Setting up a scene when going out – unfavorable year
This ancestral hall was not small, but with eight people entering at once, it felt a bit crowded.
These individuals were all dressed as martial artists, with narrow sleeves, short hems, and thick-soled boots.
–they carried their weapons wrapped in cloth and had leather pouches hanging from their waists.
These leather pouches weren’t for carrying money; they usually held hidden weapons, some even coated with poison.
The thick-soled boots, with their slightly upturned front, concealed hidden mechanisms, and the tips could shoot out a sharp blade. Don’t underestimate these small blades; aside from being used to surprise opponents in combat, their primary purpose was for emergencies.
For instance, when your hands were tied up, and someone else came to rescue you but couldn’t untie the knot, where else would you find a knife?
Or when severely injured and unable to move, facing a dangerous beast, a forceful kick might be enough to kill it.
These life-saving gadgets were highly esteemed by martial artists and wandering individuals, Qin Lu had mentioned them to Mo Li before. Xue Lingjun had even shown Mo Li some old items to examine, particularly a hidden weapon tube with a mechanism for multiple shots.
The characteristics of internal martial arts experts were apparent, easily discernible at a glance. However, those intricate mechanisms were different; they often had unremarkable exteriors that could easily be overlooked.
These people who arrived in the abandoned village late at night were undoubtedly seasoned martial artists.
Their hands were calloused, and their footsteps were heavy; they had a robust upper body, indicating that they trained in external martial arts.
Mo Li didn’t continue to observe them; he lowered his gaze and used his other hand to support the plump rat.
The sand rat only stirred slightly but remained asleep.
It seemed to be immersed in a dream; its round, plump body was covered in soft fur. When Mo Li touched it, he realized that the rat seemed a bit cold.
The warmth emanating from Mo Li’s undergarments was undoubtedly soothing.
The plump rat nuzzled closer, and its tiny claws subconsciously scratched a few times.
Mo Li’s body tensed.
Though the sand rat was small, its claws were not weak; after all, it needed them for digging burrows. The unconscious scratching seemed continuous, targeting the same spot, and unfortunately, that particular spot was the slightly bulging area on Mo Li’s right chest.
Aside from his outer clothes, Mo Li wasn’t wearing any more layers.
Due to the rising and falling of his chest while breathing and the sound of his heartbeat, combined with the refreshing fragrance of his body, to the plump rat, it felt like it was lying in a soft sand den. Nearby, the sound of a waterfall cascading into a lake could be heard.
The sand on the lakeshore had been basking in the sun all day, making it warm, and with no light around, it was pitch black—a safe nest.
It had been so long since it experienced such feelings.
—warm, clean, and a disturbance-free haven.
The plump rat certainly didn’t want to wake up.
It waved its paws, instinctively trying to dig the burrow a little deeper. Since it lacked strength while in slumber, and because its movements were too large to be safe, the digging action resembled more of a paw rubbing.
It went on intermittently—pause, rub, pause, rub.
Mo Li, unable to bear it any longer, nudged the sand rat through his clothes, shifting it to another spot.
—Why is this sand still moving?
The plump rat, feeling confused, grabbed onto Mo Li’s clothes, trying to steady itself.
Mo Li had to move again, concealing over half of his body in the shadow of the wall.
The few martial artists went outside and collected discarded pieces of wood, along with candles. The dim and cold ancestral hall brightened considerably as the flames danced, and they skewered their dried meat and bread together, roasting them over the fire.
The youngest among them had a scar on his forehead and noticed the clay pot next to Mo Li. Intrigued, he walked over.
The leader of the group had a purple-red face with a full beard, and he frowned, grabbing the young man to stop him from approaching.
“Old Eight, what are you doing?”
The young man smirked and replied, “Borrowing the clay pot to get everyone some hot water.”
The bearded leader pondered for a moment. It was a cold night, and the well water was too cold. They hadn’t brought any equipment to heat water. He cautioned, “It belongs to someone else. Ask properly and don’t just take it.”
The young man casually agreed and didn’t think much of it. He approached Mo Li and crouched down, asking, “Hey, scholar, can I borrow your clay pot?”
Mo Li shook his head and said, “This is the pot for brewing medicine. If you want to use it for boiling water, you’ll need to wash it several times and boil hot water to remove the smell inside. This village lacks water, and you can’t afford to waste it like this.”
The young man frowned when he sniffed the pot and confirmed the strong medicinal scent. He quickly stepped back, cursing his bad luck, and walked away.
“Big brother, I don’t think we should stay here; that guy is a cranky lunatic!”
“What are you saying?”
With a stern tone, the bearded man scolded the young man and then apologetically smiled at Mo Li. He grabbed the young man to the side to reprimand him, “Haven’t I taught you anything? You, a weak and powerless scholar, in such cold weather, why would you provoke someone? Leprosy causes coughing, but have you heard him coughing since you came in?”
“But he…”
The young man, even more agitated after being scolded, continued to argue, “But his attitude is terrible! I just borrowed a jar, and I’ll return it to him. Why did he say it’s a medicine jar? What bad luck!”
“But it really is a medicine jar. Do you want someone to deceive you?” The bearded man laughed at the young man’s reaction and playfully rubbed his head, scolding him, “Besides, who would want to wash the jar? Are you volunteering?”
At this point, several other men gathered around and handed the young man a piece of freshly roasted meat jerky, saying with a smile, “Big brother, don’t blame Little Eight. Two days ago, he was scolded by a scholar at the inn, and he’s still upset about it!”
“Yeah, I hate these poor scholars the most. They can’t even carry their own weight, yet they love to gossip and criticize others.” The young man deliberately raised his voice in complaint.
“That’s enough.”
The bearded man munched on a piece of bread while saying indistinctly, “It’s a rule in the martial world not to harm ordinary people who don’t know martial arts. They are not our kind. There are thousands of scholars in the world. If one scholar provokes you, it has nothing to do with other scholars. Why vent your anger on others for no reason? Besides, it was the middle of the night, and we disturbed their sleep. Why would you expect them to greet you with a smile?”
His voice became lower, inaudible to ordinary people, but not to Mo Li.
Physician Mo lowered his eyes and slowly touched the sand rat, pretending to be scared and patting his chest.
The young man glanced over and still felt unhappy. “It’s just an abandoned ancestral hall, not his place. Why can’t we come in?”
“Indeed, it’s not his place, but it’s not your place either!” The bearded man patted the ground next to him, saying, “Eat and rest now; the jerky can’t fill your mouth!”
Mo Li found a sheltered spot, and the men settled in another corner to make a fire.
As they roasted meat, the young man couldn’t help but ask quietly, “Big brother, what do you think about that scholar? When I entered earlier, I saw his face, and he looked like a girl.”
“What girl? Don’t be so surprised. This is what they call a handsome man.” The bearded man had a hint of ink in his stomach and chuckled, “People from the south are generally more refined than the men from the northern regions.”
The other men burst into laughter, teasing the youngest among them for thinking about women all the time as if he saw a girl in everyone he looked at. The young man blushed as he was teased, defending himself that it was just a figure of speech and not a genuine mistake.
“Come on, don’t act like you’ve never thought about women,” he retorted, and then he quickly exposed some secrets. He mentioned how the sixth brother was infatuated with a female martial artist from Jianghu, how the fourth brother couldn’t take his eyes off the inn’s landlady yesterday, and even how the bearded leader himself was caught hiding an embroidered handkerchief.
The situation escalated, and the young man’s head was playfully pushed down, forced to go to sleep.
Soon, the fire in the hearth gradually diminished, and the snores filled the temple.
After fumbling for a while, Mo Li finally settled the restless sand rat.
He could hear slight movements behind him and knew that the bearded leader was still awake, keeping watch.
Around the fourth watch, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from outside the village.
Mo Li felt puzzled as he had encountered General Liu several times before, so he knew the regularity of the military horses. However, the hoofbeats now sounded irregular and messy, and the materials of the horseshoes seemed different.
The bearded man quickly heard the commotion and immediately woke everyone up.
As the ancestral hall was still lit by the fire, they could be seen from afar despite the broken door. Now it was too late to extinguish the fire.
Soon, the sound of horse hooves arrived at the entrance of the ancestral hall, and the bearded man and his companions grabbed their weapons, alertly looking at the visitors.
A group of men wearing black ox-patterned cloaks arrogantly entered the hall.
The leader of the group was a man dressed like a young nobleman, in his thirties, who was even holding a gold-decorated folding fan in the freezing cold. He scanned the hall with disdain and said, “The Eight Tigers of Yudong? You third-rate characters also want to try your luck and find the emperor’s tomb treasure?”
Mo Li was startled.
The emperor’s tomb treasure? Which emperor’s tomb?
Due to their proximity to the capital, there were indeed several ancient emperor’s tombs in Yongzhou. However, during the chaotic times, most of the tombs had already been looted. Some were raided by the martial artists of Jianghu, and others by the rebellious military leaders in need of funds.
Mo Li huddled in a sheltered corner, concealing his aura to appear like an ordinary person. The dandy-looking young man didn’t even pay attention to him and mocked the Eight Tigers of Yudong, saying, “I suggest you all leave now if you want to save your lives. At least you might be able to salvage your dignity.”
With more than twenty people on the other side, and the leading young master being a formidable opponent, the Eight Tigers of Yudong dared not speak up in anger.
“Why don’t you scram? Do I have to drive you out?” sneered the young man.
The young man among the Eight Tigers of Yudong wanted to say something but was held back by the bearded man.
The young master’s followers didn’t hold back either. They took over the fire pit without any courtesy, bringing out various items.
They spread a thick blanket on the ground, set up a censer, and served themselves quite comfortably.
“The rule of Jianghu is ‘first come, first serve,’ but as long as your fist is bigger… later arrivals can still drive out the ones who came earlier.” The young master fanned himself leisurely and sat down comfortably. His followers brought out charcoal and iron skewers, hanging the best pieces of mutton over the fire and brushing them with sauce.
A mouthwatering aroma filled the air.
Mo Li felt the sand rat in his arms move a bit.
At first, he didn’t pay much attention, thinking the fragrance was simply due to the rare sauce.
Many spices came from the Western Regions, and their culinary skills with lamb were exceptional. Good spices were more precious than gold, and the recipes for seasoning were something ordinary people could never come across.
“We should leave!” said the bearded man in a determined tone, realizing that they had forgotten about the scholar inside the temple.
Just as he looked back, he saw Mo Li’s figure flash by, quickly bending down to pick up something.
His movements were incredibly fast, and many people couldn’t catch a clear glimpse.
The young nobleman’s smile froze, and he stood up abruptly, coldly asking, “It seems I, Qian Mou, have overlooked this fellow. I wonder what your esteemed name is, and which school you belong to?”
Mo Li calmly bent his fingers, giving the sand rat, who sleepwalked whenever it smelled something delicious, a gentle scolding.
The sand rat’s belly had been poked, and it finally woke up.
The surroundings were a bit dazzling, and Meng Qi could barely see the situation. He was shocked when he realized what was happening.
How did this happen? He remembered turning back into a rat before falling asleep!
“Don’t run around,” Mo Li said, putting the chubby rat back in his arms and patting it.
He thought Meng Qi was still in a state of blindness and deafness, unable to see or hear anything.
Slipping into his robe, Meng Qi, feeling the intimate touch, was stunned. He awkwardly moved his paws, but then he felt a hand grab him through the fabric, and he heard Mo Li’s low voice saying, “Stop rubbing your paws; you’ve been doing it all night.”
“…”
Meng Qi was at a loss, wondering what it meant to rub his paws all night.
What was even more terrifying was the strange sensation beneath his paws.
—The paws are too small, just the right fit, and there’s even room to spare!
On the other side, the Eight Tigers of Yudong saw Mo Li holding his chest and suddenly realized that he wasn’t scared by them during the night, but rather, he was afraid they would disturb the little creature in his arms.
“Big brother, did you see what it was?”
“It seemed white, maybe yellow,” the bearded man looked at the flickering firelight uncertainly, “It’s so small, could it be a baby bird?”
“Isn’t it suffocating to keep it in his arms?”
The young man spoke but saw Mo Li staring expressionlessly at him, recalling the incident when he offended the scholar earlier. He quickly retreated behind the bearded man in fear.
The aroma of the roasted lamb on the fire became even more enticing. Mo Li thought about opening his robe to let the sand rat breathe, but he was afraid the rat might get too weak and revert to its human form due to hunger.
Mo Li couldn’t help but glare at the lamb roasting over the fire. The young master, who had initially been irritated by Mo Li’s indifference, noticed the expression in his eyes and quickly came up with an idea. He forced a smile and said, “We meet by fate in the martial world, why don’t we sit down and have a chat? Qian Mou here has excellent wine and delicious meat. My Golden Phoenix Villa is not like those third-rate martial factions, too poor to afford even a sip of wine.”
Mo Li couldn’t care less about the nobleman’s fine wine and delicious meat.
The one interested in that was the chubby rat in his arms.
Its little paws moved again—
Mo Li keenly sensed the sand rat absorbing spiritual energy, but this place was quite barren, and it could only siphon a bit of energy from Mo Li, which was negligible to him. Besides, his inner strength quickly replenished itself.
If Meng Qi were to revert to his original form, how could they possibly hide it from these people in broad daylight? Mo Li didn’t have any hallucinogenic herbs on hand, and even if he knocked everyone out, there wouldn’t be enough time.
Mo Li’s mind raced, and he immediately raised his hand. A surge of invisible force instantly extinguished the fire.
Darkness surrounded them, and everyone was alarmed, pulling out their weapons.
There was a whizzing sound as if someone had rushed past, and then the sound of weapons clashing mixed with puzzled and angry cries.
After a while, the ancestral hall fell silent.
Mo Li stepped out, stopping the several followers of the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa who were trying to act. As for the frightened horses, he just circled around them, and they settled down again, continuing to eat the feed the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s followers had brought.
Taking advantage of the cover of night, Mo Li walked to a corner of the abandoned village and took out the chubby rat, placing it in his hand. He asked tentatively, “Are you hungry?”
“…”
No, it’s all because the mutton is too fragrant.
The aroma reminded Meng Qi of a restaurant in Taijing. Thirty years ago, there was a restaurant in Changping Lane where you could taste delicious dishes from all over the world. Among them, there was one called Hu Ji Restaurant, renowned for its roasted lamb.
Not only were the merchants and travelers fond of it, but even the sons of officials and nobles frequented the place.
Four or five of Meng Qi’s friends from back then preferred this taste, and the scent brought back many memories for him.
Among them, Minister Deng also loved the taste of this lamb. However, due to his busy official duties and advancing age, his family discouraged him from eating too much lamb. Occasionally, Minister Deng would secretly have someone buy some lamb, pack it in a food box along with letters, and send it to his study.
Deng, with his stubborn personality and eloquent tongue, often got into disputes and angered many people.
Later, Duke Jingyuan came up with a plan to rob Minister Deng of the lamb kept in his study.
So everyone took turns trying their luck—some switched the dishes halfway, while others deliberately paid a visit and then leaked the information to Lady Deng, making her confiscate the food angrily.
Meng Qi was the most successful at sneaking in without anyone knowing. Despite the guards stationed at the entrance, he transformed into a sand rat and entered through the window. He leisurely opened the food box, drank the excellent wine Minister Deng prepared, and then clapped his hands before leaving.
Everyone attributed his stealth to his martial skills, never suspecting that it was due to the presence of a sand rat.
Mo Li noticed the chubby rat squatting there without moving, and he wondered if Meng Qi, who had transformed into a rat, could eat lamb.
Physician Mo couldn’t make up his mind.
As a fish, he had never eaten anything in his memory. He had lived in an empty pool all along. Later, he was washed out by a flood and transformed into a child, and Qin Lu picked him up.
“…Brother Meng, can you hear me?” Mo Li asked.
Meng Qi nodded. Then he found that he was too small, and his cheeks were too plump. When he nodded, some who knew assumed he was agreeing, while those who didn’t thought his cheeks were shaking!
As a result, the chubby rat used its hind paw to tap Mo Li’s palm to show agreement.
“Feeling hungry? Why not transform back into your human form?” Mo Li suggested.
Meng Qi remained motionless, knowing that there were no clothes around.
Mo Li understood and said, “I’ll go into the ancestral hall to fetch them. You stay here.”
The abandoned village was filled with half-collapsed walls, just enough to hide a person’s waist down. Since it was still dark outside, it wasn’t too embarrassing.
When Mo Li returned with the clothes, he didn’t find Meng Qi.
However, he didn’t panic this time and carefully searched. Sure enough, he spotted the chubby rat in the distance.
“What’s wrong?” Mo Li asked.
“…”
The sand rat remained despondent and didn’t move back to human form.
Mo Li touched its belly, and his fingertips sank into the long fur and flesh.
“Hmm?” Mo Li noticed that the sand rat’s fur had grown slightly longer.
Thinking it was still in the recovery phase, Mo Li didn’t pay much attention to it. He put the sand rat back on his shoulder and, carrying the clothes, returned to the pitch-dark ancestral hall.
The candle was still on the stone platform, and Mo Li lit it again with a fire starter.
The hall was a mess, with people lying in all directions. Everyone had been hit in their acupoints, and the Eight Tigers of Yudong managed to maintain a standing posture, facing the outside of the ancestral hall. It was evident that during the chaos, they had intended to escape.
The Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s people could only see Mo Li’s shoes and robe hem.
As for the Eight Tigers of Yudong, they couldn’t see anything but the candle being relit.
Suddenly, they felt a powerful gust of wind sweep through their acupoints. Although they couldn’t move, they could now speak.
The leader of the Eight Tigers of Yudong immediately said, “We brothers were blind and offended the senior. We are willing to apologize.”
Naturally, Mo Li didn’t need them to apologize. But to prevent the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s people from causing trouble for the Eight Tigers of Yudong, he maintained an air of authority and responded nonchalantly, “Someone just mentioned that the rule in the martial world is first come, first served. If you have the strength, you can drive away those ahead of you. Isn’t that the righteous way?”
Upon hearing this, the Eight Tigers of Yudong knew that the ones in trouble were not them, and they breathed a sigh of relief.
“What the senior says is correct… Ah, no, those behind shouldn’t have entered the door in the first place,” the young man said sorrowfully.
The bearded man shot a glare at his sworn brother and quickly added, “Senior, we brothers need to continue our journey and won’t linger any longer.”
Mo Li thought about it. Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa seemed quite powerful, and the Eight Tigers of Yudong probably couldn’t afford to provoke them. Even if he allowed them to rest, they would still feel troubled. So he promptly unblocked their acupoints from a distance.
The Eight Tigers of Yudong ran without looking back, and they happened to have their bags packed when they were driven away by the Golden Phoenix Young Master earlier, so they were able to escape quickly.
As the fire died down, the aroma of the lamb also diminished significantly.
However, at this moment, it was torture for the Golden Phoenix Vill’s Young Master, who had been on the road for the entire night and was already hungry.
Mo Li felt that while these people were arrogant, they didn’t call for violence, so he just left them there and casually unblocked one person’s acupoint to ask, “What’s the deal with the Emperor’s Tomb Treasure?”
The chubby rat’s ears perked up.
The man rolled his eyes, cautiously saying, “Two years ago, there was a fierce struggle in the martial world over a rare treasure called the Golden Silk Armor, which was as thin as cicada wings and impenetrable by blades or spears. Many factions got involved, resulting in numerous casualties. However, the whereabouts of the Golden Silk Armor remain unknown. Recently, the Qingwu Ancestor issued a statement, claiming that this treasure is an ancient artifact from the former dynasty…”
“Which former dynasty?”
Mo Li asked, and it was something Meng Qi wanted to know too. There were so many former dynasties nowadays.
In the past, when people mentioned “the former dynasty”, it indeed referred to the dynasty that came before the current one. However, in recent times, when people talk about “the former dynasty,” it could mean either the Chu Dynasty or the Chen Dynasty, as historical references may vary depending on the context or region.
Although the man was terrified, he knew that many people in the martial world were already aware of this news, so he divulged everything.
“It was from the palace of the Chen Dynasty, a masterpiece by the renowned craftsman Gongshu Ye. Later, it was buried with Emperor Li of Chen.”
“…So if the Golden Silk Armor resurfaces, does it mean Emperor Li’s tomb has been plundered?”
Mo Li thought about many things in an instant, sensing that there was more to this matter.
Emperor Li of the Chen Dynasty had been buried for many years, and unless there was an accident, the mercury in the tomb wouldn’t have leaked outside, nor would it affect the Dragon Veins of Taijing.
“So, you guys are going to Taijing and Mount Yunshan to find the Emperor’s Tomb Treasure? How many people are involved?”
“This news has spread throughout the Yuzhou region and even reached more distant places. Various factions are rushing there. The tomb of Emperor Li of Chen contains thousands of burial items, each of immeasurable value. Who wouldn’t be tempted?”
Author’s Note:
Crowd: Emperor’s Tomb Treasure!!
The Dragon Vein of Taijing: Robbing the Tomb? Did you get my permission?
————–
I thought of eight mountain names, and all of them actually exist in reality… In the end, I gave up struggling OTZ
————–
Question: What does it feel like to sleep with your head on your loved one’s chest?
Meng Qi: It feels incredibly vivid, like on a serene moonlit night with a roaring waterfall nearby, the flowing lake (a poetic and picturesque description), and the ground rhythmically trembling (the referee starts adjusting their glasses), lying in a warm sandpit with flowing sand making strange sounds…
Referee: 0 points.
Setting up a scene when going out – unfavorable year
This ancestral hall was not small, but with eight people entering at once, it felt a bit crowded.
These individuals were all dressed as martial artists, with narrow sleeves, short hems, and thick-soled boots.
–they carried their weapons wrapped in cloth and had leather pouches hanging from their waists.
These leather pouches weren’t for carrying money; they usually held hidden weapons, some even coated with poison.
The thick-soled boots, with their slightly upturned front, concealed hidden mechanisms, and the tips could shoot out a sharp blade. Don’t underestimate these small blades; aside from being used to surprise opponents in combat, their primary purpose was for emergencies.
For instance, when your hands were tied up, and someone else came to rescue you but couldn’t untie the knot, where else would you find a knife?
Or when severely injured and unable to move, facing a dangerous beast, a forceful kick might be enough to kill it.
These life-saving gadgets were highly esteemed by martial artists and wandering individuals, Qin Lu had mentioned them to Mo Li before. Xue Lingjun had even shown Mo Li some old items to examine, particularly a hidden weapon tube with a mechanism for multiple shots.
The characteristics of internal martial arts experts were apparent, easily discernible at a glance. However, those intricate mechanisms were different; they often had unremarkable exteriors that could easily be overlooked.
These people who arrived in the abandoned village late at night were undoubtedly seasoned martial artists.
Their hands were calloused, and their footsteps were heavy; they had a robust upper body, indicating that they trained in external martial arts.
Mo Li didn’t continue to observe them; he lowered his gaze and used his other hand to support the plump rat.
The sand rat only stirred slightly but remained asleep.
It seemed to be immersed in a dream; its round, plump body was covered in soft fur. When Mo Li touched it, he realized that the rat seemed a bit cold.
The warmth emanating from Mo Li’s undergarments was undoubtedly soothing.
The plump rat nuzzled closer, and its tiny claws subconsciously scratched a few times.
Mo Li’s body tensed.
Though the sand rat was small, its claws were not weak; after all, it needed them for digging burrows. The unconscious scratching seemed continuous, targeting the same spot, and unfortunately, that particular spot was the slightly bulging area on Mo Li’s right chest.
Aside from his outer clothes, Mo Li wasn’t wearing any more layers.
Due to the rising and falling of his chest while breathing and the sound of his heartbeat, combined with the refreshing fragrance of his body, to the plump rat, it felt like it was lying in a soft sand den. Nearby, the sound of a waterfall cascading into a lake could be heard.
The sand on the lakeshore had been basking in the sun all day, making it warm, and with no light around, it was pitch black—a safe nest.
It had been so long since it experienced such feelings.
—warm, clean, and a disturbance-free haven.
The plump rat certainly didn’t want to wake up.
It waved its paws, instinctively trying to dig the burrow a little deeper. Since it lacked strength while in slumber, and because its movements were too large to be safe, the digging action resembled more of a paw rubbing.
It went on intermittently—pause, rub, pause, rub.
Mo Li, unable to bear it any longer, nudged the sand rat through his clothes, shifting it to another spot.
—Why is this sand still moving?
The plump rat, feeling confused, grabbed onto Mo Li’s clothes, trying to steady itself.
Mo Li had to move again, concealing over half of his body in the shadow of the wall.
The few martial artists went outside and collected discarded pieces of wood, along with candles. The dim and cold ancestral hall brightened considerably as the flames danced, and they skewered their dried meat and bread together, roasting them over the fire.
The youngest among them had a scar on his forehead and noticed the clay pot next to Mo Li. Intrigued, he walked over.
The leader of the group had a purple-red face with a full beard, and he frowned, grabbing the young man to stop him from approaching.
“Old Eight, what are you doing?”
The young man smirked and replied, “Borrowing the clay pot to get everyone some hot water.”
The bearded leader pondered for a moment. It was a cold night, and the well water was too cold. They hadn’t brought any equipment to heat water. He cautioned, “It belongs to someone else. Ask properly and don’t just take it.”
The young man casually agreed and didn’t think much of it. He approached Mo Li and crouched down, asking, “Hey, scholar, can I borrow your clay pot?”
Mo Li shook his head and said, “This is the pot for brewing medicine. If you want to use it for boiling water, you’ll need to wash it several times and boil hot water to remove the smell inside. This village lacks water, and you can’t afford to waste it like this.”
The young man frowned when he sniffed the pot and confirmed the strong medicinal scent. He quickly stepped back, cursing his bad luck, and walked away.
“Big brother, I don’t think we should stay here; that guy is a cranky lunatic!”
“What are you saying?”
With a stern tone, the bearded man scolded the young man and then apologetically smiled at Mo Li. He grabbed the young man to the side to reprimand him, “Haven’t I taught you anything? You, a weak and powerless scholar, in such cold weather, why would you provoke someone? Leprosy causes coughing, but have you heard him coughing since you came in?”
“But he…”
The young man, even more agitated after being scolded, continued to argue, “But his attitude is terrible! I just borrowed a jar, and I’ll return it to him. Why did he say it’s a medicine jar? What bad luck!”
“But it really is a medicine jar. Do you want someone to deceive you?” The bearded man laughed at the young man’s reaction and playfully rubbed his head, scolding him, “Besides, who would want to wash the jar? Are you volunteering?”
At this point, several other men gathered around and handed the young man a piece of freshly roasted meat jerky, saying with a smile, “Big brother, don’t blame Little Eight. Two days ago, he was scolded by a scholar at the inn, and he’s still upset about it!”
“Yeah, I hate these poor scholars the most. They can’t even carry their own weight, yet they love to gossip and criticize others.” The young man deliberately raised his voice in complaint.
“That’s enough.”
The bearded man munched on a piece of bread while saying indistinctly, “It’s a rule in the martial world not to harm ordinary people who don’t know martial arts. They are not our kind. There are thousands of scholars in the world. If one scholar provokes you, it has nothing to do with other scholars. Why vent your anger on others for no reason? Besides, it was the middle of the night, and we disturbed their sleep. Why would you expect them to greet you with a smile?”
His voice became lower, inaudible to ordinary people, but not to Mo Li.
Physician Mo lowered his eyes and slowly touched the sand rat, pretending to be scared and patting his chest.
The young man glanced over and still felt unhappy. “It’s just an abandoned ancestral hall, not his place. Why can’t we come in?”
“Indeed, it’s not his place, but it’s not your place either!” The bearded man patted the ground next to him, saying, “Eat and rest now; the jerky can’t fill your mouth!”
Mo Li found a sheltered spot, and the men settled in another corner to make a fire.
As they roasted meat, the young man couldn’t help but ask quietly, “Big brother, what do you think about that scholar? When I entered earlier, I saw his face, and he looked like a girl.”
“What girl? Don’t be so surprised. This is what they call a handsome man.” The bearded man had a hint of ink in his stomach and chuckled, “People from the south are generally more refined than the men from the northern regions.”
The other men burst into laughter, teasing the youngest among them for thinking about women all the time as if he saw a girl in everyone he looked at. The young man blushed as he was teased, defending himself that it was just a figure of speech and not a genuine mistake.
“Come on, don’t act like you’ve never thought about women,” he retorted, and then he quickly exposed some secrets. He mentioned how the sixth brother was infatuated with a female martial artist from Jianghu, how the fourth brother couldn’t take his eyes off the inn’s landlady yesterday, and even how the bearded leader himself was caught hiding an embroidered handkerchief.
The situation escalated, and the young man’s head was playfully pushed down, forced to go to sleep.
Soon, the fire in the hearth gradually diminished, and the snores filled the temple.
After fumbling for a while, Mo Li finally settled the restless sand rat.
He could hear slight movements behind him and knew that the bearded leader was still awake, keeping watch.
Around the fourth watch, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from outside the village.
Mo Li felt puzzled as he had encountered General Liu several times before, so he knew the regularity of the military horses. However, the hoofbeats now sounded irregular and messy, and the materials of the horseshoes seemed different.
The bearded man quickly heard the commotion and immediately woke everyone up.
As the ancestral hall was still lit by the fire, they could be seen from afar despite the broken door. Now it was too late to extinguish the fire.
Soon, the sound of horse hooves arrived at the entrance of the ancestral hall, and the bearded man and his companions grabbed their weapons, alertly looking at the visitors.
A group of men wearing black ox-patterned cloaks arrogantly entered the hall.
The leader of the group was a man dressed like a young nobleman, in his thirties, who was even holding a gold-decorated folding fan in the freezing cold. He scanned the hall with disdain and said, “The Eight Tigers of Yudong? You third-rate characters also want to try your luck and find the emperor’s tomb treasure?”
Mo Li was startled.
The emperor’s tomb treasure? Which emperor’s tomb?
Due to their proximity to the capital, there were indeed several ancient emperor’s tombs in Yongzhou. However, during the chaotic times, most of the tombs had already been looted. Some were raided by the martial artists of Jianghu, and others by the rebellious military leaders in need of funds.
Mo Li huddled in a sheltered corner, concealing his aura to appear like an ordinary person. The dandy-looking young man didn’t even pay attention to him and mocked the Eight Tigers of Yudong, saying, “I suggest you all leave now if you want to save your lives. At least you might be able to salvage your dignity.”
With more than twenty people on the other side, and the leading young master being a formidable opponent, the Eight Tigers of Yudong dared not speak up in anger.
“Why don’t you scram? Do I have to drive you out?” sneered the young man.
The young man among the Eight Tigers of Yudong wanted to say something but was held back by the bearded man.
The young master’s followers didn’t hold back either. They took over the fire pit without any courtesy, bringing out various items.
They spread a thick blanket on the ground, set up a censer, and served themselves quite comfortably.
“The rule of Jianghu is ‘first come, first serve,’ but as long as your fist is bigger… later arrivals can still drive out the ones who came earlier.” The young master fanned himself leisurely and sat down comfortably. His followers brought out charcoal and iron skewers, hanging the best pieces of mutton over the fire and brushing them with sauce.
A mouthwatering aroma filled the air.
Mo Li felt the sand rat in his arms move a bit.
At first, he didn’t pay much attention, thinking the fragrance was simply due to the rare sauce.
Many spices came from the Western Regions, and their culinary skills with lamb were exceptional. Good spices were more precious than gold, and the recipes for seasoning were something ordinary people could never come across.
“We should leave!” said the bearded man in a determined tone, realizing that they had forgotten about the scholar inside the temple.
Just as he looked back, he saw Mo Li’s figure flash by, quickly bending down to pick up something.
His movements were incredibly fast, and many people couldn’t catch a clear glimpse.
The young nobleman’s smile froze, and he stood up abruptly, coldly asking, “It seems I, Qian Mou, have overlooked this fellow. I wonder what your esteemed name is, and which school you belong to?”
Mo Li calmly bent his fingers, giving the sand rat, who sleepwalked whenever it smelled something delicious, a gentle scolding.
The sand rat’s belly had been poked, and it finally woke up.
The surroundings were a bit dazzling, and Meng Qi could barely see the situation. He was shocked when he realized what was happening.
How did this happen? He remembered turning back into a rat before falling asleep!
“Don’t run around,” Mo Li said, putting the chubby rat back in his arms and patting it.
He thought Meng Qi was still in a state of blindness and deafness, unable to see or hear anything.
Slipping into his robe, Meng Qi, feeling the intimate touch, was stunned. He awkwardly moved his paws, but then he felt a hand grab him through the fabric, and he heard Mo Li’s low voice saying, “Stop rubbing your paws; you’ve been doing it all night.”
“…”
Meng Qi was at a loss, wondering what it meant to rub his paws all night.
What was even more terrifying was the strange sensation beneath his paws.
—The paws are too small, just the right fit, and there’s even room to spare!
On the other side, the Eight Tigers of Yudong saw Mo Li holding his chest and suddenly realized that he wasn’t scared by them during the night, but rather, he was afraid they would disturb the little creature in his arms.
“Big brother, did you see what it was?”
“It seemed white, maybe yellow,” the bearded man looked at the flickering firelight uncertainly, “It’s so small, could it be a baby bird?”
“Isn’t it suffocating to keep it in his arms?”
The young man spoke but saw Mo Li staring expressionlessly at him, recalling the incident when he offended the scholar earlier. He quickly retreated behind the bearded man in fear.
The aroma of the roasted lamb on the fire became even more enticing. Mo Li thought about opening his robe to let the sand rat breathe, but he was afraid the rat might get too weak and revert to its human form due to hunger.
Mo Li couldn’t help but glare at the lamb roasting over the fire. The young master, who had initially been irritated by Mo Li’s indifference, noticed the expression in his eyes and quickly came up with an idea. He forced a smile and said, “We meet by fate in the martial world, why don’t we sit down and have a chat? Qian Mou here has excellent wine and delicious meat. My Golden Phoenix Villa is not like those third-rate martial factions, too poor to afford even a sip of wine.”
Mo Li couldn’t care less about the nobleman’s fine wine and delicious meat.
The one interested in that was the chubby rat in his arms.
Its little paws moved again—
Mo Li keenly sensed the sand rat absorbing spiritual energy, but this place was quite barren, and it could only siphon a bit of energy from Mo Li, which was negligible to him. Besides, his inner strength quickly replenished itself.
If Meng Qi were to revert to his original form, how could they possibly hide it from these people in broad daylight? Mo Li didn’t have any hallucinogenic herbs on hand, and even if he knocked everyone out, there wouldn’t be enough time.
Mo Li’s mind raced, and he immediately raised his hand. A surge of invisible force instantly extinguished the fire.
Darkness surrounded them, and everyone was alarmed, pulling out their weapons.
There was a whizzing sound as if someone had rushed past, and then the sound of weapons clashing mixed with puzzled and angry cries.
After a while, the ancestral hall fell silent.
Mo Li stepped out, stopping the several followers of the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa who were trying to act. As for the frightened horses, he just circled around them, and they settled down again, continuing to eat the feed the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s followers had brought.
Taking advantage of the cover of night, Mo Li walked to a corner of the abandoned village and took out the chubby rat, placing it in his hand. He asked tentatively, “Are you hungry?”
“…”
No, it’s all because the mutton is too fragrant.
The aroma reminded Meng Qi of a restaurant in Taijing. Thirty years ago, there was a restaurant in Changping Lane where you could taste delicious dishes from all over the world. Among them, there was one called Hu Ji Restaurant, renowned for its roasted lamb.
Not only were the merchants and travelers fond of it, but even the sons of officials and nobles frequented the place.
Four or five of Meng Qi’s friends from back then preferred this taste, and the scent brought back many memories for him.
Among them, Minister Deng also loved the taste of this lamb. However, due to his busy official duties and advancing age, his family discouraged him from eating too much lamb. Occasionally, Minister Deng would secretly have someone buy some lamb, pack it in a food box along with letters, and send it to his study.
Deng, with his stubborn personality and eloquent tongue, often got into disputes and angered many people.
Later, Duke Jingyuan came up with a plan to rob Minister Deng of the lamb kept in his study.
So everyone took turns trying their luck—some switched the dishes halfway, while others deliberately paid a visit and then leaked the information to Lady Deng, making her confiscate the food angrily.
Meng Qi was the most successful at sneaking in without anyone knowing. Despite the guards stationed at the entrance, he transformed into a sand rat and entered through the window. He leisurely opened the food box, drank the excellent wine Minister Deng prepared, and then clapped his hands before leaving.
Everyone attributed his stealth to his martial skills, never suspecting that it was due to the presence of a sand rat.
Mo Li noticed the chubby rat squatting there without moving, and he wondered if Meng Qi, who had transformed into a rat, could eat lamb.
Physician Mo couldn’t make up his mind.
As a fish, he had never eaten anything in his memory. He had lived in an empty pool all along. Later, he was washed out by a flood and transformed into a child, and Qin Lu picked him up.
“…Brother Meng, can you hear me?” Mo Li asked.
Meng Qi nodded. Then he found that he was too small, and his cheeks were too plump. When he nodded, some who knew assumed he was agreeing, while those who didn’t thought his cheeks were shaking!
As a result, the chubby rat used its hind paw to tap Mo Li’s palm to show agreement.
“Feeling hungry? Why not transform back into your human form?” Mo Li suggested.
Meng Qi remained motionless, knowing that there were no clothes around.
Mo Li understood and said, “I’ll go into the ancestral hall to fetch them. You stay here.”
The abandoned village was filled with half-collapsed walls, just enough to hide a person’s waist down. Since it was still dark outside, it wasn’t too embarrassing.
When Mo Li returned with the clothes, he didn’t find Meng Qi.
However, he didn’t panic this time and carefully searched. Sure enough, he spotted the chubby rat in the distance.
“What’s wrong?” Mo Li asked.
“…”
The sand rat remained despondent and didn’t move back to human form.
Mo Li touched its belly, and his fingertips sank into the long fur and flesh.
“Hmm?” Mo Li noticed that the sand rat’s fur had grown slightly longer.
Thinking it was still in the recovery phase, Mo Li didn’t pay much attention to it. He put the sand rat back on his shoulder and, carrying the clothes, returned to the pitch-dark ancestral hall.
The candle was still on the stone platform, and Mo Li lit it again with a fire starter.
The hall was a mess, with people lying in all directions. Everyone had been hit in their acupoints, and the Eight Tigers of Yudong managed to maintain a standing posture, facing the outside of the ancestral hall. It was evident that during the chaos, they had intended to escape.
The Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s people could only see Mo Li’s shoes and robe hem.
As for the Eight Tigers of Yudong, they couldn’t see anything but the candle being relit.
Suddenly, they felt a powerful gust of wind sweep through their acupoints. Although they couldn’t move, they could now speak.
The leader of the Eight Tigers of Yudong immediately said, “We brothers were blind and offended the senior. We are willing to apologize.”
Naturally, Mo Li didn’t need them to apologize. But to prevent the Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa’s people from causing trouble for the Eight Tigers of Yudong, he maintained an air of authority and responded nonchalantly, “Someone just mentioned that the rule in the martial world is first come, first served. If you have the strength, you can drive away those ahead of you. Isn’t that the righteous way?”
Upon hearing this, the Eight Tigers of Yudong knew that the ones in trouble were not them, and they breathed a sigh of relief.
“What the senior says is correct… Ah, no, those behind shouldn’t have entered the door in the first place,” the young man said sorrowfully.
The bearded man shot a glare at his sworn brother and quickly added, “Senior, we brothers need to continue our journey and won’t linger any longer.”
Mo Li thought about it. Golden Phoenix Mountain Villa seemed quite powerful, and the Eight Tigers of Yudong probably couldn’t afford to provoke them. Even if he allowed them to rest, they would still feel troubled. So he promptly unblocked their acupoints from a distance.
The Eight Tigers of Yudong ran without looking back, and they happened to have their bags packed when they were driven away by the Golden Phoenix Young Master earlier, so they were able to escape quickly.
As the fire died down, the aroma of the lamb also diminished significantly.
However, at this moment, it was torture for the Golden Phoenix Vill’s Young Master, who had been on the road for the entire night and was already hungry.
Mo Li felt that while these people were arrogant, they didn’t call for violence, so he just left them there and casually unblocked one person’s acupoint to ask, “What’s the deal with the Emperor’s Tomb Treasure?”
The chubby rat’s ears perked up.
The man rolled his eyes, cautiously saying, “Two years ago, there was a fierce struggle in the martial world over a rare treasure called the Golden Silk Armor, which was as thin as cicada wings and impenetrable by blades or spears. Many factions got involved, resulting in numerous casualties. However, the whereabouts of the Golden Silk Armor remain unknown. Recently, the Qingwu Ancestor issued a statement, claiming that this treasure is an ancient artifact from the former dynasty…”
“Which former dynasty?”
Mo Li asked, and it was something Meng Qi wanted to know too. There were so many former dynasties nowadays.
In the past, when people mentioned “the former dynasty”, it indeed referred to the dynasty that came before the current one. However, in recent times, when people talk about “the former dynasty,” it could mean either the Chu Dynasty or the Chen Dynasty, as historical references may vary depending on the context or region.
Although the man was terrified, he knew that many people in the martial world were already aware of this news, so he divulged everything.
“It was from the palace of the Chen Dynasty, a masterpiece by the renowned craftsman Gongshu Ye. Later, it was buried with Emperor Li of Chen.”
“…So if the Golden Silk Armor resurfaces, does it mean Emperor Li’s tomb has been plundered?”
Mo Li thought about many things in an instant, sensing that there was more to this matter.
Emperor Li of the Chen Dynasty had been buried for many years, and unless there was an accident, the mercury in the tomb wouldn’t have leaked outside, nor would it affect the Dragon Veins of Taijing.
“So, you guys are going to Taijing and Mount Yunshan to find the Emperor’s Tomb Treasure? How many people are involved?”
“This news has spread throughout the Yuzhou region and even reached more distant places. Various factions are rushing there. The tomb of Emperor Li of Chen contains thousands of burial items, each of immeasurable value. Who wouldn’t be tempted?”
Author’s Note:
Crowd: Emperor’s Tomb Treasure!!
The Dragon Vein of Taijing: Robbing the Tomb? Did you get my permission?
————–
I thought of eight mountain names, and all of them actually exist in reality… In the end, I gave up struggling OTZ
————–
Question: What does it feel like to sleep with your head on your loved one’s chest?
Meng Qi: It feels incredibly vivid, like on a serene moonlit night with a roaring waterfall nearby, the flowing lake (a poetic and picturesque description), and the ground rhythmically trembling (the referee starts adjusting their glasses), lying in a warm sandpit with flowing sand making strange sounds…
Referee: 0 points.
