Chapter Fifty-Seven: Leaving Home

“Xiaoye, how are you finding your stay these past few days?” Early in the morning, Huang Jifeng arrived as he did every day to seek out Ye Pei.

Ye Pei stepped out from the small house, clasped his hands, and smiled, “I’m quite comfortable, thank you for your hospitality, Lord Huang.”

“Come, today I’m not in the mood for sparring,” Huang Jifeng declared, a rare sentiment for him. “Let’s take a leisurely stroll up the mountain.”

Since he had no desire to fight, Ye Pei was happy for the respite, and together they left the courtyard.

“Xiaoye, did the priest Ni ever say anything unusual to you?” Huang Jifeng suddenly asked, seemingly out of nowhere as they walked.

Ye Pei turned to him, “What sort of unusual words?”

Huang Jifeng waved to greet a passerby, then replied, “It seems he didn’t. You and I get along well, so today I’ll tell you what Priest Ni once confided in me.”

“It’s funny, really. Priest Ni always said that one day I’d pass this on to someone, and that when the day came, I would know who it was. But I never felt any premonition. I suppose I find you agreeable, so why not tell you? Perhaps you’re the one.”

“Priest Ni told me that our Yan people, living in this resource-poor, ever-changing land, are not here because we are a people in exile. The Starfolk, blessed with a vast and bountiful realm, are not favored by heaven and earth simply because of their lineage.”

Ye Pei furrowed his brow and pondered for a moment before asking, “And?”

“He said that gods do exist in this world, but they are not the Starfolk.”

“That’s all?”

Huang Jifeng nodded, “That’s all.”

Ye Pei recalled his childhood confusion over the worship of the Starfolk, his later doubts about the histories recorded by the Wangmai, and what Zi Qingrong had said about the Starfolk provoking the Great War of the Yan Season. Hearing Huang Jifeng’s words now, Ye Pei felt as though some elusive idea was about to break free—yet still just beyond reach.

“Ah... this feeling is truly vexing. The secrets of heaven and earth…”

Meanwhile, let us turn to Zi Qingrong, who had been brought back to the Zi Clan’s territory by Zi Yankong.

Since her return, though Zi Qiong and Hong Yu had not punished her, she was effectively under house arrest, allowed only to move within the lord’s manor, and always watched whenever she left her courtyard.

For days, Zi Qingrong rarely ventured out, spending most of her time practicing from the book of “Secrets.” Sitting in meditation as instructed, she felt a faint warmth in her chest and abdomen, but not the inner energy flow Ye Pei had described.

If Ye Pei had heard her thoughts, he would surely have told her this was already quite good—she had sensed the presence of inner energy in the short time since acquiring the book. As for controlling or feeling its movement, that was beyond her current stage.

“Sigh…” Early morning found the young lady sighing in her room. “I wonder how Ye is doing, whether he’s been caught…”

Just then, a handsome youth pushed open the door and entered.

“Sister, I heard you’re on hunger strike?”

This was Zi Qingcheng, Zi Yankong’s son, two years younger than Zi Qingrong, her cousin.

The young lady had started her hunger protest the day before, hoping to gain Zi Qiong’s permission to leave the manor.

“Qingcheng.” Zi Qingrong turned to glance at him, saying little.

Zi Qingcheng exclaimed, “Come on, Sister! Now that you have a fiancé, you’re ignoring me?”

Zi Qingrong flushed, “Don’t talk nonsense!”

Zi Qingcheng’s teasing grew even more pronounced. “So you really let that guy trick you?”

Zi Qingrong retorted, a touch angry, “He’s three years older than you. Mind your words. Besides, his martial skills far surpass yours.”

“See, see!” Zi Qingcheng poured himself a cup of tea, looking like a seasoned veteran. “Girls just can’t be kept home after they grow up… hmm…”

Before he finished, Zi Qingrong dumped a half-cold pot of tea over his head.

“Cough…” Zi Qingcheng wiped his face with his sleeve. “What’s so great about him?”

Zi Qingrong pondered, “He’s skilled, gentle, attentive, responsible, and…”

“All right, all right, enough!” Zi Qingcheng waved to interrupt. “Seriously, you’ve known him only two months, and you think you know him so well?”

Zi Qingrong pouted, “It’s been only two months, but I’ve spent all that time with him. He’s from Wangmai. Since I met him in Yanland, we’ve always been together.”

“Still… he’s made enemies of the other three clans. Uncle forbidding you to see him is perfectly reasonable.”

“Ay? Qingcheng!” Suddenly, Zi Qingrong looked at him with an expectant gaze.

Zi Qingcheng shuddered, as if startled. “What?”

Zi Qingrong poured him hot tea, stroked his hair affectionately, but before she could speak, Zi Qingcheng interjected, “Just say what you want. Whenever you act like this, it’s never good for me.”

Zi Qingrong said, “Qingcheng, help me escape.”

“What?! My father and uncle would kill me!”

“Oh, come now. Just say you had nothing to do with it.”

Zi Qingcheng looked annoyed, “Easy for you to say. The guards saw me enter your room, then you disappeared. Of course they’d suspect me!”

Zi Qingrong thought it over, “Then in a few days, let’s make a more detailed plan.”

Zi Qingcheng refused flatly, “No way! Do you know what a risk that is? Do you…”

He stopped mid-sentence, noticing her eyes reddening.

“I’m your only sister, and you won’t help me… You’d rather side with the family and bully me… After all I’ve done for you since we were children…”

Tears streamed from Zi Qingrong’s eyes.

Zi Qingcheng panicked, “No, no, don’t cry…” He fumbled for a towel to wipe her tears.

“All right, all right, Sister, don’t cry…”

“You must help me!”

“Uh…”

“Waa…”

“Fine, fine, I’ll help you!”

“Good.”

In that instant, Zi Qingrong stopped crying and wiped her cheeks herself.

Zi Qingcheng took a deep breath, inwardly shouting, “No wonder my father said women can’t be trusted! If Sister doesn’t go into acting, it’s a waste! I almost believed her just now!”

What’s said is said, and having agreed, Zi Qingcheng could only helplessly begin to plan the escape with his sister.

Leaving Zi Qingrong’s room, his mind was consumed by a single thought.

“I can’t believe I’m helping my own sister escape from our own home…”

Three days later, in the afternoon.

Afternoon is the time for sleeping, especially on rainy days. If you insist on doing something then, it rarely goes well. When people are sleepy, groggy, or awake at odd hours, they tend to do foolish things—things they later regret.

But I digress; consider this me padding the word count. According to my calculations, this digression is 136 words—shameless, really.

In my previous paragraph, I berated myself for padding, and shamelessly acted as if I was reflecting on it.

And just now, I pointed out I was berating myself…

All right, back to three days later, in the afternoon.

Zi Qingcheng brought his sparring partner to his cousin’s courtyard. For some reason, though the weather wasn’t hot, his martial attendant wore a conspicuous hat.

The guards at Zi Qingrong’s gate gave them odd looks; Zi Qingcheng coughed, “He… has a cold.”

The guards were puzzled. They hadn’t done anything, so why was the young master explaining?

This is common: when you’re hiding something, you think everyone knows.

Inside, Zi Qingcheng asked, “Sister, the guards at your door shouldn’t notice, right?”

Zi Qingrong replied anxiously, “It’s midday—they’re all drowsy. We just walk out like nothing happened. Did you prepare the horse?”

“It’s ready, but when did you learn to ride?”

“Oh, your brother-in-law taught me,” she said offhandedly.

“See! You claim he didn’t trick you, yet…”

“Smack!” Zi Qingrong, cheeks flushed, slapped her cousin’s head. “Hurry up!”

Zi Qingcheng helplessly pulled out a bundle of clothes, identical to his martial attendant’s.

“Here, go change.”

Zi Qingrong grabbed it and hurried to the bedroom. Meanwhile, in the outer hall, the martial attendant asked, “Young master, the lady shows such devotion to that youth. Our clan has many outstanding young people, but she never showed such interest before.”

Zi Qingcheng smiled, “You probably heard me disparage my brother-in-law and thought he was mediocre. Do you know how he came to Yanland?”

The attendant shook his head. Zi Qingcheng continued, “I heard his father was the greatest military strategist of Wangmai, but was betrayed by Lin Yukun, who had infiltrated Wangmai. After his father’s death, he descended the mountain, led his father’s army, and crushed the three clans. Before the final battle, he killed Lin Yukun; during the conflict, he slew Feng Xiaoyang, and in the retreat, finally killed his true enemy, Lin Yufei, then ended up in Yanland. His skills allow him to come and go freely on a battlefield of hundreds of thousands. He can’t be compared to the young men of our clan.”

The martial attendant’s large hat could not hide his shock. “He’s that strong?”

Zi Qingcheng shrugged, “My father says there are many experts in Yanland, but they disdain serving the lord. My brother-in-law isn't the strongest, but he ranks among the best here.”

Zi Qingrong emerged, now dressed as an attendant. The martial attendant handed her the hat, which she donned, then slung her pack and a qin across her back.

“Sister, why bring the qin?”

Her mood subdued, Zi Qingrong answered, “Once I leave, who knows when I’ll return? The qin is my favorite possession. After I go, tell my father not to worry—I’m living the life I want.”

Zi Qingcheng nodded, “All right, let’s stick to the plan. Let’s go.”

With that, the siblings strode out. At the courtyard gate, the two guards saw Zi Qingcheng’s “martial attendant” carrying belongings. Before they could ask, Zi Qingcheng said, “I’m borrowing my sister’s qin. Inspiration’s been flowing lately; I want to play a few tunes.”

The guards, bleary-eyed, thought, “Everyone knows you’ve always trained in martial arts, now suddenly you want to play music…” Perhaps because of their drowsiness, they didn’t question further, nor scrutinize the face beneath the hat. They let them pass.

Inside, the martial attendant watched from the window as the siblings left safely, then leaped out the back window, scaled the wall, and slipped into the neighboring yard.

Watching Zi Qingrong ride off, Zi Qingcheng stood for a long time, then slapped his forehead, “No, they’ll definitely suspect me anyway. What now… Oh, got it!”

A bright idea struck him, and he hurried back to his room, packed a few things, grabbed his sword, summoned his attendant, and rode out of the manor as well—destination unknown.