Chapter 283 Cotton Seeds
The translator came forward to negotiate and explained the purpose of their trip. Sui Yu and his party were led into the city. Although it was called a city, it actually had no walls or gates. The houses were hidden in the green trees, and the neighbors were far apart, giving a sense of mutual help and non-disturbing attitude.
The huge caravan was arranged in a residential area near the outskirts, a row of quaint wooden houses without courtyards. Outside the door was a rolling hill with lush green grass growing on it, obviously not visited by livestock.
After the cloth was unloaded, the camels were free. Without being urged, they spontaneously walked up the hill and leisurely nibbled on the grass.
The horseman left after a few words. Zhao Qin came over and delivered the message: "He told us to rest for four or five days. During this time, we can't wander around. We have to keep an eye on the camels and don't let them run around. If a camel or a person is sick, we can't hide it from them. If we do, their horses will get sick and we won't be able to leave."
Sui Yu nodded in understanding and asked, "Anything else?"
"In five days, he will come again. If both the man and the camel are healthy, someone will come to discuss business with us."
The other three translators also conveyed the message to other caravans. They said that guests should follow the host's wishes and that when they arrived at someone else's territory, they had no choice but to obey any requests made by the host.
It took the servants more than half an hour to clean the wooden house. The four caravans were assigned to different wooden houses according to the number of people. By then, it was dark.
After a night's rest, at dawn, Sui Yu and Song Xian, along with a group of servants, took out all the clothes and bedding they had lost on the road. They washed what needed to be washed and dried what needed to be dried. The sheepskin and wolfskin that could not be washed could only be wiped with a wet cloth and hung under the shade of a tree to dry.
At noon, when the weather was hottest, Sui Yu and Song Xian took a group of maids to the river to wash their hair. The river water was warm from the sun, and the pebbles on the riverbank were hot enough to burn their feet. At this time, they didn't have to worry about catching a cold or getting sick when washing their hair with river water.
After her hair was combed and washed, Sui Yu was sweating all over. She took off her shoes and walked into the river with her wet hair draped over her feet. The river water washed over her feet, which was so comfortable.
Green Bud ran up the hill to take a look, then ran down excitedly, whispering, "Mom, there's no one around here. I want to go down to the river and take a bath."
Song Xian was stunned. She stared at the girl blankly. Coming back to her senses, she smiled and said, "I still remember when we were at Yumen Pass, you were uncomfortable bathing in the same room with us. What did I say then? Sooner or later, you'll be willing to bathe naked with us in the yard. Okay, go down to the river and bathe. I'll watch over you. But don't take off your clothes. Wash with them on. This is not our territory. If someone really comes, and someone is shameless enough to barge in, we can't stop them."
Lu Yaer responded loudly, took off her shoes and stepped into the river. When the water reached her hips, she stopped, squatted slightly and took a bath in the water.
"I'll go down too, take a bath and do some laundry." Xiao Chunhong said excitedly. She glanced at Sui Yu, and seeing that her master didn't stop her, she called on everyone else to go into the water together.
Sui Yu smiled, she walked out of the water, put on her shoes with wet feet, and walked to another hill to guard.
Due west is a stretch of mountain range, covered with lush greenery. White clouds drifted over slowly, and the clouds became thicker and thicker, covering the scorching golden light. The sky was overcast for a cup of tea, and when the wind blew away the clouds, the sun came out again.
"Stop playing around, come up after you've cleaned yourself up." Sui Yu shouted, "It's time to go. The men will be taking a shower later."
"Madam, I'll stay here to watch. You and Master Song should also go down to the river to wash, or fetch some water to take back?" Xiao Chunhong asked.
"Go back and wash." Sui Yu said, "Mr. Song and I are the leaders of the caravan, so we have to act a bit arrogant to avoid being looked down upon by the other two caravans."
"Okay, then we'll get you some water."
When they came, they brought two wooden buckets, filled them with water, and the servants took turns carrying them. By the time they returned, their clothes and hair were half dry.
Once back at the house, Lu Yaer and the maids went into the wooden hut to change clothes. Seeing this, the male servants packed up their clothes and left. When it was Sui Yu and Song Xian's turn to scrub their bodies, they sat outside, watching, combing their hair in the sun, chattering, plucking grass and flowers to weave crowns. After five months of hard work on the road, they finally felt like they could relax.
The area is vast and sparsely populated, with green grass, high skies and light clouds. The birds flying in the sky seem to be freer and bolder than those flying elsewhere.
After two days of busy cleaning and washing, no one disturbed them for the rest of the day. The people in the four caravans were like bonesless, lying down wherever they went, under cypress trees, on hills, in the grass. They would sleep when they felt sleepy and come back when they woke up hungry.
Eight days later, the groom, who had forgotten about the incident, came and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the group of people did not complain or make any fuss.
After checking the condition of the people and livestock and making sure that neither the people nor the camels were sick, the horseman left after leaving a few words.
The next day, the managers of the five horse merchants came, and Sui Yu and Song Xian asked their servants to take out their own goods.
"This is a red satin brocade with a pattern of crabapple branches. Crabapple flowers may be a flower species unique to our Han Dynasty." Sui Yu and Liu Yaer joined hands to untie a piece of silk. The shiny satin brocade sparkled under the scorching sun.
Zhao Qin translated for the bald steward, then turned and relayed, "Shopkeeper Yu, Steward Maer wants to know how much of this silk there is and how much it costs."
"No hurry, I brought plenty of silk, let's look at the others." Sui Yu called Zhang Shun over and said, "Bring us the Shu brocade with the white crane spreading its wings."
The satin brocade was purchased in Taiyuan County, while the Shu brocade was purchased in Chang'an. They had different weaves, thicknesses, and patterns. The Shu brocade with the pattern "White Crane Spreading Its Wings" was cyan, a type of silk suitable for men. The butler took a liking to it immediately and kept saying that the master would definitely like it.
In the afternoon, the horse merchant got the news and came in person.
Sui Yu and Song Xian had white coarse cloth spread on the hill, and silk and satin cloth were spread out on the white cloth for the horse merchants to enjoy.
The first horse dealer took away eleven rolls of silk, twenty-two rolls of silk cloth, and fifty rolls of coarse cloth from the two men. These were worth about twenty-eight thousand coins when they were purchased. When they were sold, Sui Yu asked for seventy-six thousand coins, and the horse dealer was willing to exchange them for thirty horses and thirty saddles.
"Zhao Qin, ask the owner of Kuda Horse if he knows a man named Qin Wenshan." Sui Yu said.
Zhao Qin asked again in Dayuan dialect, and when the Kuda Horse Master heard it, the expression on his face immediately changed.
"I want to buy the purebred horse that Qin Wenshan bought. Ask him if he has it." Sui Yu said again.
"He said he has purebreds, but none as divine as Dari, the name of the white horse," Zhao Qin relayed. "Purebreds are expensive. If you're trading purebreds, he's only willing to exchange two for ten Dayuan horses, or you can buy a saddle from him."
Sui Yu discussed it with Song Xian, and they decided to make an appointment to go see the horses with the horse dealer.
"The Tuwen family has arrived," a merchant from the Xu caravan announced. "Manager Yu, Headmaster Song, our boss wants you to come over. Let's discuss whether we can buy a thoroughbred like Dari."
"Zhao Qin, ask him if we can go to his stable to see the horses tomorrow." Sui Yu said.
Zhao Qin relayed this to Kudama Shang and received a positive response, "He will arrange for someone to pick you up tomorrow morning."
The agreement was reached, Sui Yu and Song Xian went to meet Tu Wen's people together, leaving Lu Yaer and the servants to guard the stall.
The Tuwen clan arrived with five members: three women and two men. It was clear that the three women, dressed as noble ladies, were particularly interested in brightly colored, lightweight silks and satins. Dayuan, with its abundance of grass and few trees, lacked shade, resulting in a harsh sun and strong winds. Breathable silk fabrics provided both cooling comfort and protection from the sun, making them extremely popular among the wealthy.
But when the translator mentioned buying a purebred horse of the same appearance as Dari, the two men of the Tuwen clan were obviously unhappy. After several negotiations, they refused to give in and refused to accept the transaction conditions, but were willing to exchange them for a horse of slightly inferior appearance.
"He said if you are willing, he will have someone take you to the stables to see the horses tomorrow," said Zhao Qin's cousin.
"Then let's go take a look first?" asked the headmaster Xu. "How many horses do you plan to buy? Are you going to buy just horses, or are you planning to buy other things as well?"
"I'd like to buy all horses, but my people aren't good at raising horses." Headmaster Li looked at Song Xian and said, "Headmaster Song, I heard your ancestors raised horses? Your servants have raised camels, so they should be quite proficient in raising horses, right?"
Song Xian nodded. "I plan to trade most of my goods for horses and saddles, and buy some wool blankets and spices on my way back. If you're worried about raising horses, I can only exchange two servants for you. You can then buy a local stable boy to take with you. The journey shouldn't be a problem."
"Where is Manager Yu?" asked the head of the family, Xu.
"I haven't decided yet." Sui Yu said, "Let's go see the horses tomorrow first."
"That's fine." Xu Da, the head of the household, was more cautious. Horses are living creatures. They can get sick and die on a long journey. Even if they don't get sick, they'll probably be exhausted and thin by the time they get back to Chang'an. Too many horses is more than he can care for. If they're not well cared for and their condition deteriorates, they won't fetch a good price in Chang'an. So he preferred to buy fewer.
"Then let's go and take a look tomorrow," said Mr. Xu.
The translator conveyed the message to Tuwen's people, and the three women also selected the silk fabrics they wanted to buy, and waited for the transaction to be completed so that the maid could come to pick up the goods.
The horse dealer left, but Sui Yu and the others couldn't rest yet. Before the dew fell, they hurriedly rolled up the unfolded silk and satin cloths with their servants, put them in dust-proof bags, and moved them into the wooden house.
As night fell, the Tuwen family was having dinner in the brightly lit living room. The women gathered together to chat and talk about clothes. The new wife, the third young lady, talked about the Shu brocade with lotus leaves and fish that she had picked out in the afternoon.
"Father, Steward Miller said they found five monks at the horse ranch. They're said to have come from Sindhu, thousands of miles away," the Tuwen clan's eldest son said. "One of the monks said he once met you. They've traveled thousands of miles and are short of food and clothing, so they'd like to stay with us for a while."
The head of the Tuwen family was delighted to hear this and said happily, "Good, take good care of them. After they have rested for two days, I will personally visit the monk."
The next morning, Song Xian picked out five old servants who had raised horses. When the people arranged by the horse merchant arrived, she took the old servants and left with the others.
"Boss Song, we really have to count on you this time. You have a family heritage, and we know nothing about horse breeding. I'd like to trouble you to give us a hand when the time comes." Boss Li said sincerely.
Xu DaDang followed suit, flattering, "It's called destiny. Before we set out for Dayuan, we had no intention of buying horses. After joining you, we were lucky enough to meet Qin DaDang. With his guidance and an expert like you by our side, it's hard not to get rich."
"No problem, no problem. I'm glad I can be of use. I followed you all the way here without any effort and I didn't have to worry about anything. It's God's chance that I can help you now." Song Xian responded straightforwardly. She picked out two old servants and asked them to follow the two heads of the family, Xu and Li, and the remaining three followed her and Sui Yu.
"Sister Yu, let's act together. If you have a horse you like, tell me and I'll help you judge its quality. I've seen a lot of horses. I even worked for my father for five years. After he died, I raised horses on my own for two years. I do have some skills in judging horses," Song Xian said. She paused and then advised, "Sister Yu, why don't you do the same as me and take this opportunity to buy more horses? With my help, nothing will happen to these horses."
Sui Yu looked hesitant.
"What are you hesitating about?" Song Xian asked.
Sui Yu glanced at her cautiously and said carefully, "Didn't your horse farm go bankrupt? You raised camels because you couldn't raise horses..."
"Okay, you don't believe me." Song Xian yelled, "Don't run, why are you running? Tell me something... Haven't I told you before? The reason for selling the stables isn't me. It's because my father offended the court. The good horses were confiscated, and the rest are inferior. Even if I had the ability, I wouldn't be able to make them work."
"You didn't tell me." Sui Yu laughed, "Now I understand and I don't doubt you anymore. You can't hit me."
"Sister Yu, you really make me sad." Song Xian's face turned red with anger.
Not far away, a thin monk stopped and looked over. Through the leisurely strolling herd of horses, he could not see the people behind the other hill.
"Master Le Jing," the steward Miller called out, "Are you tired? How about you wait here while I get your bag?"
The monk with the scar on his face nodded, and after the steward left, he walked around the herd of horses and headed in the opposite direction. When he saw a few Han Chinese faces he hadn't seen for a long time, his eyes stopped on a woman who seemed familiar.
"Sister Yu, someone is watching you." Song Xian reminded loudly.
The monk walked towards them, and Sui Yu stared at him intently. Apart from the scar she remembered, she could hardly find any trace of Sui Wen'an in this man.
"Donor, are you from Dunhuang in the Han Dynasty?" asked the monk.
Even the voice was different. Sui Yu stared at him again. This monk was dark and thin, with a weathered face and many wrinkles. He looked like a man who had experienced a lot of hardships. But his eyes were calm and powerful. When he looked at her, she seemed to see through him the reciting of Sanskrit by a monk, which had the power to soothe people's hearts.
"Yes, we came from Dunhuang in the Han Dynasty." Sui Yu's eyes moved to the hideous scar and he said softly, "My name is Sui Yu. I wonder if the master has heard of me."
The monk's expression relaxed. He smiled at her and said, "My name is Le Jing. Why did you come to Dayuan? After that, did you also come out of seclusion and live there?"
"Who is this?" Song Xian asked.
The two leaders Xu and Li also came over. They looked at the monk curiously, both wondering how Sui Yu could know a monk.
"You go and pick the horses first, I want to talk to the master." Sui Yu drove them away.
Song Xian looked at the monk a few more times, and told him to call someone if he needed anything. She then urged the others to go away.
"Cousin, long time no see." Sui Yu called out, "Now that I know you're still alive, I can go back and report to Sui Hui. She knew I was leading the caravan out of the customs for business, so she asked me to find you."
"I have cut off all ties with the mundane world. Please continue to call me by my Dharma name," the monk said gently. "My worldly affairs have long been over. I would also like to ask you to go back and tell Hui to stop thinking about me and live her own life well. Our earthly ties are over."
Sui Yu looked at him and suddenly didn't know what to say.
The monk also fell silent.
"Fate plays tricks on us." Sui Yu sighed, "Have you been living in Dayuan since you left the border? Will you return to the Han Dynasty?"
"I went to Sindhu. Sindhu is a country with profound Buddhist knowledge and a turbulent dynasty, making it a good place to spread Buddhism," the monk said calmly. Seeing Sui Yu's shocked expression, he asked in surprise, "Do you know Sindhu?"
Sui Yu nodded. The Kingdom of Sindhu was the later Tianzhu Kingdom, which was ancient India. He actually went to such a far place.
"Master Liao Jing." Steward Miller rode over carrying a bag that smelled sour. He glanced at Sui Yu and asked, "Do you know this Han Chinese? In fact, your previous life must have been Han Chinese as well."
"She is a relative of mine," the monk explained. He walked over to pick up the bag, said he was sorry for the trouble, and sent the man away. He untied the bag and took out a heavy, worn monk's robe and handed it to Sui Yu.
"This contains seeds I collected in Sindhu. One type of seed produces fruit as soft as reed catkins. Sindhu's climate is hot year-round, so this seed is useless there, but it would be very useful in the Han Dynasty. I'm not sure if it can survive in the Han Dynasty," the monk explained. "I was planning to entrust these seeds to a caravan coming to Dayuan, but I didn't expect to meet you. It's truly fate."
Sui Yu's hands were shaking with excitement. According to his description, this was cotton!
"Master, come back with me. With this thing, you can gain a foothold in the Han Dynasty. You can go back to the Han Dynasty to spread Buddhism." Sui Yu said.
The monk refused, as he had no intention of getting involved in past worldly disputes.
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