Legend Management Bureau Chapter 22

[ … words ]

“Yeah… Lady Heng’e… it’s me…” Du Yu said awkwardly.

He didn’t know how to face her right now. He had completely failed to fulfill the one and only promise he made to her—to take good care of Dayi.

“This is wonderful! I don’t know many people, but you’re one of them. It’s so good to see you again,” Heng’e exclaimed with a radiant smile, treating him like an old friend.

“Really… You seem incredibly happy…”

“I am! It’s actually quite strange. When I heard the Legend Management Bureau got a new Operator, my heart began to pound. It felt like I already knew this person. They say the Bureau travels back to the past to set legends on their proper course, and for some reason, you instantly came to mind.”

Chang’e chuckled softly. “At that moment, a bold thought surfaced in my mind: Could Brother Pang Meng be from the Legend Management Bureau? Thinking about it that way, everything suddenly made perfect sense.”

“But…” Du Yu muttered, somewhat confused. “Lady Heng’e, forgive me for asking something I probably shouldn’t, but when was the last time you saw me?”

“It’s been… over four thousand years, I suppose…” Heng’e mused after a brief pause.

“Over four thousand years… Have you been inside the Moon Palace this entire time? Don’t you feel lonely? After all, I failed to keep my promise. I couldn’t get Brother Dayi to accompany you.”

“A secret?”

“Exactly.” A mischievous smile played on Heng’e’s lips. “My husband has actually been here with me all along.”

“Huh?” Du Yu recoiled in horror. Was this the start of a ghost story? Had Dayi’s vengeful spirit been haunting the empty Moon Palace this whole time?

Heng’e waved her hand, and a plump, fluffy white rabbit suddenly shoved its large face into the camera, flashing Du Yu a wicked grin.

“Is this… the Jade Rabbit?” Du Yu had read the legends. Everyone knew Heng’e had a Jade Rabbit by her side. But why did this rabbit have such a casual expression? It looked practically human.

“Brother Pang Meng, you did it,” Heng’e declared. “Just a couple of days ago, I suddenly noticed four tiny characters written on the neck of the Jade Rabbit that has kept me company for two thousand years.”

She scooped up the Jade Rabbit and held it right up to the lens so Du Yu could get a good look.

“The moon rises bright?!” Du Yu gasped in shock. “Brother Dayi?!”

“Yes…” Heng’e smiled brightly. “My husband’s presence might have something to do with the remaining half of that elixir. No wonder this Jade Rabbit always seemed to know exactly what I was thinking and feeling. I don’t know if it was Dayi from the very beginning, or if your arrival, Brother Pang Meng, turned it into him. But regardless, I’ve gained so many wonderful memories of these past two thousand years.”

“Is that so…” Tears streamed down Du Yu’s face. The little rabbit gave him another roguish grin and flashed him a thumbs-up. Seeing this, Du Yu murmured, “That’s wonderful… truly wonderful…”

“Mhm.” Heng’e smiled through her own tears. “So, my husband and I wanted to chat with you together, but I didn’t expect to accidentally start a video call. I still haven’t figured out how to use all this high-tech stuff.”

“Hahahaha!” For the first time since arriving in the Underworld, Du Yu felt genuine, unadulterated joy. “Seeing the two of you like this makes me incredibly happy.”

“The Jade Rabbit being Dayi is a secret, you know,” Heng’e whispered. “A secret that no one else in the world knows but me.”

Hearing this, the Jade Rabbit froze, patted Heng’e, and then pointed at itself.

“Ah, right! My husband knows too. He might even be able to take human form in a few years,” Heng’e added. “So, Brother Pang Meng, you have to keep this a secret for us.”

Du Yu smiled warmly. “Of course!”

After hanging up the video call with Heng’e, Du Yu lay back on his bed with a contented smile.

“This is just great…”

It was getting late. Du Yu accepted a few friend requests, collected a digital red packet sent by Xie Bi’an, set his phone to silent, and drifted off to sleep.

Thanks to that video call with Heng’e, he slept exceptionally well.

The next day, Du Yu navigated his way to the work area with practiced ease and met up with Dong Qianqiu. However, Zhongli Chun was still shut out by He Suoyi. It seemed that ‘never meeting your past self in a legend’ was an ironclad rule.

“Last time, during the legend of Dayi Shooting the Nine Suns, time was too tight to hold a preparatory meeting. But this time, we can be a bit more formal,” Dong Qianqiu explained.

Du Yu followed Dong Qianqiu and a few staff members to a round table, where everyone began sorting through the documents in their hands.

“Goodness,” Du Yu murmured to himself. “A round-table prep meeting? Things really are getting more professional around here.”

“Enough idle chatter,” Dong Qianqiu said, looking toward one of the staff members. “Xiao Jin, give us the legend’s synopsis.”

The young man named Xiao Jin looked thin and diminutive, but his eyes were exceptionally bright. He glanced at the documents in his hand and began:

“Zhongli Chun, daughter of a Qi State general during the Warring States period. She was tall and heavily built. Because she was born in Wuyan City in Shandong Province, she was also known as Zhongli Wuyan, Zhong Wuyan, or the Lady of Wuyan. From birth, she was missing four of her seven mortal souls. Of the seven emotions—joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, and desire—most were incomplete. She was left with only anger, sorrow, and hate. Seeking to correct her state of mind, her parents sent her to Ghost Valley Mountain to study under Guiguzi. She became his fifth disciple and the only female student he ever took in his entire life. On Ghost Valley Mountain, Zhongli Chun mastered military strategy, politics, and martial arts. After completing her studies, she remained unmarried at home until the age of forty. When the Qi State was in decline, she married King Xuan of Qi, offered brilliant strategies, quelled rebellions, and successfully saved the nation from the brink of destruction, cementing her legacy as a legend.”

Dong Qianqiu nodded, then turned to another young woman. “Xiao Qi, explain the current issues with the legend to the Operator.”

The girl named Xiao Qi nodded and spoke up timidly. “In this iteration of the legend, Zhongli Chun’s general father tragically died in battle when she was very young. Her mother, Lady Hua, was forced to remarry a scholar-official, taking Zhongli Chun with her. Because of her volatile temperament, her stepfather despised her. She was subjected to long-term abuse and was even nearly violated by him. Fortunately, she had the strength to defend herself, preventing him from getting close. But if this continues, she will definitely never make it up the mountain to learn her skills. She will live out her life in obscurity, and Zhongli Wuyan will cease to exist in this world.”

“Is this stepfather absolute scum?” Du Yu demanded angrily. But he quickly realized that Zhongli Chun was born during the chaotic Warring States period, an era where seven kingdoms constantly fought for supremacy. In such times, weren’t all men and women just duckweed drifting on the turbulent waves of a chaotic world?

In that era, let alone violating an adopted daughter, a scholar-official wouldn’t necessarily face any punishment even if he murdered her outright.

A stepdaughter brought into the household through her mother’s remarriage probably held a lower status than the family’s servant girls.

“Du Yu, do you have any questions about the legend’s synopsis?”

Everyone at the table turned to look at him in unison.

“Not at the moment,” Du Yu replied. “I just want to know how many times I need to descend into this legend, and how long each descent will last?”

“There is no fundamental difference between long-term and short-term legends, but each descent cannot exceed seven days. Generally, for long-term legends, you’ll descend three to five times, staying one to five days each time, depending on the actual situation. Furthermore, you cannot bring back bottled souls. Doing so would impose astronomically high operational costs on the Legend Management Bureau.”

“Alright then.” Du Yu pondered for a moment. “I’ll descend once first to scope out the situation. We’ll decide how to proceed after that.”

Dong Qianqiu gave him a worried look. “Du Yu, the number of historical legends and classic tales from the Warring States period is staggering, and they are all intricately linked. At critical moments, I hope you will prioritize the bigger picture. To put it bluntly… even if Zhongli Chun never existed in history, it wouldn’t have a massive impact on modern society. So, you absolutely must not act on impulse just for her sake and disrupt any other legends.”

“Understood.”

As she connected various tubes to his body, Dong Qianqiu reminded him, “You already know that injuries sustained in the legend will reflect on your actual body, so you must prioritize your safety. Your first descent into this long-term legend will only last for one day, so keep an eye on the time.”

Everything was ready. Just as Du Yu was about to lie down on the machine, he suddenly remembered something.

“Oh, right, Sister Qianqiu. In that transmigrator’s gift bundle, could you prepare two extra items for me…”

…

Era: The chaotic Warring States period.

Location: The lands of Qi and Lu.

Servant, A’Wu, descending.

Du Yu opened his eyes to find himself standing in the corridor of a sprawling manor. He was dressed in coarse clothes and holding a bamboo broom in his hand.

“Good lord, my identity this time is a lowly servant?” Du Yu muttered, looking down at his attire. “Sister Qianqiu, couldn’t you guys arrange a role with a bit more status for me?”

“High-status roles can easily disrupt other legends,” Dong Qianqiu’s voice replied in his earpiece. “For an Operator, the more inconspicuous the identity, the better.”

“Ugh, fine.” Du Yu tossed the broom aside. “Where is Zhongli Chun right now?”

“Du Yu, watch your back!”

Before he could even react, a heavy foot booted him hard in the rear.

“What the hell?!” Du Yu sprawled onto the ground. He twisted around to see a burly, bearded man standing behind him, glaring menacingly.

“Have you lost your damn mind, boy?” the large man cursed. “Refusing to work and tossing your broom aside?!”

“Who the hell are you?” Du Yu snapped back in annoyance.

“Who am I? Have you really gone mad?” The burly man stared at him in sheer disbelief. “Do you even know where we are?”

“We’re at Zhongli Chun’s estate,” Du Yu answered.

“Zhongli Chun?” The large man hurriedly crouched down to examine Du Yu’s head. “Did someone beat you stupid, kid? Who hit you?! Your big brother will get justice for you!”

Du Yu’s eyes darted rapidly. “Big brother?”

A plan quickly formed in his mind. Clamping a hand to his forehead, he let his body slowly go limp.

“A’Wu! What exactly is wrong with you?!” The burly man hurriedly rushed forward to support him.

“Brother… I don’t know what’s wrong with me…” Du Yu wheezed weakly. “Why can’t I remember anything… Have I lost my memory? Am I dying?”

Tears suddenly cascaded down the large man’s face. “A’Wu, it’s all my fault! I shouldn’t have hit you… and I definitely shouldn’t have brought you here to be a servant! If we had just stayed home and farmed the land like honest folks, you wouldn’t have ended up like this!”

“Brother… I just have one wish before I die… I want to see Zhongli Chun… She and I… we’ve long been… long been… sigh!”

Snot and tears streamed down the man’s face as he wailed, “A’Wu, I understand what you’re saying, but who in the world is Zhongli Chun…?”

“What did you just say?” Du Yu instantly sprang to his feet. “What a waste of my acting skills. Doesn’t Zhongli Chun live here?”

“A’Wu… you…” The burly man stared at Du Yu’s miraculous recovery, too stunned to speak.

“Look, man. Is she really not here? The madam who remarried into this household and brought her daughter—her daughter’s name is Zhongli Chun.”

“Ah?!” The burly man’s face contorted in obvious shock. “You mean the Swine Girl?!”

“Swine Girl?” Du Yu frowned in confusion.

He pondered for a moment and decided to play along with the charade.

“That’s right… the Swine Girl.” Du Yu nodded firmly. “She and I have long been deeply in love and have pledged our lives to one another. I must see her, no matter what.”

“Deeply in love with the Swine Girl… pledged your lives…” The large man stared at Du Yu with profound worry. “Sigh… Oh, heavens, why did my poor brother have to be afflicted with such a bizarre illness…”

“Cut the nonsense, brother. Hurry up and take me to see her.”

Unable to dissuade Du Yu, the man led him across the front courtyard, past the main hall and the side wings, heading straight for the back kitchens.

He opened a small door behind the kitchen, revealing a pigsty built just outside. Ducking his head, the large man walked in.

A bad premonition welled up in Du Yu’s heart, but he gritted his teeth and followed him inside.

The moment he stepped through, a noxious stench assaulted his nose. The pigs ate, drank, and defecated in this cramped space all day long, making the smell unbearably foul.

“Yo, if it isn’t A’Da and A’Wu. What brings you to the swine pens?” a filthy-looking man remarked, scratching the flab on his waist. “I’m about to feed them, so be careful not to get yourselves dirty.”

With that, the man hefted a wooden bucket and dumped its contents right into the center of the pigsty. A foul-smelling heap of rotting food mixed with various unrecognizable weeds and wild vegetables splattered across the ground.

Du Yu had to fight the urge to gag. Feeding this putrid slop to pigs was practically animal cruelty.

However, the pigs in the pen didn’t mind at all. They swarmed forward, shoving each other to get to the rotting, reeking pile.

“Brother… why on earth did you bring me here—”

Before Du Yu could finish his sentence, a humanoid figure darted out from a dark corner of the pigsty. Shoving several heavy pigs aside, the figure lunged into the viscous pile of slop, scooping up massive handfuls and frantically stuffing them into its mouth.

It was a frail, emaciated little girl. Judging by her face, she looked about fifteen or sixteen. She wore tattered rags and was covered head to toe in mud and pig excrement, radiating a horrendous stench. Acting as if she couldn’t see anyone around her, she just kept ravenously devouring the slop.

“Zhong…” Du Yu was too shocked to speak properly. “Lady… Zhongli…”

“A’Wu, are you saying… you are deeply in love with this ten-year-old Swine Girl?”

“Ten years old?!” Du Yu hadn’t expected this Zhongli Chun, who looked to be in her mid-teens, to be a mere ten years old.

“You…” Du Yu slowly walked forward. Ignoring the filth entirely, he reached out and forcefully restrained her hands. “You are a human being! You’re not a pig! You can’t eat this garbage! Look at me—do you even know what your name is?”

To Du Yu’s absolute surprise, the moment she saw him rush over, Zhongli Chun bared her teeth and glared at him viciously, defending her food like a feral animal.

“Du Yu, danger!” Dong Qianqiu roared through the earpiece. But before Du Yu could react, Zhongli Chun slammed her fist straight into his chest, sending him flying backward through the air.