Chapter 28 Child's Debt (Part 3): Nameless Anger and Starving Ghosts...
“What do you unmarried bachelors know?” Song Sanxian crumbled the dough. “What girl would fall for a penniless man after just one meeting? Besides, we are a group of unregistered vagrants, so we shouldn’t have such thoughts.”
Moreover, those who offer unsolicited favors are either treacherous or thieves.
When Wan Hongling saw her, she mentioned the peace talisman, probably for some other purpose.
I thought about it again and again, and still felt that this matter was strange.
Song San angrily stuffed half a pancake into his mouth, glancing at the group of people sitting around the campfire with blank expressions, and chewed resentfully.
Why bother talking to these brutes?
After leaving Huanxi Village, these people did not go back to their own homes, but said they wanted to follow him. When asked, they said they wanted to find a way out in Nancheng.
They're probably all lonely people.
Looking at Yu Qi, who was focused on the stir-fried cured meat on his plate and didn't even bother to share it with anyone else, he only mumbled, "I'm still young, isn't it normal that I haven't seen many women? Liu Xingchuan, don't you think so?"
Caught off guard, Liu Dai gave an awkward smile, "I, I didn't either..."
As he spoke, he lowered his head, raised his hand to grab a handful of stray hairs from the back of his head, and a touch of naivety appeared in his cool and aloof eyes.
Look at how pathetic he is.
Song San snorted and glared at Gu Lianzhou.
Gu Lianzhou recoiled like a frightened bird, "I know I was wrong, Senior Brother. I'll never say such nonsense again. Please calm down, Senior Brother..."
Song San was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, and belatedly realized that his temper was indeed much stronger than usual today.
Looking at her junior brother's cautious and pleading manner, she suddenly realized that her previous inexplicable anger was unreasonable.
It's not a big deal, why is she making such a fuss?
"Alright, alright, let's eat." She waved her hand, finally letting the matter drop.
-
The night was as dark as ink, the fields were silent, and only a few cold stars twinkled in the sky, overlooking the vast land.
The caravan's tents stood quietly in the wilderness.
The campfire was weak, its flickering light casting several blurry figures.
Outside the tent, several sword-wielding servants, their eyes sharp, vigilantly surveyed the surrounding darkness.
Suddenly, a hand swiftly reached out from the ashes of the campfire, as if it were too hot to handle, and picked up and put down the object several times before finally pulling out two round 'black balls' from the ashes.
The man, hunched over, tucked the 'black ball' into his pocket, hid behind a big tree after avoiding the guards, and then eagerly took it out, trembling as he peeled off the charred skin to reveal the golden, soft sweet potato flesh inside.
The steaming aroma wafted towards him, and his throat involuntarily bobbed, causing his narrow, bright eyes to widen considerably.
Ignoring the heat, the man took a big bite and almost swallowed the steaming sweet potato whole.
The sweet and soft flavor filled his mouth, but he didn't have time to savor it. His movements were hurried and greedy, one bite after another. In less than a moment, he finished both sweet potatoes. Only then did he let out a long sigh, raise his head, and reveal his youthful and handsome face.
Yu Qi patted his round belly, still feeling dissatisfied—
I don't know why, but I can't seem to get enough to eat today.
Could it be that he's been growing lately, which is why he gets hungry so quickly?
Strange indeed. I need to have Liu Xingchuan check on him tomorrow, lest he suffer from hunger.
After letting out a satisfied burp, Yu Qi slowly returned to the cart where the others were resting. Before he could even lie down, he heard Liu Dai humming a couple of times, muttering in his sleep, "Scutellaria baicalensis, dried ginger, Pinellia ternata, um, and Coptis chinensis..."
Yu Qi couldn't help but twitch his lips slightly: This medical fanatic, how come he's even writing prescriptions in his dreams?
He lifted the man's leg, pushed him further in, and then lay down, pulling the dry grass beside him to cover himself.
"Gurgle—" He heard a rumbling sound from his stomach, like a ghostly groan in an empty valley. In an instant, a burning hunger swept through his body, stimulating his mouth to produce saliva.
So hungry...
Yu Qi gripped his belt tightly, looking at the few cold stars overhead, feeling like crying but having no tears.
Didn't we just eat? How come I'm hungry again!
-
As dawn broke, the caravan was already packed up, the sound of horses' hooves rising, and the wheels of the carts rolling over the mud making a dull thud.
They traveled in this manner for two days, until the sun began to set, when suddenly a commotion arose at the front of the caravan.
"Look, it's the city wall!"
Upon hearing the sound, Song San propped himself up and sat up, opening his sleepy eyes to look inside.
As the sun sets, one can see the distant blue city wall standing tall on the earth, with banners fluttering in the wind.
Is this... where we are?
Song San immediately opened her eyes wide, throwing her sleepiness to the back of her mind. She raised her hand and nudged Gu Lianzhou, pointing to the city wall on the horizon and saying, "Junior brother, look."
Gu Lianzhou immediately sat up straight, looking at the city gate getting closer and closer, his eyes flashing slightly, unable to hide his excitement.
As the cart approached, the group finally saw the plaque with the words "South City" hanging high above the city gate.
Upon entering the city, one is greeted by a throng of shops lining both sides of the street, with vendors hawking their wares incessantly, and the bustling atmosphere of the market immediately enveloping one.
The long-lost aroma of cooking wafted into everyone's nostrils. Yu Qi looked at the eateries along the street, struggling to hold back his curiosity, "How much longer until we can eat?"
Liu Dai gave him a strange look. "Seventh Brother Yu, are you a reincarnated starving ghost? Why is all you see is food?"
Despite their verbal sparring, he reached into his robes, pulled out an oil paper packet, and handed it over, saying, "Here, these are the leftovers from this morning. Use them to tide you over for a couple of bites. When we get to the inn, I'll get you a bowl of noodles."
Upon hearing this, Song San clicked his tongue. "What do you mean by 'begging' for a bowl of noodles? I, Song San, have plenty of silver in my pocket. Let alone a bowl of noodles, it wouldn't be difficult for me to book the entire inn."
Gu Lianzhou opened his mouth, as if to say something, but ultimately no sound came out.
This was the first time he had ever seen such a generous senior brother. Besides... when did his senior brother start carrying the silver with him?
Upon seeing the oil paper package, Yu Qi acted like a dog seeing a bone, snatching the half-eaten steamed bun and stuffing it into his mouth, mumbling, "I don't know why, but lately I've been getting hungry very quickly. My stomach is like a bottomless pit, it can't hold anything."
He swallowed the hard, dry steamed bun, craned his neck to look at Song San, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, "Brother Song, your words are enough. You are loyal and a true brother."
"Hey kid, why are you only thanking Brother Song and not me?" Liu Dai said with dissatisfaction, "Don't forget who left you the food."
Yu Qi glanced at him, paused in his chewing, then stretched out his arm, hooked his arm around Liu Dai's neck, and said, "How much more polite do we need to be between us? Is this all the politeness we need?"
"Yu Laoqi, are you really willing to lose all sense of shame for the sake of a mouthful of food?"
The two started arguing again. Fearing he would get caught in the crossfire, Song San leaned back and bumped into Gu Lianzhou without warning. He turned his head to look.
But the boy was looking ahead with a serious expression, as if he had something on his mind.
"What's wrong?" She followed Gu Lianzhou's gaze to the front of the caravan, but seeing nothing amiss, she asked curiously, "What are you looking at so intently?"
Gu Lianzhou's throat tightened, and he swallowed hard. "Senior brother, someone was calling my name as soon as we entered the city. Listen."
Seeing this, Song San listened intently for a while, but apart from the clamor of voices, he couldn't hear any other sounds.
"Where did that sound come from? You must have misheard."
Gu Lianzhou pointed to the open space in front of him and insisted, "Right there, there are quite a few people calling my name."
Hey, this child's symptoms are getting worse and worse?
"Perhaps those seven demonic energies couldn't hold back their presence in your body because they'd never seen so many people before." She patted Gu Lianzhou's shoulder, comforting him, "It's alright, with that talisman here, they can't cause any trouble."
Gu Lianzhou, however, felt that the sound grew louder and louder, childlike and clear, as if it came from a deep ancient well, carrying a trace of ethereal echo—
"Gu Lianzhou."
"Hehe, it seems he heard me."
"Quickly hide, don't let him see you."
here we go again.
The sounds, one after another, seemed to whisper in one's ear, only to drift away in the next instant.
It was as if they wouldn't stop until they drove him crazy.
Amidst his chaotic thoughts, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his forehead, like being pricked by a needle, which made him close his eyes in pain.
Gu Lianzhou frowned and rubbed his temples, but felt a pain like a thousand-pound hammer striking his brain, making his vision go black for a moment.
As the world spun around me, my senior brother's voice grew fainter and fainter in my ears.
"Junior brother, junior brother?"
-
"Why is he asleep again?"
"Are you stupid? Brother Gu has fainted."
"Then, should we call a doctor?"
"Open your eyes and see who's in front of you!"
"Liu Xingchuan, are you even capable?"
"If I can't do it, then ninety percent of the doctors in the southern city can't either."
"What about the remaining ten percent?"
"..."
I felt as if my body had lost its weight, as if I were floating on soft clouds.
Suddenly, my feet slipped, and an intense feeling of weightlessness washed over me until my back hit a hard wooden board.
A faint sigh reached my ears.
"Gu Lianzhou, wake up."
A clear stream flowed into his brow, and the man on the bed rolled his eyes and suddenly lifted his eyelids.
In the dim candlelight, his senior brother sat on the edge of the bed, staring at him with a serious expression.
Seeing that he had woken up, Song San did not breathe a sigh of relief. He grabbed his wrist and tucked him into the blanket, saying solemnly, "The seal that your master set up earlier has been completely broken. What you see and hear now is not an illusion."
Gu Lianzhou blinked slowly, his voice hoarse and strained, "Is it because of those seven demonic energies?"
Song San nodded, "Yes."
She put away the bottles and jars beside her and got straight to the point: "Tell me, what did you hear when you entered the city?"
Gu Lianzhou took a deep breath, propped himself up on the bed, leaned back, and recounted everything he had heard. He noticed that his senior brother's brows furrowed even more as he said to him, "We can't be sure what that demon's intentions are yet, so we can't act rashly for the time being."
Gu Lianzhou nodded.
Song San turned his head and glanced at the door. "The caravan leader's kindness in allowing us to stay in this inn has made things easier for us. So, you don't need to leave the inn these days. I'll inquire about Uncle Nie's matter."
“No way.” Gu Lianzhou refused without hesitation. “Now that I’ve arrived in Nancheng, how can I stay indoors? Besides, that’s my master, so naturally I have to go see him in person.”
“There’s no need to rush,” Song San advised. “Your condition is unstable right now. You might fall into a coma while you’re out. If no one is there to take care of you, your life could be in danger.”
Thinking about all the trouble he had caused his senior brother along the way, Gu Lianzhou lowered his head in shame. "Then, is there really no other way?"
Song San scoffed lightly, seemingly amused by his own anger, "There is a way."
She stared at the man on the bed, her eyes reflecting the flickering candlelight, which made one inexplicably nervous.
She said slowly and deliberately, "If we remove the demonic energy from your body one by one, the evil spirits will naturally stop causing trouble, and you can walk in the world like an ordinary person. But can you afford to wait that long? Young Master Gu, have you forgotten the agreement between us?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Lianzhou's eyes widened suddenly.
“I promised to escort you to the South City and deliver you safely to your master, and now half of that has been accomplished.” Song San reminded him, “Young Master Gu, don’t forget, this is just a transaction.”
Gu Lianzhou stared blankly at his senior brother, and finally shook his head bitterly, "I haven't forgotten."
His senior brother had already been more than kind to him, so how could he dare to have any other expectations?
"That's good."
Song San stood up and suddenly felt that the room was stuffy, and even his breathing became difficult.
She walked to the door and opened it.
The candlelight in the corridor slanted through the red paper lanterns, casting a warm golden-red hue on the wooden floor.
Song San lowered her eyes, half of her face glowing with a beautiful hue in the candlelight, and slowly tightened her grip on the doorframe.
"Junior brother," she turned her head, her gaze fixed on the air, "get some rest."
The door slammed shut, and the cold wind it sent blew across the candlelight on the table. In a short while, the room returned to a deathly silence.
Gu Lianzhou sighed softly, reaching out to gather the slightly disheveled pillowcase. His fingertips brushed against the bedding, and he suddenly touched a jarring bulge, his face momentarily blank.
Did my senior brother leave something here?
He lifted a corner of the blanket, revealing what was underneath—a money bag with extremely perfunctory workmanship.
Made of coarse cloth, it feels rough to the touch, and the stitching is extremely haphazard.
It's obvious at a glance that this is Song San's work.
It has a certain weight to it.
The broken silver pieces struck the copper plate, making a "rustling" sound.
Recalling his senior brother's earlier instructions, Gu Lianzhou felt a sudden pang in his heart, and a sour feeling welled up in his nose.
In the end, it was he who dragged his senior brother down.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
