Svsss au where Shen Qingqiu started looking into Shang Qinghua’s history and realized that either he didn’t grow up somewhere with a different dialect or language and just speaks in gibberish sometimes, or (more likely) he lied about his hometown and heritage.
So Shen Qingqiu went to the town Shang Qinghua supposedly grew up in and surprisingly, he found the Shang family market. He asked around and it turned out everyone actually did remember Shang Qinghua growing up there, at least until he was 10 and joined the sect. He never visited tho and Shen Qingqiu was handed like ten letters to give to his shidi.
Shen Qingqiu decided he needed a drink after all that socializing and pleasantries. Shang Qinghua’s had far to many family members and none of them said what they meant
Obviously he couldn’t be seen at a bar as a peak lord because, contrary to popular belief, he did have an image to maintain. So he bought some cheap clothes and wrapped his hair in a bun for a simple disguise. (He figured that he’d gotten far away from the sect that no one would recognize his face)
Only then did he finally get to the bar for his drink, and start eavesdropping on locals to quel his boredom. He was supposed to be relaxing but his back stiffened when he heard something far to familiar
“Stop, your such a simp,” the voice was a little slurred, the speaker obviously drunk, but it sounded like something Shang Qinghua had whispered in a meeting before but it wasn’t clear enough to be sure.
“Well how am I supposed to court her without telling her she’s attractive,” a more sober man asked
“Sounds like a skill issue,” okay Shen Qingqiu KNEW he’d heard Shang Qinghua say that before! He turned towards the source of the voice to find an unfamiliar man in cultivator robes, leaning over the table supporting his head with his hand
“Well, we have reached to point in the night where you’re just speaking gibberish” the man beside him chuckled. He wasn’t wearing cultivator robes so it seemed unlikely the two knew eachother well, but possible “need help getting to the inn?”
“No need, Cultivators can easily turn off the drunk. I’ll do that when I leave the bar,” that was true.
Shen Qingqiu was only tipsy cause he wanted to be, although he’d never let himself get that drunk. He didn’t trust himself not to do something dumb or dangerous when inebriated.
After the other man left Shen Qingqiu waited a little longer before sitting next to the foreign cultivator. He introduced himself with a fake name and the cultivator responded with what he could only hope was a real one.
Shen Yuan wasn’t a particularly common name but it was just common enough to blend in. Shen Qingqiu asks more questions, each answer he gets is more suspicious than the last and Shen Yuan seemed to sober up as he himself started getting nervous.
“You’re a cultivator right? Which sect are you from,”
“Well I was raised in a small sect up north but they disbanded so now I’m a rouge,” likely story
“What sect, I travel as well so I might know it,”
“Songshu.” Shen Qingqiu would have to fact check that later but first he had to lower Shen Yuans gaurd and get to the point
“Sorry about all the questions. I overheard you saying this word…“simp” was it?”
Shen Yuan started coughing violently, Shen Qingqiu’s curiosity peaked.
“Did I say something wrong?” He asked this genuinely and prayed for an answer. Was it offensive? Was it dirty? Now he needed to know.
“No- I’m just a bit embarrassed. I have to apologize that you overheard my drunken ramblings, I’m aware that it’s unbecoming of a cultivator,” he was at least better at recovery than Shang Qinghua if nothing else. Although, that answer did still confirm that said words were at the very least unprofessional.
“It seemed familiar, I have a friend who speaks with the same words,”
“Who?” Shen Yuan seems much more interested in the answer than Shen Qingqiu ever could’ve hoped “I might know them to,” he tried to seem nonchalant but he was already caught in Shen Qingqiu’s web
“I believe you would know them as Shang Fei, if at all. He was only a child when he entered my sect so it’s likely unfamiliar. Now, can you tell me more about where you learned such words,” Shen Yuan looks conflicted
“I think I might. Can you bring me to him. It would be nice to chat with someone from my hometown again,” so it was a regional thing. Possibly an entirely different dialect. Interesting.
Shen Qingqiu agreed immediately. Hoping this would be the lynch pin that made Shang Qinghua’s lies all fall apart at the seams.
They flew to the town at the edges of Cang Qiong the next day, Shen Qingqiu planning to remain in disguise as long as possible. Shen Yuan grew uneasy as they approached.
“Of course he’s here,” he muttered to himself. Shen Qingqiu heard and takes note.
“Let’s get to an inn, it may be a few hours before my friend can visit. He’s very busy. I’ll have to go up the mountain to inform him,”
“Sure,” Shen Yuan definitely didn’t trust him at all, but that was fine. All Shen Qingqiu needed was to hear him speak with Shang Qinghua
Shen Qingqiu got changed back into his regular robes and headed straight for An Ding. Dragging Shang Qinghua down the mountain was surprisingly easy. Sure he complained the whole way but he wasn’t brave enough to disobey his shixiong. What a pushover.
Shen Yuan was waiting in the lobby when the peak lords arrived and the moment he saw them his face turned red with anger.
“You-“ he points at Shen Qingqiu, “you liar! You told me you were a disciple!”
“Yes, well you might not have followed me if I told the truth so I consider it a necessary lie. Now, would you please lead us to your room. Your causing a scene.”
Only then did Shen Yuan notice the people staring and decide to do as he was told. On the way Shang Qinghua started whispering loudly at Shen Qingqiu
“Who is he? Why am I here?”
Shen Qingqiu didnt even look at him. He felt almost giddy with anticipation
They entered the room and Shen Yuan took a deep breath before turning to look at Shang Qinghua
“Peak lord Shen told me we may share a dialect and a hometown.” He explained. “Have you ever heard of China,” Shang Qinghua’s eyes go wide.
Caught you
“Wait are you- did you-“ Shang Qinghua looks between the two Shens in a panic. “Proud Immortal Demon way?” Shen Qingqiu understood every word separately but it sounded like nonsense strung together like that.
Shen Yuan nodes enthusiastically. Then said something in a language Shen Qingqiu didn’t recognize. To his dismay and fascination Shang Qinghua responded in kind, albeit much slower and less confident. Clearly he was out of practice.
The both looked generally surprised but not panicked. In fact Shang Qinghua seemed almost excited in a way Shen Qingqiu had never seen him before. It was a good look on him
Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat, gaining their attention before he turned to Shang Qinghua.
“May I be informed as to what you are discussing?” He asked with a bitter tone.
“Sorry about that. This Shen Yuan and I share a hometown far away. I haven’t seen anyone from there in a long time and I got a little excited,” Shang Qinghua looked apologetic, Shen Yuan did not.
“Well I suppose you should be going Peak Lord Shang, you mentioned having work to do?” Shen Yuan said. They’d allegedly just met and already they were covering for eachother.
“Yes! Lots of it! I’ll definitely visit you tommorow though,”
Suffice to say the meeting didn’t go as planned and Shen Qingqiu now had far more questions than answers.
Shang Qinghua didn’t share this man’s hometown, that much was evident by the fact Shen Qingqiu had just been in his hometown town that morning and met the Shang Family himself
That meant Shang Qinghua likely learned this language while being a disciple in the sect. Shen Qingqiu would have to look farther back in the mission logs to see if Shang Qinghua was ever absent long term.
This mystery seemed to go a lot deeper than Shen Qingqiu could have ever guessed, making it all the more important that he figured it out quickly, and for that
he needed to find a way to make “Shen Yuan” stay
