Chapter 36: Into the Painting

"You’ll know soon enough,” Kang Sheng said urgently, a hint of excitement in his voice. As Zhu Shu followed his instructions and dispelled the false guise, just as she finished, Kang Sheng suddenly spat a mouthful of blood onto a blank scroll. The vivid red splattered across the paper, blooming like crimson blossoms of the other shore. Zhu Shu cried out in alarm, but Kang Sheng’s eyes shone with dazzling brilliance, like the morning star in the dark sky, impossible to ignore.

From the scroll on his back came a tremor; Ming Yue swiftly caught and unfurled it.

Kang Sheng, slumped over the desk, wielded his wolf-hair brush, painting with the still-wet blood. With every stroke he made, the same mark appeared simultaneously on the scroll in Ming Yue’s hands. After a full half-hour, at last, a gentle, smiling beauty blossomed on the paper.

A woman of exquisite grace; the blood-red strokes were stunning. The extreme contrast created an overwhelming visual impact. Ming Yue stared, transfixed, at the scroll in her hands—not only she, but Qin Shi and Zhu Shu were equally dazed. Only Kang Sheng, whose mind remained clear, threw down his brush, seized Zhu Shu by the waist, and laughed aloud, joy bursting from within him. Since entering the Canglan Illusion, Ming Yue had never seen Kang Sheng wear such a satisfied and proud smile.

With the blood of my heart, I paint you into the scroll. In this life, to know you, to depend on you, is enough.

I engrave your countenance into my very bones; how could I ever forget? In the next life, I shall seek you again to resume our past fate—never forget, never regret.

Ming Yue saw Zhu Shu cling tightly to Kang Sheng’s neck, tears streaming ever more fiercely.

In Qin Shi’s hand, the soul lantern flared with green light. Ming Yue sighed softly and carefully rolled up the scroll in her hand.

Kang Sheng spoke again, “Zhu Shu, I am going to seek out a cultivation sect, to find a way to conceal your demonic aura. In this lifetime, I want us to be together. And in the next life, and the one after that, I want us to stay together.”

“…There’s no need. You don’t have to go—I’ll go,” Zhu Shu said, closing her eyes as if steeling herself, holding Kang Sheng even tighter.

“…All right, we’ll go together…” Kang Sheng said, but then slid straight down. Zhu Shu, feeling the slick blood on her hands, quickly helped him onto the couch. She fetched well water from the courtyard and, forcing herself to be patient, gently cleaned Kang Sheng’s wounds, washed away the blood, bandaged him, and dressed him in fresh clothes.

Half-conscious, Kang Sheng grasped Zhu Shu’s hand, confirming once more, “We … will go together, won’t we?”

“I’ll go, that’s enough. You must stay here and recover,” Zhu Shu tucked the covers around him, her voice gentler than ever before. “When I return, we’ll be together as we wish. But if you don’t take your medicine properly, I’ll leave on my own—do you understand?”

Kang Sheng nodded and drifted into sleep. Zhu Shu set two layers of concealment and protection barriers around the old house. At last, she gave one final look to Kang Sheng, now quietly sleeping, and departed.

Suddenly, a red thread slipped from the scroll in Ming Yue’s hand, twining itself into the shape of a heart. Ming Yue unrolled the scroll once more; beneath a shower of peach blossoms, the gentle woman was depicted in brilliant crimson. Ming Yue reached out to touch it—was it just her imagination, or did the figure seem faintly warm? Beside the woman, in the same red, was inscribed a line of verse:

There are limits to the ends of the earth.

With a low sigh, Ming Yue rolled up the scroll one final time. The familiar white mist began to swirl, and in that haze, Ming Yue seemed to hear a deep voice murmuring by her ear: “There are limits to the ends of the earth, but longing knows no bounds…”

When she opened her eyes again, Ming Yue did not look at Zhu Shu, but instead unfurled the scroll before Kang Sheng.

Zhu Shu was stunned, tears welling uncontrollably in her eyes. Kang Sheng, too, stood dumbfounded as he received the scroll from Ming Yue. Lowering his gaze, he stared at the beautiful woman in the painting. A tear slipped from his eye, falling onto the paper with a soft sound, blurring a pink petal. As if his vision were misted by tears, Kang Sheng repeatedly wiped at his eyes, confusion and bewilderment clouding his gaze.

At that moment, where the peach blossom petal blurred by Kang Sheng’s tear, a red vine suddenly sprang from the transparent wick of the soul lantern, blooming into a red lantern flower. Ming Yue took the flower from Qin Shi and swallowed it. To her surprise, it was sweet. For the first time, Ming Yue rushed forward to snatch back the scroll, but Qin Shi restrained her.

“My lady, what are you trying to do?”

Ming Yue was confused as well. “Qin Shi, this time it’s sweet. I’ve never tasted sweetness before.”

Qin Shi held her tightly, pressing her head to his shoulder and said softly, “That’s because, for Kang Sheng, this love was always sweet—a salvation. Naturally, it is sweet. In any case, their story is no longer something we can interfere with.”

Ming Yue stood dazed for a long moment before slowly nodding. By now, Kang Sheng had come to his senses. He put away the scroll, his gaze now utterly unfamiliar as he looked at Zhu Shu and the others, and suddenly asked, “May I ask what business you all have here?”

As he spoke, a figure rushed in from outside, dropping to his knees before Kang Sheng, clutching his leg and crying out, “Young master, how could you leave Little Bai behind on the road? Do you know how furious the master was? Little Bai and the others were punished nearly to death, wuwu… Young master, you can’t abandon us again!”

“I never asked you to follow me,” Kang Sheng replied coldly, kicking the youth away. But the youth scrambled back, weeping, “No, no, young master, your body is different—ordinary cures won’t work on you. What if you catch a chill on the journey? If you don’t want Little Bai to follow, there’s only one way.”

“You want me to order you to your death?”

At this, the youth howled even louder and shook his head desperately. “Ask the master to rescind his order!”

Kang Sheng raised an eyebrow, then said, with a glance at the youth’s hopeful eyes, “My brother’s will is never something I can change. You’d best go die quickly.”

Ming Yue was bewildered by the situation and glanced at Zhu Shu, only to see her equally baffled and surprised.

“Kang Sheng…” Zhu Shu called softly.

But instead, the youth clinging to Kang Sheng’s leg replied, “Miss, my young master’s surname is Tang, not Kang. He is the young master of the Tang Clan—Tang Li. That’s the ‘Li’ from ‘departed’. The clan leader Tang Yu is his elder brother. The young master used an alias to avoid using the Tang Clan’s influence, and along the way he drugged Little Bai and the other attendants. Look at you—look at what you’ve become! If the clan leader finds out, Little Bai’s skin will be forfeit. Young master, how heartless you are!”

As he spoke, the youth began to cry again. Kang Sheng—or rather, Tang Li—impatiently pinched his brow and kicked him out once more. Soon, a few more attendants entered, making the small old house feel quite crowded. Yet this noisy, bustling scene drove all color from Zhu Shu’s face. She gazed at Tang Li’s utterly unfamiliar expression, and at last, could no longer hold back her tears.

Disoriented, Zhu Shu made her way toward the door, only to have her wrist caught by Tang Li as he sat on the couch.

A glimmer of hope shone on Zhu Shu’s face, but she heard Tang Li say, “Thank you, miss, for your care these past days. Little Bai.”

The youth called Little Bai answered at once, hurrying over to hand Zhu Shu some silver. “Thank you for looking after my young master. Even though you’ve just made him worse, the clan leader said we must be polite to outsiders, so… thank you anyway.”

Zhu Shu shook free of Tang Li’s grip and, caring nothing for the silver in the youth’s hand, rushed out the door. Seeing this, Ming Yue stepped up to Little Bai, took the silver as payment for this transaction, and then hurried after Zhu Shu. Zhu Shu had not gone far—she sat by the river, her head buried in her knees. Ming Yue looked back. Through the bamboo, she could just make out Tang Li, supported by his attendants, packing up and leaving the old house.

“What will you do now?” she asked.

Zhu Shu shook her head. “What can I do? Things are as they are; I have no more hopes left…”

Ming Yue said nothing. Of course, if only they had waited a little longer at the start, Zhu Shu and Kang Sheng would never have come to this. Whose fault was it? Zhu Shu’s? Had she never had such thoughts, this ending would not have come. But what about herself? If she had not rushed to begin, perhaps things could have turned out differently as well… The taste of sweetness still lingered on her lips. Ming Yue thought, if none of this had happened, at least Zhu Shu and Kang Sheng could have been happy and content in this life.

Yet, as Jun Xiao said, there are not so many “ifs” in this world… Whoever caused such an end, it cannot be undone.

“What will you do now?” she asked.

Zhu Shu looked up, tears still shining in her eyes. “I promised Kang Sheng I would stay with him for three lifetimes.”

[Author’s Note]: Please collect, leave a comment, and support in any way you can!