Chapter Sixteen: Shen Haohao, Born in the Year of the Dog
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Tuoba Dao saw that the mysterious figure seated upon the throne was staring absently at the cultivation manual inscribed on the white jade stele.
He suspected nothing and merely waited in silence.
Only after more than a dozen breaths did the mysterious figure finally turn his head. His gaze seemed to gather the purple radiance within Kaiyang Palace before descending directly upon him.
Tuoba Dao felt that same mysterious aura merge with the Master of White Jade Capital, as though this mysterious man had originally been formed from that wondrous purple radiance itself.
“What manner of place is this White Jade Capital?”
“I have never heard of it, which is strange enough, but why has there not been the slightest trace of it among the Nine Heavenly Steles?”
“If I wished to cultivate within Kaiyang Palace, would the Master of White Jade Capital agree?”
These thoughts passed through his mind.
The Master of White Jade Capital, whose entire body shone with brilliant radiance, moved once more.
It was as though he had seen through Tuoba Dao’s thoughts, seen through the old man’s longing. With a mere snap of his fingers—
In an instant, a stream of purple radiance condensed within Kaiyang Palace. It shot forth like a beam of light and settled upon the center of Tuoba Dao’s brow.
The purple radiance gathered there, transforming into a violet mark before gradually fading until it vanished completely.
“From this day onward, every seven days, sense the mark of purple radiance between your brows, and you may come to Kaiyang Palace in White Jade Capital. Though your physical body cannot come here, your spiritual essence may, and it will still aid your cultivation. In return for writing down the world’s present methods and principles of the Way for me, you may enter and leave Kaiyang Palace. Consider it my gift of thanks.”
Chen Zhi’an spoke slowly.
The longer he remained within Kaiyang Palace, and the more closely he sensed that purple radiance, the more he could perceive the various mysteries contained within it. Granting the old man the power to enter and leave Kaiyang Palace was one such mystery.
“The purple radiance of Kaiyang follows a pattern in both its consumption and regeneration. If I allow the old man to enter for one day every seven days, there will be just enough radiance, with some left over for my own comprehension.”
He did not understand why, after transforming into rays of light, he had sensed only this old man among the countless beams that filled the sky. He had tried communicating with Kaiyang Palace, but had received no answer.
Even so, he always felt that Nan Liujing and Kaiyang Palace must have had a reason for making him transform into radiance and drawing this old man here.
Allowing the old man to cultivate within Kaiyang Palace would surely prove useful in the future.
While he pondered this in silence, Tuoba Dao had already sensed the strange mark of purple radiance between his brows.
He closed his eyes and attempted to communicate with it. The mark responded at once.
Tuoba Dao’s eyes flew open, shining brightly.
“It truly works.”
“The mysteries of Kaiyang Palace are beyond measure. One day of cultivation every seven days will be sufficient... sufficient to help me advance another step before my allotted years run out.”
“Thank you, Master of White Jade Capital...”
Tuoba Dao was just about to bow when he looked up and saw that the impossibly mysterious Master of White Jade Capital had vanished from the throne without a sound.
The throne stood empty, leaving behind only the flowing purple radiance.
After a moment’s thought, he bowed toward the vacant throne all the same. Then he sat down cross-legged. Behind him, the faint outline of a towering divine aspect appeared and sat cross-legged alongside him.
—
Chen Zhi’an opened his eyes. By then, daylight was already pouring through the world.
He gazed up through the window. The sun hung high at the center of the sky, casting its radiance over the pear blossoms in the courtyard.
The fragrance of pear blossoms drifted through the air. With the ninety days of spring vying against the sunlight, it was clear that another beautiful spring day had arrived.
And yet...
Chen Zhi’an suddenly felt that something was strange.
“Without realizing it, it’s already noon. Why didn’t Father wake me to eat?”
He stepped out of his room. The courtyard had already been swept, not a speck of dust to be seen. Only a few fallen leaves remained, adding several touches of springtime charm.
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On the stone table in the courtyard, a sheet of paper covered in a few scattered words was held down by a paperweight.
It was a letter from Chen Shuijun.
Chen Zhi’an immediately understood. He took several steps forward and picked it up.
“Eat your meals on time while I’m away.”
There was only one sentence on the letter, yet Chen Zhi’an let out a sigh.
Over the past two years, he had grown thoroughly accustomed to having this adoptive father of his by his side, preparing food for him every day.
Chen Shuijun was taciturn and never asked after his welfare. Yet the carefully prepared meals he made each day revealed the concern he held for his son.
Though Chen Zhi’an had taken over the body of another, he still found that concern profound and weighty.
So Chen Zhi’an decided to heed Chen Shuijun’s words. He set up a stove in the courtyard, then went to the kitchen and found half a leg of salted mutton and some white flour.
“My old father’s private storehouse is truly bottomless. He clearly collects only a few ounces of silver in tuition, yet our household is almost never short of meat.”
Such a standard of living was uncommon even in the prosperous Province of Su-Wu.
After marveling at this for a while, Chen Zhi’an set up a cutting board on the stone table, added water to the flour, and kneaded the dough. He then found a wooden rolling pin and rolled the dough into thin wrappers, cutting them into round shapes.
He had already blanched the mutton. During the process, he recalled that the Yellow Bell Qi-Circulating Decoction recorded in the Great Snow Mountain Qi-Absorbing Manual contained an herb called Yellow-Stopping Leaf, which was effective at removing fishy and gamey odors.
Chen Zhi’an simply took out several leaves of Yellow-Stopping Leaf and blanched them together with the mutton.
The local mutton of Su-Wu was not particularly good. Its gamey odor was too strong, and the meat itself was rather tough. For Chen Zhi’an, who in his previous life had eaten his way through all eight great culinary traditions, steaming or boiling it could hardly be called appetizing.
So he decided to make dumplings with it.
After blanching the meat, Chen Zhi’an was astonished to discover that Yellow-Stopping Leaf was remarkably effective at removing the gamey odor. He even leaned closer to smell it, only to find that the odor had almost entirely disappeared.
“Not bad. Expensive things do have their reasons.”
Chen Zhi’an nodded in satisfaction. Yellow-Stopping Leaf was one of the more costly ingredients among the twenty-odd herbs used in the Yellow Bell Qi-Circulating Decoction. Ordinary households would hardly use it to remove the smell of meat, yet his first attempt had produced excellent results.
“Since I’m indulging myself, I may as well go all the way.”
Chen Zhi’an took out several pieces of Scarlet-Center Ginger, along with some scallions and garlic. He chopped the mutton finely, mixed it with the ginger, scallions, and garlic, and made the filling. Soon, he had wrapped forty or fifty dumplings.
He placed them into the pot. Once they were cooked, the fragrance of scallions, ginger, garlic, and mutton rose irresistibly into the air.
Chen Zhi’an swallowed.
“What a pity Father isn’t here.”
He had just placed the dumplings onto a plate when someone suddenly knocked at the gate.
Chen Zhi’an was somewhat surprised. Who would come to their little courtyard?
He went to open the door and saw Shen Haohao standing with her hands behind her back, craning her neck to peer inside.
“Chen Zhi’an, what have you been cooking in your courtyard?”
Shen Haohao wore a bright-red gown decorated with tassels, with a jeweled hairpin tucked into her hair. Though petite, she possessed a slender waist and a graceful figure.
Her skin was exceptionally fair, smooth as congealed jade and glowing with a crystalline flush, like flawless white mutton-fat jade.
The red gown set against that gentle jade-like complexion, together with her bright, mischievous eyes, made her appear especially lovely and fresh.
“Is my neighbor a dog in disguise?”
Chen Zhi’an found the thought both amusing and exasperating. Then he remembered that his neighbor came from no ordinary background. She was also a cultivator, and had even dared to trade barbs with the Third Young Master of the Si family, Si Hougui. Her cultivation was likely quite formidable.
“Cultivation tempers the body and sharpens the five senses. It isn’t strange that she could smell the food.”
“I made dumplings,” Chen Zhi’an thought, answering honestly aloud.
He was not a stingy man. Besides, Shen Haohao had once spoken up for him before Si Hougui and had given him the Great Snow Mountain Qi-Absorbing Manual and the Tiger-Hug Fist manual.
Although Chen Zhi’an had later sent her a painting in return, the value of a single painting... was truly insufficient to repay the favor he owed her.
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“Oh.” Shen Haohao’s delicate nose twitched faintly once more. “Then you should eat. I just happened to be passing by.”
As she spoke, she craned her head into the courtyard again.
Chen Zhi’an could neither laugh nor cry.
“Miss Haohao, would you like some?”
“That would be fine.”
Shen Haohao immediately walked into the courtyard.
“My favorite food in the capital was mutton dumplings. Unfortunately, the mutton in Su-Wu is far too gamey. It is hardly fit to serve guests, let alone worth calling delicious. How did you make these? They smell wonderful, and there is hardly any gamey odor.”
Shen Haohao lavished him with praise.
The two of them came to the stone table. Chen Zhi’an found a plate and served her more than twenty dumplings.
Shen Haohao was small in stature, yet when she ate, she devoured the food like a whirlwind. She was hardly graceful, and broth splashed all over her face. In the space of a few dozen breaths, she had finished more than twenty dumplings.
More than a dozen still remained on Chen Zhi’an’s plate.
“Hm...”
While eating, Shen Haohao had thought only that the dumplings were delicious. It was not until she finished that she noticed a wave of heat rising from her stomach and spreading throughout her body.
At the root of her tongue, a strange ginger fragrance lingered, rich and lingering.
“They truly are delicious,” Shen Haohao thought. “My neighbor certainly knows his way around a kitchen.”
She naturally had no idea that Chen Zhi’an’s culinary skills were actually quite ordinary. The dumplings tasted so good because the Yellow-Stopping Leaf had removed the mutton’s gamey odor, while the precious Scarlet-Center Ginger had added its own flavor.
Chen Zhi’an watched Shen Haohao with amusement, then glanced down at his own plate. Out of politeness, he said, “If I had known earlier that Miss Haohao liked them, I would have given you more. Unfortunately, these dumplings are already on my plate...”
“No matter.”
Shen Haohao chuckled, then proceeded to take another five or six dumplings from Chen Zhi’an’s plate.
“At least she has some manners. She didn’t take the whole lot.”
Chen Zhi’an found the red-clad girl before him exceedingly entertaining.
After eating another five or six dumplings, Shen Haohao rubbed her stomach and sighed once more.
“The dumplings are delicious. It’s just that you made too few. They weren’t enough for two people.”
Chen Zhi’an answered honestly, “That was all the mutton we had at home.”
“My family has some.”
Shen Haohao rose and walked out through the gate. Before long, she returned. Just as she had once brought him two manuals, she now came back carrying two entire lamb legs by the shanks.
She held them out to the somewhat bewildered Chen Zhi’an.
“If you make dumplings again, come next door and call for me.”
Shen Haohao licked her lips, still savoring the meal.
Chen Zhi’an rose helplessly to his feet.
“I’ll make some more for you.”
Half an hour later, Chen Zhi’an stared in utter astonishment as Shen Haohao devoured more than a hundred dumplings in a single sitting.
After clearing several large plates, Shen Haohao noticed Chen Zhi’an’s expression and suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
“Cultivators naturally eat somewhat more. We need to transform food into blood vitality and true essence, and tempering the body also requires greater nourishment.”
Shen Haohao offered this explanation. Then, remembering the cultivation methods she had given her neighbor, she changed the subject.
“You’ve read the Great Snow Mountain Qi-Absorbing Manual? Is it difficult to understand?”
“You fed me dumplings, so if there is anything you don’t understand, come and ask me. I’ll explain it to you. You must be careful and cautious when cultivating. Whether or not you can master it, you must first understand the cultivation method thoroughly before beginning. Impatience will not do. Otherwise, you may injure yourself instead.”
“There’s nothing I don’t understand,” Chen Zhi’an replied as he cleared away the bowls and chopsticks. “I should be the one thanking you, Miss Shen. Without these two manuals, cultivation would probably have remained forever beyond my reach.”
Shen Haohao raised an eyebrow.
“You’ve already begun cultivating?”
Chen Zhi’an nodded casually.
Shen Haohao looked him up and down with some suspicion, then could not help reminding him, “Since you’ve begun, you must be diligent. Every day, try to sense the blood vitality within your body. On the road of cultivation, gradual progress and steady practice are the true principles.”
This time, Chen Zhi’an said nothing more. He merely smiled and nodded at Shen Haohao.
“Understood. Thank you, Miss Shen.”
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