Chapter 30 : We"ve Made An Oath, You and I (1) When Xin Mei came out of Chongling Valley, it was already noon the next day. The good wine given by the Fox Clan seemed to be very strong. Zhen Hongsheng had drink two jars of wine by himself last night. As a result, he had not yet risen up because of extreme intoxication. Xin Mei had to notify Zhang Dahu about it and then rode on Lie Yun Hua to take her leave.
Baitou (ever white) / Paekdu Mountain. In Korean, it is known as Baekdu Mountain. The lake on top of the mountain, as you can see in the picture, is called
Image Source Laika ac via Wiki
They flew as swift as the wind and as quick as lightningChinese idiom : very fast¹all the way to House of Meishan in Baitou Mountain to send some moon cakes to Lord Meishan. However, the spirit ghost who guarded the gate said that Lord Meishan had gone out. He also said that he didn"t know when Lord Meishan would be back. So, Xin Mei left him two boxes of egg yolk stuffing moon cakes to give to his Master. Then, she mounted Lie Yun Hua and headed to the Imperial Mausoleum.“Little Yun, what do you think Lu Qianqao is doing right now?” The journey there was a bit boring, so Xin Mei held on to Lie Yun Hua"s neck and chatted with it. If only Qiu Yue was there. At least Qiu Yue would react to whatever she said despite not knowing how to speak. Unlike this horse, that only knew to stare ahead and ran forward.
“You are more foolish than Qiu Yue. You"ve been ignoring me when I talk.”This is a slander! Lie Yun Hua blew its nose hard. It was a horse, not a human being. For a horse to be able to talk, that was totally an absurd matter!
“Oh? You"re saying that Lu Qianqiao is definitely thinking about me? He"s thinking till he can"t eat or sleep?“ Her eyes lit up. I didn"t say that! Lie Yun Hua gave a long neigh.
“You mean, he"s currently reflecting on his mistakes and is going to apologize to me?”I really didn"t say that! Lie Yun Hua shed its tears.
“You mean, he will cry when he begs me to come back? ”… Brother Qiu Yue, you are great. Lie Yun Hua looked at the distant clouds and mists with feelings of disappointment and frustration. Because of this a donkey"s lips do not match a horse"s mouthChinese idiom : incongruous²kind of dialogue, a supreme respect for Qiu Yue appeared in its heart.
The clouds and mists in front of them suddenly broke open. Several huge birds of paradise were singing melodious tunes and flew against the wind. Behind them, there was a long vehicle with gold and jade in glorious splendorChinese idiom : resplendent³. The bright golden light turned into ancient writings and fluttered away. It was truly magnificent.Lie Yun Hua cleverly moved aside and bowed its head respectfully while in the air, waiting for the long vehicle to pa.s.s by.
This spirit beast had an instinctive obedient response to that person pure and n.o.ble smell.The long vehicle came slowly and stopped beside Xin Mei. Then, the white bamboo curtain was rolled up by a slender hand as the young man in the black coat inside poked out his head and gave her a friendly smile.
This person… seemed to be some great monk of the Fox Clan? Xin Mei looked at him curiously, and he also looked at her curiously. They looked at each other for a long time before he gave out a smile again in the end.“Hey, beautiful girl.” He opened his mouth with gentle voice and frivolous tone. “I"m hungry, can you give me a box of moon cakes?”
… An extraordinary long vehicle and a group of extraordinary birds of paradise had stopped, just to ask her for a box of moon cakes.
Fruit kernerls moon cakes. To see the recipe, just click at the name mentioned below.
Image Source via Sina
While feeling confused, Xin Mei handed him a box moon cakes with fruit kernels, but he shook his head and his eyes glowed green, “Meat stuffing.”
… What kind of monk was this? He even ate meat!She then changed it to a box of moon cakes filled with meat and gave it to him. The bamboo curtain was lowered again. The young man"s voice came out from inside the vehicle, “Thank you. You are so beautiful and kind.”The birds of paradise began to sing again and the vehicle continued its way against the wind. Xin Mei scratched her head and then patted Lie Yun Hua"s neck. “Okay, let"s go too. Let"s hurry up to the Imperial Mausoleum.”
*Since Lu Qianqiao woke up, the Mist Formation had been put around the Imperial Mausoleum once more. Big and small monsters withdrew from the underground palace and returned to the green hills and clear watersChinese idiom : Pleasant country scene⁴ground. The Imperial Mausoleum had changed from its old days of decline and resumed its former red peach blossoms and green willowsChinese idiom : spring scenes⁵, with birdsongs and fragrant flowersChinese idiom : fig. the intoxication of a beautiful spring day⁶.
Silan was absent, Yinglian was taking a nap in the pond, while Tao Guoguo and his brother were playing hide-and-seek in the haunted apricot blossom forest — it seemed that Lu Qianqiao had not been here yet.Xin Mei tied Lie Yun Hua outside to graze and sneaked into Lord Zhao"s cave. He wore a white headscarf as he wielded his brush furiouslywrite with pa.s.sion⁷and cried as he wrote. His tears dripped down to his beard.
“Oh, Miss, you"re here!” He blew his nose, looked up at Xin Mei and his tearful eyes suddenly lit up, “Come on, come on! I was just writing the scene when you first met the General, where lighting suddenly strikes and makes the fire goes out of control!“Uh, when she first met Lu Qianqiao? It seemed that… it seemed that it was on a quiet night, she knocked out Tao Guoguo, and then Liu Qianqao knocked her out with his palm… uh huh, it did look like a lightning had struck and made the ground on fire.
Sansheng (three-life) Stone
Image Source
When she picked up the play book handed by Lord Zhao, she saw that it was written like dragons flying and phoenixes dancingChinese idiom : lively and vigorous flourishes in calligraphy⁸, which wrote, [With just that one glance, it felt like I was sailing through the waves, scouring the sand for you; with that one glance, even when Ruo River was three thousand long, I would take a ladle just for you; with that one glance, it felt like the destiny of you and me had been written on the … ] (T/N : If you click at the link, it will bring you to a website about the story behind the Sansheng Stone in the picture. Don"t worry. The site is totally in English.)
She put the play book back silently, looked at Lord Zhao eager eyes in embarra.s.sment, and thought for a long time before she said, “With that one glance, I actually couldn"t see anything clearly…”At that time, she knew it was a man. This man even beat her and robbed her spirit animal. Back then, she was merely thinking of whipping at him back.
Lord Zhao repeatedly bemoaned, “How could it happen this way! Only when you have a feeling of affection would you notice about the little things of the opposite s.e.x.”“… Anyway, I had nothing to do with Lu Qianqiao. He always treated me like a child, right? I"m not even his daughter.”
She said this with great bitterness, which was completely different from the her in the past where she would skip vibrantly when talked about Lu Qianqao. Lord Zhao carefully weighed her words and closely watch her expressionChinese idiom : watch a person"s every mood⁹, and then, he immediately showed the appearance of an intimate uncle to her. Sitting opposite her, he asked softly, “Miss Xin, are you having a fall out with the General?” Xin Mei put the moon cakes on the table, “No. I"m here just to send you moon cakes.”
“If you feel uncomfortable in your heart, you have to say it out. Otherwise, trivial things will become big things, and the more you make trouble because of it, the more unmanageable it will be.”She thought for a moment and pouted, “We are not like a real couple at all. Every time I touch him, he ties me with his bewitching rope. Moreover, we are already married, but he refused to admit it and asked to do it once more. He"s only wasting time, deliberately evading himself from this marriage.“
… General ah, the war demons are awkward in men and women, but you can"t be acting so stupid like this!Lord Zhao wished that iron could turn straight into steelChinese idiom : be anxious for somebody to improve¹⁰and he could only shake his head.
“Miss Xin, although the General has the t.i.tle of a general, but he himself is a person from the War Demon Clan, which has not even an ounce of loyalty toward the Emperor of Qiongguo. That"s why, when the Emperor sanctioned a marriage for him, he treated it as a nonsense. He refused to admit the sanction and insists on marrying you again. In fact, this just proves that he has you in his heart and regards you as a woman who needs respect.“Xin Mei was silent for a moment and whispered, “I know.”
“You don"t know that. Since ancient times, the War Demon Clan has served the G.o.ds, so the people in the clan are always conservative and old-fashioned. Without marriage, they won"t do the married couple thing, which regard as having illicit s.e.xual relations to them. When he doesn"t touch you, he actually respects you. He really doesn"t despise you.”She remained silent.
Lord Zhao cleared his throat, “Just look at the General"s appearance which seems very intimate and very meticulous. In fact, he is actually very boorish. Since he was little, his father hadn"t show any affection towards his mother, so, no one has taught him how to get along with a girl. On ordinary days, he will either give out a cold face or just walks away. If he ties you up with his bewitching rope, he didn"t think of the outcome and nothing more. If you take a chance to talk to him, he will understand. People with mouths are meant to talk, so, what misunderstandings can"t be explain clearly between two persons? If you don"t open your mouth, won"t it only make you feel wronged if you let it stuck in your heart?”Xin Mei silently broke a piece of lotus seed filling moon cake, while drinking tea, and never said a word.
As soon as Lord Zhao saw her actions, he took up his writing brush and went on writing. He smeared all the writing in front of him and asked her, “Miss, what was it like when you first met the General? Can you tell me again?”
As she was about to speak, she heard a loud neigh from Lie Yun Hua outside the cave. Then the big leaves that covered the cave entrance were suddenly uncovered. Lu Qianqiao, whom she hadn"t seen for two days, strode in. He picked her up and walked away.
Officer Zhao swallowed a piece of moon cake with tears in his eyes. General, that is good!Xin Mei"s feet did not even touch the ground as he pulled her out like a kite. She felt dizzy and he threw her on the back of Qiu Yue. When she recovered, she realized that they were already in mid-air. Qiu Yue fanned its wings at leisure and deliberately flew slowly. While Lie Yun Hua followed from far behind like it had human intelligence. Unexpectedly, everyone didn"t want to disturb them.
Xin Mei looked up at him. His face was gloomy and he was silent. Then, he turned his head away from her.“That is… Lu Qianqiao,” she opened her mouth first, “Where are we going?”
He still did not look at her. After it seemed like half a day, he honestly said, “I"m sending you back to Xinxie Manor.”Speaking of Xinxie Manor, she just realized that he was still wearing the clothes he had when he came to her home that day. However, now his white clothes were dusty with gra.s.ses sap smudging the hem of his coat. While his hair seemed a little messy. Even though she could not see any tiredness on his face… but, had he been looking for her for two days without any sleep?
Xin Mei thought for a moment and whispered, “Liu Qianqiao, do you want to sleep for a while?”He ignored her.
"... Don"t be angry. I"m just giving away moon cakes to everyone."He finally moved as he raised his hand and rubbed his forehead.
“Lu Qianqiao.” Xin Mei leaned over and carefully grabbed a small section of his sleeve. He didn"t fling it off, so she boldly leaned closer and put her head on his shoulder.“You can speak to me. Just say something.”
With her soft voice and her being sentimental, his huge anger finally vanished like smoke and dispersed like cloudsChinese idiom : completely vanish¹¹. At first, Lu Qianqiao hesitated to raise his hand, but then he gently took her by the shoulder and whispered, “... Sorry, it"s my fault.”
She grinned. “We both are at fault, aren"t we?”His gloomy face finally softened gradually, and he inserted his five fingers into her thick hair to straighten out her pigtails, “Where have you been to?”
“I was sending moon cakes to everyone.”“Xin Mei.”
“Hmm?” “In half a month, I will personally escort you to my home, and by then, I will not flee anymore.”
“Um.”He pulled his fingers out of her hair and gently stroked her delicate cheek. Suddenly, he lowered his head and printed a kiss on her full forehead. Being close to her, skin to skin, suddenly there was a very unpleasant smell coming from her. He could not help lowering down a little and sniffed at her hair.
“Lu Qianqiao, I"ll give you a kiss, but don"t tie me with your bewitching rope, okay?”She put her arms around his neck and smiled at him.
His face instantly turned red and he obediently closed his eyes. After waiting for a long time, two soft lips landed on his cheek.He seemed to be… a little lost.
Xin Mei pushed his messy hair behind his head and solemnly said, “Next time. Wait till next time.”“Naughty.”
He flicked her forehead with his finger, then bowed his head and sniffed at her hair twice, frowning.Her whole body was vaguely infected with an extremely unpleasant smell, which he could only smell if he was being very close with her. Did she meet anyone?
Noob Translator"s Notes 1. The editing process for this chapter took a while, that"s why this chapter is posted today, not yesterday.2. The t.i.tle for this chapter is from an old Chinese poem called Beating The Drum. It was a war poem, but somehow it now becomes a love poem, especially this part
死生契阔，
Meet or part, live or die,
与子成说。
We"ve made oath, you and I.
执子之手，
Give me your hand I"ll hold,
与子偕老。
And live with me till old!
于嗟阔兮，
With my wife I"ve long parted.
不我活兮。
Can I live broken-hearted?
于嗟洵兮，
Alas! The oath we swore
不我信兮。
Can be fulfilled no more.
For the full poem, you can read it at .
3. This part "when Ruo River was three thousand long, I would take a ladle just for you" was actually taken from a Buddhist scripture which then used as a metaphor in the novel Dream of the Red Chamber. It originally is written like this "(although) the Ruo River is three thousand li long, one only drinks one ladle worth of water from it."
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