Chapter 22
Yunxiang only has two seasons: rainy and dry. After the Water-Splashing Festival, it can basically be considered summer, but the rainy season has not yet arrived.
The weather was hot, and the cicadas in the trees were chirping non-stop. Ye Nan, fearing that he would disturb Yueming's nap, took a bamboo pole and prepared to knock the cicada down.
A little girl from her village, who was poking a tree with a bamboo pole, ran in and called out to her, "Ye Nan, Ye Nan, your brother is here to see you."
Ye Nan was startled by her voice. He threw away the bamboo pole, made a "hush" gesture to her, and pointed inside.
The little girl stuck out her tongue, then, recalling the recent trend in the mansion, became nonchalant again. Miss Lan couldn't even get enough to eat, so how could she care less about her loud voice?
She said to Ye Nan, "Your brother is here to see you. He's waiting at the side door!"
Ye Nan was very happy to hear that someone was coming to her house, and she couldn't wait to see her brother immediately, but Yueming was still taking a nap, so she had to wait for the kitchen maid to bring snacks. Yueming hadn't eaten much recently, and had been relying on a few snacks to survive, so she must not miss it.
She said to the little girl, "Please ask my brother to wait for me. After I get the snacks from the kitchen, tell the young lady and I will go see him."
The little girl curled her lips and said, "It's so hot, and there's not even a tree outside the house to provide shade. You're just letting your brother bask in the sun at the door. You're considered a real sister."
What could he do? Looking at Yueming's bedroom, Ye Nan was in a dilemma.
The little girl knew what Ye Nan was worried about and advised, "It's still a while before the kitchen sends the snacks, and Miss Lan won't wake up for a while. It won't delay anything if you go and come back quickly. Besides, Miss Lan is such a grown-up, she won't cry if she can't find you after waking up from her nap. Just don't delay getting the snacks, that's all."
Ye Nan thought about it and it made sense. As long as he could get back before the snacks were delivered from the kitchen, it would be fine.
The weather was hot, and Yueming's nap was already restless. She woke up when the little girl cried, but she was too lazy to get up and just lay quietly in bed listening to the two little girls chattering. After listening for a while, the sound suddenly stopped, and Yueming called out: "Ye Nan."
No one answered. I was afraid he had gone out to play with the little girl.
She felt hungry, so she sat up and saw that the table was empty and the lunch snack had not been served yet.
"Alas!" She sighed. Not only did she not have enough to eat these days, but she didn't even have a pot of boiling water to make milk powder. Otherwise, she could have made some milk to satisfy her craving.
The more she thought about it, the hungrier she got. The more she thought about it, the more she couldn't bear it. Suddenly, an idea struck her. If she couldn't eat at the Tusi Mansion, she could go buy some outside! Who could stop her from going out? Even if she couldn't speak Dai, if she just handed over the money for something she liked, would they refuse to sell it to her just because she didn't say anything?
Having found a solution, Yueming was overjoyed. She threw off the thin blanket and got out of bed, pouring a cup of tea to rinse her mouth. She changed into her going-out clothes and placed two silver dollars in her velvet bag. After some thought, she realized that the silver dollars were too conspicuous and that even a small vendor might not be able to make change. She put them back and took out four half-opened coins. She went to the mirror, combed her hair a few times, and then left.
She left the courtyard and walked straight along the veranda. She had only been out of the Tusi Mansion gate a few times, and every time someone would come to greet her. She couldn't quite remember the way, but she only remembered seeing hydrangeas and then the main gate. But it didn't matter. The market was right outside the Tusi Mansion gate. As long as she found the gate, no matter where she went out, she wouldn't be too far from the market.
She walked along the veranda to the end but didn't see any hydrangeas. Instead, she reached a courtyard where she could hear a baby crying. It must be Mrs. Eight's courtyard. Undeterred, Yueming turned back and prepared to try every fork in the road.
After trying two forks in the road, she finally saw a corner gate, bolted and unguarded. She approached, unbolted it, and pushed it open. A small path lay before her. She poked her head out and saw that further ahead lay the woods. A winding path through the tall, green trees had a secluded feel. Voices drifted in the distance. Someone must be there. She stepped out, closed the door, and continued along the path.
The forest wasn't too deep, and after less than a quarter of an hour's walk along the path, I emerged from it. Before me lay an endless expanse of rice paddies, their petals fluttering in the breeze. Not far away, by the river, a group of people were busy working in a sugarcane field on the riverbank.
Yueming took a deep breath, the air, scented with the fragrance of rice flowers, filling her chest. It felt so refreshing. After being cooped up in the Tusi Mansion all day, seeing such a vast view felt like a sense of freedom. She walked towards the river with renewed energy, looking at what the people were busy with. Besides the sugarcane fields, she noticed water chestnut and water melon fields. If she was lucky, she might be able to buy some water chestnuts or water melons. If not, a piece of sugarcane would be nice to sweeten her mouth.
The next question arose: how should she approach the farmers in such a crowded field? Who could she find to trade with? She stood at the edge of the field, watching the workers working, and decided to strike up a conversation with the older women. Her senior had taught her to call them Aunt Yuxiang, and that was the only Dai language she knew.
Walking up to a middle-aged woman wearing a sleeveless jacket and a black skirt, she summoned up her courage and called out, "Mei Tao."
The old lady, who was fishing for something in the water, looked up and saw a pretty little girl in Chinese clothes calling her. She smiled at her while chewing betel nut. Her teeth had become black from years of eating betel nut, and her grin startled Yueming.
She had never seen this before. Old Mee Tao was eating something in his mouth, with red juice all over his gums and black teeth. He looked exactly like the witch in the fairy tale illustrations that Uncle Charles gave her.
Yueming took a few steps back. The more he looked, the more he thought the red substance in her mouth looked like blood. Could it be human flesh she was eating? Yueming was so frightened by her own guess that she trembled all over and pulled the strap of the bag on her chest tightly.
Seeing Yueming calling her but she didn't say anything, Lao Meitao went up to her and was about to ask her what she was doing. But as soon as she moved, the little girl screamed and ran away as if she had seen a ghost, frightening her so much that she dared not move. Watching Yueming's figure quickly disappear in the woods, she covered her chest and wondered what was wrong with this little girl?
Yueming ran for a while, stopping only when she realized no one was chasing her. Panting, she leaned against a green tree, wiping away her frightened tears with the back of her hand as she surveyed her surroundings. This glance made her want to cry even more. This wasn't the way back. She must have been too flustered and missed an intersection.
What should I do now? Walk back along the road? Or call out to see if there is anyone nearby?
After catching her breath, Yueming made the tragic discovery that she wasn't just hungry, she was also thirsty. Licking her dry lips, Yueming decided she should calm down and not act rashly. It would be terrible if she got lost in the woods. Hunger was a minor issue, but encountering a wild animal would be the end of her.
As she pondered this, she thought she heard the faint sound of chanting, mingling with the rustling of trees. Suspecting she was imagining it, she closed her eyes and listened carefully. Perhaps it was her calming mind, or perhaps it was the wind that had subsided, but the chanting grew clearer, along with the crackling of burning wood.
Yueming was extremely surprised. During the Water Splashing Festival, she had gone to the temple with the chieftain and his men, and there would always be a monk who recognized her and took her back to the chieftain's residence. She ran in the direction of the sound.
Han Yunkai watched, bored, as a group of monks chanted sutras around a corpse on the fire platform. The Third Buddha of Guanfo Temple had passed away this morning. He was considered a highly accomplished monk, and according to custom, all the men of the chieftain's family should be present during cremation, praying for his passing alongside the monks. Han Tusi and Li Yang went to the Taotou family to pay their respects, leaving the heavy responsibility of paying the tribute to Yunkai and his uncle, Han Tinglai.
After the monks finished chanting, Tinglai Taiye personally took a torch and lit the firewood surrounding the fire. Tea oil was sprinkled on the firewood, and it ignited immediately, with a fierce flame. Seeing the fire burning vigorously, the monks who were attending the funeral began to chant again.
When Yun Kai saw that the white cloth covering the corpse was burning, he wanted to cover his nose with a handkerchief. He really couldn't stand the smell of the burning corpse. If he smelled it once, he wouldn't be able to eat barbecue for a month.
Everyone's attention was on the fire pit. He looked around to find a place where he could stand out of the wind to avoid vomiting, but he found Yueming running towards him.
He was startled. Why did this girl come here alone? Looking at the corpse on the fire platform, he quickly shouted to Yueming, "Don't come over."
Yueming stopped in her tracks when she heard Yunkai's voice. She wondered why the Second Young Master was here. Why were those monks chanting around a fire? What were they burning so fragrantly? Questions flooded her mind, causing her to ignore Yunkai's warnings. She stepped forward to get a better look.
Seeing Yueming's disobedience, Yunkai was furious and anxious, ready to drag Yueming out of the woods. He had only taken a few hurried steps when he saw Yueming stumble back a few steps in terror, fall to the ground, roll his eyes, and faint. He looked back and saw that the corpse of the Third Buddha had slightly raised its head due to dehydration, and its hands were bent, as if trying to lift the white cloth from its body.
Did Lan Yueming think that the Third Buddha had come back to life?
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