Volume Two: Bandits of This Place, Chapter 116: Composing at the Transcendence Terrace, Contemplating at Weinan Pass

The cicadas were yearning for the onset of autumn, hoping that the world’s earnest yearnings might finally find stillness in the sudden rain of the long pavilion.

It was like the white doves in a cathedral, watching the black crows beyond the wheat fields, throwing themselves into their embrace.

People say nobility cannot be stained by mud, so this could only be a fairy tale, existing on a few pages of white paper that no one cared for.

Alas, the white dove was not noble, yet the black crow was incredibly free.

...

A youth drove his carriage back, lost in melancholy on the road leading to the south. He remembered what had happened in the Eastern Territory.

"Didn't you make a bet with Cheng Yu? What did that man whisper in your ear to make the most talkative person in Sishan travel the whole way in such silence, tight-lipped like a stubborn oil jar?" Xu Yong urged the horses on. He was in a good mood and tapped Lin Changtian on the head with his whip as he asked.

Lin Changtian did not reply. He simply gazed toward the south, humming a little tune, appearing perfectly content.

"I’m talking to you, you rascal!" Xu Yong waved his hand before his eyes and brought the carriage to a halt, his face showing a hint of dissatisfaction.

"Tell me, what kind of person is Cheng Yu... I truly cannot fathom him." Lin Changtian remained dazed for a long while, only speaking after Xu Yong had nearly lost his patience.

Xu Yong stroked his chin, pondering for a long time before saying, "Actually, I haven't figured it out either. Just surviving in the Northern Territory is hard enough, let alone becoming a king or a hegemon."

"I made a bet with him. Well, the stakes are enormous." Lin Changtian gestured with his hands, encompassing the entire heavens and earth.

"What were they?"

Lin Changtian was not in a hurry to answer. He pointed at the dozing divine steed and laughed, "You have to make it run first, don't you? Returning home is the priority. Old Xu, whip that lazy beast a few more times."

Xu Yong curled his lip and lashed the horse’s rump hard. The animal, startled, went wild and surged forward with great speed.

"Cheng Yu is the maternal uncle of Lin Peiyou. I bet him on one thing: if that kid could leave the pass with the Sishan heavy cavalry, then he would have to listen to one request of mine. The consequence if he failed would be the same."

"He agreed?" Xu Yong stared, his eyes full of suspicion.

Lin Changtian nodded and smiled bitterly. "Not only did he agree, he even raised the stakes."

"Is it... that much of a child's game?"

"It is a bit absurd, which is why I said I can’t read the man." Lin Changtian spread his hands, looking quite helpless. "That fellow told me a long-forgotten story, and as the price, Sishan was placed on the betting table, and he even used himself as a chip."

Xu Yong tugged at his chin, looking startled. "A ruler of a territory, how can he be so childish? Besides, why should we stake a whole mountain, while he only needs to stake himself?"

"That guy is just like a child... and what’s even more outrageous is the story he told."

"Oh?"

Lin Changtian pointed toward the Western Territory of the North and said, "Do you know how Lin Yuan took Cheng Yu’s sister?"

"As an ancient, prestigious clan like theirs, it should have been... following the six rites of betrothal, the three teas, and the eight or nine counts, seeking both good omens and grandeur."

"No," Lin Changtian held up a finger, waving it before Xu Yong’s eyes for a long time before speaking slowly. "I heard that when Lin Yuan was young, he was wild, dressed in fine clothes and riding a spirited horse, living life with ease. Once, he made a bet with someone and entered the Eastern Territory alone. He happened to set eyes on Cheng Yu’s sister and seduced her away. When he returned, fearing the elders of the Lin and Cheng families would object, he simply consummated the marriage in the wilderness. After that passion, Lin Peiyou’s two elder brothers were conceived."

Xu Yong’s eyes widened suddenly. He pursed his lips, unable to suppress his curiosity. "The weather was so cold; it’s one thing that Lin Yuan had a strong constitution, but could the delicate lady of the Cheng clan endure it?"

"The arrow was on the string and had to be fired. You are still young and don't know the benefits of such things." Lin Changtian stroked an imaginary beard, feigning profundity. "That’s not the point; what follows is even more thrilling. It is said that when Lin Yuan seduced her, he was dressed like a poor boy. Later, when his identity was exposed, the girl went back to her maiden home in a huff."

"Ah? Why?"

Lin Changtian spread his hands to show he didn't know. "Perhaps that’s what she wanted—a poor boy. After all, Lin Yuan didn't have a good reputation; he was mocked as a heartless 'gun-puller.' When the girl returned, the Lin and Cheng clans had already made peace, negotiated the details, and opened the channels, just waiting to bring out the *Classic of Betrothal* to organize a grand ceremony. But then their own sister came home crying. Cheng Yu was very indignant, but he wasn't in power yet, and the troops under his command were mostly wild, self-trained men. Yet he couldn't swallow this insult. In the end, guess what he did?"

"He also went to the Western Territory alone?"

"You really are a clever one." Lin Changtian praised him sincerely, giving a thumbs-up before continuing. "Cheng Yu was a fierce one, too. He disguised himself as a noble young master and seduced Lin Yuan’s cousin back!"

Xu Yong was stunned. After a long while, he burst into laughter, shaking his head and waving his hand at Lin Changtian. "As expected of the seven great ancient clans; look at how shamelessly they act—it’s completely disregarding human ethics. Can’t compare, really can’t compare..."

"This isn't considered depraved. After all, they are members of a large clan with many people; it is not uncommon for one to marry their own cousin. So, the taboo against intermarriage doesn't really exist here."

"How did that matter end?" Xu Yong looked at Lin Changtian, his expression eager.

A squirrel storing grain peeked out, and a clever rabbit digging a hole stopped its work, both listening to Lin Changtian gossip about the past.

"How else? A child is born, it can't be without a father. Even if the girl was unwilling, the elders tied her up and sent her to the Lin clan. Lin Yuan was a man, too; a wanderer who became a domestic husband, spending the rest of his life with just that one woman and their three children."

After hearing the story, Xu Yong closed his eyes, a few traces of a smile on the corners of his mouth, looking quite... lecherous. One wondered whose fair maiden he was thinking of.

"Wipe the drool from the corner of your mouth; it’s almost staining us!" Lin Changtian shouted, leaping from the front carriage to the back.

Xu Yong felt a bit embarrassed and deliberately changed the subject. "What kind of stake did Cheng Yu bet with you? It’s not like it was Sishan’s Lin Changtian who ruined his sister..."

"But Lin Peiyou is in Sishan, and Cheng Yu loves his sister the most. He has no heirs of his own, so leaving this vast territory to other branches is not as good as keeping it to help his own nephew once."

Lin Changtian looked at Xu Yong, wiping the dirt off his clothes, and said irritably, "I think you’re also thinking of some girl in a boudoir, aren't you? It’s true, autumn has arrived; can spring be far behind?"

"You can even tell that? In the prime of youth, if one doesn't think of a few understanding girls, life would be too dull." Xu Yong gazed into the distance. The closer he got to Weinan Pass, the happier he felt.

Well, he wanted to be a gardener, planting a forest of 'pretentious trees' in that person's heart. But if he were to follow his true instincts, he would rather be a gynecologist for Gongsun Twelve.

"Don't you have anyone you're thinking of? That’s not like you." Xu Yong hummed a little tune, asking half-heartedly.

Lin Changtian’s expression froze. He frowned and said righteously, "A real man born in troubled times should carry a three-foot sword to achieve immortal merits! How could I put my heart into these matters between men and women? I feel nothing but pity and sorrow for those who waste their prime years on such things."

"Poetry and wine can be enjoyed together; the land of gentleness and the hero's dream do not actually conflict. So... you don't have anyone, right?" Xu Yong squinted, his expression one of sudden realization.

"I once had someone," Lin Changtian said, looking a bit dejected. His voice was like a mosquito's hum as he muttered, "It's just that her place was too far from the Northern Territory. I was... just too lazy to bother."

There was one thing he wanted to say but didn't dare: even if a drifting duckweed is reconnected, the mud it carries can never reach the high, distant clouds.

"‘Poetry and wine should be enjoyed in one's prime’—actually, there is a following line. The poem points it out, but since ancient times, people have always ended it there, leaving the meaning unfinished." Xu Yong looked at Lin Changtian and smiled.

Lin Changtian did not respond, staring at him longingly, hoping for a few words of comfort. Not to rekindle hope, but to let him give up completely.

Well, after all, the surname of that fair lady contained the character for 'fish,' so it was better to... disappear into the rivers and lakes, forgetting each other, rather than struggling together in the mud.

He had always been like this since he was a child, holding an unattainable attitude toward the beauty he encountered.

There was no help for it; who told him that he had lost his parents early, an orphan with no one to raise him, surviving only on the charity of heaven and earth?

Seeing that Lin Changtian was ignoring him, Xu Yong lost interest and started muttering to himself, "The poem has a line, ‘Waking from wine, I sigh.’ That man was just old. When his prime years passed, he wouldn't wallow in self-pity or regret his first half of life. Nor would he let this triviality dwell in his second half. Remember, do not ponder on your old country when facing an old friend!"

No one replied, but Xu Yong wasn't in a hurry. He continued to tease, "You rascal, it couldn't be a girl you met in the Central Plains, right? If I’m not mistaken, it must have something to do with Chen Mo."

"Well, nothing can be hidden from you. The woman... is named Yu Li, and she is from 'Yu' in the south of the Central Plains."

"'Yu'?"

Lin Changtian scratched his head, also finding it difficult. "Honestly, I don't know what that is. But she did me a huge favor; even this life of mine was only saved thanks to 'Yu'."

"Then isn't this the best of both worlds? She saved you, you marry her, and it can be considered giving yourself to her!" Xu Yong blinked, a thievish smile on his face.

"That seems to make some sense." Lin Changtian stroked his chin, seemingly moved by a 'twisted thought' he hadn't wanted to have.

So he looked at Xu Yong and said seriously, "There is one thing you must help me think about. Back when I was in the Central Plains, I hacked a madman named Lin Yuheng, but the guy was a bit thorny, and I was severely injured. While I was recuperating in bed, this girl grabbed the apple I had painstakingly peeled and ate it, and then told me to chase her! If it were any other time, she was definitely bullying me, but if I go by your logic... there must be more to it!"

"What kind of bull-logic is that? Isn't that just bullying?" Xu Yong frowned, looking a bit angry. "If she wanted to eat it, couldn't she peel it herself? Snatching food from a dog's mouth—she went too far!"

Lin Changtian nodded, but then felt something was wrong. He looked at Xu Yong suspiciously and said, "Didn't you say earlier that a youth should have a girl to think about? Why did you change your tune so quickly?"

"You misunderstood! I said to think about 'a few girls'—if one doesn't work out, just switch!" Xu Yong glanced several times, and seeing that Lin Changtian really hadn't realized he’d just insulted him, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked up with a smile.

Lin Changtian’s face fell again. The interest he had just mustered vanished, and he said sadly, "It seems that not only does that girl have no feelings for me, but she is also a domineering one who likes to bully the weak, especially a delicate, injured patient like me—a youth of such exceptional handsomeness."

Xu Yong really wanted to give him a mirror so he could get a good look at himself. But then, he thought that Lin Changtian had just suffered a heartbreak today, so the two of them hung their heads, each lost in their own heavy thoughts.

Words are heard by the wind, and one fears it has a long tongue, spreading the story everywhere.