Chapter 1051: The Mortal and the Immortal

Chen Lan held her daughter tenderly, her face filled with warmth. Compared to the difficult times in the past, she no longer had any extravagant desires. As for the affairs of the household, there wasn’t much she needed to manage. Fan Jian was more than capable of keeping the inner courtyard well-organized, and Chen Xi’s family steward had been handling similar matters since the days when Chen Xi’s father was alive.

“We’re going to Ye City tomorrow. Do you need to bring anything else?” Fan Jian asked with a smile, pinching Chen Lan’s daughter’s cheeks fondly. She was clearly very fond of the little girl.

Seeing her daughter about to wake up and start crying from Fan Jian’s pinch, Chen Lan quickly adjusted her hold, patting her to lull her back to sleep. She shot Fan Jian a glare, knowing how troublesome it would have been if her daughter had been fully woken up.

“No, everything we need will be there,” Chen Lan whispered, keeping her voice low. “I just wonder when this world will finally be unified. My husband and I are always apart.”

Hearing this, Fan Jian’s spirits also dampened. When Chen Xi wasn’t around, many things felt less enjoyable to her.

She called out softly toward the door, and a small dog, no bigger than her palm, rushed over and leaped into her hand. “Why does Humhum seem to be shrinking? Other animals get bigger as they grow.”

“Woof, woof,” Humhum barked softly and then struck a playful, ready-to-pounce pose. This little dog had nearly become sentient. Ever since it had once woken up Chen Lan’s daughter and gotten scolded by Chen Lan with no amount of cute antics able to save it, it had learned to stay quiet whenever the baby was sleeping.

Chen Lan grabbed the loose skin behind Humhum’s neck, turned her hand, and pointed toward the door. As soon as she released it, the dog darted out like a flash of white light. It was a smart little creature, knowing exactly what to do.

“Hey, why’d you throw it out?” Fan Jian asked, clearly displeased.

“Doctor Hua said not to let cats or dogs near babies,” Chen Lan said, puffing her cheeks slightly. When it came to the child, Chen Lan was very strict, though with Fan Jian, she was usually quite soft-spoken.

“Oh, but Humhum isn’t just an ordinary dog,” Fan Jian said, gently stroking the baby’s smooth skin. “You could always let the nursemaid take care of her.”

Chen Lan shook her head without offering further explanation. When it came to raising her child, she was unwavering in her decision to care for the baby herself.

Fan Jian didn’t press the issue further. She had only come to discuss some things before their move. “Who will we be taking with us to Ye City?”

“All the maids from the inner courtyard should come, and the steward Chen can manage the outer courtyard. We’ll just have someone clean the house regularly. We should also bring along our books and records—everything else, well, my husband doesn’t really mind,” Chen Lan replied. Having been with Chen Xi for so long, she understood his preferences well.

Fan Jian looked at Chen Lan, wishing she had said they didn’t need to bring anything, knowing that their husband would have everything prepared in Ye City.

“Well, sister, we’ll definitely need to bring all the maids from the inner courtyard. At least, they’re familiar faces for both us and our husband. If we leave them behind...” Chen Lan’s big eyes gazed at Fan Jian as she left the sentence unfinished.

“Then, I suppose we’ll bring them,” Fan Jian conceded. She had to admit Chen Lan had a point. At least the maids were familiar, and they were used to serving Chen Xi. If they left them behind, who would take care of things? It would just lead to a whole new group of maids arriving, which would be even more troublesome.

“Alright, sister, bring them all,” Chen Lan said as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Compared to Fan Jian, she had a more mature and graceful demeanor.

“I just hope we don’t arrive in Ye City to find that our husband has already prepared everything for the inner courtyard,” Fan Jian said with a helpless sigh.

“That’s very possible. Lord Xuande may even gift our husband a few more maids,” Chen Lan said with a playful smile. Fan Jian sighed even more, glancing down at her belly before looking at Chen Lan’s daughter, feeling a bit envious. “Hmm, it does seem like it’s getting bigger.”

Fan Jian squinted at Chen Lan, who was holding her daughter. At first, Chen Lan was momentarily confused, but then, with a sly look and a smile, she switched arms to hold her daughter, causing Fan Jian’s face to flush. Standing there, she looked down at her feet and turned bright red.

“Ahhhh!” Fan Jian suddenly yelled, throwing a childish tantrum. Startled, Chen Lan’s daughter began to cry, and Chen Lan shot a glare at Fan Jian before hurriedly soothing the baby.

Watching Fan Jian leave, Chen Lan couldn’t help but shake her head. Fan Jian still seemed like a child in some ways, her personality sometimes too obvious and naive.

I wonder how cold it will be in Ye City. I hope the baby can get used to it, Chen Lan thought with a sigh. Taking care of a child was indeed a difficult task, especially when she was determined not to hire a nursemaid.

Meanwhile, Jian Yong had given up on accompanying Zhao Yun to Taishan. He was ready to fight it out with Kang Chenggong and the other scholars. Until a clear winner emerged, neither side would back down, and at this point, Jian Yong would never retreat before seeing things through.

With that, Zhao Yun had no choice but to set off with the others. While there weren’t too many high-ranking officials who needed to be escorted to Ye City, combined, the families amounted to over ten thousand people.

On top of that, there were soldiers assigned to protect the group. Even with plenty of carriages, smooth state roads, and ample supplies of food and water, the move would take no less than half a month.

“Aren’t you going to Ye City?” Zi Xu hovered in the sky, looking at Zuo Ci, who was watching Zhao Yun and the others depart.

“I think the Jingling Shrine is a nice place. I’ll just stay here and be a simple Daoist, offering incense and prayers,” Zuo Ci replied, shaking his head. “We’ve achieved longevity, haven’t we? But now, I suddenly feel that immortality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

“Do you remember why we sought immortality in the first place?” Zuo Ci asked, as though speaking to Zi Xu but also to himself.

“I’ve forgotten,” Zi Xu replied with exaggerated melancholy, though a faint trace of sorrow lingered in his tone. “So many years have passed. Who could still remember what life was like before immortality?”

“It’s not that we’ve forgotten; it’s that we are no longer the same people,” Zuo Ci said, shaking his head. “Do you remember when Jia Wenhe and Li Wenru asked us what price they would have to pay for immortality? How did we answer them?”

There were ways to achieve longevity—paths, methods, and people who had succeeded. Though not truly eternal life, some had gained hundreds of years of youth, like Nan Hua and Zhong Lin. They had already enjoyed centuries of vitality and would likely live for many more.

Was no one envious? Countless people had chased the secret of immortality, and many sages and emperors had been willing to sacrifice everything for it, only to fail. But now, with the likes of Nan Hua and Zhong Lin, true immortals, standing before them, the masses were not rushing to them in droves.

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