Chapter 21: Raise Your Hand to Ask for Leave
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Chen Changsheng walked into the alley. After a while, he walked out of the alley again. He stood at the entrance of the alley, looking somewhat bewildered—because he had walked back and forth through the alley twice, seen several eateries, but hadn’t found the bean curd fish mentioned on the note.
So he should wait for her? Standing at the alley entrance, a thought suddenly occurred to him: Could it be that she was deliberately teasing him to punish his foolishness? Yes, that must be it. Otherwise, why would she leave an address that didn’t exist on the note?
His mood grew complicated. The snow falling from the sky gradually became heavier, and pedestrians in the streets hurried away to take shelter. Today, because of the grand banquet at the Li Palace, many people had gone to the Sacred Path to watch the excitement. The taverns and eateries on Fushou Road were far less busy than usual, and now they seemed even more desolate.
He didn’t leave. He waited at the snowy alley entrance.
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On both sides of the Sacred Path at the Li Palace, bright lanterns hung, and snowflakes drifted down. The crowd of Kyoto citizens waiting to watch the excitement had thinned a bit, but those who persisted still felt it was worth it, seeing the luxurious carriages from various princely estates and halls filing in one after another. In the Bright and Just Hall, where tonight’s banquet was held, it was already filled with priests, ministers, and people from various halls and institutes. But behind the Bright and Just Hall, in that quiet and secluded hall, it remained as peaceful as ever.
The Pope was to attend tonight’s banquet. He had already changed his linen robe into a sacred vestment. Holding a ladle in his right hand, he was watering the green leaves in a pot. Seeing the leaves growing more robust, the old man’s face showed a gratified smile. He picked up a soft towel placed by the pot and gently wiped his hands.
During his previous visits to the Li Palace, Chen Changsheng had noticed the changes in this pot of green leaves. He didn’t understand—since the Green Leaf World, like the Garden of Zhou, was a stable fragment of space that couldn’t be enlarged, why would the Pope carefully nurture its growth? Was it just to make the door to the Green Leaf World more stable? Or would the door between the Green Leaf World and the Original World grow larger as the green leaves thrived? If so, why did the Pope want to enlarge the door to the Green Leaf World?
“This matter is ultimately too significant, Your Majesty. Don’t you need to think it over again?”
Mao Qiuyu stood quietly behind the Pope, his demeanor respectful, his sleeves completely still.
The Pope put down the towel, smiled, and said, “From your account of the battle at Naihe Bridge, I find this child even more reliable than I imagined. You’ve also said that, purely in terms of potential and future prospects, it’s truly hard to find a better candidate. Since that’s the case, I can rest assured passing the state religion to him.”
Mao Qiuyu was silent for a moment, then said, “Your Majesty speaks truly. But Linghai and Siyuan’s cultivation and seniority far surpass Chen Changsheng’s, and they were once nurtured by Your Majesty. I think they will find this very hard to accept.”
The Pope walked back to the platform, took the divine crown from the crystal throne, and placed it on his head, but he didn’t pick up the divine staff representing the authority of the state religion. He said slowly, “Call it selfishness if you will. After all, the only orthodox successor of the state religion now is this child. And in the future, he will face the hardest choices in the mortal world, the most bewildering helplessness, the most piercing sorrow. So this title—let it be the comfort I offer him, and the reward the state religion owes him.”
Having said this, he slowly turned and walked toward the cold stone wall. As he stepped forward, the stone wall slowly opened, radiating infinite light.
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This was a night pearl that once illuminated Kyoto from the edge of the Sweet Dew Terrace. Over time, due to wind and rain, it had faded, so it was taken down and placed in a palace hall for illumination. Though it was no longer as dazzling as before, it still cast an incredibly bright light on the memorials on the desk.
The Empress was reviewing memorials while listening to the words echoing in the hall.
The old eunuch chief stood bowed at the lower end, recounting in a very soft voice the specific details of the morning’s battle at Naihe Bridge.
The battle between Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong at Naihe Bridge had occurred shortly after dawn. Yet both the Pope and the Empress only sent people to report on it in detail near evening. This showed that, unlike the rest of the continent, these two sages didn’t think much of the battle. Although Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong were their most trusted juniors, and in a sense, their successors, in their eyes, it was still a minor matter.
“…The Zhai Sword emerged from the Sword Pool. Little Dean Chen must have held back a trump card. The Holy Maiden likely knew this beforehand and was prepared, but for some reason, she still didn’t strike decisively. Chen Changsheng, at the cost of a left shoulder injury, forcibly seized control of the Zhai Sword and unexpectedly blocked the Holy Maiden’s Spirit Finger. If judged purely on swordsmanship, he probably won by half a move. But in a real fight, if it had continued, he wouldn’t have had a chance to win. Only… the Holy Maiden just left like that.”
After saying this, the eunuch chief cautiously looked up, then retreated to the back.
The Empress’s expression didn’t change. Most of the time when the eunuch chief didn’t look up, she remained the same. The talent and wisdom Chen Changsheng and Xu Yourong displayed at Naihe Bridge would shock most people, but not her. Only when she heard that Xu Yourong had comprehended the Great Radiant Sword did she raise an eyebrow slightly, as if she hadn’t expected it.
“What a stubborn girl.”
She tossed the memorial onto the table, stood up, walked to the hall’s entrance, clasped her hands behind her back, and gazed into the distant night sky where a faint light was visible—that should be the Li Palace.
Just then, Mo Yu hurried in, her expression extremely grave, and reported to her what had just happened.
The Empress stared quietly in the direction of the Li Palace, a slight smile on her lips, but her eyes were utterly indifferent: “It’s getting more and more interesting.”
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The battle at Naihe Bridge was over, but the discussions it sparked were hard to quell quickly. The conversations among the big shots in the Bright and Just Hall still revolved around this matter. With their insight and experience, after calming down and reflecting, they understood that Xu Yourong hadn’t used her True Phoenix Bloodline, deliberately suppressing herself to a normal person’s level, wanting to defeat Chen Changsheng fairly through strength rather than talent. But that didn’t mean they thought Chen Changsheng’s victory was undeserved, because they also knew Chen Changsheng hadn’t used his strongest methods, like how he survived Zhu Xun’s sword strike during the rain battle in Xunyang City.
Just then, solemn and benevolent music suddenly rang out in the Bright and Just Hall. The innermost stone wall slowly opened, light spilled everywhere, and the stone carvings on both sides of the hall gleamed. Everyone inside quickly adjusted their attire, composed themselves, lined up, and humbly bowed to the Pope as he stepped from the stone wall into the light.
Surrounded by the Grand Knight Commander and several Archbishops, the Pope slowly ascended the high platform. Naturally, Priest Siyuan and Linghai Zhiwang were among them. Mao Qiuyu, the Archbishop of the Hall of Heroic Splendor, stood at the very back. What surprised people was that the divine staff, symbolizing the authority of the state religion, was now held in his hands.
Without any lengthy or complicated procedures, Mao Qiuyu calmly began to recite Chen Changsheng’s merits for the state religion—from the Grand Examination to the Mausoleum of Books, from the Garden of Zhou to this morning’s Naihe Bridge, and even the new students of the National Academy—something originally taboo for the state religion—became part of his record of achievements.
This was, after all, the state religion’s celebration banquet, naturally honoring Chen Changsheng’s deeds. Everyone had anticipated Mao Qiuyu reading these out. But what happened next, no one except Mao Qiuyu and the Pope had foreseen.
After finishing Chen Changsheng’s merits, Mao Qiuyu did not, as people expected, directly announce the state religion’s reward for him. Instead, he calmly walked to the Pope’s side. Amid everyone’s shocked gazes, the Pope reached out, took the divine staff, and said, “With this, I bestow my blessing upon him.”
The Bright and Just Hall fell utterly silent. No one spoke, because they were too stunned.
Now, Chen Changsheng was the Dean of the National Academy. Long ago, he had been the Pope’s junior disciple, though no one knew it. After the Mausoleum of Books, the entire continent learned of the Pope’s arrangement, knowing Chen Changsheng would become the next Pope. But that was ultimately just speculation or inference.
Today, speculation was confirmed, and inference became reality.
The Pope had handed the divine staff, symbolizing the authority of the state religion, to Chen Changsheng. This announced to the entire world that he was his successor.
The silence in the Bright and Just Hall continued. It wasn’t eerie, nor did it portend any upheaval. No one dared defy the Pope’s will here. But people didn’t know how to react. It was a matter of course, yet it had come much earlier than expected. They couldn’t help but be shocked.
Chen Changsheng was only sixteen.
Priest Siyuan and Linghai Zhiwang, once considered by the entire continent as the most likely to take up the divine staff and inherit the papacy, had extremely ugly expressions. They had thought they still had a few years to change the Pope’s will, but they hadn’t expected the Pope to leave them no time at all.
They knew very well why the Pope had chosen this moment to confirm Chen Changsheng’s status as successor.
In the past, the new faction of the state religion—like them and their supporters—could have used Chen Changsheng’s youth as an excuse, saying he needed more years of observation to delay the Pope’s decision. But now, the continent already had a sixteen-year-old Southern Holy Maiden. What did it matter if there was also a sixteen-year-old candidate Pope?
Not to mention that this candidate Pope had just defeated that Southern Holy Maiden today.
The silence in the hall continued. Gradually, people felt something was off. Even if they didn’t know how to react, what about Chen Changsheng?
Even if he was also shocked, he should have stepped forward to thank the Pope for his blessing and accept everyone’s congratulations.
Mao Qiuyu’s gaze swept back and forth across the hall. His brows deeply furrowed, and he asked incredulously, “Where is Chen Changsheng?”
From a corner of the hall, a hand suddenly shot up, accompanied by an uneasy voice.
“He… he… he… was too happy at noon, ate too much, and got some diarrhea. He asked me to… ask for leave on his behalf.”
Tonight was the state religion’s celebration banquet. The Pope personally bestowed the divine staff, confirming the successor to the state religion… and the person in question wasn’t even present?
The Bright and Just Hall erupted in uproar. The crowd parted like water, revealing the person who had just spoken.
Tang Thirty-Six lowered his head, his hand raised.
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(The next chapter should be out before midnight.)