Chapter 287: Honest and Breathing

~~~

Lu Mei’s face is one of intense concentration as she studies the battlefield. This arena is new and strange to her, and already, she is starting to fall behind. She could blame her lack of familiarity for her performance, but such excuses will not soothe her ego. Her next move needs to be flawless.

Her dice fly.

Double sixes greet her.

A triumphant smile blossoms on her face as she moves her piece. Liu Jin pretends not to notice the way she used wind to manipulate the dice roll, as is his duty. Feng Zhuo does the same. No matter how often she has cheated, her older brother merely watches with an unfailing smile.

“Well?” Lu Mei asks, her golden eyes challenging him with their intensity.

Resigned, Liu Jin grabs the top card from the pile and reads it.

“You are courting death,” he says in a dull monotone. “Your rapid growth has angered Young Master Han. You cannot be allowed to live. Your meridians have been destroyed. You must re-enter the cycle of reincarnation.”

Lu Mei closes her eyes gracefully. Her hand barely trembles as she moves her piece back to the beginning. She even manages a smile as she passes her turn, though said smile looks dangerously stiff.

Feng Zhuo rolls next.

A mere two greets him, mollifying Lu Mei somewhat. Far from looking disappointed, Feng Zhuo happily advances his piece two squares.

Liu Jin grabs the next card.

“You help an orphan girl and discover she has the Miraculous Five-Veined Trait. A calamitous beauty is added to your harem. Dual cultivation fortifies your body, and many children are born to your line. Advance eleven paces and draw five reward cards.”

“Who wrote this game!” Lu Mei says, her thin veneer of patience finally cracking. 

“The Leaf Game is an ancient and honored game,” Feng Zhuo says, not even slightly bothered by Lu Mei’s outburst as he moves his piece. If anything, he looks happy to have the opportunity to explain. “Granted, certain adjustments have been made over the centuries. There are also several regional variants. This is one of the tamer ones.”

Liu Jin raises an eyebrow. So far, Lu Mei has been killed twice, tortured once, and has had her cultivation destroyed seven times. Feng Zhuo’s episodes, though luckier for his piece, tend to involve the slaughter of entire clans or the gaining of beautiful women with far more detail than necessary. Sometimes both. 

Often both.

“This is one of the tamer ones?”

“Naturally,” Feng Zhuo replies with complete seriousness. “I would be a poor brother if I exposed my sister to bad influences. In particular, my uncle created a variant that is highly complicated and not fitting for anyone’s eyes or ears. I love him, but his mind is such a dangerous place, brother-in-law.”

The image of Lord Feng Gui’s smiling face flashes through Liu Jin’s mind.

“I can imagine that,” Liu Jin says flatly.

“Who cares what is in that man’s mind?” Lu Mei says. She points a finger at Feng Zhuo. “How are you doing this? It makes no sense!”

Even though Lu Mei is cheating at every turn, she has yet to win a single game against Feng Zhuo. Whenever she gains the slightest lead, Feng Zhuo stumbles upon good fortune and reaps even greater rewards. The difference in results is overwhelming.

And yet, as far as Lu Mei and Liu Jin can tell, Feng Zhuo has not been cheating at all.

“It makes no sense, you say?” Feng Zhuo echoes, placing a hand over his heart. “Dearest sister, it is the most natural thing. As the older brother, it is my duty and privilege to be an insurmountable obstacle in your path, an exemplary example of perfection for you to aspire to. Feng Zhi might have thoroughly failed or perhaps succeeded too quickly, but do not worry, sister. Your dearest brother has learned from his dearest cousin’s follies.”

Liu Jin feels momentary pity for Feng Zhi. The worst part is that Feng Zhuo is speaking so cheerfully that it is clear he is not trying to insult his younger cousin.

“Now!” Feng Zhuo smiles as he brings his hands together. “I do believe this game is nearly won. Is it okay if I claim my reward early? Or do you wish to continue?”

Lu Mei glares sullenly at the board and then at Liu Jin, as if blaming him for not cheating in her favor. While he considered doing it, Liu Jin is nearly certain that Feng Zhuo would not be as willing to overlook his cheating as he is with Lu Mei’s.

“Fine,” Lu Mei says, inching away from the board as though it were a filthy thing. “What was it we wagered this time? I cannot seem to remember.”

“An embarrassing memory,” Feng Zhuo says, his smile growing wider with anticipation. “Go on, dearest sister. Share it.”

“Must I, brother?” Lu Mei asks, somehow managing to look modest and vulnerable. “We have only just met. Your sister does not want to lower your opinion of her.”

“Ah, to think my sister is already trying to take advantage of my affection! I am so proud of you,” Feng Zhuo says. “However, your brother is not a man who shows mercy when he is winning.”

The look on Lu Mei’s face is immediately replaced by dark annoyance.

“Fine,” she says. ”As you might know, the Red Sky Pavilion is fond of music and the arts.”

“Their performances are lovely,” Feng Zhuo says, nodding. This only serves to make Lu Mei’s dour look even dourer.

“My mother thought it was important for a proper lady to excel at all things relevant,” Lu Mei says. “That is to say, all the things a lady of the Red Sky Pavilion is expected to know. From the moment I could understand words, my mother instructed me in the manipulation of wind, the use of flying items, and the making of medicine. Naturally, someone with my ancestry was also expected to excel in the performative arts.”

Feng Zhuo lets out a soft ‘Ho’ of interest. Even Liu Jin can tell where this is going.

“However, though this little miss has been abundantly blessed in a great many things, such as beauty that makes most women curse their ugliness and talent that makes most feel inadequate, my younger self was not particularly skilled in the arts of dance and singing,” Lu Mei says with such humility that Liu Jin starts to see how she and Feng Zhuo are related. “If I have to be harsh on myself, I would say my ability was acceptable.”

“Oh dear,” Feng Zhuo says, immediately understanding the damning praise. “And the granddaughter of two Elders, no less!”

Lu Mei nods somberly. “I cannot say I was a wanted child, but my status was too great to ignore. Elder Zhao had no choice but to give me a leading role in the children’s performance of The Swordsman and the River Maiden. He risked offending too many people otherwise. However, because he could not stand anything less than perfection, he and my mother constantly made me practice those damned songs and dances.” She covers her face with her hands. “Do you have any idea how it feels like to keep making mistakes in front of the rest of the cast? It was so embarrassing!”

“Oh, my pitiful sister! My heart grieves for you,” Feng Zhuo says, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I wish I could say I know how you feel, but even if you had won, your dearest brother has no shames or failures to share with you. You can say I’m quite shameless.”

Even if she had won. Liu Jin resists the urge to shake his head at the absurdity of it.

A victory for a question. Those are the rules Lu Mei and Feng Zhuo agreed upon. The one who wins the game gets to ask a question, which must be answered truthfully. Then, they choose another game, and the process is repeated. 

However, Liu Jin has already realized there is no way Feng Zhuo can lose, and Feng Zhuo probably knew that from the beginning. Lu Mei has not been able to ask a single question from him so far. The only things they know about him are information he has freely shared.

This cannot be explained with simple luck, yet Liu Jin does not think he can call it cheating.

Xun Huwen’s face flashes through Liu Jin’s mind.

Feng Zhuo’s existence… His ability to impose his will on fate itself… It might just be that it is unimaginably heavy.

Liu Jin looks at Feng Zhuo carefully, but his other senses are turned inward. His soul. His Qi. His dao. If he put them on a scale against Feng Zhuo’s, could he make his luck trump his? Is it even possible to do such a thing?

Feng Zhuo notices his stare and smiles winningly.

“I really do not like you,” Lu Mei grouses.

Feng Zhuo laughs.

“That must mean I am doing a fantastic job as an older brother!”

~~~

Night falls over the Storm Dragon Palace.

The bodies of those who died during the civil war have already been burned. There is nothing left around the palace but empty plains with scarce vegetation. In a way, the Storm Dragon Palace looks almost completely removed from the country it governs.

Something moves in this empty scenery.

The signs are small. The nearly inaudible crunching of grass. The slightest imprints on the dirt. The bugs that suddenly crawl away, and the lone bird that takes flight in a hurry. No one looking from afar would notice their approach. 

Suddenly, they stop. 

Nothing has changed. The scenery remains the same. There is no one around them, no reason they should hesitate.

Terror grips their hearts.

The emotional response goes beyond mere logic. This is the result of centuries of experience sublimated in a single moment. Their bodies are moving before their minds have finished processing the information. Stealth is discarded. Caution is abandoned. They have to run!

Light flickers.

It is nothing more than the smallest of embers, little more than fireflies in the night.

They burn.

One by one, their bodies are incinerated. It happens so quickly they do not even have time to scream. It is doubtful they even realized they were being killed. The ashes of their corpses fall and are scattered to the winds. No trace is left behind. No evidence of the deed.

Feng Zhuo dusts off his hands.

“How curious. I did not expect my brother-in-law to spend his nights like this.”

Feng Zhuo’s body goes still. Slowly, very slowly, his head turns to the side, and he finds a small white snake staring at him. 

The red eyes are unmistakable.

“Your Majesty,” Feng Zhuo says. “I see you are skilled in the use of soul fragments and quite adept at hiding their presence.”

“Your Majesty? You will not call me brother-in-law now?”

“I am shameless, Your Majesty,” Feng Zhuo says with a small smile, one quite unlike the ones he has used so far. “If I called you brother-in-law under these circumstances, I do not think I’d be able to remain shameless.”

Liu Jin blinks at the odd phrasing but does not let himself be distracted.

“Who were those people you killed?” He says.

“Killed?” Feng Zhuo asks, cocking his head to the side. “Who is to say those were people? I never quite got a good look at them. They startled me, you see. They could have been bugs. I see no evidence to the contrary.”

The white snake hisses at him. “Must you be difficult?”

“I find it is often the easiest path,” Feng Zhuo replies with utmost seriousness. “Speaking of things that are difficult, I wonder if Your Majesty is skilled enough to instantly send the memories of your soul fragments to your real body. If you are not, well, soul fragments can be so very frail.”

“I would advise against testing any such frailty. Otherwise, I might have to perform similar tests on your bones, Feng Zhuo.”

Feng Zhuo nearly grimaces. It is not Liu Jin or Lu Mei who spoke. Rather, the air shimmers to reveal the form of Big Sister Bai. Now that she is no longer traveling incognito, she is dressed not in rags but in the blue and white robes of Divine Frozen Palace. Her face remains hidden by a veil, but her robes are not nearly as modest as those of Lady Dai Jie. They do not leave much of her white skin exposed, but they are thin and cling to her body in a way that makes the beauty of her figure obvious. Her hair is long and black, tied in a simple ponytail that reaches to the back of her knees. 

“I see I have been outthought,” Feng Zhuo says, bringing his palms together in a clap. “Impressive. Very impressive. How long have you been in contact?”

“Emperor Qing Jin sent a soul fragment to find me the moment he received word of your visit,” Big Sister Bai says. “What a pity it took so long to reach me. I’d have already dragged you out of the palace otherwise.”

“That would have been very rude of you,” Feng Zhuo notes. He points at her with one hand and at himself with the other one. “You might be the representative of the Divine Frozen Palace in this country, but I do have cause to be here.”

“Murderous cause, it seems,” Big Sister Bai says, looking at the hands with which Feng Zhuo had just killed many.

“Brother-in-law,” Liu Jin says, “Were the people you killed assassins?”

Something shines in Feng Zhuo’s eyes, but he hides it quickly.

“Assassins? That is such an old-fashioned thing, Your Majesty. I have no idea what you could be talking about.”

Feng Zhuo laughs at the idea, but something changes in Big Sister Bai’s posture. 

“Could it be?” She asks, grasping the meaning behind Liu Jin’s question.  “Did you come here to stop those assassins? Why would you…”

She stops herself from speaking as the answer reveals itself to her. As the representative of the Divine Frozen Palace, it is not a question she can voice. In a situation like this, it would do more harm than good.

Liu Jin has no such issues.

“Were they assassins sent by Lady Feng to kill Lu Mei?”

The night is suddenly colder.

“Your Majesty,” Feng Zhuo says, putting on a large smile. “My mother would never do such a thing. She is the very soul of courtesy. Why, when I was a child, I remember her thanking a servant for no reason whatsoever. I cannot recall any other such incident, but that must surely be because my mind is overwhelmed by their frequency.” 

It all makes sense now.

Perhaps Lady Feng acted with premeditation. Perhaps she sent the assassins in a fit of anger. Regardless, Feng Zhuo knew this would happen and could not allow it to succeed. Such a thing would completely sour relations between the Storm Dragon Empire and the Eternal Flame Clan. The reason why most of the activities he suggested required leaving the palace was most likely to decrease the odds of anyone noticing the assassins before he disposed of them.

“I begin to understand,” Liu Jin says. 

“Despite how he looks and acts, he is quite cunning,” Big Sister Bai says. “You’d do well to remember it.”

“He is right here, and he takes offense to the way in which you phrase it,” Feng Zhuo says, folding his hands behind his back. “I did not lie when I said I was happy to have a sister. There just happened to be several other reasons behind my visit, which I will neither mention nor acknowledge. And if you ask, I will lie shamelessly about them.”

“You see?” Big Sister Bai says, gesturing at Feng Zhuo. “He lies as easily as he breathes! Did you know he was one of the representatives of the Eternal Flame Clan in the Storm Dragon Empire when Lord Feng Shang’s policies’ controlled your country?”

“Now, you are just trying to make me look bad.”

“You have succeeded at that far beyond anything I could accomplish,” Big Sister Bai replies.

“Alas, I am too gifted,” Feng Zhuo says, sighing. 

His behavior is nothing but theater, an act designed to make him approachable. Even though Liu Jin and Lu Mei knew they were dealing with a cultivator in the Fifth Level of the Heaven Realm, the greatest prodigy of his generation, they never once felt intimidated by Feng Zhuo. It had been easy to allow themselves to talk and laugh with the man. That is dangerous, exceedingly dangerous.

And yet, that does not mean there had not been any truth to his performance.

“Big Sister Bai, could you please give us a moment?” Liu Jin asks her. Big Sister Bai gives a sharp look at his soul fragment. An instant later, she disappears. Most likely, she is still watching from a distance. That is fine.

All that matters is that Feng Zhuo is no longer speaking in front of a representative of the Divine Frozen Palace.

“There should be no issue speaking freely now, should there?” Liu Jin asks.

“Should you have done that?” Feng Zhuo asks him, rubbing his chin as he looks at him. “Surely, being alone with someone like me is a big risk.”

“The authority of the Storm Dragon can extend beyond the physical boundaries of the palace. The Grand Storm that once surrounded it is an example of this,” Liu Jin says. “I am inside that boundary. You are not.”

Feng Zhuo smiles.

A single step. That is all that separates Feng Zhuo from the boundary of the Storm Dragon Palace. Was it luck, or had he known? General Nie Dan’s being away is another thing that worked in Feng Zhuo’s favor. As someone who had dealt with Feng Zhuo before, General Nie Dan would have been able to handle him better. Had Feng Zhuo planned it so his visit would coincide with his absence?

Or is this simply the result of what Feng Zhuo has cultivated?

Either way, there is only one path forward.

“Step inside,” Liu Jin says.

Feng Zhuo’s eyebrows rise in surprise. Liu Jin thinks it might just be the first real expression he has seen on the prodigy’s face all night. 

After a few seconds of consideration, Feng Zhuo takes the single step separating him from the Storm Dragon’s domain. Not content with that, he puts both his knees on the ground and rests his open palms on them.

“Were assassins sent after Lu Mei’s mother?” Liu Jin asks.

Feng Zhuo shrugs. “I know nothing of such things. However, if I knew, I would not care. If you are worried about my sister’s mental state, I do not think hypothetical assassins would be of any threat to the security around the Red Sky Pavilion. If any such assassins had been sent, not that they have, they would have never succeeded. Of course, if any had been sent, it’d have been as a warning only. I cannot speak on the efficiency of future hypothetical incidents.”

Liu Jin shakes his head. “I thought you’d allow yourself to speak plainly.”

“I am being as plain as I can,” Feng Zhuo says. “You should already understand that, Your Majesty.”

There is no circumstance in which Feng Zhuo will ever admit his mother was involved. 

“Can Lu Mei and I expect any more hypothetical assassins?”

“I very much doubt it.”

“I see.” Liu Jin is relieved. Even if they never succeed, he does not want to be put in a situation where he has to follow this issue. Whatever type of problem Lady Feng represents, Liu Jin would prefer dealing with her when he has more power at his disposal. “Would you be leaving now?”

“Why would I do that?”

Liu Jin stares at him.

“I was not lying when I said I wanted to spend time with my sister, brother-in-law,” Feng Zhuo tells him seriously. 

“I have already sent memories of this conversation to my main body,” Liu Jin says. “She already knows you knew there was going to be an attempt on her life and said nothing.”

“I have admitted no such thing, Your Majesty,” Feng Zhuo says. “Besides, the older brother is often hated. I will just have to buy her love.”

“Don’t you mean earn?”

“With money, jewels, and clothes, yes.”

Lu Mei is undoubtedly going to thoroughly take advantage of that. As far as punishments go, it is the least they can do.

“There is also one more thing…”

Liu Jin blinks as Feng Zhuo suddenly speaks. The look on his face is almost sheepish.

“I spoke with Uncle Feng Gui before coming here,” Feng Zhuo says. “He gave me a message for you. I just decided not to mention it until now, so I’d have a reason to stay even if you wanted me to leave. Please! Don’t look at me like that! It is nothing bad! After all, Your Majesty plans to attend the Crimson Cloud Tournament, right?”

Feng Zhuo grins and pats his chest.

“There is a tournament winner right here!”

~~~

Mini-Character List:

Liu Jin: Our protagonist. Feeling pity for Feng Zhi.

Lu Mei: Liu Jin’s girlfriend. Does not enjoy games she cannot win.

Feng Zhuo: Lu Mei’s half-brother. Lord Feng Shang’s son. Tries hard to remain shameless.

Bai Wen: Disciple of the Divine Frozen Palace. Will break bones if needed.

AN

Fun fact: Board games seem to have been a thing in ancient China. Granted, probably not like this, though that'd have been funnier.