Scions of Heaven - Calamity

Chapter 30

"And here, I want to have a vegetable garden so I can grow some plants to make side dishes. We'll grow my favourite white turnip, and we'll grow your favourite mallow and spinach. There's the multicolor chili peppers that are both delicious and pretty. But you eat pretty mild and you don't like spicy food. Let me think, we can grow things like okra, kale, horseradish, or pumpkin... Right, we can also make a gourd arbour... I suddenly realised we are discussing what kind of veggies we will be planting in our home. It almost feels unreal..." - Bai Fengjiu to Dong Hua Dijun (On her first time visiting Bihai Cangling)

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Bai Xun looked out into one of the many vegetable gardens of Bihai Cangling, and saw the little chilli bush he had innocently helped his mother plant many thousands of years ago. He liked gardening, and was apparently quite skilled at it, and had been pleased to help.

He always knew if his father had annoyed his mother or claimed one victory too many on a particular day, because their meal at dinnertime would be spicy. His father disliked spicy food, and so it was his mother's unscrupulous and rather underhanded way of balancing the scales.

He was not supposed to know such things, his meals were never over-spicy, but he had a fox's nose, and could smell the spices. He knew his father could surely smell them too, but Gungun had never heard his father say a single word when such a thing occurred, his father would calmly eat the food as if it were not spicy at all.

It was a sharp but sinking feeling that wrapped around him as he realised that he'd never again sit at the table and experience such a thing ever again.

He valiantly did not let the pain that stabbed his heart affect his outward appearance. His steps did not falter, he took no deep breaths and nor did his brow furrow. If one of father's old subordinates saw him do such a thing, wouldn't that just confirm he was just a little child? Not worthy of the mantle his father had placed on his shoulders by naming him heir?

With these thoughts in mind he continued to walk through a mighty stone archway covered in beautiful flowering bodhi vines into one of the few scenic gardens left in Bihai Cangling. And he paused, wondering why he'd come this way, why did he need another memory?

He looked upon a large, smooth, interestingly pockmarked rock, situated at the centrepiece of an expansive rock garden.

He'd been very young at the time and his father Dong Hua Dijun had told him in a very solemn tone that he'd emerged from that rock, thus in some way it could be considered his parent. Bai Xun till remembered how appalled he'd been that there were no offerings placed before it, and that there was even moss growing on it. Not knowing any better he'd spent an entire week diligently paying the proper respects to his 'sort of' paternal grandfather's grave in the manner of mortals. This went on until his mother had found him one day and with a very puzzled tone she asked him what he was doing?

He'd been quite a gullible child, and hadn't known very much of the ways of immortals. Of course he had not yet heard of the oft repeated rumour that his father had sprung from a rock, because he was as emotionless as one. It had not occurred to his father to explain he was joking.

He'd been quite upset at the whole event, and it had taken much coaxing and many weeks until he trusted anything his father said, always checking with his mother to verify first.

Lost in memories, he was only vaguely aware that he was walking through Bihai Cangling aimlessly. His mind refused to settle on a single emotion, instead the memories were making him feel sad, happy, melancholic, and nostalgic all at once.

He woke from his reverie to realise he'd walked to the main courtyard of Bihai Cangling, this was the area before entering the main hall of the stone palace.