Chapter 32
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The rain subsided somewhat as You Mengzhe and Yu Wenhong walked through the pitch-black night, carrying the door panel. You Mengzhe didn’t mention their destination, and Yu Wenhong didn’t ask. He simply followed along.
As You Mengzhe was drenched from the rain, Sun Bin’s puzzling behavior finally made sense. The first time he escaped from the mountain, the scripture pavilion was raided by thieves, and Sun Bin was among them.
Reflecting on it now, Sun Bin must have followed him through the secret passage. He knew about the passage and, being unable to confront You Mengzhe alone, lured Zhang Yuanshan to the secret passage instead.
Later, he even intervened to save him in the main hall… You Mengzhe felt a bit conflicted. He was annoyed with Sun Bin at the moment, yet couldn’t muster up any hatred.
“Who goes there?!” Someone shouted loudly at the end of the street.
You Mengzhe arrived at the rear courtyard of the Jiangzhou Prefectural Government. It was filled with imperial guards, and the security was tight. Hundreds of steps away from the rear courtyard, patrols of soldiers were everywhere.
“I’m looking for Grand Tutor Zhang Yuanshan! I’m his godson!” You Mengzhe exclaimed.
“What nonsense!” Immediately, an imperial guard retorted, “We don’t have time for you! Arrest them!”
Another voice chimed in, “Quick, go report to Lord Yu. There are suspicious individuals here.”
“Wait!” You Mengzhe interjected, “Do you know Yu Changqing? This year’s martial champion!”
Several soldiers looked puzzled. You Mengzhe furrowed his brows and continued, “Yu Changqing! Is he your boss now? Did he become a high-ranking official? Go tell him, You Mengzhe is looking for him!”
The soldiers exchanged glances, seemingly assessing You Mengzhe’s identity. Having spent the whole night without a proper place to stay, You Mengzhe was filled with frustration and finally erupted.
“Yu Changqing! Get your ass out here!!!” he thundered like a storm.
“Who?” A person emerged from the rear courtyard of the Jiangzhou Prefecture, calling out from a distance, “Mengzhe?! Is it really you, Mengzhe? Why are you here?”
Filled with pent-up anger, You Mengzhe exploded, “You still recognize me, huh? Ah!” With that, he tossed aside the door plank and lunged at Yu Changqing, ready to fight. Yu Changqing, however, burst into hearty laughter, intending to embrace You Mengzhe, but he received a punch to the face instead. His handsome face immediately distorted from the blow, and he endured a barrage of punches and kicks, pleading incessantly, “Little Brother, I didn’t know you were coming to Jiangzhou! Please stop, what’s going on?”
An hour later, inside the Jiangzhou Prefecture, Zhao Feihong’s breathing became steady, and a thin layer of sweat formed on his lips.
You Mengzhe wore a look of distress as Yu Changqing personally wiped his hair, while Yu Wenhong was busy drying clothes nearby.
“This is…” Yu Changqing started.
“My uncle.” You Mengzhe replied.
“His uncle,” Yu Wenhong added.
Yu Changqing nodded with a smile, then went outside to order some hot drinks. You Mengzhe asked, “Has my godfather not arrived?”
“He has,” Yu Changqing responded. “Today, your father also visited the yamen once. But His Majesty and the Grand Tutor had already gone to bed. The brothers outside asked him to come back tomorrow, unaware of what had happened… I’ll send someone to search that inn now.”
“Never mind,” You Mengzhe said irritably. “They’ve all fled. No need to bother searching now.”
Yu Changqing, knowing that You Mengzhe was in a bad mood, didn’t argue further and simply smiled. “Alright.”
“I’m going to find my godfather,” You Mengzhe insisted.
“He’s staying at the house of a salt merchant named Lin in the western part of the city,” Yu Changqing said. “You should stay here for the night. Big brother has some things to discuss with you.”
You Mengzhe insisted on leaving immediately, so Yu Changqing had no choice but to go out and instruct someone to prepare a carriage.
“You’re quite picky,” Yu Changqing chuckled helplessly.
“You’re quite the smooth talker,” You Mengzhe said, rummaging through his bag without looking up. “Married yet?”
“Yeah, got married on the tenth of April,” Yu Changqing replied.
“Now you’re all presentable,” You Mengzhe remarked, looking him over. “Look at you…”
He rummaged through Yu Changqing’s robe, tugged at his sleeves, patted his chest, and tossed him a few pearls. “Consider it a gift.”
Yu Changqing simply smiled and remained silent, watching You Mengzhe quietly. When You Mengzhe raised an eyebrow, he said, “I don’t want anything. Just seeing you, being with you makes me happy.”
You Mengzhe chuckled. “Don’t be surprised. I’m getting married soon.”
Yu Changqing furrowed his brow. “You’re getting married?! To whose daughter?”
“Right here,” You Mengzhe said. “To my uncle.”
“Yeah,” Yu Wenhong chimed in with a laugh. “We’re getting married. We’ll invite you to our wedding.”
Yu Changqing was momentarily speechless. “Are you… nephew and uncle?”
Yu Wenhong shrugged, still holding his knee. “Not exactly, but it’s not much different from being nephew and uncle.”
Yu Changqing’s expression turned incredibly strange, and after a long while, he nodded. “Well… congratulations. Your way of doing things in the Divine Sect is indeed unique… Congratulations, my esteemed younger brother.”
You Mengzhe spoke up, “We’re not part of the Divine Sect anymore. We are now righteous gentlemen. Our whole family consists of righteous gentlemen. The one lying inside is my father, the leader of the martial arts world, Zhao Feihong.”
Yu Changqing’s mind was in disarray, unable to make sense of it all. He just nodded repeatedly. Yu Wenhong added, “I saw you last year when we descended from the mountain, but you couldn’t see me. You’re a good person. You two carry on, don’t mind me.”
You Mengzhe chimed in, “Yeah, just pretend my uncle is not here.”
Yu Changqing was speechless for a while, feeling extremely awkward. Eventually, he said, “Mengzhe, don’t blame your big brother for being annoying. Does your father… allow you to marry your uncle?”
You Mengzhe replied, “It’s not like I’m marrying him. What does it have to do with him? Whether he allows it or not, it doesn’t matter.”
Yu Wenhong couldn’t help but add, “Yeah, besides, he can’t beat me anyway.”
Yu Changqing fell silent again.
You Mengzhe continued, “But we decided to get married on a whim. We haven’t had a chance to tell him yet.”
Yu Changqing remained silent.
“Mengzhe,” Zhao Feihong’s heavy voice echoed.
Yu Changqing quickly set down his teacup and stood up. You Mengzhe gestured for him not to bother and asked, “What’s wrong? Do you have any objections?”
Zhao Feihong didn’t mention anything about marriage and said in the inner room, “There’s no need to look for Yuan Shan.”
You Mengzhe frowned, “Why not?”
Zhao Feihong replied, “He’s too busy to see us.”
You Mengzhe said, “How is that possible? He wouldn’t refuse to see us…”
Zhao Feihong angrily interjected, “I said we don’t need to go, so we won’t go!”
His voice carried anger, leaving You Mengzhe feeling puzzled. He wondered if Zhao Feihong had quarreled with Zhang Yuanshan, which might explain why brothers would argue.
“I’ll go by myself. If you don’t want to go, it’s your problem,” You Mengzhe said.
Zhao Feihong instructed, “Yu Changqing, don’t take him to see Zhang Yuanshan.”
“Who are you? Why should I listen to you? Brother Yu, let’s go,” You Mengzhe retorted.
Yu Changqing found himself caught in the middle and wasn’t sure what to do. Zhao Feihong shouted, “You’re not allowed to go!”
Angry, You Mengzhe insisted, “Let’s go!”
“If you go today, don’t call me father anymore!” Zhao Feihong warned.
“Ha, who’s still afraid of you? Ridiculous,” You Mengzhe scoffed.
Zhao Feihong fell silent, feeling completely at a loss with someone like You Mengzhe. He walked out of the room, his expression returning to normal as he quietly watched You Mengzhe.
Glancing at him, You Mengzhe muttered to himself and then boarded the carriage without another word.
In the dead of night, the rain had stopped. Yu Changqing rode alongside You Mengzhe and Yu Wenhong, escorting them to the entrance of the Lin Mansion. As they arrived, a steward hurried out, it was Zhang Bo, and his face paled at the sight of You Mengzhe.
“Young Master You?” Zhang Bo quickly ushered You Mengzhe into the mansion. Just as he was about to inform Zhang Yuanshan, the latter, dressed in casual attire and barefoot, rushed over, staring in disbelief at You Mengzhe.
“Father!” You Mengzhe exclaimed, ready to throw himself into his arms.
Seeing Zhang Yuanshan instinctively step back, You Mengzhe was taken aback, unsure of what had happened. He couldn’t shake the feeling that Zhang Yuanshan was looking at him differently now.
Zhang Yuanshan glanced at Yu Wenhong, his brows slightly furrowed, then gestured to You Mengzhe, asking silently: “Why are you here?”
You Mengzhe replied, “I came to find you! Didn’t my father come to talk to you?”
Zhang Yuanshan didn’t respond. You Mengzhe pressed on, “What’s going on? Did you and my father have a fight? What was it about?”
Zhang Yuanshan remained silent, gesturing for You Mengzhe to sit down before turning to fetch something.
You Mengzhe was puzzled by the situation. When Zhang Yuanshan returned, he was holding a letter. You Mengzhe said, “By the way, when my uncle went back to Canghai Sect, he brought some medicine for me. Look, here’s the Life Creation Pill. It might be able to cure your mute condition.”
Zhang Yuanshan’s fingers trembled slightly as he took the porcelain bottle You Mengzhe handed to him and opened it to take a look.
“You’re not feeling unwell, are you?” You Mengzhe asked. “Are you uncomfortable?”
Zhang Yuanshan glanced at Yu Wenhong. Recognizing him, Yu Wenhong greeted, “It’s been a long time, Zhang Yuanshan.”
Zhang Yuanshan nodded slightly, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the room became awkward. No one spoke, and You Mengzhe vaguely felt that Zhang Yuanshan seemed to be troubled by something.
“What’s wrong with you?” You Mengzhe asked. “If you have something on your mind, just say it.”
Zhang Yuanshan let out a long sigh, opened the letter, and pulled out a piece of paper. His hand was trembling as he used a jade ruler to hold it down and placed it in front of You Mengzhe.
It was a birth chart.
“This is?” You Mengzhe said, puzzled.
Yu Wenhong took a quick glance and said, “Your astrological chart is written here. Why is it here?”
Tears welled up in Zhang Yuanshan’s eyes as he quietly looked at You Mengzhe. You Mengzhe asked, “What does it mean?”
Yu Wenhong was momentarily stunned, unable to speak for a while. After a long time, he finally managed to say, “You… Zhang Yuanshan?”
Zhang Yuanshan nodded slowly, then stood up with his hands behind his back, facing the corridor. The rain had stopped, the night sky was clear, and countless stars dotted the sky. The Milky Way stretched across the horizon like a bright band of light.
You Mengzhe asked, “What does that mean?”
Yu Wenhong said, “Mengzhe, you were born in May… he’s your real father.”
You Mengzhe responded, “Oh, that explains why he’s been so good to me.”
You Mengzhe: “…..”
Zhang Yuanshan: “…..”
You Mengzhe continued, “But wait, then why did my dad say that Zhao Feihong is my father?”
Yu Wenhong counted on his fingers and said, “But that’s too late, half a month later… Zhang Yuanshan?”
Zhang Yuanshan turned to look at You Mengzhe, and Yu Wenhong said, “The year I found Sister Qing outside Jia City was on June 15th, but Mengzhe was born on April 5th… This is strange…”
You Mengzhe asked, “Was I born prematurely?”
Yu Wenhong said, “No, it’s not that you were born prematurely, but rather, you were born half a month late. How could this be? Your mother went to Jia City in early June and stayed at the Zhangs’ for half a month, so… according to Zhang Yuanshan’s calculation, she would have been pregnant for over ten months, and according to Zhao Feihong’s calculation, it would be… ten and a half months.”
You Mengzhe said, “Wait, I’m a bit confused.”
Zhang Yuanshan suddenly turned around and made a few urgent gestures, leaving You Mengzhe staring blankly.
Yu Wenhong asked, “What did he say?”
You Mengzhe said, “He said, ‘You are my son. I knew it the first time I saw you.’ Damn it! Why didn’t you say it earlier!!”
Zhang Yuanshan’s lips trembled slightly, but in the end, he didn’t say anything.
Yu Wenhong said, “It’s possible. I think he looks more like your father. Zhao Feihong’s eyebrows are completely different from yours, but Zhang Yuanshan was born mute from birth, wasn’t he?”
You Mengzhe was silent for a moment, then suddenly realized something and exclaimed, “I shouldn’t be reacting like this, right?!”
Zhang Yuanshan seemed extremely agitated, making several gestures in succession. Then he reached out as if he wanted to hug You Mengzhe, but You Mengzhe instinctively moved away slightly, murmuring, “No, what did you do to my mother? Aren’t you my father’s sworn brother… I mean Zhao Feihong, how could you do this to his wife?”
Zhang Yuanshan didn’t answer, and You Mengzhe suddenly understood everything. He didn’t dare to speak because of Zhao Feihong!
“Then what about my mother… did she… with my father?” You Mengzhe asked Yu Wenhong again, “My Sect Leader father.”
“Well… it’s possible…” Yu Wenhong couldn’t explain clearly. After all, Yu Qing was a woman, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for them to be too intimate. He stuttered, “Maybe… there was something, after all, your mother didn’t like him very much, but if that’s the case… and you weren’t full-term, maybe you were only eight months… what am I saying?”
You Mengzhe said, “Who is my father exactly?! No! You guys are going too far! What kind of mess is this?!”
Yu Wenhong nodded and said, “Life is unpredictable… sigh.”
You Mengzhe became frantic, “Stop talking!”
Zhang Yuanshan made a gesture, and You Mengzheunderstood. He was saying: I’m sorry to you and your mother, I’m a coward.
You Mengzhe said, “My mother didn’t really love you either, she loved Zhao Feihong.”
Zhang Yuanshan nodded and then gestured again, meaning: But I truly care about you.
You Mengzhe said, “Don’t speak so confidently! Back then, you fell in love with her because of the love potion she used on you! Remember when she hit Zhao Feihong on the head with that box?”
Zhang Yuanshan furrowed his brow slightly, as if realizing something, his eyes filled with an incredulous expression.
“No.” You Mengzhe said, “I had to figure out who my father was before I could explain the next steps.”
You Mengzhe grabbed his bundle and the birth chart and went out. Zhang Yuanshan immediately stopped him, making a hand gesture: “Where are you going?”
You Mengzhe said, “To find my father! Get out of the way!”
Zhang Yuanshan frowned, “I am your father.”
“I now have three fathers! Let me figure out which one first! Move!” You Mengzhe said.
Zhang Yuanshan grabbed You Mengzhe’s shoulder and didn’t budge. Yu Wenhong gestured and hinted him to let go, Zhang Yuanshan angrily shook his hand off, and Yu Wenhong pointed his finger like lightning!
As time passed quickly, Yu Wenhong and Zhang Yuanshan quickly exchanged three moves. Yu Wenhong used a throat-locking technique to subdue Zhang Yuanshan, pushing him aside. Without looking back, You Mengzhe ran out.
Once outside, You Mengzhe found a horse belonging to the Lin family, mounted it swiftly, and galloped away. Despite the curfew in Jiangzhou, many imperial guards intercepted him along the way. You Mengzhe showed Zhang Yuanshan’s jade pendant and claimed to be from the Prime Minister’s Mansion, causing the guards to let him pass.
Riding the horse at full speed through the streets and alleys, You Mengzhe reached the back gate of Jiangzhou Prefecture. Just as Yu Changqing returned and lay down to rest, he was awakened again.
“Where’s my father?!” You Mengzhe asked anxiously.
“He’s already gone,” replied Yu Changqing, still drowsy.
You Mengzhe furrowed his brow and asked, “When?”
“An hour ago. He said he wouldn’t return to Ting County and told you not to look for him,” replied Yu Changqing.
You Mengzhe cursed under his breath, then kicked the door with frustration before standing idly in the backyard. His earlier commotion had attracted quite a few people, including the Governor of Jiangzhou.
Yu Changqing went back to dismiss the visitors, now adopting the demeanor of an official military officer. You Mengzhe didn’t even spare him a glance as he left the courtyard. After some time, Yu Changqing emerged alone and followed You Mengzhe, speaking up, “Mengzhe.”
As they walked, You Mengzhe kicked small stones along the way, gazing at the puddles reflecting the starry night sky. Jiangzhou was gradually awakening from the rainy night.
The moist dawn on the cobblestone road rolled away like mist, gently enveloping the whole city. Various small morning shops along the street were gradually opening.
“Big brother doesn’t know what troubles you’ve encountered,” said Yu Changqing. “But Mengzhe, listen to big brother’s advice. Life has its ups and downs.”
You Mengzhe stood at the street corner, turning around and sighing.
Yu Changqing smiled and continued, “When big brother encountered you, it was perhaps the most difficult time in my life. But as they say, after a storm comes a calm. We’re all the same. If one path doesn’t work out, there’s always another waiting for you.”
You Mengzhe looked up at Yu Changqing.
Yu Changqing chuckled again. “When I was returning to the capital, I found it quite dull. I kept reminding myself that my little brother would come to the capital to find me. Thinking about it, there was still some hope. There’s always someone waiting. Just like you, right? That person may have left, but there’s always someone else waiting for you. Big brother doesn’t know what happened between you and your dad, but since he’s gone, there are others waiting for you. Look.”
You Mengzhe suddenly realized something. When he turned his head to look, he heard footsteps slowing down. Yu Wenhong was running, a bit out of breath, and stopped in the middle of the long street.
The sky revealed a pale light, and the morning sun shone along the moist cobblestone road, reflecting the golden light before dawn.
Yu Wenhong still didn’t dare to speak, watching You Mengzhe from afar, standing there alone. After a moment, he instinctively found a place to hide, as if he had returned to the time when he was a shadow guard.
“You’re right,” You Mengzhe said earnestly. “Big Brother Yu, I’m going.”
Yu Changqing smiled and said, “Take care of yourself, Mengzhe.”
You Mengzhe nodded and stepped forward, holding Yu Wenhong’s hand. Together, they walked away down the long street, one big and one small.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
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