At night, Xie Chengfeng couldn’t wait any longer and flew out the door.
He had to make a trip home to check on things.
The reason he chose to go out at night was because when he tried during the day, he was almost shot down by a few mischievous children with slingshots.
The Princess’s estate was to the east of the Shen household, quite a distance away. Xie Chengfeng’s vision was blurry at night, so he could only choose to fly toward illuminated places. Not long into his flight, he looked down and saw a brightly lit estate. In the courtyard, people were drinking wine and admiring the moon. Several young maidens were playing the guqin, while others played the xiao flute. The melody was melodious and tactful, and accompanied by the clear radiance of the bright moon, it was like a beautiful painting brought to sound.
Xie Chengfeng tucked his wings and stood on a tree branch. Looking closely, the person sitting in the seat of honor was Zhou Luo. According to Shen Jiajia, this bird had been rescued directly from his hands.
Zhou Luo and his companions were currently discussing him, Xie Chengfeng. Xie Chengfeng pricked up his ears to listen.
“I heard Young Master Xie still hasn’t woken up. The imperial physicians are rushing in and out of the Grand Princess’s estate like flowing water.”
“It’s been days. I’m afraid it bodes ill rather than well, alas. Life is short, and the ways of the world are unpredictable. Gentlemen, let us cherish what is right in front of us.”
“I feel there’s something amiss about this matter. I heard that after the accident, the Grand Princess’s estate heavily reinforced its security. Right now, not even a single bird could fly in.”
“What do you mean? Why the heavy guard? Could it be that his fall from the horse wasn’t an accident?”
“Ah?! Someone is trying to murder a royal relative?!”
…
Although he knew his home would undoubtedly be heavily guarded right now, Xie Chengfeng still wanted to try his luck.
He flew to the Grand Princess’s estate with great effort and exhaustion. The moment he landed on a branch, he suddenly heard the sound of something tearing through the air. Immediately after, something sliced right past his face. Before he could even react, he heard a sharp smack, and something fell to the ground.
He stealthily peeked down, unable to clearly see what the object on the ground was, but the people below helpfully provided the answer.
“It’s a pigeon.”
Xie Chengfeng imagined it for a moment: if he were to step out right now and announce, ‘I am Xie Chengfeng, the young master of the Grand Princess’s estate. I have temporarily turned into a bird and cannot return home. If someone helps me restore my identity, I will reward them with a hundred taels of gold and a promotion in official rank,’ would the people below believe his words, or would they shoot an arrow straight through him?
Most likely, anyone with a normal, functioning brain would choose the latter.
Xie Chengfeng stood on the branch, not daring to move a single muscle. He endured it all the way until the guards below switched shifts and their vigilance relaxed slightly. Catching that tiny window of opportunity, he finally escaped.
Shen Jiajia was entirely unaware that Chengfeng had just experienced a ‘Terrifying Night at the Princess’s Estate’. The next day, she took out some fabric, needle, and thread, and said to him, “I need to make winter clothes. How about I make a piece for you too?” As she spoke, she held a measuring tape against his body, sizing him up.
Xie Chengfeng felt that Shen Jiajia was truly annoying, constantly reminding him of the fact that he had turned into a bird at every waking moment. With a flap of his wing, he overturned her sewing basket and snapped, “No need.”
While picking up her needles and thread, Shen Jiajia asked, “You were perfectly fine, why are you angry again? Who provoked you?”
Xie Chengfeng turned his body to look out the window. Seeing the bleak autumn wind and the ground covered in yellow leaves, it perfectly suited his current state of mind.
He let out a long, slow sigh: “Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand.”
“What hurdle is there that you can’t cross? You don’t know just how much I envy you.”
Could it be that she saw through something? Xie Chengfeng’s heart sank. He looked at her calmly and asked, “Envy me for what?”
“You can fly!”
“…”
He never in a million years expected the answer to be so simple.
Shen Jiajia sat by the window, her face full of fascination as she asked, “Tell me, what does flying feel like?”
Xie Chengfeng carefully recalled it. His body felt feather-light, his vision expansive, the entire world beneath his feet. Vast and boundless, as if riding the very wind itself. That feeling… was indeed quite nice.
Xie Chengfeng: “It feels just okay, I guess.”
Shen Jiajia cupped her face in her hands. “If only I could fly. I want to fly to a faraway, faraway place, to see what the absolute edge of this world truly looks like.”
When she said this, her eyes were sparkling brightly, filled with such radiant spirit that Xie Chengfeng felt too embarrassed to crush her by calling it a pipe dream.
He merely gave an “Mhm,” and then added, “Who knows, maybe you could turn into a bird in the future.”
“That’s impossible. But, maybe, people can fly too?”
“Turning into a bird would still be much easier.”
“Look, why can a kite fly? Because of the wind’s assistance. If we tied a person to a giant kite, as long as the kite was big enough, it could carry the person up into the air too. Don’t you think?”
Xie Chengfeng was entirely won over by her whimsical imagination. “That… actually sounds somewhat reasonable?”
“Mhm! But a kite needs a string pulling it to fly. If you wanted to fly further, the string wouldn’t be long enough.”
“Just how far do you want to fly…”
“So, I have another method. Since a Kongming lantern can fly up, what if we turned a person into a giant Kongming lantern—”
Xie Chengfeng felt a chill crawl up his spine. “You want to light yourself up like a sky lantern?! Isn’t that a bit unnecessary?”
“No, no, I mean placing a person underneath the Kongming lantern. For example, hanging from a rope or sitting inside a basket. This way, when the Kongming lantern flies up, the person can fly too.”
“What if the Kongming lantern goes out? Wouldn’t you just plummet down?”
“Sigh, you’re right. That’s why it would be best to find a way to control the Kongming lantern. Make it fly when you want it to fly, and make it descend when you want it to descend.” Shen Jiajia cupped her face, her brows knitting together slightly as she muttered to herself, “What method could work?”
Seeing her gaze go blank and her body turn completely still, Xie Chengfeng couldn’t help but say, “Silly girl.”
Shen Jiajia wasn’t the least bit angry. She retracted her gaze, lifted her fingers, and gently stroked his head. She smiled, “Chengfeng, thank you.”
“What are you thanking me for?”
“Thank you for being willing to listen to me talk about these things.”
Xie Chengfeng froze slightly. Meeting her clear, limpid eyes, he felt inexplicably a little shy. He said, “I’ve never met a girl like you.”
“And I have never met a bird like you.”
The atmosphere turned momentarily poignant. Xie Chengfeng thought for a moment and asked, “You want to know what the edge of the world looks like?”
“Mhm! Have you seen it?”
“No. However, I have seen the ocean.”
“Ah!” Shen Jiajia’s face filled with pleasant surprise.
“And some merchants who travel across the sea, both Song people and foreign merchants, as well as overseas royalty.”
“Could you tell me about them?” Shen Jiajia blinked her eyes, pleading, “Tell me about them, please?”
To actually act so sweetly and wheedling over this kind of thing…
Xie Chengfeng felt a slight twinge in his eyes, yet simultaneously found himself rather enjoying it. He thought about how she teased him day in and day out; this time, he was going to tease her back. Thus, he grinned, “Call me ‘Grandpa’, and I’ll—”
Before he could finish his sentence, he suddenly heard the sharp shing of a saber being drawn outside. Immediately following was a man’s furious roar: “You crazy bird! Making her call you Grandpa, do you dare to try and be my father?!”
Translator’s Anecdote: Our boy finally tries to be slick and flirt back, only to get instantly blocked by a furious dad wielding a sword because he accidentally implied he’s his father! 💀🦜🗡️✨