Ashes to Crown

Chapter 31: Chapter 31: Argument

The lamplight flickered, and the inscription on the envelope, addressed personally to her father, seemed to dance along with it.

Ah Zhao’s handwriting was much better than before.

Chu Ling reached out, stroking it gently, then raised his head to look at the young man, Ah Jiu, who had left and now returned.

Chu Ling had once again asked Vice General Zhong to step out. The room was now empty save for the two of them.

”Did Ah Zhao tell you she wants to come back?” Chu Ling asked.

Ah Jiu frowned. ”Does that even need to be said? She went to such great lengths, tricking so many people into playing along with her act, all just to come back here.”

’Is that so? Wasn’t it because she got into trouble in the Capital City? This boy must not know that Ah Zhao hit someone.’

A girl’s reputation was at stake, so Vice General Zhong and the Heir of Zhongshan King must not have told these posthouse soldiers much.

Chu Ling remained silent.

”So you’re not letting her come back?” Ah Jiu pressed.

Chu Ling nodded. ”That’s right.”

Ah Jiu said, ”Oh,” and shrugged. ”It’s a matter between you and your daughter. You can decide it yourselves. I’ll be leaving.”

He had only wanted to ask, and now that he had his answer, that was enough. With that, he turned to leave.

Chu Ling watched him, his fingers tapping lightly on the desk. Once, twice, three times—

The young man spun around abruptly.

”Why won’t you let your daughter come back?” he asked, his face displeased. Then, he put on a knowing smile. ”Is it because she’s too annoying?”

”My daughter is not annoying,” Chu Ling said, shaking his head firmly.

’A parent always thinks their own child is perfect,’ Ah Jiu thought, pursing his lips. ’I should go. I really should have left already. It’s just... my curiosity is too strong!’

”I’m sick,” Chu Ling said suddenly, looking at Ah Jiu. ”Very sick.”

Ah Jiu’s body stiffened. His gaze fell upon Chu Ling—this General in his forties, with a burly frame, bright eyes, and a ruddy complexion—

”You can’t tell. I’ve been hiding it,” Chu Ling said with a faint smile. ”No one knows.”

As he spoke, he waved the letter from Young Master Xie.

”If he knew, Young Master Xie probably wouldn’t have written a letter seeking an alliance with me.”

’No one knows, so is Chu Ling just telling me this directly now?’

’Is this trust?’

But the young Ah Jiu never rejoiced in trust. In this world, trust gets you killed.

’It seems I won’t be walking out of here tonight.’

’Serves me right. Who told me to keep asking questions? I walked right into this mess.’

Ah Jiu gave a self-deprecating smile, yet showed not a hint of fear or panic.

”So when I can no longer hide it, things here will get very... lively. For her safety, I sent my daughter away. Back in the Capital City, living at home, my family has nothing to do with military power. She’ll be safe and sound there,” Chu Ling continued, looking at Ah Jiu. ”I can’t tell her any of this. I can only be firm and play the part of a heartless father. When the dust settles here, she will understand.”

Ah Jiu looked at Chu Ling and said, ”Oh.” He couldn’t help but add, ”But I think Miss Chu understands perfectly well right now.”

Chu Ling asked, ”What did she tell you?”

”She didn’t tell me anything,” Ah Jiu said with a frown.

This was the truth. The things that girl had told him before were all lies. After her identity was exposed, she didn’t say much to him. She just sat before him, crying in silence.

Ah Jiu was silent for a moment, then said, ”She knows you’re sick. She also knows why you won’t let her come back. She understands your intentions completely.”

Chu Ling looked at the young man’s face, also fell silent for a moment, then gave a soft smile. ”Good. As long as she understands, I can rest easy.”

Ah Jiu scoffed.

Chu Ling looked at the young man and asked with a smile, ”What is it? Do you think I’m wrong?”

”I don’t think you’re wrong,” Ah Jiu said, looking at him with a mocking smile playing on his lips. ”I just think people are inherently selfish. The idea that a parent’s love is selfless is a lie.”

Chu Ling smiled. ”So you still think I’m wrong. What do you mean by that?”

”General Chu, you say you’re doing this entirely for Miss Chu’s good, so you hide your illness from her and refuse to let her return no matter what, to keep her from being drawn into the danger here,” Ah Jiu said. ”You claim everything you do is for her own good, so she can live a peaceful life.”

Chu Ling nodded. ”Yes. I imagine all parents would make such arrangements for their children.”

Ah Jiu’s phoenix eyes filled with a smile. ”Yes, every parent is like that. They want their children to live stable, prosperous lives, to achieve great things, to climb to the top, to be decked out in gold and silver, to feast on the finest foods, to be the envy of all—”

’Hmm,’ Chu Ling thought, looking at the young man. He wasn’t sure if every parent was like that, but he was certain this boy’s parents were.

”But,” Ah Jiu said, the smile vanishing from his eyes, ”that’s just what the parents think. They assume it’s for their children’s good, they assume that’s a good life. And they aren’t even doing it for their children—they’re doing it for themselves.”

Chu Ling watched him without speaking.

Ah Jiu looked at him and said, enunciating each word, ”To ease your own conscience. To move yourselves with your own perceived greatness.”

”You don’t care at all what your children truly want in their hearts. You don’t care about the heartache they will feel when they have to face all of this in the future.”

”When they wear that gold and silver, with every bite of food they eat, they will think, ’This was bought with my parents’ sacrifice.’ They won’t be wearing gold and silver; they’ll be wearing their parents’ bloody clothes. They won’t be eating food; they’ll be eating their parents’ flesh.”

”They will be trapped day and night in pain, regret, and self-blame. And that is what you parents call a good life.”

”You’ve made your sacrifice, so you have no more worries. What does it matter if your children are sad, grieving, and heartbroken? As long as they have a stable life, good food and drink, and material wealth, that’s enough. They shouldn’t be so ungrateful as to betray their parents’ good intentions.”

In the brightly lit room, the young man’s hoarse voice echoed, his face filled with derision.

”As parents, you can do whatever you want, because you’re the parents. You call the shots. But please, don’t ever say again that you’re doing it so your children can have a good life.”

”That isn’t for your children’s good life. It’s just so you can live with yourselves.”

Chu Ling watched him, the gentle, faint smile vanishing from his face. His expression grew profound.

’Why did I say all that nonsense, and to a stranger no less?’ The mockery in Ah Jiu’s eyes faded, replaced by vexation.

No one spoke. An eerie silence fell over the room.

”Alright,” Chu Ling said, nodding and breaking the silence. ”I understand. It’s getting late, and you have a long journey ahead. You should go back for now.”

Without another word, Ah Jiu turned and strode to the door, pulling it open. He walked out with large steps, staring straight ahead as he brushed past Vice General Zhong and hurried away.

This time, Vice General Zhong didn’t go in immediately. Instead, he stared at the young man’s retreating back.

Sure enough, just as he was about to step through the main gate, he came back.

Vice General Zhong rolled his eyes. He didn’t even glance at the young man as he walked past him and stepped back into the room.

”What else did Ah Zhao tell you—” Chu Ling began to ask.

”I already told you, she didn’t tell me anything!” Ah Jiu interrupted him, annoyed.

Chu Ling chuckled and said no more, gesturing for him to speak.

Ah Jiu looked at him. ”You tell me something so important, and you’re just going to let me walk away?” He lifted his head arrogantly. ”I’ll say it again: I have no relationship with your daughter. Whether she lives or dies has nothing to do with me, and whether I live or die is equally insignificant to her.”

’So, I shouldn’t misunderstand and think Ah Zhao is deeply in love with him, and that’s why I’m not killing him, to spare her the heartache?’ Chu Ling laughed out loud.

”Young man,” he said, tapping his fingers on the letter on the desk. ”Didn’t you just say it yourself? You’re only here to deliver a letter. Once it’s delivered, your mission is over. Everything else is not part of your mission. Since it’s not your mission, what does it matter what you know?”

Ah Jiu glanced at him, said nothing, and turned to leave again.

”One more thing,” Chu Ling said from behind him. ”If someone were truly a threat to me, I wouldn’t spare them even if my daughter were deeply in love with them. A man who would harm me would inevitably harm my daughter. For her sake, I would definitely eliminate him.”

Ah Jiu waved his hand dismissively. ”Then here’s hoping your daughter has the good luck not to meet a man like that.” With that, he strode away.

This time, he walked out the main gate and disappeared into the night, and he did not come back.

Chu Ling retracted his gaze, looking down at the letter on his desk.

”A pity,” he murmured. ”If there really were such a man, I probably wouldn’t live long enough to eliminate him.”