Chapter 457

Wen Chenghuan said: "Father spent thirty years in Dakang, establishing a family and career, marrying and having children, finally rising to prominence and attaining a first‑rank office, yet throughout those years Father never forgot my mission, never forgot my homeland." Speaking emotionally, Wen Chenghuan's eyes reddened; after thirty years of enduring humiliation and bearing burdens, he had endured loneliness and solitude beyond what ordinary people can imagine, and even when facing his closest kin he could not reveal the truth. Finally, when the time was ripe, he could share with his son the secret that had weighed on his heart for many years.

【1】 Wen Chenghuan said: "Father spent thirty years in Dakang, establishing a family and career, marrying and having children, finally achieving prominence and attaining a first-rank office—but Father never forgot my mission for a single moment, never forgot my homeland!" Speaking emotionally, Wen Chenghuan's eyes reddened; thirty years of enduring humiliation and bearing burdens, he had endured loneliness and solitude beyond what ordinary people could imagine, and even when facing his closest kin, he could not reveal the truth. Only when the time was ripe could he finally share this secret that had weighed on his heart for many years with his son.

Wen Boyuan said: "Father, you mean…… I…… we are actually surnamed Li?"

Wen Chenghuan nodded and said: "The Li family of Da Yong, our home is the Jingguo Duke's residence on Mingjia Lane, Kaiyuan Street, Yongdu."

Wen Boyuan's chest heaved violently, even his breathing became difficult; in an instant everything had changed, he could scarcely imagine what endurance a person must have to lie low for thirty years in a foreign land: "My grandfather—"

Wen Chenghuan said: "Your grandfather passed away fifteen years ago; I never even got to see him in his final moments…… Speaking of this, truly unfilial." Each time he thought of this, Wen Chenghuan sighed deeply.

Wen Boyuan said: "Father, loyalty and filial piety have never been able to coexist since ancient times; Grandfather, if he has a spirit in heaven, would surely understand your difficulties."

Wen Chenghuan said: "I have always kept this secret in my heart, waiting for the day you truly come of age to tell you your origins. Dakang's fate is exhausted; the fall of the state is merely a matter of time. A man establishing himself in the world must accomplish something, son—Father is old now, perhaps I will not live to see Da Yong unify the realm, but you are different." He rose, placed both hands on his son's shoulders, shook him firmly, and said: "Are you willing to help me and your grandfather fulfill this wish, to achieve an immortal accomplishment for Da Yong?"

Wen Boyuan dropped to his knees on both legs, excitedly said: "Father, I have only just learned my true identity today; I will certainly fulfill this great ambition for you, and bring glory to the Li clan."

Wen Chenghuan nodded repeatedly in excitement. He helped Wen Boyuan up from the ground: "Boyuan, rise; Father still has something to tell you."

Wen Boyuan came to sit beside his father; Wen Chenghuan firmly grasped his hand and said: "Before Father came to Dakang, I had already married and had children."

Wen Boyuan came to sit beside his father; Wen Chenghuan firmly grasped his hand and said: "Before Father came to Dakang, I had already married and had children."

"What?" Wen Boyuan's lifetime of surprise added together paled compared to tonight; his father had hidden this so deeply—without such deep scheming, how could he have become Dakang's Grand Tutor?

Wen Chenghuan said: "Your eldest aunt married me, and after one year she became pregnant and gave birth. When giving birth to your eldest brother, she died unfortunately due to difficult labor, making your eldest brother a posthumous child; speaking of it, he is already thirty years old this year." Speaking of this, Wen Chenghuan's heart filled with remorse; he owed his eldest son far too much, not even a single day of fatherly love had he ever given him.

Wen Boyuan, learning for the first time that he actually had an older brother in this world, felt overwhelming joy: "Father, where is my elder brother now? What is his name?"

Wen Chenghuan said: "His name is Li Chen Zhou!"

Wen Boyuan hearing Li Chen Zhou's name couldn't help but his heart tremble: "Li Chen Zhou, Da Yong's top fierce general. The Tiger Guard General Li Chen Zhou?"

Wen Chenghuan's face filled with relief and pride: "Exactly, he is your elder brother!"

"Father. Why are you only telling me this now? I've been kept in the dark by you, it's awful." Wen Boyuan couldn't help but complain.

Wen Chenghuan sighed and said: "It's not that I intended to hide it from you, but this matter had to wait until the time was ripe, Boyuan. This time the Emperor has sent you to escort Princess Anping to Yongdu. You can conveniently use this opportunity to recognize your elder brother." Wen Chenghuan opened a brocade box, took out half a jade pendant, and handed it to Wen Boyuan's hand, lowering his voice: "This pair of fish jade pendants is split in half; your elder brother has one half, and now I give you this half. From now on, it will be the token for you brothers to recognize each other."

Wen Boyuan received the jade pendant and carefully put it away.

Wen Chenghuan also said: "Our Li family supports the Eldest Prince Xue Daohong in Da Yong, but the Seventh Prince Xue Daoming is too sharp; if he succeeds in marrying Princess Anping, his position in Da Yong will undoubtedly rise further, so you have another important mission on this trip."

Wen Boyuan's heart sank; he had already anticipated what his father wanted him to do.

Wen Chenghuan's face showed a sinister killing intent: "No matter what means you use, you must stop this marriage; you should know how to do it, and you should also understand how to shirk your responsibility."

Wen Boyuan bit his lip hard, his eyes showing reluctance.

Wen Chenghuan lightly patted his shoulder and said: "To achieve great things, one cannot let personal feelings get in the way!"

Hu Xiaotian is someone who cherishes old ties; early on the second day of the lunar new year he went to the Eunuch Tomb. Liu Yuzhang treated him well, so by sentiment and duty he should visit the old man's grave. Hu Xiaotian didn't want to draw too many people's attention, so he chose to come alone. After all, Liu Yuzhang died at Ji Feihua's hands; if this matter reached Ji Feihua's ears, it might well arouse his suspicion.

Liu Yuzhang's death was a tragedy; he had been loyal to the Emperor his whole life, and before retiring he went before the Emperor to advise him to guard against Ji Feihua, yet because of this he brought upon himself a fatal disaster.

Hu Xiaotian personally witnessed Liu Yuzhang being tortured by Ji Feihua; it was he who ended Liu Yuzhang's suffering with his own hands, also ending the old man's life. At that time Hu Xiaotian wished he could kill Ji Feihua to avenge Liu Yuzhang, but after truly understanding the details of the incident, he realized that although Ji Feihua was the direct killer of Liu Yuzhang, the mastermind behind this tragedy was Quan De'an. It was Quan De'an who deliberately leaked Liu Yuzhang's advice to the Emperor to Ji Feihua, thereby causing this tragedy.

Hu Xiaotian arranged the offerings before the tombstone, then kowtowed three times before Liu Yuzhang's grave. Gazing at the tombstone, he silently sighed: In the imperial palace, there ought to be no place for a good person to stand.

He broke the mud seal on the wine jar, murmuring: "Old Master Liu, rest easy; today is the second day of the first lunar month, I'll keep you company with a couple of drinks." He held up the wine jar and poured the fine wine before the grave.

Just as a drop of wine had been spilled, a lazy voice came from above: "Don't pour it all out; leave some for me."

Hu Xiaotian was startled by this sudden voice, looked up, but saw nothing on the branches above—no trace of a person. Yet he had clearly heard it just moments ago; how could he see nothing? He looked around; aside from himself, there was no one else in the Eunuch Tomb. Today is the second day of the first lunar month, and besides, this is a cemetery for eunuchs, who rarely have relatives; who would come here to pay respects?

Hu Xiaotian felt a chill run down his spine, secretly thinking, Could I have encountered a ghost? He rose to leave, his gaze falling on the offering table before the tombstone, only to see that the plate of roasted chicken he had just placed there had vanished. Hu Xiaotian was so frightened he almost called out for his mother. His hand trembled, the wine jar slipped from his grasp and fell, seeming about to shatter on the ground. At the instant it was about to hit the floor, the jar appeared to be pulled by an invisible force and flew upward upside down.

Hu Xiaotian looked in the direction the wine jar had flown, only to see an old beggar sitting between two thick branches on the old tree that had been empty moments before, one hand gripping a roasted chicken and biting into it big mouthfuls, the other hand steady catching the wine jar that had flown up from the ground, he tipped his head back and gulped several big mouthfuls with a glug-glug, praising: "Good wine, truly good wine, thirty-year Jade Beautiful Spring can only be found in the imperial inner court." After saying that, he took another bite of the chicken's rear, his mouth full of oil, wolfing it down, his manners extremely unsightly.

Hu Xiaotian couldn't help furrowing his brow; he instantly recognized that this old beggar was the one who had seized him yesterday and taken him to the City God Temple.

The old beggar praised: "The five-spice fragrant crispy chicken made by the imperial kitchen is really delicious, damn it, I haven't eaten such a tasty chicken in years."

Hu Xiaotian saw that the beggar was still wearing the dog-skin vest he had given him yesterday, wearing his own things and eating his own food, yet still pretending to be a god and ghost to scare him; this old beggar really lacked any public morality. Hu Xiaotian protested: "I say, old man, fighting a dead person for food— isn't that a bit unkind?"

The old beggar took another swig of wine and said: "Have you ever seen a dead person eat? You little brat, you're not even human— you'd rather let this delicious chicken rot, let this fine wine spill, than give a bite to my belly; do you have any humanity? Rich doors reek of wine and meat while frozen corpses lie on the road— wasting heaven's bounty, you'd better watch out for heavenly retribution!"

"Oh, you ate my stuff and yet your mouth is still so vicious— this mouth of yours is not only greedy but also vicious!" Hu Xiaotian said, lifting his head.

The old beggar said: "This isn't yours, don't think I'll accept your favor; I'm eating Liu Yuzhang's stuff."

The old beggar shook his head, tore into the meat, gulped the wine, and was having a grand time.

"Then how do you know his name?"

The old beggar mumbled indistinctly: "You really have a pig's brain— his name is written on the tombstone!"

Hu Xiaotian rubbed the back of his head, today having been confused by this old beggar, and gave a wry smile: "Old man, if you really want to eat something, I'll treat you; these are all offerings— isn't it disrespectful to the dead to snatch them and eat them?"

The old beggar said: "What disrespect! People are dead, they can't eat or drink; by eating these things I'm helping him accumulate virtue— when you come to pay your respects, what matters isn't the offerings, it's the sincerity; as long as the sincerity is there, that's enough."

Hu Xiaotian was left speechless by his tirade.

Old beggar said: "All buried here are eunuchs, what relation are you to him? His grandson?" Without waiting for Hu Xiaotian to answer, he himself already shook his head and denied: "Impossible, eunuchs can't marry and have children, where would descendants come from? Could you also be a eunuch? Haha... Are you or not?" (To be continued... ^~^)"