Seventy-sixth Question and Answer

Yunqing once again took up residence in Longing Study. With her mastery of magic, cleaning the courtyard was no longer a chore. Yet returning here, though the scenery and objects remained unchanged, she herself was no longer the same. The neighbor's old matron who once scolded her so bitterly had passed away half a year ago, and as for the others—there was nothing left to say. Even her own appearance was now different, was it not?

Things endure, but people change. These four simple words, when spoken aloud, carried a profound sadness. Yunqing lay on her bed, unable to keep her mind from replaying scenes from the past within these walls: her first awakening to the sight of the old matron, the first glimpse of Qin Shi lying outside the door, the first time she sheltered that drunken woman... Yunqing smiled, realizing she had never even learned the name of the first guest drawn by her Longing Incense. Perhaps the quality of her incense was lacking after all.

Chu Xuan, Wen Yan, Wang Huan, Yi Yanzhi, Yi Zihan... One by one, the faces drifted through her mind, finally settling on that blue-clad figure, Qin Shi. Yunqing turned and lay on her back, lifting her sleeve to cover her eyes, but still, the tears soaked through the fabric. She could not help but wonder: if she had always remained as Mingyue, would she be spared these present sorrows? If she, like Chuxue, had her memories erased, would she be able to forget her hatred for Feiling? Even if she could truly forget, how could she bear it when those memories returned?

She and Chuxue, in the end, were not the same.

Drying her tears, Yunqing pushed these thoughts aside for now and resumed her endless attempts at making rouge, despite all her past failures. Unbeknownst to her, at that very moment, a figure hovered quietly in the sky, gazing down at her small courtyard. Suddenly, another figure approached and said, "Ninth Brother, didn’t you have a soul lamp?"

"That was in the past; it’s already been taken. As for where it is now, you might ask Weihang and the others. I had them keep an eye on it, but whether they’ll find it is a matter of luck," Feiling replied, then turned his attention away from the other man. When he saw Yunqing below, once again spilling petals all over the ground and turning the courtyard into chaos, he couldn’t help but smile, his eyes curving with amusement, remembering the days when he first became Qin Shi. Back then, Mingyue too had been just as flustered.

The smile faded abruptly as Yunqing looked up, and after watching her for a moment, Feiling resignedly vanished from her sight.

Seated among the scattered petals, Yunqing could no longer sense Feiling’s presence. Her will to continue wavered, and she gave up her attempts, instead using simple magic to blend the petals and ingredients into rouge. She would need to live here for some time yet—without money, she would not survive. Since she could not conjure silver directly, she had no choice but to make and sell rouge.

On the day Longing Study reopened, business was grim. But as passersby saw Yunqing, many assumed the place had a new owner, and some came in out of curiosity to try her wares. Naturally, the magic-made products were superior to those she crafted by hand, and over time, a modest clientele grew—enough to keep her fed.

Nearly a year later, while out shopping as usual, Yunqing overheard rumors about Chuxue and Emperor Que.

It was said that Emperor Que had suddenly elevated Noble Consort Qi to Imperial Noble Consort, granting her all the privileges of an Empress.

It was also said that, though the Imperial Noble Consort had been pronounced infertile by the imperial doctors, she had miraculously conceived a royal heir. Emperor Que was so overjoyed he declared three days of celebration throughout the land.

Another rumor claimed that, fearing for the Crown Prince’s position, the Empress allied with her natal family in an attempt to depose the Emperor, only to see her entire clan executed. The Empress and Crown Prince, however, were spared.

At this point, Yunqing stopped listening. Chuxue had found a happy ending, and Yunqing was genuinely glad—she only hoped that, should Chuxue one day recall her entanglements with Emperor Que, she could make a satisfying choice. Upon returning to Longing Study, Yunqing began to prepare a gift for Zihua, and after much hesitation, finally sent her a protective gold locket.

It was three months before Zihua’s reply arrived. In her letter, she effusively thanked Yunqing and invited her again to visit the Que Kingdom’s palace. This exchange suddenly brought another person to Yunqing’s mind—or rather, another demon: Zhushu. When Yunqing had first returned to Longing Study, she’d seen two or three letters in a corner by the door, but at the time, she’d paid them no heed and tossed them into the storeroom.

Setting aside Zihua’s letter, Yunqing ran to rummage through the storeroom, but after searching for ages found only scraps—likely chewed by mice. Standing in the courtyard with the shreds in hand, not even sunlight could reveal the faded writing. Staring for a long while, she was struck by the realization that she had forgotten Zhushu entirely since awakening. It was not intentional neglect, but rather an unconscious disregard, perhaps influenced by her celestial witch heritage. She did not look down on the demon race, but she had never considered them her own kind—certainly never as ordinary folk.

Noticing this, Yunqing pondered for half a day before making a decision: she would leave Longing Study for a time and travel to Luodu to see for herself.

So, the next day, Yunqing packed her bundle and set off once more. With concern weighing on her heart, she lost the leisurely air she once had when journeying. Most of the way, she rode on horseback, only taking a carriage when she was too weary to continue. Even so, it took her over a month to reach Luodu.

Her first stop was the old house on the outskirts of the city, only to find that the once lush bamboo grove had been completely cut down, and the old house destroyed by fire, leaving a blackened ruin in its place. Yunqing at first suspected that other demons had fought over the place for cultivation, or that human demon-hunters had come to exorcise spirits. But as she searched the grove and the ruins, she found no lingering traces of any presence.

With questions pressing on her mind, Yunqing entered the city and found an inn. Once settled, she began her search for Zhushu. After passing through an alleyway, she remembered that Zhushu had mentioned both Kang Sheng and Tang Li, so she decided to look for them instead. Returning to the main street, Yunqing stopped an old man and asked, “Uncle, do you know of a man named Tang Li here in Luodu?”

At her question, the old man glared at her, struck the ground hard with his cane several times, and left without answering. Puzzled, Yunqing tried asking several others, but was met only with cold stares. One young man even spat tea at her; she dodged just in time to save her clothes from ruin.

With no answers forthcoming, Yunqing had to search on her own. She recalled that Zhushu had once mentioned in a letter that Kang Sheng had become an official, so she headed for the street where officials’ residences clustered. This time, it did not take her long to find her target, for the Tang residence was so conspicuous it could not be ignored.

Yunqing concealed her aura and slipped into the Tang estate, which featured many artificial hills and streams, but little actual greenery. After a short while, she sensed a faint trace of demon energy and followed it to a secluded stream bank, where she found Zhushu in her true form.

Yunqing revealed herself and called, “Zhushu.”

Zhushu shifted back into human form and retreated a few steps, looking Yunqing up and down with obvious confusion in her brows.

Noticing how much weaker Zhushu seemed, Yunqing got straight to the point. “I am Mingyue. There are things I’ll explain later. This time, I only came to see how you have been.”

Zhushu hesitated for a long time before finally approaching. She sat down beside Mingyue and dangled her feet in the stream.

“What happened at the outskirts?” Yunqing asked.

Zhushu shook her head with a bitter smile. “Nothing. The old house and bamboo grove were destroyed by Kang Sheng himself—no one else’s fault.”

“Why?” Yunqing was astonished. That wasn’t the Kang Sheng she remembered.

“It’s simple. He hated the humiliations of his past, so he wanted to wipe them out completely. Besides, he dislikes bamboo and had all the bamboo groves in the outskirts destroyed.”

“What?” Yunqing waved her hand and sleeve in disbelief. “Leaving aside his reasons, when did Kang Sheng gain such power? To do all this at the city’s edge—does the Emperor of Luo not care?”

Zhushu looked up, the three marks on her brow now faded. “You don’t know? Kang Sheng is now the Grand Chancellor, second only to the Emperor himself. Isn’t that awfully fast?”

Wave after wave of shock left Yunqing unable to recover, so she could only nod dumbly.

“All those who once bullied him are gone—exiled, or sentenced to death. Even the former chancellor was dismissed and sent back to his ancestral home. Mingyue, do you think I was wrong to help him?” Zhushu’s frail voice drifted over, leaving Yunqing unable to answer.