Chapter 3: A Common Name, But...
Shuang’er came to her senses after a moment.
She could tell that this young Daoist boy wasn’t deliberately mocking or toying with her; he genuinely hadn’t taken her words to heart. Looking at his earnest, calm expression, she inexplicably grew even angrier.
She said through gritted teeth, “You’re going to die.”
Chen Changsheng widened his eyes and replied, “Everyone dies.”
Shuang’er said, “You know that’s not what I meant.”
Chen Changsheng said very seriously, “Thank you for telling me this.”
Shuang’er’s face darkened. “The Madam wants to annul the engagement. Just agree, and you’ll be rewarded. Why must you be stubborn and claim you came to break it off? Do you think that’s the only way to save face? If that were the case, fine, but then why did you change your mind in the end? Your indecisiveness is hardly becoming.”
“Actually… I really did come to annul the engagement. Whether you believe it or not doesn’t matter. But now, I truly don’t want to anymore.”
“Why?”
Chen Changsheng tilted his head and thought very seriously. A smile gradually appeared on his young face as he confirmed he had found a reason that could convince himself. “Because… you never asked my name.”
Shuang’er didn’t understand.
“From the moment I entered the mansion until now, neither the Madam nor you asked my name.”
Chen Changsheng looked at her earnestly and said, “My name is Chen Changsheng. I know this name is very common, but my master hoped I would live forever without aging. The meaning is good, so I’ve always used it.”
As he spoke these words, his eyes were bright and his expression was upright.
Shuang’er suddenly felt that this seemingly ordinary young Daoist boy exuded a certain luster—perhaps it was that earnest quality? She understood his reasoning and inexplicably felt a sense of inferiority.
From the moment he entered the Divine General’s Mansion until now, no one had asked his name. But he hadn’t shown anger or a sense of humiliation. Whether facing the Madam or Shuang’er, he had behaved politely, lacking no courtesy, even seeming a bit dull. Yet, strangely, those who made him uncomfortable ended up more uncomfortable than him.
It wasn’t that he was skilled at making others uncomfortable, but that he earnestly did what he believed he should do. Whether annulling the engagement or changing his mind, he believed it was correct, so absolutely certain that it gave people a feeling they couldn’t deny. Thus, those who made him uncomfortable would end up frustrated and unable to feel at ease.
Shuang’er had grown up in the Divine General’s Mansion. Because of the young lady, she held a very high status. Even the Divine General and the Madam rarely spoke harshly to her. She had never encountered someone like Chen Changsheng. Unaccustomed to this feeling, she subconsciously grew uneasy. Whether to convince Chen Changsheng or herself, she emphasized her tone.
“On the entire continent, only our young lady possesses the True Phoenix Blood. She is unique!”
“My senior brother once wrote a note that I’ve always found very reasonable. I’ll give it to you now and hope you’ll ponder it seriously in the future. He said: Everyone in this world is unique.”
Chen Changsheng looked at her and said seriously.
…
…
At the end of the long street was a simple stone arch bridge. Beneath it wasn’t the Luo River, but an inconspicuous creek. Chen Changsheng walked onto the bridge and looked back toward the General’s Mansion. He saw a tranquil scene, yet not lacking in splendor. Among the countless grand mansions and beautiful courtyards, the Xu residence was the most conspicuous and prominent. He couldn’t help but shake his head.
After entering the capital, he hadn’t visited any scenic spots or hurried to the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. Instead, he had briefly washed by the Luo River and then gone straight to the General’s Mansion—to annul the engagement. He was truly anxious. If he married the General’s daughter and his illness couldn’t be cured, why drag her down? Even if it could be cured, it would probably take many years.
He didn’t want to waste her youth, but he hadn’t expected to face those disdainful looks, contempt, and mockery in the Xu residence. Thinking back now, since he turned ten, the temple had stopped receiving gifts from the other party, and their contact had ceased. This showed they had long intended to break off the engagement. Coming to the capital today to voluntarily annul it should have been a natural, mutually agreeable matter. Yet, encountering such a reception, he had changed his mind on the spot.
He wasn’t a cultivator or a Daoist, but he had read Daoist scriptures since childhood and was deeply influenced by them. Coupled with his own bleak fate, among the three thousand great paths, he sought to follow his heart—what was called following one’s heart meant having a clear conscience. Traveling thousands of miles to the capital to annul the engagement was following his heart. Not annulling it was also following his heart—since the Divine General’s Mansion was discourteous, he didn’t want to let them have their way. Because if they did, his own heart would be hard to satisfy.
Of course, until now, Chen Changsheng only wanted to make the Madam, who hid her coldness behind a kind face, and the maid, whose eyes only looked at the sky, worry. In a few days, he would naturally return the marriage contract to them. Matters of life and death were serious; Miss Xu’s lifelong happiness was far more important than the cold treatment and disdain he had suffered. He still believed this.
Still, it was ultimately very unpleasant. Sometimes, Chen Changsheng himself forgot that he was still a fourteen-year-old boy. But he was still a youth, with his own pride and dignity. Being humbled always stirred emotions.
He walked down the stone bridge, bought two flatbreads from a street vendor, and crouched on a stone slab by the creek. While gnawing on the flatbreads, he looked at the distant Divine General’s Mansion, a faint bitterness in his heart. He knew where this feeling came from, but he also knew that if he let it fester, it would harm his body and do nothing to resolve the matter.
On the distant Luo River, sails dotted the water like clouds. On the street across the river, wolf cavalry from the west could be seen. Even from far away, he could almost smell the rotting stench from the giant wolves’ mouths. A shadow drifted across the water’s surface. He looked up and saw a celestial horse with snow-white wings pulling a magnificent large carriage northward. On the distant city wall’s arrow towers, red goshawks used for military communications constantly took off and landed. Farther away in the azure sky, patrol carriages from the City Patrol Department roamed in all directions, looking like the annoying dragonflies outside the temple…
This was the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, filled with wondrous sights unimaginable to country folk. Chen Changsheng gnawed on his flatbread, eyes wide, savoring these scenes, comparing them with the records in the Daoist scriptures. He wondered when he would have the chance to see the legendary magical creatures, like the spirit turtle in the Detached Palace that had borne a stone pillar for over three thousand years, or if there were still those noble and majestic dragons in the imperial palace. It was said that the rarest and most revered Golden Dragon hadn’t appeared in the mortal world for tens of thousands of years. Would he ever have the chance to see one? Oh, and there were the legendary phoenixes…
The flatbread was fragrant but very hard, requiring effort to eat. Chen Changsheng thought he had already put his experience in the Divine General’s Mansion behind him and successfully dispelled those bitter feelings. But when he thought of the word “phoenix,” he naturally recalled the True Phoenix Blood he had heard about today, the Miss Xu who possessed it, and the little trinkets he had received years ago…
He stared at the last piece of flatbread between his fingers for a moment before putting it into his mouth. He chewed it carefully thirty-two times before swallowing. Taking a handkerchief from his sleeve, he wiped the crumbs from his hands, stood up, shouldered his luggage, and disappeared into the crowd.
He didn’t notice the inconspicuous carriage parked at the street corner nearby. On an unremarkable part of the carriage shaft was a slightly dull blood-phoenix emblem. Of course, even if he had seen it, he wouldn’t have known that this emblem represented the Eastern Divine General’s Mansion—after Miss Xu was born, the Saint Empress had bestowed the Blood Phoenix as the mansion’s new emblem, an unparalleled honor and a kind of declaration.
The warhorse in front of the carriage had the bloodline of a unicorn. Its eyes stared coldly at the flowing water under the bridge. The old woman inside the carriage also had a cold gaze, but it concealed some surprise, vigilance, and unease.
From the moment Chen Changsheng left the Divine General’s Mansion, she had been following him. She hadn’t expected that the boy, upon seeing the Great Zhou capital, could remain so calm, completely unlike an ignorant country child. That was because she didn’t know that the boy had read countless books since childhood, seen countless sights in those books, and traveled countless miles in his mind.
…
…
Xu Shiji sat in his study, his towering, mountain-like figure exuding a faint bloody aura. Through the window, a kingfisher on a tree more than ten zhang away hid its head under its wings in terror, not daring to make a sound. The powerful bloodthirsty aura testified to this Great Zhou general’s terrifying strength and also indicated his current foul mood.
What made him so irritable was the half piece of jade on the desk.
“Back then, Father held the position of Grand Preceptor and was deeply trusted by the Empress. He was ordered to go to Mount Tai to preside over the book-burning ceremony of the Heaven-Announcing Rite. To sabotage it, the Demon race sent Gongyang Chun to assassinate Father in secret, and he was severely injured. Even the Pope himself went to Mount Tai but couldn’t heal him. It wasn’t until a wandering Daoist passed through Mount Tai County that Father’s injuries were cured, and thus this engagement came about.”
Xu Madam said in a low voice, “It seems that Daoist was indeed skilled.”
Xu Shiji looked up at the azure sky outside the window and said, “In the vast world, there are countless powerful figures, like wind, clouds, tigers, and dragons. That Daoist was a master in the art of medicine, certainly extraordinary. Otherwise, how could Father have betrothed Rong’er to his descendant?”
Xu Madam grew uneasy and asked, “The key now is the marriage contract… If that Daoist has no significant background and isn’t an important figure, handling this matter won’t be so constrained.”
Xu Shiji said coldly, “Make that little Daoist see reason.”
Xu Madam’s voice dropped even lower, almost inaudible unless one listened closely: “That little Daoist doesn’t seem like someone easily bought off. What if he clings stubbornly? Next year, when the Heavenly Book Mausoleum opens, the southern saints will surely send envoys. By then, they’ll likely formally propose to the court. We can’t afford any mishaps.”
Xu Shiji narrowed his eyes slightly, like a tiger about to sleep, and said, “Then burn him to ashes and throw him into the Luo River.”
In a few days, the rainy season would begin, and the Luo River would swell. Whether ashes or bones, once they fell into the river, they would vanish instantly. (To be continued)