Now, if she's marrying into Dong Hua Dijun's household, where is she going to turn to when she's being mistreated? - Elderly lady Fumi, speaking of Fengjiu. (Pillowbook)

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Heavenly Realm, Jiuchongtian, Xiwu Palace - Changsheng Hall - Late Morning
Day 3 since Fengjiu's death
Bai Qian —-------------------------------

She and Mo Yuan informed Ye Hua about Dong Hua summoning Gungun to Taichen Palace to undergo the ascension trial. Ye Hua's brows creased slightly in concern, but seeing Mo Yuan was placid and she was grudgingly allowing it, he didn't ask anymore questions or suggest intervening. Mo Yuan also kindly avoided mentioning the details surrounding her meeting Elder Liu Cai.

When Mo Yuan had told them about Dong Hua's crimson-gold blood and the potential issues it would cause for the tiniest member of their family, Zhe Yan had gone to his Peach Forest to review his medical journals, and promised to return shortly.

This left Bai Qian, Mo Yuan and Ye Hua to discuss other happenings in the meantime.

"What news from Ruoshui?" Mo Yuan asked.

"Someone left a nearly bisected Great Wyrm on the Heavenly Realms side of Ruoshui river."

"Nearly bisected?", Mo Yuan asked Ye Hua, at his nod of affirmation, Mo Yuan continued, "Then it was the work of Elder Da Kai and his Shanpo blade, I imagine this is the gift Elder Liu Cai mentioned earlier."

"Judging by some of the arrows and swords embedded in its hide, it was the same one that attacked your forces 100,000 years ago at Ruoshui."

"Weren't they all supposed to be destroyed even before then? Wasn't that why no one expected one to appear?" Bai Qian asked.

"Yes, they were supposed to be. I was there when the peace agreement between the Heavenly Realm and the Ghost Realm was signed, the eradication of the Greatwryms was one of the conditions agreed to." Mo Yuan explained.

Ye Hua mused, "So with this 'gift' left at Ruoshui the Heavenly Realm would be justified in attacking the Ghost Realm, as the conditions of the original agreement were never met?"

Mo Yuan simply nodded slightly, confirming Ye Huas theory.

"So Dong Hua now has a righteous reason to cross the Ghost Realm border and wage war?" Bai Qian asked.

If it were her, she wouldn't have bothered with crafting some righteous excuse to cross the border and slaughter everyone that was even peripherally involved with Fengjius' death. But she'd married Ye Hua and would soon become Tianhou of the Heavenly Tribe, so didn't have the luxury of acting as she wished anymore.

"Righteous? I wouldn't say so, but a reason other realms could not fault? Yes." Ye Hua replied.

"As a precaution, my disciples will be arriving shortly, these are the defence plans I have made."

Mo Yuan placed a scroll on the table between them and Ye Hua picked it up.

"Battle formations, barriers, and where each disciple is best suited to be placed; amend any details as you see fit." Mo Yuan suggested.

Bai Qian would normally happily help her husband Ye Hua with anything, especially at the moment, but she wouldn't be of much help with this issue. She had been a disciple of Mo Yuans 100,000 years ago, her very best rank in battle formation class was tenth, most often she was last, or nearly so. She could lead a small army and fight on the frontlines, but battle factics was not one of her strengths.

"I had planned to visit you in Kunlun to discuss these things, I am fortunate to have such a wise and foresighted brother." Ye Hua said, though he couldn't fully hide his exhaustion.

Then Mo Yuan was gone, and as Bai Qians fellow disciples arrived Ye Hua also left to make the needed preparations to ensure the Heavenly Tribes defensive strength was brought to the fore.

When Zhe Yan returned he would explain the crimson-gold blood and it's potential problems for Xueyu. This was because Gungun had far more knowledge and understanding about medicine, healing, souls than everyone aside from Zhe Yan and the Medicine King of Jiuchongtian.

Bai Qian had agreed to be the one to tell Gungun about the fact Dong Hua had ordered him to ascend early, but she was delaying doing so. Minutes after Mo Yuan and Ye Hua had left, she was still sitting at the table seriously considering summoning a jar or five of wine and damn the consequences. She sighed, it wasn't fair to leave being the bearer of both sets of bad news to Zhe Yan.

Bai Qian had just been about to go and ask Gungun to join her when Nai Nai entered the room holding her second son Fuzan, and she had a better idea. Her eldest son Bai Chen could be kept occupied with Fuzan and Nai Nai could look after all three children.

"Nai Nai, can you ask Gungun to come here, and then stay with the children until we are finished talking?" Bai Qian requested, and Nai Nai immediately left to do as she'd bid.

Bai Qian stopped glaring spitefully at the teacup for not holding wine, just as Zhe Yan walked through the main hall entrance for the second time that morning, carrying a scroll made out of stone, of all things.

"It's not like you to dawdle." Zhe Yan noted warily as he sat down, stone scroll making a rather solid 'thunk' on the marble table.

Bai Qian almost transferred her glare to Zhe Yan, but Gungun had just appeared in the doorway.

Fengjius' genius silver haired son greeted both of them respectfully, and Bai Qian asked him to join them at the table, "Come sit down."

Gungun walked over and as soon as he sat down, Zhe Yan spoke.

"You haven't rested, at all." The first phoenix noted, with an air of absolute certainty.

Bai Qian was surprised and sent Gungun a questioning look, she clearly remembered Gungun had told her he'd slept, multiple times.

"I have." Gungun refuted Zhe Yan's observation calmly.

Zhe Yan sent Gungun an unimpressed look, "I should be offended by the fact you think you can convince me you have slept. your skills are good, but not that good. Dozing off for a few minutes doesn't count."

"I have rested." Gungun repeated, clearly not worried.

"See if I continue teaching you medical skills, I don't like students who lie." Zhe Yan threatened.

Gungun's reply was unhurried and matter-of-fact, "I have not lied. You said I had not rested, I have done so. At no point did I state I have slept." His reply strongly resembled Dong Huas own manner of speech, it was uncanny.

How terribly crafty of Gungun, he'd never been one for wordplay or tricks, much to Fengjius dismay, he'd never really displayed any fox traits aside from his true form. Now it seemed he was happy to do so if it meant he could be almost always awake to take care of his little sister. If it wasn't so damaging, Gunguns actions would be laudable, but sleep was important.

Zhe Yan levelled his genius silver haired student with a rather imposing stare, one that very clearly demanded an explanation.

Gungun stated his counterargument calmly, "Meditation allows the mind to rest while the body retains outside awareness, there is consensus among most scholars that this is a form of sleep."

Some High Immortals and High Deities would often meditate for days, weeks, or even months at a time, but maintaining full awareness of surroundings at the same time wasn't healthy or sustainable. This was why going into retreat or seclusion without distractions was needed if anyone was going to meditate for long periods of time.

"Ha, so you know how to talk back now." Zhe Yan commented in amazement.

The most well behaved, polite and obedient child she'd ever known was now being incredibly stubborn for the sake of his little sister. It would be cute if it wasn't harming his health from lack of sleep and exhaustion.

"After you ascend, you'll go to sleep, see if I won't use sleep magic on you." Bai Qian threatened.

"Okay," Gungun agreed swiftly.

"That won't work, he knows how to counteract them." Zhe Yan interjected.

Having a patient be unconscious through painful procedures was standard, of course Zhe Yan would have taught Gungun how to do so, and how to reverse or resist it. Why did Gungun have to choose now to start showing his fox heritage by being crafty.

Bai Qian was unable to hide her growing frustration, "Who knew the obedient one would turn out like this."

"With you being so diligent in watching over your little sister without rest, I won't need to check up on them," Zhe Yan spoke to Gungun, and deftly ignored the child's look of subdued panic as they turned to Bai Qian and nodded in farewell, "I'll return to the Fox Den." Zhe Yan moved to rise from his seat.

"Please wait," Gungun pleaded, Zhe Yan turned to him with an expectant look and Gungun conceded, "I promise to sleep today."

"At least four hours." Zhe Yan set out the terms.

Zhe Yan was wise not to try and get Gungun to sleep a normal eight hours, there was no way they would agree to such a thing.

Fengjiu's silver haired son reluctantly agreed, "I promise to sleep for at least four hours before tomorrow morning."

"I'll hold you to that. Your grandmother will be arriving in the evening to help look after the children, so you'll have no excuse not to sleep." Zhe Yan was careful not to include Gungun in the 'children' comment, aware of his sensitivity toward being deemed a child.

"Grandmother is? Then Grandfather has recovered?" Gungun asked, craftily not addressing the second part of Zhe Yan's sentence.

Trust this little genius to understand that immediately. With her brother Bai Yi's odds of entering that dangerous state lessening with every hour, it was safe enough to have some of the many people coaxing and guarding him to leave his side.

"Your grandfather has let go of your mothers hand; it's very swift progress." Zhe Yan explained.

Gungun's stoic demeanour and control of his emotions wasn't able to hide the relief and hope that shone from his eyes at the news.

A morbid thought entered Bai Qian's mind, that it was fortunate Fengjiu was a nine-tailed fox, her blood ensured that when Bai Yi eventually returned to normal, he wouldn't be holding his precious daughter's decomposing corpse.

Then she wanted to laugh at the horror of it all, Fengjiu's body would remain whole and pure until mountains turned to dust, an empty container without its precious soul.

Zhe Yan sent her a pointed look, and Bai Qian realised that she'd have to be the one to pile bad news on top of the good.

She turned to look at Fengjiu's eldest child, only to find Gungun's face was already flat and serious, clearly preparing to hear something unpleasant. Being so close, it was likely he'd picked up on her emotions, there was no use in delaying, and so she spoke, "There are other things we need to tell you."

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After both had finished informing Gungun about Dong Huas order for him to ascend, and the crimson-gold blood issue, Gungun was still extremely calm. Zhe Yan checked on Xueyu, then both he and Gungun spent some time theorising about various medical techniques and theories surrounding the crimson-blood issue. After a while Zhe Yan said his farewells and returned to the Fox Den, promising to return within an hour. Bai Yi was doing better with every hour that passed, but his survival was still uncertain, his life was the only one currently in danger, so that was understandably where most of the focus was right now.

Gungun's mother was dead, his father was functionally dead, his grandfather might also die, and his sister might not live past adulthood, and would have many struggles to overcome and somehow this silver haired son of Fengjiu's was handling it all more admirably than most adults, herself included.

Even if Dong Hua hadn't ordered Gungun to ascend, with the information about the crimson-gold blood both children inherited, Gungun would have gone ahead and figured out how to ascend early anyway. The sooner he awakened that crimson-gold blood, the sooner he and Zhe Yan could start theorising how to make sure that tiny baby Xueyu in the other room survived past adulthood.

It was likely this was the reason Dong Hua had ordered Gungun to ascend, she couldn't think of a second reason why it would be necessary. Mo Yuan had told her that Dong Hua himself reported the seal he'd created was flawed, so there was some vague memory of love still there after all.

Though he was getting up to return to where the other children were, but instead Gungun turned to her with a determined and solemn look, "Aunt, I request to go to Taichen Palace alone-"

Bai Qian interrupted him, "Absolutely not." was her vehement rejection of that foolish idea.

Gungun was unwavering, "If it is as you say, and the deity I knew as 'Father is gone. Today I will ascend to High Immortal, and legally become an adult, doesn't this mean that I'm the head of the Shaoyang family now? Even if it's unofficially, and only in name, shouldn't my every action from now on reflect that?"

Bai Qian blinked as she realised that by the laws and rites of the Heavenly Tribe, Gungun would be a legal adult once he ascended to High Immortal.

Ascension almost-always happened sometime soon after adulthood, so by default the laws were written that any High Immortal was naturally an adult. Gungun was going to be only the the third in the history of the universe to ascend so early, the laws had never been changed or adapted to account for this extremely rare circumstance. It was this circumstance that had allowed the current Tianjun to be able to pile so many of his official duties onto Ye Hua as a child.

Gungun continued to speak, "If I arrive escorted by yourself and High Deity Zhe Yan, then I would be just a pitiable child, easily dismissed. Whereas if I go alone I would be the Imperial Prince, Dong Hua Dijun's eldest son. By doing so I can uphold the Shaoyang family's reputation and dignity, and others won't have a chance to look down on us." he finished explaining.

Bai Qian's not well-hidden vengeful streak shone through her tone, "If anyone dares to look down on either of you, it will be the last time they have eyes." She promised darkly

Gungun bowed in thanks before he responded to her promise to mutilate others on his behalf, "High Deity Zhe Yan reminded me that my little sister and I will always have the support and love of everyone from our mothers Bai family, I'm very grateful. However in the official records of the Heavenly Tribe, by law and decree, even though my surname is Bai, I am of the Shaoyang family. Dong Hua Dijun, the Lord Shaoyang, is my father. With that lineage, I can't afford to make mistakes that would tarnish the Shaoyang family's name, relying on my mothers Bai family's kindness and protection would do that."

It was rare for Bai Qian to see any of Fengjiu's traits or mannerisms reflected in her son, but she looked into Gunguns eyes now and saw the same stubborn, fierce, determined look that Fengjiu often wore. It was the look that said 'I've decided to do this thing, damn the consequences'.

"Mother said that you taught her that she can bring shame to herself, but should never act in a way that would sully Qing Qiu's reputation. Mother taught me the same, that I should be aware of my status, that my every word and action is a reflection of both the Bai family, and Shaoyang families, and I should make sure to never lose face for them."

Annoyingly there was nothing she could say to that, he'd used her own words to strengthen his request.

"You are too young to be taking all these burdens onto yourself." Bai Qian used the only arrow she had left in her quiver, Gungun's age.

"Crown Prince, Uncle Ye Hua was the same age I am now when Tianjun started passing various duties to him, and was granted this Xiwu Palace at that time." Was Gungun's lightning fast reply.

She couldn't realistically say what she wanted to say, which was that Tianjun's utter incompetence required him to rely on a ten year old child to prop up his poor rule, that would be a crime, one even she wouldn't escape judgement for. This genius child likely knew that, so she could only reply with, "The two situations are completely different."

Gungun fired a devastating blow to her ability to deny his request, "If I can maintain my family's reputation and prestige, I can use it to shield my little sister from future troubles, so that if her difficulties are discovered, there would still be no one to dare bully her."

"Myself and your uncle Ye Hua, your other uncles, grandparents and great-grandparents will always support you, there is no need for this." She was repeating her earlier statement, but she truly didn't have any other arguments left to use.

Gungun's reply was without flaw, "My mothers family will always be our swords, if I can maintain the prestige of the Shaoyang family, then that will be a mighty shield, throwing such a shield away would be unreasonable."

Even with Fengjiu gone, and even if Dong Hua never stepped foot in Jiuchongtian again, it was still very unlikely that anyone would be stupid enough to disrespect Fengjiu and Dong Hua's children. Gungun's own reputation among the scholars for his intelligence, wisdom and ideas was unparalleled. There were High Immortals that already could not compare to his skill and ingenuity with magic techniques, formations and barriers.

"If my first step forward is wrong, it's too easy for every step thereafter to also be wrong, I will not take that risk." Gungun's final statement was, obstinate, unwavering, almost commanding.

Even if she refused to allow it, as she truly wanted to do, with that determination Gungun would find a way to go alone regardless. Bai Qian hadn't seen this genius silver haired son of Fengjiu's ever fail in a task they put their full focus into, she doubted even she should do anything to stop it.

And if she did manage it, what Gungun had said was not wrong. He would be judged, as the son of the former master of heaven and earth, supreme ruler of the six realms, who controlled half the energies of the universe...it was a heavy burden to bear even when both Gungun's parents had been alive. Now, he was basically an orphan, head of the most prestigious, respected and revered family in the universe. The eyes of every noble in Jiuchongtian, the lords of the seven demon clans, the ragtag ghost tribe, even Dong Hua's ancient generals would all be watching Gungun for flaws.

Seeing her wavering on this issue Gungun bowed deeply and used the language of making a formal plea in court, "Aunt, please grant my request to enter Taichen Palace alone."

Gungun had completely understood the current political and diplomatic situation and delivered his argument for the rational actions he should take to gain the optimal outcome. He'd also spoken more in the past ten minutes than she'd heard from him in ten weeks, this was clearly something he felt very strongly about doing.

"I won't stop you." Bai Qian finally spoke, frustration mixed with sorrow in her tone.

Gungun bowed again, "Thank you for understanding."

It wasn't fair that Gungun was taking on all these burdens, but at the same time, they were utterly determined to do so, and if she stopped him, she would surely damage his self worth and pride. With that in mind, instead of demanding to come to Gungun's ascension, she asked instead, "Will you at least allow me and Zhe Yan to be there when the time comes?"

"I would be grateful to have both of you attend." Gugun replied, then continued, "If it is agreeable, I have something to take care of, then I will go home-," There was a pause and he corrected his wording, "To Taichen Palace."

"There is an hour left, why go so soon?" she asked.

"Zhong Lin was also very close to my mother, and no one has been able to visit Taichen Palace before now. I would like to speak with him and offer what comfort I can, and ask what has been happening in Taichen Palace." Gungun explained.

The past few days must have been difficult for Zhong Lin, everyone else had been able to seek family and friends for comfort, but Zhong Lin had been continuing his duties as Taichen Palaces head steward without anyone around. Gungun was always such a conscientious and kind child.

"Do as you wish, i'll go visit the children." Bai Qian replied.

Arguing with a motivated, determined genius ten year old child was honestly exhausting, for the first time she was grateful her own son wasn't a genius.

Gungun bowed and left, as she also went to the side hall to check on her sons and Fengjiu's daughter Xueyu. Nai Nai was her personal maidservant and extremely competent, but leaving her alone with three children for as long as she had was a bit unkind.

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With this chapter this story has officially reached 100k words! I never thought my first ever story/fanfic would be such a long one. Thank you to all my readers, especially those that kudos/bookmark and super especially those who comment, they really fuel my motivation to continue this tale!