What exactly was Chu Dingjiang up to? It was one thing to forsake the life of a noble scion, but even after successfully deceiving everyone to join the Crane Control Army, he hadn’t exactly thrived there.
And then there was that sudden appearance of Lu Danzhi, who claimed to be Cui Yichen’s nephew yet didn’t recognize him upon meeting…
So far, everything was shrouded in mist, leaving An Jiu utterly bewildered.
Lost in thought, she stepped out the door.
The Earth Instructor, overhearing the conversation inside, grew even more gleeful, his tone lilting with amusement. “Oh my, what a thrilling and dangerous mission! And a free promotion to boot—congratulations, little Xuan Ren!”
Ever since the Earth Instructor resolved to curry favor with Mo Sigui, he had stopped calling An Jiu “shorty” and instead affectionately referred to her as “little Xuan Ren.” Unfortunately, to An Jiu’s ears, it was just as punch-worthy.
But considering that assaulting a superior might result in demerits, she reluctantly dismissed the idea.
Returning to her quarters, she found Chu Dingjiang dozing on the couch.
“Chu Dingjiang,” An Jiu called, knowing he wasn’t truly asleep. “You already know, don’t you?”
“About capturing Wei Yuzhi?” His voice was low and rough, tinged with a hint of nasal congestion as he sat up, pressing a knuckle lightly against the bridge of his nose.
“Mm.”
“Then go capture him. Are you planning to defy orders?” Chu Dingjiang, however, seemed entirely unconcerned.
“This is a life-or-death mission. What exactly are you after?” An Jiu could somewhat understand his motives, but she couldn’t fathom why, even if he wanted to sever ties with the Hua Clan, he’d go to such self-destructive lengths.
When he remained silent, she added, “Mo Sigui is the only one around. You can pretend he’s not here.”
“‘For the sake of one’s path, even death holds no regret’—that was the creed of the aspiring men of my homeland.” Speaking of this, Chu Dingjiang felt acutely out of place in this era. The nobility of the Great Song Dynasty—had any of them ever valued anything above their own lives? They chased power and profit to satisfy selfish desires, clinging fiercely to their existence.
Yet during the Warring States period, when flames of war raged across the land, corpses piled like mountains, and rivers ran red with blood, ambition was everywhere—ambition to unify the realm, ambition to etch one’s name in history, ambition to forge an era of peace… These, too, were selfish desires, but the difference was that they were desires to create, to fulfill oneself—not to indulge in luxury.
In his reckless youth, Chu Dingjiang had once pursued the exhilaration of wielding power like a force of nature. But now, faced with this age of peace, the towering man couldn’t help but shed tears.
His ambition today was not to exhaust every means to plunge the world back into chaos, but to prolong this era without war for as long as possible. For this, he was prepared to sacrifice himself for the sake of his path.
He had never been attached to appearances. Hua Ji, Hua Rongjian, Chu Dingjiang—no matter the name, he was still the same unique self in this world.
As for the Hua Clan, Chu Dingjiang no longer wished to devote his life to it. Yet, bound by both soul and blood, he believed his rebirth into the Hua Clan was no accident of fate. Whether the clan was stripped of power or exiled in the future, he could turn a blind eye—but he could not bear to see it destroyed.
And so, he needed strength—strength entirely separate from the Hua Clan…
“Path? What’s that?” An Jiu asked.
Chu Dingjiang snapped out of his thoughts. “The truth and direction in one’s heart. Put another way, it’s roughly… aspiration, ambition.”
“Does everyone have one?”
He nodded. “Yes, but each person’s path is different.”An Jiu said, "I don't have any."
Chu Dingjiang smiled, "If you don't know what to do, why not use your talents to safeguard the peace of the world?"
An Jiu asked, "Why should I safeguard peace?"
"One should have ambition and vision in life."
"Why should I have such ambition and vision?"
"Isn't it good to ensure peace across the land?"
An Jiu pondered for a moment, "It is good, but what inherent connection does peace across the land have with me?"
"..."
A generation gap, a deep generation gap.
One was driven, idealistic, and proactive, willing to die for their dreams; the other was aimless, indifferent, lost in negativity, with no purpose in life nor in death.
"Go pick your weapons," Chu Dingjiang decided to end the conversation. Continuing it might make him question why he should have ambition and vision at all.
An Jiu's negativity was like ice, cooling the fervor of those around her.
Chu Dingjiang resolved to slowly thaw her, knowing he couldn't rush—lest he risk frostbite.
...
This time, the highest-level armory was opened to them. The weapons here were of such quality that they could serve as lifelong arms, though the selection was limited to a maximum of three items.
Chu Dingjiang's original weapon was a heavy sword from the Spring and Autumn period named Ming Ju. It appeared unadorned, its only notable feature being that despite centuries of use, its blade remained as pristine as if newly forged. Since he used only this sword for every mission, he yielded his weapon selection opportunity to An Jiu.
An Jiu chose two pairs of twin swords, a flexible sword, and several portable hidden weapons. Unfortunately, the few bows in the armory were all longbows, unsuitable for carrying or ambushes, so she had to forgo them.
After leaving the armory, the two headed to the Scroll Room to retrieve information about Misty Villa from Sheng Zhangku.
On the way, Chu Dingjiang decided to patiently engage her in conversation. "Is there anything you wish to do?"
In his view, those without aspirations were pitiable. Though women weren't necessarily expected to have grand ambitions, even the most ordinary among them should at least harbor thoughts of "finding a devoted partner." Life was only meaningful with direction and hope.
An Jiu replied, "There is."
"Hmm?" This answer surprised Chu Dingjiang.
"Complete the mission successfully."
"And further ahead?"
"Save my mother." This was the reason An Jiu had to join the Crane Control Army.
If she still had her rifle, she would never have taken such a roundabout path. But given her current circumstances, even surviving day-to-day was a struggle.
Chu Dingjiang pressed, "And beyond that?"
"Isn't that far enough? I don't even know how many years it'll take to reach her!" An Jiu never thought decades ahead. With each day uncertain, whether she'd live that long was already a question—why waste time on idle thoughts?
For now, she only hoped Mei Yanran wouldn't die before then.
Chu Dingjiang was skilled at reading people. Someone like An Jiu, with such pure and chilling lethality, likely had memories dominated by killing. When one was too specialized or pure in one aspect, they inevitably lacked greatly in others.
An Jiu seemed to have experienced much, but beyond violence, she was a blank slate.
Chu Dingjiang was more than willing to leave his mark on that slate. "I might be able to help you with that. I'd like to know what you plan to do after saving her."
An Jiu didn't refuse his goodwill and answered earnestly, "Tend sheep, grow grapes."
Chu Dingjiang was somewhat dissatisfied. "Anything else?"An Jiu's brows furrowed deeply as she sank into profound contemplation.
Chu Dingjiang didn't disturb her, letting her think it through on her own.
The two walked in silence until they entered the darkness of the residential area. Only then did she speak, "Raise a few horses, and get a dog."
A shadow passed over Chu Dingjiang's heart. She had even considered trivial details like keeping a dog—why hadn't she thought about finding a man?
"Ahem." He cleared his throat and earnestly guided the conversation, "Why haven't you considered finding someone to spend your life with?"
"I have thought about it," An Jiu replied.
Chu Dingjiang felt a flicker of joy—until she added, "My mother." (To be continued...)
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