Zhao Shen froze, then his eyes lit up. He released his grandfather’s arm and hurried forward eagerly, greeting warmly, “So it’s Master Guo! This student is Zhao Shen from Runan, with the courtesy name Shen.”
He gazed at Guo Pu with admiration, earnestly inviting him inside. Halfway there, he remembered his two elders and turned back with a beaming smile to support Zhao Song, calling to Zhao Hu, “Seventh Great Uncle, didn’t you say there are several sheep on the estate? Why not slaughter one now to entertain our distinguished guest?”
Zhao Hu: …
Zhao Song glared at Zhao Shen covertly and asked in a low voice, “Where did you get a courtesy name?”
Zhao Shen whispered back, “I gave it to myself. Father knows about it too. Grandfather, we have guests here—let’s discuss this later.”
Zhao Song felt increasingly stifled, sensing his illness had worsened by two degrees. But he was a prideful man, and with so many outsiders present, he could only suppress his anger for now. He pushed away Zhao Shen’s hand and went inside on his own.
Due to Zhao Shen’s self-bestowed courtesy name, Zhao Song was rarely angry with this grandson.
Zhao Hu’s villa immediately filled with people. Scanning the ragged layers of clothing piled on their bodies and their disheveled hair, he exhaled and waved his hand, “Distribute them among the various rooms.”
Out of sight, out of mind—and it would also help them avoid the cold wind. The difference between being inside or outside was quite significant.
As their leader, Kuai Yi naturally busied himself settling them in.
Zhao Hu gave them some grain. Kuai Yi naturally didn’t want to trouble the villa’s cook. Clearly, there weren’t many people at the villa, and the Zhao family guards were all circling around Zhao Song and his companions, so he intended to have people build fires and cook porridge themselves.
In the bustle, he couldn’t attend to Guo Pu, though Guo Pu didn’t need his attendance anyway.
Zhao Shen enthusiastically received Guo Pu on his behalf. As soon as they sat down, he ordered the kitchen to bring hot soup and refreshments.
Guo Pu had clearly caught a chill on the road. After a bowl of mutton soup stewed with ginger went down, warmth rose in his abdomen and slowly spread to his limbs. The back of his neck began to sweat lightly, and his palms and feet gradually warmed.
Only then did Guo Pu feel he had come back to life.
Because of this wonderful experience, and because Zhao Song and Zhao Hu sitting across from him were clearly quite calm toward him—not like those fanatical enthusiasts who chased after him (like Zhao Shen), nor like those flattering wretches who sought divinations from him—he was willing to say a bit more to them.
He looked Zhao Hu up and down, then examined Zhao Song. The more he looked, the more doubtful he became. The smile on his face gradually faded. Thinking of the celestial phenomena he had observed in the dark night two days ago, he couldn’t help but turn to ask Zhao Shen, “Has there been any major news in Luoyang these past three days?”
“Major news?” Zhao Shen said, “The marriage alliance between the Zhao and Fu families? But this match was arranged four years ago, so it’s not really major news, is it?”
Guo Pu: “I mean national affairs.”
Zhao Shen smiled, “Doesn’t that count as a national affair? But besides that, Chengguo has submitted—they’ve formally exchanged credentials?”
Guo Pu was mildly surprised. He had been fleeing for his life and didn’t know that after Zhao Hanzhang had defeated the Xiongnu and Shi Lei, she had also brought Shu territory to submit.
Thinking of the Prince of Langya in Jiangnan, Guo Pu couldn’t help but burst into laughter, laughing louder and louder until tears nearly came out!
The three members of the Zhao family stared at him blankly.
Guo Pu extended his index finger to wipe away his tears and said to the three, “Congratulations to you all—your Zhao clan will produce a Human Sovereign.”
Zhao Shen’s mouth fell open. Zhao Song was so frightened that the bowl in his hand dropped, hitting the table and rolling twice before falling to the floor mat. The bowl remained undamaged.
Zhao Hu, however, was wildly delighted. He first turned to share this joyous feeling with Zhao Song, but seeing his expression was wrong, he abandoned him and looked eagerly at Guo Pu instead, “Is it true?”
Guo Pu didn’t respond to Zhao Hu but instead looked at the bloodless Zhao Song, saying, “Why can Master Zhao only see an ancestral hall and not the masses living on this vast earth?”
Guo Pu rose and walked to the doorway. With a sweep of his wide sleeves, he pointed at the disaster victims hunched over and bustling about in the courtyard, asking, “Are their lives, the stability of this realm, and the honor, disgrace, life and death of your thousands of Zhao clan members not as important as the loyalty and righteousness in your heart?”
Zhao Song’s lips trembled slightly, his face gradually turning ashen. “You, you…”
Guo Pu looked back at him with a half-smile. “Before I fled Jiangnan, the Prince of Langya sent people to arrest me, asking if his great enterprise could succeed.”
“Master Zhao, you and I both know what will happen if this realm returns to the Jin imperial house versus what it will be like in Zhao Hanzhang’s hands.” Guo Pu raised his chin toward outside the door. “The chance at life Zhao Hanzhang gives them will slowly rot when the dynasty falls back into Jin hands. Even if she once saved this world and made it better, without changing its foundation, it will still decay—just slower, living a few more years, that’s all.”
“The underworld doesn’t only have your Zhao ancestors—it also has the tens of thousands of common people who died unjustly. When that time comes, before we even discuss whether you can face your Zhao ancestors, can you face these tens of thousands of common people?!”
This stern questioning struck him as if he were sitting among bells and drums, making his heart beat violently. When he put himself in that position, his heart ached, and with a cry he vomited a large mouthful of black blood.
Now it was Zhao Hu’s turn to be frightened. “You, you’ve angered my fifth brother to death!”
Though Zhao Shen’s expression was grave, his eyes couldn’t help showing some hope. He quickly stepped forward to support Zhao Song, gently patting his back, then grasped his hand to feel his pulse. After a moment, he sighed with relief and said to Zhao Hu, who was anxiously circling and loudly calling for a physician, “Seventh Great Uncle, Grandfather has actually improved.”
“You’ve addled your brain chasing immortals—vomiting such a large mouthful of blood…” He looked down and saw Zhao Song’s complexion change from pale green to normal, even better than when leaving the city. Most importantly, his tightly knitted brows had also relaxed. He couldn’t help but pause. “It really is an improvement?”
Zhao Shen was delighted. “The divination I cast before leaving was indeed correct—this journey is truly most auspicious.”
Not only had he met his idol, but he’d also cured his grandfather’s heart ailment.
Zhao Hu still called for the physician—the one who had accompanied them. After all, Zhao Song was ill; how would he dare bring him out of the city without a physician?
The physician felt Zhao Song’s pulse and also found it good. This was someone who had thought things through; the stagnation of emotional distress had dissolved. He too became happy. “I’ll write Fifth Grand Master a prescription. Take it for two days and you’ll be well. If you don’t want to take medicine, you can make soup with poria and angelica, or drink some meat broth—that’s also good.”
After writing the prescription, he asked curiously, “May I ask how Grand Master managed to vomit out this mouthful of stagnant blood?”
He felt this was crucial. If he learned it, next time he encountered such an illness he could replicate the method.
Zhao Song and Zhao Shen couldn’t find words for a moment. Just as they were about to make an excuse to dismiss him, they heard Zhao Hu say, “He was angered into it. Just scold people—say whatever’s harshest and make them vomit blood, then they’ll be fine.”
Physician: …He understood the concept, but he didn’t dare. He feared being beaten by the patient’s family.
What if the operation went wrong and instead of curing them through anger, he angered them to death?
The physician quickly stood up and bowed with clasped hands. “This humble one will go prepare and brew the medicine now.”
He’d pass on that method for now.
Seeing Zhao Song had improved and there were no more outsiders in the room, Zhao Hu’s heart itched unbearably like claws scratching. He sidled up to Guo Pu and asked, “Master Guo, when you just said our Zhao clan will produce a Human Sovereign—is that true or false?”
When saying the words “Human Sovereign,” Zhao Hu kept his voice as low as possible, but both Zhao Shen and Zhao Song in the room heard it and looked up together.
Guo Pu’s expression was cold and indifferent. “Guo never lies.”
—