Chapter 15: 15

Chapter 15: Suppress

While walking out of Muddyrun, he happened to meet Song Jixin’s maid, Zhi Gui. After leading that woman to Gu Can’s house, she did not rush back home. Instead, she walked across the town, visiting the small shops on Apricot Street. Although she did not buy anything, she hummed and pranced around, in a good mood.

The country girl, carrying the scent of grass, was different from the ladies in the courtyard.

When she saw Chen Pingan, she did not lower her eyes like before. She quickened her pace before stopping and staring at this neighbor she did not often talk with. 

Chen Pingan smiled at her and ran past her, running faster and faster.

Zhi Gui stood on the road of Muddyrun and watched. The poor boy darted toward the sun like a feral cat. 

The girl was not liked in this small town, influenced by the weird personality of Song Jixin. Whenever Zhi Gui went to the Ironchain Well to fetch water or the market to buy things for herself or her master, she always gave people the feeling of being out of place. She did not have any friends her age. When meeting acquaintances, she was not the talkative type. For a small town of people who liked to do festive, social activities, it was hard for anyone to get close to her.

In this sense, Chen Pingan’s situation was somewhat similar to Zhi Gui. However, Chen Pingan did not have an annoying personality, unlike Zhi Gui. In fact, the boy was gentle and kind, always considerate. He did not have a close relationship with his neighbors because of his parents’ passing and him leaving to take an apprenticeship with a potter.

Of course, the residents of Muddyrun were a little unnerved by the boy’s birthday. The fifth day of the fifth lunar month, according to the folklore of the small town, was an inauspicious day. After the boy was born, his parents passed shortly. Chen Pingan became the last of his family early on. People began to talk amongst each other, spreading rumors about Chen Pingain. They would tell their children not to associate themselves to Chen Pingain, ostracizing the boy. When their children asked why, they would say they could not say why.

At this moment, a middle-aged man walked forward and stood beside Zhi Gui. Zhi Gui turned her head and walked forward, silent. The person began walking side by side with her in Muddy Run. It was Qi Jingchun, the scholar of the town.

The girl kept walking, her face cold. “We did not disturb each other, correct? Don’t forget sir, back then, everything was going in your favor. I am just a servant, so I could only watch. Recently, though, there seems to be something wrong with your Dao. How the roles have reversed!”

Qi Jingchun smiled. “Wang Zhu, oh, since we’re here, I’ll call you Zhi Gui. Zhi Gui, do you think just because you are favored by the world I am unable to deal with you? Do you think that the rules made by the four mysterious saints are set in stone? Unbendable? I am not sure you are aware of your position.”

The girl frowned. “Sir Qi, stop with these useless threats. Enough with the yap, Sir might as well speak straight to me. Whether you want to fight to the death or part ways happily, I’ll oblige.”

The middle-aged scholar said slowly, “Do not push your luck once you break from this cage. Think in the long term. Too much fishing in a pond is good for no one. Once you and him set foot on the path of cultivation, no matter if you become cultivation partners or not, please restrain yourself. This is not a threat, just some parting words before our departure, a reminder made out of goodwill.”

A maid confronting a scholar, two very different identities, yet the maid, Zhi Gui, seemed to have an aura that pressured the scholar. “Goodwill? For millennia, you cultivators have arrogantly declared this land a prison. Every year, you would harvest the crops that appear here. It’s been the same, no change. Why are you doing things out of ‘goodwill’ now to this evil one? Ha, my young master mentioned the indifference of those of a different race. It’s no wonder Sir Qi…”

Qi Jingchun continued moving forward. His foot reached forward to take another step, and he smiled. “Hm?”

Step. When his foot landed, Zhi Gui’s expression turned grim.

The two of them stood in an unknown place, covered in pitch-black darkness. At the top of their heads, countless rays of brilliant scared light poured down.

Golden rays continued to tumble down. The middle-aged scholar wore a light blue robe. Bursts and flashes of light sparked from his clothes, endless circulating around him.

Searing, upright, bright, righteous

Zhi Gui had a grim expression, but she quickly returned to her usual indifferent self. She whispered, “60 years of an unending cacophony of Sanskrit and Buddhist scriptures, 60 years of taoist talismans gnawing my bones like maggots, 60 years of unbridled righteous qi that blanketed the sky, 60 years of sword qi that raged, ravaged, and splattered, every 60 years, a cycle of reincarnation. It has been three thousand years, never a moment of peace… I wonder what the so-called end of Great Dao is. I can see the black and white words on Sir’s book, the righteousness and philosophy you preach, but I can’t find…”

She stared at the scholar brimming in light. This unknown scholar of a small town was also Qi Jingchun of the Confucius Precipice Academy. A scholar so powerful that even the head Eunuch of the Sui Dynasty addressed this scholar with the utmost respect.

Zhi Gui suddenly laughed and asked, “Can you teach me? Can you teach this kindness? If I remember correctly, the holy teacher of your Confucianism declared that ‘education has no class’”? That includes race.”

The scholar shook his head. “Telling you the sage’s teachings is pointless.”

Zhi Gui seemed to be casually chatting with the scholar, but, in reality, her body was extremely tense. Her eyes would dart around, constantly looking for a way to break out.

Qi Jingchun pretended not to notice this and coldly smiled, “I know the unimaginable anger, resentment, and murderous rage you harbor. It is not that I discriminate against different race, but acting purely on one’s whims has never aligned with the three schools of thought.”

“The young master often talks about all that scholarly stuff, so boring.” The girl’s mouth curled up into a small, her golden pupils narrowed. “It seems Sir Qi is about to return to the light, about to die. No wonder you are so moody…”

He smiled. “No matter, as long as I, Qi Jingchun, am alive, ungrateful spawn like you will not bare their fangs!”

Zhi Gui pointed at herself and asked, “Me, ungrateful?”

The middle-aged scholar snapped, “When you were at your weakest, you formed a pact with someone. Who was it that rescued you on that snowy day in Muddyrun? Whose fortune did you nibble away at till it was no longer there?!”

Zhi Gui smiled. “I was hungry. I needed something to eat to fill my stomach. What’s so wrong with that? He didn’t have much fortune to begin with. Might as well as help him die sooner, so he can reincarnate sooner. He should be grateful. If one lets grass like that stay in the town, that would—”

“Shut up!” The scholar chastised, “On the path of Dao, heaven presides over justice. Every life has its path, their fate. What gives you the right to make that choice for others?!”

Above the girl’s head, a large dazzling golden hand appeared out of thin air. It pressed down on the girl’s head, forcing her to kneel. It slammed her forehead into the ground.

Kowtow.

Her head lowered, the girl struggled to get up. She let out a sinister laugh. “You can hold me down, but I won’t repent!”

The majestic golden hand grabbed the girl’s head, lifted it, and forced it down. 

Kowtow.

The sound of thunder rumbled, as her head was forced down.

Qi Jingchun said in a stern tone, “Don’t forget! This chance of life was granted to you by the saints, not by you! We’ve suppressed you for 3,000 years, 30,000 years makes no difference!”

The girl whose head was held down by the hand said hoarsely, “I don’t want to listen to your Dao bullshit!”

Qi Jingchun raised his arm and slammed it into the void in front of him. “Suppress!”

In the center of the golden light, a white jade sigil appeared. A large sigil with eight ancient words engraved on it. Dazzling scarlet, bright colors, and purple lightning surrounded the sigil and characters, crackling.

Qi Jingchun gave a command. Life and death decided by just a word. The huge sigil fell from above and smashed into the back of the girl who was already kneeling on the ground.

This huge sigil possessed the suppression of the Heavenly Dao. It did not seem corporeal. Instead of crushing the girl, it passed through her, swallowed by the ground, the wind and lighting roaring.

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After a moment, Zhi Gui’s bones seemed to have suddenly shattered. She collapsed onto the ground, completelty limp, in excruciating pain.

Even so, Zhi Gui’s hand pressed to the ground, her fingers like claws. They seemed to be digging into the space.

Qi Jingchun looked on, expressionless. He just said coldly, “Kowtow three times. One for the world, one for the people, one for Dao!”

No response.

Qi Jingchn flicked his sleeves, the imposing aura around him dissipating. “I am just a decrepit scholar from the Confucius sect, and even I can make you kowtow three times. Once you go out and act on your whims, are you really not afraid of encountering an existence capable of crushing you with a single finger?”

Qi Jingchun sighed. “You are indeed being suppressed here. No freedom here, but what place actually has absolute freedom? The Confucian school of thought was built on obtaining freedom for the common people. Don’t violate the rules and act with propriety, maybe then one day, you will be able to roam this world freely.”

The girl raised her head and stared daggers at the scholar.

Qi Jingchun took another step.

The world reverted back to normal. Zhi Gui and him returned to Muddyrun. The sun shone, a pleasant spring breeze.

The girl staggered and then got her feet, a wretched smile on her face, her teeth exposed. “Sir’s teachings, this maid will remember.”

Qi Jingchun stopped talking, turned around, and began to leave.

Suddenly, she asked, “Even if I was ungrateful to Chen Pingan, you, a disciple of Confucius, why did you just stand by and watch? Why do you dote on Zhao Yao and my young master, while you give Chen Pingan nothing? You are no different from a merchant. If there are rare goods, you will raise them carefully. Poor-quality goods will be cast aside. All you care about is their talent!”

Qi Jingchun smiled. “Nature shifts, this one merely conforms to it, never resting.”

The girl looked at this, puzzled.

The scholar disappeared at the end of the alley. The girl made a face of disdain and snorted.

She limped back to her yard. When she passed by Chen PIngan’s house, she frowned. That damn scholar’s actions caused a collapse. The town was now leaking heavenly secrets, like water leaking into a boat. Though, given her circumstances, she did not have the luxury to worry about that it now. She needed to plan for the future.

When she pushed open the door to her yard, a four-legged snake sprang out of nowhere and crawled to her feet. She kicked it out angrily.

…

In Chen Pingan’s room, the taoist sat at the table, his head lowered, a little uncomfortable.

The black-clothed girl who was on the verge of death had woken up. She sat up in the bed, sitting cross-legged. Without a hat, her face was revealed. Her facial features would leave a deep imprint in one’s mind. She was not a dazzling beauty but the dashing aura she carried drew people in, her eyebrows like knives.

She scrutinized the taoist’s face. The taoist sat there, feeling a little guilty.

The taoist coughed and cleared up his throat. “Miss, first, although I saved you, the person who took off your hat, washed your face, and took care of you was someone else. His name is Chen Pingan, the owner of this rundown house. He is a poor soul, his parents dead, an orphan. He used to fire up pottery and bought talisman paper from this taoist. If you have anything you want to ask, Miss, ask. I will not hold back what I know.”

The straw sandals boy, the victim.

The girl nodded, not angry. She said with sincerity, “Many thanks for saving my life, taoist.”

The taoist, uneasy, his heart pounding, said with a forced smile. “It was nothing, it’s a simple thing, really, to heal you.”

The black-clothed girl asked, “Is taoist not from the East Aquarius Continent?”

The taoist replied back with a question. “Miss, isn’t from there either, right?”

She hummed in agreement.

The toast smiled and said, “My name is Lu Shen, no taoist title. Just call me Taoist Lu.”

The girl nodded and glanced at the hat on the taoist.

The taoist paused for a moment and then said, “Although the boy did some things improperly, he was in a hurry. I never thought Miss would recover so quickly. I hope Miss does not take offense to these actions.”

The girl smiled. “Taoist Lu, I’m not an ungrateful person.”

The taoist laughed. “Good, good.”

The girl raised his brow, and the taoist’s smile stiffened.

She looked around, calm. She said in passing, “I heard the best swordsmith in the continent, ‘Master Ruan’ plans to forge swords here. I followed him here in hopes of him forging me a sword.”

The taoist sighed. “If we’re talking about him, it won’t be easy to get him to personally forge a sword.”

The black-clothed girl replied, “It’s very difficult.”

Then, a boy carrying a bag of herbs in his left hand and a small package in his right knocked on the door and walked in. He put the herbs on the table and said softly, “Taoist, see if I got everything. If something is missing, I will go back.”

The boy always had the package on him. He turned to the girl in black sitting cross-legged on the wooden bed. The two looked at each other.

The black-clothed girl said calmly, “Hello, my father’s surname is Ning, my mother’s surname is Yao, so call me Ning Yao.”

Chen Pingan replied back subconsciously, “Hello, my father’s surname is Chen, my mother’s surname is also Chen, so…”

The boy looked a little embarrassed but he quickly flashed a smile. “Call me Chen Pingan!”

T/N: They finally meet

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