Chapter 2: Why
Watching the young figure disappear into the side hall, Madam Xu's face was covered with a layer of frost. She wanted to lift her teacup for a sip to moisten her somewhat parched throat, only to find that the tea in her cup had also gone cold. She felt like hurling the teacup to the ground to vent her emotions—naturally, she wouldn't care how expensive the Ru ware porcelain was—but she didn't want the servants to hear the noise and discern her current mood.
Her mood was extremely poor at the moment. She could sense what the young man had meant to convey to her: "I'm sorry, this might displease you, but at least it can make me happy." Perhaps it was because she had said something similar to him earlier: "Want to change your life by latching onto my Divine General's Mansion? I'm sorry, this might please you, but it makes me very unhappy."
In truth, that young man had behaved with perfect decorum throughout, without any lapse in propriety. He had achieved this effect using only two sentences with entirely different meanings and the final act of turning and walking away—this might well be a kind of talent.
The old matron's face was also extremely gloomy. She walked over to the lady's side and lowered her voice, saying, "Are we just letting him leave like this?"
"I originally thought he was just a proud young man, but now I realize he's actually a cunning and treacherous little person. If he truly wanted to cling to my Divine General's Mansion for benefits, he'd be so cautious he wouldn't even dare to drink the tea—so how could he dare to enter the mansion carrying the marriage contract? In fact, from the beginning until now, has anyone actually seen that marriage contract?"
Madam Xu knew what the matron meant. Her expression darkened slightly as she said, "But since he's a clever person, he should understand that if he wants to gain more benefits, he shouldn't play all his cards at the very start."
...
...
Chen Changsheng couldn't understand what had happened today. He had come to break off the engagement, so how had it ended up in this situation? He was even more puzzled: the Divine General's Mansion clearly had many ways to resolve this marriage contract, so why had the seemingly shrewd Madam Xu chosen the stupidest method?
There were many things he couldn't figure out, so he stopped thinking about them. But as he recalled Madam Xu's arrogant words in the side hall, he couldn't help but grow curious about that Miss Xu. What did she look like? Was she beautiful? Of course, growing up in a household like this, her temperament probably couldn't be too gentle or kind...
The Divine General's Mansion was enormous—even larger than the entire town of Xining. Without a servant to guide him, he naturally got lost. When he realized this fact, he found himself outside a quiet, secluded grove. Thinking of the stories recorded in the books he had read—tales of impoverished sons-in-law secretly murdered by their shameless fathers-in-law—he felt a bit uneasy, then found his own thoughts ridiculous.
Just then, he felt a gaze fall upon him. Turning his head, he saw a girl standing at a stone archway at the end of a stone path beside the trees. He realized then that he hadn't gotten lost—someone had deliberately led him here.
The girl was about thirteen or fourteen, dressed in splendid clothes. Any single ornament on her was worth more than all his possessions combined. Her features were delicate, and as she grew older, she would surely become a striking beauty. Her black eyes rolled around lively and cute, but her gaze was unusually bold, sizing him up from head to toe with an intense, fiery look.
Chen Changsheng was slightly startled, thinking, could this be Miss Xu?
Having studied the classics since childhood, he had excellent patience. He let her examine him like this without asking any questions.
In the end, it was the young girl who spoke first.
"Can Taoist priests even get married?"
Chen Changsheng noticed her gaze lingering on his Taoist topknot and explained, "I'm not a Taoist priest. Although I wear a Taoist robe and tie my hair in a Taoist topknot, that's just my usual habit—it doesn't mean I'm a Taoist priest."
The young girl walked up to him, looked at him seriously, and asked, "Are you an ordinary person?"
Chen Changsheng was taken aback for a moment before he understood what she meant by "ordinary person." He replied, "Yes, I haven't cultivated."
The girl didn't notice that he said "haven't cultivated" rather than "can't cultivate." She stared into his eyes and asked very earnestly, "Do you really have a marriage contract with Miss?"
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng realized that this young girl was not the Miss Xu he had imagined. He felt a slight relief, but for some reason, also a small pang of disappointment.
"And you are?"
"My name is Shuang'er. I'm Miss's personal maid."
Chen Changsheng had never imagined that a maid could wear such luxurious clothes. Connecting this with the silence around them and the fact that no one else was nearby, he gained a clearer understanding of this maid's—and even that Miss's—status within the Divine General's Mansion.
"I do have a marriage contract with your Miss."
The maid named Shuang'er looked at him seriously and said, "From now on, never say that again."
"Why?" Chen Changsheng asked back earnestly.
Shuang'er looked at him and, for some reason, felt a flash of irritation. She said, "You're just an ordinary person—how could you possibly be with my Miss? You'd better hand over the marriage contract quickly, or it won't end well for you."
Chen Changsheng looked at her and asked very seriously, "Why?"
Still those three words.
Shuang'er looked at this young Taoist's upright features and suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for him. She said, "If you want to live, don't mention this marriage contract to anyone. Otherwise, no one can guarantee your safety."
She felt she was genuinely thinking about the welfare of this poor country boy—although Miss could never marry him, since there had once been a marriage contract and Miss knew of his existence, she ought to at least let him live well. But it never occurred to her that her words would sound more like a shameless threat to his ears.
Chen Changsheng fell silent, thinking, could the Divine General's Mansion really resort to underhanded tactics against him? The books he had read and the plays he had seen all had similar stories. But now, with the Saint Empress on the throne, who would dare to do such things in the capital?
He said, "If the Divine General's Mansion wanted me dead, Madam wouldn't have let me leave earlier. If I'm not mistaken, that old matron is probably a formidable figure, isn't she? After all, hardly any servants have seen me—they could just kill me outright, bury me under the flowers as fertilizer, and no one would ever know, right? Since I'm still alive now, I should be fine."
Shuang'er sneered coldly. "Countless eyes are watching the Divine General's Mansion, so inside the mansion, you're actually safe. But if you go outside and keep spouting nonsense like you did earlier, how long do you think you'll live?"
Chen Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "I don't understand."
Shuang'er said, "If people find out that you have a marriage contract with Miss, what will the Longevity Sect think? What will the Qiu Shan family think? Even here in the Divine Capital, if those people want to kill you, no one can stop them."
Chen Changsheng asked, "The Longevity Sect and the Qiu Shan family? What are these places?"
Shuang'er looked at him as if he were an idiot and asked, "You don't know anything?"
Chen Changsheng was puzzled. "What should I know?"
...
...
There were things that the young Taoist from Xining Town didn't know, but the entire world knew them. For instance, the current era of the Great Zhou Dynasty was the Zhengtong reign, and the Eastern General Xu Shiji was deeply trusted by the Saint Empress. His father had been the Grand Chancellor of the previous dynasty, but his current status came mainly from his daughter.
Xu Shiji had only one daughter, Xu Yourong. She was the reincarnation of the Heavenly Phoenix, possessing unimaginable innate talent and bloodline. She had successfully purified her marrow at a very young age, and at twelve, she had traveled south to the Holy Maiden Peak to study the celestial scriptures. According to reports, she had now broken through to the upper realm of Sitting and Observing, and her fame had spread far and wide. She was beloved by the people and considered the undisputed candidate for the next Holy Maiden of the Radiant Divine Church.
A young girl with a nearly perfect background—in terms of lineage, bloodline, and sect affiliation—naturally had many admirers. It was said that even the legendary Bloodthirsty Young Master of the demon race was one of her fervent worshippers. Yet whenever people discussed who Xu Yourong might eventually marry, only one name was ever mentioned—a name equally radiant.
Qiu Shan Jun.
The Qiu Shan family was the greatest clan in the south. In this generation, the Qiu Shan family had produced a young prodigy of astonishing talent named Qiu Shan Jun. He was said to be the reincarnation of a divine dragon, the chief disciple of the Longevity Sect, and the foremost of the Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom. He had studied under the elders of the Southern Sect. At eighteen, he was widely regarded as the most likely candidate to become the strongest person in the Eastern Continent over the next few centuries.
The Heavenly Phoenix and the Divine Dragon—Qiu Shan Xue and Xu Yourong, these fellow disciples from the same sect—were the most dazzling figures of the younger generation. There was simply no third person of comparable stature.
The entire world knew that Qiu Shan Xue had always loved Xu Yourong and had been silently waiting for her to grow up. The elders and disciples of the Longevity Sect, the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the Qiu Shan family, all believed this was a match made in heaven. Even Lady Moyan of the Great Zhou imperial palace had once said that the Saint Empress herself looked favorably upon this beautiful story.
And then, suddenly, a young Taoist arrived at the General's Mansion holding a marriage contract.
He said he was Xu Yourong's fiancé.
If this news were to spread...
The entire continent might be stunned.
...
...
The courtyard was silent. Bamboo leaves rustled as the wind blew through the stone archway.
"Now you know," Shuang'er said, looking at Chen Changsheng. "You're just an ordinary person. Your world and Miss's world are separated by a vast galaxy that you can never cross. For your own sake, it's best to forget about this."
Chen Changsheng truly hadn't expected that the girl he was betrothed to was such an extraordinary figure. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Why didn't Madam tell me earlier?"
Shuang'er said, "Because Madam didn't want you to know these things and then make more demands."
He looked up at her and asked, "Why are you telling me?"
Shuang'er said, "Because Miss mentioned you in her letters. Miss is a kind-hearted person. Even though she won't marry you, she wouldn't want to see you die for no reason. And... I think you should be smart enough to have enough self-awareness after learning all this to make the only correct decision."
Chen Changsheng said, "I understand."
With that, he walked toward the archway, his shoe soles rustling against the bamboo leaves.
Shuang'er was stunned, thinking, what kind of response is this?
Chen Changsheng suddenly stopped and turned back to look at her.
Shuang'er breathed a sigh of relief, gently patting her chest as she waited for his decision.
Chen Changsheng looked at her and asked, "I need to leave. Which way should I go?"
(To be continued)