Imperial Weight Chapter 6
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 6
Little Phoenix was chirping in his ear, meaning to say that he wasn't a little imp, but a purely natural phoenix.
Xingyi held him and prepared to walk back, but felt the fluffy round ball in his hand start to squirm. Little Phoenix nuzzled his fingers with his head and nimbly drilled out from his hand—Little Phoenix's storage ring had been left in the snow, and he wanted to go back to get it, as it contained the fruits he'd brought for Xingyi.
So Xingyi stopped to wait for him.
Little Phoenix waddled through the snow, and while he was at it, kicked the golden-winged bird aside with one claw—then buried his head to dig out the melon that had been under the golden-winged bird's bottom. He patted this melon left and right with his short, soft little wings, then pressed his fluffy little head against it to listen, taking the matter very seriously.
The golden-winged bird cried even harder. "I'm bald! You have to take responsibility for me! And yet you're still thinking about that melon!"
Little Phoenix confirmed the melon's bodily safety, flew to the side to fetch his storage ring in his beak and place it before the melon, then gathered his strength and pushed. Puffing himself up round, he finally managed to collect this melon as well. He threaded himself through the red cord attached to the storage ring, then swayed the ring hanging on his chest and looked up at the wailing golden-winged bird.
He raised his little claw and consolingly patted the golden-winged bird's belly, then plucked a tiny feather from his own wing tip and held it before the golden-winged bird.
The golden-winged bird looked disdainfully at that tiny feather.
So Little Phoenix waddled over again and placed that feather on the golden-winged bird's bald, plucked wound. The golden-winged bird opened his mouth, about to speak, when he saw that bald spot rapidly growing back—
Little Phoenix was quite pleased with himself, proudly telling him in bird language: "You see, I'm a phoenix, I naturally carry the power of nirvana and rebirth. Every part of my body can be used as medicine. Don't cry anymore. As long as you seriously write me an apology letter and refund me some spirit stones, I'll forgive you."
The golden-winged bird looked at the fine new feathers growing on his body—if he were in human form right now, his face would surely have turned green.
The Phoenix Clan had always been gorgeously colorful, and consequently the golden-winged birds, descendants of phoenixes, were also brilliantly dazzling in red-gold. Though Little Phoenix's feather took immediate effect, unfortunately he himself was a white phoenix. After being treated this way by him, amid the golden-winged bird's red-gold plumage suddenly emerged a large patch of fine, soft white down feathers, identical to Little Phoenix's. Red-gold and white mixed together—now the golden-winged bird himself looked like a gaudy pheasant.
The golden-winged bird shrieked. "You you you!"
Little Phoenix said modestly: "There's just one side effect—the feathers you grow will be the same as mine, and from now on the feathers in this area will always be like mine. You don't need to praise me though. After all, I'm a phoenix, so I can still manage this little thing."
The golden-winged bird fainted from crying.
Little Phoenix shook his head with slight regret, also swept the snow off him with his wing, fetched a few tree leaves to serve as a little blanket for the golden-winged bird, then happily returned to Xingyi.
Xingyi looked down at him. "You've been chirping away for so long, what were you saying?"
Little Phoenix acted spoiled toward him, nuzzling his shoulder a few times before burrowing into his neck and refusing to come out.
With the slightest movement, Xingyi could feel fluffy feathers brushing against his neck. He reached out to pull Little Phoenix out, but Little Phoenix stubbornly refused to emerge from his neck. The more he grabbed, the tighter Little Phoenix clung, so Xingyi could only let him be.
"You're a bit bad, aren't you?" Xingyi stroked his feathers and glanced at the fainted golden-winged bird, pressing his lips together. Little Phoenix nestled there with a clear conscience, pretending not to hear.
By the time they returned, it was nearly dawn. Xingyi carried Little Phoenix all the way through the snow, then once again undressed and washed up, going to the spring pool behind the great hall. This was where the source of Fuli Mountain welled up. Palace attendants had diverted the water flow and excavated a spring pool here, with crystal-clear water.
After Xingyi undressed, Little Phoenix stood eagerly on the rocks by the pool's edge watching, his pair of little bean eyes unable to look away.
When Xingyi noticed and turned back to look at him, Little Phoenix immediately averted his gaze, swaying left and right, spreading his wings, attempting to pass by being cute. Xingyi remained unmoved. Just as he withdrew his gaze, he immediately turned back to look at this chubby little bird. This time Little Phoenix was caught—their gazes met. Little Phoenix was just about to slip away as if nothing had happened when he was grabbed back.
Xingyi asked him, "What are you looking at?"
Little Phoenix tilted his head and patted Xingyi's face with his wing tip. "Chirp chirp chirp."
Xingyi wouldn't fall for his tricks. "I'm asking you, is it really true you can't transform into human form, and is it really true you can't speak human language? Even parrots can mimic speech. You're a phoenix—how can you not speak human language, hmm?"
He reached out to pinch Little Phoenix's soft wing tips. Little Phoenix pretended not to understand. Seeing him relaxing comfortably in the water, Little Phoenix excitedly pushed a small wooden tray into the water to float on it. Then he fetched his storage ring in his beak, opened and closed the clasp a few times, and tossed out the fruits he'd brought for Xingyi during the day, one by one. Xingyi looked them over but didn't move. Little Phoenix immediately stopped what he was doing and crouched on the other side watching him eagerly.
Xingyi had no choice but to reach out and take a fruit. Biting into it, sweetness overflowed in his mouth, the lingering fragrance remaining between his teeth. Usually he cultivated the breath of stars and moon, and when three meals were delivered, he basically only drank water. Occasionally eating a few fruits like this wasn't bad either.
He was just reaching out to take another when he saw Little Phoenix rummaging around in his storage ring, and in the blink of an eye pulled out a heavy melon. Before Xingyi could stop him, the melon splashed into the water with a crash, completely flipping over the entire wooden tray.
Xingyi: "......"
He pointed with his finger and quickly fished these things out through the air, piling them by the pool's edge.
Little Phoenix quickly lowered his head to admit his mistake. His head drooped down, he covered himself with his wings, and obediently crouched to one side.
Xingyi found it amusing. He looked at him once, looked at him again, but Little Phoenix still remained motionless, crouching with his wings covering his head.
Xingyi poked him with his finger. Little Phoenix swayed from being poked but still held steady. After waiting a while with no further action, he secretly lifted his head to peek at Xingyi, then quickly buried his head again.
"How can this count?" Xingyi said idly, using his finger to poke Little Phoenix's round fluffy body. "Sing a little tune. Other people's little birds can all sing songs."
Little Phoenix lowered his wings, tilted his head, and began chirping. Each chirp was indeed somewhat different, but no tune could be discerned. Yet the more Xingyi listened, the stranger it seemed—this little fat bird's chirps grew more and more babyish, sweeter and sweeter, clearly becoming more and more like acting spoiled.
Xingyi rubbed his temples. "Stop singing. There's not even a tune. It seems you can't transform, can't speak human language, and can't sing either."
Little Phoenix flapped his wings, looking a bit dejected. He chirped twice, indicating that he wasn't as useless as he made him sound. However, he couldn't give himself away now, at least couldn't speak, so he could only turn in circles on the spot, then waddle over and look up at him pitifully.
Xingyi said curiously, "You spin in circles quite quickly though. Others say the Phoenix clan excels at singing and dancing, and once every thousand years there's a Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens, a marvel among marvels. Can you dance?"
Little Phoenix hesitated.
When he'd been human, he truly could sing and dance well. In that lifetime when Xingyi was a prince, whenever he didn't want to handle government affairs at night, he would cling to him and demand he imitate opera performers singing and dancing for him. Little Phoenix didn't understand propriety, didn't know these counted as romantic affairs that shouldn't be openly conducted in a prince's manor. But when he was reborn as human, he'd only learned his skills in a pleasure house, learned to please others. If Xingyi hadn't bought him on the very first night he was put on display, redeemed him, and welcomed him into the prince's manor with great ceremony, who knew what fate would have awaited him afterward.
Little Phoenix only ever remembered the good stories. He recalled the image from his memories and tried swaying his wings, finally discovering with regret that he was really too round, and his wings were too short, with his tail feathers dragging—not suitable for dancing at all.
He felt a bit dejected.
Xingyi poked him again.
After discovering that this time Little Phoenix truly remained completely motionless, Xingyi fell silent for a moment, then softened his movements and coaxed gently. "Are you angry? I was just joking. You're the most formidable fighting phoenix in heaven and earth. Even the future Golden-Winged Great Ming King can't beat you."
Thinking of this, Little Phoenix grew even more dejected: He'd gotten into a fight with someone, and when they complained to Phoenix Ming Zun of Fan Tian, everyone would know that his transformation had failed again, and that he'd also been cheated out of his wages. All the immortals of Fan Tian were very kind to Little Phoenix, but Phoenix Ming Zun alone had always been cold and distant, perhaps because they were of the same species, he looked down even more on the white-feathered phoenix, considering him inauspicious.
The dejected Little Phoenix crouched there roundly, his bean eyes full of sadness. Xingyi watched him for a long while, then said softly again, "Your million spirit stones—I'll compensate you, alright?"
He actually had no concept of money. Every inch of Fuli Palace was spiritually alive; even a random blade of grass was an immortal medicine that could make the most ordinary mixed spiritual root ascend on the spot. A mere million spirit stones really didn't amount to much in his eyes.
But since this little fat bird had been cheated of money and even got into a fight because of it, it must be a considerable sum for this little creature.
Xingyi said in a low voice. "I'll compensate you ten million spirit stones, hmm?"
Hearing that he was going to have money again, Little Phoenix's dejection slowly fled. He raised his eyes to look at Xingyi, full of anticipation.
Xingyi smiled. "Would I deceive you, little thing?"
Little Phoenix quickly shook his head.
He became happy again. Watching the glimmer in Xingyi's eyes, Little Phoenix suddenly seemed to remember something and chirped at him a few more times.
He said: "I don't have human form now, so I can't dance anymore, but I can do weight-loss exercises for you."
After chirping, he stretched out his little wings horizontally, extended them once, and began jumping seriously.
He'd learned this set of weight-loss exercises from the immortal cranes of Fan Tian. Though when the cranes did them they were both effective and beautiful, while when Little Phoenix did them they were neither effective nor graceful but rather comical, Little Phoenix firmly believed that one day he could slim down. His head could break, his blood could flow, but his feathers couldn't be messy, and his weight-loss endeavor couldn't be terminated either.
Xingyi just watched this little fat bird move around with great seriousness, little wings waving industriously, occasionally twisting, rolling backward a few times, his soft fluffy down feathers bouncing along. Yet this little fat bird maintained great rhythm, jumping very earnestly and solemnly. Xingyi, who was usually unmoved as the wind, gradually couldn't help but curve his lips into a smile as he watched.
Then he looked away and said coolly, "Alright, you've been moving around all day. How come you don't seem tired? Come down and soak in the bath for a while."
He waited a moment, then asked with great interest. "Little fellow, can you float on water? You should be able to float, right?"
Little Phoenix's weight-loss exercises were called to a halt, and he felt some regret. He waddled to the edge of the spring pool and dove straight in—then was frozen by the icy spring water until his whole body shuddered, and he flapped toward Xingyi.
Xingyi quickly caught him. Usually when he went into seclusion to cultivate his mind, besides in the Star Observing Study, he would occasionally meditate in this ice spring, tempering his body in the bone-chilling cold. Over time he'd grown accustomed to it and forgotten that the Fuli spring water was many times colder than ordinary ice. Though Little Phoenix was fat with thick feathers, he would surely be frozen badly.
Little Phoenix trembled in his hand, a tiny bundle pressed tightly against his palm. For once Xingyi was at a loss for words. He could only invoke another spell to change the spring water to hot spring water. Cold and hot alternating, steam slowly rose.
He placed Little Phoenix in the water and rubbed Little Phoenix's body, asking, "Are you still cold?"
Little Phoenix floated on the water, finally catching his breath from the bone-piercing cold.
He tentatively breathed out a puff of fire, avoiding Xingyi's direction, then reached out his wing tip to pat Xingyi's face.
He said: "Don't worry, I'm a phoenix, I'm not afraid of cold."
Xingyi looked at him and smiled. "What are you chirping about again? You still haven't told me whether you can actually speak or not."
Little Phoenix ignored him and went off to splash in the water on his own. Xingyi had no choice but to play in the water with him for a while, then carried this damp little bundle back to the room to sleep.
In the end, he still couldn't get Little Phoenix to reveal whether he could speak or not. This little bird was quite crafty.
