Ch113 - Conjectures

Mu He saw Xie Zhiwei not speaking and softened his tone further. “Is shizun still angry at disciple?”

Xie Zhiwei lifted his head from his embrace. “Angry about what?”

Mu He lowered his eyes. “It was rare to have three days alone with shizun, but…”

“I’m not angry,” Xie Zhiwei quickly interrupted. “Don’t bring that up…I don’t care at my age, so stop blaming yourself.”

Mu He gave a start. “Shizun…doesn’t care?”

Xie Zhiwei misunderstood as Mu He still feeling guilty and said mildly, “Don’t care. Who hasn't made mistakes?“

Mu He’s voice only trembled in response. “Sure enough, shizun doesn’t mind. But…disciple does!”

What’s going on now? Xie Zhiwei said, “You…”

Mu He suddenly released him and leaned forlornly on the stone railings bordering the pond, staring blankly at the fish beneath the water. Perhaps the light was too bright, or perhaps he was thinking nonsense again, but his dark eyes were actually glimmering with tears. Xie Zhiwei’s jaw dropped for a while before he couldn’t help asking, “What’s this again?”

“Again…” Mu He repeated Xie Zhiwei’s word, filled with grievance. “Does shizun think disciple is always acting unreasonable?”

Yes! You’re heartless, you’re cold, you’re acting unreasonable!

Xie Zhiwei looked at Mu He’s pathetic state and changed the words on the tip of his tongue. “No, how could I?”

Truthfully speaking, Xie Zhiwei had thought constantly of how to take revenge on Mu He in the future while he was being done in bed. He had gnashed his teeth and wished he could eat Mu He alive as soon as he regained his freedom! Against the bastard who stole away his last trace of modesty!

But reality proved different. He didn’t expect Mu He to ask for his forgiveness with tears in his eyes, like some child who was afraid of punishment after doing something wrong. Under normal circumstances, the indifferent perpetrator might walk away smoking a cigar while claiming, “Who hasn’t made mistakes? Don’t mention this again.”

And then the victim would hug the abuser’s legs can cry things like, “You’re too much, you’re not human! I’m pregnant with your child, but you don’t even care!!”

Right now the situation was…like getting the wrong script. Even if he as Xie Zhiwei couldn’t get pregnant and didn’t cry or demand the man take responsibility, he had no need to gently comfort the man who almost did him to death! What was more miserable than this?!

Xie Zhiwei coughed dryly and said, “You’re already an adult, don’t cry.”

“But disciple is truly very sad,” Mu He covered his nose and gave him a melancholy look. “Four years ago when shizun died, disciple’s thoughts came to an end. Now that I’m fortunate enough to meet you again, disciple can’t control myself…I never expected shizun’s first time to be like this!”

Xie Zhiwei was incredulous. “You…” What do you mean you never expected? Have you ever considered my feelings? Did I give you the right? Huh?!

Mu He was still lost in the grief of his ashen dreams as his eyes shone with tears.

A while later, Xie Zhiwei gritted his teeth and said, “I do care.”

Mu He blinked and looked at him with a layer of moisture on his eyelashes. Xie Zhiwei thought it over and added, “But what’s done is done. Even if I care, so what? It’ll only make you more depressed.”

“It won’t!” Mu He said quickly. “Disciple has a way to fix it!”

“Hm?” Like turning back time? But it’s already left a psychological shadow, all right?

In a flash, Mu He’s tears vanished as he stepped forward to take Xie Zhiwei’s hand. “Since the first time left shizun so unhappy, disciple will perform better in the future to satisfy shizun for sure!”

Xie Zhiwei’s eyes widened before he finally managed, “You, what are you saying…”

Mu He’s eyes were filled with soft honey as he moved to murmur firmly by Xie Zhiwei’s ear. “Don’t worry, shizun. Disciple will be very gentle.”

“…..” said Xie Zhiwei.

After all that, this kid hadn’t given up. He still wants a next time.

In disbelief, Xie Zhiwei exclaimed, “I don’t want to you do anything, go away!”

But Mu He refused to let go and pled, “Shizun, please give disciple another chance. Don’t you care about it too?”

I was caring about the love between master and disciple, not the quality of the experience itself!

At last, Xie Zhiwei realized it was impossible to make himself clear with Mu He. This dream was Mu He’s turf, so he could only be led along. He decided to leave the dreamscape and wait until Mu He’s spiritual energy waned so he could slowly clarify things properly with him. Right now he’d struggle where he could, since he wouldn’t lose any flesh in a dream anyways. No way was he getting pressed down again, he still had serious trauma!

Mu He’s face was smiling tenderly but his hand strength wasn’t weak at all. He found the right amount of strength to avoid hurting Xie Zhiwei while blocking all resistance, trapping the man’s hands behind his back before pressing him against the edge of the pond to give him a solid kiss.

“Mmph…you reckless…” Xie Zhiwei couldn’t use spiritual energy in a dream and could only push and smack him.

“Zhiwei, hurry and wake up! Zhiwei!” A stern voice reached his ears.

The two figures gave a start before Xie Zhiwei said quickly, “Your eldest martial uncle is looking for me.”

Mu He pursed his lips and straightened up, his face full of reluctance. Xie Zhiwei just slapped him on the forehead. “Hurry and dissipate the dreamscape!”

As soon as he spoke, everything before him scattered like smoke as Xie Zhiwei suddenly sat up in bed, inches away from Yan Zhifei’s creased brows. Scared, Xie Zhiwei quavered and said, “Eldest senior brother was calling me?”

Yan Zhifei looked down and said nothing. Xie Zhiwei felt something in his hands and glanced over to see that he was gripping Yan Zhifei by the wrist. He quickly let go and saw that there were already red marks on the skin. Yan Zhifei was a cultivator as well, so leaving red marks could only show that the holder used massive strength.

Xie Zhiwei mumbled, “Eldest senior brother, I…”

At their cultivation levels, having dreams was extremely rare. Moreover, Xie Zhiwei not only dreamed but did it so obviously.

Yan Zhifei sighed again. “Looks like you were truly exhausted these days. Go back and recuperate well.”

“Yes, thank you senior brother for caring…” Mu He, just you wait!

—

When it was day, everyone woke up. Tantai Meng finished freshening up and opened the door to see Mu He standing in front of Yan Zhifei’s door. Her face turned frosty as her eyes were filled with disgust and dislike. Mu He saw her too, but only swept a glance over her. Then the door opened to reveal Yan Zhifei and Xie Zhiwei, and Mu He’s expression turned gentle and elegant. He bowed politely to Yan Zhifei and stepped forward to greet Xie Zhiwei.

“Shizun, please.”

Xie Zhiwei thought back to his dream and felt conflicted, but under public scrutiny it’d be more awkward to push and pull.

Tantai Meng closed her eyes as if enduring something while Xie Zhiwei greeted her. “Miss Tantai, morning.”

Tantai Meng quickly turned away with an, “Mhm,” before leaving rapidly. Xie Zhiwei felt that she was acting oddly. This was no longer cold and aloof, but outright avoidant. Right, Mu He must have treated her too harshly so that she has a psychological shadow towards him too.

Xie Zhiwei’s heart thrummed. Mengmeng is quite sassy but she’s like this already. What’s going to happen when we see Cheese later? He pulled Mu He into the rooms and prepared to give him good instructions on how to behave better in front of Chu Zhishi. If they started fighting in front of Yan Zhifei, it’d be impossible to return to the daoist sect. If not for the daoist sect’s reluctance to draw a clear demarcation with the King of Nine Provinces, Mu He’s behavior would’ve gotten him expelled from the sect long ago.

But before he could speak, Mu He spoke first. “Shizun, disciple will leave for a day.”

Mu He wasn’t someone who changed his plans easily. He just arrived last night and was leaving this morning, so there must be an emergency.

Xie Zhiwei was startled. “No more Suihan Lodge?”

“Naturally yes,” Mu He said lightly, “Shizun go first, disciple will follow later.”

Xie Zhiwei’s heart was restless as he wished he knew what happened. This plot was getting more and more confusing, whetting people’s appetites. He tried probing, “Do you need Master’s help?”

Mu He’s eyes brightened. “Is shizun worried about disciple?”

Xie Zhiwei’s voice remained proper and upright. “You’re rushing to leave, so I expect things are serious. I…am indeed worried.”

Mu He grinned and kissed him on the forehead. Just when Xie Zhiwei was about to frown and scold him, he heard Mu He said, “The grave robbers’ sponsor has shown a clue about himself, so I need to take a trip into the royal court.”

“Into the palace?”  Xie Zhiwei sucked in a cold breath.

Mu He nodded. “Don’t worry shizun, nothing will happen.”

Xie Zhiwei nodded back, but his heart was still hanging in the air long after Mu He left. The original novel had used subtle euphemisms to mention how the King of Nine Provinces was the current emperor’s only brother. But rather than being mediocre or incomptent, he was idle for a reason.

The late emperor had more than two sons, but the rest of the bloodline had either died from illness, drowning, or falling. In the end, only two children survived. The late emperor died when the King of Nine Provinces was still young, so the throne was given to the current emperor.  In his early years, the King of Nine Province was also a powerful, successful warrior that acted as the pillar of the dynasty. His cultivation roots were excellent, but he suffered an unfortunate, serious illness later in life that destroyed his roots and left him a waste.

Perhaps the shock was too much, but he turned idle from then on, spending his days drinking, indulging in love affairs, and turning into the flirtatious king in teashop gossip. Later he ran into the Demonic Sect’s Qiu Zhaoshui, hit it off with her, and had Mu He out of a careless moment of negligence.

This was the basis of Mu He’s birth, while all previous suspect activity pointed to the figure sitting in the dragon throne. In the original novel the King of Nine Provinces had pushed his son towards the throne, and his current purpose was still identical. First, he had expectations for his only son; next, he wanted revenge. He suspected that the current emperor was responsible for destroying his cultivation roots. Those other elder brothers who died prematurely were also done in by his elder brother. In the end, the two brothers appeared harmonious on the surface but were fighting tooth and nail beneath the surface.

Now Mu He said the sponsor had revealed himself to be within the royal court…could he be the current emperor?

Very possible. After returning to the king’s estate, Mu He had shown his strength in all aspects. Imperial might was once again threatened by the King of Nine Provinces’ heir, so he likely wanted something to counteract that influence. He was not only unsuccessful, but the grave robbers themselves escaped. Then Xie Zhiwei happened to release them and he snatched the chance to silence them and prevent exposure.

In the original novel, these small and fragmented issues could all be solved by unraveling the key problem. They didn’t count as trials, so most of the novel focused on Mu He’s exploits in cultivation world and Demonic Sect. But now Mu He had long conquered the Demonic Sect while Xie Zhiwei was there to prevent him from making any splashes in the cultivation world. Thus, the royal court plotline was even easier to deal with. Xie Zhiwei had no worries about leaving with a random excuse for Yan Zhifei that he’d left something he had Mu He fetch back at the King of Nine Provinces’ estate. Yan Zhifei half-trusted, half-doubted him, but this fit his purposes well. He too, was concerned about Chu Zhishi acting out.

Their trip to the daoist sect remained peaceful. Thus, Xia Zhiqi proposed out of the blue to bring some gifts back from Flying Flowers Township at the base of the mountain. She had Tantai Meng pick them out with her. As Xia Zhiqi was cold to begin with and Tantai Meng used to be icy and aloof, they were particularly well-matched as a pair despite never becoming master and disciple in this timeline.

Xie Zhiwei saw the two of them get off the carriage and felt emotional. Thankfully the plot changed, or else Xia Zhiqi wouldn’t have survived to this point in the story.

Abruptly, a small figure appeared in Xie Zhiwei’s sights. A little beggar boy sniffled hard before striding towards Tantai Meng. “Big sis, wait a sec!”

Tantai Meng was telling Xia Zhiqi about her master Du Sheng’s likes when she heard the voice and turned back in shock. A dirty little boy held a sugar figurine in his eyes while looking at her with shining eyes.

“Big sis, I’ve been waiting for you a long time. You’re finally here!” So speaking, he offered up the candy. “Today I’ll treat you!”

Xie Zhiwei looked at the sugar figurine from a distance and saw that it was roughly shaped like a flower. He had no idea how long this child had begged to scrape up two coppers for the candy. If this was the past, Mengmeng would definitely pet his head and accept it with a smile.

The little beggar was holding up the sugar figurine like it was the best thing in the world, his eyes full of expectation.

Clueless, Xia Zhiqi could only asked, “Tantai, this is…”

Tantai Meng creased her brows. “I don’t know him. City Lord Xia, let’s go.”

—

The Chinese commenters: