Chapter Thirty-Five: The Flower Withers Early

Update time: 2013-06-04

“Yes, I understand.” Lian Yue replied obediently.

She trotted to the doorway, watching the two figures disappear into the little courtyard, then turned back to the bedside. Looking at Meng Chuchen, who lay there with eyes closed in quiet repose, she asked, “What did you and eldest brother and sister talk about? Why do they seem to know everything?”

Meng Chuchen opened his eyes just a sliver. In truth, he was exhausted; he’d been forcing himself to stay alert in front of Lian Yu and Yue Lingjun, but now the weariness he’d suppressed finally surfaced. Yet he couldn’t bear to neglect Lian Yue, so he answered weakly, “I simply told them about the events of the past half month, and then spoke a little about Master’s recent years. Nothing more.”

“Did eldest brother and sister give you trouble? Oh, I mean about when you took me away from Meilan Garden…”

Meng Chuchen shook his head tiredly. Seeing this, Lian Yue forced herself to stow away her doubts. “You should rest now. Yao Yao and I are going.”

Meng Chuchen squinted and nodded. “Yao Yao is just a bit too curious, but she’s easy to get along with. There are several beautiful spots in the sect; if you want to see them, let her take you. Yao Yao, did you hear?”

Yao Yao, who had been silent for a long while, declared earnestly, “Don’t worry, senior brother, I’ll take good care of sister Yue.”

Meng Chuchen said no more. It seemed he truly was spent, for before Lian Yue and Yao Yao had even stepped outside, they heard his steady breathing.

On the path from Chuchen’s small courtyard to the temporary lodgings where Lian Yu was staying, Lian Yue, Yao Yao, and Lan Shui walked leisurely. From time to time, Lian Yue’s delighted praise rang out, but something seemed missing. She thought for a long while, unable to pinpoint it, then turned to ask Lan Shui. Seeing Lian Yue deep in thought, inspiration struck—what was missing was Yao Yao’s usual chattering.

Lian Yue was puzzled by Yao Yao’s demeanor, thinking to herself, “This isn’t like her at all.”

She hesitated, then nudged Yao Yao’s arm, bringing her back to reality. “Ah…what is it?”

“Yao Yao, what were you thinking about? You seemed so lost in thought.”

Yao Yao shook her head vigorously and replied carelessly, “Nothing much. I was just wondering: you and senior brother Chuchen are twins, so why is he the brother and you the sister? Isn’t it odd?”

With her question, Lian Yue froze in place. Indeed, she’d never considered that possibility; from the beginning, she hadn’t thought she might have a younger brother, simply accepted him as her elder brother.

Now it was Yao Yao’s turn to nudge the absent-minded Lian Yue.

“I don’t know, but our parents always said so; it shouldn’t be wrong,” Lian Yue replied uncertainly.

“So strange,” Yao Yao muttered, not satisfied, “Born on the same day, yet so strictly distinguished—how do they decide? It’s just too strange.” Saying this, her eyes suddenly lit up with excitement. She exclaimed to Lian Yue, “I’ve thought of a way!”

“What way? Tell me quick!” Lian Yue was intrigued.

Yao Yao leaned in mysteriously and whispered in Lian Yue’s ear, “My plan is to have twins myself one day, then I’ll know. How about that? Isn’t it clever?”

“Cough…cough cough…cough cough cough cough…” Lian Yue was struck speechless by Yao Yao’s lightning bolt of an idea. This girl’s imagination was something else; even the ever-resourceful Lian Yu would admit defeat. “Yao Yao, isn’t that a bit premature…”

Yao Yao blinked her bright, mischievous eyes and retorted, “Early? Not at all. In another two and a half years, I’ll come of age. Aunt Lan told me, once I’m grown, I can marry senior brother Chuchen—how is that early?”

If the previous remark was merely a minor shock, then Yao Yao’s words now were a thunderclap to Lian Yue, and even Lan Shui stumbled beside them.

Lian Yue stammered in disbelief, “You…cough cough…what did you say…who do you want to marry?”

“Senior brother Chuchen,” Yao Yao tilted her head, puzzled by their shock, “Is there a problem?”

No problem? No problem? There’s a huge problem! Lian Yue screamed inwardly, but kept her composure as she asked, “Does anyone know about this?”

“Who’s ‘anyone’? Oh…you mean senior brother Chuchen. Strange, why not just say his name? ‘Anyone’ is so impolite…”

Lian Yue barely suppressed her urge to spit blood, mentally scolding the imagined Yao Yao: “If I knew what to call him, I wouldn’t be listening to your nonsense.”

But Yao Yao, as if reading her thoughts, laughed behind her hand, “I get it—you’re struggling with whether senior brother Chuchen is your brother or your younger brother, right? Haha, that must be it.”

Lian Yue looked at Yao Yao in defeat. If you already know, why ask? She surrendered, hoping Yao Yao would finally answer properly.

Yao Yao, oblivious to Lian Yue’s expression, thought she was still tangled up in the brother issue, and consoled her, “Oh, don’t worry about it. In the end, it’s either brother or younger brother. Since you’re born on the same day, someone has to be first…”

Looking at Yao Yao’s incessant chatter, Lian Yue could only admit defeat, weakly reminding her, “I’m asking whether he knows you want to marry him!”

“Oh…so that’s what you meant. You should’ve said so!” Lian Yue weakly defended herself, thinking she’d been asking that all along. “He doesn’t know! Marrying him is my business; it has nothing to do with him. Why should he know?”

Yao Yao spoke as if it were perfectly natural, while the others’ eyes nearly fell out.

Too formidable—invincible, even. Lian Yue redefined Yao Yao in her mind: a true eccentric, a rare specimen. She sincerely wondered how her sibling—whether brother or not—had endured these years. Simply too, too, too, too strong!

Since it concerned her sibling’s lifelong happiness, Lian Yue suppressed her urge to flee and tentatively said, “Yao Yao, perhaps it’s not just your own affair—you should let your senior brother know.”

“Why? Is it necessary? I don’t think so. Is it really necessary? Maybe…”

Watching Yao Yao’s innocent, self-questioning manner, Lian Yue decisively gave up. Turning to Lan Shui, whose face was now lined with frustration, she looked for rescue. “Sister Lan, shouldn’t we go find eldest sister?”

Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Lan Shui’s hand and hurried off, not stopping until they’d gone a considerable distance. Only then did she glance back at Yao Yao, still muttering to herself, wiped the cold sweat from her brow, and sighed in relief, “Sister Lan, Yao Yao is really something…”

Lan Shui nodded emphatically, “Just a little more ‘something’ than you, miss…” Her tone was almost dangerously candid.

Lian Yue wanted to protest, but reflecting on herself two months ago, she admitted it was true. Had she not deliberately restrained herself these past two months, meeting Yao Yao now might have felt like a long-awaited reunion. If they joined forces, then…

The thought made Lian Yue’s heart flutter, but she quickly broke off the notion.

When Lan Shui and Lian Yue arrived at Lian Yu’s courtyard, Yao Yao hadn’t followed. But since she’d grown up here and knew where they were headed, if she didn’t come, she was either still mumbling to herself or had other matters. They decided not to worry.

“Eldest sister…” Lian Yue called as she entered the house.

She was answered instead by Yue Zhanpeng’s hearty voice: “Yue, you’re here at just the right time. I’m about to head home. You all stay on the mountain for a few days, and I’ll come fetch you once my affairs are settled.”

Lian Yue could tell her father was in good spirits—the discussion must have gone well. She looked around but saw no sign of her mother.

“No need to look, Yue. Your mother was stopped by the Grand Elder on the way and is resting in her room.” Yue Zhanpeng understood his daughter’s thoughts. Fearing she might misunderstand, he added, “The Grand Elder is only concerned for her; she can’t handle too much strain and really needs to rest.”

Lian Yue saw the pain in her father’s eyes and quietly began planning how to bring her mother home. Now that she’d recovered her memory, there was no reason to remain here. And her sibling—whether brother or not—would need to come home too.

This reminded Lian Yue of something she needed to confirm with her father. “Father, between Meng Chuchen and me, who is older?”

Yue Zhanpeng was momentarily surprised. “The same—you were born on the same day.” Then he realized what his daughter meant and was amused. “Strictly speaking, Chuchen was born a cup of tea’s time before you, so he’s your second brother and you’re still the youngest.”

Lian Yu and Yue Lingjun, sitting nearby, understood immediately—so their little sister was still tangled up in this issue.

“Yue, why did you return so soon? How did your research on that special resonance go?” Lian Yu was clearly focused on another matter.

“We didn’t study it. He—oh, no, second brother—was tired and went to sleep, so I came back. We’ll research it later.”

“Special resonance? What’s that?” Yue Zhanpeng hadn’t heard of it.

“Oh, it’s like this: Yue and second brother sometimes sense each other’s thoughts, but not always,” Yue Lingjun explained.

Yue Zhanpeng looked at Lian Yue in surprise. Seeing her nod, he mused, “I’ve heard of such things, but…”

Lian Yue’s eyes brightened as she pressed him, “But what…”

“But I’ve only heard about it, never seen it myself. It’s said to happen among twins. Yue, you two should investigate it carefully.”

Lian Yue nodded obediently.

“Well, since Chuchen is resting, I won’t visit him. Let him know for me. I’ve already spoken to your Uncle Zhou and Uncle Yuwen.” With that, he rose and headed for the door.

“Father, I’ll go home with you!” Yue Lingjun said hurriedly.

Yue Zhanpeng turned back with a gratified smile. “No need—you’ve been exhausted these two months. Take this chance to rest.” Then he turned to Lian Yue, “And Yue, find time to visit Lingxi; he was injured because of you.”

Lian Yue was startled, recalling that blood-stained face, and guilt welled up in her heart. She reproached herself for having forgotten him and quickly agreed.

Only then did Yue Zhanpeng leave, guided by a disciple of the Hidden Sect.