Beware Of Chicken Chapter Volume 1 5: Verdant Hill

Jin could easily have departed at dawn, leaving everyone far behind as they journeyed toward the city.

Yet, he assisted in piling up several mushroom crates while her younger brother hung onto his back like a little primate. Even Meihua's father lent him an ox for the voyage to the town, sparing him from hauling his own burdens, in gratitude for his aid that hastened the preparations substantially.

Currently, her father shot her meaningful glances and grinned slyly whenever he noticed her staring at Jin.

He refused to accept their story of simply discovering and driving away a wolf. Instead, he imagined they had slipped away for... alternative pursuits. Such as exchanging kisses under the moon's glow, or other absurd notions. This suspicion worsened because he had totally disregarded her when she shared her real name, persisting in addressing her as Meimei.

She huffed and plunged her attention back into the medical scroll. As though any fellow would desire that with skinny, spotty Meiling.

From the side of her vision, she spotted a wagon beginning to tilt, its wheel caught in a rut.

Jin hoisted it free with a single hand, never faltering in his pace, and tossed a wink her way when he saw her gaze.

She frowned and averted her eyes, flushes of crimson blooming across her cheeks.

That rogue.

///////

The Great Master had been absent for two full days, and during that time, Bi De had guarded the Great Master’s coop diligently. No challengers had approached him yet, and none like Basi Bu Shi’s kind prowled in the darkness anymore. He clutched a twig in his beak, split repeatedly to create bristles, using it to brush aside the soil that sought to encroach where it did not belong. In time, he could employ his wings for this task, but not quite now. The remedies from his Great Master proved extraordinarily effective, transforming a potentially fatal wound into a trivial setback. Though reluctant to ingest such precious materials, the Great Master’s kindness was too generous to decline.

He patrolled his master’s fields and attempted to infuse them as the Great Master did. His attempts paled ridiculously beside those of the Great Master, highlighting the immense divide separating them. On the initial day, simply caring for the herb containers left him collapsed on the earth, wheezing and lightheaded from the effort, with scarcely enough vigor to feed on the minor creatures that ventured to devour the plants. His master managed the whole Great Fa Ram effortlessly, without a drop of perspiration. Indeed, the Great Master’s strength surpassed Bi De’s present understanding.

He returned to his own enclosure, located amid the area with all the hens. They proved... underwhelming to him in certain respects. They lacked the same fire he possessed, even after being near the Great Master and sometimes nibbling on a portion of the Heavenly Herb.

He pondered the reason, but failed to arrive at a convincing explanation. It lay beyond his current grasp.

He ruffled his feathers and resumed tending to the Great Fa Ram.

////////

Verdant Hill appeared over the rise. The settlement housed roughly two thousand residents atop a hill. In contrast to Meimei’s tiny hamlet of around fifty souls, Verdant Hill boasted sturdy walls and a grand, palace-like administrative structure at its heart.

The members of our modest caravan marveled at our swift progress. Typically, they reached the place late on the second day, yet this occasion saw us entering Verdant Hill at the early hours of that same day. The route wasn’t overly long, but navigating the rugged, undulating terrain proved challenging. To label them simple hills understated it; they bordered on mountains, forcing the wagons to proceed in a single line.

The landscape in this region felt truly peculiar. Numerous craters dotted the path as well. I might need to mend those, at least to ease my own travels.

Our group consisted of Meimei, her younger sibling Xian, her father—also called Xian—the bride-to-be (Meihua), her father (Yao Che), and a pair of additional youths (Gou Ren and Yun Ren), tasked with aiding in unloading the mushrooms and various wares.

The sentries recognized Meimei’s father and permitted our entry without hassle. I offered a bow to Yao Che to express thanks for the loaned ox... despite not using it at all.

His intention mattered, and I valued his kindness immensely. We planned to reconvene at the inn afterward. We intended to lodge there for the night at minimum, possibly an extra one. After securing the beasts and fastening our wagons, we parted ways. Meimei received orders from her father to deliver a flask of what I presumed was liquor to “Brother Bao,” while the others headed to the market to trade mushrooms.

Priority first: time to (ideally) identify the odd root. It remained at the farm, but my sketch captured it reasonably well.

I sensed Meimei’s gaze following me as I departed. Our paths converged in the same direction.

“You headed to the Archives too?” I inquired, and after a wary glance, she confirmed with a nod.

Silence hung between us as we strolled, until Meimei broke it.

“What are you looking for at the Archives? I may be able to help you find it.” she offered.

“Trying to get out of making dumplings for me by doing me a different favour, Meimei?” I teased. The girl rolled her eyes, but I could tell she was amused, while I chuckled. “I take it you’re familiar with the Archives then?”

“Father used to be an Imperial clerk, before he had to go back to the village and take up grandfather’s place when he passed. I spent most of my childhood in the Archives.” She replied, and once more had her “watching cat look” on her face, gauging my reaction.

“Great!” I replied, and she looked shocked at my statement, “I don’t know what exactly I’m looking for, but I sketched it down. A root of some kind, wanted to know what it was.”

I took out the picture, and the notes I had made, and handed it over to Meimei.

She recovered quickly though, and accepted my drawing as we reached the Archives. It wasn’t particularly large, but His Imperial Majesty had decreed that every town and city have one, along with a collection of standardized books and scrolls, and some more local knowledge. It also had land and tax records, and everything else an archive should have.

“Well… come on then, I know the First Archivist, so we can start with him.” Meimei muttered, looking at my drawing. “I’m not supposed to be able to look at the advanced scrolls, now that father isn’t part of the Imperial clerks anymore… but Uncle Bao lets me anyways.”

“Ah, Lady Hong Meiling, she with friends in high places.” I said, putting on my most “courtly” voice, and Meimei actually laughed out loud, smiling brightly, before she realised what she was doing, and her smile dimmed.

She kept a cute little smirk though.

We ascended the stairs, the guards once more just waving Meimei through, and giving me an odd look, but then just shrugging and resuming their watch with bored expressions.

“Uncle!” Meimei called, and we were rewarded with a happy gasp.

Uncle Bao was.. Well, bao shaped. A very rotund, balding man, but he looked jolly, with many smile lines on his face.

“Mei’er! Daughter of my Brother Xian! It’s so good to see you again!” he exclaimed, and waddled around his desk so he could embrace Meimei, who contrary to my expectations seemed happy with the treatment.

“It’s good to see you too uncle. Father sends his regards, and prays that you meet him at the usual place.”

Bao beamed at her, accepting the alcohol jug. “I shan’t miss it, Mei’er!”

He then turned to me, his eyes suddenly piercing. “And who does stand before me here?” he demanded of me.

I smiled at him, and made the proper gesture of courtesy. Thank god for Jin’s memories, otherwise I would have fucked up which hand went where.

“This one’s name is Jin Rou. I greet you, and hope that you have good health, First Archivist.” I replied.

“Hes a friend of our family, uncle.” Mei whispered to him. “Father trusts him.”

The piercing quality suddenly went away, and Bao’s smile came back.

“Well, for my Brother to trust you with his daughter, you must be a man of virtue!” Meimei’s face went red, but she didn’t say anything.

“I’m guessing you want to use the archives, Mei’er? You know I can’t let you into the advanced scrolls. But I’ll be here in the back room if you need me, and I’ll be joining your father tonight! Mark my words well!”

Bao winked at her, and then waddled away. Meimei picked up a key he put on the desk.

“To the archives?” she asked.

The guards ignored us as we walked up, and opened the locked door.

We grabbed the first of the scrolls on herbs, and sat down to read.

///////

Jin struck Meiling as peculiar, she mused, stealing glances at him sidelong. Not peculiar merely as a cultivator, but outright odd. Many males had winced upon learning she could decipher Courtly Characters, or mocked her experiences in the Archives. Pointless for a female, they claimed.

Ignoring her expertise in crafting remedies better than anyone within fifty li. Overlooking her knowledge of treating shaking fevers, mending fractured limbs, and lancing wounds to prevent festering. Plus, she excelled at cooking, cleaning, and sewing, fulfilling her feminine roles. She had managed the household since her mother’s death.

But the Archives marked the final straw.

They viewed somber Meiling. A bold woman wielding a sharp tongue, hurling barbs at their “fine sons.”

Jin appeared admiring. Even delighted. And he eagerly joined her amid the piles of scrolls as they began their search.

Now, they sat side by side.

He carried the scent of soil and ripe fields.

Her cheeks heated. She focused harder on the scrolls.

////////

I stretched and yawned. Dusk was falling, and our efforts today yielded no results. No image resembled my specimen in the least, and we had examined nearly all the herb scrolls.

“C’mon, Meimei, we’ll look again tomorrow. I’ve got some stuff to do in the morning first though. Gotta sell my furs, and pick up some more supplies.”

Meimei yawned as well. She appeared irritated by our lack of success, but agreed with a nod.

As we shelved the scrolls, a particular one drew my notice. A scroll Jin had perused previously. Titled Contemplations of the Flamebud.

It recounted the story of two individuals.

Each discovers a Pearlescent Flamebud. The bloom required a millennium to flourish, amassing its potency solely for reproduction, scattering its pollen via ethereal winds.

One fellow, upon discovery, laughs maniacally in delight. He rips it from the soil, roots included. Into a spirit furnace it goes, where he incinerates all parts he considers excess, distilling a single facet of its core. He swallows this pill, eagerly absorbing its power to marginally boost his fire tolerance.

The second fellow, beholding the bloom, is awed by its splendor. He ponders the flower’s graceful absorption of energy. How its vitality rides the world’s flows, journeying afar to seek a mate. He studies its life cycle, and when it fades, channeling strength into seeds... He expresses gratitude for its marvelous existence and departs, gaining scant benefit from the meeting.

Evidently, the original narrative employed far more poetic phrasing, and for cultivators, the lesson boiled down to “YES, DEVOUR THAT MYSTICAL FLAME BLOOM, THE OTHER FELLOW IS FOOLISH AND FEEBLE.”

Jin Rou had endorsed that view.

My sole reflection upon recalling the tale was “perhaps those who truly contemplate actually ascend, leaving you all mired here.”

I cleared my head and completed storing the scrolls. Meimei handed the key back to the Archivist, and we strolled through the agreeable evening back to the inn, arriving just as her father prepared to leave.

A broad, mischievous grin overtook his features.

“Did you two have a good day together?” he probed in a suggestive tone, volume sufficient for the other villagers to overhear, and Meimei turned vividly scarlet.