After Lin Chengyou finished speaking, he flicked his finger and released something. The strange force beneath Juesheng’s feet suddenly vanished. Though extremely reluctant, he could only honestly shuffle back.

Qizhi followed behind in confusion, wondering what trouble Juesheng had gotten into to be caught by Senior Brother.

Juesheng dejectedly walked up to Lin Chengyou and stood properly. Lin Chengyou crooked his finger: “Take it out.”

Juesheng obediently handed over the package. Lin Chengyou poured out its contents and laughed: “You’re becoming quite accomplished – now you know how to steal things from the monastery.”

Qizhi’s eyes nearly popped out: “Ah, so many ‘Make-You-Wish-You-Were-Dead Itching Bloom’ bugs! Juesheng, what were you going to do with these?”

Prince Chun’an teased: “No need to ask, this must be Elder Brother Da’s naming. Imperial Physician Yu, have you heard of such strange insects?”

Imperial Physician Yu squinted his eyes: “Never heard of them. Young Master, these are probably for playing pranks again, aren’t they?”

Lin Chengyou smiled: “Boiled and eaten they can extend life. If you like them, Elder, I’ll send you a few later.”

Imperial Physician Yu knew this child’s nature well and hurriedly said in fright: “No need, no need, the Young Master should keep them for his amusement.”

Juesheng took the opportunity to secretly wipe his sweat, but Lin Chengyou’s gaze swept over, freezing him with a shudder.

“Who were you taking so many to give to?”

“Lady… Lady Teng.”

“Which Lady Teng?”

“The Lady Teng who lent Senior Brother her sword yesterday.” Juesheng mumbled, “Last night when I asked Lady Teng about the situation in the bamboo grove, she asked me to bring her some itching bugs to examine.”

His voice couldn’t get any smaller, his head couldn’t bow any lower.

Prince Chun’an pondered: “Lady Teng from Purple Cloud Tower last night… Could she be Teng Shao’s daughter?”

Lin Chengyou stroked his chin. He certainly remembered Lady Teng – the scene of them working together to lure the old demon last night was still vivid in his mind. Strangely, he couldn’t recall her appearance no matter how he tried. After thinking for a while, he realized the young lady had worn a face veil all night.

“And then?” Lin Chengyou stared at Juesheng.

Juesheng grew increasingly uneasy: “Lady Teng just said she wondered if her jade sword could deal with our itching bugs. I was curious when I heard this, so I agreed to bring her a few when visiting today…”

“Does she know what these itching bugs are used for?”

“Y-yes.”

Lin Chengyou snorted with laughter. Very good – she was plotting against Cloud Peak Monastery now. She must have seen this foolish boy coveting the jade sword and deliberately used it as bait to get him to steal bugs for her.

“She fooled you with just a few words?”

Juesheng hurriedly shook his head, then shamefully nodded.

“Did you ever consider that she deliberately showed you the jade sword just to get the itching bugs from you?”

Juesheng shamefully twisted his fingers: “Lady Teng… she doesn’t seem like a bad person.”

“Doesn’t seem like a bad person?” Lin Chengyou laughed instead of getting angry. “Do bad people have it written on their faces? You’ve only met her once, you don’t know anything about her background, yet she casually intimidates you with a jade sword and you steal itching bugs for her. Next time she wants other treasures from the monastery, will you steal those for her too?!”

Juesheng trembled in fright. This was bad – Senior Brother seemed truly angry this time. While wiping his tears, he stole a glance at Senior Brother and indeed found not a trace of humor in his eyes.

He thought in a panic that his Senior Brother was the type who could toy with others but absolutely wouldn’t tolerate others toying with him. Lady Teng not only coveted Cloud Peak Monastery’s possessions but had nearly succeeded. If Senior Brother hadn’t known it would have been fine, but now that he knew, he definitely wouldn’t let it go.

“I lost my head.” Juesheng’s tears fell like rain. “I shouldn’t have stolen monastery items just because I coveted an outsider’s magical weapon. I-I did wrong, Senior Brother can punish me however he wants, I absolutely won’t dare do it again.”

Lin Chengyou grabbed Juesheng by the collar and dragged him straight out of the scripture hall: “Verbal promises are useless. If I don’t punish you severely, you’ll keep doing foolish things in the future.”

Qizhi anxiously stood by, helpless. Senior Brother was furious – any punishment now would definitely be more than just copying scriptures and kneeling.

He lifted his robes and hurried after them: “Senior Brother, Senior Brother, Lady Teng did help us out of trouble last night. Juesheng has always valued loyalty, he probably couldn’t bring himself to refuse because he wanted to repay her kindness. Since it’s his first offense, please forgive him this once.”

Lin Chengyou sneered: “No need to hurry to plead for him, it’ll be your turn soon. During last night’s Shangsi Festival, you and Juesheng snuck out without permission, watched performances, and ate meat skewers, having quite a good time.”

Qizhi covered his mouth, nearly forgetting about that. After catching them last night, Senior Brother had already punished them with a year of vegetarian diet using the formation setup as an excuse. They thought the matter was settled, not realizing one thing had nothing to do with the other – there was still this punishment waiting.

Senior Brother had often caught them breaking rules before, but being quite unruly himself, he usually turned a blind eye. This time he was so angry probably because he couldn’t stand Cloud Peak Monastery nearly being taken advantage of by a young lady.

Juesheng cried: “Today’s matters all started because of me, and I was the one who urged Qizhi to leave the monastery last night. Please just punish me alone and spare Qizhi.”

Lin Chengyou nodded with a smile: “Fine! You’re welcome to make excuses for each other. Every excuse just means another hundred strokes each!”

The two were so frightened they bit their tongues.

Lin Chengyou dragged them straight to Cloud Assembly Hall, the most secluded place in the monastery. The enormous hall had floor-to-ceiling bookshelves on all four walls, packed with various scriptures and texts.

“First kneel for punishment.”

Juesheng and Qizhi collapsed in a heap, sobbing while nervously following Senior Brother’s footsteps with their eyes.

Lin Chengyou produced something from somewhere and patted it in his palm as he slowly walked toward them.

The two shuddered – this was the discipline ruler that Master had used to teach Senior Brother. The heavy black implement would leave deep bruises when it struck.

In the past when Senior Brother caused trouble, Master would often bring out this heavy ruler, but for all his roaring, the old man never had the heart to strike.

Crown Prince was different – whenever he heard about Senior Brother’s misdeeds, he would definitely come personally to severely discipline his son with this ruler. Senior Brother had taken many beatings because of it.

Juesheng and Qizhi clutched their heads crying – what to do? Senior Brother would only be more merciless than the Crown Prince had been back then.

“Hold out your hands. Won’t accept punishment? Fine, I’ll use something else.” Lin Chengyou made to turn around.

“We’ll accept!” The two hurriedly held out their hands. Since they couldn’t escape a beating, the ruler was better than other strange punishments.

“Senior Brother, we know we were wrong, wuu wuu wuu.”

“Wrong about what?”

“This disciple violated the monastery’s First and Seventh Precepts.”

Qizhi cried: “This disciple violated the Second and Seventh Precepts.”

“Leaving the monastery without permission, deceiving your elders, stealing monastery property, betraying trust – is there anything you don’t dare do? In my view there’s no point in punishment – might as well expel you from the sect!”

The two were struck as if by lightning, crawling forward on their knees to grab Lin Chengyou’s legs: “Senior Brother, please punish us severely, just don’t drive us away. Living or dead, we belong to Cloud Peak Monastery.”

“Let go.” Lin Chengyou frowned in disgust.

They wouldn’t release him: “If we leave, who will play with your little leopard? Who will help Senior Brother set up formations? When Master returns, who will brew his medicinal porridge…”

Lin Chengyou remained unmoved: “Raise your hands.”

The two raised their hands high while sobbing, but after waiting a long time, the ruler hadn’t fallen on their palms. Just as they found it strange, Senior Brother suddenly grabbed them both up. Opening their eyes, they met Senior Brother’s black eyes whose mood they couldn’t read.

“As for the ruler – five hundred strikes each, and confinement. Three months each.”

Before they could feel relieved, they were doused with cold water. The so-called “confinement” meant a tiny meditation room less than five feet wide, like a cage.

Those punished with confinement had to copy one scripture scroll per day, writing from morning to night. With no windows, there wasn’t even a chance to slack off.

One month could drive someone mad, three months was enough to turn someone into an idiot.

Begging would be useless – they had brought this on themselves, and it was still better than being expelled from the sect.

They prostrated themselves, crying: “This disciple accepts punishment.”

Lin Chengyou changed his tone: “However—”

Juesheng and Qizhi each stuffed a chubby fist in their mouths, anxiously waiting.

“Considering you have important duties today, I’ll give you a chance to make up for your wrongs. If you do well today, you might be spared confinement. If you don’t do well, come back and quietly accept your punishment.”

Juesheng and Qizhi never imagined they’d find hope in such despair, nodding vigorously through their tears. This ordeal was more terrifying than direct punishment – they would never dare steal monastery items for outsiders again.

“Still follow the original plan to visit the Teng residence. When you see Lady Teng, do as I say.” Lin Chengyou turned and pointed at a bookshelf. “First take down the ‘Mirror of the Infinite’.”

Qizhi didn’t understand but stood up, patted his knees, and stretched to take down an open scroll.

Juesheng looked where he pointed – he knew this book extremely well. It recorded all the Daoist treasures under heaven, from the Black Dragon’s treasure to the City God’s seal, supposedly complete with everything. Even Crown Prince’s famous sword “Crimson Sky” was listed within.

The scroll was open – Senior Brother had already checked it after returning to the monastery.

“Lady Teng’s jade sword could cut through demon flesh – it’s no ordinary weapon. But I’ve searched through the ‘Mirror of the Infinite’ and found no record of this sword. Her father Teng Shao returns to Chang’an annually to report for duty – if he had obtained such a treasure sword, some word would have spread in Chang’an. But even Cloud Peak Monastery hasn’t heard of this sword, suggesting Lady Teng may not have gotten it from her father. If you ask directly about the sword’s origins, she may not tell the truth. Today when you go, use my method to draw out her words.”

Qizhi and Juesheng felt doubtful inside. Senior Brother had seen countless rare treasures since childhood. Though this jade sword was unusual, compared to the monastery’s treasures it was barely worth mentioning. They didn’t understand why Senior Brother was so interested.

Lin Chengyou seemed to know what they were thinking and lightly tapped their heads with the discipline ruler: “Last night at Purple Cloud Tower when the evil spirits emerged from underground, they suddenly abandoned us to chase after the group in the corridor. At the time, I thought they were going after the injured, but later realized these spirits were transformed from plants and grass. The injured had lost consciousness and wouldn’t have drawn plant spirits away from nearby living creatures, so something else must have strongly attracted them. Thinking it through, among that group, only the jade sword was particularly special.”

Qizhi scratched his head in confusion: “But that’s not right. Usually, evil spirits avoid such magical weapons – why would they actively approach it?”

“When something goes against the natural order, there must be something supernatural at work. That’s why we need to understand this clearly.”

The two nodded, though somewhat puzzled – was it just about discovering the sword’s origins? Letting Lady Teng off so easily didn’t seem to match Senior Brother’s style.

Lin Chengyou raised his eyes to look at them and suddenly smiled: “Besides that, there’s one more thing.”

After hearing Lin Chengyou’s instructions, Juesheng and Qizhi’s little faces scrunched up in distress. They knew offending Senior Brother would have no good outcome, but they were already struggling to take care of themselves – how could they dare plead for Lady Teng?

“But… but Lady Teng doesn’t seem easy to trick.”

“Not easy to trick? Let me ask you, what does she want?”

The two said blankly: “She wants the bugs.”

“…” Lin Chengyou said, “If you say bugs, then bugs it is. Since she has greed, she’ll fall for it.”

He smiled maliciously – trying to scheme against him, she didn’t know the heights of heaven or depths of earth.

The two firmly memorized Lin Chengyou’s words, only realizing when they left that their Daoist robes were soaked through with sweat.

Returning to the scripture hall, Duke An’guo leaned on his cane to greet them: “I have measured my wife’s foot size.”

As he spoke, he handed Lin Chengyou paper with traced footprints. Just as Lin Chengyou took it, Prince Chun’an put down his teacup and said: “That Lady Teng that Juesheng mentioned earlier, is she Teng Shao’s daughter?”

Lin Chengyou deliberately asked: “Who?”

Prince Chun’an said: “Don’t play dumb, I heard everything. Teng Shao once saved my life. You can trouble others, but don’t cause problems for the Teng family.”

Lin Chengyou made a hissing sound, pressing his hand to his forehead as his brows furrowed deeply.

Prince Chun’an laughed in exasperation: “Look at you, every time we discuss something serious you act like this.”

Lin Chengyou squeezed out through gritted teeth: “Imperial Physician Yu.”

Prince Chun’an’s expression changed. Lin Chengyou’s demeanor was not right. Duke An’guo dropped his cane, hurrying to support Lin Chengyou, but was a step too late – Lin Chengyou clutched his forehead and collapsed.

Juesheng and Qizhi rushed forward in one stride: “Senior Brother, what’s wrong?”

Imperial Physician Yu said urgently: “The Young Master’s old ailment has flared up. Last night when His Majesty heard the Young Master was injured, he was already worried about this. Who knew it would act up so quickly? Quick – help the Young Master to the couch.”

Prince Chun’an supported Lin Chengyou and said in a deep voice: “Usually it doesn’t flare up until the fourth month every year. Why has it come so many days early this year?”

Juesheng and Qizhi were extremely anxious. Last night when Senior Brother fought with the old demon, he’d injured his internal organs. After returning, he hadn’t had time to examine his injuries. They’d been worried he might trigger his old ailment, and sure enough, with this delay, it had flared up early.

Lin Chengyou kept his eyes tightly shut. In just the blink of an eye, his fair forehead was covered in beads of sweat. When this illness struck, it came violently and suddenly. It felt as if a sharp awl was frantically stirring inside his head – the pain was unbearable and endless.

He tossed and turned on the couch, in too much pain to speak. Fortunately, his mind was still clear. Before losing consciousness, he managed to raise his arm and point to his chest.

Juesheng and Qizhi saw clearly and anxiously took out a jade dew bottle from inside Lin Chengyou’s clothes.

Imperial Physician Yu had just opened his medicine box with trembling hands when he saw this and his eyes lit up: “Quick, dissolve it and give it to the Young Master immediately.”

As they administered the medicine, Imperial Physician Yu took out a package of silver needles and instructed Prince Chun’an: “Your Highness, please hold the Young Master steady. He absolutely must not move while I apply the needles.”

Lin Chengyou’s face was deathly pale, but he didn’t make a sound. In just that brief moment, his clothes were soaked with sweat inside and out. For now, he could still control himself, but if the pain continued, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t lose his mind and start thrashing about.

Prince Chun’an’s expression was grave as he followed instructions to hold Lin Chengyou.

Everyone in the room was deeply worried, but fortunately, the treatment was timely. By the time Imperial Physician Yu inserted the last needle, Lin Chengyou’s furrowed brow had finally relaxed.

Duke An’guo wiped his sweat: “Good, it’s better now.”

Prince Chun’an sighed in relief: “Every year it flares up, every year this kid gives us a scare. Credit to him for enduring it – in such pain yet not making a sound. But this attack today was truly too sudden, coming before the third month. If Imperial Physician Yu hadn’t been here, you would have suffered!”

Lin Chengyou lay back on the couch, lazily placing his hand across his forehead, and smiled: “Getting the pain over with early means I won’t have to hurt in the third month.”

Prince Chun’an turned to look at Duke An’guo and Imperial Physician Yu: “Look at him – in such pain earlier, now acting like nothing happened. Should have let him suffer longer to learn his lesson. Imperial Physician Yu, is there no way to cure this illness completely?”

“How could it be cured? Being able to control it is already not easy.”

Lin Chengyou turned over and sat up, waving his hand at Juesheng and Qizhi, indicating he was fine and they should hurry to the Teng residence on their errand.

Juesheng and Qizhi lingered a while longer. Seeing Senior Brother talking and laughing normally, they were about to take their leave when the side chamber door suddenly burst open and two elderly Daoists who were guarding the formation rushed out: “Not good, Senior Brother! The Soul-Settling Incense is flickering, and we’re almost out of Heart-Clearing Talismans.”

Everyone was startled. Duke An’guo hurriedly looked at Lin Chengyou. Lin Chengyou’s smile vanished as he beckoned to Juesheng and Qizhi: “You two don’t leave yet – write some Heart-Clearing Talismans first.” He then quickly entered the side chamber.

Juesheng and Qizhi spread out cinnabar and writing materials on the table – one grinding ink, one writing talismans.

Imperial Physician Yu and Prince Chun’an couldn’t help, so they remained in the main hall.

Imperial Physician Yu put the silver needles back in his case and asked Prince Chun’an: “Your Highness mentioned eliminating the root cause earlier, but I don’t even know how the Young Master contracted this illness. If Your Highness knows the origin and cause, could you explain in detail?”

Juesheng and Qizhi were startled. Senior Brother’s illness came and went like the wind. In the past, they had been kept in the dark about it until they accidentally witnessed an attack two years ago and learned Senior Brother had a chronic condition.

Later, they heard this wasn’t an illness he was born with, but rather one he’d given himself at age eight by recklessly using magic. It had been almost ten years now, with one painful attack every year.

But why Senior Brother had practiced that magic in the first place, they still didn’t understand.

Prince Chun’an glanced at the tightly closed side chamber door and smiled slightly: “It’s a long story. Chengyou has always forbidden others from mentioning this illness.”

Imperial Physician Yu said: “I’m not trying to pry into private matters – everything is for the sake of curing the Young Master’s illness. After today’s episode, Your Highness should understand that avoiding treatment will never eliminate the root cause. Daoist Qingxu isn’t in Chang’an now, and His Majesty has entrusted the Young Master’s illness to me. Though I’ve long known about the Young Master’s chronic condition, I’m still completely in the dark about what happened back then. This time we managed to treat it in time by chance, but who knows about next time? So Your Highness need not have reservations – just tell me the cause of this illness. When the Young Master comes out later, I’ll ask him directly as well.”

Prince Chun’an waved his hand with a smile: “No need to ask – he wouldn’t tell even if you killed him. But Imperial Physician Yu is right – treating an illness requires finding its source. Simply concealing it is indeed inappropriate. Since that’s the case, I’ll tell what I know, hoping we can quickly find a way to eliminate the root cause and spare him this annual suffering.”

Juesheng and Qizhi instinctively pricked up their ears.

Prince Chun’an used a silver strainer to scoop up some light orange tea and rolled up his sleeves to pour for Imperial Physician Yu, his movements unhurried and his bearing exceptionally refined.

Juesheng and Qizhi hardly dared breathe. Prince Chun’an was Crown Prince’s brother, but the brothers had different mothers. Years after his first wife passed away, the Prince of Lan had taken another consort, and Prince Chun’an was born to that consort. His given name was Lin Min, people called him Young Lord Min, and he was a full sixteen years younger than Crown Prince.

Because of this, although Prince Chun’an was Senior Brother’s royal uncle, he was only a few years older than Senior Brother. In their daily interactions, he was more like an elder brother than an elder relative. He knew more about Senior Brother’s childhood than anyone.

Whenever they saw Prince Chun’an, Juesheng, and Qizhi felt he had the grace of orchids and the warmth of fine jade. However, Prince Chun’an was famously slow-paced, and this time was no exception. The two waited and waited but still hadn’t heard him begin.

Imperial Physician Yu slowly savored his tea, seemingly unhurried. Just as they were about to finish a cup of tea, Prince Chun’an finally spoke leisurely:

“It’s a long story. When Chengyou was just born, Daoist Qingxu divined his fortune and said that while Chengyou would be successful in all things, his love life would not be smooth. He would eventually fall hard for some young lady, and there was no way to prevent it. This matter was originally kept from Chengyou, but unexpectedly, when he was seven or eight years old, he learned divination. Once, for fun, he divined his fortune, and the result matched what his master had calculated years ago.

“Chengyou naturally didn’t want to believe such a thing, so he ran to ask Daoist Qingxu to divine for him.

“Daoist Qingxu firmly refused and severely rebuked Chengyou. Chengyou suspected something was amiss, and after several months of practice, he divined again, only to get the same result.”

At this point, Prince Chun’an smiled: “At that time, Chengyou was studying at the Chongwen Pavilion. Because he refused to believe what the divination said, he would divine for himself whenever he had the chance but unfortunately got the same result every time. There are no walls in the world that are completely windproof – his secret activities were seen by others, and those playmates who often spent time with Chengyou would always tease him about it.

“Soon after, Chengyou accompanied the Crown Princess to attend a banquet at the Duke of Lin’an’s manor. The old duke was already an elder statesman of three reigns and had just reached his hundredth year. When His Majesty heard of this, he bestowed gifts and inquired after the old duke’s health. Therefore, on that day, not only did half of Chang’an’s noble families go to offer congratulations, but many officials from other regions came to celebrate as well. It was at the Duke of Lin’an’s manor that Chengyou met a little girl from Yangzhou.”

Imperial Physician Yu asked: “A little girl from Yangzhou?”

Prince Chun’an made a sound of agreement: “That little girl, I don’t know whose family she was from. She was only four or five years old, didn’t like to talk, and carried an old ragdoll in her arms. They say she was extremely beautiful and spoke with a Yangzhou accent. At the time, Chengyou was playing with his companions in the garden. After tiring of archery and wrestling, they suggested playing hide-and-seek in the garden.”

[Author’s Note: The Chongwen Pavilion was not as accessible as the Imperial Academy – it generally only admitted royal clan members and nobility.]