Chapter 1552 Extra: The Wandering Swordsman and the Flying Thief (Part 2)
Gu Chi never expected that one of the students he had sponsored on a whim would be the reincarnation of Master Bai Su. When Chu Yao told him that the target he was looking for was that child, he was stunned.
Is it true?
Chu Yao: [It is true, of course.]
Gu Chi carefully kept this news a secret, preparing to surprise Bai Su. Of course, before delivering this surprise, he needed to thoroughly investigate any potential problems—the soul was the same, but that didn't mean it was the same person. The drastically different experiences in their two lives had shaped different cores. Gu Chi didn't want to bring her back only to raise an ungrateful child and needlessly break her heart.
Fortunately, the child was a good one.
She possessed a resilient and unwavering character, and despite being mistreated by her uncles, she harbored no ill will, instead showing understanding with a somewhat benevolent nature. Gu Chi was surprised by this: "What are you afraid of? If you become my adopted daughter, you will no longer be a helpless orphan, and anyone who has wronged you can pay the price for their mistakes. It's just a lesson to vent your anger; it won't cost me any energy."
Gu Chi said that on purpose.
He wanted to see if the other party was as sincere as they seemed.
The child, however, was not fooled. He simply said, "My uncles and aunts have their own difficulties. There are twenty-one siblings in their families, and their own children aren't doing very well. Clothes are passed down from older siblings to younger ones. What about me?"
It's already a miracle that her elders can spare even a glance to look after her.
Did you know that your parents left you a pension?
Ninety percent of the time, her uncles, aunts, and other relatives were raising her for the money. Only if they agreed to take care of their niece could they legitimately use this compensation. According to Gu Chi's investigation, if even 10% of this money were used for the child, it would be considered that these people had a conscience.
The child nodded: "I know."
[Knowing it yet not resenting it?]
A hint of embarrassment appeared on the girl's face.
If it were anyone else being aggressive, given her temper, she would have simply turned and left. But the person before her was a high-ranking figure, and more importantly, a benefactor who had sponsored her for many years. She could only avoid eye contact: "When I was little, I had those feelings, but these past two years, as I've grown older, I've developed different perspectives. They are ordinary people, with their own sense of good and evil, who survived the chaos of war in their youth. Perhaps for them, this money, enough to help more than ten children survive with some difficulty, is far more worthwhile than letting other children starve on my behalf."
She didn't know what her uncles and aunts were thinking; she simply used her own experience to guess the underlying logic, which also allowed her to extricate herself from the mire of hatred and resentment. The thought that this money actually saved the lives of several of her siblings made her hatred subside.
She also knew that there was an element of self-deception in this.
But if I don't think that way, should I just let myself continue to hate?
The young woman sighed, "No matter what, even during the most difficult times for our family, they never considered making me drop out of school, nor did they accept money from anyone to arrange a marriage for me. Why should we criticize the morals of a few ordinary people struggling to survive?"
There are too many children in the family.
They were simply doing everything they could to ensure their children survived and grew up. For people like that, she couldn't completely hate them; she could only learn to let go.
After she finished speaking, the girl noticed that her benefactor was staring at her blankly.
She suddenly lowered her head, looking slightly embarrassed.
As she grew older, she became aware of her physical advantages—a fact evident from the countless matchmakers who practically wore down her doorstep every time she returned to the village during summer and winter vacations. She also vaguely heard some unpleasant rumors, knowing that when one is not strong enough and has no one to rely on, one's appearance can easily be seen as a resource to be exploited. It was said that some powerful figures preferred to marry young and beautiful students.
She wasn't sure if the person in front of her was one of them.
The other party said they wanted to adopt her as their daughter, but whether it was a genuine intention or just a pretext to keep her as a mistress remains unknown. One should not harbor malicious intentions, but one must be wary of others.
Gu Chi: [...]
Tsk, I'll find out who's tainted Kangguo's flowers later.
Since Kangguo banned concubinage, some people's outrageous actions have been like an old sow wearing a bra—one after another. The most common tactic is to divorce their ex and formally marry a young and beautiful new woman. Outsiders can only condemn them as heartless, ungrateful, and fickle.
It is not accurate to say that the other party has violated the law.
The Censorate couldn't possibly keep an eye on everyone's private life.
"Pack your things first. I'll come pick you up after I take my annual leave."
The girl nodded: "Mm."
Bai Su often stayed overnight at his residence. If he were to openly order his adopted daughter's room to be cleaned, she would notice in no time. Gu Chi could only do it secretly, keeping the news to himself until his annual leave. He held Bai Su's hand: "You two have a deep connection."
Why did you sponsor these students?
Bai Su held back her tears for a long time before she could finally suppress them.
The girl thought her new foster parents must have forgotten she was there, but she still pricked up her ears, curious as to why her benefactor was sponsoring her. Others sponsored students based on their talent, only taking them under their wing once they had achieved some success.
Our benefactor didn't do that.
The girl was not among the first batch of students sponsored by Gu Chi.
There had been several batches before her, totaling nearly a hundred.
Some of them continued their studies at the university, while others graduated from the middle school and went to various parts of Kangguo, either serving as local officials or making a living elsewhere. These senior students had basically never met their adoptive fathers, and had no contact with each other. Their adoptive fathers never accepted any filial tributes during festivals.
It seems that he simply wanted to help others.
Is he truly a great philanthropist?
Gu Chi looked embarrassed, but still waved to the girl, signaling her to leave—this adopted daughter's inner thoughts were too frequent and intense.
The girl said, "...I'll take my leave."
From afar, I could hear my adoptive father whispering something.
Gu Chi sighed, "At first, I just wanted to accumulate some good karma."
Whether it was his pen name, "The Five Elements of Lack of Virtue," that foretold something, or something else, he and Bai Su remained childless for many years. This made their earlier careful attempts at contraception seem ridiculous, since they simply couldn't conceive.
_(:з」∠)_
Qi Shan rolled her eyes at him: "How about we accumulate some merit points?"
He must have done too many bad things in his early years.
Gu Chi flew into a rage, wishing he could draw his sword and fight: [Nonsense! Even if I were as immoral as Qi Yuanliang, could I be as heartless as you?]
Qi Shan scoffed: "But I don't need it."
He already had a daughter, and as a single father, there was no need for him to have children to give Junqiao a younger sibling; whether he was immoral or not was meaningless. Gu Chi was rebuked, and on the surface, he argued that it couldn't be because of immorality—that was superstition—but secretly he couldn't help but feel distressed and secretly ordered someone to select some students he liked to sponsor.
Consider it a way to accumulate some good fortune for having offspring.
Of course, he didn't forget to see the renowned andrologist Gongyang Yongye.
Gongyang Yongye: [You don't even have a wife yet?]
Why go to a urologist if there's no wife at home?
And there was no place to use it.
Or is it that this Imperial Censor is involved in some shady dealings in private?
Gu Chi suppressed his anger as he slammed his fist on the table.
She gritted her teeth and said, "I'm just unmarried, not single."
Gongyang Yongye looked at him with amusement in his eyes.
Considering Gu Chi's high consultation fee.
He carefully examined the tonics Gu Chi had been taking for years, then had Gu Chi extend his hand. He condensed a wisp of martial energy at his fingertips and guided it along his meridians from top to bottom. Gu Chi's expression was strange. He immediately tried to jump up and dodge, but was suppressed by a vast and powerful martial energy.
I was instantly paralyzed, feeling like I was sitting on pins and needles.
Gongyang Yongye took a long time before releasing his hand from taking the pulse.
He said calmly, "Hmm, your energy is decent, and your meridians are clear."
Gu Chi blushed and cursed the old rogue.
Martial arts practitioners' cultivation of martial energy attributes can affect their offspring's reproduction, while scholars generally don't have this problem. Gu Chi has been infertile for many years; the issue requires further investigation. Gongyang Yongye quipped: "[If you only have one woman, come and see with her. If you have multiple women and haven't had a child for years, in my opinion, there's no need to bother. Go find Ji Moqiu and have one yourself.]"
Could this be related to damage to my Dantian?
[This possibility cannot be ruled out.] This was the first time Gongyang Yongye had encountered a case like Gu Chi. The absurdity of damaging one's dantian was almost equivalent to a normal person castrating themselves. [In my opinion, there's no rush. You still have a long life ahead of you. Why rush into having a child? What if you don't win the lottery, and the child doesn't have your talent? In sixty or seventy years, you'll be the one burying your parents.]
[Your Excellency seems unqualified to speak on this matter.]
[How old am I? How old are you?]
Gu Chi: [...]
I immediately decided to let things take their course for another one or two decades.
If all else fails, then we'll have no choice but to ask for help. As long as Ji Moqiu agrees, the Censorate can become his voting bloc, just like the Ministry of Revenue. Every now and then, there are all sorts of outrageous voting events in Kangguo, aimed at debating who is more suitable to be the emperor's consort/empress. The Ministry of Revenue has taken thousands of boxes of his goldfish over the years, so it always gives him its votes without fail. The Censorate can do the same!
Gu Chi secretly sponsored students, accumulating merit over many years.
I never expected that I would actually have a daughter.
A ripple appeared in Bai Su's eyes: "You want a child so badly?"
Gu Chi wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her neck: "It's not that I really want to. It's just that it would be unfair to you if I prevented you from becoming a mother. Neither of us has parents, and we have no blood relatives in the world, so it's inevitable that we would think about having someone connected by blood."
Bai Su gently stroked his hair as if comforting a beloved child: "Having you is enough. From the highest heavens to the brightest sun and moon, from the closest to the most distant, husband and wife. As long as our affection remains, how can we not be the closest of relatives?"
There's no need to be fixated on that single thread of blood connection.
Both Gu Chi and Bai Su were unwilling to be restrained; having children would only make them less free and unrestrained. If they changed their minds later, they could discuss it then; for now, they were content. Bai Su suddenly recalled years ago in Fugu City, wondering if she should also try to find an adopted son.
He gave himself an adopted daughter.
Should I also give her an adopted son?
Bai Su didn't go to Chu Yao; she went to her master.
Shen Tang was almost speechless: "...You two are really..."
Gu Chi asked Bai Su to be the foster mother of his master, who was like a mother to him, and Bai Su asked Gu Chi to be the foster father of his grandfather or biological father. Did these two really not have any perverted hobbies? Shen Tang found that there were fewer and fewer normal people under his command: "His blood relatives have all been reincarnated."
Before Bai Su could say anything...
She added, "Not here."
In chaotic times, life is possible, but so is death. Reincarnation is severely disrupted, and many lingering spirits have been dispersed to other worlds. Shen Tang advised, "You should also take life and death lightly. Fate that hasn't been severed can be continued, but those that have been completely severed shouldn't be forced..."
Wishing my loved ones happiness in their next life is enough.
Shen Tang didn't care what Bai Su thought: "It is precisely because life is short, and there is a connection in this life but no chance in the next, that people cherish this life more, instead of thinking that if there are regrets, there is a next life to make up for them."
If everyone is fixated on continuing their karmic connections, the world will descend into chaos.
If you can't have a good life in this one, just give up and hope for a better one in the next. Fathers protect their sons, and sons protect their fathers in the next life, and so on, endlessly. This is unfair to other living beings. Bai Su was able to have this special case only because Gu Chi had already secured that thread of fate, and Shen Tang was just the one who made them cross that line.
Shen Tang lightly tapped her forehead with his finger.
"This will not be repeated."
Bai Su didn't understand what it meant at first.
After she left court, the emperor ordered someone to bestow upon her a box of incense.
Bai Su picked up a corner of the coin and sniffed it: "What is this?"
She suddenly remembered a word of power she had read before: "A raw rhinoceros horn cannot be burned, for when it is burned, it emits a strange fragrance; if it touches one's clothes, one can communicate with ghosts."
That night, incense was lit.
At first, there were no abnormalities.
Before long, Gu Chi closed his eyes and curled up.
He knelt on her lap and cried all night in his dreams.
I didn't wake up until dawn.
Gu Chi looked dazed and remained silent for a long time.
Just as Bai Su was rejoicing that her annual leave wouldn't interfere with her perfect attendance, Gu Chi said in a hoarse voice, "Shao Xuan, last night... I saw my parents. They all look different from what I remember. My younger brother and sister are finally older than I remember them."
Including the one who hadn't even been born yet.
One of them even got married, started a family, and had children.
Gu Chi's voice was wistful: "They have no relationship anymore. Everyone lives in high-rise buildings of different sizes and has other relatives. They are living well and happily with their new relatives... They have occasional quarrels, but they are harmless."
When he saw them, they saw him too.
They didn't remember Gu Chi and didn't know how this stranger had suddenly appeared in their home, and why they were the only ones who could see him. However, after the initial panic, they calmed down. Some pretended to be strong and greeted him, asking if he was cosplaying. Others asked which dynasty he was from, and still others were curious about how the ghost could be so handsome, with an aura that was simply naturally beautiful, strong, and tragic.
Are we destined for a love story between a human and a ghost?
Gu Chi's lips twitched: "I don't do incest."
Only the woman who carried her mother's soul recognized him.
Tears streamed uncontrollably down her face, leaving Gu Chi at a loss. He frantically lowered his head, reaching out but his hand froze in mid-air. Looking at his mother, dressed in a pure white wedding gown, weeping profusely before everyone's eyes, he too couldn't help but shed tears. The relatives and friends, assuming the bride was crying tears of joy, cheered and showered the couple with confetti. Gu Chi murmured, "Are you happy?"
He gazed out at the tall buildings and bustling traffic.
Although I haven't explored it in depth, even from these few glances, I can tell that this world is already quite friendly to ordinary people. Even if the mother faces some difficulties in the future, she will still have a stage to survive on her own.
Therefore, he did not ask for anything more.
On the wedding car, his mother suddenly called out in his direction.
【Achi!】
Gu Chi's pupils showed surprise, but he quickly calmed down.
Stand still and wave your hand lightly.
She watched as the wedding car carried her towards happiness.
(′‵)
(End of this chapter)
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