Twelve Immortals

The turning point came in the 17th year of the Guangzheng era. Wang Tuanhua finally laid eyes on the twelve Portraits of Twelve Immortals by Zhang Suqing, a renowned Tang painter. Unable to resist, he copied all twelve pieces. But the copies vanished without a trace until a scandal shook the Shu Kingdom. That year, on the Shu King's birthday, Minister An Siqian presented the Twelve Immortals as a gift. Soon after, the King received a tip that the paintings were forgeries. Already plotting An's downfall, the King seized the opportunity to execute him, vowing to eliminate all "conspirators". And those forgeries? They were Wang Tuanhua's work. Overnight, rumors spread in Shu's art circles: a young man in his twenties had forged the paintings, and he became known as "the Twelve Immortals". No one cared about his talent. Wang Tuanhua—now "Twelve Immortals"—was suddenly a hunted "conspirator." His family risked everything to smuggle him out of Shu, sending him to hide in the Central Plains. At last, no one called him "Wang Tuanhua" any more, but neither did he have a home to flee to.He began to see his gift as a curse. Why should he suffer? He'd done nothing wrong. In the Central Plains, he embraced the name "Twelve Immortals", too young to realize the Shu King's purge was a charade, and he merely a pawn. Of course, he didn't know who had arranged for him to "discover" Zhang Suqing's originals in the first place. For months, Twelve Immortals spiraled. His paintings lost their vitality, as if their soul had been drained.

In the sixth year of the Zhou Xiande era, Twelve Immortals met the person who would change his life forever. That man admired his calligraphy and painting, and praised his craftsmanship. He told him his talent was a treasure, a gift that ought to be used in the "right" way. At the end of that year, Twelve Immortals wove a yellow robe using the family's ancient Shu brocade technique. From then on, he became a favored figure before the founding emperor of the Song dynasty. Worldly-wise yet still a little naive, Twelve Immortals did not understand then that "the right way" merely meant being dressed up and used like a pretty little girl. This time, he was simply lucky enough to be favored. Over the years, dressed always in white, Twelve Immortals quietly undertook many tasks for the court. Three years ago, he presented the blueprints for the Quintadent Warship. Now, he had turned his attention to investigating the mystery of the God of Killing. Not long ago, he learned that someone in Jiangnan still possessed a surviving scrap of silk from the Beauty's Garment. Yet no one in the world could replicate its former brilliance. Twelve Immortals felt a stir in his heart. "Talent ought to be used in the right way." Perhaps, one day, he would be the one to restore the glory of the Beauty's Garment.