Young Master Bai — Chapter 48
Chapter 48: Only a Child with a Mother Dares to Be Willful…
Human history depended mainly on written transmission, so the objects that bore writing were of immense importance. Among the four halls of the Hidden Wisdom Sect, the Shaoyin Hall preserved every surviving ancient text and oracle inscription. The Taiyin Hall held much the same — except that its collections were all burial goods unearthed from tombs, steeped in toxins or curses, dangerous for ordinary people to touch. Each generation, the Taiyin Hall was guarded personally by the sect’s highest grand elder to suppress such hazards.
Today, the master of the Taiyin Hall was Bu Lingyun, mother of Bu Tiange. Most female cultivators avoided places filled with the belongings of the dead, but she had volunteered to guard it. Now, all its items had been cataloged and sealed in the third underground level. The outer halls, where she lived and cultivated, were planted thick with gardenias. From the outside, there was no trace of gloom.
Bu Lingyun kept a strict routine. As soon as Bu Tiange turned into the little garden, he found his mother watering flowers. But before he could speak, the white-robed woman frowned, turning to scold him: “How many times have I told you not to go to the North Sea? Why won’t you listen?”
Time left no mark on cultivators’ faces. Surrounded by gardenias, she looked like a girl of eighteen, though she was over five centuries old. Yet her features were no longer as innocent as youth; when she arched her brows, authority came unbidden. Even Bu Tiange, with his temperament, had to lower his voice. “Mother, I know my limits. If danger comes, I withdraw.”
“True danger leaves no time to withdraw!”
First he had led disciples into the deep sea, then risked himself under the pretext of escorting the Divine Wordless Book to lure enemies. When she heard of it, how could a mother be calm? Bu Lingyun’s face grew grave. “I already lost two close kin in the North Sea. I beg you, don’t become the third.”
Even the boldest child quails before his mother. Bu Tiange dared not be unruly before her, only muttered, “But you have never forgotten Grandfather. In the past, you had to raise me. Now you must guard the Taiyin Hall. You never had the chance to search for him yourself. You are my mother, yet you’ve not lived a single day for yourself in your later life. That makes me unhappy.”
“You stubborn child — your temper is just like your grandfather’s. I — ”
The grand elders of the Hidden Wisdom Sect were all Wandering Immortals who had failed their tribulations. Bu Lingyun was outstanding among them. No matter how softly her son spoke, she heard it. In a fury, she lifted her watering can, arraying a sword formation. “Draw your sword. As your mother, I must discipline you today.”
No matter how gifted, he could not beat his own mother. In the past, he would suffer a beating and be forced to prune flowers, muttering all night in the garden. But today he had no wish to lose face before the fox yao. Hurriedly, he pointed to Bai Chen and the others watching from afar. “They claim to have matters concerning Uncle Lu. You should hear them first.”
So focused on her son, Bu Lingyun had overlooked their company. Now she studied them carefully, pausing with some surprise when her eyes fell on Li Wuming and Bai Chen. At once she dismissed her formation and invited them to sit in a pavilion, saying gently, “This child’s temper is as hard as stone. Forgive him for making you laugh.”
When not speaking to her son, Elder Lingyun was gracious and proper — neither too warm nor discourteous. Bai Chen, who had no parents, had once thought that being raised by Fox Immortal Grandfather was no different from having a father. But seeing this, he realized it was not the same.
As a child, no matter how much he wished to play outside, he never dared defy Fox Immortal Grandfather. He could only dream in secret. Without Li Wuming, he would never have experienced those wishes in life. Only children unafraid of being abandoned dared to rebel openly. He had never had that.
Li Wuming sensed his fox’s thoughts. Secretly, he squeezed his hand and took the conversation. “The last time we met, Elder Lingyun was still a lively young girl. Who knew, by our next meeting, your son would be grown.”
“Senior Li, you haven’t changed a bit. And Young Master Bai… it has been a long time.”
She recognized them. But why had the Great Snow Mountain come to her? She regarded them with probing eyes.
Bai Chen’s reflections passed quickly. Composed, he said, “I’ve come with a question.”
“Please speak,” said Bu Lingyun, still mild.
Lu Wen and Bu Lingyun had once been sectmates. Bai Chen knew he must be tactful. He asked obliquely, “Elder, after all your years in the martial world, what do you think? If one person saved another’s life, then later sought to reclaim it — should the saved give it up?”
It was an odd question, but she considered it. “That is indeed a dilemma. If you say no, without that past salvation, there would be no present life. But if you say yes, people have parents, brothers, and duties. Who has the right to dispose of their own life?”
That was Bai Chen’s initial hesitation. He knew Lu Wen had deceived him, but did not know whether he should allow Fox Immortal Grandfather to reclaim the yao core.
At birth, amid war and separation from his parents, it was that man who carried him while fleeing, keeping him alive until the Great Snow Mountain’s rescue. It had been his first warmth. Centuries of snow could not erase it. He had waited, hoping the man would return.
But now it was different. He must live for Li Wuming, and for the yao’s future. Looking at Bu Lingyun, he asked calmly, “If it were you, what would you choose?”
“If I were the benefactor, I would never demand an innocent life. That would stain my past kindness. If I were the saved, I would question whether he saved me with calculation, and investigate his origins. Even a peasant’s gift is not returned in kind, let alone demanding life in exchange for saving it. No righteous man would ask such a price.”
Bu Lingyun did not yet know what the Nine-tailed White Fox suspected. Her answer was flawless. Afterward she sighed, “Forgive me. I am no longer a pure girl. My son has only me. I cannot easily trust strangers.”
Virtue displayed is not true virtue. The grand elder indeed had unique insight. Bai Chen had not considered this angle. It opened a new line of thought. Still, he pressed on. “What if he did not demand your life, but borrowed your sect’s immortal treasure to save someone — promising to return it later? Would you agree?”
To the Hidden Wisdom Sect, an immortal treasure was as precious as the Nine-tailed White Fox himself. Bu Lingyun pondered, then nodded. “If a benefactor asked, I would aid with all my strength.”
The same choice Bai Chen had made. He sighed inwardly, his gaze sharpening. “So would I. Yet he did not return it, nor give any explanation.”
Now she understood. “You mean Senior Brother Lu?”
“I remember his scent. I could not mistake it.”
Certain, Bai Chen pressed. Bu Lingyun recalled her first journey down the mountain. She closed her eyes. “Yes. At Zhetian, the moment he saw you, he lost composure. Clearly, you were old acquaintances.”
No more need for tact. Bai Chen asked directly, “Did he truly die?”
At his death, only Bu Lingyun was present. She knew best. Having understood Bai Chen’s purpose, she answered honestly. “When our grandmaster fought the Demon Lord, we were trapped in his formation. We did not know then that it was meant to shield us. Senior Brother Lu told me to stay, and forced his way out to seek aid. But he was caught in the battle’s aftermath and lost his life.”
To die right after meeting the Nine-tailed White Fox — it was too sudden.
Bai Chen doubted. “A Golden Core cultivator, escaping the Demon Lord’s formation by himself?”
She had been young then, not seeing what method he used, but insisted. “I know your suspicions. But the sect examined his corpse. His remains matched his identity tablet. That is why we buried him.”
Bu Tiange had long known of this. He added, “The sect is meticulous in recovering its dead. Every disciple drips blood onto twin jade tokens upon entry — one worn, one kept at the sect. If they perish, the sect can find their body. It cannot be faked.”
The method had never failed in a thousand years. Bai Chen found no flaw, but still said, “Even if he truly died, what he borrowed must be hidden somewhere.”
The man may die, but the lost item must be returned. Bu Lingyun, being fair-minded, agreed after a pause. “His remnants are only clothes and writings, nothing of value. He had no family. They remain in my Taiyin Hall. You may inspect them.”
That was good, but evidence alone was not enough. Bai Chen pressed, “I want to know what people he associated with after joining the sect.”
Bu Lingyun did not mind thoroughness. Turning to her son, she said, “Every time disciples go out, they leave records. My father was master of the Qiantian Palace then. Senior Brother Lu’s records are all sealed there. Tiange, take them to search, and trace where he went.”
Others did not know, but Bu Tiange remembered his mother’s guilt toward that uncle. She had always felt that if not for her, he would not have died protecting her. For five centuries, she had never ceased offering sacrifices.
Now, seeing her handle it calmly, for the first time he hesitated. “Mother, what if what we find is unpleasant?”
She answered firmly, “You are sect headmaster. Even if the wrongdoer is me, you must uphold justice. Do not show favoritism.”
“Yes, Mother. Rest assured, I will not wrong a good man, nor spare a villain.”
With those words, Bu Tiange’s hesitation vanished. He led Bai Chen to the Qiantian Palace to examine five hundred years of records.
It was smoother than Bai Chen had expected. Yet before leaving, he asked Bu Lingyun one more thing. “Elder, did Lu Wen truly grow up under Yao Jianke?”
“Senior Brother was only five years older than me. My father was busy, so Lu Wen took care of me when I was a child.”
The records Bu Tiange had obtained were genuine. Bu Lingyun’s face was calm, but recalling her youth, she showed a trace of nostalgia.
“Senior Brother Lu was upright from childhood, favored by my father, caring to his juniors. I don’t know what treasure he borrowed. But in my memory, he never faced a trouble requiring such aid.”
She trusted her childhood companion. If she had not seen him with Bai Chen back then, she might never have believed the Great Snow Mountain’s words. But if so, his age was deeply contradictory.
Heavy doubts churned in Bai Chen’s heart. But he only said mildly, “From the first time I saw him, I knew — he cared deeply for you.”
At this, the woman faltered, but quickly calmed. Glancing at her spotless son, she said flatly, “I am a woman cold enough to expose even my father’s shame. No matter how much regard he had, I could only disappoint. Go on — do as you must. Do not consider my feelings.”
~ Chapter End ~
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