The Lotus Life Pavilion bore its name with the meaning of "compassion for all living things." As Duan Xu's black boots touched the stone stairs, he beheld a pond of white lotuses, their fragrance saturating the courtyard air. Across the water rose an eighteen-tiered wooden platform crowned by a pavilion draped with bamboo curtains on all four sides. Within, a figure could be faintly discerned. Clear water from some unseen source flowed from the pavilion's peak, cascading down the roof tiles, arching gracefully from the eaves into the pond below—a shimmering water curtain that seemed almost otherworldly in its beauty.
The common people entering through the vermilion gate could not approach the pavilion across the pond. They could only stand upon the white stone platform on this shore, gazing toward the pavilion to offer their wishes.
Duan Xu studied the silhouette behind the water curtain and bamboo blinds, then summoned a young attendant and handed him the umbrella: "Please return this umbrella to the Imperial Preceptor and inform him that Duan Shun Xi has paid his respects."
He turned to depart, but the young attendant caught at his sleeve. The child looked up, voice muffled as he spoke: "The red lotus umbrella of the fate-connected one must be returned to my master personally."
With that, the young attendant led Duan Xu by the sleeve through the gathered crowd to the lotus pond's edge. Across the water curtain and bamboo blinds, the child performed a proper bow and announced clearly: "Master, the fate-connected one has arrived."
The moment his words fell silent, accompanied by the crisp chiming of bells, a white bridge rose from the lotus pond's depths, extending from beneath Duan Xu's feet to the pavilion steps. The young attendant gestured with his hand: "Please proceed, fate-connected one."
Duan Xu twirled the red lotus umbrella in his hand twice before finally stepping onto the white bridge. When passing through the water curtain flowing down from the pavilion's eaves, he opened the red lotus umbrella. It parted the cascading water and shielded him from the falling torrent. Thus Duan Xu passed through the water curtain to face the pavilion, looking up at He Jiafeng Yi behind the bamboo blinds.
Through the gaps in the yellowish-green bamboo blinds, He Jiafeng Yi could be vaguely glimpsed wearing elaborate garments of interwoven gold and white, sitting cross-legged upon a cushion. His birch staff lay across his knees, its bells jingling though no wind stirred.
As it passed through the water curtain, the red lotuses adorning the umbrella faded to white. Duan Xu closed the umbrella, shaking off the clinging water, and smiled: "The Lotus Life Pavilion is quite grand indeed. To see the Imperial Preceptor, one must pass through so many trials."
He Jiafeng Yi's voice drifted leisurely from behind the bamboo blinds: "For a person to honestly face their inner heart, they must set aside layers of worldly concerns. Each barrier washes away a layer of falsehood. The outer pond of the Lotus Life Pavilion bears white lotuses, while the invisible inner pond holds red lotuses. My Heart-Questioning Pavilion stands as the boundary, much like the exterior and interior of the human heart. One thought of purity transforms raging flames into a tranquil pond."
Duan Xu tapped the umbrella against his palm at intervals, not responding to He Jiafeng Yi's profound philosophy. He observed the silhouette behind the bamboo blinds, his expression unchanged.
He Jiafeng Yi sighed and rested his chin upon his hand: "I hear General Duan has never believed in gods or Buddha. Coming to my Lotus Life Pavilion today must be quite an inconvenience for you. Zi Ji, quickly bring a cushion for General Duan to sit upon. People outside the water curtain cannot hear what we discuss, so General Duan need not be concerned."
This statement was entirely different from his previous profound demeanor—instantly transforming from Imperial Preceptor to tavern owner greeting guests, his posture becoming noticeably more relaxed. Zi Ji brought over a cushion, and Duan Xu sat readily, listening as He Jiafeng Yi continued: "But since she gave you the umbrella and you have come here, why not ask me what you wish to know? For instance, the relationship between He Simu and myself? Or perhaps your recent fortune?"
This was the first time the Imperial Preceptor had ever stooped to peddling questions to a fate-connected visitor.
This fate-connected one proved not too ungrateful and smiled as he took up the offer: "Since the Imperial Preceptor already knows and has prepared, let us proceed."
He Jiafeng Yi thought to himself—which of them was truly the Imperial Preceptor? Why did it feel as though he were the one asking favors? Moreover, this young man seemed to harbor some hostility toward him. Heaven and earth as his witness, performing good deeds these days was remarkably difficult.
"You should know that He Simu once had four close relatives—her parents, aunt, and uncle. I am the twentieth-generation great-grandson of her aunt and uncle. In private, I address her as venerable ancestor. My parents died early, and she cared for me during a period of my childhood. She is an elder who watched me grow up."
Duan Xu appeared somewhat surprised. He raised his eyebrows, displaying a genuinely sincere smile: "I see."
He Jiafeng Yi sensed that Duan Xu's hostility had decreased by seventy or eighty percent, understanding its source. He inwardly spat in contempt but outwardly maintained his composure: "Actually, I invited you here today because I have prepared a wedding gift for you."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zi Ji came forward bearing a brocade pouch and presented it to Duan Xu. Duan Xu accepted the pouch, opened it, and discovered a note within. After reading its contents, he showed a slightly surprised expression and turned his gaze toward the indistinct figure behind the bamboo blinds.
"I have heard that General Duan possesses photographic memory, so you likely need not look again." He Jiafeng Yi snapped his fingers, and the note in Duan Xu's hand instantly combusted into ashes.
Duan Xu pressed his lips together, bowed, and smiled: "Thank you for your assistance, Imperial Preceptor. Is this gift from you, or...?"
"The venerable ancestor does not concern herself with mortal court affairs. This gift was prepared by me."
"We have had no previous interactions. Why do you help me?"
The silhouette behind the bamboo blinds fell silent for a moment. Duan Xu heard a faint laugh, and then the Imperial Preceptor spoke: "I am not helping you."
"In my youth, I was exceedingly rebellious and liked to dig to the root of all matters, pursuing relentlessly until I obtained answers. When the venerable ancestor was caring for me, I possessed the same curiosity about her. One day, I secretly discovered one of her journals."
"The initial handwriting in that journal was not hers but belonged to the previous Ghost King couple—her parents. The first half recorded her birth, learning to speak, and various interesting events of her growth. Midway through, the handwriting changed, as did the tone, becoming that of the venerable ancestor herself. It seems the previous Ghost King had given her this journal to continue writing in her own hand."
"The person recorded in that journal was utterly different from the He Simu we know. That young woman named He Simu harbored many fears; she was proud and delicate, exceptionally skilled at being coquettish and throwing tantrums. On her birthday, she pestered her living mother to select clothes for her. Her mother said red suited her best, so she commissioned more than ten red robes. Despite being unable to discern colors herself, she claimed to adore them."
"The journal was thick, extensively documenting minute daily events—concerning relatives, friends, lovers. Until one page bore the words: 'Father dead, returned to ghost realm.' After that entry, all remained blank."
Behind the bamboo blinds, He Jiafeng Yi's narrating voice paused. The bells continued their slow ringing, like some restless yet helpless emotion given voice. Duan Xu clasped his hands together, then separated them.
"I always thought the venerable ancestor strange but could not pinpoint what was odd about her. After reading that journal, I suddenly realized—her time had stagnated, forever arrested at the moment her father passed away three hundred years ago. She wears the clothes she once loved most and fulfills the tasks her parents and elders once taught her and hoped she would complete. Even when speaking to me, she would say, 'Why do you not resemble your aunt and uncle at all?' How strange—she had met my parents, yet she traced back to ancestors twenty generations ago to draw comparison with me."
"To this ongoing world, she is vaguely unfamiliar, angry, yet helpless. Just like that abruptly ending journal—from the moment that final line was written, she no longer needed to be understood, only feared. She left her precious people sealed in the past within that journal. In these three hundred years, there have been no newcomers."
Duan Xu sat properly in a patch of bright summer sunlight, the water curtain flowing irregularly behind him, refracting shimmering light. That brightness fell through the gaps in the bamboo blinds into He Jiafeng Yi's eyes, allowing him to see Duan Xu clearly.
This young man, nearly ten years his junior, possessed a focused gaze, as if holding some unshakable certainty, listening attentively to his every word.
He Jiafeng Yi smiled, extending his staff to lift the bamboo blinds, meeting Duan Xu's eyes directly. At this moment, he was no longer the inscrutable representative of the divine but an ordinary mortal speaking from the heart.
"General Duan, whether as the covenant-bearer or something else entirely, I hope you can make the stagnant time within her flow once more. That is my reason for helping you."
Duan Xu looked at He Jiafeng Yi, rose to his feet, and bowed deeply, speaking in his most sincere and peaceful tone since entering the Lotus Life Pavilion: "Thank you, Imperial Preceptor. Since that is the case, Shun Xi indeed has one more favor to request."
"What is it?"
"The Ghost King possesses a bright pearl. My exchange of the five senses with her uses this pearl as medium. Is the Imperial Preceptor familiar with this matter?"
He Jiafeng Yi smiled: "I am very familiar with it indeed."
"I would like to request the Imperial Preceptor to write a talisman for me," Duan Xu said.
After Duan Xu departed the Lotus Life Pavilion with the talisman tucked safely away, He Jiafeng Yi stretched lazily, thinking that youth was indeed a wondrous thing. Duan Xu's bold, headstrong nature, refusing to turn back until striking a wall, resembled his own younger self quite remarkably. As he pondered this, he watched Zi Ji approach to collect the cushion, stacking it with meticulous precision, then directing the young attendants to wipe clean the water marks left by the umbrella—a manner that could not tolerate the slightest disorder.
He Jiafeng Yi could not help but sigh. When Zi Ji ascended the steps to bring him his daily medicinal soup, he accepted the bowl, swirled it slightly, and looked up at her.
"You need not do these things, Zi Ji," he said.
Zi Ji did not speak. The beautiful woman lowered her eyes as she sat before him, her skin white as snow, her hair black as silk—yet she seemed like a wooden doll. He Jiafeng Yi had long grown accustomed to Zi Ji's taciturnity and simply smiled to himself: "In the past, I was young and rebellious, despising the world and resenting society. Now I have released those burdens. You should return to where you belong. What meaning is there in remaining? You know I will not live long."
Zi Ji finally raised her head to regard He Jiafeng Yi, her eyes deep and dark like the unreachable night sky. She spoke calmly: "I know what I am doing."
After a pause, she added briefly: "Drink your medicine."
He Jiafeng Yi gave a bitter smile and drank the medicine in one swallow.
Meanwhile, after departing the Lotus Life Pavilion, Duan Xu headed straight for Yucao Tower. The information He Jiafeng Yi had provided was like delivering charcoal in snowy weather, a brilliant light piercing through darkness.
The note had read: "May's spring ends, peony flowers fall."
The Emperor's most cherished consort, Noble Lady Yu, held passionate devotion to peonies. The Emperor had once gathered precious peonies from across the land to plant within her courtyard. She possessed another title: "Peony Beauty." Her son, the Fifth Prince, also benefited from his mother's favor, being greatly beloved by the Emperor and a formidable candidate for crown prince among the court.
May and peonies referred to the Fifth Prince and Noble Lady Yu—they were about to meet calamity. This was exceptional news, for Noble Lady Yu was the daughter of Sun Zi'an, Minister of War. Sun Zi'an stood as the mastermind behind the horse administration corruption case. Should Noble Lady Yu fall from grace, he would inevitably be implicated, rendering the investigation and evidence collection for the horse administration corruption case far easier to accomplish.
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