novellhall Chapter 803 Lu Xueqi and Biyao
Chapter 803 Lu Xueqi and Biyao
"Is that girl alright now?" the old lady asked.
"That's good. I was promoted to Inner Sect Steward last year."
"That's good." The old woman turned the shoe over and continued sewing. "People from your immortal sect are actually no different from us ordinary people. A capable person who is willing to use their skills on others is a good person."
Su Han sat on the stone stool without replying. Dusk deepened, the golden-red hue of the stream gradually turning dark purple, and the distant mountains became nothing more than blurry black silhouettes. The old woman finished sewing the last few stitches, bit off the thread, shook the sole of the shoe, and squinted her eyes in satisfaction.
"Young man, stay in town tonight. There's an inn around the corner; the landlady's surname is Liu. If you mention my name, Granny Chen, she can give you a three-copper discount."
Su Han smiled and thanked her, then got up and walked towards the town. After a few steps, he heard the old woman behind him mutter to herself, "People from the Immortal Sect... aren't all high and mighty."
That night, Su Han stayed at an inn in Liuxi Town. The room was small, with a wooden bed, a table, and a chair. On the table were an oil lamp and a dish of peanuts. He sat at the table and copied the "Heavenly Gang Righteous Qi Manual" for a while—he was still more than two hundred times short of the three hundred times he was punished to do, and he couldn't fall behind even when he was traveling—when he was copying it for the seventh time, he heard the sound of a baby crying from the next room. The baby cried intermittently for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before it stopped.
He put down his pen, dimmed the oil lamp, and opened the window to look out. The night sky was clear, and the Milky Way stretched across the town, with a few particularly bright stars twinkling. He suddenly remembered what the sect leader had said that day—the state of "mind is law." He thought about it for a long time but couldn't figure out what it meant, so he simply stopped thinking about it, closed the window, and went to sleep.
He continued his journey early the next morning. Twenty li south of Liuxi Town, vast fields of wheat began to appear on both sides of the official road. The wheat ears had fully emerged, their green leaves undulating like ocean waves in the wind. On the ridge of the field, an old farmer was plowing the land with an ox. The ox walked very slowly, and the old farmer walked even slower, humming a tuneless little tune.
As Su Han walked past the edge of the field, the old farmer stopped and glanced at him, his gaze lingering for a moment on the cloth bundle at his waist—the bundle didn't actually contain anything valuable, but it was normal for people to carry bundles while walking. The old farmer just gave it a casual look and continued driving the cattle.
He ate lunch at a place called Sanchakou. Sanchakou was actually just a junction of three roads with several stalls set up, selling noodles, sesame cakes, and herbal tea. Su Han ordered a bowl of vegetarian noodles and sat under one of the stalls to eat slowly. At the next table sat two镖师 (bodyguards/escorts), two knives on the table, loudly discussing the recent unrest on the streets.
"...You know about Fire Cloud Valley, right? We sent a shipment there last month, and when we came back, we heard there was trouble there again."
"What's going on?"
"I can't say for sure, but I heard that some people surrounded the villages outside Fire Cloud Valley and looted their grain and livestock. The people inside Fire Cloud Valley ran up the mountain and hid for several days."
"Doesn't Fire Cloud Valley have cultivators?" "Yes, it does, but I heard they don't really get involved. Otherwise, how could they be bullied at their doorstep?"
Su Han didn't stop eating his noodles, but he listened to every word. He didn't interrupt, finished his noodles, paid, and continued on his way, walking a little faster than in the morning.
Before nightfall, he crossed a low ridge called Wangbeipo. Standing on the ridge and looking south, he could already see the terrain in the direction of Fire Cloud Valley. It was a basin surrounded by low, red hills. The rocks on the hills gleamed a dark, rusty red in the setting sun, making it look as if the earth had been scorched by fire. At the entrance to the valley was a town called Chitu Town, which was the only way to enter Fire Cloud Valley.
Su Han stood on the ridge for a while, watching the dark red hills slowly sink into the twilight, like a crouching beast closing its eyes. He suddenly remembered what the sect leader had described of Fire Cloud Valley's past—three hundred years ago, this was a vast peach orchard, a sea of pink blossoms covering the mountains in spring, petals drifting ten miles away on the wind. Then that tragedy struck, the peach orchard was destroyed, the mountain was burned crimson, even the soil bore the marks of the scorching. Later, mortals migrated and settled here, gradually forming villages and towns, but the red hue never faded, and that's how Fire Cloud Valley came to be.
It was completely dark when Su Han came down from the ridge. He walked several miles in the dark and found an abandoned earth god temple outside Chitu Town, where he spent the night. The earth god statue in the temple was missing an arm, and most of the paint on its face had peeled off, making it look rather pitiful and dusty. Su Han bowed to the statue and said, "I apologize for disturbing you by asking for lodging for the night," then leaned against the wall and closed his eyes.
He slept lightly that night, half-asleep, and heard the howling of the wind through the broken temple doors and windows, like someone crying in the distance. He turned over and went back to sleep. He woke up at dawn the next day and opened his eyes to see the first rays of morning light shining through the broken window, illuminating the mutilated face of the clay statue of the Earth God. The clay statue, missing an arm, even appeared somewhat kind and benevolent in the morning light.
Su Han took out a piece of dry food from his bundle and placed it on the altar as a thank-you gift to the local earth god. Then he left the temple and headed towards Chitu Town.
Chitu Town was larger than he had imagined. A main street ran from one end of the town to the other, lined with rice shops, cloth shops, general stores, and two restaurants. There were quite a few people on the street, coming and going, carrying loads, holding children, and leading livestock, making it seem no different from other towns. But Su Han noticed some details—several houses had newly patched doors, as if they had been hit by something hard and then nailed back on; there was burnt ash in the corner of the street, swept into a pile and not yet cleared away; people were talking in hushed tones, stopping when they saw strangers approaching, their eyes scanning him warily.
Su Han stopped at a steamed bun stall on the street, bought two buns, and chatted with the stall owner while eating. The stall owner was a man in his thirties with a kind and honest face, but when Su Han asked him, "How's town lately?" the man's face stiffened for a moment, then he forced a smile: "Fine, fine, what could be wrong?"
Su Han didn't press the matter. After finishing his steamed bun, he continued walking deeper into the town. When he reached the south end of the town, he saw a two-story wooden building with a plaque hanging in front that read "Red Earth Inn." He planned to stay there, but as soon as he reached the door, he heard a commotion coming from inside.
"...I've said it three times! That batch of grain is being transported to Old Sun and his men behind the mountain. What are you doing blocking the way here?"
"What 'Old Sun' and 'Old Li'? All I know is that the granary at the east end of town burned down last month. Now all grain is under the control of the town government. You need official documents to take this cart of grain anywhere!" (End of Chapter)