Chapter 325 - 265, Changed and Unchanged
"Chen Ji, from the East starting at Bohai to the West falling at Qinghai, from the North reaching up to Chongli Pass, down to the East Fan Liuqiu Island in the South. From East to West, from North to South, an official document takes several months to travel. A rebellion in the South, it takes months before the Imperial Capital knows, and by the time New Year’s Day in Guyuan is surrounded, I fear the Ministry might only know when the spring flowers blossom in the Imperial Capital."
Third Master Hu took a sip of tea beside the desk: "Every emperor in this world is well aware, they will exhaust themselves trying to manage the affairs of the world, thus what they truly care about is only one thing: who is coveting the power in their hands. If the Hu Family were to produce two Divine Realm Grand Officials at once, I suspect the one in Renshou Palace wouldn’t be able to sleep at all."
Chen Ji remained silent for a moment: "Is Hu Junxian confident in advancing to the Divine Realm?"
Third Master Hu laughed heartily: "The Divine Realm is like a heavenly moat; unless one is a dazzling figure like Lu Yang of the Jing Dynasty Martial Temple, who can confidently say they are certain to cross that threshold in their lifetime? Even the young Supervisor of our Hu Family has never boasted thus, and Xu Shu simply states he could never achieve it in his lifetime. But does any of this matter to the one in Renshou Palace?"
Chen Ji softly asked: "Isn’t he afraid that suddenly having two more Divine Realm Grand Officials from the Jing Dynasty could cause the Jing Dynasty to swallow the Ning Dynasty?"
Third Master Hu earnestly said: "Both dynasties together have only four Divine Realm Grand Officials, two each from Jing and Ning Dynasties, not one more; such is the unspoken agreement among emperors."
Chen Ji looked up, only to discover Third Master Hu’s blinded white eye seemed to be deeply staring at him.
Although that eye was bad, it seemed as though it could see through the depths of a person’s heart.
Chen Ji changed the topic: "Third Elder, before Hu Junxian came to Guyuan as the Deputy General, that position should have been yours, right?"
Third Master Hu smiled: "It was mine."
Chen Ji asked: "Why did you resign?"