"We were hopeful, back then, back before the world was born."
Lan Yue's parting words to her consort, Mo Wusheng, first of the Founders, Father of the Imperial line, before their last duel. Recorded in the Secret Annals of the Jade Hive.
My name is Wu Zhinu. Wu, as in 'martial,' because my father had high hopes for me, once upon a time. Zhinu, because that's the name of the clan my family serves.
Which means that I am a plebeian, and that cultivation and all its quandaries are something that I stand on the periphery of merely because they are the prerogative of the lady in whose employ I serve. Truly, you couldn't find a more average scribe in the entire city of Yaozhu.
One may question, then, why am I walking alone at midnight, furtively skirting around the rumored base of operations of one of the crime families brash enough to operate within the confines of the imperial capital rather than on the more poverty-stricken outskirts.
Why am I, indeed, walking alone.
Wearing a black cape.
Pauldrons.
And a mask.
As well as carrying a sack full of black powder, firecrackers, and assorted rockets.
That I am regularly spreading around the perimeter of said compound's walls.
I promise you that, despite all appearances to the contrary, this is a mere extension of my regular duties. Nothing more than a few somewhat late hours of work. All in a day's job.
For the most average scribe in the city of Yaozhu.
"You may hide your crimes from the Sun's bite, but your iniquity shall not escape the fangs of the Heavenly Hound!"
It's… somewhat unfortunate that my mistress is far from average.
━❖━
To say that it all started a few months ago would be a bald-faced lie. It, indeed, started years ago, when a young, giggling child sat upon the shoulders of her doting grandfather, delightedly listening to tales of heroic exploits that a more cynical listener (such as a perfectly average scribe) would've deemed self-aggrandizing and likely embellished to the point that future historians would curse this grandfather's ancestors.
But, then again, it all started a few months ago.
I was hurrying through the veranda along the inner patio of the Zhinu's clan mansion in Yaozhu, far from our own, much-diminished province, and I marched toward my duty unmoved by the beauty of the sinuous pines strewn across the expanse of neatly clipped grass and paths of meandering white gravel.
I was answering my lady's call, after all, so it would have been unforgivable of me to delay at all just because it was a nice day, a cool breeze stung my cheekbones, the rising sun warmed the scent of a recently trimmed garden, and there was an unusually brightly-feathered magpie of an almost azure hue hopping by my side.
Certainly, it would be unbecoming of me, a lowly servant who had become literate merely because of the favor of a childhood friend in higher standing, to take a detour through the kitchens, snatch a few crumbs from the still hot baking trays, gracefully ignore the cook's threat of warning my mother about my errant ways, and go back to squat on the edge of the wooden platform, my palm outstretched to try and tempt the pretty bird into taking a meal from my hand.
And, most of all, I would not have been crestfallen at a bird tilting its head at me, studying my offering with a critical side-eye, and then arrogantly dismissing my presence before flying away.
Not in the slightest.
"Wu," my lady greeted me with an abbreviated nod as I entered her chambers, sliding the red lacquered door closed behind me with hands recently washed of any traces of pastry crumbs.
"My lady," I answered back, politely tucking my hands inside my sleeves and bowing to an adequate degree.
This, of course, spared me from making eye contact. Which was only a happy coincidence and not at all the main goal of my display.
"Sit. I am in the mood to write a letter," she said.
I took a brief breath and looked for the auxiliary table with my writing implements, only to find it absent. Instead, the inkstone, my brushes, and a sheaf of paper were neatly arranged in front of a seat on the other side of my lady's desk.
Oh, dear.
"Would you care for me to bring my furniture—"
"Sit, Wu."
"But of course, my lady."
I know not how she reacted to my demure acquiescence, seeing as I was still doing my best not to disrespectfully stare at the girl I had bathed with when we both were too young for that to be a concern.
A girl who had noticeably grown ever since.
And, as I sat in front of her, I was uncomfortably reminded of that fact yet again.
Much has been written about jade beauties, fairies, and other supernaturally appealing women, and quite a lot of it has passed through my hands ever since it was decided that my fate would not be to succeed my father as a guard but to personally assist my lady in the capacity of a scribe.
I have oft found those depictions…
Inadequate.
Because, yes, smooth, unblemished skin is an attractive trait, and so are elegant gestures, a slender neck, or glossy, silky hair.
But… they scarcely compare to watching across a lacquered, dark red table rippling with unsteady candlelight and sunstreaks dimmed through paper screens at a girl that you know to be beyond your station to even admire, only to find in her green eyes the spark of a shared joy from long ago. To see her immaculate, pale makeup and remember that under it there's a smatter of freckles that point at a youth spent running around hills and meadows rather than secluded in a palace's halls. To stare at blonde locks styled into a tight updo and know yourself to be one of the lucky few who will ever witness how wild and unkempt that hair becomes at the slightest hint of freedom and the joy of racing between shaded trees in search of the next adventure.
To see not an ethereal, unapproachable beauty, but…
A woman. A woman with all the vibrancy of the girl that was.
A woman who was, at that very moment, arching a silent eyebrow at me, as if expecting me to do something other than silently stare at her. Such as, for instance, my own job.
Ah, how mysterious are the minds of womankind. Truly, an unreadable tome wrapped in chains of enigma.
"I assume my usual style will suffice?" I said as I set to grind an inkstick inside the hollow shell of my turtle-shaped inkstone.
"But of course."
I nodded, the water in the deepest part of the hollow reaching an adequate black, and I picked a single sheet of paper from the pile to place it on top of a pad of felt meant to both absorb excessive ink and to keep my writing steady.
Then…
There was not much else to do but nod at her and wait for her dictation.
"My dearest Censor Lu," she started as I let my brush glide over the paper, only briefly wondering what 'Lu' it was before setting on the right character to represent the name of the stern man I had seen from a distance back when my lady's father had deigned to be present in the capital's compound, long before fully delegating that responsibility to his daughter.
"It has been too long since we last talked, and I hope that this missive will find you in good health." The pleasantries followed, and I started transcribing absentmindedly, barely paying enough attention for the words to register. "I am afraid, though, that since our meeting I have been preoccupied with things that fall, at least in part, under your purview. The corruption that afflicts our esteemed city of Yaozhu does not become the prestige of the Jade Hive. Crime runs rampant across the streets, the commonfolk fear more for knives than for starvation, even as the latter remains a poignant issue, and greedy nobles suckle from the honey of our empire rather than bring their own offerings of nectar. It is with a heavy weight on my heart that I must declare that the Zhinu clan that I represent is now challenging the claim to the Heaven's Mandate of our current empress. Indeed, we find that the Bee has long since forsaken the harmony her clan has always claimed to promote and has now become the Wasp her critics often decry her as. Consider this my declaration of war upon the rotten throne. If you ever feel the urge to fight corruption as your seat of office demands you do, you shall be welcome among my ranks. Signed: Xia Zhinu."
Carefully, attentively, and all but unconsciously, I finished transcribing my lady's words with strokes as deliberately graceful as I ever had inked.
It took me far too long to realize that my peaceful world of light reading and futilely beseeching pretty magpies for their favor had just ended.
━❖━⧫━❖━
And here it is!
If you've been wondering if I've been working, at all, during the past few months of mostly radio silence? Well, that's…
…
Let's just say that this setting is fleshed out.
So fleshed out that it's one lightning strike away from me maniacally yelling "It's alive! It's alive!" at the top of my lungs.
(You know, instead of whispering it under my breath with unsettling intensity.)
The next two chapters (https://www.patreon.com/collection/2019062?view=expanded) are already up on Patreon, and this is planned to be a full-length novel with plenty of opportunities for Wu to doubt his sanity (so, at least in that regard, I can sympathize with the character to the point of an identity crisis). There's an actual backlog as well (for once), so I'll do my best to stick to a weekly update schedule.
Now, with all the boring stuff out of the way, I really hope that you enjoy Wu and Xia's descent into shenanigans, and, if you do so, note that most of the credit for me writing this goes to @Shaderic, who at one point decided that me writing Ginosko (https://forum.questionablequesting.com/threads/ginosko-love-leather-and-chrome-original-comission-mind-control-bdsm-cyberpunk-complete.17490/) wasn't enough of a claim to fame.
I couldn't be any more grateful.
So, that's it, my latest foray into original territory, my dread of my knowledge of martial arts being proven horribly inadequate, and my performance anxiety and impostor syndrome all wrapped up in a single, cultivation-themed package. It's gonna be a bumpy ride.
And I hope to have you along for it.
As always, I'd like to thank my credited supporters on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/Agrippa?fan_landing=true): aj0413, Crimson Grave, LearningDiscord, Niklarus, Tinkerware, Varosch, Vergil1989 Crossover King, and Xanah. If you feel like maybe giving them a hand with keeping me in the writing business (and getting an early peek at my chapters before they go public, among other perks), consider joining them or buying one of my books on https://www.amazon.com/stores/Terry-Lavere/author/B0BL7LSX2S. Thank you for reading!