Chapter 106: Shehuo Escapes
Flower Festival Month is the time when food is most abundant on Gaoliang Mountain. Every year at this time, all things revive on Gaoliang Mountain: tender grass that can be eaten, medicinal herbs that can be used as medicine, and aromatic grasses that can be used as spices—all emerge one after another, greeting people’s arrival in their plumpest and tenderest form.
Yun Ce pulled a thick tender sprout from the soil that was like a peanut sprout. When he broke it open, juice splashed everywhere. One bite was crisp and sweet, and it even had a milky flavor.
“Golden Head Sprout, the sacred medicine for lactating women after giving birth. Two sprigs can make a woman’s milk flow like a tide.”
Hearing Steward Qiu say this, Yun Ce immediately threw the thing away and spat out two mouthfuls of saliva. He certainly didn’t want to lactate.
Today, the mountains and fields were full of people coming to gather. Almost all the people from the Royal Hunting Ground had come out in full force.
Letting these people come to Gaoliang Mountain to gather was also unavoidable. Doggy meat is very drying; it’s fine for one or two meals, but if eaten too many times, it causes constipation.
Seeing that many people in the camp had bellies swollen like drums, even the strict Dragon Terrace Guard had no choice but to let them go to Gaoliang Mountain for a large-scale gathering.
“Letting everyone out like this, doesn’t that mean they won’t kill us anymore?”
E Ji and Zhang Min huddled together. Yun Ce didn’t want Golden Head Sprout, but E Ji didn’t want to miss a single one.
“Dragon Terrace Guard does the dirty work for Your Majesty. They generally don’t move lightly; once they do, a thousand li of scorched earth is considered light.”
1 “Shehuo is useless, so why would anyone rob it?”
1 “What do you know? A woman from a small household like you would think Shehuo is useless. Those men with great ambitions would spare no effort, even sacrificing their entire family, just to get a share of Shehuo.”
1 “Why? Just for a ball of fire?”
1 “Back then, King Huo, in order to establish the Great Han, collected all the Shehuo from the thirty-six prefectures passed down from the Yellow Emperor and scattered them across three hundred military prefectures. Only then did the Great Han rightfully become the lord of the world, and the Great Han Emperor able to command the three hundred military prefectures of the world.
1 Without Shehuo, heaven, earth, dragon, gods, and men—none would acknowledge the Great Han.”
1 E Ji looked up at Yun Ce, who was chatting and laughing with Steward Qiu. Her eyes lit up as she spotted another plump Golden Head Sprout, pulled it up by the roots, and tossed it into the basket.
1 “This thing won’t make your breasts bigger. It’s for lactating women.”
1 “Mind your own business. But these past few days, there’s been a question stuck in my chest for a long time. Should I ask you or not?”
1 “Ask away. What’s not to ask?”
1 “Alright, here it is: this time you’ve come back, are you still here to monitor my young master?”
2 Zhang Min’s expression changed for a moment, then quickly returned to normal. She stuffed a sweet grass into her mouth, sucked on it twice, spat out the dregs, and said: “No, I’m here to assist Dragon Terrace Guard in searching for Shehuo.”
2 “You’ve turned the house upside down these past few days. Did you find the Shehuo?”
2 “No.”
2 “So does that mean my young master has nothing to do with the Shehuo?”
2 “But your young master is just too normal—normal to the point of being suspiciously abnormal. I keep thinking that if all the bad things in this world were done by him, it would make sense.”
2 Then, Yun Ce saw E Ji and Zhang Min start fighting. Zhang Min didn’t know if her brain had short-circuited, but despite her high martial arts skill—enough to beat a hundred E Jis—she grappled with E Ji on the hillside, pulling hair and fighting fiercely.
2 Yun Ce finally separated them with difficulty. E Ji spat viciously at Zhang Min without a word. Zhang Min angrily spat at Yun Ce. E Ji flew into a rage and tried to pounce again, but Yun Ce hoisted her over his shoulder and carried her down the mountain.
2 “Don’t be so impulsive in the future. Without Doggy, you can’t beat her.”
2 “I just can’t stand her splashing dirty water on you.”
2 Yun Ce carried E Ji on his back and said softly: “You’re scared?”
3 E Ji pressed her face against Yun Ce’s back and whispered: “That rainy night, I was terrified.”
3 “You think I did it too?”
3 “It was you. When I lie with you at night, I always dream of myself lying by a fire pit, with a ball of fire always leaping in the fire pit.”
3 Yun Ce patted E Ji’s buttocks and said: “That just means you feel at ease sleeping with me.”
3 “Nonsense about feeling at ease. Why didn’t I dream of a fire pit before? But ever since our Shehuo was lost on a rainy night, sleeping with you afterward makes me dream of a fire pit.”
3 “Since you felt at ease, why were you unwilling to sleep with me later?”
3 “I’m afraid that over time, I’ll absorb the aura of the fire pit and bring disaster to you.”
3 Yun Ce whispered softly in E Ji’s ear: “Chuyun Prefecture Shehuo will be ours from now on.”
3 E Ji nodded vigorously.
3 After going down the mountain, Yun Ce saw a strong man beating Old Cao. This man struck viciously; one kick sent Old Cao spitting blood, unable to move.
4 As for the Dragon Terrace Guard people, they stood nearby with arms folded, watching the spectacle.
4 Yun Ce had Doggy assess the battlefield. Doggy said it was ordinary, so Yun Ce set E Ji down and pounced like a hungry tiger, pinning the strong man beneath him.
4 Seeing this, Old Cao struggled to his feet, picked up a stone, and smashed it down toward the strong man’s head.
4 The strong man’s neck was extremely agile. Old Cao smashed seven or eight times in a row, but he dodged flexibly each time. Only when Yun Ce pinned his chest with a knee and gripped his neck with one hand could Old Cao land a solid hit.
4 Once Old Cao landed the blow, Yun Ce released the strong man. Old Cao pointed the stone at the strong man, whose head was now bleeding profusely, and said: “Huang Du, our grudge is settled.”
4 Huang Du said angrily: “You smash me first, then say it’s settled. What took you so long?”
4 Old Cao laughed: “No need to argue. Whatever you want, if I have it, you can take it—even my wife. She’s in the Hunting Palace right now; you can take her. If that’s not satisfying enough, from now on you sleep in her room, and I’ll move to the next room. How about that?”
4 Huang Du wiped the blood from his head, sat on the ground, looked up at Yun Ce, and said: “This your brother? Quite the strength.”
4 Old Cao said to Yun Ce: “This is Old Huang from the Daizhou Patrol Inspector’s office. Decades of friendship. He’s been angry ever since I slept with his concubine.”
4 Huang Du, who had calmed down, jumped up again and cursed: “Beast! That was my daughter-in-law.”
5 Old Cao chuckled: “Then why was she in your room?”
5 Before Old Huang could continue, Old Cao pulled him aside and got straight to the point: “This time we’ve fallen into your hands. You pulled us out of the pit. Name your price, and we’ll pay.”
5 Huang Du’s embarrassed and annoyed expression vanished instantly. He coughed and said: “This time it’s trouble. Daizhou Inspector Chen Lin is coming tonight. The disappearance of Chuyun Prefecture Shehuo is too shocking; they won’t rest until they get a result.”
5 Old Cao gritted his teeth and said: “Chuyun Prefecture still has at least over ten million people right now. How are you going to investigate that many?”
5 Huang Du laughed: “Shehuo is connected to the common people. Though the people can’t describe the exact feeling, the difference with and without Shehuo is huge.
5 Look at these people: even in crisis, they have the mind to gather and play. In plain terms, that’s proof the Shehuo is still burning.
5 Now, we’ll use elimination. Send groups of people from your Chuyun Prefecture away one batch at a time. If a batch leaves and Chuyun Prefecture’s people show no change, it means the Shehuo is still in Chuyun Prefecture, and that departing batch is fine.
5 But if a batch leaves and Chuyun Prefecture’s morale plunges into darkness, it means that recent batch has the problem. With this grinding stone method of screening, we’ll eventually find the one who took the Shehuo.”
5 Yun Ce listened with his heart pounding. Old Cao, however, beamed with joy, grabbed Old Huang’s hand, and said: “We’re the first batch. Brother, make sure we’re first to go.”
5 Old Huang laughed: “That depends on what price you offer. Your wife is out—too old. Compensate me with a young one, and you’ll go first. But mark my words: if someone among you really took the Shehuo and gets their head chopped off with the group, don’t blame me.”
6 Old Cao turned to look at Yun Ce and said: “We’ll inspect thoroughly. No one can be missed.”
6 Yun Ce nodded and said: “Everyone strips naked and passes through the water gate, including you and me.”
6 Old Cao nodded and said to Old Huang: “Arrange it. We’re first. Once we cross Dragon Gate Bridge and enter Daizhou territory, Chuyun Prefecture Shehuo can’t touch us anymore. We’ll be under Daizhou Shehuo protection, right?”
6 Old Huang nodded: “Get out of this place of trouble quickly. The farther away, the better. This Chuyun Prefecture really isn’t a place for good people.
6 This time, Your Majesty in his great mercy has lifted the ban preventing sons of Chuyun Prefecture convicted prisoners from entering the Great Han Homeland. You’ve turned the corner from extreme misfortune. Of course, provided the Chuyun Prefecture Shehuo is found.”
6 Yun Ce looked down at the wristband on his left wrist and couldn’t help sighing softly. It seemed this time, he would be separated from Doggy and Dragon Pearl for a long time.
6 “Doggy, you take Dragon Pearl and Shehuo ahead first, how about that?”
6 “My legs are short. I can’t walk fast.”
6 “Can you control the carrier pigeon?”
6 “Yes, but do you really trust me that much?”
7 “I trust you completely.”
7 “Alright then. I’ll fly off soon.”
7 Just as Old Huang and Old Cao finished discussing the first batch, the wristband was already gone from Yun Ce’s wrist.
7 A carrier pigeon flapped its wings into the sky, then shot like an arrow toward Daizhou.
7 In the afternoon, the gatherers from Gaoliang Mountain returned, excitedly preparing dinner, when a series of thunderclaps exploded in the sky.
7 Everyone looked up and saw that the previously clear blue sky was instantly covered in dark clouds. The dark clouds, carrying gales, swept over Gaoliang Mountain’s peak. Lightning like writhing golden snakes flashed through the thick dark clouds, striking one after another on the lofty peak atop Gaoliang Mountain.
7 With a crack, countless massive stones split from Gaoliang Mountain, carrying violent force as they tumbled down from the peak.
7 Old Huang personally saw Gaoliang Mountain’s high peak snap in half and plunge headlong into the deep gorge. He couldn’t help shouting: “Chuyun Prefecture Shehuo has escaped.”
