CH 30

T/N: “If you’re reading this on Asianovel, you are reading from a source that does not have my permission to repost.”

The New Years’ holiday was over, the festive atmosphere slowly dying down. It was almost early spring, the accumulated snow vanishing as it melted.

The stores in Chang’an city re-opened for business and their customers were yet few in number, so the assistants leaned against the doorframe casually chatting away. Someone suddenly yelled in surprise, and following that crisp bell sounds leisurely resounded from the city gates, the passers-by sticking out their heads to look.

The officials and soldiers cleared the way ahead, a long trail of carriages passing through the street, spurred toward the palace. The camel-bells lightly shook, the carriages rumbled. A lithe and elegant lady from the foreign land had a gauze veil over her face, the carriages accompanying her forming two trails behind a cushioned sedan. A corner of the embroidered curtain was sneakily lifted, revealing a pair of ink-green (greenish-black) eyes. A young child leaning from the floor above caught a glance, excitedly pointing and shouting, and was immediately pressed down by the adult next to him, who called out: “Loulan.”

The land of Loulan was situated in the great deserts of the Western Regions, holding onto the major trade route. Though it was a small country, its cities prospered, and it had an important status.

Loulan was always caught up between Daxia (this fantasy Central Plains China) and the Xiongnu, only becoming closer to Daxia in the recent years; And though their contact had increased, there has not been an instance where they came forward once Spring started.

This was exactly the day of returning to court, so Chu Mingyun who saw the insignia-bearing flag meant for reception from a far-off distance as soon as he stepped up out of the golden palace was bewildered. He turned his head to ask Su Shiyu, “Who is the ambassador sent by Loulan this time, that they actually used the rite for Zhuhou1?”

”Today the princess of Loulan has come in person to visit bearing gifts.” Su Shiyu explained.

Chu Mingyun nodded, thought a bit, and with that he was beginning to understand why he felt a deep meaning to the gaze Su Shiyu had when looking at him today.

It was said that the Loulan princess’ arrogance and wilfulness had reached its own peak; she married three times within a month. If it wasn’t ordering someone to beat her husband to the point that he could only lie horizontally in the courtyard, then it was slapping her in-laws to humiliate her spouse, forcing the other party to use their life to plead the ruler dissolve the marriage. After all that trouble there was no longer anyone who dared to marry her from the vassal states. But the ruler of Loulan treated the Princess as the darling of his heart, spoiling her. That year he didn’t hesitate to use three cities as her dowry, only seeking to find the right son-in-law in Daxia.

At that time Chu Mingyun laughed lightly in court, and firmly pushed out his rival Su Shiyu (as recommendation). Saying something like there were no in-laws so that saved trouble, he was upright in conduct and gentle in nature, and just as well he didn’t have any wife or concubine. In the end, he even leisurely added one claim, saying that previously he saw the Loulan princess smile like the spring wind (T/N: flirtatiously) at Su Shiyu when she stepped off her palanquin.

Su Shiyu who had remained a calm and unrippled demeanour throughout finally turned his head to give Chu Mingyun an intense glance after hearing that last part.

After he hadn’t paid attention to how Su Shiyu managed to settle that affair,  he could only clearly remember that day after court Su Shiyu said something beyond the daily pleasantries to him for the first time after sharing the court for 5 years.

Su Shiyu smiled at him like the spring wind, and said two words that were unusually simple yet rich with implication:

”Ke ke.” (T/N: Laugh sound)

Thinking of this, Chu Mingyun coughed lightly, smiling as he said: “Master Su, at that time I was…”

Su Shiyu cast him a look.

Chu Mingyun: “……It’s nothing.”

Su Shiyu then laughed lightly, saying gently: Master Chu doesn’t need to brood over it, the princess is in fact not as wilful as the rumors claim.”

Chu Mingyun slightly lifted his brows, and didn’t continue that topic.

The first day back at court there wasn’t actually any duties to handle, Chu Mingyun walked out shoulder-to-shoulder. In the middle of idle chat there was suddenly the sound of running along the palace corridor from behind them, accompanied by crisp bell sounds approaching from a distance. They stopped talking and turned their heads to look, a sweet and graceful-looking young lady threw herself with arms wide open, grabbing hold of Su Shiyu’s arm, raising her head to reveal a charming smile, “Anyi’ruo!”

Chu Mingyun was stunned for a moment, he vaguely knew the meaning of this Loulan word, it was a respectful address for Elder Brother.

Su Shiyu smiled faintly looking at her, “Have you already paid respects to His Majesty?”

”Seen him already! He even said there’s nothing today, so you can go out with me to play!” Her Han language pronunciation showed a bit of strangeness, but it was sufficiently clear. Mulahe released Su Shiyu, turning a full circle where she stood, such that her smoke-purple skirts drifted up and bloomed outward, the silver bells around her wrists making crisp sounds, “Does it look good!”

Su Shiyu nodded in confirmation, Mulahe tilted her head and laughed, then after noticing Chu Mingyun those jade-like3 pupils lit up, “Pretty Gege, who are you?”

”Chu Mingyun.”

Mulahe nodded seriously, pausing for a bit, “Pretty Gege will also come play together ba?”

Chu Mingyun was unable to react for a moment, Su Shiyu explained: “She can’t remember Han people’s names.”

Chu Mingyun nodded disinterestedly, saying: “You just go together and that’s fine, I’m not……”

”It’s only fun when there are more people ah, you’re not allowed to not go!” Mulahe cut him off, grabbing one (person) in each hand.

A thinning sun hung high, the Chang’an capital market was bustling with activity. The voices of hawking vendors along the street raised in an attempt to smother each other.

There was an unending stream of pedestrians going to and fro; and they all could not help giving a few more glances towards one noodle stall. There, two handsome young masters were drinking tea in silence, opposite them sat a jade-eyed3 young lady from a foreign land, and was currently acting completely in contrast to her delicate and pretty appearance and eating large mouthfuls of noodles. There were already a few empty bowls stacked on the table.

Nearing the bottom of a bowl, Chu Mingyun saw that her momentum of (eating) like a gale scattering clouds2 was not slowing, and couldn’t help but say: “…… Just how long has it been since you last ate?”

”Ever since preparing to come to Chang’an I didn’t eat a proper meal, almost starving to death!” Mulahe took a break to reply.

”Why didn’t you eat?”

”Because I need to see Anyi’ruo ah, it’ll look nice if (I’m) slimmer.”

”Then why are you still eating so much right now?”

”Didn’t he already see me just now?” Mulahe said with a face as if this was completely matter-of-fact, turning her head and waving while saying: “I still want (more)!”

Chu Mingyun had no words to say to that, looking at the jubilantly smiling stall owner who immediately called out in response, he again moved his gaze back to Su Shiyu next to him.

Su Shiyu indifferently returned his gaze, “Does Master Chu also want to eat?”

”……Forget it.” Chu Mingyun faintly sighed, “I’m full just from watching.”

Su Shiyu laughed lowly, retrieving his gaze, and thought of the scene during the first time he met Mulahe.

That year once Chu Mingyun had spoken to that point in court, there was no way for Su Shiyu to get out of meeting the Loulan princess once. He pondered for a long time before picking up his qin to go for the date, originally intending to uncommunicatively play a few songs to perfunctorily get through the matter. But he didn’t think the other party knew a bit of Han language, and especially didn’t expect that when he pushed open the door he’d be greeted by a whip swung towards his face.

Su Shiyu turned his body to dodge, stopping the whip with his free hand. Not only did the other party not get mad but rather was elated; As she was making a fuss about ‘originally thought it’s a useless civil official didn’t expect they would know martial arts’, at the same time calling him to come sit down at the table.

After making contact Su Shiyu then realised, this Loulan princess was not actually wilful and brash in conduct like the rumors said, but rather had an overly straightforward personality developed from being overprotected since young.

By the time he’d taken a break from the song 《Spring on the Moonlit River》beneath his fingers, Mulahe had already cleanly poured out her personal troubles. She married out three times, the former two were powerful officials plotting to seize control of the country and hence forced the ruler to marry his beloved daughter below her station. She’d only crossed the threshold for less than two days before the other party started messing around with other women, and in a fit of anger she directly charged into the room, not sparing any strength in bringing down the whip, which then resulted in the ‘beat husband to the point of lying horizontally in the courtyard’ passed down in the rumors. However Mulahe unexpectedly realised she was helping her king father remove a great source of trouble, and hence was greatly encouraged. She decided that she’d marry the subjects who kept threatening her king father at every turn, and drive them to beg for mercy even at the cost of being demoted.

Su Shiyu was silent for a good while after hearing these words, and facing Mulahe whose had an expression seeking praise, muttered: “Your wish in marrying someone is only this?”

”That’s right, because they’re bad to my king father.” Mulahe said.

Su Shiyu laughed exasperatedly, “Since times of old, a lady marrying out is for the sake of staying together with the person they like.”

Mulahe tilted her head and thought a bit, “But I don’t have someone I like, but I have thought, in the future the person I really get married to must be a great hero unparalleled in martial arts.”

Su Shiyu understood, “No wonder you cracked the whip at me once you found out I was a civil official.”

Mulahe leaned on the table looking at the hand he’d laid on the qin, which had long and elegant fingers, “Your martial arts must be awesome, I really like you,” She paused, “But I don’t want to marry you at all.”

Su Shiyu couldn’t help but laugh lightly, “Why?”

“I think you definitely won’t like me,” She added, “You look like you don’t like anything no matter what it is.”

”How so?”

”You’re very good, but you feel like you’re very far away,” Mulahe stretched out her hand, her fingertips partitioned a bit of distance from Su Shiyu, as if obstructed by something, “You look, it’s just like a layer of fog, you’re sitting in front of me, talking gently, but I can’t feel your heart, your everything is faint, and separated off by fog, as if you might disappear after I blink.”

Su Shiyu smiled4, not replying.

Mulahe asked: “Do you know what the feeling of liking someone is like?”

Su Shiyu pondered it for a long while, and said calmly, “I’ve yet not had the chance to appreciate it.”

”I also don’t know what it’s like, but our Loulan has a metaphor, translated into Han language it says there are scorpions and spiders crawling over your heart, your heart tightens up, beating very fast and very painful, like you’re afraid, but also feel very happy.”

Perhaps Su Shiyu had been also been shaken by this description using scorpions and spiders, yet seeing Mulahe’s expression couldn’t bear to ruin her excitement, so after thinking doubtfully for a moment he said: “Our Han people also have a similar metaphor, but what it says is that there are ten thousand butterflies within your heart dancing in flight, the beating of their wings rousing the person’s heart into confusion.”

Mulahe nodded her head, half-comprehending and half-confused, pillowing her head on her arm to listen to him press the qin strings, the sounds of 《Guang Ling San》startling the candlewicks5.

When they parted that day Mulahe pulled at his sleeve and wouldn’t let go, making a fuss over and over: “I especially like you, but it’s not the type of like for my special person, so I can’t marry you, then can you become my Gege?”

At the end of it Su Shiyu helplessly6 looked at his sleeve that was about to tear, lightly sighed a breath of air and acquiesced.

”Anyi’ruo.” Mulahe had at some unknown point come up right next to him. Su Shiyu returned to himself, only then noticing she’d finished eating, while the Chu Mingyun who was previously sitting next to him was off nearby settling the bill.

”What is it?”

Mulahe lowered her voice and spoke in Loulan language: “I just remembered, isn’t he your enemy? Why are you still smiling and talking to him, is he forcing you? Do you want me to marry him and help you beat him to death?”

Su Shiyu choked on a mouthful of tea, coughing twice before he was able to let out a laugh, he glanced at Chu Mingyun, and also used Loulan language to reply: “He’s not any enemy, at most he’s considered a rival. Also, he’s a very important person to our country, he can’t die.”

”But, he’s important to the country, still why do you have be so nice to him?”

He could not reply.

By this time Chu Mingyun had turned and walked over, just meeting the gazes of the two people looking at himself, and finding it strange, “What are you both looking at me for?”

Su Shiyu calmed his state of mind, and smiled faintly, “Nothing much.”

The author has something to say:

Your (formal) good friend [Divine Gong Helper · Mulahe] has come online.

Also, I seriously could not search up Loulan language, that phrase [Anyi’ruo] is made up by me, please don’t take it for real _(:з」∠)_

1.Depending on what the timeframe of this novel is held in, this term would refer to very powerful rulers over vassal states with actual military might before 221 BCE. So this rite would refer to the 九锡 (Jiuxi – Nine bestowments) which as the name suggests is a very elaborate ceremony giving nine types of gift from carriage horses to fine robes, etc.

2. 风卷残云 – The use of it to describe voracious eating is a reference to the book 《发财秘诀·第九回》.

3. Okay. Okay, so the original term used here was 碧眸 . 碧眼 means ‘blue-eyed’, but the reason I have chosen to translate it as ‘jade-eyed’ is because Mulahe is implied to have dark green eyes in the first part. 碧 can refer to dark green jade. 眸 means pupil but it would be weird to say jade-pupiled so there you have it.

4. The phrase used here is a literary term for smiling – 莞尔

5. I don’t know this one, the original phrase is 广陵散音惊落灯花； 《广陵散》is a song, and the imagery of falling candlewicks has been used in a poem but what is the 惊 doing there…lol.

6. Usually when ‘resigned’ or ‘helpless’ is used to describe Su Shiyu the phrase 无奈 is used which implies a bit of impatience as well, but the one here is 无可奈何 – wherein you really have no other way, so he’s especially helpless here lol. Helpless Susu.