Chapter 37- The Weight of an Ancient Name

Tian watched Lin make the tea. Her motions were skillful and practiced, but unenthusiastic. She had bluntly refused his hospitality, but understood that this conversation had to happen. Tian had noticed a recurring trait in all the hereditary disciples- if an elder said to do it, then it was done. Tian was quite obedient to his seniors, but with a few exceptions, it was an obedience born out of fear and pragmatism. For the hereditary disciples, it was more like obeying gravity.

Their seniors had ordered them to work together. Tian didn’t know just what connection Senior Deepwalker had with the Lin Clan, but it was clearly significant. So, even with all her grievance, she joined him in a common room, ready for a conversation neither wanted.

“I have been feeding Her Highness, like you said. Getting her used to my company and my vital energy.”

“Good. Establishing yourself as a source of food and security is necessary. That’s how she is thinking right now- hunger and danger. Everything else is secondary.”

“Is it time to go onto next steps?” Tian sipped the tea. His hand stilled in the air, and he took a second sip before lowering the cup. “Good tea. Very good. I don’t think I know this variety.”

“Yes. And you wouldn’t. It’s not from the Broad Sky Kingdom.”

“You have tea from outside the kingdom?” Tian’s eyes opened wide.

“Yes.” She didn’t elaborate. She didn’t have to. Tian thought she would have gotten along with Brother Long. At the very least, they could have communicated well.

Tian fell back to his old methods, and sank into silence. Eventually, Lin spoke again.

“There are techniques. Arts, really, but they take more than just manipulating your vital energy. At the most basic level, you just get a ‘feel’ for your companion. It’s sort of like an intuition about them. Sort of like thinking that they must be hungry or sleepy or something, but it feels more certain. That intuition grows into a kind of empathy, and eventually, telepathy. Communication without words. Without your words either. You can’t think “Let’s go eat,” she won’t understand. You can think of eating. You can remember being hungry, or share the feeling of being hungry, and then the idea of hunting, or a memory of the two of you eating together or something.”

Tian nodded along. This was the most he had ever heard the wide eyed girl speak. Her words were like her tea making- skillful, practiced, and unenthusiastic. Something she had learned to do at the insistence of an elder. He wondered if she reached the Six Turns Cavern the same way he did- by an elder’s whim, to advance their faction.

She pulled out a pamphlet. “Start by reading this, and practicing the energy circulation pattern. It doesn’t do anything on its own, but it will put you in a relaxed, energized and receptive state that is useful for your training with the crane. The back of the booklet has more training exercises, working on your coordination and mutual empathy. When you reach the end of the booklet, you will follow the methods it describes to attempt telepathy. But you can’t jump to the end. It’s a process.”

“Thank you. What do I owe you for it?”

Lin hesitated, then grit her teeth. “Nothing. It’s part of the arrangement with the Monastery.” He didn’t think she was lying. It felt more like regret at missing the opportunity to screw him over. But this meeting was happening under the silent supervision of Elder Feng.

Tian nodded and finished his cup. He looked hopefully over at the pot. She poured another cup for him.

“Thank you. It really is excellent. What’s it called?”

“This tea? Golden Ridge Cang’s Ten Year.”

“That… is the name for this style of tea?”

“No, it’s the name for this particular tea. The name for the style is Harmony Village Tea.”

Tian had many, many questions. Lin’s face shut them down. She would talk about what she had been ordered to talk about, and that was it. He was going to gracefully accept it and take the small development in their relationship, but something about the thought niggled at him. He savored the tea as he thought. Just a touch sweet, but with more of a woody, nutty flavor. He gently smacked his lips. The sweetness was in the aftertaste, like a bare hint of plum. A bit odd, given the surprising richness of the tea and woodiness of the flavor, but pleasant.

Lin plainly liked it well enough. She poured herself a second cup.

“Do you resent me more for breaking through the cavern, or for humiliating you when I arrived at the Manor?” Tian asked.

She spilled the tea. She glared at him, furious.

“You bastard!”

“I might actually be, for all I know.” Tian nodded. “But I know you mean that as an insult. I’m still not sure what a necrophiliac is. None of my books explain it.”

That didn’t calm her down any.

“You were ready, totally ready, to kill me over an insult you didn’t even understand?”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“I understood you were insulting me. And more importantly, insulting Sister Hong, Sister Su, and Brother Wang.”

“Killing someone over an insult. I take it back, you are the psychopath!”

Tian shook his head. “Sure, fine, I’m the crazy one. The question matters, though. Do you resent me more for passing, or for humiliating you? Because our elders want us to at least work together civilly. If it’s for humiliating you, I can apologize for that.”

It would be a hollow apology. He wasn’t sorry one bit. But Brother Fu had told him years ago that sometimes you have to apologize even if you didn’t do anything wrong, and this seemed like one of those times.

“And if it’s not?”