The Heart Given to Brighten the Moon - Chapter 15

Shen Danxin’s spirit deflated. She sat haphazardly upon a pile of clutter, unbothered by the dust clinging to the hem of her robe. She pouted with a face full of grievance. “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

Song Mingyue kept her gaze fixed on the window frame. After waiting a while and seeing that Shen Danxin had no other excuses to offer, she let out a soft sigh and said, “Are you finished? I am leaving.” With that, she truly made to depart.

Shen Danxin lunged forward to grab her sleeve, her face a mask of misery. “I. I still have something to say! Don’t go.”

Suddenly, she felt the “little buns” on her chest being prodded by an object. She slapped her forehead in delighted realization and pulled a parcel wrapped in oil paper from her robes. “It’s still warm! Eat this before you go.”

Song Mingyue looked at the oddly shaped parcel in her hand, her willow-leaf brows furrowing slightly. “This is…” Before the words could fully leave her mouth, a savory aroma of meat filled her nose.

In ordinary times, Shen Danxin would have teased Song Mingyue until her appetite was whetted to the extreme before revealing the secret. Now, however, she didn’t have the courage of a hundred men to try such a thing. She unwrapped the parcel like a man presenting a sacred treasure: inside was a duck leg, tender on the outside and even more so on the inside, still radiating steam.

“A duck leg?”

Shen Danxin pulled her down to sit on the same pile of clutter and urged, “What are you dazing for? Eat! I went to great lengths to ste—to fetch this.”

Song Mingyue remained unmoved on the outside, but her stomach betrayed her with a resentful growl. Though her face flushed with shame, she struggled to maintain her composure, questioning, “Where did you get a duck leg?”

Given Song Mingyue’s temperament, she would never take a bite without a clear explanation. If that happened, Shen Danxin’s effort in offending Master Yu Mengren today would have been for nothing.

“It’s compensation from Old Man Cai for his shameful conduct yesterday,” Shen Danxin explained. “It’s just a piece of Gourd Eight-Treasure Duck; he got off easy.”

The young beauty gave her another sharp glare. “Master Cai is revered by ten thousand people; countless scholars long to be his disciple. You must not be so disrespectful to him.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” Shen Danxin pointed at the duck leg, which was losing its ethereal steam, and said helplessly, “In any case, this is a gesture of goodwill from the old Master. Pray, eat it quickly.”

Song Mingyue looked at the duck leg, then at Shen Danxin. Ultimately, she could not escape the temptation of world-class cuisine and parted her crimson lips to take a small bite. Shen Danxin was overjoyed and immediately asked, “Is it delicious?”

Song Mingyue nodded bashfully and took another bite.

The young beauty ate with slow, meticulous grace, embodying the poise of a noble lady. Shen Danxin was in no hurry; when someone is this beautiful, everything they do is a sight to behold. It wasn’t until Song Mingyue had finished the leg and was using the oil paper to wipe her hands that Shen Danxin finally asked the question she had been weighing in her heart for ages:

“Does that wicked woman Zhao Hui always treat you this way?”

Song Mingyue’s hand froze mid-wipe. Only for a second, though, before she resumed her task and said calmly, “Do you mean her bullying me, or her using me as a horse?”

“Well…” Shen Danxin hesitated. “Forget it, take it as if I didn’t ask. But you must know, that slap truly wasn’t intentional. If you’re still angry, you might as well slap me back.”

Song Mingyue stuffed the greasy oil paper into Shen Danxin’s hand, seemingly unbothered. “In truth, we both know that slap saved my life. If Zhao Hui had pursued the matter to the end, I would have met a grim fate. I shouldn’t be petty with you, but if you hadn’t taken the wrong painting, I wouldn’t have had to go through this. Thinking it over. I suppose I’m simply still a bit vexed.”

Shen Danxin lowered her head, looking melancholy.

Song Mingyue stole a glance at her and suddenly felt much more refreshed. She changed the subject, asking, “Was that the painting that made Master Cai decide to take you as his disciple?”

Shen Danxin lifted her head, not daring to answer.

A slight smile touched the corners of Song Mingyue’s mouth. “It was a good painting.” But in the next heartbeat, her lips curled downward and her autumn-pool eyes narrowed slightly. “A pity the artist is a total lecher!”

Shen Danxin’s heart, which had barely lifted half an inch from the ground, was hammered back into a pit. She suddenly realized the problem and scrambled to chase after the beauty, who was already turning to leave. “Li-Little Mingyue! Listen to my explanation! That was a sacrifice for Art!”

Song Mingyue, already at the door, turned back and gave her a sharp, mocking look. “What ‘Art’? I have never heard of it. Total nonsense!”

Ignoring the pleas for mercy, Song Mingyue pushed the door open and stepped out, slamming it shut behind her with force. Shen Danxin, following too closely, met an inevitable fate: her nose slammed into the doorframe, a tragic sacrifice.

Not long after, when Song Mingjue pushed the door open, he saw Shen Danxin leaning against the wall, clutching her nose with teary eyes. He asked in shock, “Did my sister hit you?”

Shen Danxin shook her head in agony.

Song Mingjue crouched down and gave her a smiling thumb-up, offering generous praise: “No wonder my sister left with a smile on her face. As expected of a hidden master, to even come up with such a method of self-punishment.”

Shen Danxin gave a bitter, silent nod. Song Mingjue pulled a small celadon bottle from his robes and handed it to her. “This is a healing salve for sores. My sister went to the Medical Bureau I don’t know how many times to get it. I told her the Qingmo Academy doesn’t lack such medicines, but she refused to listen. When she left just now, she said she forgot to give it to you.”

Shen Danxin took the small bottle; it still held the warmth of someone’s body. Whether it was the pain or something else, her eyes filled with tears once more. Song Mingjue stared in daze. After a long while, Shen Danxin sniffled, winced from the pain in her nose, and patted his shoulder. She said with great gravity:

“Mingjue, you must earn a high scholarly rank in the future and give your sister a life of peace.”

Song Mingjue gave a peculiar, wry smile. “You likely don’t know, with my status, I am barred from a career in officialdom.”

“What!?” Shen Danxin’s eyes went round. “Then why do you study?”

Song Mingjue laughed bitterly. “I am trapped in the forbidden city; if I do not study, what else is there to do?” He mimicked her, sitting against the wall. “Years ago, I wanted to abandon the brush for the sword and flee the palace’s intrigues. I thought if I went far away, I’d be out of Zhao Zongqian’s sight and mind. But I underestimated him. He feared I would gain military power; being far away would make me harder to control. So, he kept me in the Scholars’ Academy. They say I am a student, but in truth, I am merely a prince’s study-mate. And it was at that time that my sister was driven out of the academy.”

The two sat opposite each other in silence for a long time.

Shen Danxin’s nose was bright red, making her look quite comical, yet the fire in her eyes made Song Mingjue’s heart skip a beat. He heard her say:

“If I become famous throughout the world, would you be willing to marry Song Mingyue to me?”

A fake phoenix and a hollow rooster.

Song Mingjue spent a long time lost in thought while staring at the ink on his paper. He had practiced Small Seal script for five years; while he wouldn’t claim mastery, he had some pride in his work. But now, even the calligraphy once praised by the Eldest Prince left him feeling distracted and restless.

As a child, a full meal and warm clothes were enough for contentment. But as they grew and heard the whispers and scandals of the palace, that childhood innocence vanished. His sister’s desire for revenge grew day by day, becoming the very pillar that allowed her to endure this meager existence. It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought of it, but spending every day with the princes, he knew that assassinating Zhao Zongqian was a sheer fantasy. He thought that if revenge was hopeless, he should at least give his sister a few years of peace. But with the path to officialdom blocked and himself trapped in the palace, where was his way out?

Getting married might be a way out, but even that was not within their control. Zhao Zongqian had supported them all these years for a reason. If she married a common man, perhaps his sister could find a peaceful end. But if Zhao Zongqian had darker intentions the very lake that saved Shen Danxin might become the lake where his sister is buried.

Song Mingjue let out a long sigh and crumpled the paper.

Before leaving, Shen Danxin had said: “You don’t need to answer in a hurry. I’ll give you one year. A year from now, if I have startled the world with my name, it won’t be too late to give me your answer.”

Song Mingjue sighed again, murmuring to himself “Truly, a hidden master.”

What if it’s a fake phoenix? As long as life lasts longer than love, then they can endure through the ages.

When Shen Danxin sneaked back into the Qingmo Academy through the side gate, she happened to see several young attendants carrying charcoal toward the woodstore. Her eyes darted around, and she stopped the last attendant. “Is the charcoal in our courtyard sufficient?”

The fair-faced attendant grinned, a look of pride evident on his face. “Of course it is! Thanks to His Majesty’s favor, our Qingmo Academy always receives the most charcoal every winter. If Master Shen doesn’t believe it, you can ask the Scholars’ Academy next door and you’ll see.”

Shen Danxin snorted and played along. “Why ask those old fogies? Since we have a surplus, do this Master a favor and run an errand. Send some to Master Song Mingjue at the servants’ quarters. This Master owes his current success to Master Song’s recommendation. Though a debt of gratitude is deep, one should repay what one can.”

The attendants of the Qingmo Academy loved to gossip, but they were ultimately young and pure-hearted. The fair-faced youth agreed without hesitation.

Shen Danxin squeezed the small celadon bottle in her hand and turned back to her guest room.

Old Man Cai said he would instruct her, and he wasn’t joking. He started from the very beginning how to hold the brush. Shen Danxin, who was used to a four-finger grip with the thumb as the main force, was in constant agony. She wondered if the old man was giving her “small shoes to wear” [making things difficult] because she had publicly challenged Yu Mengren that day.

For several days in a row, she held the brush from morning till night. Finally, Shen Danxin could endure it no more. “Master, wouldn’t it be more beautiful to paint flowers and trees? Or even big rocks and hills?”

Cai Xun stroked his sparse goat-beard, his eyes fixed intently on a book called The Completion of Ink. “If you cannot even hold the brush steady, how can you paint? If word got out, would it not make people die of laughter?”

Shen Danxin, whose slender fingers had been tortured into the thickness of sausages, hovered over to Cai Xun and pleaded again: “Master, it’s just the two of us now. Tell your disciple, is that Old Man Meng giving you trouble?”

It would have been better not to mention it. At the mention of it, Cai Xun’s anger flared; he slammed the book onto the desk and roared: “You have the nerve to bring this up?! Do not think that just because you have extraordinary talent you can look down on everyone! Forget the Qingmo Academy even Chen Jianzhi of the Scholars’ Academy is not someone you can toy with as you please! If we were outside the palace, so be it. But within these walls, everyone possesses secret skills, yet everyone hides them. Only you, a yellow-haired brat, are so ignorant of the heavens!”

“Master, Master, don’t be angry, don’t be angry.” Shen Danxin soothed him while presenting a cup of hot tea.

Cai Xun gave her a glare but took a sip. Perhaps the tea was the perfect temperature, as his expression softened. He said calmly, “Yu Mengren entered the palace four or five years before I did. At that time, I was still focused on my travels, while he was granted the Green Dragon Inkstone, a treasure of the Ink-Masters, by His Majesty. Do you know? In all the world, aside from the Imperial Family, only Master Mengchang may use an inkstone carved with dragon-runes. What an immense glory that is!”

Hearing this, Shen Danxin finally felt a sliver of lingering fear. She couldn’t help but ask, “What extraordinary feat did Master Meng perform to earn such a towering honor?”

Cai Xun set down the teacup and sighed, his gaze intense. “Because of his Map of a Hundred Children Paying Tribute. It was that painting alone that gave the Ink-Masters the power and prestige we enjoy today.”

Shen Danxin’s heart cleared. She gave Cai Xun a deep bow and said in a heavy voice:

“Your disciple shall surely practice the brush well and not lose face for Master!”