Chapter 13

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Chapter 13: Entering the Forest

     

The man who had brought Zhang Xiaohua and the other finally intervened, teasing the burly man: “Looks like Butcher Liu has scared another good person. This young brother here has come from Guo Village, bringing news about your daughters. Now you might have frightened him so much he forgot.”

     

Butcher Liu didn’t pay much attention to the villagers’ words. He patted Zhang Xiaohua’s shoulder, causing Zhang Xiaohua to grimace, and said: “At first glance, this little brother looks like a broad-minded person. Why would he mind such a small joke?”

     

Zhang Xiaohua looked at the hand accustomed to slaughtering pigs and thought to himself: ‘I do want to mind, though. But then you’d have to lend me some courage, wouldn’t you? Please, let’s not get too friendly. I’ve just recovered.’ Aloud, he said: “Don’t dare, don’t dare. You must be big sister Liu Yueyue’s father, right? Your imposing figure matches what big sister described.” Then, he added in his heart: “Like a bear.”

     

Butcher Liu was delighted to hear this. His eyes narrowed with joy as he said: “So Yueyue mentioned me to you, she… Oh, right. How did Yueyue and Qianqian end up at your Guo Village, are they both okay?” It seemed he had only just remembered to ask about his daughter.

     

Mr. Liu spoke up from the side, saying: “Let’s continue our conversation inside. Judging by the way this little brother here is so calm, I reckon the two young ladies are fine.”

     

With that, he ushered Zhang Xiaohua, the man accompanying him, and the villager into the house. The villager who had led them said: “I won’t come in. I’m going back and also bring Liu Kai back for you by the way.”

     

Mr. Liu nodded in gratitude and watched the villager depart into the distance before inviting Zhang Xiaohua inside for a chat.

     

As Zhang Xiaohua entered the courtyard, he noticed that it was about the same size as his own home’s courtyard, with simple arrangements and fewer farming tools than his own. The kitchen stove didn’t seem to be outdoors either. There were approximately two buildings in front of him, and surprisingly, there were two more buildings on each side. Zhang Xiaohua wondered how Liu’s family managed to have so many buildings when there were only three people in their household.

     

When he entered the main building, he discovered the difference between this house and his own. In the main hall of the Liu family’s house, there was a painting depicting an elderly scholar. In front of the painting were several plates containing fruits and snacks, seemingly an offering. On the left wall hung a painting of a snowy scene, with several people admiring the snow from a pavilion. On the right wall hung several calligraphy pieces, seeming dragons soaring and phoenixes dancing, which seemed to be well-written, but unfortunately, Zhang Xiaohua couldn’t recognize them.

     

In the center of the room was a square table, upon which sat a teapot, several cups, and a plate of snacks. There were two chairs on each side of the table. Against the walls on both sides of the room were small square tables and a few chairs. Each table held a pot of flowers and plants. Additionally, in each corner of the room, there were several pots with plants growing in them.

     

As Zhang Xiaohua looked at this house so different from his own humble dwelling, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of wonder and thought: ‘Is this the difference between scholars and farmers?’ His own home, under his mother’s care, was also quite clean and tidy, with paintings adorning the walls. However, they were mostly New Year’s paintings depicting gods and immortals, and his mother didn’t seem to know much about arranging potted plants. Zhang Xiaohua’s mind raced as he pondered: “If Liu Qian were to manage our home, what would it look like?”

     

Lost in thought, Zhang Xiaohua stood there. It wasn’t that he was daydreaming, but rather he didn’t know where he should sit. In his own home, there were only a few chairs, and they were usually left unused as they preferred to stand. In Mr. Liu’s house, with so many chairs, there must be some significance to their arrangement. Zhang Xiaohua didn’t understand it, so he didn’t want to sit randomly.

     

Mr. Liu quickly ushered Zhang Xiaohua and his companion to their seats, while Butcher Liu poured them each a cup of tea and brought it over. Zhang Xiaohua took the cup and gulped it down, finding the water incredibly refreshing. Butcher Liu promptly poured him another cup. Zhang Xiaohua and his companion had been walking all morning and were quite thirsty, so they ended up drinking four cups each before stopping.

     

At this moment, Butcher Liu’s eyes, like Mr. Liu’s, were filled with gratitude. Despite being a rough man accustomed to slaughtering pigs, he understood that these travelers had come all this way, thirsty and tired, just to bring news of safety to his daughter.

     

After finishing his water, Zhang Xiaohua was about to speak when he heard hurried footsteps approaching from outside. Before long, a scholar about the same age and height as his older brother rushed in. He must be Liu Qian’s elder brother, Liu Kai. Upon entering the room, Liu Kai first paid his respects to Mr. Liu and Butcher Liu. Then, Mr. Liu introduced Zhang Xiaohua and his companion to Liu Kai, who reciprocated with formal greetings. Zhang Xiaohua and his companion were not quite familiar with these customs but followed suit.

     

Liu Kai then asked Mr. Liu: “How is my sister?” Zhang Xiaohua observed the scholar, who appeared much leaner and weaker compared to his eldest brother and thought: ‘Ah, scholars sure have a lot of formalities. This Liu Kai seems composed, waiting until after the formalities to ask. If it were Butcher Liu, he would have asked straight away. He must be inwardly complaining that Liu Kai came at the wrong time.’ Zhang Xiaohua couldn’t help but glance sideways at Butcher Liu, who was anxiously waiting for Zhang Xiaohua to speak.

     

As expected, before Mr. Liu could speak, Butcher Liu interjected, saying: “You should have a drink first. This little brother here hasn’t said anything yet, and you’re already back.”

     

Liu Kai sat down on the chair opposite Zhang Xiaohua, but he didn’t rush to drink water. Instead, he eagerly waited for Zhang Xiaohua to speak.

     

Zhang Xiaohua then introduced himself and recounted yesterday’s events in detail, but he was cautious not to mention the specific amount of money the two bullies had to pay.

     

Although Zhang Xiaohua wasn’t very eloquent and his speech was somewhat stuttered, his words still made the four people in the room feel anxious. Mr. Liu, Butcher Liu, and Liu Kai all looked pale with shock, and Butcher Liu even jumped up from his chair several times, only to be gently restrained by Mr. Liu.

     

After Zhang Xiaohua finished speaking, Butcher Liu quickly poured two more cups of water for Zhang Xiaohua and his companion. Everyone in the room took a sip, indicating that the tension had affected not only the speaker but also the listeners, leaving them all with dry mouths.

     

Once they had finished their drinks, Mr. Liu walked up to Zhang Xiaohua, bowing deeply and saying: “I must express my deepest gratitude to you virtuous father and sons for saving our daughters.” Liu Kai and Butcher Liu also hurriedly followed suit, bowing in respect. Zhang Xiaohua was startled and jumped off his chair. He wondered why they were bowing again after he had just spoken. Nonetheless, he awkwardly returned the gesture.

     

Zhang Xiaohua comforted them, saying:” The big sisters Liu are staying at our house now, and they’re doing fine. There’s no need to worry.” In reality, everyone knew their loved ones were safe, however, it’s hard to feel at ease when you don’t get to see your loved ones out of danger.

     

Once everyone had settled back into their seats, Mr. Liu spoke up: “From Guo Village to here, Xiaohua and his companion have traveled all morning. I don’t think we can bring the children back today. How about this, Second Brother, you go back first and have Sister-in-Law prepare lunch. Let Xiaohua and his companion can have their meal first and after they finish eating, Liu Kai can accompany them back to Guo Village. We can all go together to bring the children back tomorrow. What do you think?”

     

Butcher Liu said: “No, I’d better go first. I’m worried. It’ll be dark by the time we head back to Guo Village, so it’s safer for me to accompany them.”

     

Mr. Liu thought for a moment and then agreed.

     

Lunch was served at Butcher Liu’s house. Liu Qian was not there so there was no one at Mr. Liu’s house to prepare meals. However, Liu Yueyue’s mother, knowing that her daughter was safe, wanted to show her gratitude to their benefactors, so she cooked an extremely sumptuous meal. Zhang Xiaohua, who had been hungry and hadn’t eaten braised pork in a long time, ate until he was completely satisfied.

     

After the meal, Zhang Xiaohua, his companion, and Butcher Liu set out together to return to Guo Village. But let’s not dwell on that, a few hundred miles away from them, on Five-Claw Peak there was another scene.

     

As the morning shadow passed between two sour jujube trees, Yanming Hermit, swiftly darted between them. Fortunately, he was a martial artist with particularly sharp eyesight, otherwise, it would have been difficult to perceive it clearly. The others hadn’t quite grasped what was happening yet, so they could only stare blankly at the back of Yanming Hermit. Yanming Hermit didn’t get angry, instead, he called out loudly: “Why aren’t you coming over?”

     

As everyone gathered between the two trees and carefully examined them, they didn’t seem much different from the other sour jujube trees. Yanming Hermit chuckled and said: “No need to search, they’re probably no different from the others. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be such complexity. Now, let’s prepare to enter the woods. Take out the pieces of leather you have.” Following his instructions, they took out the leather pieces.

     

Yanming Hermit continued: “Get some blood and smear it to the top of the back of the leather.” He then took out a dagger, cut his finger, and smeared the blood on the leather. Ma Xiangyang, Wen Wenhai, and Tan Wen followed suit, causing lines of characters to appear on the leather. They read: ‘Advance ten trees straight; backtrack six trees; veer right six trees; veer left eight trees.’ Yanming Hermit then arranged these instructions into a mnemonic for entering the forest: ‘Advance ten trees straight, veer right eight trees, backtrack six trees, veer left six trees.’

     

Yanming Hermit instructed: “Alright, everyone, get ready. We’re about to enter the woods. I’ll lead the way, followed by Young Hero Ma and Young Hero Wen. Heroic Lady Xue, Gang Master Situ, you’ll stay in the middle, and the Tan brothers will bring up the rear. Stay focused, keep pace, and don’t fall behind.”

     

The sour jujube forest before them no longer held the eerie atmosphere of the night, but the brilliant sunlight still couldn’t penetrate the dense woods. Mist shrouded the forest, obscuring the view ahead. The cold wind rustled through the treetops, sounding like a low whistle, yet it seemed unable to dissipate the mist.

     

Yanming Hermit took out his dagger and made a mark on the two ordinary sour jujube trees. Then, with caution, he led the way into the seemingly ordinary gap between the trees. The rest followed in the predetermined order, entering the woods one by one.

     

The mist in the woods was thick, limiting visibility to no more than ten yards, and the air was heavy with moisture. Before long, everyone’s clothes and shoes were soaked through, and the chill began to set in. To be prepared for any unforeseen dangers, each person held a weapon, feeling the cold keenly.

     

It had been many years since anyone ventured into the sour jujube forest, and the ground was covered with thick layers of fallen leaves and rotten jujubes, making progress difficult. The branches and leaves of the sour jujube trees grew densely, intertwining with each other and sometimes blocking the path. However, nobody dared to recklessly chop down branches for fear of causing any accidents.

     

As everyone trudged along, suddenly, they heard Situ Ping’s startled cry: “Look over there!”