Chapter 37: Birds of a Feather
Qi Xiao and Fu Yunzhi had only one horse, but now they had to take an unconscious person to the Shahan capital. Therefore, Qi Xiao had no choice but to lead the horse on foot, giving up his seat.
Fu Yunzhi sat on the horse, holding the unidentified man, and asked with concern, “Qi Xiao, will you be alright like this?”
Qi Xiao waved his hand, indicating it was a small matter.
The man was too seriously injured and remained unconscious. They didn’t know if he could make it to Li City. The two of them had no choice but to speed up their journey, reduce their rest time, and shorten the three-day trip to two.
Two days later, they finally arrived. Qi Xiao showed his token to the Shahan guards at the city gate and had them inform the people in the palace.
Fu Yunzhi looked around. Although Li City was the only permanent residence of the Shahan people, there were still not many people walking around. It was deserted, and most of the houses were empty, with no signs of life. He had read in a book that Li City was just a fortress for the Shahan people. They still spent most of their time wandering, living and dying in the desert, as if they were born children of the desert. However, whenever the king lit the beacon fire to summon them, everyone would return. For example, when the state sacrifice was approaching, the beacon fire would be lit a month in advance. On the day of the sacrifice, Li City would be so crowded that horses couldn’t even walk on the streets for fear of stepping on people.
The houses in Li City were very different from those in Langxuan. There were no roof tiles or complex structures, just like square boxes with no windows, only some ventilation holes at strange angles.
The guard who had gone to report returned shortly, bringing Wulanbaer’s deputy with him. The deputy bowed to Qi Xiao and Fu Yunzhi and respectfully invited them to the palace.
It was called a palace, but it was actually composed of many larger, more luxurious “boxes.” The guards led them to their room and told them to rest there for a while. The Emperor and the King of Shahan were still at the shrine and would not be back until evening.
“The King of Shahan has already ordered the servants to prepare a welcome banquet, just waiting for all of you to arrive.”
Qi Xiao laid the man flat on the bed, and Fu Yunzhi asked the deputy, “Could I trouble you to ask Cult Leader Mu to come over? We have an injured person here who needs his help.”
The deputy nodded and left.
The eighteenth king of Sheng Luo had been a man who loved luxury and debauchery. He spent his days in the harem and built many places of entertainment, and was finally killed in a popular uprising. The new king had all the places of entertainment demolished, leaving only the garden outside the imperial study. For one, it was harmless, and for another, it could serve as a warning.
Xuan Su was now receiving the King of Junce, Ruan Chengren, in this magnificent imperial garden.
Ruan Chengren was now in his forties, with the marks of time on his face and a shrewdness in his eyes that had been honed over the years. He sat opposite Xuan Su, with a tall man standing behind him. The man was expressionless, his skin a strange grayish-white.
Rong Lijiun sat between them, pouring tea for both. She turned to Ruan Chengren and smiled. “Your Majesty, the one opposite you is the King of Sheng Luo that Lijiun has been telling you about.”
Ruan Chengren’s eyes darted around the garden.
“There is no need for you to worry, King of Junce,” Xuan Su said. “I have already cleared this garden of any irrelevant people.”
“King of Sheng Luo, please don’t take it to heart,” Ruan Chengren smiled. “I see that you are still very young, and I was just worried that some things might not be taken care of. When I was your age, I didn’t know anything at all, hahaha.”
Xuan Su’s face still wore a smile, but he sneered inwardly.
Seeing Xuan Su’s displeasure, Rong Lijiun said, “Now, among the nine kingdoms, besides us, Shahan, Manluo, and Huanyue, the rest are all vassal states of Langxuan. I’m sure you’ve heard that the King of Langxuan went to Shahan a few days ago. It won’t be long before Shahan becomes a vassal state of Langxuan as well. As for the remaining countries, the King of Manluo is a weak and incompetent fence-sitter, and Huanyue is currently in constant internal strife, so they probably have no interest in the world. Shouldn’t we be more united and stand together?”
“That may be so,” Ruan Chengren said, “but the King of Shahan is unruly and is not a ruthless character who is willing to hand over his country to others. As for the remaining two countries, we can use their weaknesses to control them. It’s just a matter of timing and means.”
After a moment of thought, Xuan Su said, “I heard that the King of Junce has some… ‘special’ methods?”
Ruan Chengren smiled and pointed to the man behind him. “This is General Zhuo Fang of Junce.”
“General Zhuo Fang is highly skilled in martial arts and is one of the undefeated generals on the battlefield,” Xuan Su nodded. “I have long heard of him.”
“Zhuo Fang,” Ruan Chengren said, “show them your strength.”
Zhuo Fang obediently took a longsword from his waist. Xuan Su and Rong Lijiun watched him intently, thinking he was about to display his swordsmanship. But to their surprise, he plunged the longsword fiercely into his own chest!
“Heavens!” Seeing the blood gushing from the wound, Rong Lijiun couldn’t help but exclaim. She was not an ordinary woman and was not afraid of blood, but she was startled by this unexpected act of self-harm. Zhuo Fang was a key player for their ally, and she didn’t want him to die just like that.
But Zhuo Fang seemed to feel nothing… In fact, he did feel nothing. He pulled out the longsword without a change in expression.
Looking at Zhuo Fang’s grayish-white skin and lifeless eyes, Xuan Su was amazed. He had felt that there was something wrong with this person from the very beginning. His eyes never blinked, and he had no expression. Now it seemed he had no sense of feeling at all, having become a puppet who only obeyed his master’s words.
“Is this… a living dead?” Rong Lijiun asked, surprised.
“Zhuo Fang is different from the other living dead,” Ruan Chengren said smugly. “The living dead are made from corpses and have no life or soul. But Zhuo Fang was just transformed into this, so he is much smarter than them. He has the flexibility and wisdom of a human, as well as the advantages of the living dead. He has not lost his life, only his senses.”
Looking at Zhuo Fang, who was somewhere between a living dead and a living person, Xuan Su thought, It would be better to be dead than to become such a monster.
He felt a strange sense of sympathy for those who could not rest in peace after death, their bodies still being used.
But this did not affect his cooperation with Ruan Chengren. If one wanted to become the most supreme person in the world, one had to pay a price, right?
Xuan Su waved his hand, and a servant brought wine.
“In the future, I will have to rely on you more, King of Junce.”
Before Rong Feijun even arrived at the shrine, he had wondered, This shrine is built so high, where does the water for the Sacred Spring come from? It turned out the spring was under the shrine, which meant that after climbing nine hundred and ninety-nine steps up, one had to go down another nine hundred and ninety-nine steps into a dark, damp underground river.
For the past few days, he and Wulanbaer had been coming to the Sacred Spring at sunrise and returning at sunset.
At this moment, Rong Feijun was soaking in the spring, with Wulanbaer sitting behind him, his hands on his back, using his internal energy to force out the poison. As Wulanbaer circulated his energy, the poison seeped out of Rong Feijun’s skin with his sweat, dyeing the spring water around them black.
Rong Feijun frowned, biting his lower lip to keep from making a sound. The poison passing through his skin caused a faint, aching pain, especially in his arm.
Strange, this is the first time this has happened. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and his shoulders trembled slightly.
Wulanbaer took a pill from his robes and handed it to him. “This is the last time for detoxification. It will be a bit harder. Eating this can help.”
After swallowing the pill, Rong Feijun indeed felt much better.
“Commander Mo told me that today is Your Majesty’s birthday,” Wulanbaer said.
Rong Feijun nodded.
“This is a sacred place. Would you like to make a wish here?”
…
After a moment, Wulanbaer said, “What did you wish for, Your Majesty?”
“…I didn’t.” Making a wish while soaking in a spring to force out poison, can it really come true? No, the act of making a wish while soaking in a spring to force out poison is too idiotic!
Wulanbaer didn’t mind and smiled. “Then I’ll make a wish for you. I wish that you can find a good person, so that you will have someone to rely on and won’t have to keep everything to yourself.”
“I don’t keep everything to myself. The ministers in the court are busy all day. When I encounter a problem, I also seek help from Ah-Xiao and Yunzhi.”
Wulanbaer shook his head and sighed. “It’s like a chicken talking to a duck.”
Rong Feijun was speechless. Is the King of Shahan a chicken, and the King of Langxuan a duck?
“There will be a welcome banquet tonight, which can also be a celebration for your birthday. This is probably the simplest birthday you’ve ever had.”
“No, it’s not,” Rong Feijun said. “This is the best birthday I’ve ever had. Because in the past, in the capital, on my birthday, I had to drink coarse rice congee with the ministers. Just one bowl of congee, with no meat or vegetables. The purpose of this custom is probably to remember past hardships and think of the sweet present, to serve as a warning to myself. And at the banquet at night, I’m busy toasting those envoys and don’t get to eat at all.”
“Hahahaha,” Wulanbaer said. “Then tonight, I will treat you to roasted duck, roasted chicken, and roasted whole lamb! Let you eat your fill!”
Rong Feijun was a little embarrassed.
“I don’t eat that much either.”
Wulanbaer kept laughing. Why is the King of Langxuan so likable? It was the first time since his mother passed away that he had met such a likable person. He felt that being with him brightened his mood and made him very happy.
So he said, “After the banquet tonight, shall I take you to the Sacred Forest? It’s an oasis not far from here.”
“What for?”
“For fun.”
“What kind of fun?” Rong Feijun asked, confused.
“Nothing much, just to relax and see the scenery?”
“Go somewhere without a purpose?”
In his past life, time was very precious. An inch of time was an inch of gold, literally. Now, he was to waste time without a purpose? He felt… a sense of guilt.
“It’s not… meaningless, is it?”
But now that he said it, it did seem a bit meaningless. Wulanbaer also didn’t understand. He and this Emperor were on different wavelengths most of the time, so why did he still find him so pleasing to the eye?
Rong Feijun looked at the black poison being carried away by the water and thought, I don’t have much to do anyway. The memorials and ministers are still in the capital.
“Alright,” he smiled.
