Chapter 46 Shuoyang's peeking was a good thing, but it startled her...
A good night's rest helps to dispel all fatigue.
As dawn broke, Yu Nie pushed open the door of the inn, and a cool breeze rushed towards her.
She stretched, feeling refreshed.
An old man was leading the reddish-brown horse from the backyard of the shop.
Seeing that she was awake, he said, "This old man thought that the young Taoist priest should sleep a little longer and didn't want to get up so early."
After yawning, Yu Nie joked, "I'm just in a hurry to get going, otherwise I could have slept until the sun was high in the sky."
The old man laughed heartily a few times, then noticed that she was carrying her travel books and a rabbit cage, so he asked her, "Taoist priest, don't you need to have breakfast before you leave?"
"No, no." Yu Nie waved his hand: "I just asked my aunt to give me a few pieces of bread. I'll eat breakfast on the way."
Knowing she was in a hurry, the old man didn't try to stop her any further.
The couple saw her to the door, and the old woman said, "Young Taoist priest, since you want to travel through the Panshan area, it just so happens that the weather has turned cloudy today and there is no rain. There will be more merchants coming and going. You should set off as soon as possible, so that the road will not be empty."
The old man chimed in, "The rain has stopped. If we delay until noon, the fog will probably rise. It's better for the young Taoist priest to leave early, so that the fog doesn't obscure the road."
Sitting on his horse, Yu Nie smiled and bid farewell to the two elderly people: "Thank you, uncle and aunt. I thank you for your kind words."
As dawn broke, she tugged at the swaying horse and said, "It's getting late, we should set off now. Take care, my lords, and we'll meet again."
"Take care on your journey, Daoist priest..."
Having said that, she whipped her horse and rode away, her figure disappearing into the dawn.
Whether she chooses the new route or not, she will have to pass through Panshankou.
Yu Nie did not intend to proceed rashly, but planned to observe the situation at Panshankou before making a decision.
After riding at full speed for a while, the majestic outline of the Panshan Mountain came into view ahead.
Although this mountain is not the highest in the northwest, it features overlapping peaks and steep slopes.
With the target in sight, Yu Nie gave a soft shout, and the little red-brown horse galloped forward.
After a short while, we finally arrived at Panshankou.
When she arrived, there were a few scattered farmers going up the mountain, as well as travelers riding donkeys.
This place is not far from Ganzhou, and most of the people who come here to collect medicinal herbs are locals from Ganzhou.
The fact that someone went up the mountain proves that the path is walkable, and that she is not alone.
She sat on her horse for a long time, pondering whether she should go ahead with the scattered travelers or wait for the caravan to gather and travel together when there were more people.
After all, she feels safer with more people around; she doesn't feel safe with fewer people.
As she was pondering, a bell rang.
Hearing the noise, she turned around and saw about a dozen horses carrying goods slowly walking towards her.
The people on horseback were all dressed as merchants, clearly traders.
This saved her the trouble of agonizing over it, so she simply went with the caravan.
When the caravan came up to her, she smiled and rode her horse over to greet the leader: "Brother, which way are you going?"
The leader was about forty years old, with a white beard, a high nose, small eyes, and an old tuk-tuk hat. He seemed amiable.
"We're heading to Tokharistan this time," he replied with a chuckle, his voice booming. "Where are you headed, young Taoist priest?"
Yu Nie replied, "I'm going to Longdao."
"Going to Longdao?" The merchant was quite surprised, looking her over. "Just the Taoist priest alone?"
The mountain road was unlike the official road; it was rugged and uneven. Yu Nie, on horseback, swayed back and forth with the bumps and jolts, gripping the reins tightly to steady himself: "I'm all alone."
Upon hearing this, the merchant's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but look her over again: "This is quite remarkable. Judging from the Taoist priest's accent, he should be from Dingzhou. And the Taoist priest is not very old. You, a young girl, dare to travel thousands of miles alone to Longdao. You really have a lot of courage."
She was flattered by the compliment, but she knew she had no choice. If she could produce saltpeter, she wouldn't have had to travel so far.
She wasn't being brave; she was simply forced into it.
Since others had praised her so highly, she felt obliged to say a few polite words. She said apologetically, "Brother, you flatter me. I had no choice but to do so."
To prevent the other party from asking further questions, she glanced at the caravan behind her and asked curiously, "Brother, what are you transporting to Tokharistan to sell?"
"Oh, it's just some tea and porcelain, plus some silk fabrics," the merchant replied without hiding anything.
Yu Nie was quite familiar with transporting these items to foreign lands for trade; in fact, he was quite familiar with them.
After all, it's written in nine years of compulsory education; which Chinese person doesn't know about the Silk Road?
"Are you from Jian'an?" She chatted casually with the person next to her. The road over the mountain was still long, and she would feel uncomfortable if she didn't talk to anyone.
No one knew that on the way here, she had been talking to the snow slave in the cage the whole way, until her mouth was dry.
The merchant walked alongside her, saying, "We come from Shuoyang, which isn't far from Jian'an."
Shuoyang was the secondary capital of Beiye.
She had heard Langxi mention that more than twenty years ago, Emperor Gaozong defied public opinion and insisted on moving the capital to Jian'an.
Since then, although Shuoyang still holds the title of "Deputy Capital," its former glory has long since faded. Now, apart from this empty title, Shuoyang has neither power nor money, and even its former prosperity has been completely worn away.
"Shuoyang? Shuoyang is great! I've always wanted to go there, but I haven't had the chance. I've heard that Shuoyang's stewed veal is a specialty. I wonder when I'll be able to enjoy it." Her tone sounded quite regretful.
The merchant generously replied, "Our caravan brought some braised beef, though it doesn't taste as good as freshly made. The island is quite dirty, but if you don't mind, we can cook lunch together later and you can try some."
"I have no complaints about the beef that Shuoyang sent me. It's my good fortune!" She spoke sweetly and pleasingly, making the merchant overjoyed and laughing heartily.
After laughing, the merchant asked about her background: "Where in Dingzhou does the young Taoist priest come from?"
Yu Nie had no reason to hide her origins; she arrived truthfully.
The merchant found her straightforward manner appealing, and the conversation flowed more and more smoothly, becoming unstoppable once they started talking. Their banter and laughter made the rugged mountain road seem less long and arduous.
Around noon, they found a flat, spacious spot, set up a fire, and began to cook lunch.
Some of the caravan members were skilled cooks and had already started chopping vegetables.
Not wanting to freeload, Yu Nie tied up his little red horse and let it graze in place. He also fed the snow slave in the cage carrots before going to help.
She deftly tied the iron chain to the hanging pot, used three wooden sticks to cross and build a sturdy triangular support, and then hung the pot chain on it steadily.
A worker nearby quickly moved stones and used them to create a fire pit under the pot, preventing the firewood from leaking out.
Knowing that the firewood in the mountains must be damp and difficult to light due to the rain.
Before leaving the inn, the caravan bought some firewood from the shopkeeper to carry, in case they ran out of firewood for cooking at noon.
Originally, Yu Nie was thinking that if there really was no dry firewood, she should take out the water-burning firewood, but it seems that she doesn't need to now.
After lighting the fire, she watched the people and horses before her as the fire burned.
The caravan consisted of eight people, mostly men in their early twenties, all strong and sturdy. The driver, the horse handler, and the guard each had their own duties.
But one person was slender, with coarse cloth clothes hanging loosely on his body, his face filthy, and a hideous scar running diagonally from his brow bone to his cheek.
Yu Nie couldn't help but take a second look. She saw the thin figure squatting under an old tree, carefully applying ointment to the wound on her companion's arm.
She knew that at this time, the medicine used was mostly for treating wounds.
We have to eat here, so we can't just stand by and watch someone die.
She told the man next to her who was adding water to the kettle that she was going to get something and would be back soon.
After saying that, she got up and walked to the box about seven or eight meters away. She opened the box, rummaged through it, and took out a light red bottle.
She glanced at the young man not far away and walked over.
The other person felt a shadow fall over them. Looking up, they saw Yu Nie smiling sweetly on her pretty face and bending down to say, "Excuse me, I saw you applying medicine to your arms."
As she spoke, she handed over the bottle in her hand: "This is my family's heirloom disinfectant. Apply some of this before applying the ointment, and the effect will be much better, and the wound will heal faster."
Despite the scars, this young man possessed an undeniable handsome appearance. His skin was like jade, his lips like cinnabar, and his phoenix eyes sparkled with life, making him even more delicate than the average young woman.
Rather, she really acts like a young woman.
Yu Nie had never expected the other person to be so good-looking, and was momentarily stunned by the sight.
The handsome man opposite the "young man" had a wary look in his eyes. He stretched out his arm to shield the person next to him and said something rather cold: "We don't need it."
"His tone was really forceful," Yu Nie thought to himself, but ultimately didn't take it to heart, assuming it was just his older brother protecting his younger brother.
She shook the medicine bottle in her hand, her smile undiminished: "This medicine is most effective for cleaning wounds and makes it less likely to cause tetanus infection."
The man's face was so imposing that she unconsciously withdrew her outstretched hand, instead taking the "young man's" hand and placing it in his: "Take this medicine, don't be polite with me. I'll be traveling with your caravan all the way out of Panshan, and we'll need to look after each other along the way."
To her surprise, the man snatched the medicine bottle and shoved it back into her hand, saying, "I said no, and that's final. Please take it back, Taoist priest." The force was so great that she almost lost her grip.
Yu Nie stood there, holding the returned medicine bottle, unsure how to react.
She had never met anyone like this before.
"Lanting..." "Brother," someone called softly, and the man named "Lanting" immediately fell silent, like a tiger whose fur had been stroked.
The young man glanced at the man beside him, clearly showing a hint of helplessness. He then stood up with a touch of guilt and said to Yu Nie, "My brother is impulsive and acts rashly. He has offended the Daoist Master. I hope the Daoist Master will not hold it against him."
This "young man" spoke softly and slowly; if you didn't see his attire, Yu Nie would really mistake him for a woman.
Yu Nie waved his hand and said, "It's alright, it's alright. It's only right that your brother is cautious. After all, medicine shouldn't be used indiscriminately."
She hadn't expected things to escalate to this point, and she felt too embarrassed to insist on giving it to them. She could only say, "If you want to use this medicine, just come to me to get it later."
"Then I won't bother you any longer, I still have to help with the cooking." With that, she chuckled twice and left.
As she walked, she felt that something was wrong.
Why is she called "Lanting" when we talk to her?
The more Yu Nie thought about it, the stranger it seemed, so she couldn't help but turn around and take a look.
It would have been fine if I hadn't peeked, but when I did, I gave her a fright.
Under the shade of the old tree, "Little Brother," who was facing away from Yu Nie, was suddenly grabbed by the wrist by Lan Ting. Lan Ting lightly lifted his fingertips and subtly stroked the other's cheek.
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