Useless Use

Xu Qiu knew that Gu Yu only saw him as a knife and had no other feelings for him, but when she actually let go of the handle, he still felt a piercing pain.

The pain was like being gnawed by hundreds of poisonous insects.

The pain shooting straight to the top of his head almost made him lose his balance.

They were originally allies formed because of shared goals, but now their positions are at odds... He seemed to understand why Gu Yu was determined to break up the partnership.

"Madam, how do you know I won't choose you?"

Xu Qiu stared at him intently, the light in his eyes growing dimmer.

"Why did you choose me?" Gu Yu asked, puzzled. "Just because of that shallow romantic love?"

Can liking someone completely change a person's personality? Gu Yu didn't believe it. Even if she made a decision in the heat of the moment, wouldn't she regret it later?

Gu Yu never gambles on people's hearts; today's confrontation and frankness already demonstrate her deep trust in Xu Qiu.

“Superficial?” Xu Qiu smiled bitterly. “Madam, sometimes I really hate you. It’s so painful to be the only one singing a one-man show.”

He was originally a heartless person, but then he met her, which made him struggle in the mortal world. Occasionally, he would taste a little sweetness and then tell himself not to let go...

“That poem, the one from Zuixinlou that no one has claimed, I’ve thought about it and I believe it’s your work,” Gu Yu said. “I still remember that neat little regular script.”

"So I think that because of Xu Shanhai's kindness to you, you will never stand with me. Even if you are with me now, you will regret it later."

“You were never a devoted and sincere person to begin with. If you leave me, you have countless young ladies from respectable families to choose from.”

Xu Qiu smiled wryly. Xu Shanhai's kindness indeed prevented him from doing anything rebellious, and Emperor Shengyuan had also shown him kindness by promoting him.

If he were to help Gu Yu, he would only end up being scorned by the world, making it a losing proposition no matter how you look at it.

However, reason is one thing, and emotion is another; Xu Qiu felt that he might be going crazy.

"Madam, my feelings for you might be more than just love..."

His unspoken meaning dissipated in the evening breeze.

The crescent moon slowly climbed onto the treetops, its light casting shadows that concealed the expressions of both individuals.

Xu Qiu thought to himself, if he didn't love her, why would he lose all sense of propriety and compromise himself just to gain her pity?

But the word "love" is too unfamiliar and too strange.

Xu Qiu chewed on the word, slowly swallowing it down, unable to spit it out again.

"?" Gu Yu tilted her head to look at him in confusion. More than just liking? What's going on beyond liking? Love?

What is love?

From childhood to adulthood, Tang Qingning has never lacked love.

Her parents were a loving couple when she was young. As their eldest daughter, she received all of their love. Her younger brother was sensible and well-mannered, and Yuzhu was considerate and thoughtful. She experienced both familial and platonic love.

When she first fell in love, she was smitten with a young general riding a tall horse. She experienced that bittersweet romance.

She received a lot of love and was never short of it, but she never learned how to love others.

On the contrary, Xu Qiu, who gained nothing, learned to love first.

He always put her first, worried about her health, tried to understand her thoughts, and got her everything she wanted.

So, Xu Qiu must have loved her, even if he didn't dare to say it out loud, she could feel it, that cautious yet bittersweet love.

"Xu Qiu, let's get a divorce."

A gentle smile once again graced her kind face.

Since you love me, you should let me do what I want to do.

"After the divorce, whatever I do is none of your business."

Even if there is an abyss in front of her, she will move forward without hesitation.

“…Okay.” Xu Qiu felt extremely embarrassed at this moment.

Even though he had revealed his true feelings to such an extent, she was still a cold-hearted and heartless person.

"Good, good, good." He gritted his teeth and said "good" three times in a row, his voice becoming clearer and clearer.

"Since you've made up your mind, then let's get a divorce. It'll be better if we could have one less pair of lovesick lovers in this world."

Xu Qiu forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. "I will draft the divorce papers, and they will be sent to the Duke's mansion in a few days."

He suppressed the metallic taste in his throat and quickly walked out of the courtyard. However, when he exited the Duke's mansion through the back door, his vision went black and he fainted.

Fortunately, Liuyun was waiting for him behind the door.

When he found Xu Qiu unconscious, he couldn't help but sigh, "Feelings really can ruin people..."

In the courtyard, Gu Yu sat blankly at the stone table until Qiu Ju brought her dinner, at which point she realized how late it was.

After finishing her meal and returning to her boudoir, she retrieved the scroll of the blood-written scripture left by Master Zhang from a hidden compartment in her canopy bed.

She stroked the soft, worn-smelling parchment scroll, thinking of Tang's father; sometimes, life is full of such coincidences—

This scroll of scripture was originally a gift from a wandering Taoist priest whom Tang's father had helped.

Tang's father was somewhat hesitant after receiving the true scriptures.

Because he felt that Emperor Shengyuan was obsessed with Taoist cultivation and neglected state affairs, which was a bad thing, and he also knew that if he presented this thing, his own official position could be promoted.

The wife no longer needs to stay up late doing needlework to supplement the family income, the daughter no longer needs to secretly go out to work and earn money for the family, and the son can be taught by a better tutor.

But before he could figure it out, he was beheaded.

This scroll of scripture must have been confiscated by soldiers during a raid on her home. I don't know how it ended up in Xu Qiu's hands, and after going through many twists and turns, it returned to her.

This feud is irreconcilable; it will not end until death.

Gu Yu's gaze drifted to the waning moon outside, and she thought of the person who had told her more than just liking her in the hazy moonlight.

She had asked herself countless times: Xu Qiu was no longer her best choice, nor the most useful knife; he was no longer of any use. Why did she still feel pity for him?

The use of the useless? What is it?

*

Jing Zichen looked at the letters between the Crown Prince and the Northern Di, which he didn't know who had sent them, and couldn't help but smile.

"Heaven is helping me, and people are helping me too."

He teased the parrot in the cage, "Little Five, if I really become emperor, how about I make you a prince?"

The colorful birds in the cage pecked at the bars of the golden cage with their tender yellow beaks, hopping around with their webbed feet, seemingly excited, "Good, good, good."

"Hahahaha..." Jing Zichen laughed heartily and asked his subordinates to deliver the items to the Censor of the Censorate.

Now, even if Emperor Shengyuan doesn't attend court, everyone who needs to know will know that the deposed crown prince secretly contacted the Northern Di and sent troops to invade.

Since it concerned the royal family's reputation, the cabinet discussed it again and again, and finally drafted a memorial to submit to Emperor Shengyuan, who was no longer claiming to be ill.

Emperor Shengyuan was furious and decided to order the death of the deposed crown prince.

To protect his reputation, Jing Zichen couldn't get involved in this matter. He simply stayed quietly in his own residence, occasionally going to the palace to see his mother.

The imperial decree was issued by Qiu Xinhai, the current head of the Eastern Depot.

It was half a month later when the Empress received the news that the deposed Crown Prince had died of remorse. This news was not kept from the Empress, who was under house arrest in Kunning Palace.

Empress Ye died of illness on her bed not long after, and the whole country mourned.

Gu Yu, dressed in white, observed three days of mourning for the deceased empress.

Since Xu Qiu left that day, there has been no news about him.

The divorce papers have already been delivered to their residence and passed through the government office. Their divorce is now finalized, and they will have no further relationship with each other in marriage.

It was already the end of August. So much had happened in the past six months, so many people had died, including some important figures. The people of Shengjing were all talking about it.

Emperor Shengyuan finally went to court. Although he looked much more haggard, he did not appear to be on his deathbed.

Gu Hanying was summoned to the palace several times, and in early September he officially set off for the north.

Gu Yu took the blood-written scripture to Xu San Niang's residence. She found a craftsman to make a new sheepskin scroll, and had Xu San Niang copy the scripture again. Finally, she placed a prescription for elixirs in the interlayer of the sheepskin scroll.

After a few busy days, she returned to her small courtyard. The fields that used to be overgrown with weeds were now withered and yellow.

Gu Yu looked around and thought it was too desolate. She beckoned Qiu Ju over and said, "Qiu Ju, I want to move a tree in."

Qiu Ju originally wanted to transplant some flowers in, otherwise it wouldn't look like a young lady's courtyard, but Gu Yu refused.

Hearing that Miss had finally remembered to tend to the courtyard, he smiled and asked, "What kind of tree would Miss like?"

What kind of tree?

Gu Yu suddenly remembered an ordinary afternoon when that person carefully took out a snow-white hibiscus flower from his bosom.

The flower had some petals still closed, while the other petals were slightly open, resembling the lotus throne of Guanyin, pure white and soft, with a touch of holy beauty.

It was carefully selected; it is the most beautiful form of hibiscus.

"Hibiscus trees, then. You can admire the red plum blossoms in winter and the hibiscus in summer. That would be perfect."

The flowers Xu Qiu gave her seemed to have... been planted in her heart.

The dense root system penetrated deep into her heart, and even nourished by hatred, pain, and obscure emotions, it still blossomed.

Originally, flowers were useless; she could have planted other things, like herbs, grains, or fruits... She shouldn't have thought of planting them.

Xu Qiu is useless; she has a better knife and a better way to achieve her goal. She shouldn't think about him anymore.

Even though it was useless, she still wanted it, still lingered on it. That beautiful, tender, bittersweet emotion grew and filled the emptiness in her heart.

Does someone like her deserve to be loved? ...Can she...love others?

In order to exact revenge, she has decided to become a ghost, for ghosts should not understand love, something that evokes longing.

The next day, Gu Yu went to the residence where the Fifth Prince was temporarily staying.

In the past, it was always Jing Zichen who visited the Duke's Mansion; this was Gu Yu's first time here.

This time, Jing Zichen is the host, and Gu Yu is the guest.

Gu Yu cut to the chase, "I heard that Your Highness is to be enfeoffed as a prince and will be leaving the capital next year..."

“Indeed.” Jing Zichen remained calm and composed, showing no sign of urgency. “I wonder which remote place I’ll be assigned to. The Prince of Yan was involved in the plot to depose the Crown Prince, and Shu is now without a ruler. I don’t know if it will be that place…”

"What about the position of Crown Prince?" Gu Yu asked.

"Judging from Father's words, he is still in good health. Perhaps he has truly attained immortality. There's no need to choose a crown prince anymore; he can just remain emperor forever..." Jing Zichen smiled helplessly as he thought of this.

"Your Highness knows that cultivating immortality is an illusion. But you also know that human will can overcome genius, which is the true principle."

Gu Yu took out the scroll of blood-written true scripture.

"This is a Taoist scripture written by Master Zhang of the previous dynasty. Legend has it that Master Zhang cultivated Taoism for over 120 years, finally attained the true path, refined a golden body, his spirit left his body, and his primordial spirit became an immortal. Does Your Highness believe such a thing?"

Jing Zichen's eyes widened slightly. "I've heard this rumor. But is this really the blood-written scripture he left behind?"

"Of course, it's quite a coincidence. This was originally a gift from a descendant of Master Zhang to a minor official of the seventh rank, but that person was unlucky and met with misfortune before he could give it away. This thing ended up in my hands after going through many twists and turns."

"Does Sister Ayu mean to offer it to my father?" Jing Zichen narrowed his eyes, his expression unclear.

He seemed to realize that there was something wrong with this sacred text.

Gu Yu smiled. "Your Highness, let's play a game of chess. If Your Highness wins, this scripture will be yours. Man can conquer nature. Does Your Highness dare to bet with me?"

“Alright. If Sister Ayu dares to bet, then I’ll bet with her.”

Jing Zichen summoned a servant who brought out a chessboard and two pieces of chess, one black and one white.

Gu Yu, playing black, made the first move to start the game.

Jing Zichen casually placed a white piece, his brows furrowed in thought, hesitating for a long time before placing it.

He asked, "What if fate plays tricks on us and the great undertaking fails?"

“Your Highness can let others take the lead. What Your Highness wants is not the merit of offering gifts, but the legitimacy after the matter is accomplished.” Gu Yu said while observing the situation. “The Sixth Prince will soon come of age. Does Your Highness dare to bet that the current ruler favors Your Highness?”

"Or rather, even if it's not you, you're the one with the greatest hope."

“…Okay.” Jing Zichen smiled so broadly that his eyes disappeared. “We can take the gamble. It doesn’t matter if we lose.”

“Sister Ayu, I have won. Please give me the true scriptures.”

"Congratulations, Your Highness, on acquiring this precious treasure."

Gu Yu gave a slight curtsy and took her leave.

Jing Zichen stared at Gu Yu's departing figure, pondering for a long time. Did she really only want to help him ascend to the throne?

However, her desire to be an insider while refusing to become his concubine posed the biggest threat to his power after he ascended to the throne.

Didn't she know he would kill her?

He murdered his brother and father? How could he have gone this far, without even a shred of remorse or guilt?

Does that position really have such great power that it makes him doubt whether he is still the same carefree fifth prince he once was?

He returned to his room and teased the parrot a bit more before having someone take the blood-written scripture left by Master Zhang to a craftsman to examine it and find out what the problem was.

“Your Highness, this parchment scroll has a hidden layer in the middle. Should we open it and take a look? Besides, it looks quite new, not like something that's been around for hundreds of years. Your Highness has been deceived,” the old craftsman said.

"It's alright, don't take it apart. Just make it look old. Make it look like it was left by Master Zhang two hundred years ago."

Jing Zichen's eyes darted around. This must be a flaw that Gu Yu deliberately left behind. It was up to him whether he wanted to continue.

After the old craftsman left, Jing Zichen summoned his trusted confidant, "...After the matter is accomplished, the craftsman cannot leave himself any way out. Find a hundred-year-old divine tortoise, and have it discovered along with the true scriptures. Find an opportunity to leak the news to Sixth Brother first."