章 36: 36 chapters Donkey Cart
Looking at those six taels of silver, Li Huowang was too lazy to decline and stuffed them into his pocket; he really needed the money right now.
"Well then, young Taoist Master, take your time eating. We'll get ready and continue our journey tomorrow."
Having eaten their fill, the Lv family felt sleepy and decided to go back for some sleep, given that they hadn't slept all of last night.
After the Lv family left, Li Huowang was the only one left in the house. He looked at the roasted chicken that was even bigger than his head and after a moment's thought, he said to a servant nearby, "Do you have something I can use to wrap this up?"
Not long after, Li Huowang came out of Wuligang with a donkey, which was pulling a cart stacked with bags of grain.
Although six taels of silver weren't much and had to be spent sparingly, he couldn't afford a horse, but buying an old donkey was still feasible.
With this set-up, at least they wouldn't have to carry their food every step of the way.
When Li Huowang appeared, he saw the rest were still huddled in the rice stalks in the fields.
They didn't enter the village, clearly afraid that their unusual appearances would frighten the villagers.
As he walked over, Li Huowang found them roasting sweet potato strips.
Li Huowang reached into the cart and pulled out a fragrant roasted chicken. "Eat this instead."
The group had been eating dry food for so many days that they couldn't resist such a sight. They rushed over excitedly,
Dividing a chicken among a dozen or so people meant there wasn't much to go around, but everyone gnawed with serious dedication. Even the chicken bones were carefully chewed into tiny pieces and swallowed.
"Brother Li, where did this chicken come from? And this donkey cart, where did you go last night?" Bai Lingmiao asked, holding onto a chicken neck.
Li Huowang, sitting on a pile of rice stalks with his eyes closed, briefly described the cause and process.
Upon learning that Li Huowang had risked his life to get these things, Bai Lingmiao put down the chicken neck she was holding and crawled over to Li Huowang, looking at him with a pained expression.
"Brother Li, I'm sorry, it's us burdens who have dragged you down. If it hadn't been for us, you wouldn't have had to go to such lengths."
Li Huowang opened his eyes and looked at the girl with a blue cloth over her eyes, "It has nothing to do with you. That thing would have targeted us the moment it came to the Hu Family Ancestral Temple. Even without what happened last night, we would have encountered it sooner or later."
"And besides..." Li Huowang paused, thinking back to when he had been completely lost in the illusion at Qingfeng Taoist Temple. "And besides, it's really uncertain who will be a burden in the future."
Li Huowang thought for a while and looked back at the girl in front of him, reaching out to take her hand.
Bai Lingmiao shyly pulled back but then stopped.
However, after a moment, Li Huowang reconsidered, lay back on the rice stalks, closed his eyes, and turned his gaze away, slowly releasing the hand he was holding tightly.
But at the instant he let go, the soft hands quickly followed and gripped his again, firmly.
After a good night's rest, two groups with different goals set off once more.
Their next destination was Jianye Town, which would be Li Huowang's first time entering a large settlement in this world.
"Young Taoist Master, Wuligang is not far from Jianye Town. According to our pace, we should reach there in about four or five days," Top Scholar Lv reported to Li Huowang.
Li Huowang turned to look at Zhao Wu, who was being carried by an idiot, "How about it? Almost home, are you happy?"
Zhao Wu had said before that his home was in Jianye. After these days of interaction, Li Huowang had gotten a preliminary understanding of Zhao Wu.
He felt that Zhao Wu was very intelligent, except that due to his physical disabilities and illiteracy, he hadn't been able to show his full potential.
"Zhao Wu, you're almost home, aren't you going to treat us brothers to a trip to the restaurant?" Doggie teased from the side.
However, Zhao Wu's reaction was unexpected to the others. A bitter smile appeared on his face, "What does it matter for a useless person like me to go home? I can't carry anything on my shoulders or lift anything with my hands. Being at home, I'd just be a good-for-nothing."
At these words, the atmosphere quieted down; his statement struck a chord in the hearts of all the Medicinal Guides.
Those who could stay in the Qingfeng Taoist Temple, aside from Li Huowang, were more or less flawed in some way; even if they returned to their former places, they would still be the odd ones out, feared or disliked by others.
Emerging from Qingfeng Taoist Temple and escaping the fear of death was very nice, but returning to an environment filled with disdain and hostility wasn't exactly a cause for celebration.
Feeling the atmosphere grow somewhat oppressive, Li Huowang turned his head to look at Zhao Wu, "Who said you're useless? Take advantage of this idle time, and I'll teach you Alchemy. Memorize as much as you can, so you won't starve to death back home as a barefoot doctor."
Zhao Wu was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, then his expression became excited, his eyes filled with intense longing. "Brother Li, I don't want to learn Alchemy. Can you teach me how to read instead?"
"Why learn to read? Isn't it good to learn a few Pill Recipes and have a bowl to depend on when you practice medicine at home?" Li Huowang didn't quite understand the emotions of these locals.
It's not that reading is useless, of course, reading is very useful, but even attending elementary school takes five years. To teach an illiterate man who can't even write his own name how to read is a major endeavor; it couldn't be done in just a few years.
"No problem! It doesn't matter how much I learn; I'm happy with whatever I can get."
Although Li Huowang didn't understand Zhao Wu's thirst for knowledge, since he wanted to learn, he could certainly teach.
"Idiot, put Zhao Wu on the donkey cart from your back, I'll teach him how to read."
Zhao Wu knew nothing, so Li Huowang could only use wood block characters to start his literacy education.
As he taught, Li Huowang realized it was unusually quiet nearby, and when he looked up, he saw that everyone, including people from the Lv Family, was listening intently.
They weren't just listening intently; their faces also carried a look of reverence, as if Li Huowang was doing something solemn and sacred.
"Hehehe, uh, Taoist Master."
Top Scholar Lv, chuckling, carrying two strips of cured meat in one hand and dragging his younger son with the other, approached them.
Just as Li Huowang waited for the man to speak, clouds of dust rose from the small path in the woods behind them.
Before long, a horse stopped before them, and a young, portly boy jumped down from it.
Top Scholar Lv obviously recognized this person from Jianye, promptly greeting him with clasped hands. "Oh, Young Master Hu, please, take care, where are you off to?"
"I'm not going anywhere! I'm going to join you all in acting! That way, I can listen to plays every day!"
The excited Young Master Hu's voice was still immature, for despite his robust appearance, he had not yet hit puberty.
"Oh dear, please don't joke like that, hurry back home, so you don't worry your grandfather."
"Don't worry, I'll pay to listen to the plays!" A Longevity Lock made of gold was forcibly pressed into Top Scholar Lv's hand.
Top Scholar Lv looked extremely conflicted, holding the gold piece and not knowing what to do with it.
Suddenly, someone caught up with them on horseback, and relieved him of the predicament.
"Dad! Stop pulling me! I'm not going back! I want to act in plays!!"
"Slap~!" The slap that landed on Young Master Hu's face startled everyone around, and the boy's cheek quickly swelled.
"To think you'd lower yourself to be an actor! How dare you consider being an actor, you ungrateful wretch! Acting is the lowest of the low! If you disgrace the Hu Family by becoming an actor, I'll bloody well kill you!"
Snatching the raised Longevity Lock from Top Scholar Lv's hand, the man carried his son and rode away on their two horses, leaving a trail of dust behind them.
Once he had left, Li Huowang turned his attention back to Top Scholar Lv, waiting for him to finish what he had previously left unsaid.
Top Scholar Lv, still gripping the two strips of cured meat, stood there awkwardly, opening his mouth several times as if wanting to say something, yet not making a sound.
The usually sly old man stood helpless for the first time, like a child.
In the end, he didn't say anything and just gave a forced smile and nodded to Li Huowang, pulling his son towards the side of the cart. His already slightly hunched back seemed even more bent now.
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