Legend Management Bureau Chapter 51

[ … words ]

Empress Houtu’s lips twitched into a forced smile, though she cursed Cui Jue a thousand times over in her heart. ‘My luck is truly terrible today. If this keeps up, I will lose all face.’

Despite harboring ten thousand grievances in her heart, Empress Houtu did her best to make her voice sound peaceful. “You say you refuse to become an Underworld Envoy. What exactly is your reason?”

“This humble official has someone I cannot let go of… I cannot abandon her and leave…” Cui Jue kowtowed once more to Empress Houtu. “Therefore, this humble official cannot obey.”

“Ah!” Du Yu suddenly realized that before he had entered the legends, the Chief Magistrate had mentioned this very matter!

He had said that there was an obsession in his heart, one he still could not bypass or escape to this day.

Du Yu hastily winked and wagged his eyebrows at Empress Houtu, hoping she would send him a telepathic message, but she did not understand his signals.

‘Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi!’ Du Yu could only call out to her in his mind.

‘What is it?’

‘Help me pass a message to Empress Houtu. I cannot initiate a telepathic transmission.’ Right now, all his hopes rested on Xiao Qi.

‘You have to overcome your psychological barrier. Empress Houtu is actually quite approachable.’

‘Then… all right… What do you want to say?’

‘Repeat after me, word for word.’

Du Yu organized his words and spoke up mentally, ‘Empress Houtu, Cui Jue indeed still has worldly attachments he cannot let go of. Please give me a little time and return tonight. At that time, whether he succeeds or fails in letting go, I will give you an answer.’

After Du Yu finished transmitting, he stared at Empress Houtu, waiting for Xiao Qi to relay the message.

‘How did it go? Did you finish?’ Du Yu asked.

‘I finished,’ Xiao Qi answered timidly.

‘Did she reply to you?’

‘She did.’

‘What did she say?’

‘She said… Who the hell are you, wretched girl? Stop sending me random telepathic messages and get lost.’

Du Yu sighed. That really did sound like something Empress Houtu would say.

‘Tell Empress Houtu that this message was given to me by that young man from a thousand years in the future.’

Soon enough, Empress Houtu, who was floating in midair, raised an eyebrow. She then glanced in Du Yu’s direction and nodded.

“Cui Jue,” Empress Houtu pondered for a moment before addressing him. “Becoming an Underworld Envoy is a matter of grave importance. Do not be in a rush to give me your answer. I will give you some more time to think it over carefully. Tonight, I will descend once more. Give me your final answer then.”

Hearing this, Cui Jue did not dare refuse. He quickly kowtowed in gratitude. The many mortals in the county office also bowed repeatedly, seeing off Empress Houtu.

Seeing the deity fly far away, the crowd of mortals hastily followed her out of the magistrate’s office. Kneeling every three steps and kowtowing every five, they chased after her all the way out of the county town.

After expressing their endless gratitude to Du Yu, the old woman and Si Huang also set off for Mount Yunmeng under the escort of Head Constable Li.

The only people left in the entire courtroom were Cui Jue and Du Yu. The two exchanged a glance before Cui Jue broke the silence.

“Xiangqin, that slap you gave me today truly woke me up. If it weren’t for you, I’m afraid I would still be stubbornly blinded by my delusions.”

Du Yu smiled sheepishly and said, “Chief, you did me a great favor. If it weren’t for your appearance, I’d probably have reincarnated by now. I wouldn’t have received fair treatment, let alone witnessed so many soul-stirring legends.”

“Oh?” Cui Jue blanked for a moment. “This official does not quite understand. Have the two of us met before?”

“Speaking of which, the first time I met you, you slapped a burly man right in front of me. Thinking about it now, you probably learned that slap from me…” Du Yu recalled Cui Jue’s figure dressed in brocade clothes back then. His appearance had brought both justice and hope.

“How truly strange…” Cui Jue pondered slightly. “Your description is vivid, yet this official has absolutely no recollection of such a matter.”

“Of course you wouldn’t remember, Chief, because all of those things happen after you become an Underworld Envoy.”

“After I become an Underworld Envoy?” Cui Jue murmured. “So, this official will become an Underworld Envoy in the future? Then… how do you know this?”

Du Yu lowered his head in thought for a moment before replying, “Since I’ve already broken the rules this time and revealed my identity to Empress Houtu, there’s no harm in telling you as well… I come from more than a thousand years in the future. I was commissioned by you yourself to come here and help you unravel the knot in your heart.”

“Commissioned… by myself?” Cui Jue struggled to comprehend the meaning behind those words.

“That’s right. Although you from a thousand years later became an Underworld Envoy, enjoying immortality and possessing magical powers, you always had a knot in your heart. You said you had someone you couldn’t let go of, and that if it were possible, you wished to live a different kind of life.” Du Yu repeated Cui Jue’s words to him verbatim.

Cui Jue lowered his head in contemplation. “Is that so? The person I cannot let go of now… I still will not be able to let go of even a thousand years later?”

Du Yu was acutely aware that helping Cui Jue with this favor carried an immense risk. The worst-case scenario was that Cui Jue truly wouldn’t choose to become an Underworld Envoy.

‘Du Yu! Are you sure this is a good idea…’ Xiao Qi asked in a hushed mental voice. ‘If the Chief Magistrate never appears, then your life path wouldn’t exist. You would have crossed the Bridge of Helplessness on your very first day in the Underworld. Your current self might just vanish directly from the Underworld…’

‘If I vanish, it just means I’ve gone to reincarnate.’ Du Yu thought for a moment before transmitting back. ‘Consider it repaying Cui Jue a favor.’

“The me from a thousand years later still claims to have someone I cannot let go of…” Cui Jue fell silent.

“Exactly. So I wanted to ask, Chief, are you unable to let go of your beloved wife?” Du Yu had seen infatuated men like Hou Yi before, and he figured Cui Jue was likely the same.

“Beloved wife…?” Cui Jue looked at Du Yu with hesitation before saying, “This official’s first wife passed away prematurely. It has already been seven years.”

“Eh?” Du Yu was taken aback. Could it be that the person Cui Jue couldn’t let go of wasn’t his wife?

“Then, Chief, is there anyone else you love?”

Cui Jue pondered for a moment and said, “No… Over the years, this official has dedicated everything to improving the security and development of Qi County. I have never remarried.”

Du Yu truly wanted to slap himself. Back then, upon hearing Cui Jue say he had someone he couldn’t let go of, he had taken it for granted that the man was a hopeless romantic. But now, seeing that Cui Jue wasn’t hung up on a lover, what exactly was the knot in his heart?

“Chief, then… the person you… can’t let go of is…?”

Cui Jue gave a bitter smile. “It should be my mother.”

“Oh?”

Du Yu somewhat understood now. Could it be that Cui Jue didn’t want to become an Underworld Envoy simply because he feared there would be no one to care for his mother in her old age and see her off when she passed? Thinking about it, it made perfect sense. After all, once Cui Jue agreed to become an Underworld Envoy, he would ascend immediately.

“My mother has suffered through the hardships of the human world since she was a child. She painstakingly raised me to become a county magistrate so she could finally enjoy a peaceful and comfortable life. If I were to leave now, it is hard to imagine how she would spend the rest of her days. Therefore…”

“Wait,” Du Yu interrupted Cui Jue. “Chief, don’t be in a rush to refuse. I’ve learned one thing from these legends, and that is to never make decisions for others.”

“You mean…?”

“If you have doubts in your heart, why not go and ask her personally what she thinks?” Du Yu said. “Sometimes, a decision you make solely from your own standpoint isn’t necessarily the best choice for the other person.”

Cui Jue was stunned upon hearing this. “Is that so…”

“Go on. I’ll be waiting right here for you.”

…

Cui Jue walked slowly to the rear residence, his mind buzzing with myriad thoughts.

By the time he snapped out of his daze, he was already standing at his mother’s bedroom door.

He wanted to raise his hand to knock several times, yet he didn’t know how to begin speaking.

“Jue’er, are you outside?” the old woman in the room slowly asked.

“Yes, Mother. Your son is here.”

“Come in.”

Cui Jue gently pushed the door open and entered the room. A hesitant expression lingered on his face, still unsure of how to speak.

“I heard today about Empress Houtu descending to the mortal realm to personally appoint you as an Underworld Envoy,” Cui Jue’s mother said with a kind smile. “It’s just a pity that I am getting on in years and couldn’t catch a glimpse of Empress Houtu’s true face.”

“Mother…” A trace of sorrow appeared in Cui Jue’s eyes.

“But Jue’er… why didn’t you accept it?” Cui Jue’s mother asked, thumbing a string of Buddhist prayer beads. “Were you worried about me?”

“Yes. Your son must fulfill his filial duties, care for you in your old age, and see you off when your time comes.”

“Jue’er, have you forgotten how I taught you?”

Cui Jue shook his head. “Your son hasn’t dared to forget Mother’s teachings for even a moment.”

“When I was young, my younger sister was stolen by a hunter. I went to report it to the authorities, but the official said, ‘Women are inherently worthless; no case will be opened.’ It was then that I decided, if I ever had a child, I would definitely make him become an official—a good official.”

Cui Jue nodded and said, “Your son respectfully followed Mother’s teachings. All my life, I have only sought to be an honest and upright official, strictly impartial. I have never dared to misjudge a single case… But today’s case…”

His mother did not respond to his remark and continued, “Later, I gave birth to my first child, who should have been your older brother. But he too was snatched away by a villain. I clearly remembered the villain’s face, so I went to report him. Although the official at the time opened a case, they only found the villain’s corpse, but there was no sign of your brother. They told me the villain had been attacked by wild beasts and the child had been eaten as well, hastily closing the case. Even though a fortune-teller once said that the child was born under the Star of Calamity, destined for a tragic and solitary life, he was still my own flesh and blood…”

“An older brother?” Cui Jue looked up. “Why have I never heard Mother speak of this…”

Cui Jue’s mother didn’t answer. She just shook her head and said, “I have always thought, how wonderful would it be if there was a judge in this world who clearly distinguished right from wrong—someone who could see all the truth and falsehoods, all the good and evil, and never make a misjudgment.”

“A judge…?”

“Jue’er, isn’t this the perfect opportunity?” Cui Jue’s mother looked at her son. “You can follow Empress Houtu and become a judge of the Underworld. From now on, you will live eternally in the Netherworld, judging all the right and wrong, good and evil in this world.”

“Mother… Your son understands…”

“Go, Jue’er. Your agreement to become a judge who eternally guards the balance of good and evil is the greatest filial piety you can show me.” Cui Jue’s mother stood up and stroked Cui Jue’s hair, just as she did when he was a child. “The salary you’ve saved up over these years may not be much, but it is more than enough for me to live out the rest of my days.”

Cui Jue pondered for a long time before heavily kowtowing on the floor.

‘So this is what Mother has been thinking in her heart all along?’

A knot in the heart that had yet to fully form was quietly unraveled right then and there.