Legend of Fu Yao

That young man bowed silently.

Meng Fuyao suddenly slammed the cupboard door open.

She slammed it open with such force that the door split into pieces, landing on the floor noisily.

This cupboard that had locked her up for five whole years, containing her childhood darkest fears and traumatic memory, finally shattered 14 years later.

Without turning back, Meng Fuyao headed straight to the bedside. That bed was completely black due to Xu Wan’s blood, and the skeleton of the bed frame was rotten to the core. She lifted up the black bedding that soaked in Xu Wan’s excessive blood and started to fossick through the bed.

After a while, she found a tiny pouch. There were words sewn on the pouch, and inside contained the bud of a jade lotus.

The jade lotus no longer resembled its original form. It was dyed in red, soaked in that fresh, metallic blood, turning into a blood lotus.

Meng Fuyao clutched that tiny lotus in her hand, and then coldly threw the flower out. That blood lotus bounced slightly on the floor and rolled along, stopping right at Zong Yue’s feet.

Zong Yue watched the blood lotus attentively. Somehow, his hand was trembling. Meng Fuyao walked straight over, right passed Zong Yue, and squeezed her way through the door. The narrow door, decayed from its core, fell apart into pieces as Meng Fuyao pushed her way through. The frame creaked and then collapsed over them. Zong Yue immediately reached his hand over to cover Meng Fuyao while he himself was covered completely in the dust. But without even looking up, Meng Fuyao continued walking forward.

She headed right to the entrance of the palace and kicked the wall. A door sign hanging on the palace door dropped and crashed onto the ground. With her foot, Meng Fuyao attempted to sweep the dust aside. Two huge words were revealed — Yan Ling.

Yan Ling Palace.

Meng Fuyao kicked the wall once more with more force. The dilapidated wall, unable to withstand the impact, instantly collapsed into shambles.

The palace wall crumbled into its own foundation as dust and smoke rose. Meng Fuyao did not run nor avoid. Instead, she stood there as her eyes searched for something.

Her gaze suddenly stopped.

At the corner of the palace walls, there was a cloth bag peeking out from beneath the soil.

Looking at the bag, Meng Fuyao trembled. Even so, she bit down on her teeth and strode forward.

She squatted down and started the dig with her bare hands, till she could remove the bag from the soil. She undid the knots on the cloth bag.

A white, battered skeleton revealed itself.

Xu Wan.

The Xu Wan that had been buried at the corner of Yan Ling Palace for the past 14 years.

14 years later, she finally saw the light of the day and finally reunited with her daughter once more.

A breeze blew from afar. It turns out, the spring breeze could be so chilling to the bone, bringing with it the nightmare from 14 years ago.

With that bag of bones in her hands, she stood there dumbly. That icy cold bones seemed to press on her heart, slowly dismantling the calm demeanor Meng Fuyao had put up. And so, she began to tremble uncontrollably, falling down to her knees, right in front of where the bones were buried.

Suddenly, tears flooded her face.

That night, when she had found out the truth, she had never once shed a drop of tear. But now, with her defense stripped and having the first tear broken free, tears rushed out like an unrestrainable river. A cry of desperation and pain escaped as her shoulders trembled. Her silent screams pierced through the hearts of those who saw, leaving them with a heavy heart.

‘… For so many years with that wall pressing on you… It must have been tiring…’

‘… That vicious b*tch really died in shame… Your daughter has taken revenge for you…’

‘… I am very well… The most honorable and noble… king… of the Five Regions Continent…’

‘… I am sorry… I used to blame you for abandoning me and didn’t want to look for you… Sorry…’

‘… In your next life, I hope you don’t have anything to do with the palace…’

The moon gradually made its appearance. The gentle moonlight shone on the lady in black, carving out a faint silhouette on the debris of the wall. It illuminated the desolate back view of the majestic, renowned leader in the Five Region Continent.

After a very very long time, she quietly tied the bag up, carried it in her arms, and stood up.

And then she turned back.

And stared at Zong Yue.

She stared at the Zong Yue, who had been standing frozen at the door frame ever since she had dug out Xu Wan’s bones.

Her gaze was like an icy dagger, stabbing through Zong Yue.

Enunciating every word clearly, she questioned, “Did you kill Xu Wan?”

Zong Yue stood there quietly in the darkness. The breath of the three was quiet yet uneasy.

After a while, as if afraid of breaking this tense silence, he whispered, “Yes.”

Meng Fuyao let out a long exasperated breath.

It was, by no means, a sigh of relief. Rather, it seemed as though it was Meng Fuyao’s attempt to get rid of everything that was weighing on her heart.

“You saved me?”

“Yes,” Zong Yue replied after a while.

“Very well.” Meng Fuyao quietly carried Xu Wan’s bones in her arms and looked up in the sky. In that silence, a strong scent of Rosa Rubus ¹ lingered in the air. After a long while, she said, “Write off the gratitude and grudges.”

With that, she hugged the bag of bones and walked away without turning back.

The silent Zong Yue suddenly said, “The Xuanji Empress was my distant relative. The type that we barely keep in touch.”

Meng Fuyao stopped and stood there, back-facing him without a word.

“Back then, after my family was massacred, I was forced to escape. Even though I have relatives in the Five Regions Continent, with many of them of high ranking positions, none of them was willing to take me, this trouble, in. It was her, the distant aunt that even I had forgotten I had, that had sent someone to fetch me. She had told me that with her protecting me, there would be no one that would dare to lay a finger on me.”

Zong Yue heaved a sigh. In that dark night, that breath actually turned white, as if they were in the dead of winter. However, it was the night of spring, the season filled with warmth and hope. Yet, his eyes were filled with bleakness and pain.

“Perhaps, it wasn’t that she pitied with my encounter, but more so to show off the power and honor she had as an Empress. But even so, in the hardest times of my life, she took care of me. My “Virtuous Guild” had started off in Xuanji, and without her help, I would not have been able to grow it. In fact, I would have long died in the hands of assassins and not have the chance to take my revenge.”

“You know? I would do anything to take revenge, much less follow her orders.” Zong Yue laughed bitterly. “She is the villain, and I am the villain’s accomplice. With Epsilon’s position, there were some deeds that he was unwilling to commit. It was then that I was tasked to do it.”

“Including, murdering Xu Wan? To put her through the torture of grooming?” Meng Fuyao’s question was by no means a question. Rather, it was a rock with sharp edges, waiting to crush him.

“You… can say so.” Zong Yue closed his eyes. “After she was found out, she attempted to escape. Not towards the palace, but back into the house. She probably wanted to let you escape first. It was me… that stopped her. I could not… not stop her since the Empress had ordered me to. But back then, I did not know she wanted to let you… escape.”

Meng Fuyao stood there, silently.

“When she was in my hands, she begged me to let her daughter off. Looking into her eyes, I was reminded of my own mother. That night when my family was massacred, my mother begged our family’s knight to escort me out safely… her gaze… was like this too.

“And so, I asked her if she was willing to die. She looked at me in surprise and nodded her head. She was really smart. Without any explanation from me, she had made her choice. I caught her and sealed her meridians using the golden needle. It could stop her from feeling any pain, it’s just that with that, she would definitely die.”

Meng Fuyao froze.

“What happened afterward, you know it too. Grooming… I never thought that it would be so cruel to this point. The golden needle was not able to completely stop her from feeling pain. Furthermore, I was young back then and was not able to properly execute it. Xu Wan… still suffered.

“But she died quickly.” Zong Yue sighed. “Once the golden needle had pierced through the acupuncture point, she would not have been able to survive past an hour. She… did not suffer as much as you thought.

“So I do not think that I owe her anything. I was the one that caught her, but even if I didn’t, she would have definitely not be able to escape. Furthermore, she did not even think of escaping from the palace. And back then, I did not think I had any reason to save her,” Zong Yue explained. “Fuyao… I only felt like I owed you. Back then, if I had allowed her to let you go first… then, at the very least… at the very least… you would not be forced to witness that scene… that… was my fault.”

“And so, you sealed my memories?” Meng Fuyao asked, emotionless.

“I regretted… letting you witness that. And so, I brought you out of the palace and sealed your memories after much hesitation. Perhaps this decision was unfair but… back then… you… I was afraid that you would go mad…”

Zong Yue kept quiet. He recalled that night when he had carried that tiny, skinny child in his arms. She had not said a word but struggled vigorously. Even though she had not had any strength and he had been trained, every step trying to drag her away had taken so much effort. She had grabbed onto everything that she could. Her eyes had been filled with hatred and distrust towards him. He had been afraid that someone would find out, and when he had quickly carried her away, she had actually bit down on the bed frame. If he had not realized that something had been amiss, her mouthful of teeth would have probably been pulled out.

With hatred… anger… frantically trying to hold it in… From the start, she had not shed a tear nor uttered a word.

He could only seal her acupuncture point and rush out of the city. He had been afraid that having such memory would cause harm to the child and could only choose to seal her memories after much hesitation.