Chapter 210 - Recompense

Lei Xing obviously was not convinced by the bracelet's denial. She also remembered that she needed to go see that doctor regarding a lot of things and this just made that need more urgent.

{...*Hahaha he didn't know anything! I mean, who really understands how the universe works? It works in mysterious ways hahaha~...}

{...Clearly you do -_-)...}

{...*Weeellll...You know what? He was actually doing you a favor!... Your mind wasn't in a place to comprehend or accept this then...}

Lei Xing inwardly rolled her eyes.

{...Why are you jumping at his defense? Do you know him? He apparently knows about you or at least he seemed to recognize this bracelet, more accurately the gems but still... (≖_≖ )...}

{...*No, I don't! Why would I?!  And you're missing the point! >_

Lei Xing pursed her lips but then relented with a soft sigh.

{...I wouldn't have believed him, would have thought he was crazy - which I honestly still think he is, partially anyway...But still, I would have contempl-...}

{...*There is no still! You would have built even higher walls and the poor boy would have never been able to scale them!... But here you are now, happy and blissfully in love, he did you a favor ~ Be grateful! ( ￣^￣ )...}

{...You make it sound like I'm a cold-hearted wall-building demon or something. I'm not that difficult  - 3 - )...}

{...*You might as well as be~...}

Lei Xing pouted but quickly corrected her expression when the minister of Rites who had been leading the way finally stopped. It was then that Lei Xing realized that they had finally arrived at the ancestral hall. 

The minister of Rites lightly bowed his head and motioned to the door and said, "Your highness, please enter..." 

Lei Xing nodded and went ahead. As she entered, she scanned the multitude of plaques lined up on the leveled stands built into the wall. On the center stand, stood the plaques of the most recent elder deaths, the late Emperor and the two late Empresses. From what she could see, the hall only contained plaques of Emperors, Empresses, and Empress dowagers.

For some reason, this made Lei Xing's mood suddenly sour.

{...Where are his consorts and concubines?...}

{...*It doesn't matter, you are to be the Empress~ ^_^)...}

{...I know but still...It's depressing to see, even in death they are sidelined...}

Lei Xing knew they were probably sectioned off in another room in the massive building along with the children and the older family ancestors. She also understood that the front room could only hold so much. But still, it felt weird for them not to be placed here with their Emperor...almost demeaning. 

The Minister of rites came up to Lei Xing and presented three lit incense sticks to her. She took them and approached the center stand and placed the incense sticks in the pot and then bowed towards the late Emperor and his Empresses.

Then she walked over to the cushion set on the ground for her, scanned the plaques again and then let out a sigh and began her first kowtow. As she bowed her head to the ground, a disconcerting thought came to mind. 

{...How much longer do you think this dynasty will last?...}

She was not asking or anyone or seeking an answer. It was just a random thought. But then the bracelet immediately gave her an answer.

{...*A thousand years...}

Lei Xing froze for a moment, surprised with the response. And then she got up with knit eyebrows with Xiao Ruo's assistance and then went down again for her second kowtow.

{...How do you know?...}

The bracelet went silent and Lei Xing finished her second kowtow, made her third and final kowtow. She rose and then made a final bow and the others in the hall bowed with her and the bracelet finally let out a heavy sigh and resopnded in the same solemn tone.

{...*Recompense...}

Lei Xing raised an eyebrow in surprise.

{...For?...}

{...*The altered course of a lifetime...}

Lei Xing turned around and the others bowed to her again and congratulated her. The Minister of rites then came forward and informed her that she will be notified once the date of the ceremony is set and asked if she had any specific requirements or requests. Lei Xing, of course, had none and simply thanked him for his work and with that, this part of her day was over and she departed with a sigh of relief.

After she left the hall, she could now focus on the bracelet and its odd revelation. 

{...An altered lifetime...Whose?...Mine? O_O)...}

{...*Tch, everything isn't always about you! >_

Lei Xing rolled her eyes, but she was curious and so humored the bracelet.

{...Of course it's not...But as a concerned "friend" I will listen to your woes to ease your heart, go on~ ^_^)...}

{...*Hmph! I'm not an idiot...Nosey is what you are -_-)...}

Unfortunately, the bracelet did not buy her concerned friend act and stopped talking after that and Lei Xing returned to her palace with a lonely mind and a disgruntled pout. 

{...You know, this is not fair! If you're going to have unfettered access to my mind, I should have access to yours as well!...}

The shameless bracelet, of course, did not acknowledge her complaints with a response and Lei Xing was ready to go fishing with a certain bracelet as bait. But then Ah Jin came up to her and interrupted her plans as she handed over the list of items that came with her appointment edict.

Lei Xing was not in the mood and just lightly glanced at the list and was about to dismiss it and her, when one of the items caught her eye, "A new beginning...What's that?" Lei Xing asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A painting." Ah Jin responded, "Do you want to see it?"

Lei Xing nodded, hearing it was a painting definitely piqued her mind. Ah Jin immediately sent two maids to go retrieve it.

While Lei Xing's lips curved into a small smile as she wondered if it was another one of the Emperor's paintings. Her mood suddenly brightened and she felt warm and fuzzy inside until the maids arrived and rolled open the painting. Her smile immediately fell as she stared at the uncanny painting of the mountainside lake landscape with people swimming in the water, a pair of immortals dancing above their heads and dragons and phoenixes swirling about in the sky. It was one of the paintings which still haunted the recesses of her mind, one she avoided looking at whenever she went to the royal study.

{...O_O) He gave me this stupid painting? Why?!...}

"Take it back." Lei Xing dismissively said with a disappointed wave as she knit her eyebrows. The maids immediately rolled it back up and turned to take it back into storage, until Lei Xing suddenly went, "No, wait!...Bring it back."

The maids came back and stood there holding it, not sure what she wanted them to do with it. As Lei Xing just stood there staring at the rolled-up painting for a while. Finally, she sighed and said, "Follow me." And then she began walking and ended up at her study. She entered the room, glanced around for a bit and then walked over to a wall space, by the bookshelves and said, "Clear this area and hang it here." 

Xiao Ruo smiled and immediately took on the task of directing the task as Lei Xing walked over to her desk and sat down. Ah Jin sent one of the maids for tea and then brought a cup to Lei Xing, who was absentmindedly watching the scene of the maids and eunuchs clearing the area and setting up the painting. She thanked Ah Jin for the tea and sipped it as she continued watching the scene.

{...*Why do you choose to hang it up if it bothers you?...}

{...( ≖_≖) Wouldn't you like to know...}

The moment the bracelet asked the question, her mind immediately began to form a response. But she quickly distracted it by picking a brush and drawing randomly, willing her mind into a state of nothingness. If it wasn't going to divulge, she won't either.

Although this was not a long term solution, Lei Xing knew the bracelet had quite the impatient character and she still had her trump card as well.

{...Since you're not going to talk, I hope you enjoy your evening swim tonight...}

{...*But that's UNFAIR! You didn't ask me about that, I volunteered that information!...}

{...That is an "irrelevant" point, I asked a question after, so you need to respond...}

{...*YOU SHAMELESS, UNGRATEFUL BRAT! >_

{...I know, I'm brilliant~  ^ 3 ^ )...}

{...*Fine, if you tell me, I'll tell you about it...}

Lei Xing raised an eyebrow and snorted.

{...Do I seem like an idiot to you -_-)...If you want something, you have to give something first...}

{...*(≖_≖ )...It's Jun Wei! Happy now? Your turn....}

Lei Xing stopped drawing and knit her brows as she thought over the name, it sounded familiar. She glanced around the room for inspiration and then her face lit up when she realized she had just seen it on a plaque.

{...Jun Wei...the late Emperor? You knew him?!...}

{...*It's your turn -_-)...}

{...No, tell me this first...}

{...*Tch, I didn't know him, I just knew of him...}

{...( ≖_≖) Of? You sure know "of" a lot of people...}

{...*It's the truth ( ￣^￣ )...}

{...Suree...So his life was altered? What do you mean by that?...}

The bracelet went silent again and after waiting for a bit with no response, Lei Xing picked up her brush and resumed her drawing with a song.

{...~Drawing, drawing, someone's going to get swallowed by a fish, a piranha or two would be nice, precious gems, sharp teeth~ Hey, can you talk to fish? ⚆◡⚆)...}

{...*Fine!... He was a kind and noble soul on the path to being a great and kind leader, one who would have set the pace for future generations but then he became corrupted by a dark energy which turned him into what he became. His legacy was ruined and he was reduced to a tyrant...That's what his recompense is for!...}

{...(↼_↼) Really? Dark energy? Sure...Sooo, how do you know about all this stuff?...}

Lei Xing honestly did not really believe the bracelet's words. But it definitely was more knowledgeable about things than she was, at least it had explanation for stuff while she had nothing, so her mind was open to its theories, no matter how absurd. The bracelet let out a long sigh before finally responding.

{...*There are many things I know of...Many truths and theories I want to believe to be truths...But it is all beyond your current understanding...Anyway, enough about me...Now, about that painting~ ^_^)...}

Lei Xing knit her brows, she wanted to inquire more but when the bracelet assumed a serious tone like this, it unnerved her a bit and she could not muster up her tyrannical streak. But there was one thing she could not help asking.

{...This recompense...Does it have anything to do with...me? Being here?...}

{...*Ahhhhh...Yes - No, no, no...}

Lei Xing frowned.

{...Which is it? No lies -_-)...}

{...*Weeelllll....How to put this? Ah! It's like this~...The former generation became corrupted and so the later generation is ahhh...meant to fix things? To re-establish the order of the universe, yes fix things...So I didn - It's not lik - Bottomline is, you two are meant to be together. The Most Perfect Couple~ And I'm just facilitating things on behalf of the Universe! That's all ( ￣^￣ )...}

Lei Xing's frown deepened and she massaged her head.

{...So is that a yes or a no?...}

{...*Exactly!...}

Lei Xing pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, unamused

{...Can't you just give simple clear-cut answers? -_-)...}

{...*Does your life seem like a simple clear-cut situation?≖_≖ )...}

{...Touché -_-)'...}

{...*Now about that painting~ ^_^)...}