Chapter 856
Ayaka Kamisato's Engagement
Su Chen gazed into her clear, unfathomable eyes and remained silent for a moment.
Then, he chuckled softly.
"Yes," he said, "he's much younger than you."
Naxi Da blinked.
"Then, Father," she tilted her head, as if trying to sort out some logical inconsistency, "why would he be my father?"
She asked the question without any reservation. It wasn't a question, nor was it confusion; it was simply a curiosity to confirm something.
Su Chen thought for a moment, then reached out and gently ruffled her soft, light green hair.
“Because,” he said, “the five-hundred-year-old god of wisdom, in that cage, is a man.”
Naxida's eyelashes drooped gently.
“And me,” Su Chen’s voice was flat, as if stating an extremely simple fact, “I just happened to be passing by, just happened to see her, and just happened to want to be with her.”
"This has nothing to do with age."
Naxi Da raised her eyes.
There was a very thin, crystalline light in those emerald eyes.
She gazed at him for a very long time, so long that the raindrops on the eaves, which had been falling in a continuous stream, gradually thinned out.
Then, she softly hummed in agreement.
Nothing more was said.
She simply snuggled closer to him, shoved the fairy tale book into his hands, and skillfully adjusted herself into the most comfortable position, resting her head on his chest.
“Read,” she said, her voice soft, with a touch of self-righteous capriciousness. “Last time we talked about how the big bad wolf was chased away by the hunter, and Mr. Rabbit hadn’t come home yet.”
Su Chen turned the pages of the book.
Outside the corridor, the drizzle was about to stop, and a ray of sunlight peeked through the clouds, falling right on them.
He read about Mr. Rabbit going through the forest, crossing the stream, and finally finding his way home.
As Nasita listened, her calves swayed gently under the eaves, her chubby feet swinging back and forth.
Halfway through reading, she suddenly buried her face in his shirt and rubbed against him.
"...What's wrong?" Su Chen stopped.
"Nothing much," she said softly against his chest, "just a little bump."
Su Chen looked down at the small, light green head that nestled in his arms like a young animal.
He smiled and didn't ask any further questions.
He simply put the book down, put one arm around her, and gently placed the other hand on the top of her head.
The rain stopped.
The copper bells on the eaves were struck by the wind, their tinkling sounds echoing far and wide.
Naxida was quiet in his arms.
A very, very long time passed, long enough that her calves stopped swaying and her breathing became long and even—
She mumbled something very softly.
"...It's more worthwhile to be a daughter. But I can also be one of the other types."
Su Chen lowered his head.
The little deity in his arms had already closed its eyes, its eyelashes casting a peaceful shadow, and the corners of its lips curved into a very shallow, satisfied smile.
He didn't ask "what's more cost-effective".
He simply pulled up the blanket that had slipped off, carefully covered her calves, closed the fairy tale book that had been tilted to one side, and placed it on the pillow within her reach.
Outside the eaves, the sunlight gradually warmed.
The afternoon at Wangsheng Hall was, as always, both bustling and peaceful.
The 507-year-old god of wisdom slept like a real child in the arms of his "father," who was not yet thirty.
But Ningguang noticed the cunning look in the God of Wisdom's eyes and thought: How sly!
The afternoon that Ayaka Kamisato suddenly visited the Hall of Rebirth was perfectly sunny.
She was dressed in a formal kimono, her hair was neatly styled, and she held a fan in her hand properly. Her steps were the graceful and well-mannered demeanor characteristic of the eldest daughter of the Kamisato family.
But in those purplish-blue eyes, there was a certain solemnity, like that of someone going to a rendezvous, and a hint of barely perceptible girlish nervousness.
When Hu Tao led the people into the backyard, Su Chen was discussing the wording of a certain ritual contract with Zhong Li.
He looked up and met Ayaka Kamisato's gaze, and his heart skipped a beat.
He recognized that look before, the moment Gan Yu recognized him, the moment Qi Qi threw herself into his arms.
That was confirmation that had finally been found after a long period of time.
“Mr. Su Chen.” Ayaka Kamisato stopped in front of him, bowed slightly, and her manners were impeccable.
Then she raised her eyes, her voice clear and firm, "I have come here to fulfill my marriage vows."
Su Chen's hand, which was holding the teacup, froze completely.
"……engagement?"
“Yes.” Ayaka Kamisato’s gaze did not waver at all. “Twelve years ago, under the camellia tree behind the wooden tea room, you said it to me yourself. You said that when I grew up, if I was still willing, I would come to find you.”
She paused, her long eyelashes drooping slightly, a faint blush rising on her cheeks. "Since that day, I've stood under that tree every year. This year, I decided to come."
Would I really do something like this?
No way.
That's not like me at all.
Although I really like it, why is there such a promise?
hall.
"You've gone too far! As one of us, you're always doing nothing but causing trouble!"
"You don't want Nasita, such a legally born loli?"
"In such a girl, in so many worlds, you've only done so little."
Returning to his own world from that chaotic place, he realized that his talent was not an accident, but a gift from others, and something he had worked hard for in the early stages.
Since returning from that place, he has found that his abilities have become very strong, allowing him to see fragments of the timeline.
As Su Chen gazed at her, the small figure in his mind, with her hair in two buns, kneeling in the tea room trying to appear calm but unable to resist stealing glances at the camellias outside the window, gradually overlapped with the dignified and elegant Princess Bailu before him, who had already shouldered the heavy responsibilities of the Shenli family.
It was indeed something I did on the timeline.
The knowing "I knew it" feeling in his heart was mixed with pity for the girl who had persevered alone for more than ten years, and a subtle, helpless feeling of being both amused and exasperated by his own troublesome nature.
Interesting. What if I hadn't gone?
He didn't immediately respond to Ayaka Kamisato's waiting, but said softly, "This matter... I need to confirm some things. Give me some time."
Ayaka Kamisato looked at him, but didn't ask any further questions. She simply nodded gently and said, "I will wait for you at the Wooden Leak Tea Room."
Her trust, like the more than ten years of waiting, was calm and unwavering.
Su Chen was once again drawn into the vortex of time.
He wanted to go to that fork in the road and see what he, who had chosen not to go, had left behind.
Some things you have to experience for yourself; you can't just look at them with your eyes.
Inazuma, twelve years ago.
He stood under the ailanthus tree behind the wooden teahouse and saw another "Su Chen".
He had clearly been lingering here for several days, and now he was gazing at the budding camellia trees, his expression hesitant. Not far away, little Ayaka Kamisato was hiding behind a pillar, secretly peeking out in what she thought was concealment, her small hands clenching the hem of her clothes.
Su Chen stood there for a long time, then finally sighed softly, turned and left without saying a word.
The camellia flowers are still in bloom, and behind the pillars, the young face changes from expectation to stunned silence, and then to a heartbreaking calm as she tries to hold back her tears.
In that timeline, Su Chen silently stood beside the child.
He did not appear as the "fulfiller of the marriage vows," but rather as a stranger who happened to pass by and was willing to listen.
"Are you waiting for someone?" he asked.
The little girl shook her head, then nodded, and finally lowered her eyes: "They're gone."
"What are you looking at?"
“…The camellias,” she said. “are blooming beautifully.”
Su Chen accompanied her to see the tree full of ailanthus blossoms.
He made no promises about the future, but simply told her that many promises in this world cannot be kept for various reasons.
But waiting itself is not wrong; it is proof that you have taken this sentiment seriously.
You don't need to punish your expectations because of someone else's departure.
The little girl listened, seemingly understanding but not quite, but the layer of icy resolve in her eyes eventually melted into a moist, acceptable sadness.
That year, Ayaka Kamisato did not receive any marriage offers.
But she remembered a stranger who kept her company under the ailanthus tree while she looked at the flowers; he spoke very gently.
Time flows on.
Years later, Ayaka Kamisato has blossomed into a beautiful young woman, and the weight of her family name has begun to rest on her shoulders.
She learned to smile perfectly, maintain impeccable manners, and conceal all emotions behind the fan with composure.
Only in the dead of night, when she was utterly exhausted, would she occasionally think of that ailanthus tree, that blurry figure, and the saying, "Waiting itself is not a mistake."
Then, Su Chen came again.
He sat opposite her in the wooden-leaf tea room as an old friend.
The camellias outside the window have faded, and the leaves are just beginning to turn red. The young Ayaka is no longer the child who would peek from behind the pillars; she has learned to conceal her emotions beneath politeness.
But when Su Chen mentioned the toon blossoms from that year, her hand holding the teacup trembled almost imperceptibly.
"Are you still waiting?" he asked.
She remained silent for a long time, then gently shook her head: "A daughter of the Kamisato family has no right to wait for anyone."
"And what about yourself?" Su Chen looked at her. "As Linghua, what are you waiting for?"
She couldn't answer.
Su Chen did not give her an answer.
He simply handed her a warm cup of tea when she practiced swordsmanship alone until late at night.
While she was overwhelmed by political affairs, he, from an outsider's perspective, helped her untangle the complicated clues.
While she forced a perfect smile to deal with everyone, I offered her calm and unwavering companionship, telling her what to do.
You can be tired, you can be imperfect, and you don't have to be the flawless egret princess forever.
He did not make any marriage promises.
But he gave her a reliable support, an unspoken affirmation that "you deserve to be cherished."
In that silent companionship, the young goddess Ayaka gradually came to understand another layer of meaning in those words from years ago—
Not all precious bonds need to be proven with a marriage contract.
Some people appear in your life not to possess you, but to assure you that you are worth waiting for and worth actively choosing.
When Su Chen left that timeline, Ayaka Kamisato stood at the ferry crossing and did not ask, "Will we meet again?"
She simply thanked him solemnly with standard, impeccable Shinri family etiquette.
But even after that, she still goes to stand under the ailanthus tree every year.
It's not about waiting for someone to come back and fulfill the promise, but about reminding yourself.
You have been treated with such seriousness before, so you should also treat your life with seriousness.
Twelve years later, she finally arrived in Liyue and stood before Su Chen.
It's not about demanding fulfillment, but about fulfilling oneself—the answer to the question about choice that has been brewing for over a decade since the first bloom of the camellia.
Su Chen returned from the vortex of time.
Looking at the egret princess waiting for a reply, he suddenly understood the earnestness that had spanned more than a decade.
He didn't formally propose marriage, but in her heart, she had already unilaterally promised herself to him.
She did not wait for him to fulfill his promise.
She just came to tell him: I choose you. This is my own decision.
"Regarding the engagement," Su Chen began, his voice gentler than expected. "I did say those things to you under the ailanthus tree twelve years ago."
Since they've taken the initiative, how could he possibly turn them away?
They gave me a chance.
She naturally agreed, treating it as a marriage agreement.
Ayaka Kamisato's eyelashes trembled slightly.
“But what I want to tell you is this,” he looked at her, “that wasn’t a responsibility you had to fulfill, but rather a genuine expectation I had at the time. You don’t need to wait for more than a decade for a childhood joke.”
“I’m not joking.” Ayaka Kamisato raised her eyes, her voice soft but firm. “You were very serious back then, and I could tell. And my waiting… wasn’t for ‘fulfilling a responsibility’ either.”
She gripped the fan tightly, her knuckles turning white. "I just wanted to confirm whether you still remember what you said so earnestly."
Su Chen remained silent for a moment.
“I remember,” he said. “Every single word.”
Ayaka Kamisato's eyes finally reddened slightly.
What followed should have been the two of them slowly sorting out their feelings that spanned more than a decade of time difference.
But Su Chen's "time creditors" clearly didn't give him that leisurely opportunity.
The first to arrive upon hearing the news was Lei Guang.
Without any announcement or prelude, the purple-haired martial god landed directly in the backyard of the Hall of Rebirth.
General Thunder—or rather, Shadow, who had already grasped another layer of meaning to "eternity"—frowned, his purple eyes locking onto Su Chen, and the awe-inspiring pressure belonging to a martial god subtly emanated from him.
"When do you plan to take charge?" she asked.
Before Su Chen could speak, another smiling voice drifted in from the moon gate: "Oh my, I was wondering why the Hall of Rebirth was suddenly so lively... Turns out a guest beat me to it."
The pink-haired, fox-eared High Priest stepped leisurely into the courtyard.
Yae no Miko waved her signature folding fan, the beauty mark at the corner of her eye slightly raised with a smile, her posture as languid and condescending as ever.
But when that gaze swept over Su Chen, the complex familiarity that spanned many years and... a subtle hint of reproach deep within it could not escape the eyes of those who were paying attention.
She naturally also saw Ayaka Kamisato, as well as the Thunder God standing in the courtyard.
Yae no Miko raised an eyebrow, her fan obscuring half her face, and drawled, "Oh dear, General, what are you doing here? And that little girl from the Kamisato family... What, has this Hall of Rebirth become some kind of sought-after matchmaking temple?" (End of Chapter)