“??相较于‘称呼’这种小事，你想好怎么构建你的‘秩序’了吗？”

抱阳子大师话锋一转，状似不经意的问道，但郑清明确感觉到，其他三个机构的代表听到这个问题后，表情明显认真了几分。

“还没有明...

“BaoYangziMaster‘swordshungintheair,andZhengQingmingcouldn‘thelpbutfeelasenseofunease.Thequestionseemedsimpleenough,buttherewasanundercurrenttoitthathecouldn‘tquitegrasp.

Thefourrepresentativesfromthedifferentinstitutionshadbeenseatedaroundalargewoodentableforhours,discussingvariousaspectsoftheirrespectiveorganizations.Theconversationhadflowedeffortlesslyatfirst,witheachsidepresentingtheiruniqueperspectivesonhowtomaintainorderanddisciplinewithintheirwalls.However,asthediscussionworeon,ZhengQingmingbegantonoticeasubtleshiftintheatmosphere.

Eachrepresentativeseemedtobecarefullyweighingtheirwords,choosingtheirresponseswithprecision.Itwasasiftheywereallwaitingforsomething-orsomeone-tomakeamove.Theairwasthickwithanticipation,andZhengQingmingfoundhimselfwonderingwhatexactlyBaoYangziMasterwasgettingatwithhisseeminglyinnocuousquestion.

“I...Ihaven‘tquitethoughtthatfaraheadyet,“ZhengQingmingadmitted,tryingtoplaydowntheimportanceofBaoYangziMaster‘squery.

Theoldman‘seyesnarrowedslightly,hisgazepiercingthroughtheveilofcasualconversation.“Youshouldhave,“hereplied,hisvoicelowandmeasured.“Forifyoudon‘tunderstandthestructureofyourown‘秩序‘,thenhowcanyouhopetomaintainit?“

ZhengQingmingfeltashiverrundownhisspineasBaoYangziMaster‘swordsstruckachorddeepwithinhim.Heknewthathehadonlyscratchedthesurfaceofwhatitmeanttobuildandmaintainanorder,onethatwasnotjustasimplematterofdisciplineandobedience.

Asheponderedtheoldman‘squestion,ZhengQingmingcaughttheattentionofhisfellowrepresentatives.TheywereallstaringatBaoYangziMasterwithvaryingdegreesofcuriosityandsuspicion.Someseemedintriguedbytheoldman‘swords,whileotherslookedliketheyweresizinghimupforpotentialthreats.

ZhengQingmingfeltasurgeofuneaseasherealizedthateveryoneinthisroomwaswaitingforsomething-orsomeone.ThequestiononBaoYangziMaster‘slipshadsparkedachainreaction,onethatthreatenedtoupsetthedelicatebalanceofpowerwithinthesefourinstitutions.

“Whatdoyoumeanby‘秩序‘?“ZhengQingmingasked,tryingtosteertheconversationbackontrack.

BaoYangziMastersmiledenigmatically,hiseyesglintinginthedimlightoftheroom.“Ah,myyoungfriend,“hesaid,hisvoicedrippingwithmystery.“Thatisaquestionforanothertime.“

Theoldman‘swordshungintheairlikeachallenge,leavingZhengQingmingfeelingunsettledanduncertainaboutwhatlayahead.Asthediscussioncontinued,hecouldn‘tshakeoffthefeelingthattheywereallbeingleddownapathfromwhichtherewasnoreturn.

BaoYangziMaster‘snextquestioncutthroughtheconversationlikeahotknifethroughbutter,“??相较于‘称呼’这种小事，你想好怎么构建你的‘秩序’了吗？”

ZhengQingmingfelthisheartskipabeatasherealizedthatBaoYangziMasterwasnotjustaskingaboutthestructureoftheirrespectiveinstitutions,butalsoabouthisownthoughtsandfeelings.Itwasasiftheoldmanhadsomehowmanagedtouncoveradeepwellofemotionswithinhim,onethathehadn‘tevenbeenawareofhimself.

Inthatmoment,ZhengQingmingfeltlikehewasstandingattheedgeofaprecipice,staringintoanabyssofuncertainty.Heknewthathecouldn‘tjustsitbackanddonothing,buthealsodidn‘tknowwhattherightcourseofactionwas.

Thequestionseemedsimpleenough,butitwasonethathadthepotentialtoupendeverythingZhengQingmingthoughtheknewabouthimselfandhisplaceintheworld.Ashelookedaroundthetable,hesawhisfellowrepresentativesstaringbackathimwithamixtureofcuriosityandsuspicion.Theywereallwaitingforsomething-orsomeone-tomakeamove.

TheairwasthickwithtensionasBaoYangziMaster‘swordshunginthebalance,leavingZhengQingmingfeelinglikehewastrappedinawebofuncertaintyfromwhichtherewasnoescape.