Lu Xiao’s hand that was carefully tucking his wool collar suddenly paused.
It was only after a moment that Lu Xiao said roughly, “What do you mean by this?”
“I need to leave,” Qiu Yutong really had a twinge of guilt but he also had no choice, and could only brace himself and repeat.
Before he ascended, he had promised Lu Xiao that he would always accompany him, praying for rain and snow in Dachen dynasty, protecting the weather for crops for the commoners… but he couldn’t do it in the end.
And now, he hadn’t been back for long yet he had to leave.
Lu Xiao fell silent, one hand unconsciously grabbing tightly onto the expensive, black wool collar, and the blue veins on the back of his hands stood out.
Qiu Yutong saw that he did speak and tried to explain again, “Xiao-er, it’s not like I won’t return from this trip. I just want to go to the Medicine King to ask for a cure. This body is born weak and had even suffered punishment previously…”
He looked at the other’s face and couldn’t continue.
Lu Xiao’s thin lips trembled slightly and almost couldn’t open his mouth, “I…”
Qiu Yutong looked at his appearance and simply couldn’t say “actually I was also poisoned at that time”. He could only comfort with difficulty, “Thinking about it now, the things I did back then, were also very inappropriate, like keeping you in the dark, breaking Night Rain… Xiao-er, you don’t have to blame yourself too much.”
Lu Xiao’s eyelashes dipped down and only hoarsely spoke after a long while, “How painful?”
Qiu Yutong was stunned and only realised Lu Xiao was referring to that time he was beaten after a while. He casually said, “Eh, it was okay, it wasn’t particularly painful.”
Actually, it was actually pretty painful. However, as a sword cultivator that represented absolute military force, wailing to the sky after a few beatings, was too humiliating. Moreover, there was no reason to make this little disciple even more guilty.
Lu Xiao said lightly, “You’re lying to me again.”
“…” Qiu Yutong was indeed speechless. Not to mention the eighty hits he endured miserable, he also had to painstakingly comfort the evil disciple that beat him, and in the end, the person also didn’t believe him!
What exactly did he want him to do?
But looking at Lu Xiao’s appearance, he simply couldn’t get angry so he could only pull back his temper and explain, “It was only a little painful at the start. Later, there was a chance and this body’s spiritual point was opened so it didn’t hurt after that. This could be counted as profiting from disaster.”
“You opened a spiritual point?” Lu Xiao suddenly raised his head, “you can cultivate again?”
“En, so it’s hard to anticipate disasters and happiness, the so-called misfortune relies upon blessings, blessings hides itself behind misfortune*. All living beings on earth have their own karma, so you don’t have to be too guilty.”
[T/N: I did a literal translation, since it’s supposed to be very poetic. This basically means that blessings and misfortunes must coexist.]
Lu Xiao muttered, “All living beings on earth, have their own karma…”
Qiu Yutong paused then continued, “Originally, I thought that this body had no way of opening any spiritual points and could only go back to North Snow City and reconstruct a corporal body. That would hurt. Now, this body had already opened one spiritual point, and had resolved the original body’s ill-fated karmis relationship. I just need to go to the Medicinal Monarch Manor and cleanse my meridians, washing away the years-worth of dirt in this body. Then, I can once again walk on the orthodox road.
And he could conveniently cure the cold poison.
Lu Xiao stared blankly at him.
Qiu Yutong couldn’t help raising his hand and gently rubbed his little disciple’s hair, gently consoling, “However, even if I want to cultivate once again, it would still take a long time and I won’t ascend so quickly.”
Why did this brat grow so tall for no reason?! It’s really tiring to keep raising his arm.
“En,” Lu Xiao gently lowered his head.
……
Qiu Yutong forcefully picked up a piece of beancurd using his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. Inwardly, he couldn’t help heaving a breath.
This dish was also too salty.
This table full of dishes in front of him, four meats and four vegetables,
Lu Xiao, this brat, could it be that he overturned the jar of salt?!
“…” Qiu Yutong pursed his lips and felt a little nauseous.
He glanced at the inattentive Lu Xiao beside him and forcefully swallowed the salty beancurd in his mouth.
After Qiu Yutong swallowed the beancurd, he quickly drank a mouthful of tea, diluting the salty taste in his mouth, while slightly clearing his throat, before saying, “Xiao-er, I should be able to accompany you for a long time.”
Accompany you for a lifetime.
“A long time?” Lu Xiao said lightly, as if he understood Qiu Yutong’s meaning.
A lifetime, yet it was only his lifetime.
The lifetime of a person without spiritual roots, a short few decades, was transient.
It was but a ripple in the life of an almighty cultivator.
Lu Xiao was silent for a moment before he suddenly said, “I heard that time passes by slowly in the cultivation world and so many have found Dao companions.”
He paused before forcing himself to continue, “Shizun, will you also have… a Dao companion in the future?”
“Dao companion?” Qiu Yutong was stunned.
After he recovered, he couldn’t help but laugh inwardly. Actually, Lu Xiao was worried that if he found a Dao companion, then he would ignore his little disciple?
A Dao companion, a lot of cultivators do actually find one. After all, a cultivator’s life was long and continuous, and they would occasionally feel lonely. Also, some cultivation methods, like double cultivation, help increase cultivation speed by quite a bit, like the Fengyue technique*.
[T/N: Fengyue can actually mean romance or beautiful scenery, depending on the context, but that wouldn’t be a good name so I left it as mandarin.]
It’s just that Qiu Yutong is a sword cultivator, and sword cultivators tend to have little desire so he had never considered the matter of Dao companions.
Qiu Yutong didn’t answer for a long time. Lu Xiao seemed like he was unable to endure and suddenly looked up, his pitch-black phoenix eyes staring directly at him, “Shizun, do you want to find a Dao companion?”
Qiu Yutong hesitated for a moment. “I haven’t thought about it yet.”
“Yet? So you will have one in the future?” Lu Xiao stared at him intently.
Qiu Yutong didn’t know whether to cry or smile. “What is it, are you afraid I’ll find a Shimu* for you? I’ve only just been reborn, and I still need to cleanse my meridians; I don’t have the effort to think about those messy issues. How about this, I promise you, after I cleanse my meridians, I will come back to the Chen empire and become the teacher of the state. In this period, I also won’t find a Dao companion.”
[T/N: Shimu is a term for your teacher’s wife.]
Lu Xiao was silent for a long time before softly responding with an “En”.
……
The next few days, Lu Xiao’s words had lessened a lot and his mood always seemed bad.
Qiu Yutong pondered. The Ice Blood Jadeworm in his body would not flare up for a while and he needn’t be in such a rush to cleanse his meridians. Also, during the Lantern Festival at Zuixian building that young manor master of the Medicinal Monarch Manor also said, the wedding banquet would be in the third month. If he went early, he wouldn’t be able to see San-Shixiong and without San-Shixiong’s recommendation, the master of the Medicinal Monarch Manor may not be willing to help him.
Why not stay in Daning Palace for a while and conveniently coax Lu Xiao this brat.
Since he had made his decision, in the next few days, Qiu Yutong spent more effort to accompany Lu Xiao rowing, watching snow, playing chess, sword dancing… Yet he cannot help but think about the Medicine Monarch Manor situation and was always absent-minded.
Regarding Qiu Yutong’s absent-mindedness, Lu Xiao took it all in. It’s just that after the talk previously, he didn’t say anymore.
In a blink of an eye it was the end of the second month.
The pure white snow gradually melted and the willow trees by the lake sprouted new leaves; a new spring had arrived again.
That morning, the cries of swallows travelled through the window. Qiu Yutong woke up in a daze and smelled the sweet fragrance of osmanthus cakes.
He sniffed, “Xiao-er?”
The house was silent, nobody answered.
“… Xiao-er?”
Qiu Yutong muddle-headedly supported himself up and rubbed his eyes. Then, he discovered the breakfast on the table as well as a bundle wrapped in cloth. Beside the bundle was something dark green, looking very familiar.
Qiu Yutong was slightly stunned. He got off the bed and picked that thing up.
It was an extremely delicate dark green jade token, which was about half the size of his palm and was heavy in his palm. An intricate image of a dragon clutching a pearl was carved on it.
He had once seen Lu Xiao take out this jade token previously on Dragon Gate street. When the commander of the Jinwu Guards saw the token, their face immediately changed and became extremely deferential.
Qiu Yutong realised something and blinked, then opened the bundle beside him. In the bundle were two sets of clothes, a huge box of osmanthus cakes, a thick stack of bank notes and a bag of gold pieces.
“This fellow,” Qiu Yutong put down the bundle and couldn’t help but sigh.
Looks like Lu Xiao finally understood and was willing to let him go.
Qiu Yutong looked down at the bundle and his mood was extremely complex. He relaxed a bit but felt a little melancholy as well.
His little disciple has grown up, no longer relying on him.
Like a baby eagle that could finally rely on its own wings to soar in the sky, while himself, a two hundred-years-old eagle could only watch the empty nest alone, plaintive and distressed.
Damn, what exactly was he thinking about! Qiu Yutong couldn’t help laughing in spite of himself.
He thought about it for a moment before he took out the tortoiseshell from below his pillow and put it in the cloth bundle. He also left Lu Xiao a letter, saying to remember that after he had finished cleansing his meridians, he would definitely come back.
……
Qiu Yutong held the dark green jade token that Lu Xiao left for him and as expected, his way was unhindered. He left Daning palace very quickly and exited the capital.
He carried the small cloth bundle and gracefully walked towards the suburbs. Suddenly, his stomach let out a loud growl.
This body was hungry again.
Qiu Yutong helplessly rubbed his stomach. As of now, he had yet to learn inedia and this body was also extremely frail, unable to have less than three meals a day. However, outside the capital was a wide expanse of farmland, how could there be a restaurant?
He had also long finished the box of osmanthus cakes in his cloth bundle.
Qiu Yutong stood on tiptoes and surveyed all directions, only seeing farmlands everywhere. Since spring just started, only small bits of tender sprouts were starting to emerge; there were no fruits he could pick.
“Ai, why isn’t there anything…” He shook his head and forcefully endured the hunger, dispiritedly carrying on.
He walked for a while more and the sky was gradually darkening. In the distance, the mountain seemed like it was being enveloped by a dark mist.
At this time, a peasant woman was walking in his direction, carrying a basket of crispy orange pears.
Qiu Yutong’s eyes brightened as he quickly called out, “Older sister, please slow down. Could you sell a few pears to me? This, I have… en, I have these.”
He rummaged through his bag and felt that the stack of five thousand taels was a bit too much, so he took out a gold piece.
The peasant lady saw that he took out a gold piece and was frightened, hesitating to accept it. “This is a gold piece? Is it real or fake?”
“Of course it’s real.”
The peasant woman sized him up and seeing that he didn’t seem like a scammer, and more like a silly rich young master, said, “If it’s gold, this one does not dare accept. This basket of pears is at most…”
She hesitated for a bit before glancing at Qiu Yutong and gritted out, “around three silvers.”
Qiu Yutong was thirsty and hungry, and urgently wanted to eat the pears, so he firmly pushed the gold piece into the lady’s hand. “Take it. I just want… en, five pears.
He wouldn’t take more.
“Okay,” the peasant woman, immediately passing him a bag of five pears.
Qiu Yutong picked up a pear and bit into it with a crunch. As expected, juice dribbled everywhere; it was crisp and sweet.
He enthusiastically nibbled on the pear before he suddenly thought of something, “Right, older sister, a question, I want to go to Bai Province’s Hanya ferry. I heard that I could ride a boat across Baishui river. Is this direction correct?”
“It’s correct, correct,” the peasant lady pointed ahead, “Here, do you see the smoky area? That is this one’s village people burning straw to make dinner. After the village, walk ahead another five hundred meters and that’s Baishui river. It’s just that it’s almost dark now, this one does not know if there are still boatmen.”
“Oh, so it’s like this. Then I’ll go try my luck. Thank you, older sister,” Qiu Yutong nodded, nibbling on the pear as he walked.
As expected, after passing the village, he heard the sound of splashing water soon after. Qiu Yutong followed the sound, and saw a large river not too far away. The river was extremely wide and rapid.
Looks like this was Baishui river.
As it was already dark, there were no boats on the river. Qiu Yutong walked along the river bank for quite a while, before he saw a faint light ahead.
His heart leapt, a road of pushing aside tall grasses and stepping on tall and short rocks to get across, “Boatman! Boatman!”
The small fishing boat stopped by the riverside. The boatman was a tall male wearing a conical bamboo hat and a black woven rush raincoat. His back was towards the shore as he sat at the prow of the boat, grilling a fish on the small stove.
Under the dim light, he could see that it was a fat fish, currently spurting oil, the fragrance of the fish wafted out.
Qiu Yutong was a little stunned when he saw this.
Eating pears would naturally not be filling.
He licked his lips. “Boatman, that… is the fish on sale?”
The man with his back facing him slowly shook his head.
Qiu Yutong restrained himself and immaturely softened his voice to beseech, “Really not selling? But I’m hungry, could you sell me half a piece? En, a small piece would be enough, I have silver.”
The boatman sighed before he stood up and turned around. “I won’t be selling this fish. If Shizun is hungry, just sit down and eat, where is there a need to bargain with me?”
Qiu Yutong stared at him. “Why are you here?”
Lu Xiao took off his bamboo hat, pitch-black eyes staring at him as he gave a slight smile, “If I’m not here, what would Shizun eat tonight?”
“…” Qiu Yutong couldn’t retort. “Then what about the court? You’re simply making trouble!”
“Shizun can rest assured, from the first to fifth year of my reign, in these five years, I’ve beaten the northern barbarians until they don’t dare to invade. The dam at Changqing river has also been reinforced. The national treasury is also abundant. In these few days, I’ve spoken with Chang Siru and Xu Changchun, everything has been arranged, no problem.”
“Even though you say this, the country cannot go a day without its ruler…”
“There is,” Lu Xiao directly interrupted him.
“Aren’t you here?!”
“Did Shizun forget, previously when I didn’t want to go for the lectures, Shizun cut a paper puppet to replace me? That paper puppet was indeed very life-like, with just a few drops of my blood, it’s basically the same as a normal person.”
“But, that is after all a puppet, it’s nothing for it to sit in and listen to the lecture, but you want to use it to conduct court? Have you become muddleheaded?”
“So I’ve announced that I’m sick, leaving the puppet to recuperate in the palace. As for the court matters, Chen Siru and Xu Changchun will handle them. Moreover, relay stations are everywhere, Bai province is not too far from the capital. If there’s anything, I can return to the capital anytime.”
“But…” Qiu Yutong still wanted to speak but Lu Xiao had already bent his waist and flipped the grilled fish. “This can be eaten, would you like to add chili oil?”
“… Yes.”
Qiu Yutong indignantly nibbled on the fragrant grilled fish.
Lu Xiao, this brat, is doing more things as he pleased, simply not asking for this shizun’s opinion, simply outrageous! When there’s a chance in the future, he had to carefully teach this evil disciple a lesson!
But, this grilled fish was simply too delicious.. Skin crispy and meat tender, fresh and spicy. Why not, for the sake of this piece of grilled fish, he forgave this evil disciple just one?
It doesn’t seem impossible…
Before he realised, he had already been placated*. The pair of master and disciple headed south along the river, travelling quickly, and soon, they approached Bai province.
[T/N: Actually a line from Li Bai’s 《早发白帝城 》It’s very hard to translate, so I fit the meaning into the context.]
