TFOD Chapter 61

Chapter 56: The Twelfth of Three Poisons

He still didn’t catch the name of the melody. A rush of blood surged to his face, his head and limb joints ached as if burning, and a buzzing tinnitus lingered in his ears.

When he woke up again, Wei Wuxian opened his eyes and saw not the dark ceiling of the cave, nor Lan Wangji’s pale and handsome face, but a wooden plank with a comical string of kissing little figures painted on it.

It was a doodle he had drawn on his bedside in Lotus Pier.

Wei Wuxian lay on his wooden bed, Jiang Yanli was looking down at a book. When she saw him awake, her eyebrows slightly lifted, she put down her book and called out, “A-Xian!”

Wei Wuxian said, “Shijie!”

He struggled to get up from the bed. His limbs no longer felt like they were burning but were still weak, and his throat was slightly dry. Wei Wuxian asked, “I’m back? When did I get out of the cave? Did Uncle Jiang bring people to rescue me? Where is Lan Zhan? Where is Jiang Cheng?”

The wooden door opened, and Jiang Cheng walked in, dragging a white porcelain jar with one hand, and shouted, “What are you yelling about!”

After shouting, he turned to Jiang Yanli: “Sister, the soup you stewed. I’ve brought it over for you.”

Jiang Yanli took the jar, ladling out its contents into a bowl. Wei Wuxian said, “Jiang Cheng, you brat, come here!”

Jiang Cheng said, “Come here for what? Do you want to kneel down and thank me?”

Wei Wuxian said, “It took you seven days to bring people, were you trying to kill me on purpose?!”

Jiang Cheng said, “Are you dead? Who is the one talking to me right now?”

Wei Wuxian said, “It only takes five days at most to go from Mount Muxi back to Yunmeng!”

Jiang Cheng said, “Are you stupid? You only calculate the return trip, not the departure? Besides, after arriving, I had to lead people all over the mountains to find that old banyan tree, dig open the cave that was blocked by Wen Chao and his men. It took seven days to rescue you. You should be grateful!”

Wei Wuxian thought about it and realized that he had indeed forgotten to calculate the time it took to get there. He was momentarily speechless and said, “That seems to be the case. But why didn’t Lan Zhan remind me?”

Jiang Cheng said, “Just seeing you is annoying enough for him, do you still expect him to listen carefully to you?”

Wei Wuxian said, “That makes sense too!”

Jiang Yanli ladled out the soup and handed it to him. The soup contained chunks of lotus root and spareribs, all pinkish, stewed until their skins were slightly broken, with a rich, steaming aroma. Wei Wuxian had not eaten for days in the cave, and he couldn’t eat anything too substantial right away, so this was just right. He thanked his Shijie and hugged the bowl, drinking as he said, “Where is Lan Zhan? Was he rescued too? Is he here? Or did he go back to his home in Gusu?”

Jiang Cheng said, “Nonsense. He’s not one of our family, what would he do here? Of course, he went back to Gusu.”

Wei Wuxian said, “He went back alone? Gusu, his family…”

Before he could finish, Jiang Fengmian stepped in. Wei Wuxian put down the bowl and said, “Uncle Jiang!”

Jiang Fengmian said, “Sit down.”

Jiang Yanli handed a handkerchief to Wei Wuxian to wipe his mouth and asked, “Is it tasty?”

Wei Wuxian didn’t take the handkerchief, exaggeratedly pouting his lips, and said, “Delicious!”

Jiang Cheng said, “Don’t you have hands yourself?”

Jiang Yanli smiled as she wiped Wei Wuxian’s mouth and chin, happily taking the bowl away. Jiang Fengmian sat in the spot she had just occupied, looked at the white porcelain jar, as if he also wanted to try some, but unfortunately the bowl had already been taken away by Jiang Yanli. Jiang Cheng said, “Father, the Wen family still refuses to return the swords, right?”

Jiang Fengmian retracted his gaze and said, “They are celebrating these days.”

Wei Wuxian said, “Celebrating what?”

Jiang Fengmian said, “Celebrating that Wen Chao, with his own power, killed the Tortoise of Slaughter.”

Hearing this, Wei Wuxian almost rolled off the bed, “The Wen family killed it?!”

Jiang Cheng sneered, “Otherwise? Did you expect them to say it was you who killed it?”

Wei Wuxian said, “The Wen dogs are talking nonsense, shameless, it was clearly Lan Zhan who killed it.”

Jiang Fengmian smiled slightly and said, “Is that so? Coincidentally, the second young master of the Lan family told me that it was you who killed it. So who exactly killed it?”

Wei Wuxian said, “Let’s say we both had a part. But he did most of the killing. I just burrowed into the shell of the beast and chased it out. Lan Zhan guarded outside alone, and it took him three hours to wear it down and kill it.”

He told the Jiang Cheng father and son what had mainly happened these past few days. Jiang Cheng listened with a complex expression, and after a long while, said, “It’s about the same as what Lan Wangji said. So it seems that you two joined forces to kill it. What’s yours is yours, why push everything to him?”

Wei Wuxian said, “It’s not pushing. It’s just that I feel that compared to him, I really didn’t contribute much.”

Jiang Fengmian nodded and said, “You did well.”

At the age of seventeen, being able to kill a giant beast over four hundred years old was more than just “doing well.”

Jiang Cheng said, “Congratulations.”

The tone of this congratulation was rather strange. Seeing him fold his arms and raise his eyebrows, Wei Wuxian knew that his sour mood was acting up again. At this moment, Jiang Cheng must be feeling quite resentful and thinking about why it wasn’t him who stayed in the cave to kill the beast. If it were him, he definitely could’ve done this and that. Wei Wuxian laughed and said, “Too bad you weren’t there. Otherwise, you would’ve had a share of this head. You could’ve also talked to me to relieve boredom. My god, these last few days, sitting across from Lan Zhan nearly suffocated me.”

Jiang Cheng said, “It’s your fault for suffocating. You shouldn’t have acted impulsively, you shouldn’t have gotten involved in this mess. If you hadn’t moved in the beginning…”

Suddenly, Jiang Fengmian said, “Jiang Cheng.”

Jiang Cheng was startled and realized that he had just spoken too much, and immediately fell silent.

Jiang Fengmian didn’t have a reproachful expression, but his expression shifted from the peace of before to a solemn one. He said, “Do you know what was inappropriate about your words just now?”

Jiang Cheng lowered his head, “I know.”

Wei Wuxian said, “He was just saying that out of anger.”

Looking at Jiang Cheng’s unwilling, slightly unconvinced appearance, Jiang Fengmian shook his head and said, “A-Cheng, some words cannot be spoken carelessly even when you are angry. Once spoken, it means that you still haven’t understood the Yunmeng Jiang Sect’s precepts, haven’t…”

A cold, sharp female voice came from outside the door, “Yes, he doesn’t understand, what does it matter, it’s enough that Wei Ying understands!”

Like a purple lightning bolt, Madam Yu swept in with a gust of cold wind. She stood five steps from Wei Wuxian’s bed, raised her eyebrows and said, “‘Knowing it’s impossible and doing it anyway,’ isn’t it just like him, knowing full well what trouble he’ll cause for the family, yet still causing a ruckus!”

Jiang Fengmian said, “Madam, what are you here for?”

Madam Yu said, “What am I here for? Ridiculous! I’m actually being asked such a question. Does Sect Leader Jiang still remember that I am also the master of Lotus Pier? Does he remember that every inch of land here is my territory? Does he remember which one lying down and which one standing up is your son?”

Such questions had been heard countless times over the years. Jiang Fengmian said, “I naturally remember.”

Madam Yu sneered, “You remember, but just remembering is useless. This Wei Ying, if he doesn’t stir up trouble for one day, he feels uncomfortable all over! If I had known, I should have just told him to stay obediently in Lotus Pier and forbid him from going out. Would Wen Chao really dare to do anything to the two young masters of Gusu Lan and Lanling Jin? Even if he dared, that’s just their bad luck. Was it your place to act the hero?”

In front of Jiang Fengmian, Wei Wuxian always had to give his wife some face, and didn’t retort a single word, thinking, “Dare to not do anything to them? That’s not necessarily true.”

Madam Yu said, “I’ll put it here, you all wait and see, one day he will inevitably bring great disaster to our family!”

Jiang Fengmian stood up and said, “Let’s go back and talk.”

Madam Yu said, “Go back and talk about what? Go back to talk where? I will say it right here. Anyway, my conscience is clear! Jiang Cheng, come here.”

Jiang Cheng was caught between his father and mother. After hesitating for a moment, he stood next to his mother. Madam Yu grabbed his shoulders and pushed him towards Jiang Fengmian to show him: “Sect Leader Jiang, there are some things I have to say. Look closely, this, is your own son, the future master of Lotus Pier. Even if you dislike him because he was born from me, he still bears the Jiang name! I don’t believe you don’t know what those people outside are saying, that Sect Leader Jiang is still infatuated with a certain wandering cultivator all these years, and regards the son of his deceased friend as his own. Everyone’s guessing whether Wei Ying is actually your…”

Jiang Fengmian shouted, “Yu Ziyuan!”

Madam Yu also shouted, “Jiang Fengmian! Do you think just because your voice is louder that changes anything?! I know you very well!”

The two went out to argue, with Madam Yu’s shouts growing increasingly louder, and Jiang Fengmian also trying to suppress his anger and argue with her. Jiang Cheng stood there stunned, and after a long while, he glanced at Wei Wuxian, then suddenly turned and walked out.

Wei Wuxian said, “Jiang Cheng!”

Jiang Cheng didn’t respond and had already turned onto the corridor in a few hasty steps. Wei Wuxian had no choice but to roll off the bed and chase after him with his sore and stiff body, “Jiang Cheng! Jiang Cheng!”

Jiang Cheng only focused on walking forward, and Wei Wuxian, enraged, pounced forward and grabbed his neck, “You heard me and didn’t respond! You’re asking for a beating!”

Jiang Cheng cursed, “Get back to bed!”

Wei Wuxian said, “That won’t do, we have to talk things out! You absolutely can’t believe those nonsensical rumors.”

Jiang Cheng coldly said, “What nonsensical rumors?”

Wei Wuxian said, “Those words are too dirty to say. Both my parents have names and surnames, and I can’t stand others trying to misattribute my ancestry!”

He put his arm around Jiang Cheng’s shoulder, pulling him to sit on the wooden railing of the corridor, and said, “Let’s be open and honest, don’t keep things hidden in our hearts. You are Uncle Jiang’s biological son, the future head of the Jiang family. It’s natural that Uncle Jiang is stricter with you.”

Jiang Cheng looked at him sideways.

Wei Wuxian continued, “But I’m different, I’m someone else’s son, my parents were Uncle Jiang’s good friends, so of course he’ll be more polite to me. You definitely understand this logic, right?”

Jiang Cheng scoffed, “He’s not just strict with me, he just doesn’t like me.”

Wei Wuxian said, “How can someone not like their own biological son? Don’t think nonsense! Those gossiping rumor mongers, I’ll beat them up every time I see them, until even their mothers won’t recognize them.”

Jiang Cheng said, “There are people like that. He doesn’t like my mother, and doesn’t like me as a result.”

This one was hard to refute.

The cultivation world all knew that Madam Yu and Jiang Fengmian had cultivated together since they were young, knowing each other since they were teenagers. Jiang Fengmian was gentle and refined, while Yu Ziyuan was strong and cold, and the two did not have much interaction. Therefore, although they were well-matched families, no one ever thought of them as a couple. Later, Cangse Sanren emerged, passing through Yunmeng. She met and befriended Jiang Fengmian by chance, and they even night-hunted together several times, and they greatly admired each other. Everyone guessed that Cangse Sanren was very likely to become the next mistress of Lotus Pier.

Who knew that not long after, the Meishan Yu Clan suddenly proposed marriage to the Yunmeng Jiang Clan?

The Jiang Clan leader at the time was quite interested, but Jiang Fengmian was not. He did not like Yu Ziyuan’s personality and believed that the two were not a good match, and he declined several times. However, the Meishan Yu Clan used various means to exert strong pressure on the young and not yet well-established Jiang Fengmian, and coupled with the fact that not long after, Cangse Sanren and Wei Changze, the most loyal servant by Jiang Fengmian’s side, became dao companions and went off to travel, Jiang Fengmian finally succumbed.

Although Jiang and Yu got married, they became a resentful couple who lived separately for many years, not agreeing with each other. Besides consolidating their family power, it is unknown what else they gained.

The founder of the Yunmeng Jiang Clan, Jiang Chi, was a wandering knight. The family style valued openness and straightforwardness, which was completely contrary to the spirit of Madam Yu. Jiang Cheng’s appearance and personality were also like his mother’s, naturally not to Jiang Fengmian’s liking. From a young age, no matter how he was taught, he could not change, so Jiang Fengmian always seemed to not favor him much.

Jiang Cheng pushed away Wei Wuxian’s hand, stood up, and vented, “I know! I’m not the kind of personality he likes, not the kind of successor he wants. He thinks I’m not worthy to be the family head, I don’t understand the Jiang family’s precepts, and I have none of the Jiang family’s spirit. Yes!”

He raised his voice and said, “You and Lan Wangji joined forces to kill the Tortoise of Slaughter, fighting a bloody battle! Amazing! But what about me?!”

He punched the corridor pillar, gritting his teeth and said, “… I also traveled for days, exhausted, without resting for a moment!”

Wei Wuxian said, “What are family precepts! Does having family precepts mean that you must follow them? Look at the Gusu Lan Clan’s family precepts, over three thousand rules, you have to follow every single one, how can people even live?”

He jumped off the wooden railing and said, “Also, being a family head means that you must conform to the family style and follow the family precepts? The Yunmeng Jiang Clan has had so many family heads in history, I don’t believe that every single one was the same. Even the Gusu Lan Clan had an anomaly like Lan Yi. Who dares to deny her strength and status? When talking about famous figures in the Lan Clan, who would skip over her? Who could skip over her String Killing Technique?”

Jiang Cheng fell silent, seeming to have calmed down a bit. Wei Wuxian put his arm around his shoulder again, and said, “In the future when you become the family head, I’ll be your subordinate, just like your father and my father. So what if the Gusu Lan Clan has Twin Jades, we Yunmeng have Double Heroes! So, shut up. Who said you’re not worthy to be the family head? No one can say that, not even you. Dare to say it and you’ll get a beating.”

Jiang Cheng scoffed, “With you looking like this now? Who can you beat?” As he spoke, he slapped Wei Wuxian’s chest. Although the wound from the brand had been medicated and bandaged, it still hurt when it was hit so unexpectedly. Wei Wuxian roared, “Jiang Cheng!!! Come here and die!!!”

Jiang Cheng dodged his sweeping palm strike, and shouted, “You’re in so much pain now, why did you act like a hero in the first place! You deserve it! It’s a lesson for you!”

Wei Wuxian said, “Am I acting like a hero! I was forced to, I reacted faster than I thought! Stop running, I’ll spare your life and ask you one thing! – In my waistband I had a sachet, an empty one, did you see it?”

Jiang Cheng said, “The one Mianmian gave you? I didn’t see it.”

Wei Wuxian sighed with regret, “I’ll ask her for another one next time.”

Jiang Cheng frowned, “Here you go again. Do you really like her? That girl does look decent, but her origins don’t seem that good. She probably isn’t even a disciple, more like a servant girl.”

Wei Wuxian said, “So what if she’s a servant girl, I’m also the son of a servant.”

Jiang Cheng said, “Can you compare yourself to her? Which family’s servant is like you, where the master peels lotus seeds and makes soup for you, I didn’t even get any!”

Wei Wuxian said, “If you want to drink, ask Shijie to make more. Oh right, before that, we were talking about Lan Zhan. Did Lan Zhan leave any words for me? Did they find his brother? How are things at home?”

Jiang Cheng said, “Do you still expect him to leave words for you? It’s good enough if he didn’t leave a sword for you. He went back. Lan Xichen hasn’t been found yet, and Lan Qiren is in a state of panic.”

Wei Wuxian said, “What about the head of the Lan family? How is he?”

Jiang Cheng said, “He passed away.”