Volume One: The Youngest of the Three Hundred. Chapter Eighty-Eight: The End.
Chen Chang'an furtively pulled Su Wanqing close, pressed his mouth to her ear, and asked in a cautious whisper, “Second Sister, what does my brother-in-law want with me?”
To be honest, he had always felt that Su Dingfeng was a little unhinged, so he wanted to find out in advance and be prepared. Better safe than sorry.
Su Wanqing shook her head. “I don’t know. He’s looking for you, and seemed to be in quite a hurry. He nearly charged straight into the Wuyi Guard earlier, and only Father and Mother together managed to stop him. He’s still throwing a fit in the courtyard right now.”
“Uh...”
The more Chen Chang'an heard, the more uneasy he felt. He held the concealed dagger in front of him and pushed Second Sister Su Wanqing inward with him.
“Oh, Chang'an, you’re finally back!”
The moment he crossed the threshold, sharp-eyed Su Dingfeng rushed at him with open arms, not giving him the slightest chance to dodge, and clamped him in a bear hug.
“Quick, quick, come in. I’ve got something to tell you. Something that concerns the survival of the ages!”
Chen Chang'an: “...”
“Good! Good! Good! Silence means yes!” Su Dingfeng turned the embrace into a drag, grabbing Chen Chang'an by the sleeve and hauling him into the room with a hint of brute-force inevitability.
Chen Chang'an: “...”
Su Qingtang, Su Wanqing, Su Wanqiu, Qin Fuluo, and Zhu Jiawen stood in the courtyard staring at one another, at a loss for words. After a good ten or so seconds, the family head, Su Qingtang, waved a hand.
“Fine, fine. Fuluo, take the two girls and get dinner started.”
“Jiawen, go back to your studies.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Yes, Father-in-law!”
They answered one by one. Su Qingtang sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“We really ought to send Dingfeng back to Bashan as soon as possible. It’s not healthy for him to keep staying at home like this.”
Half an hour later, dinner was ready. Because the weather was hot and the summer heat oppressive, the family planned to eat in the courtyard. Su Qingtang instructed the maid beside him, Green Pearl, “Bring some food in for Chang'an and Dingfeng.”
“Yes, sir!”
Green Pearl curtseyed, then fetched a red-lacquered wooden tray, arranged portions of each dish upon it, and carried it toward Su Dingfeng’s room.
“I really can’t make sense of it. What on earth is big brother trying to do?”
Su Wanqing poked at the chicken wing in her bowl and muttered. Then she recalled the scene from before, when Chen Chang'an and Su Dingfeng had stripped naked while investigating Xu Hezi’s residence and ended up on top of each other in a very indecent way. Her pretty face twitched.
“They... they wouldn’t be... doing that right now, would they?”
“Debauchery... utter debauchery!”
Su Qingtang shot her a glare. “Qing’er, what did you say?”
Su Wanqing shook her head and swallowed hastily, nearly choking. “N-nothing. Nothing at all!”
Up ahead, Green Pearl reached the door and knocked softly.
“First Young Master, I’ve brought your meal!”
No answer.
“First Young Master, dinner is here!” Green Pearl knocked again.
Still nothing.
At the table, Su Wanqing muttered, “Excessive indulgence can kill a man.”
Su Qingtang gave the order. “Go in directly.”
Green Pearl nodded. “Yes, sir!”
As she spoke, she supported the whole weight of the tray with her left hand and was just about to push the door with her right when Su Dingfeng shot out from inside like a streak of white light, rode his sword into the sky, and cried out at the top of his lungs:
“For eight hundred autumns I’ve walked the path of enlightenment,
And never once taken a head with a flying blade!”
“The jade emperor’s decree has not yet descended from heaven,
So I wander with black iron through the mortal world!”
His voice faded as his figure vanished into the distance, soaring away.
Chen Chang'an stepped out of the room afterward, shook his head, and smiled wryly.
“Could we please recite poetry in the proper order?”
Su Qingtang and the others came to their senses and hurried over, surrounding him in an instant.
“What... what exactly happened?”
Chen Chang'an yawned, exhausted. “Nothing much. My brother-in-law said next month is the Bashan Sword Sect’s grand sword assembly, and he wanted me to write a few lines of poetry to present to Master Zhen Ziping.”
“Oh?”
Su Qingtang raised an eyebrow. “What did you write?”
Chen Chang'an lifted his chin, clasped his hands behind his back, and began reciting with great feeling:
“For eight hundred autumns I’ve walked the path of enlightenment,
And never once taken a head with a flying blade.
The Jade Emperor’s heavenly edict has yet to arrive,
So I still wander the mortal world with black iron in hand.”
“What... what!”
The porcelain bowl in Zhu Jiawen’s hand slipped and crashed to the ground.
“What a bold, carefree artistic conception... what an unbounded, transcendent freedom that looks down upon all ages. To cultivate to this level... why would one ever bother studying?”
It was as though a bolt of lightning had struck the depths of Su Qingtang’s spirit. His mind buzzed.
“For eight hundred autumns... never once taken a head with a flying blade...”
“Eight hundred autumns... take a head...”
“Sir, what are you muttering about? The food’s going cold!” Qin Fuluo, who had no understanding of a man’s romantic world, tugged at his sleeve.
Su Qingtang waved a big hand. “No... bring me my iron sword. I’m going to practice swordplay. If one can cultivate to this point, what is the use of eating?”
Qin Fuluo: “...”
Su Wanqing: “...”
Su Wanqiu: “...”
The three women simultaneously turned their resentful, almost poisonous gazes toward the culprit, Chen Chang'an. What was this nonsense? One sentence, and he had driven all three men in the household mad.
Chen Chang'an lowered his head, avoiding their eyes, and mumbled under his breath, “Why are you staring at me like that? This has nothing to do with me.”
That night, Su Dingfeng did not return until dawn. Zhu Jiawen sat in the courtyard repeating over and over, “For eight hundred autumns I’ve walked the path of enlightenment, and never once taken a head with a flying blade,” and no amount of threatening from his wife, Su Wanqing, not even the promise of a washboard punishment, could stop him.
As for Su Qingtang, he spent the entire night hacking and slashing away with his sword.
The next day, Chen Chang'an arrived early at the Wuyi Guard training grounds, picked a few tasks at random from the newly issued Starry List, and set off on Pang Wanli’s little horse.
At this point, eight days remained of the fifteen-day third examination and trial.
But when the final five days came around, he simply went on strike, pulled over a small bamboo stool, hugged a watermelon, and sat before the Starry List watching the other members rush about with complete leisure.
That kind of behavior was infuriating. They were all members of the Wuyi Guard, so why were they working themselves to death on a variety of missions to earn stars while he sat there enjoying life like some superior officer?
So they all ran to the tent where Liu Zhuan was stationed, intending to file complaints and expose him. But when they saw Chen Chang'an’s star total in the ledger was 3,663, with second place, Song Jiu, trailing far behind at 2,023, they were instantly stunned into silence.
Fine. He’s exceptional. I’m not worthy. Back to work.
Every time Song Jiu returned from a mission, drenched in sweat, the first thing he did was go find Liu Zhuan to check the gap between his own star total and Chen Chang'an’s. Each time, he discovered the difference had only grown larger, especially after that fellow started sitting around eating watermelon. It was absurd beyond belief.
“Surname Chen, I’ll definitely surpass you!”
Gritting his teeth, Song Jiu made a fierce vow, not even allowing himself time for a sip of water before taking down a new token and setting off again.
“Alas!”
Chen Chang'an sighed and said with heartfelt feeling, “This is a very unfair and very real-life version of the tortoise and the hare.”
“Go on, little turtle!”
He was utterly unconcerned and not the least bit afraid of being overtaken. There was no helping it: no matter how many iron tokens he took out on missions, anything he happened to solve along the way would become a new entry on the Starry List the next day.
With such heaven-defying luck, no one could possibly beat him, unless... one’s father happened to be Wang You, the chief commander of the Wuyi Guard.
So he simply lounged until the final day of the trial and examination.
At the Wuyi Guard training grounds, under clear skies and gentle weather, all the new members stood in neat rows. At the front, Cao Wu announced in a clear voice, “At last, your fifteen-day third examination and trial has ended, and the results have been calculated.”
“As previously stated, the top three hundred this time will receive the qualification to join the Wuyi Guard and become official members.”
“Now, I will announce the first-place winner: Chen Chang'an, with a total star value of 3,663!”
“What? First place is Chen Chang'an? Did I hear that wrong? That Chen Chang'an who didn’t take another mission in the last several days and spent all day sitting beside the Starry List?”
“His results were already good in the first two examinations, but this is a bit outrageous, isn’t it? He managed to eat melon all the way to first place!”
“So impressive!”
“...”
“...”
The members talked over one another in a rising buzz of astonishment.
Cao Wu cast them a sidelong glance, then tapped the table before her.
“Be quiet. If anyone doubts the result, you may verify it with Lord Liu Zhuan later.”
“Next, second place: Song Jiu, with a total star value of 2,500.”
“Third place: Ruan Jingchu, with 2,300 stars!”
“Fourth place...”
“Fifth place...”
“...”
“Thirteenth place, due to special circumstances, is temporarily Ye Lin!”
“Fourteenth place...”
“...”
“Three hundredth place, Wang Dali. That concludes the rankings. The top three hundred remain; everyone else may return on your own.”
“The gates of the Wuyi Guard will always be open. You may try again next year!”
The scene erupted at once into laughter, cheer, sighs, and groans. Joy and sorrow mingled all around. Those who had failed the competition looked dazed and desolate as they surveyed the surroundings, memorizing every blade of grass, every brick and tile, every trace of the place they had once come to, then turned and left with lingering regret.
Once the atmosphere had naturally settled, Cao Wu instructed, “New members, men to the right, women to the left. Come forward in two lines to receive your official badges, your issued Taian blades, and the keys to your residence.”
“We provide food and lodging. By regulation, four people share one room. Of course, you may also choose to rent somewhere outside, though I should remind you that housing prices in Chang'an City are quite steep.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the three hundred newcomers split into two orderly lines according to gender. Chen Chang'an, however, stood still and slightly lifted onto his toes, making no move at all.
A joke. He was a native of Chang'an City. Why would he stay inside the Wuyi Guard and crowd a bedboard with three roommates? Wasn’t sleeping at home much nicer? And he had a sweet little wife waiting there too.
Just as he was basking in smug satisfaction, Cao Wu added, “Chen Chang'an is a bit special. Though he is male, he is under my command. For ease of management, he will temporarily live with the female members.”
“Damn!”
The moment he heard that, Chen Chang'an instantly discarded his proud posture as if he were a man with a house on the Third Ring Road in the northern capital. He sprinted toward the girls gathered on the left.
No regrets in this life for entering the Wuyi Guard!
After receiving the key to room one in Building A, Chen Chang'an learned through inquiries that his three roommates were Ruan Jingchu, Wen Jin, and a woman he had never met before, Dong Xinlan.
He shamelessly leaned over with a grin and greeted them, teeth flashing.
“Ladies, let’s go back and rest. From now on we’re roommates, so please take good care of me.”
Ruan Jingchu said nothing.
Wen Jin’s lovely face was flushed pink.
As for Dong Xinlan, the woman he had just met, she gave a cool, indifferent nod as her answer.
This scene caught the attention of the other male members not far away, and they could not have been more envious. They wondered what earth-shaking feat this fellow had accomplished in a past life to have every good thing fall into his lap.
Living with three peerlessly beautiful women, and then looking at themselves: a bunch of men scratching their feet, a bunch of men picking their noses, men upon men upon men...
Heaven was unfair!
Noticing the envious looks they sent his way, Chen Chang'an deliberately straightened his back and raised his voice.
“Ladies, let’s go back and rest...”
“Cough, cough.”
Halfway through, he was interrupted by Cao Wu, who had walked over from the side and gave a couple of light coughs.
Sister Cao, could you please time your entrances a little better next time? Chen Chang'an grumbled to himself, then smiled brightly on the surface.
“Greetings, Deputy Commander Cao!”
“Greetings, Commander Cao Wu!” Wen Jin, Dong Xinlan, and Ruan Jingchu also offered their salutations.
“Mm.”
Cao Wu nodded, then looked at Chen Chang'an and spoke evenly, “You are now a true member of the Wuyi Guard. Would you be willing to handle something?”
“Uh...”
Chen Chang'an, who had not even officially started work or collected his pay, immediately felt a lazy, shirking spirit rise within him. He was a hundred times unwilling. But since Cao Wu had come to him personally, what else could he say?
So he asked, “What is it, Deputy Commander Cao?”
Cao Wu said each word distinctly:
“Ye Lin is missing. Find him and bring him back.”