Chapter 96: Forty-Nine Heavens

Late autumn dusk, the setting sun cast long shadows.

The lads in the ox cart laughed and joked, writing on each other's dust-covered faces.

After their merriment, the Prince sat up and looked at Chen Ji. "Not many people have been able to outwit my father over the years. Half a year ago, during the Yuzhou flood, he traveled south to procure grain. Local gentry conspired to underreport their land to evade taxes. Each household donated a paltry ten measures of grain, as if giving alms to beggars. On the very same day, they hosted a feast on the Qinhuai River, pouring a hundred jars of fine wine into the river, calling it 'inviting the world to drink together.'"

"And then?" Liu Quxing leaned forward, keen to hear such tales of the court and common folk, which they rarely encountered.

The Prince chuckled. "My father didn't get angry with them. Instead, he commissioned artisans to transport a stone tablet over ten feet tall and erected it squarely in front of the Jinling Prefecture's government office entrance. On it, the exact amount of grain donated by each gentry family was clearly inscribed. He claimed it was to praise their virtues, but in reality, it was for the common people to see their true faces. At the time, even storytellers in teahouses were creating tales, ridiculing the gentry who, despite their daily pronouncements of benevolence and righteousness, were in fact utterly heartless and hypocritical."

Chen Ji mused, "The storytellers' tales, Prince Jing had them made up, didn't he?"

The Prince's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"What happened next?"

"Less than half a month later, the gentry, unable to bear the shame, obediently donated the grain."

Liu Quxing exclaimed admiringly, "The Prince truly excels at using subtle force to achieve great things."

The Prince looked at Chen Ji and gave him a thumbs-up. "The fact that you could outwit my father means you're quite a character."

However, Chen Ji couldn't bring himself to be happy.

Seeing his frown, the Prince asked curiously, "Why aren't you happy? If I could outwit him even once, I'd boast about it for ten years."

Chen Ji sighed, "Your father isn't one to suffer losses for nothing. I feel like he's about to turn around and outwit me again."

The Prince nodded. "You're right about that."

Liu Quxing looked over. "Chen Ji, where did you learn about the inverted flame kiln? You never mentioned it before!"

"A dream sent by a celestial being!" Chen Ji sat cross-legged in the ox cart, closing his eyes to rest.

Liu Quxing pouted. "Nonsense. If there really were celestial beings sending dreams, why would they only send them to you and not to me?"

However, the Prince suddenly spoke. "There truly are celestial beings who send dreams in this world. Ordinary people like you might not know, but Situ Zi, the leader of the Huangshan Daoist sect, can summon gods from the Forty-Nine Heavens."

"Hmm?" Chen Ji, who had been resting with closed eyes, suddenly opened them, fixing his gaze on the Prince like a burning torch, yet asking nonchalantly, "Forty-Nine Heavens?"

Finally, Chen Ji had heard someone mention the Forty-Nine Heavens. He had asked his master, but his master had never heard of it. He had asked Xuanyuan, but Xuanyuan hadn't heard of it either. There was a time when Chen Ji had vaguely wondered if everything that happened in the mental asylum was just a dream he had conjured in his final moments. Li Qingniao, the Forty-Nine Heavens, the Robe Gang, Second Blade, and even he himself might not have existed. But now, the dream had finally entered reality.

The Prince sat up straight and pointed mysteriously at the colorful clouds in the sky. "You don't know about the Forty-Nine Heavens, do you? It's said to be where the gods reside. My father told me that the Huangshan Daoist sect is powerful precisely because they can summon gods from the Forty-Nine Heavens. It's said that when Situ Zi fought against a Jing Dynasty master, he once summoned the Five-Peck Star Lord from the Forty-Nine Heavens to the mortal realm."

Chen Ji leaned slightly forward. "The Forty-Nine Heavens is where the gods live?"

The Prince recalled, "My father occasionally mentioned that all the celestial beings and Buddhas are in the Forty-Nine Heavens. Names like Wuji Mountain, Yujing Mountain, Liren Heaven, Sumeru Mountain, Penglai, Fangzhang, North Kuru, and Jambudvipa are the names of each heaven. However, that's all I know. My father rarely spoke of it, as if he needed to avoid mentioning something."

Then, he half-lifted himself from his seat, leaned into the center of the group, and whispered mysteriously, "My father said that every now and then, celestial beings from the Forty-Nine Heavens reincarnate and descend to the mortal realm, hiding among ordinary people. Perhaps we've even met gods without realizing it."

Chen Ji subtly shifted back a bit and asked casually, "Do gods have any distinguishing features? How can we tell if someone is a god?"

The Prince shrugged. "That, I don't know."

Chen Ji let out a slight sigh of relief.

Then Liu Quxing asked curiously, "Prince, have you ever met a god from the Forty-Nine Heavens?"

The Prince shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe I have, maybe I haven't."

Liu Quxing then asked, "Do these gods from the Forty-Nine Heavens need to defecate?"

She Dengke chuckled. "Of course, if they eat, they'll have to poop."

Liu Quxing stuck out his neck. "What if they don't need to eat?"

She Dengke also argued stubbornly, "How would they live without eating? They must poop a lot."

Chen Ji's expression grew complex. He changed the subject and asked, "Prince, are there any known Forty-Nine Heavens gods in the history of our Ning Dynasty?"

"Yes!"

Everyone turned towards the sound to see Liang Gou'er, who had been lying at the back of the cart with his legs crossed, lifting the straw hat from his face. "My ancestor once encountered one. This person claimed to be from the Forty-Nine Heavens and had come to the mortal realm to cultivate a Daoist Yang God, hoping to merge with the Dao through this method. Even in the darkest night, his Yang God shone like a blazing sun."

"Did he eventually merge with the Dao?"

Liang Gou'er scoffed. "No, this person was ambushed and killed by a Jing Dynasty martial expert in the Ning Dynasty's border army. He died and his path ceased to exist. It must have been about two hundred years ago; I don't know the exact details."

Chen Ji fell into deep thought. Li Qingniao had once told him: "The Forty-Nine Heavens cannot hold you; go to where you belong." He was certain he came from the Forty-Nine Heavens. Yet, the place he lived had no connection to a divine abode, and he was clearly not a god. But regardless, Chen Ji had finally grasped some clues about the Forty-Nine Heavens, like a drifting, traceless boat that had finally dropped its anchor into the seabed.

In the orange-red afterglow of the sunset, the slow ox cart entered the southern part of the city. Liu Quxing suddenly exclaimed, "Look, there are so many people in front of the Examination Hall!"

Everyone turned to look. Under the evening glow, hundreds of people were gathered at the entrance of the Examination Hall: spirited young men, middle-aged men burdened by unfulfilled ambitions, and wizened old men with blank expressions.

"Those are the Autumn Imperial Examination candidates," the Prince whispered. "I've seen that old man before. I heard he's been taking the exam his whole life. He sold all his family's fertile land, and his wife and children left him, but he still hasn't given up."

In front of the Examination Hall, each Autumn Examination candidate carried a bamboo basket containing their bedding and three days' worth of provisions. Before lining up to enter the hall, outer examiners would open and inspect each basket, then thoroughly frisk the candidates to prevent them from bringing in cheat sheets.

As the ox cart passed the Examination Hall, the disheveled Prince quickly ducked his head, muttering, "Quick, quick, bow your heads! I see so many familiar faces!"

However, it was too late. Someone inadvertently glanced at the ox cart and, uncertain, asked with a hint of doubt, "Huh, isn't that the Prince?"

All the Autumn Examination candidates turned in unison to look at the ox cart. At the entrance of the Examination Hall, Chen Wenzong, Chen Wenxiao, and Lin Chaojing, who were undergoing inspection by the outer examiner, also turned around.

"The Prince? Is that disheveled person on the ox cart the Prince?"

On the ox cart, the Prince buried his head in his chest while raising his whip to smack the ox's rear, muttering in a low voice, "Go, ox brother, go faster! How embarrassing!"

But the old yellow ox continued at its unhurried pace, completely ignoring him. Instead, it flicked its tail and dropped a mound of grass-smelling dung.

Beside the ox cart, someone walked alongside, keeping pace, tilting their head to confirm the Prince's identity. Suddenly, one person exclaimed in surprise, "It really is the Prince? Prince, why are you in such a state?"

The Prince looked up, reined in the ox cart, and laughed awkwardly, "I was working."

Chen Ji turned his head and saw his two older brothers, Chen Wenzong and Chen Wenxiao, standing on the steps of the Examination Hall, looking back. Chen Wenzong's eyes were filled with disappointment and regret.

The three brothers gazed at each other from a distance, as the setting sun shone over the eaves behind Chen Ji and onto the entrance of the Examination Hall. Chen Wenzong and Chen Wenxiao seemed to glow.

At this moment, the crowd slowly parted, and Lin Chaojing stepped forward, saying sincerely, "I recall that when the Prince was at Donglin Academy, he said he would join us in the Autumn Examination to see if he could pass by his own ability. Yet, the Prince has been conspicuously absent today."

The Prince's expression calmed. He simply smiled and said, "Distinguished talents, I am ashamed of my inferiority, so I simply chose not to come and make a fool of myself. I wish all my fellow students success in the examinations and to be named on the golden roll."

Lin Chaojing bowed and smiled. "Thank you for your kind words, Prince. However, there is one piece of advice I wish to offer. I wonder if I should speak it?"

The Prince replied with easy grace, "Please do."

Lin Chaojing said, "Prince, you are the son of Prince Jing. Currently, Prince Jing is diligent in his governance and much beloved by the people. I hope the Prince will set aside his playful nature and cultivate his character properly, so as not to betray the reputation of Prince Jing's residence."

The Prince also rose and returned the bow. "Thank you for the reminder. We won't disturb your entry into the hall any further. Farewell."

With that, he sat down again, his expression calm, and shook the reins. The ox cart slowly pulled away. From behind, they heard someone murmur, "The Prince is unruly. What a pity for Prince Jing's diligent and people-loving nature."

On the ox cart, Liu Quxing heard the murmuring and lowered his head. "It's only because Prince Jing is benevolent that they dare to speak like that. If it were Prince Fu, Prince Qi, or Prince An, would they dare to mock? They'd have their families' chickens and dogs killed."

Chen Ji silently turned to look, observing that the Prince's face was calm, betraying no joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness. Only when the sun had completely set did the light in the Prince's eyes gradually fade.

The Prince murmured, "Why doesn't my father have another son?"

Chen Ji asked with a smile, "To compete with you for the position of Prince Jing?"

The Prince looked away. "Let him compete. I don't want anything; I'll give it all to him."

The next moment, Chen Ji reined in the ox cart, forcefully pulling the ox's head to turn the cart around.

The Prince turned back, asking in surprise, "Hey, what are you doing?"

Chen Ji laughed heartily. "A man lives for his spirit. We're not going back yet. We'll stay at the kiln until we produce cement. If we can't produce it, we'll never go back!"

The Prince chuckled. "Why are you so determined to make cement?"

"To make history!"