Chapter 4: She Said
The teacup sat quietly on the table, long since cold.
Chen Changsheng sat silently in the chair, making no move to speak first.
Just like back then, it seemed as if nothing had changed.
But in truth, everything had already changed.
The young Daoist who had entered the capital only to have his engagement broken off had become His Holiness the Pope.
Fortunately, just as before, Xu Shiji was not present, or else the atmosphere might have been even more awkward.
The pearl curtain rustled with a crisp sound, and Xu Yourong stepped out from behind it.
After returning to the General’s Mansion, Xu Yourong had ignored him, leaving him in the hall while she went to wash up.
This was very casual, much like the black hair casually draped behind her now.
A few droplets of water clung to her slightly damp hair, paired with her spotless, flower-like face, making her look very captivating.
Chen Changsheng loved his fiancée’s beauty, and even more so, her casual attitude toward him. He wished he could just keep watching her like this, but this was still the Xu Mansion, and he had many things to do.
He stood up and said to Xu Yourong, “Then I’ll be going now.”
Xu Yourong was a bit surprised and asked, “Not staying for a meal?”
This was her home, and Chen Changsheng was her fiancé. She was casual with both, so the question came naturally—until she noticed the slightly unusual atmosphere in the hall. Realizing the reason, she couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Then go ahead.”
“I’ll come pick you up tomorrow,” Chen Changsheng said to her.
Then he turned to take his leave of Madam Xu, not forgetting to nod politely to the old nanny and Shuang’er.
There was nothing anyone could fault in his manners or demeanor.
This calmness reminded Madam Xu and the others of that scene from years ago.
The passage of time seemed to have changed nothing about him. Whether as the young Daoist back then or as His Holiness the Pope now, his attitude toward the world and the people living in it remained just as calm and indifferent.
Leaving the General’s Mansion, he walked along the inconspicuous little river and soon reached the simple stone arch bridge.
Chen Changsheng stepped onto the bridge but did not look back at the grand estate and beautiful courtyards as he had years ago.
After three years away, returning to the capital, he had not gone to the Li Palace or the National Academy but had come straight to the Xu Mansion. Not because he wanted to accomplish something, but simply because his fiancée had asked him to accompany her home. The reason was that simple.
In the past few years, he had visited the Xu Mansion twice as a guest. If one were to speak of vindication, there was none. Nor was there any sense of a lifetime having passed.
He and Xu Yourong were still young. Life was still long. There were still many things to do, many places to go.
Compared to the future, the past was utterly insignificant.
So let it pass. Perhaps that was the very meaning of the past.
Suddenly, snowflakes began to fall.
Chen Changsheng opened his yellow paper umbrella and disappeared into the crowd.
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Let the past be the past. This was a simple phrase, a simple truth. But not everyone could achieve it.
Take Xu Shiji, for example.
After returning to the mansion and hearing about what had happened during the day, his expression turned extremely ugly, but in the end, he did nothing.
He didn’t even smash a single porcelain wine cup.
Because Xu Yourong was resting in the back courtyard at that moment.
The entire General’s Mansion was as silent as a deep mountain wilderness.
Over the years, Xu Shiji had come to accept reality. His position in the Great Zhou Dynasty came entirely from his daughter.
Whether during Tianhai Shenghou’s reign or now, this had never changed.
It was a hard truth to swallow, but he had no choice but to accept it.
He simply didn’t know how to face his own daughter.
Madam Xu also couldn’t forget the events of the past. Her spirits low, she said, “Back then, how could I have imagined he would become the Pope?”
Xu Shiji said in a deep voice, “So what? In the end, isn’t he still my son-in-law, Xu Shiji’s?”
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“Look at the young master when he left—all light and breezy on the surface, but who knows how smug he really is inside.”
In the back courtyard, Shuang’er held a bowl of blue lobster meat as she stood before Xu Yourong, speaking with some irritation.
Xu Yourong said softly, “You mentioned in your letters back then that he was like that even then. What did he have to be smug about back then?”
Shuang’er thought for a moment and said, “Back then, he was… too hypocritical, or rather, pretentious?”
Xu Yourong lifted her head and gave her a faint look.
Shuang’er grew nervous and quickly said, “Miss, I was wrong.”
Xu Yourong asked, “Do you know what you did wrong?”
Thinking back to her harsh judgments of Chen Changsheng back then, and knowing how deeply her mistress now cared for him, she grew more and more nervous, her voice trembling slightly as she said, “I failed to see the young master’s good qualities and spoke ill of him.”
“Your judgment really isn’t great, but back then, how many people could see his worth?”
Xu Yourong suddenly recalled the night she had returned to the capital and visited the National Academy, only to encounter Mo Yu in his room.
Then she thought of how Mo Yu was about to get married and had asked him to return to officiate the ceremony. She couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow slightly, thinking that at least counted as someone with good judgment.
“What exactly is so good about him?”
Xu Yourong said softly, “I just like that no matter what happens to him—even the terror of life and death—he never sinks into gloom. And it’s not the reckless abandon of giving up; he remains focused and persistent, steadfast and calm.”
Shuang’er didn’t understand, but she could hear the genuine affection in her mistress’s words, and she was stunned.
The marriage between Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong was now a settled matter, but until now, she still didn’t believe that her mistress truly loved Chen Changsheng.
Because in her eyes, her mistress was like a phoenix—naturally noble, proud, and aloof. How could she fall in love with someone?
Just then, a maidservant came to report that Xu Shiji had arrived.
The courtyard gate opened, and a trail of footprints appeared in the snow.
The two sat facing each other, two precious teacups placed on the table.
Everything was very polite. They didn’t look like father and daughter, but more like guests.
Xu Shiji looked at his daughter, wanting to say something but not knowing what to say, hesitating again and again.
In the end, he could only casually ask about her daily life before leaving, though he didn’t hide his worried expression as he departed.
Xu Yourong knew what her father wanted to say—or rather, what he wanted her to say to Chen Changsheng.
Just like when she was a child, when her father wanted to enter the palace to see Her Holiness the Saintess, he would put on such an expression.
She didn’t want to hear it, because she had no intention of saying anything to Chen Changsheng.
This, too, was like her childhood. She had never been willing to discuss such matters with Her Holiness the Saintess.
Ever since her Heavenly Phoenix bloodline had first awakened and she began her cultivation, she had found these matters tedious and annoying.
Tonight, she felt annoyed again. So, facing the night snow, she climbed onto the rooftop, clasped her hands behind her back, and began to observe the stars.
The night sky was thick with heavy clouds, naturally hiding the myriad stars, but they couldn’t block her spiritual perception.
She observed the sea of stars by night, cross-referencing them with the inscriptions on the Heavenly Book steles. In silent contemplation, her Dao heart gradually calmed.
The wind and snow grew slightly chaotic as a black-clad girl landed beside Xu Yourong.
The light was dim, but the vermilion mole between her brows still blazed brightly.
Xu Yourong stared at it for a moment.
The black-clad girl said with slight annoyance, “Is it that fascinating?”
Xu Yourong said seriously, “Of course. When I was little, one year I went for a spring outing at North New Bridge. I was really about to jump into the well to find you.”
The black-clad girl sneered and said, “Then how come I never saw you? And you’re still alive.”
Xu Yourong looked up at the snow falling from the night sky, smiled faintly, and said, “Her Holiness saved me.”
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(Chapter Seven of Volume Four, “Dawn in the East,” was called “Her.” Today’s chapter is its sequel. My Xu Yourong is a very good Xu Yourong. It’s just that, limited by space, my praise of her is easily missed by readers, so I’ll try to mention it more often. Also, I really like the song “She Said.” Lin Junjie is still amazing. I don’t follow many new singers, but I like Zhang Bichen, Wu Mochou, Hua Chenyu… and who else? Finally, in “The Night,” I once wrote a chapter called “Sang Sang Said.” That chapter was very well written—the peak of my life.) (To be continued.)