Chapter Nine: Legend

"Pfft... What?! Your son has spent the past three days in a brothel? Hey, hey, he's only five years old—developing a bit too fast, don't you think?" Even the emperor himself couldn't help but choke with laughter when he heard the news. If the ruler of a nation reacted so, what could be expected of others? Now, the entire capital knew about the illustrious feat of the thirteenth young master: visiting a brothel at the age of five—an unprecedented event in history.

All across the city and even throughout the empire, people discussed this affair over tea and meals—how the thirteenth young master ventured to the House of Blossoms, sipped wine with courtesans, and outbid others to purchase a young slave girl.

After this incident, a new companion appeared at the thirteenth young master's side—a tiger-girl he had bought. Long Anqi had originally wanted to find a maid of similar age to the young master, someone who could look after him and keep him company. The little tiger-girl seemed to understand her situation well. She knew she owed her escape from misery to this somewhat simple-minded thirteenth young master. Though she realized he hadn’t helped her out of kindness, the fact remained: he had saved her from the abyss.

Among the tiger-people, gratitude is a sacred virtue. Even the smallest favor is repaid many times over—and by the same token, any slight is met with unyielding vengeance. So, though the little tiger-girl grew fond of caring for the thirteenth young master, her feelings toward other humans were quite the opposite—after all, it was humans who had captured her.

Thus, the Ye family gained a new tiger-girl maid, and the thirteenth young master found himself a childhood companion and playmate. Many years later, Long Anqi would still boast of the wisdom of her decision.

At the time, however, the thirteenth young master disagreed. He insisted on sending the tiger-girl home, saying only then would he be truly prodigal. Long Anqi, exasperated, snapped her fingers at him.

It wasn't that Long Anqi begrudged the fifty thousand gold coins; to her, it was nothing. Besides, it had been the young master's pocket money to begin with. She simply felt that perhaps this little tiger-girl was destined to accompany her son.

For his part, the thirteenth young master had no objections. He rarely understood or cared about much, and having another playmate delighted him.

Ah, perhaps it is time to mention the tiger-girl's name: she was called Taya. As for her lineage, she never said, and no one inquired further. In fact, even if she had, it would have made no difference to the thirteenth young master, for he had only one name for her: Tiger Lass.

There was another thing: Tiger Lass was about a year older than the thirteenth young master, but her petite stature made them seem the same age. In all likelihood, when she grew up, she would end up smaller than he was. Don't assume all tiger-folk are broad and powerful; among them are rare, delicate women, and Tiger Lass was one of these exceptions.

"Brother, is the House of Blossoms really so much fun? Let's go together next time," Xiao Lanyu whispered excitedly to the thirteenth young master.

"Yes, it's fun. But we can't go. Mother said it's not allowed," replied the young master, nodding and then shaking his head.

"We'll just sneak out. As long as Mother doesn't find out, it'll be fine," Xiao Lanyu murmured.

"Really? Should I go ask Mother?" The young master, puzzled, dashed off to find Long Anqi, and seeing this, Xiao Lanyu, unable to stop him, decided to flee as quickly as possible.

"Ye Lanyu! Get back here this instant!" Long Anqi's roar shook the heavens.

"Mom, it was just a joke! Ye Lang, you little rascal, I'm not taking you along next time!"

In the months that followed, the thirteenth young master would still sneak out every few days to squander money, always asking Long Anqi for a bit of pocket change first. Each time, she would say, "This is the last time," yet always handed him a little.

At first, he was forbidden to leave the house, but Long Anqi eventually relented—not out of sudden enlightenment, but sheer helplessness.

Ever since his first disappearance, strict orders had been given, and the whole Ye residence was on alert to prevent a repeat. By rights, the thirteenth young master shouldn’t have been able to slip out again. Yet, strangely enough, he kept vanishing, employing amusingly ingenious methods to do so—ways no one else would have thought of, but that seemed obvious to him. When he revealed his tricks to Long Anqi, her jaw would drop in astonishment.

After a while, though, Long Anqi ceased to be surprised, only puzzled: how could he have so many ideas? Even a genius would be hard-pressed to come up with such schemes. How could a child with intellectual deficiencies manage all this?

She was not the only one perplexed—the entire Ye household suspected the thirteenth young master was only pretending to be slow-witted. But that, too, seemed impossible; he had been like this from birth. If it was an act, he had been performing since infancy. Was that even possible? Or necessary?

Besides, some things simply cannot be faked—at least not for long. Even the greatest actor or the most cunning schemer would slip up eventually, and no parent could be so easily deceived.

The only explanation was that the thirteenth young master’s mind was deficient only in certain ways, while in others he surpassed ordinary people. If he could grow up as any normal child would, he might well become, as legend once foretold, the true child of the gods—a living legend.

This state of affairs made life hard for the Ye family guards, who began to resent the young master for the frequent tongue-lashings they suffered on his account.

Yet, it was also thanks to this that they became exceptionally vigilant, raising their alertness to unprecedented levels. In time, the Ye residence’s defenses became so formidable that even the imperial palace paled in comparison.

There was once a spy—a legend in his own right—who moved freely between nations and was never detected. Infiltrating the palaces of the three great empires was as easy for him as coming home. He was a myth among spies.

But at last, he was caught by the Ye family. While conducting covert operations in their residence, he was apprehended by a guard. At first, he assumed this must be one of the elite, for who else could catch him? To his dismay, it was only an ordinary guard.

More humiliating still, when he asked how he had been discovered, the guard replied, "Our thirteenth young master pulled that trick when he was a child. You're still too green."