CALID Chapter 32

Thorn

He Simu repeated in a low voice, “Alive.”

Duan Xu absentmindedly ran his fingers through her hair and lifted his gaze openly, probing, “Have you never truly lived?”

He Simu’s fiery gaze turned cold, and she dangerously narrowed her eyes at this audacious guy challenging her seemed to invigorate him.

Duan Xu met her gaze unabashedly, wearing an innocent smile, his eyes reflecting the flickering candlelight.

He Simu’s sharp gaze gradually turned into confusion — her attempt to punish Duan Xu seemed to have no effect. She raised her hand in front of her, turning it left and right, muttering softly, “My powers…”

Duan Xu, being incredibly astute, immediately caught on, saying, “Did your powers disappear after we exchanged sensations?”

He Simu and Duan Xu simultaneously looked down at the Ghost King Lamp hanging from her waist. Normally, the lamp-shaped jade pendant emitted a faint blue light, but now it looked just like an ordinary pendant, devoid of any blue glow.

Duan Xu lifted his gaze to meet He Simu’s, his eyes curved upwards, the corners of his mouth forming a bigger smile as he said slowly, emphasizing each word, “Your powers have disappeared.”

Before He Simu could react, their positions had already reversed in a dizzying whirl, with her lying on the bed and Duan Xu above her, leaning down with a smile.

The sensation of the bed linen was softer than her skin, and He Simu hesitated for a moment, feeling unsure under Duan Xu’s inscrutable gaze.

Why hadn’t her aunt warned her beforehand that her powers would disappear after exchanging senses, rendering her as powerless as an ordinary person!

Duan Xu, who always adhered to the principle of no resistance if unable to defeat and no mercy if able to defeat, looked down at He Simu, smiling, with no hint of his intentions.

He Simu warned with a cold gaze, “The sensation exchange only lasts for ten days. After ten days, I will regain my powers. If you dare to do anything to me, you’ll face death after ten days.”

Duan Xu turned his head slightly, showing no hint of fear, and chuckled, “Ten days, huh…”

He lowered his head and whispered softly in her ear, “Then I’ll only live for ten days, how about that?”

He Simu’s gaze sharpened, “What do you mean…”

Before she could finish her sentence, Duan Xu’s hand lightly grazed her waist, causing He Simu to shiver and curl up into a ball, utterly confused about what had just happened.

“This sensation is ticklish.”

Duan Xu chuckled heartily, “Let me tell you a secret. I’m extremely sensitive, so I really hate being tickled—every time you press down on me or touch me, I endure it with great difficulty.”

Indeed, when she took away his sensation, she also became as sensitive to tickles as he was.

Duan Xu laughed innocently, with the aura of a man who once attained enlightenment, ready to settle scores and grievances. He rolled up his sleeves and began tickling He Simu’s waist, armpits, and the soles of her feet. For the first time in four hundred years, He Simu experienced the unbearable sensation of being tickled, squirming and struggling relentlessly. Without the power of the evil spirits, she couldn’t match Duan Xu’s strength, so she could only threaten him while laughing.

“Hahaha… you… after ten days… hahaha… I’ll definitely kill you!”

“Whether I live or die, I’ll make the most of these ten days.”

With one hand on He Simu’s hair, Duan Xu temporarily halted his movements and looked at He Simu’s fierce yet vulnerable expression. He gazed deeply into her eyes, where the formerly proud demeanour now showed a rare hint of trembling.

He blinked, chuckled softly, and whispered, “He Simu, you’re afraid too.”

Gritting her teeth, He Simu uttered each word with determination, “Duan… Shun… Xi!”

“Yeah? What’s wrong?”

Duan Xu elongated his voice in response, smiling faintly. Then, he straightened up and released her, sitting beside her with his legs crossed.

He Simu sat up on the bed, almost immediately moving away from him, glaring at the curse-caster who had brought four hundred years of bad luck upon her.

The wounds on Duan Xu’s body started to bleed again from He Simu’s struggle. He glanced at them indifferently and remarked, “It doesn’t hurt anymore. When I touch you, I feel nothing, as if my body is dead.”

After a pause, Duan Xu looked at He Simu’s wary gaze and said with a smile, “So, this is the world you’ve been experiencing all this time.”

Pain, warmth, hardness, all these sensations disappeared in an instant, leaving behind a distant world that seemed almost imperceptible.

They had exchanged senses, and now he could slowly understand her.

He Simu seemed to know what he was thinking and frowned, “Now that you understand me, what do you intend to do?”

Duan Xu blinked silently for a moment, then casually replied, “Who knows? Perhaps it’s just like when you wanted to understand me at first. You’re so special, it arouses curiosity.”

He Simu looked at Duan Xu for a while before casually flexing her wrist.

“Living people should learn to keep their distance from death.”

Duan Xu gazed at He Simu, smiling without saying a word.

Although He Simu unexpectedly lost her powers, her true form also unexpectedly transformed into that of a living person—breathing, with a pulse, warm and soft, no longer in the state of a dead person as before.

And the most important thing was—she couldn’t return to the body of “He Xiaoxiao” anymore, nor could she conceal herself.

So “He Xiaoxiao” lay unconscious on the bed, while there was now an unfamiliar beauty in Duan Xu’s camp. Duan Xu claimed she was a friend from Daizhou and asked Meng Wan to take her into town for a stroll.

Just as Meng Wan was leading He Simu away, a deputy of General Qin came to see Duan Xu with an unfavourable expression, bowing respectfully, “General Duan, Magistrate Zheng has brought an imperial decree. He requests the generals to come to the front camp.”

Zheng An was a third-ranking attendant in the Ministry of Personnel, specially appointed as the border inspector of Yanbian. He was also a close friend of Duan Xu’s father and a pillar of the Du faction.

Naturally, his arrival wouldn’t bring good news for General Qin.

Duan Xu smiled faintly and then changed into proper attire before heading out. When he arrived at the front camp, he saw General Qin and other generals standing there, alongside a middle-aged man in a purple crane-patterned robe, standing with his hands behind his back.

Zheng An glanced at the renowned young man and nodded with a smile, then took the decree from the attendant next to him.

“The Emperor decrees…” His voice was slow and dignified, carrying the arrogance of long-standing authority. The generals in the camp all kneeled down, awaiting the decree.

Duan Xu knelt among the crowd, bowing his head as Zheng An read the lengthy decree. The Emperor first praised General Qin for his achievements in repelling the enemy, then bestowed rewards upon the various generals, without specifically mentioning Duan Xu, as if it were just an ordinary commendation.

However, towards the end of the decree, the Emperor’s tone changed. He mentioned granting General Qin the authority to act as he saw fit but emphasized the long-standing problems with the military’s horse management, urging priority to be given to capturing the Yuzhou horse farm.

As soon as the decree was nearing its end, Duan Xu felt several gazes focus on him. Unmoved, he heard the unexpected response from General Qin, “Minister Qin Huanda accepts the decree,” before bowing formally alongside General Qin.

As he bowed, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

After Minister Zheng An finished reading the decree and left, he lightly patted Duan Xu’s shoulder as he passed by, saying nothing. As the people in the camp stood up from the ground, all eyes were now on Duan Xu. Yesterday, they had just discussed the direction of the attack, and today the imperial decree arrived, completely in accordance with Duan Xu’s judgment. It was hard for anyone to believe that Duan Xu hadn’t manipulated anything.

So he had easily stepped back yesterday—not so much as a concession but as a pity, a mercy from the victor to what he considered the loser.

Duan Xu calmly stood up from the ground, radiating a brilliant smile. “Since the Emperor has made his decision, we can only reconsider and rearrange our forces.”

General Qin looked at Duan Xu, placing the imperial decree on the table and said calmly, “The rest of you may leave. General Duan, stay.”

Duan Xu stood in the camp, his smile serene, his posture upright. Others passed by him, and the sunlight filtering through the door curtains fell on his silver armour, reflecting a dazzling light.

“You’ve finally got what you wanted,” General Qin said, his gaze sharp as he looked at Duan Xu.

Duan Xu smiled, deflecting the seriousness, “It’s the wisdom of the Emperor. What does it have to do with me?”

“Do you know that he who has the ability but isn’t controlled by the ruler wins? Decisions on the battlefield should be made by the commander. Your manipulation led to the Emperor’s intervention, a taboo in the military!” General Qin slammed the table, his anger evident, causing the dust on the table to tremble in the sunlight.

“Setting aside factional disputes, I admire your talent, but you are still too young, too focused on making a name for yourself! Your fundamental goal in conquering Yun and Luo provinces is just to have a full-scale war with Danzhi one day, isn’t it? But you should know that wars cost money, draining the treasury and harming the people. Danzhi’s invasion has already burned through countless savings. How long can we sustain this? If attacking Youzhou can force Danzhi to negotiate and control their lifeline, there can be decades of peace. It’s time for Daliang to recuperate and plan for the future. That’s the right path!”

Duan Xu looked at the imperial decree on the table, silent for a moment before shifting his gaze to General Qin’s face. The smile in his eyes faded, and he spoke slowly, “What about the people on the northern bank?”

General Qin paused.

Duan Xu pointed outside the camp and said, “When the Grand Marshal led the army into Shuozhou this time, didn’t the people along the way welcome the army with food and drink? When I was trapped in the city, the Lin family of twenty-three died tragically under the city gate for the city’s grain and fodder. Before he died, he said that their ancestors vowed that if Daliang reclaimed the land, they would spare no effort, even if it meant dying. While we thrive in the south, the people on the northern bank suffer. They’re oppressed and indoctrinated until even kin become enemies. General Qin, is this what you call maturity?”

Sharp light flickered in Duan Xu’s eyes, like an unstoppable blade, yet he still smiled and said, “I am a young man with nothing to lose but this life. I cannot allow the people on the northern bank, who are still holding on, to become a joke.”

General Qin was speechless, astonished. He remembered seeing this young man for the first time in the capital and had thought him remarkable, like a pine or cypress tree, perhaps just a distinguished noble’s son. But now, he realized, Duan Xu was not a pine or cypress.

He was a thorn.