Chapter 32: Auspicious Day

Lu Wenxuan narrowed his eyes cautiously, and said in a tone as gentle as possible. “I apologize, Your Highness. Tonight, the celestial charts are obscured by clouds, making it impossible to observe the stars and determine auspicious days for you.”

Shen Yian looked up at the full sky of stars, the air falling silent for a few seconds.

The old geezer was indeed a sly one.

He had come to the palace tonight to have the old master definitively set a good day for his wedding.

Emperor Wu’s words, “Marriage is no child’s play,” had effectively kicked the ball to the Heavenly Gate Pavilion.

The marriage of a prince was no small matter, it involved the fortunes of Great Qing. So, he was left to ask the National Master himself to choose an auspicious day.

“Master, I apologize for my previous actions. Please don’t take it to heart,” Shen Yian said with a plastered smile, taking a few steps forward.

Lu Wenxuan took two steps back, waving his whisk. “Your Highness, please stop. Calling me ‘Master’ is too much, Your Highness.”

“My memory is terrible, I know you love to drink tea, so I specially brought some Bodhi tea from Tianzhu for you,” Shen Yian said, pulling out an ancient wooden box with a mysterious air. “Master, this tea is made from leaves of the sacred Bodhi tree in Tianzhu. Legend has it that it is infused with the power of Bodhi, allowing one to better comprehend the Dao. Would you like to try it?”

He had tasted this Bodhi tea before. It wasn’t particularly flavorful, but it had once put him into a state of enlightenment. The effect was only once, and drinking it again had no effect.

He had made a lot of it back then, and almost everyone under him had a share. The silly girl’s current realm was too low, so the effect wouldn’t be great. He’d talk to her about it later.

He had given Emperor Wu his share when he returned. As for Lu Wenxuan’s, he had been waiting for today, to maintain their precarious master-student relationship.

Lu Wenxuan’s face changed. “That year, Master Shida from the Great Nirvana Temple passed by Tianwu on his journey to the east. He met me once. I heard that the ancient Bodhi tree located in the Great Nirvana Temple was chopped down by a small thief with a sword, and a large number of branches and leaves were stolen.”

Shen Yian said with righteous indignation, “Master, you know me, I would never use a sword!”

Lu Wenxuan: “…”

“Alright, alright, Your Highness, let’s sit down and talk,” Lu Wenxuan said, lightly waving his whisk. Immortal Qi drifted out from his sleeve, and in a blink of an eye, a stone table and two stone stools appeared between the two of them.

Shen Yian stared intently at the stone bench and table. No matter how many times he saw this ability to conjure objects with a flick of the wrist, he still found it unbelievable. If this had happened in his previous life, he would have definitely thought it was some kind of magic trick.

After the two sat down for a short while, the young attendant came over with tea.

“Your Highness, please.”

“Thank you, Master,” Shen Yian replied. 

Shen Yian took a sip of the tea. Besides the welcoming tea from the Thousand Gold Pavilion, he also loved the Wudao tea from the Heavenly Gate Pavilion. Sadly, it was only produced in the Daoist holy land – Sanqing Mountain.

Lu Wenxuan opened the small wooden box, and a refreshing fragrance wafted out, making one feel enlightened, as if waking from a dream.

Even though the Bodhi leaves had been processed into tea, they still retained a profound and mysterious Buddhist aura.

He had wanted to criticize Shen Yian for wasting such a precious treasure, but he couldn’t help but be impressed by the craftsmanship of the tea master who had made it.

Shen Yian sipped his tea while stealing glances at Lu Wenxuan.

“Your Highness, is your visit today about the wedding?” Lu Wenxuan asked, closing the wooden box.

“Master, you truly understand your student best!” Shen Yian nodded.

“You are already aware of the Ye family’s daughter’s situation, aren’t you?”

“Student is aware,” Shen Yian said with a candid smile.

“Your Highness has changed her destiny. To be precise, your appearance has changed the fate of this world.”

Lu Wenxuan raised his bright eyes and met Shen Yian’s gaze, making the latter feel a chill run down his spine.

In Lu Wenxuan’s eyes, Shen Yian saw a coldness and ruthlessness that viewed all things as insignificant.

Lu Wenxuan’s eyelids drooped slightly, and he gently lifted his teacup for a sip.

He vaguely remembered that day when he was still in seclusion on Sanqing Mountain, before he entered Great Qing and became the National Master.

That day, the stars shifted and changed, the celestial charts were in disarray, and a looming calamity star that had already begun to form suddenly vanished without a trace. From that moment, he knew someone had altered the course of events.

Until the day he met Shen Yian for the first time, he couldn’t believe that a one-year-old child could have such a huge impact.

“Am I that powerful?” Shen Yian raised an eyebrow.

Lu Wenxuan’s face stiffened. If his cultivation wasn’t deep enough, he would have almost spat out his tea.

“Yes, Your Highness is very powerful.”

“The fourth day of the next month is an auspicious day. Please don’t forget, Your Highness.”

Shen Yian straightened his face and stood up to bow. “Student will remember!”

“Master, I have one more thing!”

“What is it?” Lu Wenxuan was taken aback, vaguely guessing what it was.

“Student dares to ask the Master to officiate my wedding and be my witness.”

Anyone who heard this would probably drop their jaw.

The National Master as a witness?

You’re acting like you’re the Emperor getting married!

Even Emperor Wu probably wouldn’t have this kind of face.

“Good.” Lu Wenxuan flicked his whisk with surprising enthusiasm.

Shen Yian was even more shocked. He hadn’t expected the other party to agree so readily.

“What? Surprised by this old man?” Lu Wenxuan’s voice held a hint of pride.

Shen Yian’s lips twitched slightly. “Student always thought Master was a serious person, never expecting Master to have such a cute side.”

Cute?

Lu Wenxuan chuckled softly. “Does Your Highness think this old man can forgive your previous actions just because of this?”

“Master, I had my reasons back then,” Shen Yian said with a wry smile.

Being confined to the palace for half a year, without Yin Hai and the others by his side, he could only glean information about Tianwu City through eunuchs and maids. As for anything further afield, he had no way of knowing.

So he set his sights on the Heavenly Gate Pavilion and Lu Wenxuan, using the pretext of studying to inquire about local affairs and thus deduce what might happen.

He had apologized, but at the time, Lu Wenxuan was too angry to forgive him.

Now that Lu Wenxuan’s anger had subsided, he was much easier to talk to.

“Forget it, forget it. Let bygones be bygones,” Lu Wenxuan said with a wave of his hand.

The main reason he was angry back then was that he, the head of the Daoist sect, had become Shen Yian’s pawn.

Although he was now considered a pawn of Great Qing, serving the country and the people, ensuring peace for the world, was something he did willingly.

“Thank you, Master,” Shen Yian bowed again.

“Master, I have one last question,” Shen Yian said.

“Go ahead, what is it?” Lu Wenxuan sighed lightly. He wanted to see what this mischievous boy would ask next.

“That… will it rain tomorrow?”

“There will be heavy rain tomorrow. Remember to bring an umbrella when you go out,” Lu Wenxuan replied calmly, putting down his teacup.

Shen Yian’s expression was respectful. “Student has noted it!”