14. Chapter 14: The Forbidden Canon

He had always felt an endless loathing for Zhao Erdong, and naturally had no intention of caring whether she lived or died.

In his youth, Zhao Tianjiang had been gifted in both letters and arms. At seventeen, he had already attained the rank of Third-Grade Martial General and was hailed as a martial prodigy. Now, at only thirty-eight, he was a Fifth-Grade Martial Master. Among the officials of the court, those who had reached the rank of Fifth-Grade Martial Master were exceedingly rare. This was the greatest reason he had risen to the position of chancellor at such a young age.

Yet he had never imagined that his legitimate daughter would turn out to be a cripple—a useless cripple beyond all hope of salvation.

For a time, he became the laughingstock of the Great Yue Kingdom, while Zhao Erdong became a thorn in his side, a splinter in his flesh. Had he not been wary of the power of Yuan Bairong’s maternal family, he would never have tolerated this cripple’s survival until now.

Now that Yuan Bairong was dead, no matter how far the Yuan family’s influence reached, it could never extend into the inner courtyard of his residence. In the future, he could simply invent some pretext. Once Zhao Erdong died, so be it. After all, everyone knew that she had always been in poor health.

“My lord, General Yuan has sent someone with an invitation,” the steward said as he hurried into the study and placed a white card in Zhao Tianjiang’s hands.

Zhao Tianjiang frowned slightly. The funeral announcement had not yet been issued. How had Yuan Baimo learned of it?

Had he come to see Yuan Bairong one last time and bid her farewell?

“Inform Concubine Li that she is not to touch Madam yet. Wait until tomorrow, after Yuan Baimo has been sent away, before making further arrangements.”

The steward accepted the order and departed. Zhao Tianjiang tossed the white card aside, his face filled with disdain. He sneered inwardly. Yuan Baimo was nothing more than a soldier, and Yuan Bairong had been bedridden for years. Everyone knew that. Even if she died now, there would be nothing strange about it. So what if he came? Could he possibly turn the heavens upside down?

In the neglected courtyard, master and servant were working hard to clean the room. The dilapidated state of the house exceeded anything they had imagined. It was too shabby for people to live in, and even unworthy of being used to store miscellaneous items.

As Zhao Erdong cleaned, she gnashed her teeth and cursed Zhao Erqin, wishing that she would be unable to sleep and would fall into the latrine whenever she went to relieve herself.

“Miss, you are the only legitimate daughter of the chancellor’s residence. How can you allow some lowly concubine-born girl to trample all over you?” Baihe complained indignantly.

A cold glint flashed through Zhao Erdong’s deep eyes. “Baihe, let us set this hatred aside for now. We will settle accounts with her slowly in the future. No—with all of them.”

Those who had offended Zhao Erdong were not limited to Zhao Erqin alone, but included the entire Zhao household.

Beneath the dim oil lamp, Zhao Erdong took out the blue-covered secret manual and was about to begin cultivating when Baihe darted forward, snatched it away, and stared at it in shock.

“Baihe, what is wrong?” Zhao Erdong asked, frowning slightly.

Baihe pointed at the blue book, her voice trembling faintly. “M-Miss, is this what you were cultivating today?”

“That’s right. Why? What do you know?”

Baihe stared fixedly at the blue book, turning its pages over and over. At last, she confirmed something. “Miss, this is a forbidden manual! It has been prohibited for hundreds of thousands of years. No one has ever been able to cultivate it successfully. If you force yourself to practice it, you will only suffer cultivation deviation! Miss, you must never touch it again.”

A forbidden manual? How had there been one in Zhao Erdong’s study?

Seeing the confusion in Zhao Erdong’s eyes, Baihe continued, “Although cultivation of forbidden manuals is prohibited, they can still be found on the market. Back then, after you were confirmed to possess a useless constitution, Madam tried every possible way to alter it for you. Yet no matter how many rare pills and miraculous medicines you swallowed, they vanished like stones sinking into the sea, without the slightest effect. Later, Madam thought of forbidden manuals. She believed that, since your body was unusual, perhaps you might be able to cultivate a manual that no one else could. That was why she found this one for you.”