Chapter 2 Part2 (1/2)
Well guys, it’s the end of this short story~
Many of you may understand what I said at the beginning of the project by now. I really wish Jiu Lu Fei Xiang had written a longer story about this couple, because they’re really too cute, and I’ll miss them haha~ At the same time, the brevity of the story allows the readers to remember this couple, sweetly and innocently. Let us remember this wonderful, cute couple in our hearts, and take away some of the most important lessons from their story ❤
We are so close to unlocking one the milestones on Discord! We only need FOURTEEN people left to join discord, and then the next short story will be unlocked! Come make it possible, and click here:
Chapter 2.2: The Lights Wane
This is what I would imagine the scene to be like, besides the clear setting difference, and Ah Zhuo’s clothing xD
When he suddenly remembered this, Shangguan Qihua felt the past him had given Ah Zhuo so little.
When he brought these thoughts together, he felt as insane as weeds that were unable to be controlled.
He had never given Ah Zhuo anything. He hadn't even given her a hairpin. He had never left anything that had his mark on it for Ah Zhuo. If she wanted to leave, she would probably forget him quickly.
Shangguan grasped the Icy Firmament Sword in his hand tightly. In between his tight frown, half of it was pain, and the other half was regret.
He was so dumb, so wooden, and slow-witted. If he was forgotten, it served him right. How could he be as smart as Ah Zhuo? He had already drawn a circle around himself early on and lived his life within its confines Meanwhile she left her own marks everywhere in his life, from this Icy Firmament Sword to helping him take his revenge on the Demonic Sect, His every breath was invaded around by her cheerful talk.
Penetrating the bone with longing, longing that penetrated the bone, Shangguan thought, No matter how difficult it was to bear, this was all that he deserved.
—
In the ninth year of Wuzong's reign in the Yuan Dynasty. Households welcomed in the New Year.
Snow had just fallen in Luoyang City. The long street looked just like a section of white silk fabric, dyed by the snow upon it. The man with the bamboo hat grasped a sword as he walked on the still street in early morning. On a holiday for reuniting, this lonely figure made everyone start to guess some of his experiences and stories.
”Oh no! Oh no!” A man in blue ran over, as he b.u.mped into Shangguan Qihua's shoulder with panic. The item he carried fell onto the ground with a bang, ”Aiya, aiya, what should I do? What should I do?” The man bent down to pick up the item in a hurry.
Shangguan also bent down to help him, but just now, he had also been absent-minded. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so easy to let other people b.u.mp into him. In the moment that he bent down Shangguan suddenly started, as his pupils swiftly and sharply fell upon the man who had bent down to pick up his object.
The fragrance of peach blossoms. In this time and season in Luoyang, how could there be peach blossoms…
After the man in blue finished picking up his item, he didn't even glance at Shangguan. He anxiously ran into another alley.
Shangguan didn't hesitate at all, and chased after him.
That man acted like he totally didn't feel anyone following him, as he turned into many small alleys and then finally into an ordinary house courtyard.
Shangguan hesitated for a moment before finally, following him into the courtyard quietly. After puncturing a hole in the paper window of the house, Shangguan looked in. The house's arrangement wasn't excessive, but he did not see anyone. In his heart, he was bewildered so he hesitated before still pus.h.i.+ng the door open and going in.
Just as he had seen from the window, there was no one in the room. He went to the hall, and entered the inner room. What he saw startled him as he saw that a wooden slab on the bed was open wide. Inside, there was a deep flight of stairs. He did not know where they went.
Shangguan's heart suddenly became excited, and with a bit of caution he walked down the stairs.
At the bottom of the stairs, there was a secret path that was so long that Shangguan felt a bit scared. The serene and hidden corridor was almost exactly the same as the underground palace of the Chen Nation. With every step Shangguan took, the excitement in his heart deepened. When he got to the end, suddenly his eyes opened so wide at the scene that Shangguan could practically hear his own heartbeat beat like a drum. He saw the cold jade bed silently in the middle of the room with a thin layer of dirt on it. A weak peach blossom tree twig was stuck within the dirt.
”Ah….Ah Zhuo,” Even if he was unclear about the circ.u.mstances, and should have remained silent, these words couldn't be stopped at all.
”Aiya.” The super busy man at the head of the cold jade bed suddenly lifted his head up. Upon seeing Shangguan Qihua, he seemed alarmed, ”You followed me in?”
Shangguan looked around the small private room. After he saw that the figure he sought was not here, he looked at that man. That man laughed, ”Nice to meet you, ah, nice to meet you. Ah Zhuo must have told you about me. I am the Crown Prince of Chen.”
Shangguan paused, remembering, ”The stammering son of the local tyrant?”
The smile of the Crown Prince of Chen went rigid, as he cursed under his breath with lowered head, but when he lifted his head, he maintained his smile, ”After becoming a gyons.h.i.+ [1], my stammer recovered, but I was still accustomed to saying words two times.”
[1] gyons.h.i.+ is a zombie; not the western type of zombie, but a Chinese ”hopping” vampire, ghost, or zombie which is a type of reanimated corpse in Chinese folklore. It moves about by hopping, with arms outstretched. It kills living creatures to absorb their qi, or “life force”, usually at night, while in the day, it rests in a coffin or hides in dark places such as caves. More information (Wikipedia)
”What about Ah Zhuo?” Shangguan didn't care what kind of a person he was.
The Crown Prince spread his hands out wide, ”Just now, she beat me up, said that she would go find you and ran away.”
Shangguan was startled, and was a bit confused about the meanings behind his words.
The Crown Prince scratched his head, ”Speaking of this, I guess it was my mistake, ah, mistake. When I heard that the Master of the Demonic Sect had been caught, I curiously went over to go look at the excitement. In the end, I just happened to see a Peach Tree Demon who had grown for a millenium. I saw that she had no internal essence, and the way she seemed to die at any moment, so I decided to take her in from the goodness of my heart and put her in my home to raise. How exhausting, ah. For her, I even personally went to go fetch her true form, and moved my cold jade bed over. All I wanted to do was raise her body well, but she gave me a string of curses and scoldings. Only then did I know of your relations.h.i.+p with her. Thus, over the next few days, just as soon as she could get out of bed, she began to keep arguing about meeting you. I didn't allow her to… and just now, she beat me up and ran away.”