The years I was in the human world

The young man watched Lu Zhouxue's actions, and the distant smile on his face gradually faded, revealing a bit of sincerity. He raised the palace lantern, letting the candlelight illuminate his face so that he could see Lu Zhouxue's eyes clearly. He asked him, "You are here to find me, are you serious?"

"Yes." Lu Zhouxue took the opportunity to grab the edge of the boy's clothes and said earnestly, "I am not lying."

The young man looked at Lu Zhouxue's unfamiliar face with a dazed look. It was completely different from the old face, but it was indeed his teacher. The man who left on the wind did not lie to him. They would meet again in the end, but when they met after many years, the teacher did not recognize him because of 'Su Qing'.

"You said that you were in love with each other, but we have never met before." The young man said. He had doubts in his heart. His teacher rejected his confession that year, but told him on the Ghost Festival many years later that "you were in love with each other". Who was his teacher looking for and who did he think he was?

"Azhuo, I..." Lu Zhouxue was silent, not knowing how to answer for a moment. He couldn't say that hundreds of years later, you became a god in the sky, and we had a romantic encounter in the jade buildings; the things about gods and ghosts were so illusory, and a hundred years for mortals was already the end of their rope, so how could he believe it?

"My name is Chu Zhaoli." The young man interrupted Lu Zhouxue's explanation. It was great that the teacher came to find him. As for who he thought he was, it didn't matter at all. Why should he be so entangled in this? "What's your name, sir?"

"Lu Zhouxue." Seeing that the other party was no longer bothered about whether they knew each other or not, Lu Zhouxue breathed a sigh of relief. However, he was stunned again when he heard the boy's name. He looked up at Chu Zhaoli in astonishment and said in surprise, "Are you Chu Zhaoli?!"

"Yes." Chu Zhaoli was not surprised to see his big reaction. Instead, he felt that it was as he expected. In fact, there was nothing strange about it. Very few people in Yiyang City had seen him, but most of them were familiar with his name. Who would not shake their head and say "A rotten tree cannot be carved" after hearing it?

Chu Zhaoli, the legitimate son of Empress Duanshu, was a mediocre person with bad conduct. His desk was filled with memorials impeaching him every day. He was not fit for important tasks and was not favored by the emperor and his father. If the emperor had not been particularly tolerant and forgiving towards him because of their old relationship with the late empress, he would have been deposed and exiled long ago.

"It seems that the young master really recognized the wrong person." Chu Zhaoli smiled indifferently, and the door of his heart that had just opened a little closed again, and he became the cold and distant young man again. He did not intend to tell Lu Zhouxue about his childhood and recognize him. He turned around and left while holding the lantern, avoiding the person in front of him.

His teacher was not looking for him, why did he recognize him and cause himself trouble? Besides, he was notorious in the capital now. The three words "Chu Zhaoli" were so notorious in the capital that even ordinary people would say "unlucky" when they mentioned the same pronunciation. He didn't want his teacher to know how miserable he was.

"Master, you are here. It took me so long to find you. Please go back quickly. The master's meeting is over. It will be bad if you miss the time." A man dressed as an ordinary servant squeezed through the crowd. He had a shrill voice and seemed to be a eunuch in the palace. He stepped forward and greeted.

"Well, let's go." Chu Zhaoli nodded and handed the palace lantern to the late eunuch. When passing by, he said to Lu Zhouxue, "Mr. Lu, I am very happy today. Goodbye."

Chu Zhaoli walked forward after saying this, heading towards the Imperial City. Today was his birthday, and he was indeed happy to meet his old friend after a long absence. As for seeing him again, perhaps he would never see him again. After today, he would return to the cage, and people outside could not get in, and he could not get out either.

He said that he was Chu Zhaoli, the prince of the Western Dynasty who was lamented by the world for his mediocrity and incompetence and whose story ended in a sloppy manner in history books. Lu Zhouxue watched the figure walking farther and farther away in the dim lights, and he suddenly felt a pain from past memories that was almost unbearable.

It turned out that all the past that person had difficulty letting go of had been told to him in a casual tone during every after-dinner conversation in the past, acting so ordinary and insignificant, as if he was telling someone else's story.

"The Immortal Kingdom? Mother said that there is a prince in the Immortal Kingdom who has achieved immortality in a mortal body, but is it true?" Lu Zhouxue didn't know what Xiao Fengzhuo was thinking when the young and ignorant Kong Que asked this question that night in the old capital.

"There is no such thing as immortality. It's just mortals' expectation of longevity. The citizens of the Immortal Kingdom pursue longevity and immortality and call themselves immortal people. But if they are really immortal, how can they return to the earth without leaving any trace? But this prince can explain it to you." He only remembered that the man acted as if he didn't care.

"And then? There was a storm on the night when the Immortal Kingdom's Queen Duan Shu gave birth to her legitimate son. Was the child talented and accomplished at a young age?" At that time, he knew nothing like Peacock. He just thought it was a strange story told by a stranger, so Xiao Fengzhuo also told it as someone else's story:

"When Queen Duanshu gave birth to a legitimate son, the whole country should have celebrated. However, unexpectedly, a storm came in the middle of the night. Queen Duanshu, who had given birth safely, suddenly heard a raccoon cat crying shrilly. She was so frightened that she passed away. A rare landslide occurred in the southwest of the capital, causing countless deaths and injuries. For a while, the child was considered a bad omen."

"The Imperial Astronomical Observatory observed the celestial phenomena at night and predicted that this child would bring disaster and misfortune, and that anyone who was close to him would not have a good end. The king, who had lost his beloved wife overnight, hated him to the core, but because he was the only child of Queen Duanshu, he paradoxically made him the crown prince."

"But the child was born with great fanfare, but his talent is mediocre. He is not outstanding in any of his literary and military skills, poetry and songs. The king does not like him in the first place, let alone his mediocre talent and learning."

"The prince was dull and ignorant of the ways of the world. He sent a gift to the king on his birthday to curry his favor, but it backfired and made the king think he was plotting a rebellion. That night, he was deposed as the prince and confined to the palace."

At that time, Kong Que commented that he was a coward, and Xiao Fengzhuo was lazy. He didn't care at all: "He is a coward, the king thinks so too. So not long after, the deposed prince was thrown into the southwest wilderness by his father with a reason, and was given the title of 'Yong', which means mediocre."

"The Yong King, Chu Zhaoli."

"My name is Chu Zhaoli." The words of the young man when he left were like thunder in Lu Zhouxue's ears. All the old doubts were explained at this moment, because he was Chu Zhaoli. So he knew the old things of the Immortal Kingdom in great detail, and he was so sad when he was in the underground royal mausoleum.

All the questions had answers, but Lu Zhouxue's hands began to tremble uncontrollably. Besides what he knew, what else was there? Xiao Fengzhuo said he had died, but why did he die? And why did he turn from a human into a demon? What was the fate of the crown prince Chu Zhaoli in the later part of the history books?

Lu Zhouxue knew nothing about all this, and he desperately wanted an answer, but when he placed his hand on the Samsara Mirror, he was afraid. He was afraid of seeing a bad ending, afraid of seeing Xiao Fengzhuo die again and again in the days when he was away.

Chu Zhaoli walked back to the East Palace in the night. Today was his birthday and as the crown prince, he should have entertained his guests, but it happened to be the Ghost Festival. And the emperor and his father had said that they would not allow celebrations in the palace. The burning of incense, candles and paper horses for the sacrifice was lively, but it had nothing to do with him.

"Brother Crown Prince!" On the way back to the palace, a young girl's crisp voice rang out. A palace servant was holding a palace lantern and leading a gorgeously dressed girl towards them. When the girl saw him, her eyes lit up and she ran a few steps, "Where have you gone, Brother Crown Prince? Qiao has been looking for you for a long time."

"I just went out of the palace and took a stroll." Because of their friendship, Chu Zhaoli was not too distant with Du Qiao. He took out a ceramic figurine from his sleeve and handed it to the latter, saying, "Why did Qiao come to the palace to look for me instead of worshipping the ancestors in the prime minister's residence?"

"Because... today is the prince's birthday." Du Qiao smiled sweetly, took the small food box handed over by the maid beside her and gave it to Chu Zhaoli, saying, "Qiao doesn't know what brother likes, but I heard that brother likes to eat millet rice, so I specially steamed it and brought it to brother."

"Thank you." Chu Zhaoli took it with some surprise. It was rare for someone to remember his birthday. It would be a lie to say that he was not moved. But it was Du Qiao. Her aunt was Madam Du, one of the culprits who forced his mother to death. It was difficult for him to put aside the old grudge and get close to Du Qiao.