Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 526 - 475: Recruitment_2

Chapter 526: Chapter 475: Recruitment_2
His explanation about hesitation was also about his own indecision.
And when Prince Yue mentioned wanting to travel abroad like the Academic Palace Patrol, he led into Xi Yangyu’s lukewarm advice, which gracefully brought the conversation back to Xi’s words—reminiscent of the nagging advice from the elders at his Prince Manor.
This was the second implicit invitation.
The phrase "The years I’ve spent at the Academic Palace may well be the freest and happiest days of my life" also expressed Prince Yue’s reluctance to remain confined to his status as a prince and his determination to take a step toward the more secluded depths of the Imperial Palace.
If it were an ordinary official, Li Hui wouldn’t have needed to expend so much effort creating the atmosphere, meticulously carving out the deep meaning behind each sentence, repeatedly extending warm invitations, and binding the other party to his chariot. He would simply have to display his identity and prospects. But for the exalted Academic Palace Director, Li Hui could only proceed step by step, testing the waters repeatedly.
Fortunately, the result was perfect. At the end of their conversation, Xi Yangyu still referred to himself as "your subject."
It seems it’s just as the people I’ve arranged in the garrison ed; Xi Yangyu is indeed interested in the Thousand-Headed Buddha from the Pre-Sui Period in Xiangzhou. But what hidden circumstances lie behind this? Could it have something to do with Xi’s ever-concealed left hand?
Li Hui paused for a moment, shook his head, and pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
He couldn’t force a Candle Cloud Telekinesis Master to reveal secrets of personal significance, particularly since what Candle Cloud Cultivator didn’t have their own secrets? As a superior, there was no need to be so thorough.
"Has Xi Yangyu left?"
The voice of a young girl came from outside the courtyard. Li Hui looked at Li Leqing, who approached with a scowl, and rubbed his forehead helplessly. "After all, he is our Academic Palace Director. It’s better to show some respect."
Li Leqing spoke coldly, "The plague in the city is so severe. As a Candle Cloud Telekinesis Master who draws a salary from Yu Country, he doesn’t employ his telekinesis to help build sick wards or dig water channels. Instead, he chats over drinks in his residence. Why should we accord him so much respect?"
"The Chang’an Court didn’t assign him to come. He is mainly here to protect his only daughter. It’s quite normal that he doesn’t help in construction."
Defending the person he was currently recruiting, Li Hui nonetheless offered an excuse for Xi Yangyu.
Li Hui stroked his chin and squinted at Li Leqing, smiling. "Why, has someone taken to liking what belongs to a future in-law and disliking what does not, even before marrying in?"
Li Ang’s grudge against Xi Yangyu was not a secret in the Academic Palace.
Li Leqing’s displeasure with Xi Yangyu stemmed largely from the fact that Li Ang, merely an ordinary student, was utterly exhausted from trying to develop a cure, while the exalted Academic Palace Director, Xi Yangyu, could spend his days leisurely drinking tea.
"Fourth Brother!"
Li Leqing’s face flushed at the mention of marriage. Huffing, she folded her arms in front of her, her lips unintentionally pouting.
"Alright, alright, I misspoke. I shall take a drink as punishment, is that fine?"
Li Hui cheerfully poured himself a drink and downed it in one gulp, feeling somewhat sentimental.
Since starting school in the Academic Palace and getting to know Li Ang, Li Leqing was no longer listless and weak from illness as before. Her smiles had become more frequent, and she whined just like when she was a child.
However...
Li Hui’s hand paused slightly as he put down his glass. Li Ang was indeed outstanding. Even after a millennium, when Yu Country, the Li Yu Royal Family, and Li Hui himself were buried in the earth, Li Ang could still shine in the annals of history through Penicillium and artemisinin.
But a Saint doesn’t necessarily make a good husband...
"Fourth Brother? Fourth Brother?"
Li Leqing’s voice brought Li Hui back to reality. The girl spoke indignantly, "I’m talking to you."
"Sorry, my mind wandered after that drink."
Li Hui gave an apologetic smile. "What were you saying just now?"
Li Leqing rambled on, "I’m saying, you should also take the Taiyuan Prefecture affairs seriously. Apart from the plague, there’s also the harvest outside the city. So much grain needs to be harvested. Tens of thousands of villagers are trapped in their farms in isolation; they can wait, but the grain in the fields cannot."
"I know, I’ll have someone take care of it. The government troops and cultivators will help harvest the grain. Various merchants will transport, sell, and stockpile it. The proceeds from the grain sales will be returned to the villagers, offering refunds or making up any shortfall. We won’t let the villagers suffer. That should do, right?"
Li Hui said with a smile to his sister, sighing to himself once again.
Li Leqing had been clever since she was a child. Now that autumn was almost over, the grains in the fields really couldn’t wait any longer. If they did not harvest soon, it would be the common people who would end up suffering.
By then, some troublemakers might push all the blame for the reduced harvest and bankruptcy of farmers onto the strategies for curbing the plague, and onto Li Ang, who formulated these strategies.
The prestigious Princess Guanghua, the imperial pearl most doted on by the Emperor and Empress, considered Li Ang with such tenderness and meticulousness. Yet, he still spent his days and nights with Doctor Qiu Feng in the laboratory. The folding beds they slept on were pushed together, almost sharing the same blanket.
This was really a bit...
Like a minotaur kind of feeling?
Li Hui rubbed his smooth chin, once again thinking of the exotic term that had started circulating from the Chang’an Lanling Newspaper.
Li Leqing had no idea what Li Hui was thinking and continued rambling on about matters related to the plague.
Not until a guard in the corner of the courtyard came forward with solemn steps, holding a slip of paper. "Your Highness, we’ve just received a secret ."
"What secret ?"
Li Hui took the slip of paper and glanced at it casually. Then his face suddenly changed, and he said in a deep voice, "Call the Taiyuan Governor immediately! No, not just the governor, call Mr. Xi, He Fanshuang, and the rest of them here."
「———」
Shortly, most key figures from Taiyuan Prefecture, like the garrison commander and the General of the Zhe Chong Prefecture, were summoned to the Governor Mansion’s great hall.
Li Hui purposefully hadn’t called the temple master of the Taiyuan Haotian Taoist Temple, representatives of the Wang Family, and the like, to ensure that everyone present was trustworthy.
"Take a look at this."
Li Hui’s gaze swept across the hall, tossing the secret and a few talismans with ink that had not yet completely dried onto the table.
"Is this... a talisman?"
The General from the Zhe Chong Prefecture looked at the talisman depicting an odd image of a child, confused. "Aren’t all talismans supposed to have characters?"
"Not all talismans consist of characters," the garrison commander said solemnly. "Like the Divine Evil Cloud Talisman, the talismanic script inside it is a combination of characters and images. The more images it contains, the older the origin of the talisman."
"This is a Plague Demon Talisman."
Xi Yangyu and He Fanshuang spoke at the same time. He Fanshuang paused, not continuing.
Xi Yangyu explained indifferently, "It originated from the end of the Han Dynasty. It’s said to resist the Plague Demon. However, after inspection by cultivators of successive generations and the Academic Palace, it has shown no efficacy. It’s most likely an ineffective invention by some rural cultivator to swindle money."
After speaking, he paused. He then observed the characteristics of those talismans again and said sternly, "However, the paper, ink marks, penmanship, and drying time of these talismans are all different. They were created by different people, at different times, in different places, and with different materials. The pattern’s shape is also somewhat different from the original Plague Demon Talisman."
"That’s correct. These were found by a Guest of my manor in the poor workshops of South City. Someone posted these talismans, along with instructions for their use, on the doors of every household."
Li Hui nodded, gestured with his palm, and a guard placed a stack of papers on the table.
On them were written the specific effects of the Plague Demon Talisman and detailed instructions for use.
"...By posting the Plague Demon Talisman on someone else’s front door, you can transfer the Plague Demon onto them and spare yourself from disaster."
The garrison commander read out the text word for word, his complexion turning ashen. "This must be the conspiracy of some Evil Demons and heretics!"