Chapter 897: Naming Her

Zheng Fan fell silent.

The Daoist stared at him, something profound in his eyes.

After a short while, Zheng Fan sat back down in the chair.

“Tea.”

Xue San immediately ordered someone to bring tea and a few refreshments.

At the same time, the nearest group of Brocade-Clad Guards was moved farther away.

Fan Li stood beside the Daoist. Xue San stood in front of Zheng Fan.

Third Master’s height was just right. Standing in front of him did not block the view at all.

Zheng Fan personally poured the tea.

Two cups.

Then he picked up the second cup and held it toward the Daoist.

The Daoist still had silver needles sticking all over his body and could not move at all. Naturally, there was no way for him to accept it.

Zheng Fan flicked his wrist.

The scalding tea splashed across the Daoist’s face.

“Hiss...”

The Daoist’s skin already had problems. Sunlight and wind alone were difficult for him to bear, much less a cup of boiling tea. His expression immediately twisted in pain.

But there was genuine toughness in his bones.

Once the first wave of agony passed, he even stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.

“Thank you for the tea, Your Highness.”

“You said this Prince is a Rootless Person. How many people in this world can see a fate like mine?”

The Daoist slowly shook his head.

“Very, very few. Li Xundao—you should know him, Your Highness. Former master of Back Mountain, now a Chancellor of Qian. Even he cannot see it.”

“What does being a Rootless Person mean?”

“It means having no origin. Being unconstrained by the laws of fate. Being disliked by Heaven.”

“Ancient texts record it?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of person in history?”

“A woodcutter.”

Zheng Fan narrowed his eyes.

“Does that surprise Your Highness? Did you think a Rootless Person must necessarily defy Heaven and overturn fate?”

“It just doesn’t sound much like me.”

“Heaven and Earth are not benevolent—”

Splash!

“Hiss...”

Another cup of hot tea went across his face.

The Daoist’s teeth chattered from the pain.

“Speak like a human being.”

“If Your Highness had spent this life content to remain some minor wealthy landowner, then in truth, there probably would have been no great problem.”

Hearing this, Zheng Fan suddenly remembered when he had first awakened all those years ago and the Demon Kings had sat around a table with him.

Who had asked him?

The Blind Man, perhaps.

The Blind Man had asked what kind of life he actually wanted to live.

One choice was to stir up some trouble.

The other was to become a wealthy gentleman, marry one principal wife, take two or three concubines, and spend the rest of his life prosperous and carefree. They could treat it as the Demon Kings repaying him for the affection of those old “stroke-by-stroke” days.

“Would you say this Prince counts as a wealthy gentleman now?”

“Your Highness is joking. A Rootless Person is already disliked by the Heavenly Dao. If he keeps his head down and lives a small, quiet life, perhaps Heaven simply ignores him. But the more he stirs things up, the larger the karmic consequences become. Eventually, even Heaven cannot ignore him. That woodcutter was someone my master met while entering the mountains. He lived a plain and contented life. His days were actually quite decent.”

“Then tell me. If this Prince lays down his armor and retires to the fields right now, is it still in time?”

“Your Highness, you are joking.”

“Heh.”

“In truth, Rootless People are rare, but perhaps not quite as rare as one might think. The Heavenly Dao turns and turns; there are always omissions. The affairs of the world constantly change. How could everything ever be perfectly clear? What is truly rare are the ‘Bo Les’ capable of recognizing such people. And if a Rootless Person begins to rise even a little, more often than not he meets a miserable end. As for those who never rise and simply live ordinary lives, who among the vast sea of people would ever know? Ordinary commoners have no grain left over at home. They cannot even bear to spend money asking a street fortune-teller to read their fate.”

“Then this Prince is curious. Why did you insist on entering Fengxin City?”

“Because at the time, this poor Daoist believed the Rootless Person was the child about to be born to Your Highness. If it were an Heir Prince, there would naturally be no need to say more. Even if it were a Commandery Princess, after leaving seclusion this poor Daoist had heard of the Commandery Princess of Prince Zhenbei Residence as well. She was no easy character either. With a starting point that high, the sufferings ordinary people encounter—survival, sickness, accidents—hardly matter. Prince Pingxi Residence has brocade robes and fine food, famous physicians and rare medicines, powerful experts standing guard. Heaven need only twitch one finger to make some ordinary commoner wish he were dead. But here, inside this princely residence, that is impossible. This poor Daoist has cultivated in the mountains for many years. Among those who practice beyond the world, I dare say there are only a tiny handful whose cultivation surpasses mine. Yet even I failed to glimpse inside Prince Pingxi Residence. At that moment, what this poor Daoist felt was fear. I was afraid. And Heaven... was afraid too. Your Highness, if one of the generals beneath you were like the man you once were, would you be afraid?”

“This Prince embraces all rivers and possesses a heart broad enough to contain Heaven itself. What would I be afraid of?”

“Heh. Yes. Yes. Of course.”

The Daoist worked his lips for a moment, then continued:

“Your Highness is a dragon and phoenix among men. The winds and clouds of all Xia have been stirred by your hand. The heroes of this age have either been personally cut down beneath you or reduced to hawks and hounds before your feet. But man, in the end, cannot contend with Heaven.”

“To struggle with men is endless joy.” Zheng Fan smiled faintly. “To struggle with Heaven is likewise endless joy.”

The Daoist smacked his lips softly.

“This poor Daoist admires Your Highness’s bearing.”

“You are not Master Cang.”

“No. This poor Daoist and Master Cang were different. He regarded himself as a Qian man. He loved the splendor of Great Qian. This poor Daoist can forget even his own name. In truth, I have no attachments at all.”

“When Master Cang entered Yanjing to sever Great Yan’s dragon vein, do you know what the late Emperor of Yan said?”

“What did he say?”

“Tell him to hurry up and cut it. We still have memorials to read.”

“Heh. Hahahaha... And yet the late Emperor of Yan was not granted a full lifespan by Heaven. Who can say that blade did not cut after all?”

Zheng Fan lowered his head and took a sip of tea. Then he set the cup back on the table.

Slowly, he said:

“And who can say that blade truly did cut?”

“Your Highness, you sat back down and spoke this much with me. You even treated me to tea. In the end, you believe me.”

“This Prince merely wanted to chat.”

“If you do not believe, why chat?”

“Street illusionists perform tricks everyone knows are false. People still love watching. It’s entertainment.”

Zheng Fan picked up a piece of rice cake from the table, brought it to his mouth, bit off half, and slowly chewed.

“This poor Daoist would like to offer Your Highness one warning.”

“Speak.”

“Long ago, Chu had an Emperor whose great shaman divined an omen: two dragons must not meet him. That Chu Emperor had two sons. For the next twenty years, neither son was allowed to enter the palace and meet their father. In that way, he avoided the heavenly omen.”

“You mean I should send my children away too?”

“That would be the safest course.”

“But it is also the most impossible.”

Zheng Fan tossed the half-eaten rice cake toward Fan Li.

“You can see these things. I suspect someone else once saw them too.”

“Oh?”

“He told me all this mysterious fortune-telling nonsense really comes down to a single sentence: believe it and it exists; don’t believe it and it doesn’t.”

“This poor Daoist does not believe Your Highness truly disbelieves.”

“‘Rootless Person’ sounds frightening enough. This Prince can tell you why I was willing to sit down, drink some tea, eat half a pastry, and talk to you.”

“This poor Daoist is all ears.”

“You said this Prince is the true Rootless Person. You were right. But you were also wrong.”

Confusion appeared on the Daoist’s face.

“This Prince understands that if the Heaven above truly thinks the same way a person does, then it must find me extremely unpleasant. I accept that part of your explanation. But I myself do not believe I am truly rootless. Because... I know perfectly well where my roots come from.”

With that, the Prince took a red stone from his pocket and placed it on the tea table.

Then he stood.

He pointed at the Daoist and said to Xue San and Fan Li:

“He might have been somewhat useful, but he crossed our greatest taboo. I’ve said it before. Anyone who dares pry into my family dies, no matter who he is.”

Even Ji Old Sixth, Emperor of Great Yan, did not dare mention some childhood betrothal in front of him.

Much less a mere mystic.

“Bury him completely.”

“This subordinate obeys!”

A smile appeared on Third Master’s face.

The Daoist, by contrast, was utterly baffled.

He had believed his explanations of fate and Heaven would at least buy him the opportunity to live as a prisoner.

Instead, these people genuinely intended to end him.

He had spent so long in mountain seclusion that the years had ceased to matter.

Had people outside the mountains all begun doing things this way?

“Your Highness, this poor Daoist is useful! Extremely useful!”

The Prince was already walking away.

Without looking back, he tossed out:

“Useful my ass.”

Pfft!

Third Master’s dagger entered the Daoist’s chest.

The Daoist clenched his teeth and stared fiercely at Xue San.

“Yo. This skin looks fragile, but the health bar underneath is thick as hell.”

“If you kill me, Heaven will punish you!” the Daoist cursed.

“All right!”

The big man beside him answered cheerfully.

Then...

Whoom!

Chop!

The great axe came down.

The Daoist’s head flew off.

“Damn nuisance.”

An expression of sheer enjoyment and satisfaction appeared on Fan Li’s face.

At last... he had finally gotten to bring that axe down.

As for heavenly punishment, truthfully, it held very little threat for the Demon Kings. Their current strength was nowhere near their peak, but they had, after all, seen genuinely grand things before.

“All right. He’s dead. Have the men below deal with the corpse and turn it into fertilizer.”

Third Master pulled out his dagger.

Fan Li wiped down his axe.

The small man and the giant started walking out together.

At that moment, a wisp of white light slowly rose from the headless corpse on the ground.

And just then... black mist suddenly erupted from the red stone Zheng Fan had left on the tea table.

A baby’s face emerged from the mist, wearing a hair-raising smile.

The white light began trembling violently.

Somewhere within it, one could almost hear the Daoist screaming curses.

Demon Child did not waste a word.

He opened his mouth.

The black mist swallowed the white light completely.

“Burp...”

Demon Child slowly floated back toward the ground.

The image he had manifested now possessed a visibly swollen belly.

Xue San and Fan Li, who had already left, came back inside.

Third Master clapped his hands.

“Stuffed yourself, didn’t you?”

Fan Li scratched his head.

“Jealous.”

...

Zheng Fan returned to the rear residence.

Tomorrow, he would set out for Snow Sea Pass.

He would not be gone long.

After all, this was not a war.

He was going to beat people.

Siniang’s quarters were actually Zheng Fan’s own principal courtyard.

When he entered, he discovered the place was unusually lively.

Big Girl had been carried over from the Princess’s courtyard.

Liu Ruqing and Madam Ke were there.

The wet nurse had just finished feeding Big Girl.

Tian Tian and Ji Chuanye stood nearby watching the baby.

Siniang sat in a reclining chair, smiling as she watched the scene.

Zheng Fan’s gaze first fell on Tian Tian.

He did not believe that when Tian Tian grew up, the boy would ever truly do anything to him.

Then... his gaze shifted to Ji Chuanye.

Mm.

This one... hard to say.

Hahahaha...

The Prince started laughing to himself.

Only then did everyone realize he had arrived.

They all saluted him.

The Prince walked over, accepted Big Girl from the wet nurse, and held her in his arms.

She had just finished drinking milk and was half-closing her eyes in satisfaction, clearly preparing to sleep.

But now that her own father was holding her and she could sense that familiar bond of blood, Big Girl still managed, with visible reluctance, to bestow a tiny smile upon him.

Siniang asked:

“Master plans to leave tomorrow?”

“Yes. It won’t take long. A little over a month, probably, and I’ll be back.”

When conditions allowed, he still wanted to stay beside his wife during childbirth.

He had genuinely failed to make it back in time for Xiong Liqing.

“Then Your Highness ought to give Big Girl a proper name before you leave,” Siniang reminded him.

Originally, there had been no hurry.

They could have waited.

But if he was going on a long journey, the name really did need to be settled first.

On the small scale, another name needed to be added among the longevity tablets at Gourd Temple.

On the larger scale, official letters sent to Yanjing and even Ying Capital required a proper, formal name.

Bestowed titles.

Rewards.

Entering the ancestral temple.

These were major matters.

They could hardly write “Big Girl” on every document.

Naming a child seemed simple to outsiders.

For the parents... it was difficult.

The day before, Xue San and Fan Li, those two clowns, had also come to visit the child. They had sat here for a while and naturally talked about names.

Third Master joked that since they wanted the child to grow up cheerful and happy, they should choose a simple, easygoing name with that meaning.

Siniang’s answer had been:

Fine. Go suggest it to Master yourself. I imagine the consequences will be worse than merely never advancing another grade.

Fan Li then said his own name was excellent.

After all, according to jianghu rumor, Prince Pingxi Residence was full of “Fan Lis.”

The two living treasures had clearly come only to make everyone laugh.

Hearing Siniang’s reminder now, Zheng Fan nodded.

“I already have one name in mind. I just haven’t had time to mention it to Liqing.”

Siniang smiled at Tian Tian and the Crown Prince standing nearby.

“What are you two staring at? Brush, ink, paper, inkstone.”

“Got it!”

“Oh.”

His Highness the Heir Prince and His Highness the Crown Prince immediately brought over the Four Treasures of the Study, spread everything out, and weighed the paper down.

Zheng Fan did not hesitate much.

He handed Big Girl to Liu Ruqing and picked up the brush.

Truthfully, Siniang was rather curious what name Master would give Big Girl.

After all... there was a precedent.

Tian Tian.

Tian Tian.

So she was genuinely worried for Big Girl.

Zheng Fan’s calligraphy had never been poor to begin with. Over the years, he had also deliberately practiced, and by now he could produce a respectable Slender Gold script.

Very soon... a name appeared on the paper.

Siniang looked over.

“Zheng Lanxin.”

The Prince put down his brush and offered his own explanation.

“Lan: mountain mist, wind stirring through the mountains. Graceful without losing breadth. Xin: brightness, the light of dawn, with the meaning of intelligence. My girl will grow up broad-minded, bright, and cheerful.”

Siniang nodded.

She was quite satisfied with the name.

At the same time... she casually reached out and rubbed Tian Tian’s head.

Tian Tian looked completely confused.

Why had you not been in this state of mind when you named Tian Tian?

“Master, take Big Girl over and tell Liqing the child’s name. She is the girl’s biological mother, after all.”

“Good.”

And so Liu Ruqing carried the child, while Tian Tian and the Crown Prince carried the sheet of paper with the newly written name.

Together, they followed the Prince toward the Princess’s courtyard.

Siniang remained reclining in her chair.

She had planned to close her eyes for a short nap.

Who could have guessed that a red stone would wobble its way into the courtyard and land on the tea table beside her?

Immediately afterward...

Demon Child’s figure manifested.

His belly was still swollen.

Siniang glanced at him and immediately understood what had happened.

She could not help laughing.

“Master’s personality is still as decisive as ever. You picked up quite a bargain.”

The Daoist being killed was slightly unexpected.

But it made sense.

That really was Master’s style.

Sometimes he could be downright Pokémon about collecting strange things.

Other times... he was frighteningly decisive when it came time to kill.

Demon Child floated upward with visible discomfort and settled on Siniang’s belly.

“What’s wrong?” Siniang asked.

Demon Child frowned.

“All right, all right. Next time I won’t let anyone carry her into this courtyard.”

Clearly, Demon Child had caught the scent Big Girl left behind.

Big Girl’s bloodline atavism was obvious.

And because she was still so young, the aura had not yet withdrawn inward. After her hundred-day celebration, it would more or less settle down.

For now... she was almost like a furnace radiating Fire Phoenix aura, the natural nemesis of all evil and unclean beings.

Of course, given Demon Child’s present strength, that tiny amount of Fire Phoenix aura was nothing to him.

Even if they gave Big Girl directly to Demon Child to raise, there would not be the slightest problem.

He simply disliked her.

Father and son were identical in that respect.

Both were shamelessly biased.

“But she is still a child of this family. Your little sister too. Once she grows a little, maybe you’ll like her.”

Demon Child looked completely unconvinced.

He pointed beneath himself.

At Siniang’s belly.

“Yours, yours. All right. You don’t need to come inspect the worksite every single day.”

Demon Child genuinely valued the child inside Siniang.

First, Tian Tian had grown older now.

Second, Siniang’s child carried a different meaning to the Demon Kings.

After receiving Siniang’s promise once again... a smile appeared on Demon Child’s face.

Then... he burped.

A cluster of crystalline radiance came out of his “mouth.”

Siniang laughed and scolded him:

“Aren’t you afraid of stuffing yourself to death? That Daoist’s cultivation was profound. You swallowed the whole thing in one go without worrying whether something might happen. And besides, our cultivation has a hard checkpoint on it. Unless you find a suitable blood bag the way A’Ming did, all this does is satisfy your appetite... Mm? How...”

The crystalline radiance Demon Child had burped out... suddenly spun in the air.

Then... it plunged into Siniang’s swollen abdomen.

More precisely... the one inside her belly... had actively sucked it in.

“...” Siniang.

“Jie-jie... Jie-jie...”

Demon Child looked delighted, as though he had just discovered an entirely new continent.

He raised one hand.

Patted his own belly.

“Burp!”

Another cluster of indigestible crystalline light came out.

Once again... the radiance began spinning.

But just as it was about to be dragged downward... a string of silver needles flew from Siniang’s hand.

A barrier formed instantly and forcibly dispersed the radiance.

Demon Child looked confused.

Siniang cursed:

“What the hell are you feeding it now for? You trying to make this old lady give birth early?”

Demon Child immediately stopped moving.

He was not afraid of Siniang.

But he was genuinely afraid something might happen to the child inside her belly.

Otherwise he would face the collective fury of the other six Demon Kings... and perhaps even his own father.

Siniang placed one hand on her stomach.

While forcibly soothing the movement inside her womb, she muttered self-mockingly:

“What kind of child... am I actually carrying?”

[End of Chapter 897]