Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

“If Master is willing to speak, then your disciple is naturally willing to listen, so that I can find a way to share Master’s burdens.” Zhou Qingfeng would not miss any opportunity to show his respect for his master and his filial piety, because his close relationship with his master was entirely beneficial. Even if someone wanted to harm him, his master could step in to protect him at the critical moment, and he could also speak well of him in front of his mother in ordinary times.

Moreover, some secrets are known only to Qiu Chengde. If one could receive some advance notice, even just a few words, the benefits would be self-evident.

Qiu Chengde walked slowly to the stream, stood with his hands behind his back, and sighed leisurely: "I don't know where to begin."

Zhou Qingfeng lagged half a step behind, cupped his hands over his stomach, and stood respectfully beside Qiu Chengde, quietly waiting for what was to come.

"If I do the math, five hundred years have passed since that incident. Time really flies."

Qiu Chengde hesitated for a moment, then picked up a stone and casually tossed it into the stream: "Qingfeng, what did you see?"

Zhou Qingfeng was slightly taken aback, not expecting his master to suddenly ask such a seemingly simple question.

He looked in the direction his master was pointing and saw that the stone was creating ripples on the water's surface, which were gradually spreading outwards.

This was originally an ordinary and unremarkable scene, but at this moment, it seemed to have taken on a different meaning.

“The disciple saw a stone fall into the water, creating ripples.”

Zhou Qingfeng answered truthfully, but then realized that his master might not be asking about the surface phenomenon, but rather had a deeper meaning.

After a moment's thought, he continued, "These ripples are like the occurrence of events. A small stone can cause such a change, just as a small action or decision can bring unexpected results."

Qiu Chengde nodded slightly, a hint of approval in his eyes: "Indeed, every matter and every choice is like this stone. Once it is thrown in, it cannot be taken back. Its impact will spread outwards in circles like ripples, sometimes even affecting places we cannot foresee."

"Back then, I made one wrong decision, which led to the current situation. Cheng Hu wasn't like this back then..."

Qiu Chenghu, originally named Qiu Chenghu, was the younger brother of Qiu Chengde. Relying on Qiu Chengde's reputation and power, he was very successful in Jianta back then. Everyone had to give Qiu Chenghu some respect. Therefore, Qiu Chenghu's words were not just boasting. Almost everyone in Jianta knew him.

But Qiu Chengde was too dazzling, almost stealing all the limelight from his younger brother.

Most people only know Qiu Chengde and not Qiu Chenghu. When a few people mention Qiu Chenghu, they only say that he is Qiu Chengde's younger brother.

This led Qiu Chenghu to be eager to prove himself and hoped to gain a place in the Sword Tower based on his own abilities.

Therefore, he repeatedly begged Qiu Chengde to give him a chance to demonstrate his talents.

Qiu Chengde knew his younger brother too well; he truly had few strengths but many weaknesses.

From childhood to adulthood, he has always been someone who neither listens nor understands what he hears, and even when he does something, he does it wrong. He doesn't admit his mistakes, doesn't correct them, and is unwilling to accept them even when he does. If he is entrusted with important responsibilities, his virtue is not commensurate with his position, and I'm afraid something big will happen sooner or later.

Having foreseen the inevitable end, Qiu Chengde forbade his younger brother from entering officialdom, lest he die without a proper burial place one day.

But Qiu Chenghu was unwilling to give up. Relying on his brother Qiu Chengde, he went directly to the highest levels of government and begged the First Lady to grant him a chance.

First Lady: "Chengde, he is your own brother. Tell me, should we give him this opportunity?"

Looking into his younger brother's pleading eyes, Qiu Chengde knew that if he continued to stop him, they might lose their brotherly bond: "I will leave everything to my wife's discretion."

This one sentence led to Qiu Chenghu being directly promoted to the position of Commander-in-Chief of the city's defense forces, making him the top leader with real power.

He was young and successful, full of vigor, arrogant and domineering, and invincible.

To celebrate, Qiu Chenghu threw a lavish banquet, enjoying immense prestige.

Countless prominent figures came to offer their congratulations, making it the center of attention for a time.

In the days that followed, Qiu Chengde began to teach his younger brother, personally instructing him on both the rules of conduct and the rules behind the scenes. Qiu Chenghu initially learned humbly, and as he gradually became familiar with the rules, he slowly got the hang of it and began to cultivate his own team and right-hand men.

With Qiu Chengde's help and Qiu Chenghu's own hard work, Qiu Chengde gradually felt at ease and thought that his younger brother had really made something of himself. So he let Qiu Chenghu take charge. But after letting go, a major incident occurred a few years later.

An envoy from the outer city arrived late at night due to a delay on the road and requested to enter the city.

At night, the gates of Sword Tower City were sealed and locked. The envoys from the outer city arrived at an inopportune time, and the officer on duty could only report to Qiu Chenghu for a decision.

Qiu Chenghu was indulging in revelry with his cronies at a brothel, surrounded by beautiful women. He was so drunk that his face was flushed and he was staggering when he heard about this. Despite his drunkenness, he forced himself to go to the city gate to perform his duties and ordered his men to open the city gates wide and inspect the convoy of foreign envoys according to procedure.

But here's the problem: Qiu Chenghu boarded the carriage carrying the family members of the envoys from the outer city.

Soon after, the female family members inside the carriage shouted that they had been assaulted.

Qiu Chenghu hurriedly jumped off the carriage, still clutching the other person's clothes in his hand.

The molestation of the family members of the envoys from the outer city has become a huge scandal, escalating to the highest levels of public attention.

The envoy from the outer city directly presented a complaint to the First Lady, accusing Qiu Chenghu of molesting his daughter and pleading with the First Lady to take charge.

At that time, only the envoy's daughter was in the carriage. The envoy's daughter said that Qiu Chenghu had harassed her and stripped her clothes off.

Qiu Chenghu, however, gave a different account, saying that he had not harassed her at all, but was simply checking the carriage and people according to normal procedures.

But nobody believed him, because he had been drinking and, in full view of everyone, he grabbed a woman's clothes as he got out of the car.

Qiu Chenghu felt wronged and cried out that he was innocent, refusing to admit his guilt to the death, hoping that someone could clear his name.

According to the rules, Qiu Chenghu is doomed to die, because this is a huge scandal. Both the Sword Tower and the outer city envoys tacitly want to suppress the matter. It would be better for everyone to deal with it privately, while public handling would only damage the reputation of both sides.

Qiu Chengde didn't know back then whether his brother was wronged or not, but that didn't matter anymore. Things had come to this point, and he had to give a decisive explanation. If he didn't take action, others would, and once others did, the outcome would be beyond his control.

To save his younger brother's life, Qiu Chengde grabbed him, ignoring his pleas and cries for help, gouged out his eyes and cut off his hands on the spot, expelled Qiu Chenghu from the family, stripped him of his surname, banished him from the country, and permanently banned him from working in Jianta. Only then did the foreign envoys not pursue the matter and barely get through the ordeal.

After one night, no one mentioned this person or this matter publicly again, as if the once glorious General Qiu Chenghu had vanished into thin air.

"Sigh..." Qiu Chengde sighed deeply: "Chenghu resents me for not saving him back then, for not helping him. I had no choice. Who knows whether he violated her or not? Only he and the envoy's daughter were in the carriage. The envoy's daughter insisted that he had committed indecent assault. Who can testify that he did not commit indecent assault?"

"Besides, he was drunk and grabbed someone's clothes to get out of the carriage. Facts speak louder than words. Even if he didn't commit any indecent acts, it's still a mess. If I had been a step slower, he would have been dead."

"Because of this, my foolish younger brother has held a grudge against me for five hundred years."