Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

Historical experience has taught Shen Jiangliu that whenever Jiang Jibai tells him to shut up, his anger is already at the point where he can no longer control it.

At this point, every additional word he uttered would only worsen his already precarious situation.

Shen Jiangliu made one last desperate attempt, saying, "What I meant was that we, master and disciple, are equally loyal to the emperor..."

Is that how you use "half a catty, eight taels"? It's obvious they're treating him like a fool.

Without the piercing whispers of his junior disciple, and now subjected to the mental attacks of his senior disciple, even his second disciple, who was preparing for the imperial examinations back home, was determined to travel to the capital to participate in the spring examinations after the New Year.

At that time, with his three disciples gathered around him, Jiang Jibai could barely bear to think about the scenes of being tortured by them in turn.

Stroking the bamboo whip in his hand, Jiang Jibai smiled without a trace of warmth. "You never learn your lesson and always try to argue your way out of trouble. Lord Shen is not afraid of being assassinated just to win an argument. No wonder you ignored my advice to shut up."

"Wrong." Shen Jiangliu uttered two words briefly, then wisely shut his mouth under Jiang Jibai's gaze, turned his head away, propped his elbows on the bench, and adopted a docile posture of admitting his mistake and accepting punishment.

Jiang Jibai remained unmoved by his eldest disciple's submissive demeanor and coldly stated the penalty: "Thirty for failing to control one's mouth and bringing about one's own death; twenty for repeated offenses."

Shen Jiangliu knew he had gone too far this time. Although he was prepared, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly when he heard the number, which wasn't too unexpected.

He had already taken about twenty hits in bits and pieces, and with these fifty more, he probably won't be able to leave the study unscathed today.

And this was only the punishment for his verbal sparring; the matter of killing the Ning'an Provincial Governor hadn't even been settled yet...

Shen Jiangliu silently picked up his sleeve, having received a merciless lesson, and veins bulged on his forehead.

He clenched his teeth, sweat trickling down his forehead, past his thick, defined eyebrows, and onto his eyelashes, stinging him so much that he couldn't help but squint.

Jiang Jibai adjusted the angle slightly, and the bamboo whip fell, whistling past and bringing with it the sound of wind cutting through the air.

Shen Jiangliu let out a broken groan of pain through his teeth, his elbows buckled, and his chest slammed against the bench.

Before Jiang Jibai could speak, Shen Jiangliu grabbed the bench for support and stood up. He assured Jiang Jibai that he wouldn't fall down and that as long as he had even the slightest bit of strength, he would get up and keep his promise.

Seeing him shut his mouth and obediently accept his punishment, Jiang Jibai's expression softened slightly. "How much have you suffered because of this mouth of yours since you were a child?"

"People say you learn from your mistakes, but you've learned your lesson the hard way. You've made plenty of mistakes, but you haven't gained any wisdom. You'd rather lose your life than let your mouth suffer, right?"

He knew that His Majesty's secret guards were protecting him, which is why he let his mouth run wild a few times; he wasn't truly courting death...

Knowing he was in the wrong and had been silenced, Shen Jiangliu lowered his head guiltily and listened to the reprimand without uttering his words.

Having been this kid's teacher for eleven years, Jiang Jibai could guess what Shen Jiangliu was thinking. "You think you can act tough just because you're protected by His Majesty's secret guards? Were His Majesty's secret guards trained specifically for you? Aren't their lives valuable?"

He had seen the skills of those secret guards; they were not someone that a few mediocre assassins could handle. In the process, they could also gain experience and better protect His Majesty in the future.

Shen Jiang moved his lips as if to explain, but in the end he said nothing.

The teacher knew what kind of person he was, and he certainly didn't think that the guards' lives were worthless. The second half of the sentence was just something he said in anger.

Sure enough, Jiang Jibai continued, "Even if the secret guards are exceptionally skilled, you shouldn't gamble with your own safety. If you are even slightly negligent, I'll burn paper money for you, but how will they explain to His Majesty? Who will take charge of Ning'an's affairs?"

What does it mean to say, "It's fine if your teacher burns paper money for you"?

Shen Jiangliu turned to look at Jiang Jibai, thinking to himself, "You're no better when you open your mouth."

If the upper beam is not straight, the lower beam will be crooked as well.

Although the eldest disciple didn't say anything, he clearly had a lot of complaints in his heart when he looked back.

Jiang Jibai glanced at him coldly and raised his bamboo whip.

The murmurs in his heart were shattered by the cruel bamboo whip, turning into a muffled groan in his throat, and his temples were soaked with cold sweat.

When he could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, the bamboo whip, which had been relentlessly lashing him, finally stopped.

Shen Jiangliu's face was ashen, and he trembled as he used the bench to support himself as he stood up. Hot breaths escaped from his nostrils.

The stinging pain in his back made him realize that the wound had probably broken through the skin.

I knew I was in for a bad time, and sure enough...

It's been a year since I've been disciplined by my teacher, and reliving those lessons is truly bittersweet.

Thinking of how His Majesty had been whipped with a bamboo whip by Jiang Jibai not long ago, Shen Jiangliu's expression hardened.

He didn't know whether to marvel at how His Majesty, the ruler of a nation and the supreme sovereign, could tolerate such an offense, or to lament that Jiang Jibai had been incredibly unlucky to have unknowingly dragged his entire family into this mess.

Just as Shen Jiangliu was worried about his teacher's situation, a cup of tea was brought to his lips.

Shen Jiangliu then realized that he had sweated too much, his mouth was dry, and his throat was burning.

Supported by Jiang Jibai, he drank most of a cup of water to soothe his throat, using the teacher's hand.

Jiang Jibai sighed, stroking Shen Jiangliu's back, which was soaked with cold sweat, "Since you started following me, I don't know how many punishments you've received for this, time and time again. Why can't you change?"

That's not entirely true...

Shen Jiangliu sensed the helplessness in Jiang Jibai's words and pursed his lips guiltily. He believed that unless he really couldn't help it, he had restrained himself a lot most of the time due to his teacher's powerful force.

It's just that after a year apart, there's been a slight rebound... but at least when His Majesty summoned him before, he didn't say a single thing he shouldn't have.

Shen Jiangliu had been punished to remain silent every few days for the past few days, and had become accustomed to it. He skillfully pointed to his mouth, asking if he could speak.

Jiang Jibai glanced at him indifferently, gesturing for him to speak.

Shen Jiangliu weakly said, "I was wrong, I will try my best to change."

Jiang Jibai was tired of hearing this, so he remained silent, stood up, placed the teacup back on the desk, and asked, "Regarding the killing of the Ning'an Provincial Governor, do you have anything else to explain?"

"You really dare to use the power of acting first and reporting later, even transferring the General of Ning'an. Aren't you afraid of incurring His Majesty's wrath and having your head ripped off?"

Shen Jiangliu said slowly, "Ning'an is a mess. As long as Sun Han is in the position of Provincial Governor, he will cause endless trouble for my investigation. I'm making an example of him to warn others."

Jiang Jibai tapped his fingers on the desk. "His Majesty has even given you the token to mobilize the Ning'an General. All you need to do is send people to surround the Provincial Administration Office and escort him back to the capital. What trouble can he possibly cause? Do you really have to cut off his head beforehand? Killing the chicken to scare the monkey has limited effect and will only bring trouble upon yourself."

"With the secret guards protecting you, the General of Ning'an at your beck and call, and the court offering its full support, if it weren't for His Majesty, would you still be here unscathed?"

"You haven't even been given a position of importance yet, but you dare to dance on His Majesty's bottom line and overstep your authority to kill a second-rank official. You have quite the nerve."

Shen Jiangliu was prepared. "His Majesty once wrote me a secret letter, telling me to go all out and make a big splash. Besides, the court is short of talent in water management, and His Majesty might not be willing to kill me."

As soon as he finished speaking, the study became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

After a long silence, Jiang Jibai spoke softly, stroking the teacup beside him, "You mean, you've become arrogant because of His Majesty's trust, your flood control skills, and this achievement?"

Shen Jiangliu swallowed hard, unable to utter a single "yes." Leaning on the bench, he said weakly, "I was wrong. Please continue with the punishment."

Jiang Jibai walked to Shen Jiangliu's side, half-squatted down, and pinched his chin. "Tell the truth."

"I can't fool the teacher here after all," Shen Jiangliu sighed inwardly. "The governor of Ning'an struck first, intercepted a key witness, and set up a trap to lure me to my death."

"You went?"

"If I don't get involved, the witness will be in danger."

"I had no choice but to strike and kill him when he was off guard and retaliating against me. With him dead, the group was leaderless and chaos ensued, giving me and the witness a chance to escape."

"Didn't you bring any bodyguards?"

"Sun Han was very cunning. The terrain there was open, and the secret guards had nowhere to hide. They could only lie in wait in the distance until things got chaotic, and then seize the opportunity to enter."

Although he knew Shen Jiangliu's trip to Ning'an was fraught with danger, and having personally heard about his near-death experience, Jiang Jibai couldn't help but feel worried for him. He helped Shen Jiangliu up from the ground, saying, "Didn't you say so because you were afraid I'd worry about you?"

Shen Jiangliu hummed in agreement. "The result is good, there's no need for that."

"You went into this alone, risking your life. As your teacher, how can I not even bear this much truth?" Jiang Jibai patted his eldest disciple's arm. "Jiang Liu, there's no need to hide this from me."