It had been purely coincidental that the rich family that had taken Zhang Ya in as a servant that year shared his surname, Zhang. As a servant, he learnt to dye his hair by experimenting with and mixing different herbs like he had seen Old Zhang Liu do to the old master's hair. However, his attempt was not fruitful as the dye barely covered the whiteness of his hair. He took on another option, which was, to cut his hair short and hide it under a cap that given to him by another servant.
When he reached the tender age of thirteen, the young master, Zhang Xu, learnt of his poetic sense. Admiring his desire to study and his brilliance, the older Xu proposed to his father to allow Ya to assist and accompany him in his studies. The two struck up an unexpected friendship, and over the years, it was said that there was no place that Xu would go without taking Ya.
As time went by, he continued to have his childhood memories of Fengjiu in his mind, even keeping a painting of Fengjiu in his room. Although he didn't know her name, he knew she had to be a fairy of some sort, and so he named her 'Fairy Beauty'. Xu would often tease him that he was in love with an older girl, and Ya would deny, stating that he was merely trying to remember his debt of gratitude to her for saving his life.
Upon Ya turning seventeen, Xu and Ya passed the imperial examinations to become scholars with the rank of xiucai (flowering talent). When Ya was twenty years old, they passed the provincial examination held normally once every three years, to achieve the Ju Ren (raised man) grade. Xu had Ya and himself enrolled at an academy in the capital to prepare them for the last stage, the Jin Shi (advanced scholar) examinations, which would determine whether they would be within the 200 candidates that were selected every year. The lucky candidates, known as the zhuangyuan, were said to be offered a permanent post in the government, along with numerous benefits.
With his brilliance and determination, Ya's name was top in the list of candidates selected during the final examinations. At this time, it was customary for the emperor to present a golden rose to the winning candidate. Ya had been filled with pride when he approached the emperor's high seat, believing that he was about to fulfill his mother's dying wish. Unfortunately, it happened that it had been breezy, and his cap was blown off, causing his hair to stream out behind him in waves.
Alas, Taoist masters arrived at the scene, sent by the emperor's own teacher, Guoshi, and interrupted the emperor from awarding Ya the golden rose. The reasoning they had given to the emperor was that his white, devilish hair and his birth during the blood moon was a curse that would result in the downfall of the empire. Believing the words of his teacher, the emperor erased Ya's name from the list of selected candidates and instead awarded the top position to Xu. Ya was dragged out by his feet from the hall by the ferocious masters, before being treated as a demon by the horrendous souls in the crowd that had best assembled. While they mocked him and threw rotten eggs in his face, the only thought in his mind had been, what could he say to his mother, now that he had failed her? Deeply humiliated and devastated, he saw no way out but to drown himself. When Xu was able to get to him, all that remained of himself was the portrait of Fengjiu that had dropped on the river bank. At 23 years old, Zhang Ya had ended his life.
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His lifeless body was rescued by a silver dragon, lifting it towards the surface. The dragon rose out of the waves carrying his dead body and continued to ascend higher and higher in the air, until at last he had reached the very sky itself and carried him up into the nine heavens, where he was enthroned among the stars in the sky. The said dragon was no other than His Royal Highness the Third Prince Liansong himself.
Seventy-Three jumped up with a shock, as if he had woken up from a dream. He realised that he was now lying on an exquisitely crafted long bed with sheets and pillows of expensive looking brocade. He asked himself if he was dreaming, but then started to recall his memories of being Mo Yuan's disciple, and later, an apprentice of Taichen Palace.
Quickly, he ran to the mirror on the table before him, and looked at his own reflection. The young boy was gone, replaced with his magnificent-looking appearance. A moment later, he heard someone come into the room. It was Mo Yuan, the very first teacher he had and his master, carrying with him a teapot filled with tea, and its accompanying teacups. Remembering how he had humiliated him by entering the sacred library without permission, Seventy-Three lost no time in bowing to Mo Yuan to request for his forgiveness. Mo Yuan raised him to his feet, forgiving him.
Mo Yuan started explaining to his disciple how starting today, everything would be different. Tears brimmed in his eyes when he thought of how Seventy-Three had spent thirty thousand immortal years in the Sky Kingdom without returning to visit him even once. He knew that it was for the best of Seventy-Three who was an obedient child, and that Seventy-Three needed to learn how to be more prudent. But he was after all, an emotional person, and without Seventy-Three by his side, he felt a tinge of loneliness and emptiness. And very soon, Seventy-Three was to be assigned to the Sky Kingdom permanently, away from him.
Seventy-Three was confused by his master's words, but hesitated to say a single word due to the previous sin he had committed. His silence was followed by Mo Yuan placing an embroidered gown in his hands, which was elegant compared to the plain robe he wore as an apprentice.
At the Grand Hall, Hao De sat grandly in his high seat while Zhe Yan, Mo Yuan, Yehua, Bai Qian, Liansong, the six star gods, and a few Sky Kingdom immortals looked on. Seventy-Three was amazed as it was his first time seeing so many immortals present at the same time. In his years as an apprentice, he had yet to encounter so many immortals as he stayed in the registry and thus didn't have the chance to be involved with affairs in the Sky Kingdom.
Chong Lin stood beside Seventy-Three and gave him a careful reminder of the formalities and rules he had to be mindful of in the Sky Kingdom. Hao De again asked Seventy-Three the same question, which was whether he had recovered memories of the past. Again, he received the same answer.
In a firm and serious tone, Hao De announced, "Seventy-Third apprentice of Mo Yuan, I now appoint you as the God of Culture and Literature. You are now the keeper of the registry. It's your responsibility as well to assign newly ascended immortals to their new roles before they enter the gates of Heaven, as well as managing the name lists of the would-be officials. I hereby name you as Imperial Sovereign Wenchang of Taichen Palace."
Wenchang's position was a rank lower than that of Donghua's, but yet, was considered that of an emperor (Dijun) and hence every immortal below him held him in high respect. Bowing and clasping his hands together, Wenchang received the appointment scroll from Yehua, saying his thanks to Hao De. The star gods and Sky Kingdom immortals bowed to him in reverence, but the hall remained quiet as no immortal who dared to talk, much say gossip, before the serious no-nonsense Sky Emperor.
(For further information, here is a link for reading about the Taoist deity Wenchang: 460Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzyiWAo2Wp
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Wendi-Chinese-deity)460Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnPdHbTTy2o
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Some days later after the appointment of Wenchang, Siming arrived by himself in Qingqiu for a private meeting with the Queen of Qingqiu after receiving a message from her to come to Qingqiu.
She looked a bit pleased to see him.
"Siming, long time no see," she said happily.
"Long time no see, Queen Fengjiu," Siming said with a slight bow. He recalled how it had seemed like yesterday that they had been spending time together in the Sky Kingdom. Back then, she had been a princess, and Siming had held her in high regard. Because he understood her unchanging love for Donghua, he chose to bury his feelings of admiration for her deep in his heart. He had admired her very long, but compared to what she felt for Donghua, what he felt for her was but a mere crush.
Fengjiu invited Siming to sit down with her and enjoy tea. A plate of vinegar fish sat on a plate before them.
"This is ..."
"Siming, it's been a long time since we last had a friendly conversation," Fengjiu said. "Since Dijun left, I've been by myself, wandering the mortal realm. You are my closest friend in the immortal realm, so I just wish for us to enjoy a meal together."
Siming smiled. Even with Donghua's death, Fengjiu's heart would be with him eternally. Similarly, he would continue to keep his feelings for her hidden deep in his heart.
He accepted the cup of tea Fengjiu offered him. Fengjiu had known clearly about his low alcohol tolerance, and had prepared a pot of strong-tasting tea for him. As for the dish of vinegar fish, she had also known of the incident where he had the shock of his life upon eating a similar dish prepared by Donghua himself. As powerful as he was, Donghua had been a horrible chef. Siming felt grateful for the delicious tasting meal before him.
"Queen Fengjiu, Dijun wishes only that you can live your life happily and take care of yourself in his absence." He took out a scroll and handed it to her. "This is written by Dijun himself, before he went to the royal wedding and met you again."
Fengjiu received the scroll with a heavy heart.
Siming said, "Dijun anticipated that one day, he would die. He didn't expect that he would come to meet you again in the royal wedding and go against the oath that he made eons before meeting you. He didn't expect his time to come so soon."
Even after Siming had left for some time, tears continued to flow down Fengjiu's cheeks. When Donghua ignored her in the past, she had felt pain in her heart, but it hadn't hurt her as much as having to hurt him during his love trial. But living each day without the assurance of him being around was simply torture to her. He had died just to give her a few days of happiness together. Nobody would replace his position in her heart. If she had a choice, she would be willing for herself to be the one who has died that day. She had said before their stand-down with the Ghost Lord Qingcang, "if Dijun lives, Fengjiu lives. If Dijun dies, Fengjiu will no longer live on." And now, she was simply living on for Donghua himself.
- End of Part One.
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