Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 110: Paper Patches

The fifteenth night was approaching, and the bright moon shone like a plate. The night sky was devoid of any dark clouds, adorned only by twinkling stars.

Su Si stood on the rooftop of the Sun Mansion, letting the breeze brush past him.

In his arms, he held Lord Bai, who was drifting in and out of sleep while gazing blankly at the sky. Even in this moment of distraction, Su Si retained his casual and carefree nature, not forgetting to bring along some melon seeds and sweet fruits from inside the house to snack on. After a while, he began to playfully tap Lord Bai’s mouth, annoying the latter to the point where it almost twisted Su Si’s wrist hard enough to draw blood.

As he was halfway through his snacks, there was a swift sound of someone approaching, and another person leaped onto the roof.

Yan Qing carried two jars of wine and sat down beside Su Si. He still radiated the warmth of having just finished martial arts training, making him seem especially intense.

“Your qinggong has improved,” Su Si commented as he took one of the wine jars and broke the seal. “Is this actually wine? I thought you hated such things?”

“Seeing you look so troubled,” Yan Qing wrinkled his nose in the aroma of alcohol, “I specifically got the mild wine that servants drink. It won’t cause any harm.”

Su Si merely snorted before taking a few big gulps. The two sat in silence for a while.

“We used to stargaze like this, and I taught you how to navigate by the stars in the mountains.” Su Si sighed after some time. “Since childhood, you’ve been so naive. I felt I had to protect you. But looking now, San Zi, you’ve become tougher than me.”

Yan Qing remained silent.

“I always enjoyed being tough on others, while you, you’re tough on yourself. In just a few months, you’ve trained relentlessly, matching my martial arts skills.”

“The sword is good, and so is the manual,” Yan Qing replied honestly. “Moreover, martial arts skills deteriorate with laziness. You, A’Si, are reluctant to practice, whereas I, pursuing you, have to be faster.”

Su Si threatened to hit him with the wine jar jokingly. “Are you trying to be sarcastic? You’re the fortunate one, with that demonic master-disciple duo watching over you. You can live a peaceful life as a servant, and yet you train till you’re half-dead every day. For whom?”

“I need to be worthy of this sword and Abbot Juefei’s care.”

“He’s dead; he’s not watching anymore,” Su Si murmured.

“What did you just say?”

Su Si feigned a yawn. “Nothing. I’ve seen many people from the martial world. Those from the Taiheng Sect live well and are naive. I met that red-eyed relative of yours recently. Even the Patriarch of the Ling Sect cares about not harming the innocent. It sounds laughable.”

After speaking, he drank half the jar of wine in one go, letting out a big sigh.

Su Si’s tone was deliberately scornful, making one feel uneasy. However, Yan Qing turned to him, only concern evident in his expression. “Feeling this down?”

“Me? Feeling down?”

This time, Su Si’s sarcasm was self-directed.

“Our sect leader may be cruel, but he saves people when necessary. Senior Yin is cold and indifferent, yet his heart is not entirely dark. As for you, a rare paragon of virtue, risking your life to practice martial arts for the sake of a deceased monk. All good people, very good people. If someone’s feeling down, it’s not heartless me.”

“You’re not malicious either…”

Su Si didn’t look at Yan Qing. “Do you know how many I’ve killed during my time with the Chigou Sect?”

Yan Qing responded indirectly, “I remember the rules of Chigou Sect’s Red Scorpion Feet were strict; they wouldn’t take on innocent targets.”

“Whether those I killed deserved it or not is one thing. Whether the killer cares is another. Yan Zheng… Yu Zheng, that young man, killed his enemy who murdered his parents, and it weighed on his heart for years. When I killed, I felt exhilarated, and I didn’t think much of it afterward.”

Su Si emptied the wine jar; his eyes were slightly red. The tear mole under his eye looked particularly dark in the night, like the deepest dot of ink.

“Previously, I followed you, thinking you were my brother, and protecting you was a righteous deed. With the demonic sect chasing us, I fled honorably and uprightly. Now you don’t need my protection, and those chasing me are gone, so… what can I use to continue pretending to be an honorable person?”

Yan Qing remained silent.

Su Si tightened his grip on the goose demon in his arms, causing Lord Bai to flap its wings madly, trying to escape. Su Si pretended not to notice and held it even tighter. “I can deceive the world, but not my own thoughts. If I force myself to act, I’ll be the first to feel disgusted.”

[I killed someone when I was nine!]

The echo of his own voice rang in Su Si’s ears. At such a young age, he knew how to provoke Matron Wuxue with this fact. The moment he spoke those words, he wasn’t boasting; he even sounded proud.

That was the first time Su Si witnessed a person’s last breath.

Back then, he was known as “Su Sigou”. Su Si had managed to kill a wild boar to feed Yan Qing, who was starving. However, after hearing some sage-like books, Yan Qing, filled with misguided filial piety, gave all the meat to his drunken father.

Then Yan Qing was beaten half to death by his inebriated father. The reason was absurd as usual: his father felt the meat was too little, not enough to accompany his drink, and he couldn’t enjoy himself. If it weren’t for Su Si saving Yan Qing in time, the Sword of Compassion would probably have no successor.

After treating the almost skeletal Yan Qing, Su Si, in anger, went to the Yan’s yard to confront Yan Qing’s father.

[I want to take him away.] Su Si bravely confronted the tall Yan Ziren. [If it weren’t for me, he’d have died because of your negligence. Even the lame have hands and feet. How can you make a child take care of you all the time? You shameless lazy dog!]

[Who is this, if not the unsold brat from the Su family?]

Yan Ziren, completely drunk, looked down on the nine-year-old Su Si.

[Being my son is a great honor. He should care for me in my old age. Unfilial piety is a great sin. My son isn’t ungrateful and unruly like you…]

[Take him away? With what right? I’m still alive. Ask him if he’s willing to go with you. He’ll cry and come back to serve me… I don’t know who he takes after, hiccup, probably his stupid mother.]

Yan Ziren, belching with alcohol, tried to push Su Si out. Su Si dodged, causing the drunk Yan Ziren to stumble and hit his head on the threshold, creating a gaping wound that bled profusely on his head.

Realizing his injury, Yan Ziren sobbed for help. This wasn’t the first time Su Si saw such blood, having hunted animals before. But witnessing a person injured like this was a first for him.

He was neither afraid nor panicked; he just watched the blood pool grow. Regaining his senses, he moved to the door.

[Yes, yes!] Yan Ziren thought Su Si was going to get help. [Quick… call someone! Where is that stupid bastard Yang Qing?]

But instead, Su Si locked the door. Leaning against it, he stared at Yan Ziren lying at the entrance.

A passerby outside, hearing Yan Ziren’s screams, knocked on the door. [What’s going on?]

Mimicking Yan Qing’s voice, Su Si replied, [Sorry, my father’s just drunk and acting up.]

The person outside muttered and left.

Yan Ziren, losing strength, tried cursing and pleading. But Su Si just smiled. With the reflection of the blood around, his innocent face seemed eerier.

[Uncle Yan, I will take him away,] Su Si cheerfully declared. [We’ll leave this village and never return.]

[You… you’re murdering me… I won’t spare you, even as a ghost… You’ll never sleep in peace…]

[So what? I’m not afraid of you. You’re useless alive, relying on your son, and useless dead.]

Su Si smiled even more brilliantly.

[Uncle Yan, I’m very happy.]

Looking back now, it was surprising that he was so naive and couldn’t differentiate between right and wrong back then. Yet, he had the audacity to tell Yan Qing about his ridiculous ambition of “wanting to become a hero”. He had never revealed this to Yan Qing. Now that all the people from Xizhuang were dead, Yan Qing would never know the truth.

Now, he was even sitting beside him, drinking.

Su Si placed the empty wine jug from his embrace down, without looking at Yan Qing. Even when reminiscing about the past at Huilian Mountain, this scene wasn’t among those memories.

He had never regretted it, and even now, he felt exhilarated.

“If I had died in the North back then, maybe it would have been a blessing in disguise,” Su Si murmured softly. “At least you could still consider me a hero.”

Suddenly, Yan Qing put down his wine jug and took something out of his pocket. “Give me your hand.”

Without much thought, Su Si extended his hand and felt a cold touch. On closer inspection, he broke into a cold sweat, and whatever intoxication he had vanished instantly.

It was the ghost coin that Yan Qing’s father had left behind. Yan Qing had taken good care of it, making it shine brilliantly, and even tied a red ribbon to it.

“…What do you mean by this?”

“It’s a gift for you.” Yan Qing smiled. “If you decide to leave someday, you’re not the type to say goodbye properly. We’re as close as family. You should have something to remember me by.”

With that, Yan Qing picked up the Sword of Compassion beside him. A cheap longevity lock hung where the sword pendant should be, looking out of place. It was unmistakably the one Su Si had bought from the market before they got separated.

Back when Xizhuang was attacked, in his desperation, Su Si had exchanged it for the ghost coin to warn Yan Qing. Unexpectedly, after the chaos in Yuanxian Village, Yan Qing had kept it safe all this time.

Su Si quickly looked away. “It was this trinket that caused our separation in the first place. Aren’t you superstitious?”

Yan Qing just smiled and didn’t respond.

“Fine. If you really want to gift something, let’s buy something else tomorrow. Using this ghost coin as a keepsake doesn’t feel right.” The ghost coin was Yan Qing’s father’s possession, and Su Si felt uneasy about it.

“This coin wards off evil spirits. It suits your butcher knife perfectly,” Yan Qing chuckled. “This is the most valuable thing I own.”

“It’s your father’s.”

“It’s mine,” Yan Qing replied calmly.

“I don’t want it.” Su Si tried to return it, but Yan Qing swiftly grabbed his wrist.

“By now, even someone as dull as me can see the limitations of pure-hearted individuals. If not for A’Si taking me away back then, I might have either died due to my father’s abuse or killed him first and then myself. I’m not as carefree as A’Si, so I have limited choices.”

Su Si was frozen.

“A’Si is different from me, but I think you’re more extraordinary. I don’t harm others because I can’t bear the guilt and regret afterwards. It would be immensely painful. A’Si has no such concerns, yet he chooses the righteous path. Isn’t that even more admirable?”

“…That’s a twisted way to see things,” Su Si whispered.

Ignoring him, Yan Qing continued, “In the future, when you hold this ghost coin, consider it a promise from me. Even if the whole world doesn’t believe you, I will. And if you ever hurt me, I won’t blame you.”

Su Si almost blurted out, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?”, but then realized he couldn’t even utter the words. This person truly targeted his vulnerability. For a moment, he thought Yan Qing knew everything.

Su Si swiftly retracted his hand, clutching the silver coin tightly. “Alright, it does match my butcher knife.”

For some reason, the bloody taste that was stuck in his throat suddenly disappeared. Wasn’t it just the Kushan Sect? If he wanted to leave, he would. If he wanted to stay, he would. Who needed others’ approval?

Seeing Su Si’s smirk, Yan Qing’s expression brightened a bit. He opened his own wine jar and poured half of it into Su Si’s jar. “We’ve known each other since we were kids. If our bond loses to the Sect Master and Senior Yin, it would be quite a shame.”

Su Si: “…”

Su Si: “You think their bond is one of ‘friendship and companionship’?”

Yan Qing, still immersed in his feelings, said, “Yes, they eat and sleep together, as close as brothers. It’s wonderful.”

Su Si silently drank his wine and casually stroked the goose beside him. He must be overthinking; how could Yan Qing have such intricate thoughts? It would probably take Sect Master Shi and Senior Yin getting married in front of him for Yan Qing to realize something was off.

With such an oblivious guy around, he was somewhat worried. Maybe it was better to keep him here for now.

At this moment, Sect Master Shi wasn’t wearing wedding clothes. He was alone in his room, flipping through books related to Sun Wang. As a descendant of Sun Wang, every room in the Sun residence was filled with his biographies from various versions and eras. Shi Jingzhi casually picked up the oldest and rarest version, “The Biography of Sun Wang”, and waited for someone while reading.

He didn’t have much connection with Sun Huaijin, so it was better to leave this matter to “Su Zhi”. Since the secret was exposed, there was no need to hide anymore. No matter how awkward, they would have to sleep together tonight.

The biography was filled with boring praises and battle records. After reading a small portion, Shi Jingzhi yawned deeply. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest and spat out a mouthful of blood.

He coughed up more blood than before. The cloth couldn’t absorb it all, and a large amount of blood soaked the book pages.

…This is an antique!

Sect Master Shi instantly woke up. He quickly got out of bed, diluted the blood with clear tea, and dried the pages by candlelight. As the pages dried, Shi Jingzhi’s brows furrowed—

Someone had tampered with this book. Specific words were altered with thin “paper patches”. Once wet, the obscured words faintly showed through.

This book initially got the date wrong of “The Battle of Shafu” before the founding of the nation—earlier by a month than what Shi Jingzhi remembered.

Shi Jingzhi had heard of this version in the “The Biography of Sun Wang”. It was a print from the founding era using a standard printing plate, so there shouldn’t be any errors. This version was limited in number, but was the date mistake so significant that they had to use precious “paper patches” to correct it?

After pondering, Shi Jingzhi wrapped up the dull book and put it in his luggage.

He would say some good words tomorrow and ask for this book.

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