Nightfall

Ning Que did not reply because he did not know how to. However, since Xian Zhilang had mentioned Chao Xiaoshu and Li Yu, he felt more at ease when he asked the man his question.

“His Majesty wouldn’t be unaware that you have once been Empress Ren Xiao’s page boy. I don’t believe the rumors in the imperial court either. I want to know why His Majesty sent you to the Lanke Temple.”

Xian Zhilang’s expression grew grave. He looked at Ning Que and said, “All countries have gathered at Lanke not just for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival… They have also gathered to discuss the war with the Desolate Man next year.

Ning Que furrowed his brows slightly as he thought of the constant wars in the wilderness in the last two years. He asked confusedly, “The Left King’s Palace had been plowed through by the Desolate Man once, and then weakened by the Divine Hall coalition and Xia Hou. They do not have any power to take back the grassland from the Desolate Man… I can’t think of any reason for the Tang Empire and the South Jin Kingdom to fight on behalf of the Left King’s Palace. Why not allow the Desolate Man to live peacefully in the Wilderness?”

There would have been nothing wrong with his statement had he not brought up the distant past between West-Hill Divine Palace and the Devil’s Doctrine. After all, it was better to have someone else to lose their life than to lose your own. No matter how miserable the Left King’s Palace is, as long as the Desolate Man do not continue southwards and affect other countries in the central plains, who would be willing to face such a powerful enemy?

“The West-Hill Divine Palace is unwilling to see the Desolate Man tribe own such a beautiful piece of land. It implies that the Devil’s Doctrine will rise again. Other countries in the Central Plains are afraid that the Desolate Man tribes will grow in size. Without the cold region in the Far North as a limitation, the Desolate Man will have many children and their children will procreate. Then, they’d need more land and will force the Left King’s Palace’s shepherds down south. Then, they might go to war with the Golden Palace. How will that end? Just like a thousand years ago, the Desolate Man will become strong again and then, they will go to war with the Tang Empire.”

Xian Zhilang looked at him and smiled. He said, “Since there will be a war sooner or later, why not whittle them down while they are still weak?”

Looking at it from an emotional point of view, Ning Que had no reason to treat the Desolate Man as his enemy. His only niece in the Academy was one of them. Furthermore, he had joined the Devil’s Doctrine, so he was not as vigilant against the Devil’s Doctrine as those in the Haotian Taoism were.

He said, “That might take decades, or even centuries, to occur.”

Xian Zhilang said, “Even if it happens in a thousand years, it begins now.”

Ning Que had to admit that this statement was very convincing. However, it did not change how he viewed things. He had once been to the Wilderness and knew that it was a rich piece of land that could feed many people. Xian Zhilang had mentioned the war between the Tangs and the Desolate Man a thousand years ago. But that war had occurred, not because both parties needed a place to live, but because China needed to establish a new leader. In his opinion, unless there were any changes, the Desolate Man would not continue southwards.

As the word ‘changes’ appeared in his mind, he suddenly remembered the dream he had and the conversations he had with Headmaster. He felt a chill run down his spine.

Xian Zhilang noticed that he was behaving oddly.

All was silent in the room onboard. Only the sound of water splashing against the sides of the ship could be heard.

Ning Que suddenly asked, “Do you believe in the Underworld Invasion?”

Xian Zhilang’s expression stiffened slightly. And then, he laughed self-mockingly and said, “Of course not.”

Ning Que looked into his eyes and said, “Chang’an has become colder in the last two years.”

Xian Zhilang said, “When I was little, I fed horses in even colder winters.”

Ning Que said, “You know that’s not what I meant.”

Xian Zhilang said, “I have been staying in the west all these years.”

Ning Que said, “Then why are the Desolate Man moving south?”

Xian Zhilang did not speak. After a while, he suddenly smiled, and said, “Legends will always be legends. Even if they become fact, only legendary places like the Second floor of the Academy have to worry about it. As a serviceman of the empire, we do not need to think as much. Should the underworld invade us, the cavalry will do what they have to do when His Majesty orders us.”

This was the standard answer of a Tang serviceman. Ning Que was not surprised. But he was one of the few people on earth who had heard Headmaster say that the darkness would come from the north. That was why he had to think.

This was especially so when he realized that this great meet at the Lanke Temple would involve sending military to the Desolate Man. The wilderness in the north would flow with blood from now on. This was beginning to look more and more like that dream he had. The chill that had wrapped itself around his body grew more intense and he could not dispell it.

Xian Zhilang obviously wanted to have a long conversation with him. But Ning Que’s emotional state was in a mess and he had grown wary without reason. Ning Que rejected the man forthrightly and walked towards the cabin.

Xian Zhilang walked to the window and watched Ning Que as he headed downstairs. He watched the figure on the lake bank heading towards another battleship. His brows rose, and a myriad of emotions crossed his eyes.

The House of Red Sleeves song-and-dance troupe traveled with the Tang diplomatic delegation. As a result, they received plenty of conveniences. With Ning Que having made his inclinations clear, the girls were all treated well and were given their own ship.

Where there were women, there was noise. However, this ship was extremely quiet today. The beautiful women sat in their chairs and looked solemn. However, they could all barely repress their curiosity, glancing at the two girls speaking from the corner of their eyes.

Xiaocao pulled on Sangsang’s hand. She stuck her lips out so far that she looked like a duck in the reeds of the Great Lake looking for fish. She said in an aggrieved manner, “This is my first time to come out of Chang’an. But you didn’t even come to keep me company. Are you my friend or not?”

Sangsang only had three friends in Chang’an. They were the Princess of Tang Li Yu, the girl from the Devil’s Doctrine – Tang Xiaotang, and the other was Xiaocao. The difference in status between the three girls was huge, but Sangsang had never thought about it. She treated everyone truly. She felt bad when she heard Xiaocao’s complaint and explained helplessly, “Young master likes the quiet, there’s nothing I can do about that.”

“You guys are already engaged, how is he still your young master?”

Xiaocao looked at her and said heatedly, “You have to be aware of your current status. If you keep calling him young master, that fellow might keep treating you as his handmaiden.”

Sangsang thought to herself that even though they were engaged, the way they lived had not changed. She was used to calling Ning Que young master and found it difficult to call him by his name.

The girls in the cabin had finally received confirmation of their speculations. They finally ascertained who Sangsang was and had managed to guess which fellow Xiaocao was talking about. They were very shocked and could barely repress their excitement.

As the saying goes, each rising generation excels the last and each generation had its own talent. The ladies of the House of Red Sleeves received a high income and found it easy to leave the brothel. As such, the turnover rate was fast. Lu Xue’s batch had already married or gone into business. The girls headed to the Lanke Temple were all very young.

They had only heard of the legendary stories of the House of Red Sleeves, but never witnessed it for themselves. They were surprised to see that those rumors were real when they saw how close Xiaocao and the tanned girl were.

Sangsang was no longer that unassuming handmaiden from the Old Brush Pen Shop. Even if the people in Chang’an did not know that she was the successor of the God of Light, they all knew that she was close to the princess. They also knew that she was the long-lost daughter of the Imperial Library Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing. Of course, Sangsang was most well known for her relationship with Ning Que.

The engagement between Ning Que and Sangsang was definitely the most sensational event in Chang’an in the past six months. One of them was a student of the Second floor of the Academy, the core disciple of the Headmaster and a great calligrapher doted upon by the emperor. The other was the daughter of the Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, a good friend of the princess and the successor of a Great Divine Priest. Even though it was a simple engagement, it created a huge wave in their community.

The emperor himself gifted them with precious gold and jewelry. Several officials turned up in person on that day. To those who did not know of the finer details, what had truly surprised them was that the West-Hill Divine Palace had sent several high ranking priests to congratulate them. They had also sent them several boxes of makeup just like Sangsang’s family would.

The Senior Brothers and Sisters from the back of the mountain had also prepared gifts. However, Ning Que thought that they might as well not have bothered since they all sent paltry, cheap gifts. However, he did not expect the Headmaster’s gift to be the cheapest. He had not even bothered to even write anything, but had sent a box of pastries!

“That fellow? Which fellow?”

Ning Que walked into the cabin and said to Xiaocao, “Aunt Jian does treat you well. She even let you be the leader. However, don’t think you can talk bad about me just because she has got your back.”

Xiaocao harrumphed and ignored him, clutching Sangsang’s hand tightly.

All the girls in the cabin guessed who he was. They stood up and bowed politely. The room was filled with flowing skirts and the scent of perfume. The girls thought of the young man’s status and his fame as a great calligrapher. Their eyes danced as they tried to get close to him.

Xiaocao looked at the chaotic scene and frowned slightly. “Don’t even think about it. Go back to the brothel and ask the elder sisters. Who had managed to really get close to Ning Que? Everyone in Chang’an knows that you girls are not allowed to receive him. This is Mistress Jian’s rule.”

This rule had long become the joke of the House of Red Sleeves and other brothels in Chang’an. The girls all knew about it. However, they thought that since they were out of Chang’an and were going to spend many days with Ning Que on the same ship sailing over the Great Lake, they could not bear to miss the opportunity. Their gazes remained heated.

Xiaocao looked at Ning Que and said helplessly, “You are already married, can’t you keep a low profile?”

“That’s why I have to ask you to release my wife’s hand.”

Ning Que smiled and went up to snatch Sangsang’s hand away. He brought her out of the cabin.

The sounds of the waves grew urgent and the lights in the cabin flickered before brightening again. The ink on the inkstone shook a little as the ship left the port, heading into the Great Lake slowly.

Ning Que looked at the thin letter on the table, thinking about something.

Sangsang looked at the letter in his hand and said seriously, “This is ours.”

The letter was left behind in the inn in Yangguan City by Cui Shi before he left them.

The letter was thin, there were only two sheets of paper.

There were only several sentences on one sheet of the paper. The other paper was a banknote worth 500,000 taels of silver.