Chapter 500: Yesterday Reappears at the Xu Mansion
It would still be quite some time before dusk fully ignited the clouds at the edge of the sky, yet the banquets in the taverns and pleasure houses of the capital had already begun long ago.
Formal feasts always took a long time, so naturally they started early. This had nothing to do with saving lamp oil or candle wax. Cultivators and nobles, scholars and maidservants cared more about the shifting light from dawn to dusk to nightfall, and the changing atmosphere and feelings that came with it.
Chen Changsheng did not understand such matters. In his view, if a meal took longer than fifteen minutes, it meant it was unhealthy—just like the exquisite dishes laid out on the table before him now. All of it signified unhealthiness.
Today’s banquet at the Xu Mansion was different from the casual family meal last time. It was a formal feast. Though he was the only guest, and he was a junior of very young age, the central gate of the Eastern Divine General’s Mansion—which was opened no more than twice a year—was thrown wide. Dishes made from rare ingredients were brought out in an endless stream, barely touched, glanced at only twice, then cleared away to make room for the next round.
Wherever he looked, there were precious objects. The porcelain plates holding the dishes reminded him naturally of the words Madam Xu had spoken on his first day in the capital. Maidservants were everywhere; he didn’t need to lift a finger before someone attended to him. Yet curiously, neither Madam Xu, nor Flower Granny, nor the senior maidservant named Shuang appeared today.
Perhaps it was because of the incidents that had occurred between Chen Changsheng and them in the past.
Xu Shiji was the only one keeping him company.
Chen Changsheng did not drink alcohol. Out of courtesy, he ate a few dishes, then quickly finished his meal.
Xu Shiji set down his wine cup and waved his hand, signaling for everyone to withdraw. He waited for Chen Changsheng to speak.
Chen Changsheng neither liked nor was skilled at beating around the bush. Seeing the setup, he knew Xu Shiji had also prepared himself mentally, so he said directly, “You must already know who my teacher is.”
“The day I learned that the Daoist Calculator was Dean Shang, I was as shocked as everyone else.”
Xu Shiji did not mention how he had spent a long time talking to his father’s portrait in the ancestral hall that day. He looked calmly at Chen Changsheng and continued, “Including Lord Zhou Tong, many people want to use this to strike at you. But you need not worry. Our Great Zhou laws have never included collective punishment. When the treason case of the National Academy broke out, you weren’t even born yet.”
“But you are still one of the Divine Generals Her Holiness trusts most,” Chen Changsheng asked. “Why do you still insist on this marriage?”
“Everyone thinks I am crude and vulgar, that being able to have such a daughter is a blessing accumulated over many lifetimes… Privately, countless people mock me.”
Xu Shiji looked into Chen Changsheng’s eyes, not hiding his cold emotions. “As for this marriage, it has brought me endless humiliation… In the eyes of the world, at first our Xu Mansion looked down on you, a poor young scholar, wanting to break off the engagement, even oppressing and humiliating you in many ways. Later, when they learned of your relationship with His Holiness the Pope, we shamelessly clung to you, insisting on the marriage. So now, all the humiliation once inflicted on you has returned to us. You could even say… it’s quite shameless.”
The flower hall was very quiet. All the maidservants had long since retreated far away.
Xu Shiji said, “Fortunately, no one thinks my Rong’er is unworthy of you. Otherwise, even she would be laughed at.”
Chen Changsheng thought, since you know this matter is so ugly, why do you persist? When I came to break off the engagement last time, why didn’t you simply accept the marriage contract?
“But I don’t care. Or rather, I can endure this humiliation and mockery.” Xu Shiji’s gaze suddenly turned sharp as he stared at Chen Changsheng. “Because I am a father. I must consider my daughter’s welfare. I am utterly loyal to Her Holiness, but what wrong is there in considering my own daughter’s future?”
These past days, Chen Changsheng had thought many times about why the Xu Mansion now stubbornly clung to this marriage contract. He had considered many reasons, but never once thought it would be this.
—Xu Shiji simply wanted what was best for his daughter.
Chen Changsheng should have felt some joy—the joy of being acknowledged. But he did not, because he did not believe Xu Shiji was that kind of person, that kind of father.
“I know what you’re thinking. I know what the people in the capital are thinking.”
Xu Shiji said expressionlessly, “Just like everyone’s view of the head of the Qiu Shan family before the internal strife at Li Mountain. But the facts prove you were all wrong.”
“Yes, if I insist on this marriage, and if His Holiness the Pope loses in the future, Her Holiness will certainly not allow me to continue living. But I am certain that even if I die, Her Holiness will still dote on Rong’er. And if… His Holiness the Pope wins, because of your connection, I imagine he will not hold any ill will toward Rong’er either.”
He looked at Chen Changsheng’s profile and continued, “The great trend of North-South unification is already set. The Li Mountain Sword Sect may still retain its edge, and Qiu Shan Jun, with his merits, can take advantage of the situation to move north. But what can the Southern Creek Sect still accomplish? If Rong’er cannot marry you, her best future is to wither away on Saintess Peak. But if this marriage succeeds?”
“The Pope and the Saintess—that is true North-South unification.”
“Whether North or South, everyone wants to see such a scene.”
“What is the great trend? This is the great trend.”
“Whether I am alive or dead by then, my Xu family will surely leave its name in history.”
…
…
True North-South unification, the great trend, everyone wanted to see such a scene—so this marriage must continue.
Chen Changsheng felt these words were familiar. Then he remembered that since coming to the capital from Xining, he had often heard similar things. The senior maidservant named Shuang had said it, that granny had said it, many people at the Green Vine Banquet had said it, even Tang Thirty-Six had said it—only back then, the name linked with Xu Yourong was not his own.
He was not one to hide his true thoughts. Lifting his head to look at Xu Shiji, he said, “Back then, you all said the same about Qiu Shan Jun.”
“In my view, if a match were to be made, Qiu Shan was certainly a better choice than you, even now. The problem is, he is no longer as good as you.”
“Better choice” and “not as good” were two different concepts for comparison.
Chen Changsheng thought of the news from Li Mountain. When sunlight shone on the main peak, Qiu Shan Jun had calmly and casually stabbed himself, effortlessly resolving a long-planned great conspiracy. After a moment of silence, he shook his head and said, “I am not as good as him.”
Xu Shiji did not understand his meaning. “His Holiness the Pope is your martial uncle. On that point alone, he can never match you.”
Just like the words Qiu Shan Jun had spoken to his father on Li Mountain’s main peak—the young and the old truly could never walk the same path.
Chen Changsheng did not know those words, but he felt the same. He stood up to take his leave, and at the same time, took out the marriage contract and placed it on the table.
His movements were not particularly solemn, nor were they casual. There was no arrogance, no inferiority. He simply took it out and set it down.
He had come to this Divine General’s Mansion three times now, each time to break off the engagement. Perhaps for that reason, he was no longer as nervous or awkward as before.
Xu Shiji’s face showed no sign of embarrassment either. When he received the letter from the National Academy saying Chen Changsheng wished to visit, he had already guessed the purpose.
“Last time I said, if you truly insist on breaking off the engagement, give the marriage contract to Rong’er in person.”
Chen Changsheng had indeed thought of doing so in the Zhou Garden, but he had never had the chance to meet Xu Yourong. Then he found it puzzling why both Xu Shiji and Tang Thirty-Six had said similar things, as if they were certain that once he saw Xu Yourong in person, he would no longer want to break off the engagement. Even if Xu Yourong truly was as beautiful as a celestial maiden, so what?
He even felt that others looking at him this way was a form of contempt.
“I hear Miss Xu will return to the capital soon. I will leave the marriage contract here at your mansion. If Miss Xu has any thoughts, please send word to the National Academy.”
He ignored Xu Shiji’s words and continued, “Please do not send the marriage contract back to the National Academy again. Otherwise, it might really get lost, and that would truly be unsightly.”
Xu Shiji was furious at this, thinking, how dare you threaten me, but his face betrayed no emotion.
Chen Changsheng was not threatening him; he was telling the truth. This marriage contract had nearly been lost in the Zhou Garden.
Back then, when he fought Nanke’s wings at the bottom of the lake, he had thrown out everything in his sword sheath to break through her Light Wings, including this marriage contract. Only, he had long since felt nothing for this engagement, so he hadn’t cared much about the contract. It wasn’t until a few days ago, when he prepared to come to the Xu Mansion to break it off, that he remembered the matter.
He looked at Xu Shiji, wanting to say something more, but after thinking it over, he let it go. Without further words, he took his leave.
Xu Shiji watched his back disappear into the night without expression, then withdrew his gaze and looked at the marriage contract. His expression tightened slightly. He couldn’t understand why the edges of the contract were slightly damp.
Walking through the garden of the Eastern Divine General’s Mansion, following the lantern held by the maidservant ahead, Chen Changsheng looked at the familiar straight trees and gray stones and naturally recalled his past encounters here.
When he had taken his leave just now, he had indeed wanted to say something to Xu Shiji, but he couldn’t find the right words or know how to phrase them. If it were Tang Thirty-Six, he would probably have directly asked Xu Shiji: Are you this shameless, and does your daughter know? But Chen Changsheng couldn’t say such things. He only suddenly felt some sympathy for Xu Yourong.
Xu Shiji said he insisted on this marriage for his daughter’s sake, but in his speech, he kept using words like “great trend,” “North-South unification,” and “leaving a name in history,” not hiding his true thoughts at all. Chen Changsheng thought, he’s just a fame-seeker, only thinking of glorifying his family line, the Xu clan lasting for ten thousand generations. In his eyes, what difference was there between his daughter and a memorial archway?
Thinking this way, Xu Yourong was indeed somewhat pitiable.
Lost in such scattered thoughts, he arrived at a stone gate.
A girl stood at the stone gate.
The scene was very similar to a year and a half ago.