

In terms of reach and height, women are definitely not as good as men. In addition, they have a disadvantage in physical strength. Under normal circumstances, the swords used by women are shorter and lighter, which are suitable for agile and varied sword techniques. In this respect, Jing Ni is very suitable for women to use.

Looking at Yue Lingshan and Xue Keren, who seemed to be frantically competing to prove their superior status, not only Xue Qianxun, but even Dongfang Bai found these two accomplices quite interesting.

However, Dongfang Bai was also secretly observing these two renowned top swordsmen in the martial arts world: Sword God Ximen Chuixue and Sword Immortal Ye Gucheng.

Ximen Chuixue is the youngest of the five great sword gods, but also the one with the least seniority and the lowest level. However, he is too young. At only 21 years old, he is already invincible below the Innate Grandmaster level. He can fight against Innate Grandmasters head-on and can break through to Innate Grandmaster at any time. In the future, he is likely to become an Innate Sword Grandmaster. The name of sword god is well-deserved.

Although Ye Gucheng is more famous and has a higher level of skill, he is almost twenty years older than Ximen Chuixue. In terms of potential and upper limit, he is actually inferior. However, at this stage, Ye Gucheng has a greater chance of winning when the two fight, almost 90%.

Many people in the martial arts world know that Jin Jiuling possesses two things that few can match: his clothes and his eyes.

Jin Jiuling’s eyes weren’t particularly big or bright, but once he’d seen someone, he would never forget them.

Jin Jiuling’s clothes were always made of the finest materials, always in the latest styles, and always exquisitely crafted. The folding fan in his hand was also a priceless masterpiece, and could even be used as a weapon when necessary.

Jin Jiuling’s skill in identifying and striking acupoints was first-rate; in fact, he was first-rate in everything he did.

He won’t drink anything that isn’t top-notch, he won’t even look at a woman who isn’t top-notch, and he absolutely won’t ride in anything that isn’t top-notch.

However, he is not a first-rate rich man, but fortunately he has many ways to make money.

He was skilled at identifying antiques and calligraphy, and at judging horses. These two skills alone were enough to ensure he would always live a first-class life.

Moreover, he was a very handsome and attractive man, and he didn’t look very old, which allowed him to save a lot of money on the thing that’s easiest to spend money on.

While others might spend a fortune to win a smile from a beautiful woman, he could often do so without spending a penny.

Therefore, he has always lived a very comfortable life and taken good care of himself. Judging from his appearance alone, he does not look like a martial arts master who strikes fear into the hearts of his friends in the underworld, but rather like a playboy who frequents brothels.

Just as Zhang Weihua had predicted, Jin Jiuling did indeed appear shortly after they entered the Dragon Guard Manor. However, he mainly came with Lu Xiaofeng, Ximen Chuixue, and Ye Gucheng, and also wanted to see if he could set up a trap in the Zhang residence to lure the Embroidered Bandit into his trap.

Zhang Weihua and his richest father are still on their way back. Don’t assume that ancient transportation was good and there were no traffic jams.

In fact, traffic was even worse in ancient times, especially in the capital city. There were too many high-ranking officials and nobles there, and even if it was someone’s carriage, it could only move at a snail’s pace. If you encountered someone you couldn’t afford to offend, you had to give way. The rules were very troublesome, and it was much more convenient to walk.

However, wealthy families like the Zhang family cannot walk the streets; they must maintain a certain image. This was taken to the extreme by Zhang Juzheng.

Zhang Juzheng’s sedan chair required 32 people to carry it, hence the name “32-bearer sedan chair”.

At that time, only the emperor used a sedan chair carried by 32 bearers when he traveled. Officials of higher rank used 8 bearers, those of lower rank used 4, and low-ranking officials were lucky to use 2.

Zhang Juzheng’s use of a sedan chair carried by 32 bearers demonstrates the extent of his power. Even Liu Jin, who was known as the “Emperor of the Ninth Thousand Years,” and Wei Zhongxian, who was known as the “Nine Thousand Years Old,” did not dare to be as arrogant as him.

Secondly, this sedan chair is quite large, reportedly nearly 100 square meters.

It is divided into several parts, including a reception room, dining room, study, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom, with two maids serving inside.

It allows you to work, eat, meet guests, and rest while traveling, making it even more impressive than most RVs and luxury cars today.

Historical records show that Zhang Juzheng rode in this enormous sedan chair to his hometown of Jingzhou. The journey from Hebei to Jingzhou is over 1000 kilometers, and it was quite a lively affair!

Because the sedan chair was too large, in order to allow it to travel unimpeded, roads that were not wide enough had to be widened, and bridges that were not strong enough had to be reinforced.

Moreover, once they arrived at a prefecture or county, officials would greet and welcome them.

Not only do we have to entertain these 32 sedan chair carriers, but there are also guards, attendants, and substitute sedan chair carriers, which adds up to several hundred people. Just thinking about it is quite a spectacle!

The reason Zhang Weihao’s carriage couldn’t be designed this way was because it was completely impassable and it was impossible to get the full cooperation of officials from all the prefectures and counties along the way. Not to mention him, even the emperor couldn’t do it.

Zhang Juzheng lived such a luxurious and extravagant life, yet he used various Confucian standards to restrict the Wanli Emperor’s clothing, food, housing, and transportation, making him diligent and frugal in every way. Do you think Wanli would have been filled with resentment? So after Zhang Juzheng’s death, he directly dug up his grave and whipped his corpse, bringing misfortune to the entire Zhang family as well.

Of course, both Confucian scholars and southern aristocratic families took note of these things, but never looked for the reasons within themselves. As a result, imperial power was further restricted, and people could no longer be loyal to the ungrateful and ruthless Zhu family. They were single-mindedly focused on hollowing out the entire Ming Dynasty, which led to disunity within the court and made its demise inevitable. This is also why several emperors in the late Ming Dynasty died under mysterious circumstances.

This group of people naturally stayed mainly at Zhang Weihua’s Tianrenju, not the Zhang Mansion. Strictly speaking, they were not qualified to enter the Zhang Mansion.

Of the four, Jin Jiuling was the only one with any status or position. But what was Jin Jiuling? He was just the chief constable of the Six Doors. He seemed very powerful, but he was just a clerk and didn’t even qualify as an official.

Officials held a higher rank than clerks, and they were usually appointed by the central government.

The clerks were of an even lower rank, and most of them were recruited by officials; they served the officials.

Officials possess certain powers and can govern the people in their region.

Clerks were office clerks and clerks in various government offices who served the officials without pay (most clerks were paid by the officials from their own pockets and the government budget, which is commonly known as unpaid contract workers).

Furthermore, the two are of different ranks. Officials are usually of the ninth rank or above. Clerks are below the ninth rank and mostly have no official rank.

Today, the term “官吏” (guān lì) is used to refer to officials, and is a general term for government staff. However, in ancient times, the two were completely incomparable.

The position of clerk was even hereditary. Once a generation was a clerk, the next generation could only be clerks and could not become officials. They could not even participate in the imperial examinations unless a noble person appreciated them and helped them get rid of their clerk status. Otherwise, they would be like this for their entire lives.

The Six Doors is a collective term for the three judicial offices.

The only entrance to the entire government office was the main gate located directly south of the central axis.

This gate, also called the “front gate,” is not a simple doorway, but a building with a roof.

This type of gate is a major feature of Chinese architecture. Its form is strictly limited by law and etiquette. No matter how large the prefecture or county, the gate can only have three bays (the bay on the front of the building, and the horizontal space between two pillars is one bay).

Each room has two black lacquered doors, making a total of six doors. Therefore, the government offices of prefectures and counties are often colloquially known as “six-door offices”.

The proverb goes, “The yamen gates are wide open, but those with reason but no money should not enter.” This refers to the yamen’s runners, clerks, and other staff as “the shady dealings inside the Six Doors.”

There are officials here, and their ranks are not low, but they are only chief constables. Even with labels such as “the number one constable in the world” and “the number one master in the Six Doors in three hundred years”, Jin Jiuling is still just a low-ranking official of the ninth rank, not a real official. Any low-ranking official of the seventh rank outside can easily bully him and scold him. He will not fight back when hit or cursed.

This is also why many people in the martial arts world are reluctant to join the Six Doors. The status is too low. It’s better to become a steward in a prince’s mansion, or a palace attendant. Even joining the Eastern Depot as a supervisor is more worthwhile than being a minor official.