Chapter 24 – Why Must the Young Be So Serious
The courtyard was silent. The entire Liu household had gone out to attend the grand feast, not even leaving a watchman behind, unafraid of thieves sneaking in to ransack the place.
Even if no thieves got in, having a vicious god of death enter was just as deadly!
Zuo Yuesheng sat down on the courtyard steps with a thud, grumbling inwardly as he reached for the back of his neck to confirm his head was still properly attached. Behind him was Chou Bodeng’s room. Zuo Yuesheng now finally knew who had brought Young Master Chou back to the Liu residence after the incident in Fu City a few days ago… though at the moment, he’d rather not have known.
A quarter of an hour ago, after Young Master Lu’s earth-shattering “three-timing” remark, the entire street fell into a frozen, silent night.
Lu Jing, who had nearly caused a bloodbath with a single sentence, finished speaking and then, with another thud, fell over and started snoring, leaving only a stiff Zuo Yuesheng behind. The young man’s gaze slowly swept over him and Lu Jing, as if counting: one boat, two boats… plus his own boat, hmm, three boats…
The killing intent suddenly surged, and Zuo Yuesheng felt as if he could hear the ringing of a saber!
In a flash of inspiration, Zuo Yuesheng raised both hands and roared:
“Young Master Chou and you are a match made in heaven, a natural pair! All others are unworthy!”
The invisible blade stopped.
Without blinking, Zuo Yuesheng struck while the iron was hot, launching into a frantic stream of flattery. He was just short of saying, “When will you two villainous lovebirds tie the knot? My Mountain Sea Pavilion will spare no effort to help with the arrangements”… Although it reeked of selling out a friend to save himself, he figured the beautiful and kind-hearted Young Master Chou wouldn’t mind.
The wind scattered the leaves, and the young man, carrying Chou Bodeng, turned and walked in the direction of the Liu residence.
Zuo Yuesheng dragged Lu Jing up and followed, his heart pounding like a drum.
And now, he was squatting on the steps.
“…Mom, I…”
Lu Jing, lying on the ground below the steps, rolled over, mumbling in his sleep.
Mom your ass.
Zuo Yuesheng’s burly frame shuddered. Quick as a flash, he tore off the last half of Lu Jing’s outer sleeve and stuffed it firmly into the guy’s mouth. At the same time, he pricked up his ears, nervously listening to the silence from the room behind him. After bringing Young Master Chou into the room, a certain unknown person had not come back out.
It was quiet behind him.
Zuo Yuesheng sighed inwardly, wondering whether he should risk his life and knock.
The thing was, if Young Master Chou was truly in love with some unknown person—that was Lu Jing’s theory—then whatever they did was none of his business, right? But it was obvious that Young Master Chou was currently dead drunk. As his partner in crime, he still had to worry a little! …Then again, Zuo Yuesheng was actually quite curious about who that young man was, what his name was, and what kind of divine being he was to have the courage to fall for Chou Bodeng.
Although Young Master Chou’s looks were indeed enough to make one overlook the rotten stuffing inside, how should he put it…
Chou Bodeng, that guy, had always been sick in the head!
After much deliberation and mustering his courage, Zuo Yuesheng stood up, ready to knock as if marching to his death.
Just as he turned, the door was pulled open from the inside with a thwack.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
“What are you screaming about?” Chou Bodeng’s eardrums ached from the yelling.
“You scared me to death, Young Master Chou!” Zuo Yuesheng, his soul still unsettled, didn’t forget to peek inside. “Hey? Where’d that guy go?”
“Left.”
“Left? Jumped out the window? Didn’t see that coming,” Zuo Yuesheng muttered, then realized something was wrong. “Fuck, you bastard! You weren’t drunk, so why were you playing dead?”
“If I didn’t play dead, how would I know what a good job you do of selling out your partners in crime?” Chou Bodeng retorted lightly.
Zuo Yuesheng immediately shut his mouth.
He didn’t dare ask aloud, but in his heart, he felt that Young Master Chou was definitely flying into a rage out of humiliation.
Zuo Yuesheng’s expression was so obvious that Chou Bodeng could guess what he was thinking with a single glance.
It wasn’t exactly rage from humiliation… In fact, the only one who had been drunk was Shi Wuluo. When he’d fallen from the Divine Fu Tree, Shi Wuluo had followed without hesitation and caught him in mid-air. After being caught, the man had an alcohol-fueled fit, not saying a word and not letting go. As for why he pretended to be drunk… it wasn’t really pretending. It was just that Shi Wuluo was having his quiet fit, and Chou Bodeng happened to be sleepy, so he simply drifted off in a half-awake, half-dreaming state.
But why?
Why could he unconsciously fall asleep to the faint scent of medicinal herbs on a person he had only just met a few times?
Was it because of a sense of familiarity, or something else?
Chou Bodeng didn’t want to think about it anymore. He stepped down from the stairs and stared menacingly at the snoring Lu Jing.
“Stay put.”
Chou Bodeng spoke suddenly, as if he had eyes in the back of his head.
Zuo Yuesheng, who was sneaking away, froze with one foot in the air.
“Go get some cold water and splash him awake,” Chou Bodeng said slowly. “Two-timing? Three-timing?… I’d like to ask just how many boats you two have been gossiping about behind my back.”
The most terrifying thing had come to pass!
If Chou Bodeng found out that not only had they been gossiping about him two-timing, but they were also in the middle of writing a novel about it to sell across the Twelve Continents, then even if his own father came, he wouldn’t be able to save them!
Lu Jing, Lu Shiyilang, you have to withstand Young Master Chou’s harsh interrogation!
***
The next day.
The group waited outside the city for the elder sent by the Mountain Sea Pavilion’s Master to arrive.
The sky wasn’t even light yet. They had decided to leave this early mainly to avoid disturbing anyone else. Since they had already attended the grand feast and said their farewells amidst drumbeats and strong wine, staging another tearful departure at the city gate would be overly sentimental.
While they waited, the few dandies yawned, leaning against each other sleepily.
Lou Jiang’s gaze kept drifting to Lu Jing’s face. Finally, he couldn’t hold back. “Did you go robbing last night and get beaten up?”
“I didn’t go robbing,” Lu Jing was halfway through a yawn when it pulled at the bruises on his face. He sucked in a sharp breath of pain, instantly waking up. “But I did get beaten up.”
“Young Master Lu is mighty! Young Master Lu is unyielding!” Zuo Yuesheng, his eyelids still stuck together, applauded Lu Jing in a half-dreaming state. “Hold on! The iron-willed Eleventh Master!”
The iron-willed Eleventh Master had paid a painful price for his tight lips. His face now looked like a dye shop had opened on it. However, his unyielding spirit was rewarded. Although Chou Bodeng was highly suspicious that the two of them were up to some “good deeds” behind his back, he ultimately failed to discover the matter of the Dream Return Order.
Their great enterprise of getting rich and famous was fortunate not to have “perished midway.”
Lou Jiang: …
The longer these dandies hung out together, the less he understood what they were saying.
“Forget them,” Lou Jiang sighed. “Ye Cang, what’s with your clothes?”
Lou Jiang knew Ye Cang from before.
After all, Ye Cang was a friend the Young Pavilion Master had made after being “exiled” to Fu City. Every time Zuo Yuesheng caused trouble and didn’t want to be scolded by Lou Jiang, he would hide at Ye Cang’s place. Lou Jiang had even investigated him secretly to prevent the Young Pavilion Master from making bad friends—though usually, Young Pavilion Master Zuo was more like the “bad friend.”
Previously, Lou Jiang’s impression of Ye Cang had been decent.
He was meticulous in his work, resilient, and perseverant. Even after being kicked out of the City Divination Department, he insisted on waking up before the rooster crowed to practice martial arts every day. He was kind-hearted, and several times when Zuo Yuesheng’s swindling went too far, Ye Cang had forced him to return the items… In short, he was a reliable person. Lou Jiang had even considered asking him if he wanted to join the Mountain Sea Pavilion after the investigation was over.
“Ah?”
Ye Cang, with a saber on his back, stood ramrod straight. In contrast to the three slumping dandies, he was like a “solitary pine standing firm,” a breath of fresh air.
…If you ignored his clothes.
It was a gray robe that would make any tailor curse upon seeing it. The sleeves were one large and one small, the hem was long in the front and short in the back, the shoulder line was a crooked centipede crawl, and as for the stitching… any apprentice who dared to waste fabric to create such a “masterpiece” would be lucky not to be skinned alive by his master.
“Martial Grand-Ancestor said that when I return to the sect, sewing clothes is part of Taiyi’s homework, and I should start practicing diligently now,” Ye Cang explained seriously.
“…”
Lou Jiang was about to say, “He said that and you believe him?” but then he remembered the Taiyi disciples’ tradition of hand-carving their waist tokens and started to think that maybe Chou Bodeng wasn’t joking with Ye Cang after all.
“Then what’s with the long face?” Lou Jiang held back, then asked again.
“Martial Grand-Ancestor also said that the sign of a Taiyi disciple is being ruthless, taciturn, and expressionless,” Ye Cang put on a stern face, striving for a gaze like dead wood. “I can’t manage the ‘taciturn’ part for now, so he told me to practice the long face.”
Lou Jiang: …
Had this guy been kicked in the head by a donkey? Even if Chou Bodeng, a known profligate, was the Little Martial Ancestor of Taiyi by seniority, you couldn’t believe his words!!!
Ye Cang stared straight ahead. “After entering Taiyi, the competition for the Chief Disciple position of each peak assesses ‘character.’ Respecting superiors and protecting juniors is one of the subjects. I want to be the most outstanding disciple of Taiyi, I want to be the Chief Disciple!”
I think you’re going to be the chief idiot!
He had heard the word “idiot” from Chou Bodeng. Lou Jiang didn’t really understand its specific meaning and had even looked it up in various dictionaries, but couldn’t find its origin. But at this moment, he felt there was no word more fitting in the world.
When the Mountain Sea Pavilion’s Elder Tao, who had been sent to receive the honored guests and the Young Pavilion Master, had just stepped off the flying boat and hadn’t even steadied himself, Lou Jiang rushed over as if granted a pardon, bowing and saluting repeatedly.
Elder Tao was so startled that he accidentally plucked out several of his precious whiskers.
This… is this Lou Jiang?
Geniuses always had a bit of pride, especially someone like Lou Jiang, who at a young age had walked a path that took many cultivators hundreds of years. Although he was usually observant of etiquette, he couldn’t help but have a bit of youthful vigor. He might “respect” the elders, but “reverence” was not always apparent. When the elders talked about him in private, they all said that it was good for a young man to be driven, but he should also rely on them old bones occasionally. Why try to carry the heavens and prop up the earth at such a young age?
Why must the young be so old and serious?
But now, seeing Lou Jiang welcoming him with what were practically tears in his eyes, Elder Tao, while astonished, couldn’t help but feel a little smug.
That’s right! After a setback, he finally knows to seek help from his elders!
Elder Tao cleared his throat, and just as he was about to say something, he saw Lou Jiang dash into the flying boat’s cabin like a whirlwind, leaving only a single sentence behind.
“These are the honored guests the Pavilion Master wants to receive. I’ll leave them to you now!”