Despite his busy schedule, Ning Yi, still came.
He should have been on his way to Luo County by this time. His Majesty did not order him to send the Xiliang envoy off, so it would not be good for him to appear in front of crowded places. Therefore, he could only hide in the street corner, and see them off with his silent presence.
Feng Zhi Wei nodded slightly in that direction, a faint smile on the corners of her lips, reflecting a sparkling and warm light in the daylight, like a transparent flower, blooming in the early summer’s gentle breeze.
The carriage curtain fell, and the envoy’s team of carriages drove away in a quiet and orderly manner. They will be meeting up with the deputy envoy and the officials of the Ministry of Rites. After performing a ceremony outside the city gates, they will head straight to the distant Xiliang.
Behind the rambling caravan, in the far distance, there suddenly came a long and distant sound of a flute.
The sound of the flute is clear, deep, warm, and slow. Although the tune was forlorn it wasn’t sorrowful or downcast, instead, it had a sense of transcendence and grandeur, causing all within earshot to feel a warmth and openness blossoming in their heart.
Inside the carriage, Feng Zhi Wei was traveling against the sound of the flute.
The bamboo curtains cut the sunlight and shadows into fragments, blurring her expression. She sank into the lonesome darkness, turning her face slightly.
Toward.
That silent street corner.
************************************
The early summer sun was strong and sharp, shining on the ground thirty feet in front of the imperial capital’s city gate. The rolling dust from the galloping horses rose up in the sunlight, submerging the tall and wide city walls in a swaying light of yellow mist.
The enormous Xiliang delegation, escorted by the officials led by the Seventh Prince, marched out of the imperial capital.
The envoy delegation, with Feng Zhi Wei, as the chief envoy, and two cabinet secretaries as deputy envoys, does seem to be on the rather simple side as far as a delegation goes. However, this identity as Wei Zhi, is known throughout the land, a rare true key official to an empire. Naturally, Wei Zhi is also the one all the other empires are the most interested in. It is said that His Highness, Da Yue’s Prince An had secretly offered a reward of one million dollars for his head. Even on account of just the chief envoy, this delegation is plenty impressive and gave enough face to Xilang. After all, this birthday celebration was just for Xilang’s regent.
When Feng Zhi Wei left the city, she did not look back at the Imperial Capital. The horse carriage rocked slightly and her expression was a little dazed. She suddenly remembered that year when she was sent to South Sea as an envoy, she also left from the Gate of Yongning. At that time, being filled with the excitement of leaving on a long journey, she jubilantly bid farewell to the Imperial Capital, thinking that once she was back she would be able to retire to the countryside with her mother and brother. However, by the time she returned, everything had changed.
Time rushes past like flowing water. The simplest sentence, but thinking of it now, it chilled one to the bone.
The convoy was not moving fast. Officials along the way would come to greet them. This was a rare opportunity to curry favor with the Marquis of Wei so all the officials along the way tried their best to leave a good impression on Feng Zhi Wei. On the first day of departure, they were delayed for two hours in Dongshi Couty on the outskirts of the capital. This meant they only traveled forty miles that day and stayed at the post station in Leping Town, Dongshi County.
Gu Zhi Xiao had been sitting obediently in Gu Nan Yi’s carriage, fiddling with her cage. Feng Zhi Wei hadn’t paid her any mind. However, after she finished dinner, and practiced martial arts for a while, she passed by the room Gu Zhi Xiao was staying by herself and saw the light was still on inside. After some thought, she decided to push the door open and go in.
Gu Zhi Xiao was sitting under the lamp with gritted teeth, busying herself with the cage. Her little hands were covered with small wounds from being poked by the bamboo strips. Two maids surrounded her, trying to gently convince her to stop. Judging by the way she ignored the maids, it looked like Gu Zhi Xiao had no plan of sleeping if she didn’t fix the cage that night.
Feng Zhi Wei waved her hand and the two maids left as if they had been acquitted.
Feng Zhi Wei watched silently for a while and realized that there seemed to be some other mechanisms hidden in the cage. Afraid Gu Zhi Xiao would accidentally set it off, Feng Zhi Wei squatted down and said, “I’ll help you fix it.”
Gu Zhi Xiao’s busy hands paused, without looking up, she said in a low voice, “You don’t know how, and neither do I. Ah Si said he won’t help me fix it, it caused trouble, can’t bear the consequences.”
Feng Zhi Wei knew that Ah Si was a subordinate of Zong Chen and Gu Nan Yi. He was originally responsible for collecting and passing information in Longnan. He ranked fourth. This organization of Zong Chen itself was extremely mysterious. All the subordinates had no names and were only referred to by code names. They rarely appeared around Feng Zhi Wei. If they were not Zong Chen’s most trusted subordinates, they would not know anything concerning Feng Zhi Wei’s identity. It was said that this person was extremely meticulous and dexterous, someone who was very capable. He had come up to the capital to report on some matters and had planned on going back to Longnana. It just happened that Feng Zhi Wei’s envoy assignment would take her past Longnan. Since this person was familiar with the roads and the southern customs, Zong Chen decided to have him accompany Feng Zhi and do her bidding.
“Who said I can’t.” Feng Zhi Wei smiled, took the cage, turned it over, and flicked the base with her fingers several times. With a “click” the bamboo strips on the top of the cage that were stretched open by Gu Nan Yi’s blow suddenly snapped closed.
Gu Zhi Xiao’s eyes lit up, grabbed the cage as she let out a cheer and carefully cradled the cage in her arms. Feng Zhi Wei smiled and stood up but someone suddenly grabbed the corner of her robe.
She looked down to see a pair of small but bright eyes, looking up at her with a strange expression. Seeing the questioning doubts in those eyes, Feng Zhi Wei smiled, and couldn’t help but caressed her head again. Gu Zhi Xiao turned her head a bit uncomfortably but didn’t avoid her hand completely, and only mumbled softly, “…during the day…Zhi Xiao didn’t know…”
Feng Zhi Wei was puzzled for a moment before realizing that this somewhat strange child was not expressing her gratitude but was explaining what happened during the day. The eyes staring at her seemed to be pretending to be indifferent but one could still see the slight nervousness in them.
The nervousness that comes from the yearning to be believed.
This too is a sensitive child.
Smiling with ease, Feng Zhi Wei simply sat down and gathered Gu Zhi Xiao into her arms. The child awkwardly twisted her body a little, hesitated for a while, then finally leaned against her.
Feng Zhi Wei sniffed her milk-scented hair, hugged her, and said slowly, “I know you didn’t know.”
Gu Zhi Xiao pouted, feeling aggrieved, she turned her head and said as she played with her buttons, “Daddy didn’t know.”
“Daddy knew too.” Feng Zhi Wei’s lips curled up in a smile, the expression in her eyes soft.
Gu Zhi Xiao looked up at her with suspicion in her eyes.
“Daddy didn’t want you to be so willful.” Feng Zhi Wei rocked her gently and said with a smile, “Zhi Xiao, for us women, it is difficult for us to live in this world. It is even harder to live in a world with many men. Look at me. I want to kill people, I want to set fires but I still have to be on guard against others from killing me and setting fire on what’s mine. Sometimes you meet a good person, you think he is a good person but he turns out to be a bad person. Sometimes you meet a bad person, you want to fight him to the end but then he gradually makes you feel a bit reluctant about fighting him. You think all you want to do is to stab with a white knife and pull out a red knife (a little Chinese saying about knife stabbing…not sure why we have such a saying…but we do), but things are never that simple. You see, how tiring and how complicated is this? How can one live willfully and recklessly? If you are willful, others might not oblige you, then what will you do then?”
Gu Zhi Xiao stared up at her with a tilted head and listened attentively, uncertain if she actually understood what she heard. After a bit, she grunted, “Daddy is not obedient either.”
“Your daddy has the most powerful martial arts in the world. Do you?” Exasperated and amused, Feng Zhi Wei ruffled the little girl’s hair, a bit at a loss by the little girl’s determination to blindly follow her daddy in everything. She started to wonder if she should ask Gu Nan Yi to give the child to her to raise. If she kept on following Gu Nan Yi, then there was a high chance that she would grow up to be a big weirdo.
All text copyright @ www.Ninja-Reflection.com
I have to agree with 阿梅’s comments… recently there‘s been so much heart-warming harmony between our two doveys … that doesn’t bode well.
Something ominous is on the horizon, or maybe it’s already there.
Seems the wisteria cakes were a shocking reminder to Zhiwei of her mother’s death… and of her promise regarding Dacheng.
She sat by the pond all night fighting a hard battle with herself… upon leaving in the morning convinced she’s seeing NY as a friend/beloved for the last time, inwardly saying him goodbye forever.
This time she is under no illusions as she was when she set off for South Sea.
She left the hint to the imperial temple for him. Ning Yi will surely find it.
This will probably drive him into a fierce battle with Shaoning.
But why did Ning Yi make the Wisteria dumplings? He is far too intelligent and knows Zhiwei too well not to consider the implications.
Did he want to wake up her memories? So that she could become her authentic self again, even if she’s going to fight him?
His flute playing gives a clue in this direction… „forlorn, but a sense of transcendence and grandeur“.
Well, enough of speculation.
Now I’m eager to see if it turns out that way. This author has often surprises in store.
And I really love her play with symbols – branches like fingers stretching in vain, the coldness of the moon and water at night, ZW sitting in lonesome darkness despite of sunlight… so poetic, and so delicately translated!
It’s like a sad music.
As always, thousand thanks, muchas gracias, merci mille fois, danke schön, xiéxié to you, Ninja!
I know how this all ends but I’m still scared of what is coming next. There was definitely a decision made by FZW. And there’s no way NY hasn’t figured that out. But still. The author have gave us the sweetest moments with the two. Which will only make what is inevitably to come that much more bitter. What a wonderful story. Thanks for translating Ninja!
So there really is bitter strife ahead!
Thinking about their relationship… Zhiwei is truly a hard cake. Accepting & enjoying Ning Yi’s care and affection without giving much in return.
Manchun wasn’t so wrong with her accusations.
Btw Manchun reminded me of an opera character: Líu the slave in “Turandot” by Puccini. She is in love with the male lead, but he has fallen for the princess, who tries to defeat him and have him executed.
Líu dies to make his victory possible, not without first prophesying to Turandot that she would love him too.
Zhiwei is a bit like Turandot: outwardly formidable and a strong fighter, but surprisingly vacillating on the inside. It’s because of her that the relationship is constantly on the edge – she doesn’t want him, but she doesn’t want to give him up either. She could avoid him, refuse to be with him, if she wanted to.
But then she’d have to renounce all the beautiful and exciting moments he gives her.
Ning Yi is quite an supernatural character, seeing through her thoughts but not being offended, determined but patient, assertive but considerate (to her), boundlessly willing to sacrifice but not possessive, sensually desirous but of rare self-control, arranging romantic/close situations for both in a way that she can pretend to be compelled. And all this without any experience with women, having been an asexual virgin before Zhiwei crossed his path …. good grief! 🤯
And now she’s going to drop him again because she suddenly remembered something important…
Ning Yi wins my sympathy award for now.