"Here we are." Qing Xiashu announced as they approached the city gates of a neat clean town.
"Lu Tian fits its name." The rogue mentioned, observing the large emerald fields that seemed cut from the dreary cold landscape like gems.
"Mm! It's one of the few large farms we have up here. Mostly rice and hardy root vegetables. I just wish they could sort out lotus. But the warm season is too short to even attempt..." Qing Xiashu sighed in a wistful cadence. "Most of our vegetables at the palace come from Lu Tian, excluding what needs to be imported like our tea."
"Your tea comes from Yenie Mi?"
"Among other things. We've been providing Lu Tian a pretty sizable fund to develop a controlled environment that might ensure a more self sustainable existence. We have plenty of livestock in the maoniu... So it's just the warmer plants that we struggle with now. Soy, tea, oranges, so on."
The rogue laughed softly. "You're a very nice history book, Qing-xiong."
"Why thank you! I strive to dump information at every turn! If we were in a story I would certainly be the character that gives useless exposition that no one really needed to know to enjoy the story."
"I don't think I'd like this story much."
"Everyone enjoys different things, Mi-didi." Qing Xiashu chuckled, handing Touming to a gatekeeper before taking it back as they were waved through into the heart of the city where political sect cultivators bustled here and there.
"Would you enjoy it?"
"Who's the main character?"
"Ehh..." The rogue considered it a moment before replying. "What about Beifang Dianxia?"
"Mm... No... I think that story would be incredibly sad. I prefer more lighthearted stories." Qing Xiashu decided as he loosely tossed himself down from Yun Qiu's saddle. "Excuse me!" He called to one of the many scurrying juniors.
A young preteen boy who had been very diligent in avoiding their gaze, finally approached when he was beckoned for.
"Which way is the records library? It's been some time since I've visited."
The boy's nose twitched. "Apologies senior, but those records are limited to the public."
"I know, don't worry about that. I have the clearance." The head disciple pointed out. The expression of doubt that crossed the child's face amused Qing Xiashu more than anything. "What's your name?"
"Leng Qiangmi." The boy said with a halfhearted salute. It was honestly bordering on rude.
"A relative of the second dynasty, hm?"
Leng Qiangmi nodded stiffly rather than answering.
"My name is Qing Xiashu."
The boy turned paler than any bundle of raw silk. "Apologies!" He said, dipping into a speedy salute.
Qing Xiashu snickered under his breath, neglecting to scold the boy for his misbehavior. "No need to worry, which way is the record house?"
Leng Qiangmi quickly pointed to a tall building that towered over a good half of the others.
"Good day." The head disciple said with a chuckle as he turned with Yun Qiu toward the building.
"You don't mind that he didn't recognize you?"
"Eh? Why should I? He's a child. There's no reason he should know my face."
"It's disrespectful..." The rogue argued weakly, remaining seated in his saddle despite Qing Xiashu's lead.
"Maybe, but he was born into a higher standing than me anyway. So maybe I shouldn't be disrespecting him. A native of Lu Tian is already better than where I came from."
"I... see..."
The head disciple snickered again. "You'll understand someday, Mi-didi. Some things just don't matter as much as certain people make them out to."
"Perhaps you are wiser than I, Qing-xiong."
"No, it's not wisdom, believe me." Qing Xiashu noted as he tied Yun Qiu to a post near the building that loomed over them, stuffed full of never ending documents. "Are you ready?"
"Yes... I suppose I am..." The rogue sighed, dismounting and following Qing Xiashu into the building. The building was slightly stuffy, the smell of dust, paper, and old wood filling their senses until nothing was left but the peaceful warmth of an old record house.
"Head disciple Qing! How can we help you today?" An elegant woman settled at a large desk questioned.
"Yao Zhashen, goodmorning!" Qing Xiashu chirped with a vigorous little wave, bouncing over towards where she sat. "Is Leng Qiangmi your son?"
"Oh yes! My youngest, have you met him?" The record keeper asked, pulling up a long roll of parchment and scribbling down a few words.
"Mm! Very quiet, he gave me directions."
"Ah, yes, that sounds like him." Yao Zhashen looked past the head disciple. "What's your name dear?"
The rogue anxiously glanced towards Qing Xiashu.
"Ah, see, that's why we're here. Mi-didi has some amnesia. Our records in the palace aren't extensive enough to be inclusive, but we have his sword's name."
"Oh, well that will do as well, what is the sword's name? Perhaps I can help."
"Gou Ya." The rogue answered with a soft nod.
"Gou Ya..." The woman echoed, scribbling out the name before looking up in thought. "It doesn't strike me immediately, but there may be some records from the Eastern border that pertain to what you're looking for? I must warn you though, they are quite old." She stood and led them further into the record house.
They passed rows and rows of records, some seemed fresh, a few weeks old perhaps, while others seemed like they might have outdated the Chaoting palace itself. The deeper they retreated from the world, the more stale the air grew.
"Ah! Here we are." Yao Zhashen plucked a number of large records from the shelves and handed them to the two cultivators. "That should be all of it, please do be gentle with them."
"We will, thank you!" Qing Xiashu said after her as she left them to their devices. "Alright, let's see what we can find."
••• [https://img.wattpad.com/290f33117b77776b5c5f2d5d1ad0a922aa50647e/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f516744396c5647716c4a645966513d3d2d313439373031363532322e313830393437393337343961653730333432363134313530343831312e6a7067?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
•••
"It isn't a sword."
"Sorry?"
They'd both been nose deep in these records for a number of hours... The era Yao Zhashen referred them to appeared to be a record of the war that resulted in the foundation of the East. It was indeed something that occurred long before the Chaoting palace was built.
"It isn't a sword." The rogue repeated, shifting where he was seated so Qing Xiashu could read the passage he had just gone over. "It is some kind of weapon, but I think it's alive. Not a sword."
"Yes... That is the impression I get as well..." The head disciple sighed, carefully rerolling the slip scroll spread across his lap.
The rogue nodded slowly with a frown. "Even if it was a sword, I wouldn't have been around back then. We should look elsewhere."
Qing Xiashu nodded in agreement. "I'll go ask Yao Zhashen for something more recent."
"If there is anything..."
"Don't lose all your optimism just yet, Mi-didi." The head disciple said, standing up and patting the rogue's head. "Just because we haven't found it doesn't mean it doesn't exist."
The rogue's shoulders slumped into a hunch until the young man looked more like a little prawn than a cultivator. "I guess."
"I'll be right back..." Qing Xiashu gently told the rogue before making his way back to the desk at the front of the building.
"Head Disciple Qing, I take it that wasn't what you were looking for?"
"No, I'm afraid not. Do you have anything more recent?"
"Mm... Perhaps. Follow me please." She stood up again, and led him down another long path into the building.
Qing Xiashu relaxed into the scent of the warm building again as they walked. He understood why she enjoyed this position. Being surrounded by nothing but words day in and day out must be relaxing compared to her time as a martial arts instructor.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
Maybe if Xue Feiyi attained immortality, Qing Xiashu's retirement could be caring for the library in the capital.
The record keeper made a shocked little noise and briskly doubled back the way they'd come before immediately returning back again.
"Is something wrong?"
"The record is missing." Yao Zhashen stated anxiously, pacing a few times up and down the hall until she narrowed down exactly where the absent record should have been. "It's been stolen."
"Stolen? Couldn't it have been misplaced?"
Yao Zhashen tapped a small talisman on the shelf before lifting it to show a sigil below it. "Someone unauthorized took it. Any record removed from the shelves is reported back to me via these sigils. They would have picked it up and then covered the sigil with this to spoof it into thinking its record was back in place."
"Does the record keep?"
"Of course. They're dated and I have the matching record of visitors."
"Let's see who was here." Qing Xiashu said kindly, guiding the woman back to the desk in a hope to keep her from panicking.
He was unsuccessful.
"Oh this isn't good. This is not good. This is very not good." Yao Zhashen whispered as she scanned through the records.
"What is it?"
"The last time that book was touched was by Beifang Gongzhu, three and a half months ago."
Qing Xiashu's brows twitched, bending over the records to inspect them himself. "She hasn't visited Lu Tian for years. If she had, Shixiong or I would have been with her."
"I was worried you would say that..."
"It seems to me you have a shapeshifter on your hands..." The head disciple murmured as he straightened.
"I'm afraid I need to report this to the sect leader and Beifang Dianxia immediately. I'm so sorry I couldn't help you find what you were looking for."
"It's alright, we can come back some other time after this is all figured out. Suggest to them both that you require a name and a sword from here on out."
"Thank you, I will."
Qing Xiashu gave a soft smile and a quick nod. "We'll be out very soon, let us just replace all the documents we moved." He said as he returned to the rogue. "Our time is being cut short, I'm sorry Mi-didi..."
"No... It's ok, I heard." The rogue said, already setting records back into their organized homes. "What do we do now?"
"There's another library for less restricted documents." The head disciple suggested as he led the rogue back out of the building. "We can search there for a few hours before we throw in the towel."
"Do you want to get back to Hei Xianying?"
Another soft smile was his only answer before he directed them both to another building.
•••
Hei Xianying's room was dark and quiet, so he didn't bother knocking, only slowly opened the door. Hefeng's head had popped out of the child's blankets, fully alert before seeing only Qing Xiashu and resting down again. Hei Xianying on the other hand didn't awake to his presence. He was able to move over to her bedside and crouch down without disturbing her at all.
Her ability to contain a single form at night was amusingly poor. He witnessed her flip flop forms in her sleep any time she came crawling into his room. Tonight seemed to be one of these, despite the very human form, her ears had shifted atop her head and would occasionally flick in response to her dream. He was sure her tails were swaying under the blankets as well.
He chuckled softly as he reached out to pet the furry ears. She was warm. Warm and safe and tucked into bed, just as she should be.
Not cold or slimy or stinking.
"Shu-gege?" She slowly stirred and wiggled her way half out of bed to cling onto him. "You came back early."
Qing Xiashu only smiled and squeezed her into a hug.
•••
"And make sure to eat plenty." Qing Xiashu muttered anxiously. "And don't be afraid to ask Xue Shixiong to make you food." He said as he carefully rebraided one of the braids laying over Xue Huayu's shoulder. "And don't ride too fast, and don't talk to strangers, and don't eat anything they give you, and wash your vegetables, and--"
"Er-ge please." Xue Huayu groaned dramatically, swatting her brother's hands away. "I'll be fine, I'm going with Da-ge, nothing can happen."
"I know that it's just--"
"Er-ge. Take care of A-Ying and do your job. Freak out less."
"Fine." Qing Xiashu huffed, patting Hei Xianying's head where she was tucked into his arm.
"Remember to check the length of the Bianjing river." Xue Feiyi mentioned. "If it's changed along the borders just make a note of it, I'll handle it when we return."
"Alright."
"Don't forget to monitor the disciples, they should have a test this week." The king said, stepping closer to pinch Hei Xianying's baby round cheeks. "Be good for your Shu-gege, and make sure you keep him very safe, alright A-Ying?"
Hei Xianying nodded very seriously, before flashing a big grin and leaning her shoulder into Qing Xiashu. "I will!"
"That's a good girl." Xue Feiyi hummed softly, then turned back to Xue Huayu. "Let's go before Qing Shidi makes you run a checklist of your kongjian bags."
The princess snickered and vacated the premises in an instant.
"A-Shu. Do stay safe as well." The king instructed, leaving no room for argument.
"I will, Xue Shixiong."
And with that, Qing Xiashu was left in charge of the entire North.
"Well then, A-Ying. What shall we do while we wait for Mi-didi to wake up?"
"Swords!" She chirped, sticking her little arms up.
The head disciple chuckled and turned away from the gates. "A-Ying is eager to learn sword play, but wouldn't it be better to learn from Xue Xiaojie? She's closer to your age and size."
Hei Xianying shook her head vigorously. "A-Ying wants to be like Shu-gege. Not Xue-jiejie."
With a soft proud snicker, Qing Xiashu shook his head. "What's wrong with how Xue Xiaojie does things?"
"Nothing, but I like your way better."
"Alright, alright, maybe Mi-didi will help when he gets up as well."
"Mm!" Hei Xianying cheered as she was set down in the same courtyard they had used to train Xue Huayu on using Kaihua.
"Why's Touming called Touming?" Hei Xianying asked as she fiddled with the beads hanging from the sword's hilt.
"Because it's very hard for monsters to see." Qing Xiashu reasoned, patting the sword that rattled in agreement.
"How come Touming isn't like me? It is a yao isn't it?"
"That's a good question, yao are all different though. Blade spirits are born from cultivation so I can imagine they're probably very specialized compared to most other yao, most are born of corruption after all, not repeated exposure to large amounts of concentrated qi."
"Will I get a sword like Touming some day?" Hei Xianying asked, lightly tugging on the yellow tassels before letting go to collect the training swords left in the corner.
"Of course, even if you decide to pursue a different cultivation method than the jian, you'll still get a sword. At least for emergency transportation." Qing Xiashu answered with a soft laugh, setting Touming to the side when the girl returned to him with the wooden swords.
"I'm going to name it Yan Zhao when I get it."
"Yan Zhao? Why Yan Zhao?"
"My friends, the gui huo and the sanzuwu." Hei Xianying chirped. "Will you teach me more sword forms? I want to show Xue-jiejie when she gets back."
"Alright, A-Ying."
It was less than two hours of Hei Xianying's shockingly intense focus before the rogue appeared.
"Mi-didi." Qing Xiashu greeted, straightening from where he'd been crouched, directing Hei Xianying's little arms into proper motions that would someday become quite fierce fencing if her stern focus was anything to go off of.
"Good morning, Qing-xiong..." The rogue sighed, plopping himself down beside them. The little lump of cultivator on the ground seemed to radiate nothing but depression.
"I'm sorry, Mi-didi..."
Hei Xianying's focus on her sword forms shattered in an instant. "Shu-gege can name you! He named me!" She chirped, bouncing over with her little wooden sword, dancing back and forth on her feet. Her balance was impeccable but she had so much energy...
"You do have a nice name." The rogue agreed with a small smile, reaching over to gently pat the little girl's fluffy hair.
"See? He's good at naming things!"
"Biased!" Qing Xiashu chuckled, leaning down to scoop Hei Xianying up from under her arms, she squealed and stretched out for a second before turning towards him to settle into his arms, a cat is a cat even when human shaped...
"But I'm right! Mi-gege can have any name he wants, and if he doesn't know what to pick we can help!"
The rogue laughed softly before sighing to himself, propping his chin in his palm. "Pick a character, A-Ying."
"Qi!" She chirped.
"Hao."
"What?" Qing Xiashu blinked in confusion.
"Qi Haomi." The rogue hummed. "Hao feels important. A-Ying chose Qi, you call me Mi-didi. Qi Haomi."
The head disciple blinked a few more times before he smiled. "Qi Haomi it is."
Lunch was much quieter without Xue Huayu present for arguing purposes, but there were no less words passed across the table. Qing Xiashu and the freshly named Qi Haomi had spent a short while preparing stir fry with cabbage and mushrooms. Qing Xiashu was tempted to go through the trouble of making noodles but he thought of it far too late and Hei Xianying had already begun quietly whimpering over her hunger. She still wasn't out spoken enough to directly complain but her attitude got so cloudy when she was hungry that he couldn't stand to make her wait.
So here they were sitting in the dining hall eating around a single table meant for a pair of people at most.
"I'll need to fly along the river tomorrow and make sure it hasn't shifted much near the border, the Southern sect head can get rather fussy if we don't fix it quickly enough when it pushes downward." Qing Xiashu mentioned. "It isn't much trouble, truth be told, just time consuming." He said as he picked through the stirfry.
Today he picked out the pea pods first and left the cabbage for last despite that it made up most of the body in the dish.
"I'd be happy to go with you." Qi Haomi noted, taking a bite of his food before glancing at Hei Xianying as she ate at record speeds, as usual. "A-Ying, slow down." He chided.
"Hungry!" She cheeped out between inhaling bites.
Qing Xiashu sighed quietly. "Just because your Da-ge isn't here doesn't mean you can't use your manners."
Hei Xianying groaned but obediently slowed her pace and sat upright in her spot.
Qi Haomi chuckled softly. "Will A-Ying go with us?"
"Eh, if she pleases."
"Yes please!" Hei Xianying chirped before quickly returning to eating.
"Alright. We'll cover the river. Then stop for dinner in Yang Xin on the way back."
•••
Yang Xin is an overpopulated and bustling city. With its access to the under-city gates the traffic through and within the city is particularly intense.
Qing Xiashu kept a tight hold on Hei Xianying's hand or carried her everywhere they went, unwilling to allow the opportunity for someone to snatch her.
Human trafficking was a well enough known problem in Yang Xin. But due to its sovereignty as underworld grounds even on the surface, there was little any of the mortal powers could do to stop it.
It was controlled from below the ground after all.
Of course it was corrupt to the core.
But Qi Haomi had wanted to speak with someone with eastern connections. And most of those were in Yang Xin.
"Qing-didi."
Qing Xiashu looked up to the speaker so quickly his neck nearly cracked. "Yan-gege!" He chirped with a bright smile. It had been a long while since he'd met Yan Hesheng in person, but the man hadn't changed much with the exception of his clothes being layered down for the warmer temperature.
"How is everyone? Beifang Gongzhu and A-Ying?"
"They're all well, I've written to you about Mi-didi haven't I? This is Qi Haomi." Qing Xaishu smiled, gesturing to the man behind him.
Yan Hesheng gave an obscenely polite bow as well as a faint smile before returning his attention to Qing Xiashu and his little charge. "Hello, A-Ying, you've certainly grown."
"Ahh you should see her with a sword! So much improvement!" He waved his hands in a gesture excitedly, all too glad to brag
The baihu gui chuckled, hiding his laughter behind his sleeves. "I'm sure, with proper nutrition she'll be bound to have quite the growth spurt."
"She certainly has an appetite." Qing Xiashu admitted, rubbing the child's head habitually.
"Ah- on an unrelated note... Qing-didi, you should know... Liming Yingxiong is here. I left him at the inn but he's surely up and moving now."
A shudder ran up Qing Xiashu's spine almost violently at the mere mention of the man, melancholy flooding his form. "Thank you for the warning." He murmured with a frown.
He wasn't afraid of Hong Chunji exactly.
But something in him wanted to preserve his time with Yin Liming and abandon the idea of Hong Chunji in totality.
"Yan Hesheng, I found our commissioner-- oh." A bright voice turned frosty in an instant.
Hei Xianying was faster on the uptake than Qing Xiashu ever could have hoped. He was able to tuck a kitten into the folds of his sleeves rather than worry over obstructing a child from view.
Qing Xiashu bit his tongue, turning his eyes away as though he hadn't noticed a thing.
Hong Chunji scoffed quietly before turning on his heel. Yan Hesheng huffed a soft sigh before displaying a quick smile. "Next time then." He said before turning to follow his traveling companion.
Qing Xiashu rolled a shudder off his shoulders and let Hei Xianying back on the ground. "Coast is clear."
"Was that the... friend?" Qi Haomi whispered, anxiously twiddling his thumbs.
"Mm... That's the one..."
•●•