OBS Chapter 728: Longevity Flowers All Over the Mountain
Chapter 728: Longevity Flowers All Over the Mountain
Song Zhuo was from Tianhe City in Ximi State, about 3,000 miles away from the capital. The journey to the examination was extremely difficult. On the way, he had to cross a large river and a large mountain, and there were countless difficulties and obstacles.
Song Zhuo sought fame and fortune, starting from Tianhe City and ending at the capital. Li Changxiao did the opposite. He started from the capital and ended at Tianhe City. On this day, he left the city gate and walked for several miles. But he turned back to the city, bought some geographical atlases, fruit wine, dried meat, and a few pairs of boots for long journeys... before leaving the city again.
After walking for more than ten miles, we heard the sound of gongs and drums, and bursts of mournful music, which were melodious and intoxicating. Following the sound, we saw a long procession of people wearing white clothes.
It was the funeral procession of the empress, which had also left the capital. The royal family of Ximi Kingdom had always been buried outside the city. It was a local custom, and Li Changxiao did not make any comments. He happened to meet them, so he followed the funeral procession.
The team had been walking for a day, stopping and starting, and no one knew where they were going. But every time they stopped to rest, the cooks would light a fire, start cooking, and start eating. The dishes were plain, all vegetarian and fruit pulp. Li Changxiao mixed in the crowd, tasted the saltiness, and then took out the Shanhai Xianza Xiaoji and wrote down this little thing.
After walking together for about three days, they came to a fork in the road. Li Changxiao was separated from the funeral procession. Listening to the music gradually fading away, it was like the soul of a former princess had gone to the west and was no longer there. Even if it was someone who had nothing to do with her, it was hard not to feel a little sad and pity, and sighed that the glory and wealth in this world are just passing clouds.
Li Changxiao walked back along the way Song Zhuo had come. Soon he came to a big mountain. The mountain was full of dead trees, but the west side was rich in jade and the east side was home to strange beasts. When Li Changxiao read about the mountain, he was amazed and couldn't help but stay a little longer.
The next day, he collected some jade and broke some dead wood, and then went on his journey again. On the way, he could not help thinking that Song Zhuo was a weak scholar, and it was easy for him to be moved by the scene. He had been uneasy since he entered the capital, and he thought that he had seen or heard something that subverted his mind on the way here.
So he walked slower, taking in everything he saw along the way. He continued walking like this for another three days. Li Changxiao had encountered swamps, mountains, and rivers before, but apart from the fact that the road was a little difficult to travel on, there was nothing special about them.
Tianhe City is located in the northwest, so Li Changxiao's walk towards Tianhe City is just on the way. The further north you go, the colder the climate becomes.
Li Changxiao prepared enough dried meat. Meat is scarce in Ximi country, and there are few livestock such as pigs, dogs, cattle and sheep. This dried meat is chewed in the mouth, and it is flexible like dry glue. Only when chewing slowly can you taste the meat flavor. It is said that the "tree pig" taken from the tree is a kind of bird that makes a nest on the tree, but its body is like a pig. Therefore, it is called a tree pig. Although the taste is average, it is indeed a rare thing. For people who travel far away, it is really a great thing to chew a piece of dried meat when they are hungry and tired. Li Changxiao's food and accommodation are all included in Wang Qilang's inn. Gradually, he saved some money. Although he has never changed his bad habit of falling asleep anywhere for many years. But if someone wants to steal his money, he will feel a chill all over his body, which is so scary that he dare not.
Li Changxiao held a piece of dried meat in his mouth. He traveled to an unknown place with high mountains and long rivers. He checked the map and found that he was halfway through the journey and it was only five days away from Tianhe City. But he was muttering in his heart, guessing that Song Zhuo's thoughts must be due to the strange encounter on the road.
At this moment.
Suddenly a gust of wind blew, making his long hair flutter. He stood tall and graceful, and was indescribably handsome, but no one noticed him. After the wind passed, Li Changxiao smelled a strong fragrance of flowers. He followed the direction of the wind and walked for more than four or five miles.
When I reached the top of a slope, I pushed aside the weeds that blocked my view and looked out. I saw a village in front of me. The scenery was pleasant, and the mountains were blocking my view. Next to the village, there was a mountain that was neither too high nor too low. The mountain was covered with bright flowers, bright red like fire, covering the belly of the mountain. When the wind blew, the fragrance of the flowers floated in.
It's beautiful in an instant.
At this time of year and in this climate, it is difficult for wild flowers to bloom. If you want to see such beautiful scenery elsewhere, you can only go to the flower gardens built by the rich and powerful. Most of the wild flowers that grow naturally have reached the season of withering.
Li Changxiao looked again and saw that bright red flower. Wasn't it the longevity flower? The longevity flower has a long flowering period. If no one disturbs it, its life span is almost the same as that of a human. Some flowers die young, and some people die young. People exist all year round, but the flower is always trampled and picked. Even if it can bloom all year round, it is difficult to exist all year round.
Li Changxiao looked around. It was evening, and he saw smoke rising from cooking fires and heard the occasional noises of children playing. He knew there were many residents in the village. He climbed up the hillside and headed toward the village.
From a distance, the village seemed to be just around the corner, but as we walked along the road, it felt very far away. I wondered if we could reach it before it got completely dark. As we hurried along, we looked around and found that the mountain here was very special. In Feng Shui, it is called "funnel mountain", which means that all passers-by will unconsciously gather to a certain place due to various coincidences and encounters. And this mountain village is located in the center of the funnel mountain.
Song Zhuo was passing by to take the exam. If he passed by nearby, there was a certain probability that he would pass by this village. Li Changxiao smiled slightly, finding it very interesting. As he was walking, he suddenly heard a noise of footsteps.
"You little bastard! You're so careless!"
Then I saw four or five people walking along the side road in the dense forest behind me. One of them was wearing brocade clothes, gold and silver jewelry, and was obviously the young master of that family. The other four were all wearing coarse linen clothes, and were obviously the servants of the young master's family.
The young master noticed Li Changxiao, kicked a servant and scolded, "What are you doing standing there? Go and ask for directions!" The servant hurriedly said, "Okay...Okay, young master." Then he ran to Li Changxiao, timidly asked for directions.
The servant was really simple, and Li Changxiao got the origins of the four people after a few tricks. It turned out that this group of people came from the Wang family in the nearby big city. The one wearing gold and silver was Wang Baobao, the young master of the Wang family. The four servants were born with lowly fates, so they didn't have proper names. Their surname was "Gou" and their given names were "Fu Lu Shou Xi".
Today, the young master went out of town to play and wanted to pick some exotic fruits. He went deep into the forest and gradually lost his way. A quarter of an hour ago, a group of people caught a glimpse of the small village and rushed towards the village. But after walking a few steps, the servant "Gou Fu" slipped and threw Wang Baobao out of the sedan chair.
The sedan chair broke down, so Wang Baobao had to walk. On the way, the ground was muddy and his boots were covered with mud. Wang Baobao became angrier and angrier, and then he started to curse and beat Li Changxiao. As he was walking, he happened to run into Li Changxiao, and this happened.
Li Changxiao pointed out the direction to the group and told them that if they didn't mind, they could follow him. He also wanted to stay overnight in the mountain village. Fu, Lu, Shou and Xi were all very happy. Wang Baobao nodded calmly. Among the people present, only the man in white was slightly pleasing to the eye. But he looked up and down and saw that Li Changxiao was wearing simple white clothes. He thought that he was not from a wealthy family, so he couldn't help but look down on him.