Chapter 56: Night Stay in a Remote Village

Ji Yuan walked alone on the official road north of Ning'an County, occasionally skipping and hopping, feeling extremely pleased.

He carried very little luggage: only the clothes he was wearing, a single bundle, and an umbrella. Inside the bundle were just one change of clothes, some copper coins and various small items, and about four jin of fresh dates, which took up half the space.

Ji Yuan's entire fortune, apart from a jade pendant given by Wei Wuwei, consisted of over one hundred forty taels of silver. He exchanged some of this for small silver pieces and copper coins, and most of the rest for a gold ingot.

Aside from his elders' gold jewelry, Ji Yuan had seen little gold in either of his lives. He had expected the ten-tael gold ingot to be quite large, but to his surprise, it was very small, even appearing miniature.

Ji Yuan strolled leisurely, taking out the gold ingot from his embrace to play with it again. This wasn't due to greed, but purely the feeling of having a new toy.

"Gold is really heavy!" he exclaimed, weighed it in his hand, and tucked it back into his inner pocket.

The reason Ji Yuan went to such lengths to exchange money was not that he didn't want to travel light. Rather, after several months, he had learned that the banking system in this world was nothing like the advanced one of his previous life. Cross-province banks were rare, let alone cross-prefecture ones. Silver notes from a local bank in Ning'an County could not be cashed elsewhere; he had to withdraw all his cash and carry it with him.

At this moment, Ji Yuan deeply envied Lu Shan Jun. He wondered about the structure of that guy's stomach—he could spit out such a large white tiger skin; perhaps his stomach itself was a treasure!

Even though he was on an official road, the scenery along the way remained beautiful, with vast fields and shady green trees everywhere. Many farmers were working in the fields, as it was peak farming season just before Mangzhong (Grain in Ear).

Although he could only see vaguely, the sounds of rice seedlings being planted in the water, the farmers' chatter, and the birdsong around him naturally helped him visualize the scene.

The clip-clop of hooves echoed from behind, accompanied by the riders' shouts and the cracking of whips.

"Hup! Gee-up… Gee-up!"

As the sounds drew nearer, Ji Yuan quickly moved to the side. A moment later, three horses galloped past in a line, raising a cloud of dust.

"Think you're great just because you have a horse!" Ji Yuan muttered under his breath, continuing his journey on foot.

Actually, Ji Yuan had initially thought about buying a horse, and he had enough silver for a decent one.

The problem was, firstly, Ji Yuan had never ridden a horse in either of his lives. Secondly, buying a horse wasn't just about riding it; he would also have to care for it—feeding, washing, and so on—which seemed incredibly troublesome.

He believed that with his current physical foundation, learning to ride wouldn't be difficult, but taking care of a horse was too cumbersome. So, Ji Yuan decided not to spend this considerable and unnecessary expense. After all, buying a good horse here was comparable to buying a car in his previous life; it wasn't worth it!

Anyway, Ji Yuan possessed some immortal arts, and his martial arts weren't bad either. With his movement technique, which incorporated the essence of a swimming dragon, how could he be inferior to a horse?

'Hmm, and it's more convenient!'

Despite what he told himself, seeing others ride majestic horses still evoked a strange feeling, like a child envying other children's beautiful toys.

He reached into a gap in the bundle on his back, pulled out two dates, bit into one, and then with a shift of his feet, he employed his light-stepping martial arts, darting forward like a streak of green shadow.

Ji Yuan had no intention of crossing mountains to travel. Even with his high martial arts, he was still half-blind. While rugged paths weren't impossible to navigate, they required too much mental effort. Moreover, he was still somewhat wary of Lu Shan Jun, the tiger spirit, and didn't want to test his luck.

He had meticulously studied the carved map on the paperweight, so for now, he didn't need to worry about losing his way on the official road. Once he went north out of Ning'an County, he would turn southeast and simply ask for directions when he found a city.

By comparing a few identifiable place names on the paperweight's carved map with the meaning of the characters in the Sword Intent Scroll and the hidden routes within the sword intent, Ji Yuan had spent some time figuring out that the tomb of the great hero Zuo was likely far away in Yizhou, and reaching it would take more than just a little while.

Therefore, Ji Yuan's current destination was Chunmu River, to see if he could find the old turtle.

Although Ji Yuan only knew it was roughly in the river section south of Chunhui Prefecture city, he believed that with Wei Wuwei's astuteness, he would certainly use various methods to extract specific details from the black-clad men first. There would be a good show to watch on the fifteenth of May.

***

Ning'an County was a remote, small county, primarily extending along Niukui Mountain, making its shape rather long and narrow. Ji Yuan traveled at times slowly, at times impulsively dashing, and by nightfall, he had already left the territory of Ning'an County.

Normally, he should have reached the neighboring Shunbao County, but in the middle section, the population gradually thinned out. For a long stretch, there were no fields to be seen, let alone people to ask for directions. So, Ji Yuan had no idea when he should turn southeast. Finally, he decided to take a chance, picking a wide road branching off to the southeast and simply continued walking forward.

This detour didn't feel good. For a long time, there was no sign of human habitation. As darkness fell, he finally spotted farmland in the distance. Without further thought, he immediately turned off the road and followed a small path along the fields. After a long while, a small village appeared in his sight.

There was a small river on the outskirts of the village; everything else was too dark to see clearly, but the reflection of the river water in the night was still discernible.

It seemed that Shunbao County was far less developed than Ning'an County.

Finding an inn in such a place was impossible. The best option was to ask for lodging from a household. Given that he was likely lost, finding a village at all was a stroke of luck.

***

By this time, most villagers who had been busy with farm work had already returned home, and few people were still outside.

Compared to the smooth official road, the small path at the village entrance was much rougher. Due to his vision and his quick pace, Ji Yuan stumbled occasionally, but his excellent balance prevented him from falling. He then wisely slowed down and regained his steady gait.

Of course, if he truly used his martial arts movement technique, he could have moved both steadily and quickly, but Ji Yuan wasn't there to show off. Moving too dramatically at night might make him appear like a ghost. Exaggerated movements could make the villagers uneasy. It was more convenient to act like a vulnerable traveler seeking sympathy to secure a place to stay and a meal.

Villagers at the entrance did notice someone approaching. Initially, they paid no mind, thinking it was someone returning late to the village, but then they realized it wasn't someone from their own village.

"Hey there! You upfront, who are you? What are you doing here?" an old man shouted at Ji Yuan, and some young, strong villagers came out of their houses carrying lit paper lanterns.

This era was not like his previous life. These remote villages often had fences around them at night, not just for wild beasts but also for bandits. Strangers needed to be carefully scrutinized to determine if they were good or bad.

"Old man! I am just a passerby. It's already dark, and my pace is slow. Traveling on the road at night is too frightening. Would it be convenient for me to stay in the village for a night?" Ji Yuan shouted his response, continuing to walk slowly towards the village entrance. He occasionally tapped the road symbolically with the tip of his umbrella to check for any protruding stones that might trip him.

As he drew closer, the villagers gathered at the entrance could make out Ji Yuan's general appearance: loose-sleeved robe, casually arranged hair at his temples, long hair draped over his back, and a wooden hairpin in his topknot. He looked quite refined.

They also noticed that while Ji Yuan mostly walked normally, he walked very slowly, and if he stumbled, he immediately poked the path ahead with his umbrella. They figured his eyesight must not be very good.

"Sir, your eyes...?"

"Oh, indeed, my eyesight is not good. Traveling at night is truly inconvenient. I hope you can allow me to stay for a night!"

Behind the wooden fence gate, the old man, wearing a hooded cap, took the lantern from the young villager beside him. He held it out a bit, carefully illuminating Ji Yuan, scrutinizing the shadow cast by his feet as the lantern light shifted, and then examining his complexion and eyes.

"Alright, sir, please wait a moment... Huzǐ, open the gate and let the gentleman in!"

Ji Yuan quickly raised his umbrella and bowed respectfully. "Thank you, thank you, many thanks to you all!"

Phew... Life is like a play, entirely dependent on acting. I, Ji, have a place to sleep tonight!

"Creak, creak..." The wooden pivots turned, producing a slightly grating sound, but Ji Yuan keenly noticed that the positions of the young villagers seemed strategic, and some of them appeared to be holding objects in their hands.

'Did I celebrate too soon?'

"Sir, please come in. This old man will help you!" Without waiting for Ji Yuan to speak, the old man stepped forward and took Ji Yuan's hand. As his hand met Ji Yuan's, he felt Ji Yuan's body temperature and immediately relaxed.

"Please don't mind us, sir. Come, come, let's go to this old man's house for some water!"

"Uh... alright!" Ji Yuan allowed the old man to assist him, and as he walked, he glanced at the villagers closing the gate and the others dispersing, pondering the implications.