Chapter 63

Chapter 63: The Sixty-Third Chapter

Across the street was his own residence; the doorman had already opened the side gate. Lian Cheng stepped through in one stride, then sprinted back to the Penglai Pavilion.

Huqiu immediately came up to ask why the young master was so late tonight and whether he had eaten. Only then did Lian Cheng remember he hadn't eaten all day. He clutched his stomach and said, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have remembered I hadn't had dinner yet. Go to the kitchen and bring me whatever soup or broth is available. I'll go check on the person next door first."

"No worries. Sixth Brother also just got back; he went out this evening too. If he gives you trouble, Master, you can give him trouble right back."

"..." Lian Cheng's eye twitched. He tightened his sleeves. "Who's afraid of him giving me trouble?"

Huqiu chuckled and said he was off to the kitchen.

Lian Cheng stood there for a moment, then headed toward Yiqiu anyway. The study had no lamp lit. He strode straight into the master bedroom, swaggering and confident. "Huqiu said you went out this evening. With such heavy rain, what were you doing?"

Lian Xiusheng had been full of displeasure, but upon hearing this question, all his anger vanished. He walked out from behind the screen and said his teacher had caught a cold, so he had gone to visit him. Seeing Lian Cheng's clothes soaked through, he asked what business had arisen at the yamen.

"The Emperor wanted to arrest Censor Song and his family. Meng Chong ordered me to take the men. Censor Song would rather die than yield, leaving his children behind in this bitter world. What a tragedy!"

Lian Xiusheng looked at his third brother for a while, then sat down at the table. "My teacher also spoke to me about this matter."

Lian Cheng leaned over the table, facing Lian Xiusheng. "What did he say to you?"

"My teacher only speculated that the Emperor might arrest Censor Song's family. How does the situation stand now?"

"Censor Song was upright; he and his wife both entered their coffins. Lou Lan went to beg the Emperor for a decree, which ordered the release of Censor Song's family. The Emperor is also deeply grieved by the loyal minister's death."

Lian Xiusheng frowned. "Changing decrees so capriciously is improper."

Lian Cheng was momentarily stunned, thinking the other was simultaneously right and wrong. "Is it proper to refuse to admit a mistake?"

Lian Xiusheng said lightly, "For a monarch, admitting a worthless mistake is itself another mistake."

Lian Cheng had nothing more to say to this ancient man. He waved his hand. "I won't argue with you, dear brother. I need to go have supper."

Watching his third brother leave so abruptly, Lian Xiusheng pursed his lips and called after him, "Third Brother, remember to change out of your wet clothes."

Lian Cheng wasn't stupid. Back in his room, he changed into a light silk garment and draped a white satin spring-swallow cloak over his shoulders. He had Tong Xue take two ten-tael silver ingots from the chest where they kept savings—twenty taels total—to send to the Song family tomorrow. Qiong Hua, who was holding Lian Cheng's discarded clothes, asked why they would send silver for no reason to the family across the street. Hadn't Censor Song impeached the young master just a month ago? Lian Cheng realized they didn't yet know that the Song household had turned upside down.

But Lian Cheng couldn't explain now. He changed the subject and asked whether Lian Xiusheng had really gone to visit his teacher this evening. Qiong Hua nodded. "He even brought tea leaves."

Tong Xue, however, ignored these small details. She only informed Lian Cheng, "Sixth Madam has been going out frequently lately. Should we inform Madam?"

"What is she up to again?" Lian Cheng walked to the table and took a sip of hot tea, feeling his body warm. "Mother should know. And Fourth Madam too—she must be clearer than we are about who and what comes and goes through the household gates every day. Keep an eye on her, but no need to interfere."

Tong Xue acknowledged and mentioned that the fourteenth of May was Yun Jieer's birthday. Lian Cheng asked what gifts had been given in previous years and said they would do the same this year.

"In previous years, our Penglai Pavilion didn't exchange gifts with other courtyards," Qiong Hua said.

Lian Cheng was silent for a moment, then said, "Pack a box of gold, silver, and pearls, find a good shop, and have a jeweled necklace made for her."

Qiong Hua was about to agree when Lian Cheng added, "Make another one in a young master's style as a spare. When Second Brother's son has a birthday in the future, we can use it directly, saving you the trouble of another trip."

"You've thought it through, Master," Tong Xue said. "Back when Second Brother's family of three still shared a courtyard with Second Madam, things were fine with the adults. But Second Madam only knows how to ask for things; if you don't agree, there's no further issue. But if anything is given to Rui Geer, even if it's just a bit of silver, it will be taken by Second Madam within three days." Even Tong Xue showed disdain when mentioning Wu Huajie.

Qiong Hua: "I heard that back when the Lian family was at its peak, I truly wonder why the Master brought her in. Was it because the chickens she raised were good?"

"Precisely because the family was at its peak. The nail that sticks out gets hammered; the shore that juts out is the first to be eroded by the current; those who excel above others are the first to be criticized." After saying this, Lian Cheng considered the present situation. He and Lian Xiusheng were equally outstanding, extraordinary, brilliant, and dashing—were they not also standing out and inviting trouble?

Telling Lian Xiusheng to restrain himself was something Lian Cheng had been doing all along, but whether it took effect was unknown. Lian Cheng could start with himself, but he couldn't resign. After thinking for half a second, he decided to find a way to put Lou Lan in the spotlight.

Alas, sipping his tea and listening to the rain, his little brother was still immature, forcing the elder brother to dull his shine.

Huqiu brought over a box of boiled dumplings and several small dishes of seasonal pickles. After eating, Lian Cheng hurriedly went to find Lian Xiusheng again and told him about his plan with Song Fangyu. Lian Xiusheng, holding a book, read a few more lines before coming up with an idea. "Let me introduce someone to Third Brother."

"Introduce who?"

Lian Cheng saw Lian Xiusheng had already put down his book and stood up, then called for Jin Cai to come in. "Go bring Wang San here."

Lian Cheng's eyelid twitched. "There's a curfew outside, are you crazy?"

"Third Brother's yamen is supposed to be hunting a wanted criminal, isn't it? Jin Cai can join in the fun."

Lian Cheng then realized Jin Cai was going to impersonate a Brocade Guard. He exclaimed, "No, no! They check the official identity token. What will you do then?"

"What identification token? My younger brother can produce one," Lian Xiusheng said lightly. "Third Brother, being pure invites slander. Don't think ill of me."

"How could I?" Lian Cheng swallowed. "I'm your brother."

Then he saw Jin Cai walk past the diamond-patterned window in front of the study, dressed in a blue-green embroidered uniform, wearing a round cap, and clad in a straw rain cape, looking exactly like a handsome young officer. Before Lian Cheng could marvel at Jin Cai's ability to transform himself, Man Cai walked in, bowed in greeting, and asked where Jin Cai was going. Lian Xiusheng had long stopped paying attention to these two; only Lian Cheng enjoyed such chaotic situations. Lian Cheng walked over and asked Man Cai in return, "Why don't you ask Jin Cai? Why come ask your master?"

Man Cai said, "We quarreled a few days ago, and we're not reconciled yet."

"Quarreled over what?"

"He wants to ask Fourth Madam to let me share a room with him, but I don't want to."

Lian Cheng was startled. "Weren't you originally living together?"

"We used to always live together, but two or three months ago, Jin Cai started getting too close, touching and kissing me. So I asked the master for permission and moved out of that room." Man Cai's face flushed red.

After hearing this, Lian Cheng's brain went blank. He turned back in disbelief to look at Lian Xiusheng. "You're not going to do anything about this?"

Lian Xiusheng said nothing. Lian Cheng then spoke seriously to Man Cai, "You just turned fifteen not long ago. You're still young, and you absolutely must not get tangled up with that scoundrel Jin Cai anymore. I'll have Tong Xue prepare a room for you in Penglai Pavilion. Pack your bedding and clothes and come stay here."

Man Cai looked gratefully at Lian Cheng but didn't immediately agree. Instead, he hesitated, saying he would be sixteen next year, seventeen in nominal age, and by rounding up, he was already of age (twenty).

Lian Xiusheng sat leisurely in his chair, saying calmly, "One is willing to be hit, the other is willing to hit—they're a perfect match. Third Brother should worry about them less and worry about me more."

Lian Cheng pretended not to hear and continued telling Man Cai to protect himself well and not engage in that sort of intimacy until he was older.

Man Cai quickly denied everything. "No, no! That old scoundrel Jin Cai would love to, but I won't go along with it!"

Lian Cheng knew this was classic flirtatious bickering and, like Lian Xiusheng, ignored Man Cai. Man Cai wandered around the room for a bit, found nothing to do, and left. Lian Cheng watched Lian Xiusheng still absorbed in his book at the table, then quietly slipped behind the screen, sat on the bed, took off his shoes, quietly pulled open the covers, and crawled in. As he lay down, he let out a silent sigh of relief—the Commissioner had had a totally exhausting day.

After not hearing any human sounds for a long time, Lian Xiusheng finally looked up from his book. Seeing the room empty, he assumed his third brother had left and lowered his head to read again.

A moment later, Lian Xiusheng suddenly heard a startled cry from behind the screen. His body moved before his mind; by the time he reacted, his hand had already drawn his sword from under the table. He rose from his chair, walked around to the screen, and saw a person lying on his own bed—his third brother. He breathed a sigh of relief and put the sword back.

Knowing his third brother was on his cot, Lian Xiusheng stopped reading. He sat on the edge of the bed, first tucked the blanket tightly around his brother, then thought better of it, lifted the corner, pulled out his brother's hand, and held it.

After holding it for a while, Lian Cheng cried out softly again, saying there was a ghost, a ghost in the tree.

Lian Xiusheng guessed it was the sal tree visible through the window. The sal tree was a sacred Buddhist tree, governing reincarnation. All the suffering people of the world could go beneath it and beseech it; if sincere, it would answer. That was what the books said, but he had never gone to beg it. Yet another incarnation of himself, for some reason, had prayed to it. Lian Xiusheng didn't know whether the sal tree had answered.

As the tree's shadow swayed, footsteps sounded. Lian Xiusheng called out, "Third Brother," but the other didn't wake. He paused, then shook the man awake.

-

Lian Cheng was dragged up and made to sit on the arhat couch. He sat cross-legged, leaning against the hanging screen by the window, eyes unfocused, watching Jin Cai lead in a burly man. Unlike Ji Xing's flabby fat, this man, though also large-framed, was clearly a martial artist: strong and solid, with a murderous glint in his eyes. After locking eyes with him, Lian Cheng's drowsiness fled a few degrees.

"Your humble servant Wang San, originally from Dian Prefecture. Over twenty years ago, I came to the auxiliary capital as a peddler. I got into a quarrel with a regular customer and was framed for stealing his belongings. Fortunately, the crown prince happened to be on a southern tour, thoroughly investigated the case, and spared me from calamity. After that, I followed the crown prince to the Divine Capital and entered his personal guard. Later, the crown prince died of illness. The new emperor made no arrangements for us. We waited in vain for three years, until the new emperor dismissed the crown prince's personal guard and sent us back to our hometowns. Though full of doubts—Great Yao had never done such a thing—we dared not question it. So we packed our bedding and luggage, bid farewell to our friends, and set off on the road home."

"However, on the way back to our hometown, we were ambushed and killed over and over. Out of three hundred brothers, only thirty-odd survived. If these thirty-odd brothers weren't exceptionally skilled, how could they have kept their lives?!"

Lian Cheng was now completely awake. He moved forward, frowning, and asked, "What happened afterward? And why are you now working for my sixth brother?"

"We managed to survive by hiding and fleeing for a few years before someone found us and gave us a place to stay. Only later did we learn that it was the Sixth Brother of the Lian family who had asked Lian Pu for help to find us. So we changed our names and have been helping the Sixth Brother manage his outside business ever since."

Lian Cheng was silent for a moment. He thought, although Lian Xiusheng’s moves were subtle and hidden, Lian Pu's influence should not be underestimated. This timid, obedient father of his actually had considerable guts behind the scenes!

While Lian Cheng was lost in thought, Wang San was secretly observing him.

Before coming, Jin Cai had told him that the person he was about to meet was the third brother of Lian Xiusheng. "The Master's heart is cold; he only warms up when he's with the Third Brother. You must treat him with great care and not be negligent. If you neglect him and make the Master unhappy, don't say I didn't warn you."

Wang San's first meeting with Lian Xiusheng was when Lian Xiusheng was not yet ten. He had a refined and handsome appearance, spoke with a scholarly air, and at that time, Lian Pu cared about nothing, only saying, that he had committed a heavenly sin. The arrangements for the brothers were all handled by Lian Xiusheng, then just a boy of ten or so. To everyone's surprise, Lian Xiusheng arranged everything quickly and well. But the good days didn't last long; among the thirty-odd brothers, five or six began to have treacherous thoughts and wanted to go to the new emperor to expose them.

Those men were captured by Wang San and brought before the Sixth Brother of the Lian family. The Sixth Brother put down his book, drew his blade, and without a word, raised it and slashed down hard. The first man's head hit the ground.

At that time, Wang San thought this was just making an example of one man to warn the rest, and the rest would be spared. However, although sweat beaded on his forehead, the Sixth Brother insisted on beheading them all. In the end, the bodies were mutilated beyond recognition and exchanged for a few death row prisoners that the Sixth Brother wanted. Truly, their value was exploited to the limit.

After Wang San had disposed of this matter, he had nightmares for a whole month. In his dreams, the Sixth Brother's handsome face was like a mask hanging in front of him, not quite fitting. When he reached out to lift it, beneath the smiling countenance was a green face with fangs.

But most of the time, the Sixth Brother was exceptionally kind. The brothers initially were grateful for the Sixth Brother's life-saving kindness, but now they love and respect him as they once loved and respected the late Crown Prince. Whether he is a merciful Bodhisattva or a grim reaper, these brothers remain loyal to him.

Today was the first time the Sixth Brother had brought him to meet someone. It was not to introduce new brothers, nor some official or merchant, but his own beloved third brother.

Meeting a family member was not surprising, but the Sixth Brother had never been close to his family. When Wang San heard about it from Jin Cai, he was both surprised and curious. After seeing the actual person, he was stunned by the jade-like beauty before him. With eyebrows like distant mountains, eyes like autumn waves, and a simple soft robe that seemed to cover warm jade, the man illuminated the entire room. Even at a single glance, his extraordinary radiance was evident, yet he had no trace of pretense or coquettishness. He was truly pure and elegant, as if the Goddess of Mercy had taken human form.

At that moment, Lian Xiusheng gave a soft cough, snapping Wang San back to reality. He quickly lowered his head and dared not look around the room anymore.

After a long while, he heard the man seated above ask, "For today's task, has Jin Cai informed you?"

Wang San said he already knew.

Lian Cheng was worried about their safety, but Jin Cai said it was no concern. "The Third Brother need not worry. When we brothers do something less than honorable, we all wear clay masks. Whether seen from afar or up close, nothing can be discerned. After the job is done, we wash our faces, and even if someone searches high and low, they won't find us."

"That's good." Lian Cheng felt slightly relieved. He then told Wang San all the messages he needed to convey. Wang San received the orders and was led out by Jin Cai. Once the two were out of sight, Lian Cheng dropped all pretenses, lazily leaning on the small table, yawning, and asked Lian Xiusheng what time it was.

"It is already the fourth watch (the wee hours). Third Brother, would you like to sleep?" Lian Xiusheng asked.

Lian Cheng shook his head, then nodded. His eyes seemed misty. "Aren't you sleepy?"

Lian Xiusheng, who naturally slept little, said, "Third Brother can sleep for two hours. After dawn, you can get up and wash. The matter with the Song family will have to wait until daybreak to settle. And that imperial decree of favor must be proclaimed when the largest crowd is gathered."

Lian Cheng sat motionless, quietly looking at Lian Xiusheng for a while. He recalled what Wang San had said earlier, and suspicion arose in his heart. Could Lian Xiusheng's inability to sleep be because, from childhood to adulthood, he had been living on a knife's edge? He carried too many burdens, thought too much, and was like walking a tightrope; one misstep could lead to many people losing their heads.

Lian Cheng even thought that the Lian Xiusheng recorded in the book, who eventually killed this one and that one, committing every evil, where the state is chaos, the ruler no ruler, and the ministers no ministers, might have been driven mad by this torment.

It cannot go on like this. He must sleep, at least eight hours a day.

Lian Cheng took a deep breath, mustered all his strength, stepped off the arhat bed, and stood beside Lian Xiusheng. He bent down, as if to lift the other man horizontally.

But even using all his might, Lian Cheng could not lift Lian Xiusheng off the ground. He could only make embarrassing grunting noises—what a joke! He practiced swordsmanship daily, and his martial arts were unparalleled and full of potential. How could he not even lift his own younger brother!

"What does Third Brother intend?" Lian Xiusheng remained as steady as a mountain, watching the loose collar of his third brother, the fragrance within slipping out.

"I want to rest with the Sixth Brother," Lian Cheng said, supporting himself on the square table, thinking he had wanted to show off his brotherly strength but ended up in such an awkward situation.

Lian Xiusheng looked at his third brother, listened to his explanation, and smiled slightly. He said, "Third Brother, why didn't you say so earlier? Serving an elder brother is the younger brother's duty." With that, he put down the book, stood up, bent down, and effortlessly lifted the unsuspecting third brother horizontally into his arms, walking toward the bed behind the screen.