Golden peacock puffs up its feathers
At the mouth of the river in Kaoshan Village, the spring floods are raging.
The turbid river water, carrying broken branches and leaves, roared and surged into the distance.
The pebbles on the shore were constantly being washed away, making a splashing sound.
The normally gentle water flow had now become a wild horse, its momentum terrifying.
This perilous scene attracted many villagers to gather on higher ground on the riverbank, pointing and discussing it amongst themselves.
"Good heavens, the water flow this year is really strong!" Villager A hunched his shoulders and gestured towards the middle of the river.
Villager B squinted, trying to make out a black dot that appeared and disappeared in the turbid waves: "See that? What... what's that floating there? A door panel?"
With sharp eyes, Aunt Wang's voice suddenly rose, shrill with disbelief: "Oh my God! Look! It's a raft! On it...on it's Lady Ling! Ling Zhan!"
That shout was like a thunderclap, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
The heart of the turbulent river.
A rudimentary wooden raft, terrifying in its simplicity, is cutting through the churning, turbid waves.
They stubbornly struggled forward toward the makeshift gravel dock at the village entrance.
The raft was haphazardly tied together from five or six thick logs, with the rough cuts of the logs clearly visible.
In the center of the raft is a huge wicker basket that takes up almost half of the raft's surface.
Secured firmly to the log by several thick brown ropes, the wicker basket remained unmoved and incredibly stable no matter how the raft was tossed up and crashed down by the waves.
The figure punting the raft was none other than Ling Zhan.
She was soaked to the bone!
Thin, coarse cloth clothes clung tightly to his body.
It clearly outlines taut muscle lines and a slightly slender yet powerful physique.
Her long hair, soaked through, clung miserably to her pale cheeks and neck, with murky river water constantly dripping down her back.
She gripped a long, polished pole tightly with both hands.
With his back straight as a javelin, each stroke of the pole was powerful and precise, plunging steadily, accurately, and forcefully into the depths of the surging water or against the underwater reefs.
The pole bent in a breathtaking arc in her hand, then snapped straight, managing to maintain its direction in the raging river and slowly make its way to the bank.
Her eyes were sharp as an eagle's, her lips were tightly pressed together, and all her energy was focused on the long pole in her hand and the raft beneath her feet that could fall apart at any moment.
The crowd on the shore erupted in a buzz of excitement.
"It really is Lady Ling!"
"My God! How...how dare she!"
"This raft...this water...are they out of their minds?"
"Look at that big basket! It's tied really securely! Miss Ling's strength and skill... tsk tsk!"
"Quick! Get ready to lend a hand! They're coming closer!"
The newly appointed village head, Li Qingshan, reacted the fastest. His face turned pale, and his heart was in his throat. He shouted at several strong young men.
"Shuanzi! Erniu! Quick! Follow me to the water! Watch your step! Hurry!"
Under Ling Zhan's almost desperate control, the raft finally crashed diagonally into several protruding wooden stakes at the edge of the dock.
A dull, loud thud was heard, and the raft rocked violently a few times.
Seizing the moment of stability, Ling Zhan's body tightened like a bowstring, and with a flick of his arm, a thick, wet cable, accompanied by the whooshing sound of the wind, was accurately thrown to the shore.
"Catch!"
Her voice cut through the sound of the water, hoarse from exhaustion.
Several people on the shore frantically grabbed the cable and scrambled to wrap it around the dock post, pulling it tight.
The raft was finally secured, and the ropes creaked and groaned under the impact of the rushing water.
Ling Zhan then exhaled a long, almost silent breath, his body, which had been taut as iron, swaying almost imperceptibly.
She released the long pole that almost embedded itself in her palm, letting it fall onto the wet raft. She raised her hand and vigorously wiped the water from her face, shook her head, and stepped onto the gravel-paved dock. Her heavy, soaking boots crunched on the gravel, leaving clear watermarks.
"Lady Ling! You...you're..."
Li Qingshan rushed to her side, looking at her soaking wet body, dripping with water, and then at the still roaring, surging river behind her. His voice trembled with lingering fear.
"This spring flood is ferocious! The Dragon King is furious! It's too dangerous! What if something happens..."
Aunt Wang had already squeezed forward, taking a slightly worn, dry cloth and wrapping it around Ling Zhan's body:
"Quick, dry yourself off! Oh my, you're soaking wet! Like ice crystals! You must be freezing! Hurry up, go home! Go home and change into dry clothes! Hot water! We need to boil some hot water!"
She kept nagging while trying to wipe Ling Zhan's soaking wet hair with a cloth.
Carpenter Li then circled the raft twice.
His eyes were fixed on the simple yet exceptionally sturdy binding method and the knots securing the large wicker basket, and he couldn't help but click his tongue in admiration.
"Incredible! Absolutely incredible! The way this raft is tied... the strength, the skill! The way this basket is tied... my goodness, even an ox couldn't pull it! Madam Ling, what skill! Truly amazing skill!"
His tone was filled with pure, craftsman-like amazement.
The buzzing of the crowd grew even louder!
A mixture of amazement, admiration, and lingering fear gripped everyone's attention as they focused on Ling Zhan and her mysterious large wicker basket.
Just then—
"Ling! Zhan!!!"
A roar, brimming with all the energy accumulated before a volcanic eruption, exploded like a thunderclap from a clear sky.
With a sharp, tearing sound that seemed to rip through the air, it swept fiercely from the direction of the village entrance! The sound was so distinctive.
The shore fell into a deathly silence, as if even the rushing water had been suppressed.
Everyone instinctively shrank back, falling silent, their eyes turning in terror toward the source of the sound.
Shen Yan appeared like a golden peacock whose tail had been stomped on, all its magnificent feathers standing on end. He swept up to the dock with a gust of wind that could overturn a person! He was still wearing that same drab, ill-fitting, and unflattering coarse cotton-padded jacket, now wide open, revealing the equally rough material underneath, soaked with sweat and clinging to the collar. His hair was a mess, with a few stray strands sticking to his sweaty forehead and red temples.
That face, usually so handsome it was almost demonic, was now flushed red as if it were about to bleed, its features twisted and distorted by extreme rage—
A raging fire burned fiercely in his peach blossom eyes, almost spewing out tangible, world-destroying flames!
Deep within those flames, there was a palpable, thick terror and lingering fear that had not yet fully subsided, as well as an immense sense of suffocation and anger that had been completely ignored, kept in the dark, and even treated as nothing at all!
He completely ignored the dense crowd around him, the conspicuous large wicker basket, and the outstretched hands of Li Qingshan and Aunt Wang.
There is only one target—Ling Zhan!
He rushed to Ling Zhan in a few steps, his chest heaving violently like a broken bellows. His fingers, whistling sharply and with undisguised force, almost pierced Ling Zhan's damp collarbone. His voice, shrill and distorted with extreme excitement and anger, was like sandpaper scraping against metal.
"You actually know how to come back?! Huh?! You fucking still remember this family?!"
The roar startled Aunt Wang, who was nearby, causing her to stumble and her ears to ring.
"You came down the mountain?! You actually dared to come down the mountain alone?!"
His eyes, bloodshot and filled with disgust, were fixed on Ling Zhan's pale yet calm face, as if he wanted to devour her alive. "You went to town?! Did you?! Did you go to that shabby blacksmith shop in Linshan Town?!"
He gave Ling Zhan no chance to breathe or answer, or rather, the anger, fear, and grievances simmering in his chest had found a breach in the dam and had to be released:
"You bought those things?! Those weapons that can split mountains and shatter rocks, those terrifying weapons that can scare people to death?! Axes? Heavy pickaxes? Eighteen-foot-long iron shovels?! Madam Ling! Hero Ling! You're something else! You're really something! You've pulled off a sleight of hand! You're incredibly audacious!!"
He stomped his foot angrily, sending pebbles flying, then whirled around, his finger almost poking Ling Zhan's eyelids, his fingertips trembling like withered leaves in the wind, his voice trembling with extreme frustration and rage, almost a shrill cry.
"What did I tell you before you left?! Huh?! Spring floods! Spring floods! I've told you eight hundred times that spring floods are dangerous! The river can swallow people! I told you to take the mountain road! The mountain road!! Did you just ignore me?! Did you let it go in one ear and out the other?! Did you think my words were just farts?! Are you deaf or blind?! Or do you think I'm just a fart, and that my words are worth less than a fart?!!"
Spittle mixed with the hot breath from his rapid breathing, splattering fiercely onto Ling Zhan's cold face. Ling Zhan merely tilted his head slightly.
Water droplets dripped down her taut jawline, her expression remaining that damnably calm.
She watched indifferently as he fluffed up each feather.
The deep-seated anger was completely ignited and detonated by her calmness!
He suddenly took a step forward, his chest almost colliding with Ling Zhan's, his hot breath spraying onto her cold, damp forehead.
It was almost a shout right in her face:
"That's not all! You! You came down from the mountain the other day! You didn't even set foot in your own home?! Huh?! Those twenty-odd little ones at home! They're waiting for you with bated breath! And me?! What am I, your nominal 'man', in your eyes, Ling the Great Hero?! A fart?! Or just an eyesore?! You didn't even bother to leave me a message?! Not even a fart?! You just carried your precious basket back up the mountain?! Huh?!!"
His chest heaved violently with anger, and his handsome face was twisted and contorted with rage and a profound sense of being excluded.
There was a hint of sadness in his voice that he himself didn't even realize:
"Great! Excellent! The whole town saw you, Hero Ling, carrying that terrifyingly large basket out of the blacksmith's shop! The whole town knows you bought a tool that can split mountains and shatter the sky! And me?! I'm the last one to know! The very last one!!"
He pounded his chest, his voice rising higher and sharper, carrying an almost absurd and indignant accusation:
"I heard it from Old Zhang from the next village who came to exchange timber! 'Hey, Brother Shen, your wife is so strong! She carried such a big basket from the blacksmith's shop and bought so many big things. Tsk tsk, really impressive!' Ha! Ha! I was completely dumbfounded! Like an idiot! Ling Zhan! What do you take me for?! What do you take this house for?! An inn?! Or a place where you, the great hero Ling, can rest before going down the mountain to make your way in the world, a place you can't even be bothered to say hello to?!'"
He got angrier and angrier as he talked, and he felt more and more aggrieved as he spoke!
It's completely the rage and frustration of a petty hoodlum husband who was utterly ignored by his wife, almost lost her in terror, and is now terrified.
"And you! Silent and unassuming! Like a dragon appearing and disappearing without a trace! Who knows when you'll be back?! And you're using a raft?! Just these few broken logs tied together?! Ling Zhan! Did that axe split your brain?! Did it get waterlogged?! Did a donkey kick you?! This water! This raft! What if it falls apart, capsizes, you…you…"
He hesitated for a long time, the word "die" lingering in his throat. Looking at Ling Zhan, dripping wet, disheveled yet standing alive and silent before him, the immense fear and lingering dread finally broke through the dam of anger, his voice suddenly tinged with a barely perceptible sob and a desperate hoarseness.
"You're willing to risk your life for those scrap metal pieces in that basket?! You're willing to abandon your family?! You're willing to abandon me... you're willing to abandon the children?! Ling Zhan! Is your heart made of stone?! Or is it made of ice?! In your eyes, are those lumps of iron more important than your life?! More... more important than us?! Huh?!!"
The final "Ah?!" was almost a scream that pierced his throat. The veins on his neck bulged, his eyes were bloodshot, and his handsome face was now filled with a monstrous storm of anger, grievance, intense and overwhelming worry, and a profound fear of abandonment. The whole world seemed to consist only of his heavy breathing and the angry roar of the river.
The villagers watching were completely silent; even the most gossipy Aunt Wang covered her mouth tightly, not daring to breathe.
Li Qingshan's outstretched hand froze in mid-air, his expression grave. This scene... was terrifying.
Normally, Shen Yan, though dressed awkwardly and sweet-talking, always carried an inexplicable air of nobility and aloofness. When had anyone ever seen him so reckless and hysterical? He was like a golden peacock that had been thoroughly provoked, its feathers bristling, pecking wildly without regard for its image, and screaming and weeping blood. The heart-wrenching sorrow in his accusations made some soft-hearted women unable to bear watching any longer.
Ling Zhan waited until Ling Zhan's torrent of accusations and furious roars of grievance finally stopped due to lack of oxygen, before he raised his hand and calmly wiped away the water stains mixed with river water and his spittle from his face with his equally wet and cold sleeve.
Then, she looked up and stared directly into Shen Yan's eyes, which were burning with flames and pain, and spoke.
The voice, hoarse from the cold and exhaustion, was unusually clear, drowning out the churning water:
"Some mountain produce. The raft didn't break apart. I'm back."
These twelve characters are like twelve frozen, sharply defined blocks of ice—
It struck precisely and fiercely at the heart of the raging furnace of resentment, a mixture of complex emotions!
With a "sizzle," one could almost hear the sound of flames being extinguished in an instant, then violently evaporating again out of extreme resentment.
"You...you...you!!!"
Shen Yan was so choked by her nonchalant, unyielding, and even somewhat "you're being unreasonable" attitude that her vision blurred. A breath suddenly caught in her throat, and she almost fainted on the spot! The finger pointing at her trembled like a leaf, her chest heaved violently like a dying fish, and her face instantly turned from a furious red to a deathly pale, and then swelled into a bluish-purple due to extreme suffocation.
"Good! Good! Madam Ling! Hero Ling! You're ruthless! You're really ruthless!"
He suddenly flicked his sleeve, the half-open sleeve of his cotton-padded jacket forcefully slapping a spray of water droplets that hit the nearby gravel with a sharp crack. The movement was so forceful that it almost knocked Li Qingshan, who was trying to calm him down, over.
He seemed to only then notice Ling Zhan's miserable state, with water dripping from head to toe, even his eyelashes. This sight was like a needle, pricking him again, making the evil fire in his heart, mixed with sharp heartache, burn even more fiercely!
"What are you standing there for?! Do you want to freeze into an ice sculpture and stand here like a statue?!"
He turned around, blustering but actually cowardly, almost roaring, "Get out! Get the hell home! Now! Immediately! Right now!"
Just as he turned to leave, Ling Zhan spoke again. His voice was still not loud, but it seemed to have a peculiar penetrating power, making Shen Yan's steps feel as if they were nailed to the spot by invisible nails.
"Aunt Wang."
Ling Zhan turned his gaze to Aunt Wang, who looked worried, and asked in a calm tone as if he were discussing the weather, "Is the stove still burning brightly? Could you please boil a big pot of water, piping hot?"
Aunt Wang suddenly realized what was happening and nodded frantically, "Yes! Yes! It's burning! I'll go right now! I'll go cook it right now! It's piping hot! I guarantee it'll be piping hot!" After saying that, she didn't even bother to look at Shen Yan's murderous face. She lifted her clothes and ran towards the village as if she were escaping.
Shen Yan's stiff back suddenly trembled!
The surrounding air seemed to freeze, leaving only the roar of the surging river.
The villagers' eyes darted back and forth between Ling Zhan and Shen Yan's stiff backs, and they even breathed cautiously.
Just when everyone thought this earth-shattering "Golden Peacock Feathers Out" drama was about to end with Young Master Shen completely losing his temper and storming off—
Shen Yan suddenly turned around!
The raging fury on his face miraculously, yet abruptly, subsided, replaced by an expression that was a mixture of frustration, anger, resignation, and… a near-madness of urgency. The expression was distorted and complex, as if two souls were violently tearing at each other within him.
He rushed back to Ling Zhan in a few steps, his movements as fast as lightning, the wind he created hitting Ling Zhan's face.
"Hot water?! Don't you have a home?! Huh?! Do you think I'm dead?! And you're asking Aunt Wang?!"
He gritted his teeth, his voice lowered, yet it sounded even more violent and gloomy, each word seeming to be squeezed out from between his teeth. As he roared, he roughly and almost vented his anger by violently tearing off the cloth that Aunt Wang had just draped over Ling Zhan, which was now cold and heavy with moisture from her body, and threw it on the ground with disgust, like throwing away trash!
Then, he grabbed the front of his drab gray cotton-padded jacket with both hands and exerted force!
"Crack! Crack! Crack!"
He snapped the buttons off in a fit of rage, the buttons flying everywhere with a cracking sound. He roughly pulled off his still-dry, warm cotton-padded coat, and without even glancing at her, with a suffocating force, he draped it over Ling Zhan's head! He wrapped her completely, along with her soaked, clinging thin clothes, all at once!
"So stupid! So dumb! Stubborn mule! Brainless rock!"
He kept cursing and swearing, but his hands moved quickly and forcefully. Not satisfied with just wrapping her up, he tightened the cotton-padded coat around her wet and cold body with his hands, as if trying to use his body heat to force out the biting cold.
The cotton-padded jacket, carrying Shen Yan's body heat and a faint scent of soap and grass, instantly enveloped Ling Zhan.
A sudden warmth unexpectedly struck her cold skin.
"What are you looking at?! Are you waiting to die?! Let's go!"
After wrapping her up, Shen Yan saw her standing motionless like a wooden stake, which only fueled his anger, as if all his rage had found a new outlet. He suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist, which was wrapped in a thick cotton-padded coat! Her wrist was icy cold, causing his fingertips to recoil sharply. Then, as if burned, he gripped her wrist even tighter, almost crushing her bones!
Without a word, he practically dragged her along, roughly pushing aside the crowd blocking his way, including Li Qingshan who was trying to speak, and rushed into the village with such force that it was irresistible, his steps as fast as if he were fleeing for his life.
"Li Lizheng!"
Without turning his head, Shen Yan roared, his voice still filled with lingering anger and urgency, "Find someone! Unload that basket of 'mountain goods' from the raft! Carry it to my house! Be careful! Don't fucking break it apart! If it falls into the river, I'll settle the score with you!"
Li Qingshan was stunned for a moment.
He immediately realized what was happening and quickly replied, "Yes! Okay! Don't worry, Young Master Shen! I'll take care of it right away! Quickly take Lady Ling back to warm up!"
"And you too!"
Chen Yan's barrage of fire immediately turned to Ling Zhan, whom he was dragging along, who was staggering. He turned his head and continued to roar, his scorching breath hitting her wet scalp. "Go back and soak yourself thoroughly! Soak yourself in a tub! Even if your skin is wrinkled, you'd better get rid of all the cold air! Try soaking for less than fifteen minutes! If there's a next time..." He hesitated for a long time before saying "if there's a next time," but then, thinking that she might do it again, the flames of anger that had just been suppressed suddenly flared up again. Finally, he forced out a hateful, somewhat threatening, but ultimately cowardly, sentence: "I'll... I'll throw all those junk iron lumps of yours into the river to feed the turtles! And I'll change the locks! I'll make sure you can't get into your house! Let's see where you go to be a hero then!"
The threat still sounded somewhat childish and powerless.
Ling Zhan was being dragged along, his feet slippery, but from an angle unseen by Ling Zhan, he subtly and almost imperceptibly twitched the corner of his mouth.
The two of them continued to pull and tug at each other.
One of them dragged the child along angrily and almost tyrannically, muttering curses incessantly.
A figure, though slightly unsteady on its feet, quickly regained its balance and followed silently, wrapped in an oversized cotton-padded coat.
Under the villagers' astonished gazes, a mixture of amusement and apprehension, which ultimately coalesced into a complex and indescribable expression, the figure swiftly disappeared onto the muddy path leading into the village.
In the wind, the faint, intermittent roars of Chen Yan, filled with exasperation, could still be heard, growing ever more distant.
"...Your hair is covered in ice! You deserve to freeze to death!"
"...Can't even walk properly?! Are your legs frozen stiff?! You're walking so stiffly! Like a zombie!"
"...You idiot! If you dare not come home again...if you dare to be alone again...you'll see what I do...humph!..."
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