The Lotus Life Pavilion was named with the meaning of “compassion for life.” As Duan Xu’s black boots stepped onto the stone stairs, he saw a pond of white lotuses, their fragrance filling the courtyard. Across the water stood an eighteen-tiered wooden platform with a pavilion draped with bamboo curtains on all four sides. Someone could be faintly seen sitting inside. Clear water from an unknown source flowed from the top of the pavilion, running down the roof tiles, arching gracefully from the eaves into the pond below, forming a water curtain that seemed almost miraculous.

The common people entering through the vermilion gate could not approach the pavilion across the pond and could only stand on the white stone platform on this side, gazing at the pavilion to make their wishes.

Duan Xu glanced at the silhouette behind the water curtain and bamboo blinds, then called over a young attendant and handed him the umbrella, saying: “Please return this umbrella to the Imperial Preceptor and tell him Duan Shun Xi has visited.”

After speaking, he turned to leave but was held back by the young attendant tugging at his clothes. The child looked up and said in a muffled voice: “The red lotus umbrella of the fate-connected one must be returned to my master personally.”

With that, the young attendant led Duan Xu by the sleeve through the crowd to the edge of the lotus pond. Across the water curtain and bamboo blinds, the child performed a standard bow and announced loudly: “Master, the fate-connected one has arrived.”

As soon as he finished speaking, accompanied by the crisp sound of bells, a white bridge rose from the bottom of the lotus pond, extending from beneath Duan Xu’s feet to the steps of the pavilion. The young attendant gestured with his hand and said: “Please proceed fate-connected one.”

Duan Xu twirled the red lotus umbrella in his hand a couple of times before finally stepping onto the white bridge. When passing through the water curtain flowing down from the pavilion’s eaves, he opened the red lotus umbrella, which parted the water curtain and shielded him from the falling water. Thus, Duan Xu passed through the water curtain to face the pavilion, looking up at He Jiafeng Yi behind the bamboo blinds.

Through the gaps in the yellowish-green bamboo blinds, He Jiafeng Yi could be vaguely seen wearing elaborate gold and white interwoven garments, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, his birch staff laid across his knees, its bells jingling without any wind.

As it passed through the water curtain, the red lotuses on the umbrella faded to white. Duan Xu closed the umbrella, shaking off the water, and smiled: “The Lotus Life Pavilion is quite grand. To see the Imperial Preceptor, one must pass through so many obstacles.”

He Jiafeng Yi’s voice came leisurely from behind the bamboo blinds: “For a person to honestly face their inner heart, they must set aside layers of concerns, with each barrier washing away a layer of falsehood. The outer pond of the Lotus Life Pavilion has white lotuses, while the invisible inner pond has red lotuses. My Heart-Questioning Pavilion stands as the boundary, just like the exterior and interior of the human heart. One thought of purity turns raging flames into a tranquil pond.”

Duan Xu tapped the umbrella against his palm intermittently, not responding to He Jiafeng Yi’s profound philosophy, observing the silhouette behind the bamboo blinds without any change in expression.

He Jiafeng Yi sighed and rested his chin on his hand, saying: “I hear General Duan has never believed in gods or Buddha. Coming to my Lotus Life Pavilion today must be quite an inconvenience for you. Zi Ji quickly brings a cushion for General Duan to sit on. People outside the water curtain cannot hear what we say, so General Duan need not be concerned.”

This statement was completely different from his previous profound demeanor, instantly transforming from an Imperial Preceptor to a tavern owner greeting guests, his posture becoming more relaxed. Zi Ji brought over a cushion, and Duan Xu sat down readily, listening as He Jiafeng Yi continued: “But since she gave you the umbrella and you’ve come here, why not ask me what you want to know? For instance, the relationship between He Simu and me? Or perhaps your recent fortune?”

This was the first time the Imperial Preceptor had ever stooped to peddling questions to a fate-connected visitor.

This fate-connected one was not too ungrateful and smiled as he took up the conversation: “Since the Imperial Preceptor already knows and is prepared, let’s proceed.”

He Jiafeng Yi thought to himself, which of them was the Imperial Preceptor? Why did it feel like he was the one asking for a favor? Moreover, this young man seemed to harbor some hostility toward him. Heaven and earth as his witness, doing a good deed these days was so difficult.

“You should know that He Simu once had four close relatives—her parents aunt and uncle. I am the twentieth-generation great-grandson of her aunt and uncle. In private, I call her a venerable ancestor. My parents died early, and she took care of me for a period during my childhood. She’s an elder who watched me grow up.”

Duan Xu seemed somewhat surprised. He raised his eyebrows, showing a genuinely sincere smile: “I see.”

He Jiafeng Yi sensed that Duan Xu’s hostility had decreased by seventy or eighty percent, understanding its source. He inwardly spat in contempt but outwardly maintained his composure, saying: “Actually, I invited you here today because I’ve prepared a wedding gift for you.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Zi Ji came forward with a brocade pouch and handed it to Duan Xu. Duan Xu accepted the pouch, opened it, and saw a note inside. After reading its contents, he showed a slightly surprised expression and turned his gaze toward the vague figure behind the bamboo blinds.

“I’ve heard that General Duan has a photographic memory, so you probably don’t need to look again.” He Jiafeng Yi snapped his fingers, and the note in Duan Xu’s hand instantly self-combusted into ashes.

Duan Xu pressed his lips together, bowed, and smiled: “Thank you for your assistance, Imperial Preceptor. Is this gift from you or…?”

“The venerable ancestor doesn’t concern herself with mortal court affairs. This gift was prepared by me.”

“We have had no previous interactions. Why do you help me?”

The silhouette behind the bamboo blinds was silent for a moment. Duan Xu heard a faint laugh, and then the Imperial Preceptor said: “I’m not helping you.”

“In my youth, I was very rebellious and liked to dig to the root of everything, pursuing relentlessly until I got answers. When the venerable ancestor was taking care of me, I had the same curiosity about her. One day, I secretly found one of her journals.”

“The initial handwriting in that journal wasn’t hers but belonged to the previous Ghost King couple—her parents. The first half recorded her birth, learning to speak, and various interesting events of her growth. Midway through, the handwriting changed, as did the tone, becoming that of the venerable ancestor herself. It seems the previous Ghost King had given her this journal to continue writing on her own.”

“The person recorded in the journal was completely different from the He Simu we know. That young woman named He Simu had many fears; she was proud and delicate, very good at being coquettish and throwing tantrums. On her birthday, she pestered her living mother to pick clothes for her. Her mother said red suited her best, so she had more than ten red robes made. Despite being unable to discern colors herself, she claimed to like them.”

“The journal was thick, extensively recording some minute daily events—about relatives, friends, lovers. Until one page wrote: ‘Father dead, returned to ghost realm.’ After that, it was all blank.”

Behind the bamboo blinds, He Jiafeng Yi’s narrating voice paused. The bells continued to ring slowly, like some restless yet helpless emotions. Duan Xu clasped his hands together, then separated them.

“I always thought the venerable ancestor was strange but couldn’t pinpoint what was odd about her. After reading the journal, I suddenly realized that her time had stagnated, forever stopped at the moment her father passed away three hundred years ago. She wears the clothes she once loved most and fulfills the tasks her parents and elders once taught her and hoped she would complete. Even when speaking to me, she would say, ‘Why don’t you resemble your aunt and uncle at all?’ How strange—she had met my parents, yet she traced back to ancestors twenty generations ago to compare with me.”

“To this ongoing world, she is vaguely unfamiliar, angry, yet helpless. Just like that abruptly ending journal, from the moment the last line was written, she no longer needed to be understood, only feared. She left her precious people in the past sealed in that journal. In these three hundred years, there have been no newcomers.”

Duan Xu sat properly in a patch of bright summer sunlight, with the water curtain flowing irregularly behind him, refracting shimmering light. That brightness fell through the gaps in the bamboo blinds into He Jiafeng Yi’s eyes, allowing him to see Duan Xu.

This young man, nearly ten years his junior, had a focused gaze, as if possessing an unshakable certainty, listening attentively to his words.

He Jiafeng Yi smiled, extending his staff to lift the bamboo blinds, meeting Duan Xu’s eyes. At this moment, he was no longer the inscrutable representative of the divine but an ordinary mortal speaking from the heart.

“General Duan, whether as the covenant-bearer or something else, I hope you can make the stagnant time within her flow again. That is my reason for helping you.”

Duan Xu looked at He Jiafeng Yi, stood up, and bowed deeply, saying in his most sincere and peaceful tone since entering the Lotus Life Pavilion: “Thank you, Imperial Preceptor. Since that’s the case, Shun Xi indeed has one more favor to ask.”

“What is it?”

“The Ghost King has a bright pearl. My exchange of the five senses with her uses this pearl as a medium. Is the Imperial Preceptor familiar with this?”

He Jiafeng Yi smiled and said: “I am very familiar with it indeed.”

“I would like to request the Imperial Preceptor to write a talisman for me,” Duan Xu said.

After Duan Xu left the Lotus Life Pavilion with the talisman tucked away, He Jiafeng Yi stretched lazily, thinking that youth was indeed wonderful. Duan Xu’s bold, headstrong nature, refusing to turn back until hitting a wall, was quite similar to his own younger self. As he pondered, he watched Zi Ji walk over to take away the cushion, stacking it neatly, then having the young attendants wipe clean the water marks left by the umbrella—a manner that couldn’t tolerate the slightest disorder.

He Jiafeng Yi couldn’t help but sigh. When Zi Ji walked up the steps to bring him his daily medicinal soup, he accepted the bowl, swirled it slightly, and looked up at her.

“You don’t have to do these things, Zi Ji,” he said.

Zi Ji did not speak. The beautiful woman lowered her eyes as she sat before him, her skin white as snow, her hair black as silk, yet she seemed like a wooden doll. He Jiafeng Yi had long grown accustomed to Zi Ji’s taciturnity and simply smiled to himself: “In the past, I was young and rebellious, despising the world and resenting society. Now I have let go. You should return to where you belong. What meaning is there in staying? You know I won’t live long.”

Zi Ji finally raised her head to look at He Jiafeng Yi, her eyes deep and dark like the unreachable night sky. She calmly said: “I know what I’m doing.”

After a pause, she said briefly: “Drink your medicine.”

He Jiafeng Yi gave a bitter smile and drank the medicine in one gulp.

Meanwhile, after leaving the Lotus Life Pavilion, Duan Xu headed straight for Yucao Tower. The information He Jiafeng Yi had given was like sending charcoal in snowy weather, a bright light after the dark.

The note had read: “May’s spring ends, peony flowers fall.”

The Emperor’s most beloved consort, Noble Lady Yu, was passionate about peonies. The Emperor had once gathered precious peonies from across the land to plant in her courtyard. She had another title: “Peony Beauty.” Her son, the Fifth Prince, also benefited from his mother’s favor, being much loved by the Emperor and a strong candidate for crown prince in the court.

May and peonies referred to the Fifth Prince and Noble Lady Yu—they were about to meet with disaster. This was great news, as Noble Lady Yu was the daughter of Sun Zi’an, the Minister of War. Sun Zi’an was the mastermind behind the horse administration corruption case. If Noble Lady Yu fell from grace, he would inevitably be implicated, making the investigation and evidence collection for the horse administration corruption case much easier.