Cueillir des fleurs et sourire

Chapitre 22

"Is it because of Xiao Ji?" Rong Yin asked calmly.

He also knew the past of the four seniors who died because of Xiao Ji. Sheng Xiang looked up and smiled, "You know?"

“I don’t know.” Rong Yin stared at him. “I don’t know as much as Bi Qiuhan, but at least I can guess one thing.”

Shengxiang blinked slowly. "In Bianliang City, Kaifeng Prefecture, is the place where people are most likely to disappear and never be found again? Is that the imperial palace?" he asked with a smile, but his eyes did not smile.

“No,” Rong Yin said calmly. “Xiao Ji is a peerless beauty, a rare sight indeed. It would be difficult for someone like her to come to Kaifeng without causing a sensation.” He looked up at the beam in the room. “Twenty-seven… or twenty-eight years ago, nearly thirty years ago, the late emperor was still in his prime, and… his relationship with the empress and concubines was not pleasant. I’m just guessing that the late emperor needed a new favorite, and Xiao Ji was indeed a beauty, and since they were both in Kaifeng, even if the emperor was unaware of her beauty, someone would try every means to let the emperor see her.” He didn’t even blink. “This is called ‘offering beauty,’ a form of appeasement.”

Shengxiang smiled, "Is it like Fan Li offering Xi Shi to Yang Guifei, or Yang Guozhong presenting Yang Guifei to Yang Guifei?"

Rong Yin smiled faintly, "I suppose so. Xiao Ji disappeared in Kaifeng, Bianliang. My personal guess is that she entered the palace."

Saint Incense remained noncommittal. "And then?"

"And as far as I know, there was no such person as Xiao Ji in the late emperor's palace," Rong Yin said calmly. "So I continue to speculate that she is probably no longer alive." He then added calmly, "Assuming she entered the palace as soon as she arrived in Kaifeng, then everything is easily explained. The late emperor killed for love, palace experts acted as assassins, and how could the outlaws of the martial world escape death? The true culprit behind these four massacres is none other than the late Emperor Taizu, the Great Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, who established the dynasty and established the system." When he read Zhao Kuangyin's long posthumous title, a hint of sarcasm was clearly present in his tone.

“Rongrong, do you know how scary you can be sometimes?” Shengxiang sighed, sitting wearily in the chair and relaxing completely. “If you can ‘guess’ everything like this, I think you could set up a fortune-telling stall on the street and make a fortune.”

Rong Yin's sharp and chilling gaze fixed on him. "Prime Minister Zhao knows that Bi Qiuhan is investigating the secret history of the late emperor. If it involves royal privacy, he will inevitably be beheaded. So he wants you to keep an eye on him, is that right?"

A tipsy smile played on Shengxiang's lips. "No."

Jiao Yin frowned slightly, and Sheng Xiang continued, "Xiao Ji is my mother. My mother was my current father's former lover, and also the Emperor's former lover. Rong Rong, you wouldn't have guessed that, would you?" He smiled as he looked at Rong Yin, whose expression had changed slightly. "My mother was also an assassin from the Northern Han Dynasty, and she was similar to Ze Ning's wife, did you know that?"

Rong Yin's expression changed drastically! Having spent so much time in the palace, he naturally knew the gravity of such matters! As a prince, Sheng Xiang was easily drawn into the power struggles. If Xiao Ji was an assassin, then this matter involved traitors and villains. These two issues—rebellion against the imperial power—were the two most important and valued matters for the royal family. If either one was involved, even a thousand heads wouldn't be enough to pay the price. On this matter, the emperor could not reason with him. It wasn't that he feared the emperor or the powerful, but Sheng Xiang was caught in the middle, entangled in a web of love and power, and a single misstep could lead to his death! Although the emperor doted on him, how could he be sure it wasn't for Xiao Ji's sake? Once the matter was exposed, to protect the royal family's reputation, the first person the emperor would kill would be Sheng Xiang! Bi Qiuhan was investigating the Xiao Ji case related to the Li Ling Banquet, walking on thin ice. If he accidentally uncovered something, everyone in the know would die. The emperor absolutely could not allow such an absurd matter to spread, not to mention that this matter involved remnants of the Northern Han, a hidden worry in his heart.

"Now that you already know, if we're going to die, you might as well die with me." Shengxiang smiled and pulled a gold-rimmed folding fan from his flowing sleeves, snapping it open and fanning himself a few times. "Although we weren't born on the same day, month, and year, we wish to die on the same day, month, and year..."

“Sacred Incense,” Rong Yin interrupted him in a low voice, “What do you think…”

"I think so," Shengxiang interrupted him. For a fleeting moment, his flawless eyes held no smile. "Speaking of military strategy, Rongrong, you know it better than I do. How could you not understand… How much effort and manpower did our two emperors expend, how much manpower and resources were wasted, to conquer the Hedong region of Northern Han? Ever since Xue Huaguang submitted his memorial, 'When felling trees, first remove the branches and leaves, then take the roots,' our dynasty has been migrating people from Hedong of Northern Han to the Central Plains for decades. By three years ago, only 35,520 people remained in the eleven prefectures of Northern Han. It was only after the Emperor personally led an expedition that Hedong was finally conquered. To prevent the remnants of Northern Han, the Emperor even ordered the destruction of Taiyuan City, and all the remaining people were relocated to the Central Plains… General Pan led his troops in Hedong. To prevent the remnants of Northern Han from rebelling, Pan Mei drove the people of Hedong to the interior. The areas around Qizhou, Daizhou, Ninghua, and Huoshanjun…" "Ten thousand acres of fertile land lie barren, a desolate wasteland. And because the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun have been occupied by the Liao, we have no natural defenses to defend the north. We've dug numerous ponds in the former Northern Han territory to try and stop the Liao army's advance, destroying countless farmlands in the process." He shook his head. "Rongrong, I am not you. I don't care about national affairs, nor do I care about serving the country and its people… I'm just a petty person, not a gentleman." He looked at Rong Yin. "I only know that since the Emperor can order the destruction of Taiyuan and the relocation of countless people for the sake of Northern Han territory, even at the cost of inciting public anger and turning fertile land into ponds, then… killing a few Jianghu figures who might incite a rebellion by the remnants of Northern Han is nothing. He wants to consolidate his power, and I don't think there's anything wrong with that." His last sentence was delivered with equanimity, his eyes like glass, devoid of joy or anger.

It was a look of utter desolation. Bi Qiuhan couldn't understand it, Nan Ge couldn't understand it, and even Zhao Pu couldn't understand it, but Rong Yin could. It was a look of utter desolation. "So you can't help Bi Qiuhan investigate the case, you can only help him arrest people." A faint, cold smile appeared on Rong Yin's lips. "And what are you doing all this for? Going through all this trouble, just to... save this 'hero' standing in the fire pit from his misery? Sheng Xiang, I always thought you were very heartless."

Shengxiang paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed, "Why do you say that too? I always thought I was gentle, affectionate, kind, and lovely."

Jiao Yin stared at him and said calmly, "I know you are not a savior."

Shengxiang paused again, this time glancing into Jiaoyin's eyes before sighing. "I am not a savior, not great at all." His gaze slowly shifted to the ground, then to the doorway. "I just... don't want my father to be sad," he murmured, then admitted, "And... I don't want the Emperor to be sad... I don't want those who love me to be sad, that's all."

Saint Fragrance… Rong Yin’s faint, cold smile softened slightly. “This is the Saint Fragrance I know.” He said calmly, “You are a sentimental but heartless person.”

Shengxiang smiled slightly, a calm and serene smile, unperturbed by worldly affairs. "I do not love the common people of the world."

“You protect those who love you,” Rong Yin smiled faintly, “so your affection is also your ruthlessness; you protect them, but you don’t necessarily love them…that’s your most ruthless aspect.”

Shengxiang's eyes gleamed with a glassy light at Rong Yin's words. "Hmm..." He smiled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

“Holy Incense, Holy Incense.” Rong Yin rarely spoke like this. He murmured, “Being optimistic and accepting of fate, finding joy in whatever comes your way, not seeking personal gain nor loving the world. Holy Incense, Holy Incense, do you perhaps wish to become a Buddha?”

Shengxiang blinked slowly. "I don't like Bodhisattvas."

"Then why bother seeing through the ways of the world?" Rong Yin looked directly into his eyes. "Don't you think seeing through things is a kind of tragedy?"

Saint Incense's eyes were particularly desolate. "I don't know."

“If you can cry and laugh like everyone else, experience joy and sorrow, that will be your time of liberation. Shengxiang, you are too wise…” Rong Yin said slowly.

This time, Shengxiang smiled, a broad smile. "Rongrong, can you laugh and cry genuinely like others?" He pursed his lips, waiting for Jiaoyin's answer.

Rong Yin remained silent for a while, then said, "No."

“It’s precisely because we’re all so self-righteous and obsessed with saving face that we always end up like this…” Shengxiang murmured. “Rongrong, you don’t need to worry. I… won’t make myself sad, and—I don’t want the people who love me to be sad.”

Rong Yin stared intently at him. He didn't understand Sheng Xiang, but perhaps he was the one who understood Sheng Xiang best in this world. Sheng Xiang... was a strange person; his soul possessed a strange quality. He could see others clearly, yet their souls could not merge with his. His thoughts often transcended many things, vaguely touching upon things that ordinary people could not comprehend or surpass. That realm and those thoughts were too lonely, so Sheng Xiang... had no kindred spirits.

"You've decided to conceal your mother's affair from Prime Minister Zhao and the Emperor." Rong Yin remained silent for a moment, then coldly asked, "Have you ever considered that your own father was killed by the current Emperor?"

“Anan said he didn’t want to live for the dead.” Shengxiang smiled. “The Great Ancestor and Mother are both dead. I won’t grieve for the dead, but I don’t want the living to be sad or troubled. If there is anything I can do, I will do my best. That’s all.”

When he said, "I will not grieve for the dead," his smile was as serene as a locust blossom. Shengxiang rarely smiled so serenely, so his smile was exceptionally optimistic. Rongyin stared at him for a long time before saying lightly, "We are all such self-righteous and prideful people... No wonder you are Shengxiang." He suddenly turned around, "I will pretend I don't know anything about Xiaoji's matter. As for Li Lingyan, I originally had no intention of paying attention to him, but if I can help you, I will do my best."

"Will you tell Yu Mutou?" Shengxiang asked. "If he finds out, it means he died on the same day, month, and year."

Rong Yin did not answer, but after a while said coldly, "Even if you don't say it, do you think he can't guess? Don't forget that his ability to foresee things is no less than mine."

“Then I welcome him to die with me,” Shengxiang said with a smile. “Li Lingyan is in trouble, he’s really messed up—” He suddenly shouted, “Where’s your wife? I was wondering what was wrong, like something was missing. Where is your beautiful wife?”

Rong Yin frowned and said calmly, "You still like to act recklessly like this... She went to Kaifeng to accompany Mei Niang. There have been many chaotic events lately. The more famous Yu Xiu is, the more enemies he has, so she went to see if Mei Niang could let go of Bai Tao Tang. However, the chances are slim."

"Hahaha, to be honest, I really hate all your wives." Shengxiang grinned. "It would be best if none of them were here. We brothers could roam the world, destroy the Demon Sect, kill the great demon Li Lingyan, and then be remembered for generations to come. That would be wonderful."

Rong Yin turned his back to him, ignoring his nonsense, and said, "How long are you going to keep wearing those clothes?"

Shengxiang stuck out her tongue, "Go change it immediately, go change it immediately! How dare I disobey Lord Rong's order..."

Outside the living room and tea room of Wudang Taoist Temple.

Bi Qiuhan simply explained how the group had disguised themselves as women, and that they had actually been rescued by Yu Cuiwei. The listeners all looked on with disbelief. If Bi Qiuhan hadn't been known for her caution and propriety, she probably wouldn't have been able to gain their trust at all.

"Who is that young lady to Master Bai?" asked the Copper Monk. "I thought she was just a demoness under the command of someone surnamed Li, but she turns out to be Master Bai's friend? Or perhaps Master Bi's fiancée?"

Bi Qiuhan was extremely embarrassed. "He is not a woman."

"Huh?" The listener was dumbfounded. "He's not a woman?" Such a clever and pretty girl isn't a woman.

“He was just joking around by dressing up as a woman!” Bi Qiuhan said with a wry smile. “His name is Shengxiang. He’s a young master from a wealthy family. He heard that the martial arts world is a lot of fun, so he came out to see it for himself.” He didn’t know how else to explain Shengxiang’s strange behavior.