Mutated Tao

Gao Zhijian effortlessly parted the compact soil with his iron-like fingers, leaving behind traces as though they were plowed.

“What are you drawing?” Chun Xiaoman frowned at Gao Zhijian squatting on the ground. “Why don’t you write? I’ve been learning some characters in secret.”

Gao Zhijian glanced at her before shaking his head.

“Hey! What do you mean? Are you looking down on me?” Chun Xiaoman shoved Gao Zhijian.

However, Gao Zhijian merely smiled and shook his head.

“Is this a snake? Did you use to sell snake medicine?”

“Dragon…” Gao Zhijian said in a low voice. As Gao Zhijian's fingers moved, a huge coiled dragon appeared before Chun Xiaoman. Gao Zhijian then drew a person sitting beneath the dragon.

“Emperor!” Gao Zhijian pointed at the person, and then he drew piles of gold ingots next to the so-called emperor. Afterward, he drew a few tiny figures next to the emperor. He drew a figure at the end and patted himself. “Me!”

“You're the emperor's son?!” Chun Xiaoman asked with wide eyes.

“How come you don't know? What’s going on here?”

“Maybe... maybe... maybe... it’s... it’s fake!”

"Are you not drawing your past here? How can your fast be fake? Did you tell Senior Li about these? What did he say?”

“No.”

“Why did you not tell him?”

Gao Zhijian hesitated for a moment and glanced at Chun Xiaoman. Then, he drew an adult figure beside the figure that represented himself. The face of the adult was obscured, and three swords were strapped to his back.

Gao Zhijian pricked his finger and smeared blood all over the figure's clothes. Chun Xiaoman instantly understood what he was trying to say.

“This is Senior Li?" Chun Xiaoman recognized Li Huowang, as he was one of the few figures whom Chun Xiaoman knew had a penchant for wearing red robes.

Gao Zhijian nodded vigorously before drawing a large “five” on his own forehead.

“I recognize this character. It’s the simplest character from one to five[1], which means you were five years old that year?”

Gao Zhijian nodded, and then he pointed to the sword on Li Huowang’s back. He drew a line and struck off the figure representing himself.

"Uh... Senior Li killed you? When you were at the age of five?” Chun Xiaoman muttered hesitantly.

“Yeah.” Gao Zhijian nodded.

Chun Xiaoman felt her head spinning. “How come you're still alive, then? And he even killed you when you were still a child?”

“Maybe... maybe... maybe... fake!” Gao Zhijian drew another figure representing himself. This time, he drew an armored figure and a carriage. Afterward, he drew a group of people thrusting spears at him.

“You... died again? Why can’t I understand anymore?”

“Messy…” Gao Zhijian slapped his head hard. “Messy!”

Gao Zhijian’s actions became rougher as he drew several figures of himself dying in a variety of ways. He died by drowning, burning, and even hanging. Eventually, he stopped drawing figures and took out a piece of charcoal to sketch black circles.

Fear appeared in his eyes as he looked at the black circles on the ground, and the fear in his eyes intensified as he drew more and more black circles. In the end, Gao Zhijian’s sturdy arm drew a large black circle that enveloped everything, and he seemed to be fearful of what he had drawn. He abruptly stood and took several steps backward.

“Gao Zhijian... are you okay? Do you want me to help you go to the doctor?”

Gao Zhijian wiped away the cold sweat on his forehead, smudging his face. He then shook his head and walked over cautiously. He picked up a clump of soil and hurled it on the black circle before stomping on it, trampling down on the circle.

Then, he drew a figure representing himself on the back of his hand using a chunk of charcoal. Afterward, he dug into the trampled soil with the same hand, pushing aside the black circles to reveal the piles of gold ingots he had drawn earlier. “Money!”

He drew a line from the pile of gold ingots and connected it to Chun Xiaoman’s feet.

“Take it!”

“No, no, no, give me a moment here. This isn't just about money. You need to be a bit more detailed with your drawing. I'm so confused…” Chun Xiaoman muttered, feeling her head spinning from Gao Zhijian’s drawing.

“The message is unmistakable." A voice echoed from the door. The two turned to see Zhao Wu leaning on a crutch. It seemed that he had seen everything Gao Zhijian had drawn so far.

Zhao Wu walked up to the two and looked at the indescribable drawings. After a moment of thought, he said, "Gao Zhijian must have been a high-ranking official in the past, so his family must have been quite wealthy.”

“The deaths he had suffered represent the risks associated with that status. If worse comes to worst, he says he's willing to take the risk and use his past status to find a way out for us.”

Zhao Wu turned to look at Gao Zhijian with a serious expression.

“I think that’s what you’re trying to express, right?” Zhao Wu asked.

Gao Zhijian was stunned, and then he shook his head decisively without even pretending that Zhao Wu was right.

“I... I... I am… the... em... emperor!”

Zhao Wu looked helpless as he muttered, “You’re the emperor? Then Senior Li killed the five-year-old you? And then you were reborn before dying again and again until you were finally captured by Dan Yangzi?

"The Great Liang never had a five-year-old emperor. You should try to come up with a more plausible background. Moreover, you never told Senior Li anything about this in the past. There's also a continuity error; if you were five at the time, then how old was Senior Li back then? He’s not much older than you, after all.”

Gao Zhijian revealed a pained look at Zhao Wu's words. He pounded his head forcefully, and his hands curled into fists as he clenched them. “Messy.. messy…!”

“Hey, stop that, Gao Zhijian!” Chun Xiaoman grabbed Gao Zhijian and said, “The Lu Family Troupe has many ways to make some money, and they can be done once this disaster is over. You don’t need to worry about money!”

Gao Zhijian eventually calmed down. He stared alternatingly at the two and realized that they did not believe him at all. The next moment, he clenched his fists and walked away.

“What are you going to do about his crazy story? Are you going to tell Senior Li about it?” Zhao Wu asked, leaning on his crutch.

Chun Xiaoman nodded quietly, and her expression was complicated as she stared at Gao Zhijian’s departing figure.

“I think it’s better to tell him. He's a veteran and has seen more bizarre things than us, so he perhaps he might know something about Gao Zhijian’s background.”

1. one to five is written in an alternative form from the usual ☜

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