Chapter 631: Reading Each Other
Fang Canran said thoughtfully, “But why did he silently go to the State of Chiyan beforehand?”
“If a cloud envoy of the Heavenly Palace leaves the city, it must be on the heavenly gods’ business.”
“In other words, something happened in Chiyan that caught the gods’ attention, and Bai Ziqi went there to investigate.” Fang Canran stroked the parrot’s crest feathers. “Didn’t you receive word that the Tianluo Star behaved abnormally dozens of days ago? If we count the timing, it seems to line up.”
“The Tianluo Star flashed in Chiyan. The elixir of youth case also began in Chiyan.” The parrot bobbed its head. “Are you saying the Chiyan monster king and his son are plotting something, and that’s why they sent this He fellow to find you?”
“At least on the surface, that is how it looks. Recently, Fushan Yue has been very active in Lingxu City. He has appeared at all sorts of occasions and negotiated several partnerships, including with the Golden Horn Clan and Dun Garden.”
“Could Fushan and his son know your family affairs?”
Sometimes, the parrot’s questions struck straight to the heart. Fang Canran sighed. “By rights, they shouldn’t. In any case, for the time being, I haven’t found any reason for He Xiao to expose me. If he had come here specifically to make trouble for me, there would be no need for him to provoke so many powerful nobles at the same time.” Wouldn’t that just be making things harder for himself?
“He is with the Crown Prince of Chiyan, and this time Chiyan is using the elixir of youth case to oppose Lingxu City. Sigh, in Lingxu City, this group of Chiyan people is like a powder keg. One careless spark and they explode, so I feel it’s best if we coexist peacefully with him. Besides, there are already plenty of people who want his life. If he mishandles even one of them, he won’t survive. I don’t need to make a move at all.”
“In short, since the heavenly gods sent Bai Ziqi to Chiyan, the matter he was investigating must have been extremely important to begin with. Then came the elixir of youth case, launched by the State of Chiyan and jointly supported by memorials from the State of Baoshu and six other states. Yet it has still not been solved, and the vassal monster states are taking turns submitting inquiries. I hear the Monster Emperor has already lost his temper several times.”
The parrot asked curiously, “Do you think the mastermind behind the elixir of youth case really is the Spring Palace?”
“Qingfu Temple was privately selling the elixir of youth, and plenty of nobles bought it. Do you think the person at the very top could truly know nothing?” Fang Canran reasoned. “This is a monopoly business. So far, I have not heard of anyone else doing it, and those cases from several hundred years ago don’t count; they were too long ago. That means the backer behind Qingfu Temple must be extremely powerful. If not for this rare convergence of circumstances, the elixir of youth case would never have come to light. The Baoshu King and the other monster kings also saw how rare this opportunity was, which is why they joined forces to apply pressure.”
“Now that the case has been dragged into the light, if Lingxu City cannot find the real mastermind and answer everyone’s concerns, the prestige of the Monster Emperor and the heavenly gods will be damaged. But the resistance to digging deeper is enormous. You’ve seen how long the investigation has been stalled. Bai Ziqi’s opponent cleaned up the trail very thoroughly. Everyone suspects, but no one has proof.”
“So you think it’s the Spring Palace?”
Fang Canran nodded. “Most likely.”
The parrot asked, “And what if they never find anything?”
“Then they delay,” Fang Canran answered without hesitation. “Lingxu City is vast, and Beijia is even larger. How many things happen every day? People won’t keep staring only at the elixir of youth case.”
Human nature was drawn to novelty and tired quickly of old things. “As long as they drag the case out until everyone grows bored and forgets, it will naturally turn from a major matter into a minor one, then from a minor one into nothing. Mm, isn’t there still a war in the east? That can be very useful for diverting attention.” He paused. “So many earth-shattering events have happened before. Take the great Lingxu earthquake caused by Juju, for example. The whole world criticized them, but in the end, wasn’t it also settled this way?”
He let out a long sigh. “The current Lingxu City is full of undercurrents. I truly hope we can add another blaze to the fire.”
“Be careful!” The parrot flapped its wings in warning. “Safety first! Do you hear me? Safety first!”
“I know.” Fang Canran quickly found a few peanuts and handed them over.
The parrot instinctively caught them in its claws and cracked the shells open with its beak. Once it started eating peanuts, it had no time to talk.
* * *
Only after Fang Canran’s carriage had disappeared from sight did the Soul-Stealing Mirror ask from inside He Lingchuan’s clothes, “What did that ‘Punishment’ word mean?”
It could not enter Panlong City, so it did not know the origins of the Dragon Punishment Pillar.
“Nothing.” He Lingchuan did not intend to explain. The words “Dragon Punishment Pillar” should not appear in Lingxu City at all.
“Hey, you tell him something even I don’t know?” The Soul-Stealing Mirror sounded deeply wounded. Does this master of mine not know the difference between close and distant? “Aren’t you afraid he’ll find some way to report you?”
Some people loved making reports.
“The Chains of Oath are effective. Even if he wants to report me now, his heart is willing, but his strength is lacking.” He Lingchuan walked back slowly. Servants greeted him along the way. “If he weren’t afraid, he could have reported me long ago. Why would he come meet me in person?”
He simply headed to the Bright Light Tower on the western side of the garden.
This was the highest point on Mount Qilin. At night, a huge lotus-shaped glazed lamp atop the pagoda would be lit, shining in red, blue, and yellow, creating a beautiful night scene.
That was where the name “Bright Light” came from. However, the servants had been lazy today and had not come to light it.
He Lingchuan casually lit the lamp himself, then sat by the pagoda window.
The Bright Light Pagoda was extremely narrow. Only one person could climb it at a time, and even turning around on the stairs was difficult.
The mirror asked again, “That Shao Jian, the one you two were using to speak in riddles. Is he really Fang Canran’s ancestor?”
“I’m about ninety percent sure that he is.” He Lingchuan had already thought it through. “I only know that Shao Jian had a daughter named Shao Yingying. If she married out, then of course, Shao Jian’s grandson through the female line would not have the surname, Shao.”
“What exactly did this Shao fellow do?” the mirror asked, baffled. “Enough to make you admire him this much.”
This master, in many ways, no longer seemed quite human to it. So it was surprised to find that he actually had someone he admired.
He Lingchuan said blandly, “It’s a secret. Even now, not many people dare mention it.”
Fine, the mirror thought, this master does know the difference between close and distant after all. I’m simply in the “distant” category. “Then will Fang Canran believe you?”
“For now, we’re only probing each other. Even with the Chains of Oath in effect, neither of us dares lay our whole heart bare.” Each had their own little secrets.
A rustle came from the forest not far away, as if birds were fighting. He Lingchuan casually flicked a few fruit shells over, startling a flock of night birds into screeching flight.
“...Then why did you reveal so many secrets just now?”
“If it were only Fang Canran himself, even if I confirmed that he was Shao Jian’s descendant, I might not have told him all this. I might not even have sought him out.” He Lingchuan’s thoughts were clear. “No matter how fearless and steadfast Shao Jian was, that was Shao Jian himself. It has nothing to do with his descendants.”
In other words, Shao Jian might have been able to stand firmly against the heavenly gods, but his descendants might not.
A dragon father with a worm for a son was hardly rare.
That could happen in just two generations. What about after seven or eight, even ten generations?
One should never ignore individual autonomy and differences.
“So?” The mirror realized it had been asking this question more and more lately.
“But Fang Canran not only understands what his ancestor did more than a century ago, but he also agrees with it...”
“Wait, wait. How can you tell he agrees?” the mirror cried. “Why can’t I see it?”
“The signet ring he wears is the ring of the leader of the Red Snail Merchant Guild founded by Shao Jian. It has five whorls. I remember it very clearly. I would not mistake it.”
“Oh, and then?”
“Shao Jian spent his life on the run for the hatred of his state and family. Until the day he died, he fought against the gods. Fang Canran knows his life and past clearly, yet still wears his signet ring on his hand. That alone signifies that he approves of his ancestor’s ideals and actions. It is also a secret provocation against the heavenly gods.” He Lingchuan’s expression turned serious. “Don’t forget, this is Lingxu City, right beneath the gods’ eyes. What Shao Jian did was more than enough for the gods to execute eighteen generations of his descendants. If Fang Canran had not inherited his ancestor’s conviction, or if he merely knew about it but did not agree, how would he dare put on that ring?”
In life and action, the heart had to be established first.
Fang Canran’s insistence on wearing that signet ring was perhaps his way of declaring his own heart and constantly warning himself.
“Could wearing that ring really not cause trouble?”
He Lingchuan shook his head. “Shao Jian dissolved the Red Snail Merchant Guild several years before his death. I calculated the timing. It was probably not long after Panlong City fell. Later, he left home on his own, likely knowing the gods were closing in step by step. That was why he cut off his last connection with his family. He had enough time to calmly deal with the loose ends. I suspect the gods may not even know about that ring. Besides, more than a hundred years have passed.” He then smiled and added, “Fang Canran isn’t stupid either. If there were real danger, he wouldn’t wear it.”
“Anyway, we’ve strayed from the point.” He Lingchuan drew the topic back. “I’m already busy enough to spin in circles. Why would I still risk approaching him? Besides needing outside help, it is also because this man’s persistence is strange.”
“Strange?”
“I already said it. It’s incredibly impressive if a father’s convictions, no matter how firm, manage to be passed to his son, but to pass them down more than ten generations?” He Lingchuan chuckled. “People today don’t even know the names of their ancestors from three generations back, and you expect them to inherit their will? Ridiculous. You’re telling me Shao Jian’s legacy could be passed down generation after generation, lasting over 160 years, all the way to Fang Canran without fading? That’s nearly impossible.”
The mirror said, “Oh. You mean he’s fake? He’s impersonating someone?”
“You said that, not me.” He Lingchuan rolled his eyes. “What I’m saying is that he is not alone. Behind him, there is very likely a strict and efficient organization.”
“Ah?” The mirror froze. “W-Why?”
“It is very difficult for an individual to keep the same conviction from beginning to end. Do you know how fragile the human heart is?” Looking down from the tower, one could glimpse the myriad lights beneath Mount Qilin. How many ordinary little joys were hidden inside them?
Even for the residents of Lingxu City, living properly was not easy. “The world is vast, and its temptations dazzle the eye. This path is full of hardship, and ambition is hard to fulfill. Unless one is a sage, even an iron will cannot withstand being worn down day after day, month after month. But with an organization, with a team, things are different. Comrades who share the same ideals can encourage each other and move forward side by side.”
He Lingchuan thought of Panlong City.
Was the Gale Army not precisely such a group of people?
“Faith is something that also needs to be infused and maintained.” Faith was such a precious thing. It was like a spark. A group of people could preserve it more easily than a single person could.
The mirror secretly glanced at him. “Then what about you?” Isn’t Master fighting alone?
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