Die vollständige Sammlung der Geistersärge des Gelben Flusses

Kapitel 9

Neither the painter nor the painted person cares much about how well the painting is done, as long as there is always another one.

Rock sugar lotus seed soup, eight-treasure porridge, white fungus soup, plum juice—I've eaten them countless times, but summer always comes to an end. When the autumn winds blow, this dreamlike, illusory world will come to a close.

Princess Dongting left Chang'an by sailing on a multi-story ship from the Wei River, then turned onto the Grand Canal, entered the Yangtze River, and then traveled along the coast to the South China Sea.

On the day they left Chang'an, many members of the royal family saw them off on the banks of the Wei River. The ship was newly built, luxurious and safe, and there was no need to worry about accidents while riding on it.

The procession to see her off stretched on and on. As she stepped onto the ship in her bright red wedding dress, there was a sense of tragic grandeur, as if she were a hero going off to never return.

---janeadam

Reply [18]: Princess Qianjin's carriage arrived at the last minute. Liu Yi followed behind the carriage, looking at the princess at the bow of the boat with a lonely and disappointed expression.

She felt sad, thinking, "If I knew how it would end, why did I create all this trouble?" But in the end, she couldn't help herself.

Well, since he was leaving anyway, and there was no chance of him ever coming back in this lifetime, Liu Yi drew a total of twenty-seven pictures. He took them all out and threw them into the river one by one.

People on the shore whispered among themselves, thinking how inauspicious it was for the princess to hold such a ceremony!

Never mind him, a married daughter is like water spilled from a cup; she has nothing to do with the Tang Dynasty anymore.

It was a sign of despair and utter helplessness; he resolutely turned back and entered the cabin, never looking back at the shore. The boat started moving so gently it was almost imperceptible. At sunset, they reached the confluence of the Wei and Yellow Rivers; from there, they would sail a thousand miles, with no turning back.

My memory returned just like that.

When the memories returned, I began to wonder, was this the experience of the Princess of Dongting Lake, or my own? Why did it feel so real, like it happened just yesterday?

I carefully observed Liu Yi. The soul of the Dongting Princess and my soul had merged together, becoming one.

"Everyone says that the princess's ship sank in the South China Sea and all the people on board were killed. So why is the princess here herding sheep?"

"This..." It's complicated. Jingyangzi said that we shouldn't let ordinary people know that we are dragons, but if I don't tell him that I am a dragon, how will he understand?

"Actually, I am not Princess Dongting, but it cannot be said that I am not her entirely. After a person dies, within forty-nine hours, her soul has not completely left the body. At this time, if another soul enters her body, the two souls will merge together. Actually, I am a dragon. You know what a dragon is? It is in charge of rain. But when I entered her body, it was within forty-nine hours after her death, so her soul still exists in this body, but this body now belongs to me."

I blurted it out in one breath, and saw him staring at me in disbelief. Then he suddenly laughed and said, "Is the princess telling a myth?"

To humans, the existence of dragons is nothing but mythology. I laughed and said, "That's right, I am the Princess of Dongting, but I am different from before. I was already different when the ship wrecked at sea."

He looked at me with a puzzled expression, and after a long while said, "In any case, the princess is still alive."

I was stunned. Does this mean I'm still alive?

"Why are they herding sheep here? Who is so bold as to bind the princess's hands and feet with shackles?"

I myself wasn't particularly bothered. His indignant demeanor was almost comical; these shackles weren't something an ordinary person could break. Without a word, he picked up a stone and futilely smashed the shackles, but they remained undamaged.

"Don't do such pointless things. If you really care, take a letter to my father!"

---janeadam

Reply [19]: "Father? Emperor Taizong has been dead for many years."

I sighed. "I meant my other father."

"The princess has another father?"

This scholar is really stupid. I took a hairpin from my hair and put it in his hand. "Go to the Qiantang River. When the tide rises, throw the hairpin into the tide, and someone will come to pick you up."

"Throwing the hairpin into the tide when it rises?" he repeated, his face full of disbelief.

I nodded vigorously. "Remember, remember, never tell any outsiders, or it could bring you death."

The sky was filled with churning dark clouds; he was coming. I quickly leaped into the Jing River. Liu Yi was startled and looked around the riverbank. I was really worried he would think I had drowned myself, but after lingering for a long time, he finally left, looking back every few steps, half-believing and half-doubting.

Whether I can be free depends on this scholar.

I don't have high hopes. He's just a person, and we shouldn't place too much hope on one person, because that would be very disappointing.

This isn't my opinion, it's Princess Dongting's. She was probably quite disappointed when she left Chang'an! So what was she hoping for? To elope with Liu Yi?

I couldn't help but smile. She wasn't braver than me. I would work hard to do what I wanted to do, but she waited for fate to decide.

Half a month later, Uncle Qiantang Jun arrived like the wind. He was like a majestic god, and in one breath, he dried up the entire Jing River.

The riverbed, like a naked woman, was shamefully exposed before people. The stone dragon palace in his eyes was nothing more than a paper toy.

My uncle was a violent dragon. It was because of his violence and boundless supernatural powers that he was demoted to the dragon of the Qiantang River.

Jingyangzi fled in panic. As I watched the purple cloud disappear, I clearly saw his resentful eyes. Apart from him, all living things at the bottom of the Jing River vanished.

He was an excellent dragon, far superior to me, but unfortunately he was only a river dragon. Faced with the enraged sea dragon, he could only flee, fleeing to the ends of the earth.

Sending Liu Yi to deliver the book to my uncle may have been my biggest mistake, but it could also have been part of my plan all along.

Actually, I don't really know what I want. Maybe I just sent him to Qiantang, which is closer, because the South China Sea is too far away and I was worried that Liu Yi wouldn't be able to reach it. Or maybe I chose my uncle because I know that my father wouldn't easily start a war with others.

Whatever the reason, this is the result.

Am I happy? Maybe I am, maybe I am not.

Perhaps dragons, like clouds, are unpredictable creatures; or perhaps it's not the dragon that's unpredictable, but rather the part of me that's unpredictable.

When I returned to the South China Sea, I was met with pity from my brothers and sisters. "How will you ever get married again?" they asked.

My mother gave me a dismissive look. "Go! Don't let me see you again."

My uncle said, "Come with me! Let's go stay by the Qiantang River for a while. The South China Sea is such a suffocating place; I've wanted to leave for ages. Let's go!"

He pulled me through the water, and I saw the Mermaid Goddess gazing at me forlornly from the bottom of the sea. She was still as beautiful as a flower, but I felt that she was slowly aging.

I moved to Qiantang, where my cousins, the Jianglong, secretly observed human life. They were creatures we looked down upon, yet we paradoxically envied them. Who wouldn't want a human body? Who would willingly spend their entire life as just that long, thin body?

But what good would it do to take it? Even if the physical form changes, it's still a dragon.