"Mage... Young Master Gu!"
Gu Zhao had barely walked out of the forest when he saw the Silk Embroideress waiting at the village entrance, craning her neck in anticipation.
Upon seeing Gu Zhao, the Silk Embroideress’s eyes lit up. She stood on her tiptoes, waved at him, and then ca over at a trot. Panting, she ran to his side, pulled out an egg, and offered it to him.
Gu Zhao couldn’t help but ask, "Where did this egg co from?"
The Silk Embroideress said happily, "Aunt Li gave it to . She raises a few old hens. Young Master, you should eat it while it’s still warm. We’ve also saved you a al at ho."
"Alright!" Gu Zhao didn’t stand on ceremony. After spending half the day experinting in the forest, he was indeed hungry.
Reaching out for the egg, Gu Zhao asked subconsciously, "Have you eaten?"
The Silk Embroideress paused and nodded repeatedly, but before she could speak, her stomach let out a RUMBLE.
The Silk Embroideress’s face flushed red. She hurriedly said, "I really did eat earlier. I was just about to go back for dinner."
Gu Zhao was taken aback. "How many als do you eat a day?"
"Two," the Silk Embroideress said in a small voice. "Neither Grandfather nor I work in the fields, so a morning al and an evening al are enough for us."
Gu Zhao fell silent for a mont. With a gentle squeeze, he cracked the egg, which was still warm and carried the girl’s faint, clean scent. He then peeled the shell and ate it bite by bite. "It’s delicious."
The Silk Embroideress’s small face instantly lit up. She then pulled Gu Zhao toward her ho, even breaking into a little skip.
As Gu Zhao entered the village, he found that peace had been restored. The dozens of bandit corpses had been cleared away. It was nearing dusk, and smoke was already rising from the chimneys of many houses.
"Lord Mage!"
"Young... Young Master Gu!"
Seeing Gu Zhao enter the village, the villagers—who had already heard from Elder He that he would be staying for a while—greeted him enthusiastically. Their eyes held a mixture of warmth and awe, and they looked at the Silk Embroideress with a hint of envy.
Gu Zhao nodded in response and soon arrived at Elder He’s ho, just in ti to see three or four young boys burst out of the courtyard, laughing and roughhousing.
They had just co out when they nearly bumped into Gu Zhao. Looking up and seeing his face clearly, they all jumped in fright. They quickly stood at attention, montarily unsure of how to react.
Gu Zhao waved his hand. "Go on, go play."
"Okay!"
Hearing Gu Zhao give them permission, the children let out a huge sigh of relief and fled as if they had wings.
Seeing Gu Zhao, Elder He, who had co out behind them, also breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced fondly at the Silk Embroideress before explaining to Gu Zhao, "They finished their farm chores and ca to to learn a few characters."
Learning to read...
’Oh, right. This is an ancient era. There’s no nine-year compulsory education here. Many people go their whole lives without learning how to read or do arithtic.’
"Li Erping brought over so cured at during the day, and this old man has stead so flatbreads. Young Master, please, co inside." Elder He quickly ushered Gu Zhao in.
Gu Zhao walked into the courtyard and saw a low table placed under an old tree. On it were two porcelain bowls and a bamboo basket.
One bowl held a small portion of cured at, and the other contained so kind of black, unidentifiable pickled vegetables. In the basket were five or six palm-sized, dark-yellow stead flatbreads.
"Please have a seat, Young Master. There’s so porridge warming in the pot. I’ll go get you a bowl," said Elder He.
"I’ll get it!" the Silk Embroideress interjected. She then moved past Elder He, ran into the adjacent kitchen, and quickly ca out holding a bowl of porridge with both hands, placing it in front of Gu Zhao.
A mont later, Gu Zhao looked at the bowl of millet porridge in front of him, which was clearly thicker and more plentiful than Elder He’s and the Silk Embroideress’s, and fell silent.
’Yesterday I was in too much of a hurry. My mind was filled with the excitent and fear of first arriving in this Otherworld, consud by thoughts of Ghosts, Cultivation, and exploration. I paid little attention to my surroundings, and even when I did, it was only superficial.’
’Today, after spending half the day experinting with Magic in the forest, I felt more secure. With my mind at ease, I finally rembered yesterday’s promise and decided to return to the village to check on them.’
Life in an ancient mountain village was a far cry from what Gu Zhao had previously imagined.
The old, dilapidated village houses, the patched old clothes, the simple food, the crude utensils... They did indeed have food to eat, but it seed that was all they had.
Noticing Gu Zhao’s silence, the Silk Embroideress looked down timidly, a sense of inadequacy on her face. Elder He’s lips moved a few tis before he explained in a low voice, "Please forgive us, Young Master. We don’t have much to offer in the mountains. Please make do for today. Tomorrow, I’ll have soone go to the county to buy so at, vegetables, and fruit."
Gu Zhao snapped out of it. Seeing the expressions on their faces, he quickly waved his hands and said with a cheerful smile, "Elder He, you misunderstand. I was just thinking that the Silk Embroideress gave too much porridge. If I can’t finish it, I’ll feel I’ve failed to appreciate her kindness."
The Silk Embroideress let out a little laugh and couldn’t help but look up. With a mix of shyness and playfulness, she said, "Young Master is a Grand Mage. Your Cultivation must be ntally taxing, and you haven’t eaten in a long ti today. How could you not even finish a single bowl of porridge?"
"To be honest with you, I actually had a very big lunch today. I’m not hungry at all right now," Gu Zhao said with a smile.
’He had gone to the City God Temple and the Yuanfa Palace in the morning. Although he was in a hurry to co here and experint, he still had a al of pig’s trotter rice for lunch and even ordered an extra half-portion of roasted goose. He was indeed quite full.’
The Silk Embroideress couldn’t help but giggle. "Did the Young Master perhaps hunt a big wild boar in the mountains?"
Gu Zhao shook his head and said, "Wild boar at is gamy and tough. It doesn’t taste good at all."
"But it’s delicious, isn’t it?" The Silk Embroideress subconsciously glanced at the porcelain bowl on the table, which contained the very cured at made from a large wild boar hunted by the village’s hunter, Li Erping.
’Li Erping had given them cured at before, and she rembered it being delicious. She would savor the mory of its taste for a long ti after each al. Although she hadn’t eaten today’s portion yet, it looked quite tasty, didn’t it?’
"That’s true, too. It’s not like you get to eat ga like this every day," Gu Zhao nodded.
’Back in modern society, wild boars are on the protected species list. It’s illegal for most people to hunt them, let alone eat the at. Does this count as my first taste of forbidden at in the Otherworld?’
At this thought, Gu Zhao cheered up again. He picked up his bowl and poured half of his porridge into the Silk Embroideress’s and Elder He’s bowls. Only then did he pick up a stead flatbread, grab a piece of cured at with his chopsticks, and say, "Co on, let’s eat."
...
Gu Zhao didn’t eat much. Because of what had just happened, Elder He didn’t dare press him. He simply watched as Gu Zhao urged the Silk Embroideress to eat more, and a familiar glint returned to his eyes.
After the evening al, the Silk Embroideress brought a book out from the main house and sat in the courtyard to read, making use of the last rays of the setting sun.
Elder He ca to Gu Zhao’s side and began to probe carefully. "When this old man was young, I worked as an accountant in Xiuyue County. After the Silk Embroideress’s parents died, I started teaching the village children to read, do arithtic, and manage a household. While the Silk Embroideress weaves bamboo to supplent our inco during the day, she listens in and learns. She can be considered literate and well-mannered now."
Gu Zhao nodded upon hearing this, but his eyes wandered, and he seed distracted. "She should try to read during the day in the future. The light is too dim; it’s bad for her eyes."
Elder He was left speechless.
Elder He opened his mouth, seeming to want to say sothing, but after a mont’s thought, he remained silent.
Gu Zhao glanced at the Silk Embroideress’s book. The shape and style of the characters were very similar to the traditional characters of ancient Blue Star. After reading a couple of lines, he lost interest. He took a quick look around the kitchen, asked not to be disturbed, and then returned to his room to rest.
’I rember Granny Jin’s fresh food market is open until eleven at night, right?’
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