Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel) Vol. 2(102)
But unexpectedly, although the crowd poured in, it didn’t pulverize them. Instead, a number of hands reached out and threw him into the air with cheers of, “YOUR HIGHNESS!” Xie Lian was thrown into the air multiple times but still maintained his calm and composure.
The people shouted, all talking at once.
“Your Highness, that leap on the Grand Avenue of Divine Might yesterday was spectacular!”
Someone praised in awe, “That was such an amazing jump! Really, really, I totally thought the Heavenly Emperor himself had descended! I had goosebumps!”
Another validated him. “His Highness was right to save that child! A life is a life—do they think kids from our poor families are so different? If it were me, I’d do the same!”
Another raged, “That’s right! Today there was talk of how His Highness had ruined the event, and I just couldn’t stand it! If it had been a royal or a noble who had fallen, they wouldn’t be saying those things! Your Highness, don’t mind those people!”
“His Highness is the one who truly cares about us…”
Xie Lian went from feeling guilty at the beginning, to disoriented halfway through, until finally he was affected by the enthusiastic, cheerful faces all around. The crowd clustered around Xie Lian, and when they emerged onto the main street, more and more joined them. Feng Xin, Mu Qing, and that young child were pushed away and separated, left a long way back without any way to get through, and they could only follow along behind the parade. This large assembly of people was surprisingly no smaller than the crowd from the day before. Every time Xie Lian made a move to leave, he was forcibly dragged back in and thrown in the air without any chance of being let down.
Xie Lian couldn’t help but find it both funny and reassuring, and he thought to himself, The people and the State Preceptor have completely opposite sentiments. It looks like I was in the right.
***
When they reached Mount Taicang, the setting sun was ablaze, burning strong as always.
Once they passed through the large entrance gates, they saw trainees and cultivators all along the long winding stone path, carrying water buckets and firewood and running up and down the road. They greeted Xie Lian and company as they went, but many watched the four-plus-a-cart with wonder. Feng Xin was pulling that handcart with one hand like a perfectly diligent young black bull. Xie Lian and Mu Qing laughed with as much restraint as they could muster at first, but since they couldn’t change his mind, they stopped caring.
The maple grove was vast, and the wheels turned steadily. As they hiked, Xie Lian helped push the handcart from behind. He was in a good mood and casually asked the child another question.
“Little guy, what’s your name, really? Hong what?”
The child gazed at him attentively and answered in a small voice, “I…I don’t have a name.”
Xie Lian was taken aback. “Your mother didn’t give you a name?”
That young child shook his head. “My mother is gone.”
Sympathy sprouted in Xie Lian. “Then what did your mother used to call you?”
The child hesitated for a moment, and then he replied, “Honghong-er.”16
Xie Lian smiled. “That’s a rather cute nickname. I’ll call you that from now on.”
Honghong-er seemed shy whenever they talked, and he kept his head bowed low. Dusk was approaching, and lights were ignited in the palace temples on each of the mountain peaks in the far distance. Among them, the brightest was of course the highest peak, the Divine Might Summit.
Atop the Divine Might Summit, within the Palace of Divine Might, it was as bright as day, and the lights gathered like stars on the peak. Xie Lian sighed as he watched.
The sigh wasn’t born of sadness but from scenery that emanated such beauty and magnificence. Every bit of light within the hall was an offered Everlasting Lamp. Each lamp contained a devotee’s most sincere prayers. The more Everlasting Lamps there were within the temple of a god, the more powerful that god. The chance to offer a lamp within the Palace of Divine Might of the Royal Holy Temple was difficult to buy even with a thousand gold. Wealth, power, ability, passion, affinity—at least one of those five conditions must be fulfilled to enter the temple to offer light. Yet there were so many in the world who had none of those five.
The four of them stopped, gazing spellbound upon the Palace of Divine Might that shone like the sun, their expressions dissimilar. Just then, a somewhat familiar voice called out to them.
“Your Highness!”
Xie Lian looked back and saw a fair-faced young man hurrying toward him. It looked like the trainee who guarded the entrance of Sixiang Palace, and Xie Lian composed himself.
“Zhu-shixiong, what’s the hurry?”
Zhu-shixiong noticed Mu Qing standing behind him and felt awkward, so he spoke pretending not to have seen him. “State Preceptor has been asking after you for a while. He’s at the Palace of Divine Might right now, waiting for you.”
Xie Lian was taken aback hearing this, but he figured it had to be about the incident during the Heavenly Ceremonial Procession the day before. “Very well. Thank you, shixiong.”
Xie Lian had Feng Xin and Mu Qing take Honghong-er back to the Palace of Xianle, then he headed toward the Divine Might Summit.
Outside the great hall, clouds born from the incense vessel floated and wrapped around the Palace of Divine Might, giving it a dreamlike look. On either side of the vessel there were long rows of bright Everlasting Lamps hung in the air in neat lines that made a wall of lanterns. Every Everlasting Lamp had the name and prayer of the light-offerer inscribed in proper and dignified clerical script. Once inside the hall, there were rows upon rows of even more Everlasting Lamps hung on each wall. The lamps offered within the Palace of Divine Might were, of course, even more valuable than the ones outside.