Chapter 16 The Miracle: The fireworks were like thousands of pear blossoms.
Seeing Guan Ye appear alone in a panic, Ajiu knew something must have gone wrong. She gave Feng Shisan and Xiao Ma a look, and the two understood and sent the guards away. They moved their lips and told Ajiu to deal with it quickly.
"A-Jiu," Guan Ye swallowed hard, "Lou Shitou is missing."
"Didn't we agree on this last night?" Ajiu had calculated a lot, but she never expected that Lou Shitou would disappear.
"It was agreed," Guan Ye said, her voice trembling with tears. "He promised so readily, but he disappeared this morning. Tell Jiang Muyun to leave quickly; Steward Pei is already on his way."
"You alone," Ajiu stared intently into her dark eyes, "can you carry a bag as heavy as a deer?"
"Let her go first." Guan Ye rolled up her sleeves. "I'll give it a try."
Pushing open the prison door, Jiang Muyun had already changed into clean, plain clothes. Her hair was loosely tied up, making her pale face appear even more beautiful. A large bag beside her contained a knocked-out living creature. Jiang Muyun nimbly walked around it, gazing at Guan Ye's bloodless face. She seemed to have already foreseen her own fate, as if she had long been prepared to die. She gave Guan Ye a relieved smile.
"Let's go quickly." Guan Ye's eyes were filled with tears. "We agreed that I would take care of things here."
"We agreed that you would help me and I would help you." Jiang Muyun held back the tears that were about to spill from Guan Ye's eyes. "You have already helped me."
Guan Ye was afraid that Jiang Muyun would think she couldn't carry the heavy bag, so she clenched her fists and mustered all her strength to lift the bag with both hands. But the bag weighed over a hundred pounds. Lou Shitou could carry it, but how could she carry it by herself? No matter how much Guan Ye ate, she had never been able to carry such a heavy bag.
"I can do it." Guan Ye said, tears welling up in her eyes. "With you two watching me, I can't exert any strength. If you leave, I can carry the load. A-Jiu, let her go, A-Jiu!"
Ajiu silently watched Guan Ye's clumsy movements, his usually composed face changing color. If he could, he would be willing to carry the burden for Guan Ye, but at this moment, Pei Bi's footsteps were getting closer and closer, and there was nothing he could do.
"Never mind." Jiang Muyun stroked her hair. "I even did a new hairstyle today, does it look good?"
Guan Ye's eyes were red-rimmed. She mustered all her strength again to try and lift the heavy bag. Aunt Lou said that even men could carry bags that were twenty pounds heavier than her, and she couldn't get over that hurdle even with all her strength. She was just a lowly sword slave, yet she overestimated herself and dared to dream of helping and saving people.
The large bag crashed to the ground, and the stunned deer inside struggled and kicked a few times, much like the deer they were on the verge of death. Guan Ye finally understood what true fate meant.
"—Steward Pei is here?" Xiao Ma shouted as he stepped forward. "Why did you come in person?"
"Does my new hair look good?" Jiang Muyun asked Ajiu again.
"It looks great." Ajiu pulled Guan Ye closer. "It suits Muyun very well."
“Everyone dies.” Jiang Muyun smoothed out the wrinkles in his plain clothes. “Tell the young master for me that I did it willingly and I don’t blame anyone.”
She said she did it willingly.
Pei Bi's footsteps had already reached the door. A Jiu calmly pushed the door open, went out, and then closed it again. "Manager Pei, please wait a moment."
"She refuses?" Pei Bi tried to peek through the crack in the door.
Ajiu stepped aside to block her way: "Today, Miss Muyun is leaving. We should let her go with dignity. After all, she has served the young master. Moreover, tidying her up properly is a way of respecting the Furnace God. With the Furnace God's protection, Xingguo Workshop can prosper."
Hearing that what he said made sense, Pei Bi slowly walked to the side. He had watched Jiang Muyun grow up. He had heard that Jiang Muyun was picked up by fishermen on the island when she was a child. The sea was full of disasters. Over the years, Pei Bi had seen many ships destroyed at the seaside. In the face of big storms, even dead people could be swept ashore. Jiang Muyun entered Xingguo Ward when she was seven or eight years old. Because she was generous and sensible, she was raised by Pei Chu's side. Although she was called a maid, everyone knew that such a person would definitely follow the young master for life.
Everyone on the island who was around Pei Chu treated her with utmost respect. Besides, she was so beautiful, so stunning that it seemed impossible for someone to grow up on a deserted island. And then there was her name, Jiang Muyun, which evoked the image of a fisherwoman singing in the morning and watching the clouds fill the sky in the evening. It touched the heart and was unforgettable.
Pei Bi recalled everything, his mind a jumble of emotions. Since there was no escaping it, he could only accept his fate.
"Don't cry." Jiang Muyun wiped away Guan Ye's tears. "Next year on this day, offer incense for me."
Jiang Muyun pushed open the prison door, shielding his eyes with his palm, squinting at the rising sun through his fingers, and walked out of the cell into the sunlight, head held high as he walked his final journey.
Feng Shisan and Xiao Ma stood frozen in shock. Jiang Muyun before them was like a goddess descended from heaven, her body enveloped in an inviolable golden light. Pei Bi paused for a moment, then followed closely behind her, not daring to overstep his bounds.
In the cell, Guan Ye finally stopped crying. Remembering something, she pulled out a short blade hidden deep in her bosom. Ajiu said, "This blade isn't sharpened yet. How can it protect me?" Yes, a blade without a sharp edge is useless. If you can't protect yourself, how can you help others?
Seeing that Guan Ye hadn't come out yet, A Jiu couldn't help but push the door open to look. She saw Guan Ye sitting cross-legged, picking up a piece of gravel from somewhere and sharpening the short blade in her hand. A Jiu assumed she was going to kidnap someone from the Heavenly Furnace, so she rushed forward, snatched the short blade, and threw it far away. "Are you crazy?"
Guan Ye sprang to her feet like a startled fawn, rummaging through the debris on the ground to find her belongings. She picked up the short blade and carefully wiped it with her sleeve. A-Jiu pried open her hand. Guan Ye's skin was rosy and her veins were clearly visible. A woman with such hands should have a smooth and peaceful life. A-Jiu gazed at her and sighed softly, "We've done our best and left the rest to fate. We've done so much; there's no use in blaming ourselves." Seeing that Guan Ye didn't move, A-Jiu pressed her hand down and hesitated before gently touching her shoulder, "We shouldn't stay here any longer. Let's go out first."
Guan Ye gripped her short blade tightly, walked straight to the wriggling bundle, drew her blade and cut the ropes binding it. A wild deer struggled to squeeze its head out, kicked off its restraints, and rushed out of the prison gate.
By the furnace, Pei Yuan was growing impatient. Just as he was about to explode, Jiang Muyun appeared in his sight. Dressed in plain clothes, she resembled the faint cloud marks on a clear day. Her face was like jade, her eyes sparkling with pearls. Tears welled up in her eyes but did not fall. Her red lips were tightly pressed together, and she remained silent. There was no fear of death in her eyes, but rather a hint of mockery.
"If you're scared, just cry." Pei Bi moved his lips slightly, afraid that Pei Yuan would notice. "If you cry until the shopkeeper softens, there might still be a glimmer of hope."
Jiang Muyun was as calm as a silent deep sea. She was no longer willing to make a futile struggle against fate, or perhaps she knew that Pei Yuan's heart was as firm as a rock, and even if she cried herself unconscious by the furnace, he would throw her into it. The morning glow covered her long eyelashes, fluttering with the fragility of a young girl, confronting Pei Yuan's flamboyant red hair, not at all inferior.
The old blacksmith poured several baskets of silver charcoal into the furnace. Flames shot up three feet high, and waves of heat surged forth. Even though the old blacksmith was several steps away, half of his clothes were burned away.
“It’ll only be a blink of an eye, you won’t suffer too much.” Pei Yuan didn’t believe she was really ready to die, his terrifying round eyes seemed to force out the deep-seated fear in Jiang Muyun. “If you can truly become one with the sword, you will be immortal.”
Jiang Muyun's lips curled into a mocking smile, her dimples rippled, causing everyone present to squint. They saw Jiang Muyun's white clothes being blown by the wind, which looked just like white fireworks. They had never seen white fireworks before, only heard the old blacksmith on the island say that when fire is burned to its extreme, nothing is indestructible and it turns white.
Are there really fireworks that burn white?
The deceased blacksmith said that the legend had existed, and although he had never seen it, he believed it to be true.
“Go up there.” Pei Yuan pointed to the top of the furnace where thick smoke was shooting into the sky. “By helping Xingguo Workshop, you are also helping yourself.”
"Jiang Muyun!" Guan Ye had barely opened her mouth when Ajiu covered it tightly.
"It's come to this! Forget it, we can only let it go!" Ajiu whispered in her ear, "Neither of us can save her."
Jiang Muyun stopped in her tracks, as if she heard someone calling her. She didn't turn around, her red lips parted slightly but then caught in her throat. She felt the flames growing hotter and hotter, the sparks rushing towards her, eager to devour her. In the moment before her death, scenes from the first half of her life flashed before her eyes, settling on Pei Chu's tender, pale face.
Guan Ye stared intently at Jiang Muyun's back, watching her ascend to the top of the furnace as if flying, looking down at the frozen faces below. What was about to happen was absurd to the point of disbelief, yet it seemed so reasonable. Pei Yuan said that she was fulfilling Xingguo Fang's wishes. Jiang Muyun suddenly laughed. Everyone heard her laughter, and their expressions changed from astonishment to fear. How could someone who was about to die in the most tragic way still laugh?
Guan Ye heard it too. In the thick smoke, she knew that Jiang Muyun had seen her as well. Guan Ye could no longer control herself and burst into tears. It felt as if a huge boulder was pressing heavily on her heart, making her feel like she was suffocating. Guan Ye grabbed A Jiu's hand and dug her fingertips deep into his flesh, drawing blood.
Jiang Muyun strode towards the raging fire, her hair instantly turning to ashes as soon as it rose. She reached out and caught a strand, then gently blew it away. Before anyone could see clearly, she spread her arms like a moth drawn to a flame and vanished from the world in an instant.
Everyone exclaimed and pointed to the top of the furnace, "Fireworks! White fireworks!"
The white fireworks—Guan Ye saw them too. This was the color that only appeared when the fire was at its peak. Her father had only seen it once in his thirties. "Those fireworks were like thousands of pear blossoms."
My father hadn't read many books, so he couldn't describe what he saw that day with complicated words. He said the white fireworks looked just like thousands of pear blossoms, with the power to burn the heavens and the earth, scattered between mountains and seas.
The Heavenly Furnace's silver charcoal had never produced white flames before. Seeing this, Pei Yuan, ignoring the swirling sparks, cried out, "The Furnace God has appeared!" and stumbled to the top of the furnace. "White flames! Have any of you ever seen this before?!" Pei Yuan grabbed the old blacksmith by the collar. "Have you ever seen it?!"
The old blacksmith shook his head in a panic, "It really is...it really is the furnace god manifesting! I've never seen anything like it in all my years."
The white flames gradually dissipated, and the blue smoke rose slowly. Pei Yuan stared wide-eyed, waving his clothes to disperse the smoke. In the deep furnace bottom, the jet-black meteorite, mingled with the flesh and blood of the person who sacrificed himself for the furnace, gradually melted into black molten iron, spreading through the ancient veins in the furnace and writing unknown inscriptions.
"It's done!" Pei Yuan shouted angrily, kneeling on the ground. "It's done! The meteorite has melted!"
The angry shouts echoed through the heavens and earth, and everyone in the courtyard knelt down, crying out, "The furnace god has appeared! The sword is complete! The furnace god has appeared! The sword is complete!"
Only Guan Ye and A Jiu remained standing. Guan Ye's face was pale with shock, and her fingertips trembled and bent slightly. She couldn't believe what Pei Yuan had said. Her body swayed stiffly as she tried to approach the Heavenly Furnace. A Jiu grabbed her wrist and shook her head, indicating that she must not go forward.
"A treasure lies hidden in the furnace, its light ever-present on the lonely island; if you know the heavens will tremble, hear the clang of the sword!" Pei Yuan roared to the sky, "Three generations have lay dormant, finally fulfilling their ambitions; it's time to go to Xingguo Ward!"
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