It was a spring day in March, and the sun was still a little chilly on my body. The bare ground was dotted with green spots, mixed in with a small mound of earth raised by a gopher, spreading over an unknown green grass leaf. The next second, a huge head leaned down, and the grass and its roots were rolled into the donkey's mouth.
In the sunshine, the old donkey rubbed its mouth and flicked its tail, taking brisk steps. Amid the creaking sound of bookshelves, it ran past Lu Liangsheng in front of it and bit off the next grain of grass.
At this time, the group had passed Jingzhou. The town called Luohe was still below Hezhou, and there was still nearly a thousand miles to go. If they traveled light, and only the Taoist and Zhu Ganglie were there, they could reach the destination in a few days using magic. But now, with the addition of eight uncles and aunts including Lu Pan, Lu Xi, and Lu Qing, their pace was much slower. It took them half a month to cross the river, and they only left Jingzhou today.
But there was also an advantage. If they encountered bandits in the deep mountains and forests or on remote roads, they would see this strong man from afar and run away, saving Lu Liangsheng the time of talking.
Wow~~
In the woods, the branches and leaves sway gently.
The old donkey was still running in front. Lu Liangsheng turned around and looked behind him. The eight big men from Lujia Village were lagging behind, looking at the scenery around them as if they were sightseeing. From time to time, they took out their hunting bows from behind and took the Taoist priest into the nearby mountains and forests to shoot some wild rabbits and roe deer to make do for a while.
However, because of the direction, Zhu Ganglie said goodbye to Lu Liangsheng and everyone else that night on the way out of Jingzhou and headed for Hezhou. He originally wanted to go to Lujia Village because he wanted to paint, and secondly, the scholar had lost his cultivation and magic power, so he wanted to protect him along the way.
"I, Old Pig, still have some weapons to retrieve. Once I find them, I will come to Chang'an to drink with you guys!"
In the firelight burning in the forest, Zhu Ganglie's fat body held the wine bag and toasted everyone one by one. When he came to Sun Yingxian, he said in a muffled voice: "Have you memorized the formulas of the spells I taught you? Don't forget them when the time comes. They can be of great use. Back then, I was Tianpeng..."
"I know, I know. What is Tiangang? I've kept it in mind." Sun Yingxian was busy applying sauce to two skinned mountain rabbits and putting them over the fire to roast. She was muttering to herself as she turned over a few other rabbits that were almost cooked.
"What Tianpeng? You've said it dozens of times in more than two months. Do you really think I will believe it? Don't you want me to worship you? I'm a wild Taoist priest and I want to get married in the future!"
Over there, the eight people didn't understand what he said. A dark, fat man didn't look like he came from heaven at all.
"If even gods look like you, I'm afraid all the people in the temple would burn incense!"
Lu Pan's joke made the other seven people laugh. Zhu Ganglie waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "Humph, I knew you wouldn't believe me. After I find my weapon, I'll show you how powerful I am."
Hearing the laughter over there, the Toad Taoist lying on the mat at Lu Liangsheng's feet opened his eyes.
"Hmph... blowing there again."
"It's hard to say, just like Master, he seems to be just bragging, but in fact he is really a star descended to earth?"
Lu Liangsheng tore off a piece of rabbit meat and handed it to his master. He took the wine bag from Lu Pan and raised his hand to salute him: "Old Pig, if you have any difficulty in getting weapons, you may come to Chang'an to find us when the time comes."
"I'm sure we'll have to go to Chang'an again."
Thinking of the bustling streets, the singing and dancing in the pavilions, the women dressed up in gorgeous clothes holding handkerchiefs and shouting at him in a sweet voice, Zhu Ganglie could still remember that scene even with his eyes closed.
Seeing the old pig's expression, Lu Liangsheng took a sip of wine, took a roasted rabbit from the Taoist priest, sat back, and shared it with his master.
The Toad Taoist didn't care much about other people. After eating two rabbit legs, he yawned, lifted the quilt, crawled into it, turned over and fell asleep.
Over there, Lu Pan and eight other men had also finished their dinner, covered themselves with a thin blanket, and went to sleep around the fire. The Taoist jumped onto a tree, lay down, took out a book from his arms, and threw it down.
"Read it sparingly, this is my last copy."
"hey-hey."
Zhu Ganglie held the yellowed book in his hand, looked around, turned two pages by the firelight, and put it in his arms, "I knew you wouldn't forget it."
After saying that, he folded his arms, leaned against a tree trunk and closed his eyes. Suddenly, on the open space where they were resting, the sound of several people snoring could be heard one after another, and the leaves around them were blown and sucked up and down.
The campfire crackled and sent up sparks. Lu Liangsheng, listening to the incessant snoring, had no choice but to take out his book, and read it by the firelight, while comfortably nibbling on the shredded meat on the sternum that he had not yet finished.
The book was filled with annotations by himself and his mentor. He read it countless times but did not gain any new insights. Late at night, Lu Liangsheng yawned, lay down next to his master, closed his eyes and fell asleep.
The flickering flames gradually dimmed as the wood burned out. Outside the range of the dim light, Zhu Ganglie stood up silently, took the rake, put it on his shoulder, and walked into the darkness.
"Take care, old pig!"
Behind me, I heard Lu Liangsheng's voice. The figure who walked into the darkness said "hmm" in a dull voice, and replied in a muffled voice: "Take care of yourself too."
The rustling sound of stepping on weeds faded away in the dark forest.
Not long after, the sky turned dark, then lightened in the east. The morning light broke through the clouds and shone through the gaps in the dense trees, falling on the extinguished campfire. The eight people who were sleeping by the fire got up one after another to the sound of the old donkey's excited neighing, lit a fire and cooked some porridge. As for the missing Zhu Ganglie, the generous men asked a few questions and then did not mention him again, after all, they had said goodbye last night.
"Master Lu, get up and eat so you can get going!"
Hearing the Taoist's shout, Lu Liangsheng stood up from the ground and stretched himself: "Why do your words sound a little weird, right, Master?"
The bedding beneath him was flattened into a mess, with only one frog leg sticking out, twitching slightly.
Lifting the quilt, Lu Liangsheng rubbed his brows, picked up his master with some embarrassment, and stuffed him into the compartment of the bookshelf.
…
After breakfast, the morning sun rose above the clouds and passed through the barren mountains and wilderness. Occasionally, a few fields could be seen on the distant hillside, and there were also a few houses scattered everywhere. Lu Qing, the tallest of the eight people, ran to the nearest house to ask for directions.
Afterwards, the group walked forward along the mountain path they had stepped out of their feet. Fortunately, they were all hunters in the mountains, and Lu Liangsheng and the Taoist were already used to walking this way, so their pace was not slow. After passing through a forest in front of them, their vision became wider. There were no trees blocking the view on the left side. Standing on a high place, they could see from afar that there were many houses concentrated there, like a town.
After walking on the rugged mountain roads for several days, I felt indescribably comfortable when I came to the smooth road outside the town.
"Weishan Town? That's a strange name."
Lu Liangsheng looked at the memorial archway at the town entrance and spoke to the Taoist priest, Lu Pan and others with a smile. The people passing by the town entrance glanced at them hurriedly and walked away.
The streets were paved with stone bricks, and the two sides were no different from the markets I had seen in the past, with white walls and black tiles. It seemed like it had rained here before I came, and water stains were dripping down, and the roads were full of mud.
The pedestrians are bustling, lively and noisy.
After living in the open air for more than half a month, Lu Liangsheng no longer needed to take a bath after his magic power was restored, but he still felt a little uncomfortable. After walking along a street, he found an inn at the end of the street.
"Uncle Pan, how about we go get a few rooms, rest our feet, and change clothes?"
Hearing this, Lu Pan and others were eager to sleep on the bed, and followed the scholar to the inn in a hurry. There, three staggering men were hugging the shop assistant and blocking the door, refusing to leave. While the waiter was struggling, not knowing what to do, the sky became overcast in their sight.
“Get out of the way!!”
The three drunks turned around in confusion and opened their mouths to ask, "What are you doing?" At that moment, three arms with bulging muscles suddenly reached out, twisted the collars of the three drunks and threw them aside, then protected Lu Liangsheng inside.
"Oh, you guys..."
One of the drunkards who fell to the ground did not fall hard. He yelled and looked up, and saw eight burly men turning their heads around at the same time. They were immediately startled and sobered up from the drunkenness. They got up and ran out in a panic.
When the shopkeeper behind the counter saw them, he quickly put down his pen, came out from the back and bowed.
"Everyone, are you going to stay in a hotel?"
Lu Pan raised his chin, afraid of being cheated, and looked much more ferocious: "Nonsense, I came to your store, not to stay or just to hang out?"
"Uncle Pan."
Lu Liangsheng spoke softly, and Lu Pan then remembered what his nephew said when he came out. He glared at him fiercely and stepped back.
"Boss, please don't be offended. We have traveled a long way and haven't had a good sleep for a long time. We are in a bad mood. I wonder if your hotel has any guest rooms."
The fat shopkeeper, who was originally feeling somewhat resentful, felt much better after hearing what the scholar said, but he still shook his head.
"Don't be angry, don't be angry, but I'm afraid it's not possible for you all to stay in the hotel. The rooms are all full. Even if there is one room, I'm afraid it won't be able to accommodate so many of you."
"Then I won't bother you anymore."
When business comes in, there is no reason not to do it. When the shopkeeper saw Lu Liangsheng was about to leave, he hurriedly called out: "Sir, I actually have a place to live here, but it's too remote and no one has lived there for a long time. It's covered in dust. If you don't mind, you can stay here for one night."