Chapter 2 – Visitor

Xiang Jian Huan

Author: Ye Xiang Fei Tian

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Translated by Xing

Edited by Nata & Asaki

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The dying country is born once again, growing, like the grass in the spring.

After the Liao emperor went south, he broke through the Chen country all the way which was three hundred miles south of the Yubi gates. The Han people withdrew into the Yubi gates connecting the Hebei province to the Liao kingdom. There is a Runan city in Hebei province. Since ancient times, it was the cargo distribution center of the central plains and Saibei. Now, it is the territory of the Liao kingdom. The Han fled west and the Han people belonging to the south retreated southwards. In the oldest, largest city in the Hebei province, there are only a few fragments left in today’s city, leaving less than 30000 households.

There is a Duan family in Runan city.

The Duan family is not very prominent nor is it unknown. They did some reselling business with past merchants. They also owned a pawnshop and an oil mill. Those in the Duan family that have not reached 35 had all been diagnosed with tuberculosis and died in the west. The whole family relied on their wives to keep the family bloodline.

On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, after a touch of sunset, in the city of Runan, the bluestones were carved with golden glow, and the golden waves were all over the alleys. Heartbreaking screams came from the Duan family’s home.

“You’re stealing Madam’s things again!”

“Speak! Bastard child! Little beast!”

The rod fell like raindrops on the child’s head and body, making a muffled noise. The child’s clothes were ragged, caked with mud. He was bruised on his head and face, which was swollen, and his arms were scratched and bruised leaving purple and blue marks with blood scratches. Hiding behind the house, he accidentally knocked over the wooden plate in the hands of a maidservant and caused the housekeeper to scream once more.

Immediately afterwards, the child made a quick step towards the housekeeper and flipped her to the ground, throwing a hard punch at her face.

The moment the child opened his mouth, he bit the housekeeper but the housekeeper shouted hysterically: “Murder–!”

The scream drew the horseman. The strong man was fierce and rushed over with a fork in his hand. The child was firmly hit with the rod on the back of his head. His eyes rolled back and he passed out. Then came another beating, causing him to wake up from the pain and the horseman pulled his collar from the back, stuck the fork in his shoulder and threw him into the firewood room, locking it.

“Selling wontons–”

The voice of the old man in the alley came, and when it became late, he would carry a burden and walk through the streets and alleys.

“Duan Ling!” shouted the voice of a child outside the courtyard.

“Duan Ling!”

The shout awakened the child. Duan Ling’s shoulder was wounded by a fork and the palm of his hand was hit with a rivet and he slowly limped up.

“Are you all right?” The child outside shouted.

Duan Ling panted, his facial features twisted into a ball pain, any strength for standing up was long gone. He sighed heavily and sat down. The child got his response and hurried away.

He slowly slid down, laid on the floor and curled up in the cold and dark wood house. He looked through the skylight into the gray sky. The snowflakes were finely fragmented, drifting down, from the sky of clouds and snow. The center of the zenith seems to have a flash of stars.

The sky was dark and silent. In the city of Runan, thousands of households lit a warm yellow light, and the roof was covered with a soft snow blanket. Only Duan Ling was still trembling in the wood room. He was so hungry that he was confused, and there were chaotic pictures flashing in front of him.

Sometimes it was the hands of his deceased mother, sometimes the splendid robes of Mrs. Duan’s family, and sometimes the face of a stern man.

“Selling–wontons–”

I didn’t steal anything, Duan Ling thought. He squeezed the two coins in his hand a little more, as his vision turned black.

Will I die? Duan Ling’s consciousness tends to be blurred, and death is always so far away for him. Three days ago, he saw a frozen beggar under the Qing bridge, surrounded by a circle of people. When they finally pulled the body out of the city with a pallet truck and buried it in the mass grave.

That day he also joined in the excitement as he followed a few children outside the city to see as they wrap the beggar’s body in straw mats and bury it in a pit with another small pit next to it. Maybe after his death, he will be buried next to a beggar whom he never knew…

As the night went on, Duan Ling’s almost froze and the last breath he exhaled became a white mist, rising up and down, snowflakes drifting in this breath. He imagined when the snow would stop, and a sun appeared in front of him, just like the countless summer mornings when the sun appeared.

The sun turned into a lamp, and the light shone on his face as the door of the firewood room was pushed open.

“Come out!”The horseman said harshly.

“He is Duan Ling?” Said a man that stood beside him.

Duan Ling was lying on the ground, twitching slightly, facing the door. His body froze stiffly and he sat up hard as the man walked in, knelt in front of him, and carefully examined his appearance.

“Sick?”The man said.

Duan Ling’s consciousness started to blur, illusions and hallucinations were in front of him.

The man squeezed the pill in one hand and fed it into Duan Ling’s mouth, and then took him into his arms.

He smelled the scent of the man in vague consciousness, and with his footsteps slightly unsteady, the road gradually warmed up.

Duan Ling’s jacket had a hole, and the reed sewn in the jacket stained the man.

In the lonely dark night, the lights went out.

He hugged Duan Ling as he walked through the half-lit and half-shadow corridor, with reeds flying behind him.

On both sides of the corridor, a girl’s unrestrained laughter came from the warm room, mixed with the rustle of snow, the babble singing, and the world gradually warmed up, and there was light.

From cold winter to warm spring, from night to day.

The rebellious journey of all things in heaven and on earth, the passing of time between generations.

Duan Ling gradually recovered his consciousness, and his breathing became heavy.

The hall was brilliantly lit, and Mrs. Duan lazily leaned against the couch, holding a piece of landscape embroidered satin in her hand.

“Madam.” The man said.

With a smile, Mrs. Duan said, “ You recognize this kid?”

“No.” The man always held Duan Ling.

Duan Ling felt that the medicine had melted in his throat, and there was a gradual warmth in his belly. His strength seemed to be back. He leaned against the man ’s chest and faced Mrs. Duan, but he didn’t dare to raise his eyes. His line of sight only included a bed with small flowers laid on it.

“The birth certificate is here.” Mrs Duan said again.

The housekeeper took the birth certificate and handed it to the man.

Duan Ling was short, with pale yellow skin, snuggling in the front of the man’s chest. Gaining a bit of fear, he struggled a little bit and the man let him down. Duan Ling leaned on him, and saw him wearing a black robe, wet boots, and a jade pendant tied around his waist.

The man said: “Madam, name a price.”

“Originally, my Duan family would never accept this child.” Mrs Duan smiled and said, “But that year, his mother returned home with him, and there was no way to go in the snow and ice. It is said that God has the virtue of a good life, and if this one stays, it will be endless.”

The man said nothing, staring at Mrs Duan’s eyes, just waiting for her to say something else.

“That’s it.” Mrs Duan sighed leisurely and said, “Anyways, it was also his mother who gave him to me. The letter is still there. Well, Sir, why don’t you take a look at it?”

The housekeeper handed over another piece of paper but the man didn’t even look at it before putting it away.

“But I don’t even know your name.” Mrs Duan said again, “This is so vaguely handed over to you, how can you explain this to Duan Xiaowan in the future? Am I right?”

The man still said nothing.

Mrs Duan showed off her robe sleeves with a variety of styles, as she said: “Originally, this Duan Xiaowan situation is already unclear, I thought that since the person was gone, this would just be cancelled. Today, you took the kid away. What if someone comes home again, saying that his father sent him here, what do I say? Am I right?”

The man still said nothing.

Mrs. Duan smiled at him, turned her eyes to Duan Ling’s face, and waved at him. Duan Ling subconsciously stepped back, hiding behind the man, clutching his robe tightly.

“Hai.” Mrs Duan said, “Sir, you have to give me an explanation.”

“Nothing more to say.”The man finally said,“Only money, name a price.”

Mrs Duan: “……”

The man fell into silence again, and Mrs. Duan looked at the situation and realized that the man obviously intended to pay, to settle this parenting debt, not mentioning his identity, and regardless of the follow-up, everything was thrown to the Duan family to deal with.

After a while, Mrs. Duan checked the man’s complexion and saw that he had reached into his robes and pulled out several colorful silver bills.

“Four hundred and two.” Mrs Duan finally offered a price.

The man took out a silver bill and handed it to Mrs Duan.

Duan Ling’s started to suffocate. He didn’t know what the man wanted to do. He heard the maidservants say that during winter nights, there were always people who came down the mountains to buy children, and then send them to the mountains to sacrifice them to the monsters.

“I’m not going!” Duan Ling said, “Don’t! Don’t!”

Duan Ling turned and ran, but just after taking a step, he was grabbed by Mrs. Duan’s maid and was dragged back in pain.

“Let him go.” The man said in a deep voice, then pressed his hand on Duan Ling’s shoulder.

The pressure was overwhelming and Duan Ling could not move at once.

The housekeeper took the silver bill and handed it to Mrs. Duan. Mrs. Duan frowned slightly, and the man said,“You don’t have to find it anymore, let’s go.”

Duan Ling: “I’m not going! I’m not going–!”

Mrs. Duan smiled and said: “The lamp is already turned off, where are you going? Why not stay overnight?”

Duan Ling screamed with exhaustion, and the man looked down at him instead.

“What’s the matter with you?” The man asked with a deep frown.

“I’m not going to feed the monsters, don’t sell me! Don’t–” Duan Ling drilled under the table, but the man’s hand was faster and he grabbed him, then immediately tightened his slender fingers. A pop in Duan Ling’s waist, he fell straight to the ground.

He picked up Duan Ling, and brought him out the door under Mrs. Duan’s suspicious eyes.

“Don’t be afraid.” The man replied Duan Ling in his arms, and said in a low voice, “I won’t send you to the monster.”

As soon as he stepped out of the house, the cold wind was like a knife, and it rolled snow over towards them. Duan Ling seemed to be blocked by a retrograde breath, and his mouth opened, but there was no sound.

“My name is Lang Junxia.” The man’s voice said, “Remember, Lang Junxia.”

“Selling wontos–.” The old man’s voice leisurely said.

Duan Ling’s heart thumped as he looked up at the wonton stall. The man who was called Lang Junxia stopped and pondered for a moment, then placed him down, drew out a few coins, and threw it into the bamboo tube in front of the wonton stall.

Duan Ling calmed down a little, thinking, who is he? Why did he bring me out?

A yellow light in front of the wonton stall penetrated through the snow, as Lang Junxia pushed on Duan Ling’s back a few times. Duan Ling called out again, but Lang Junxia hushed him and the old man placed a bowl of steaming hot wontons in front of him.

“You eat.” Lang Junxia said.

Duan Ling couldn’t care about anything else. After taking the bowl, he wasn’t afraid to burn his throat and immediately ate it. A bowl of fresh meat wontons have large fillings, sprinkled with sesame and ground peanuts. A small piece of fat is melted in the soup, and the fragrance is tangy.

Duan Ling buried his head and swallowed, his hunger had overcome his fear, and while he was drinking the soup, a fox fur coat was placed and wrapped around him.

He drank the soup until the very last drop, put down his chopsticks, and breathed out, then turned to see Lang Junxia.

This man’s skin colour is wheat-coloured, like a person in a picture, with a high nose bridge and deep eyes, his eyes reflect the lights in the alley and the sky of the world.

His clothes were stiff, his black robe was embroidered with a few greasy monsters with claws, and his fingers were very long, slender and beautiful. There is a sword that can only be seen on the stage hanging from the waist.

Sometimes the guest from Shangjing, the capital, would returned to his hometown, while riding a high-headed horse and walking across the street. Duan Ling shrank from the crowd to watch the bustle, and then he saw the gentleman of the spring.

But none of them looked as good as this person. Duan Ling couldn’t even tell from where this person was handsome.

He was terrified. He was afraid that the man named Lang Junxia was a monster and would show his fangs at the next moment and swallow his stomach. Lang Junxia looked at him intently.

“Are you full?” Lang Junxia asked, “What else do you want to eat?”

Duan Ling did not dare to answer, thinking about how to escape from his side.

“We will leave when you are full.” Lang Junxia said, holding out his hand to Duan Ling. However, Duan Ling only backed away, and cast his eyes on the old man who sells wontons for help. Lang Junxia turned over and took Duan Ling’s hand. Duan Ling didn’t dare to struggle and obediently followed him.

“Mrs. Duan.” A family member came back and said, “The man took the illegitimate child to eat the wontons in the alley.”

Mrs. Duan gathered her jacket and blinked uncomfortably, summoning the housekeeper and saying: “You call someone, follow him, and see where he wants to send the illegitimate child.”

The lights of ten thousand homes in Runan City turned on, Duan Ling’s face was cold and red, while he was led by Lang Junxia. He walked barefoot on the wet snow. After arriving at Cuilou in the middle of the city, Lang Junxia finally noticed that Duan Ling had no shoes, so he carried him and made a whistle inward, then a horse came out slowly.

“Wait for me here, I need to go do something.” Lang Junxia wrapped Duan Ling in another coat and helped him mount the horse.

Duan Ling looked down at him, Lang Junxia’s facial features were handsome, and his eyebrows were sharp, and there was a little reed on his hair. Lang Junxia then motioned him to be calm, and turned into the night, like an eagle with wings spread.

Duan Ling’s thoughts were going wild, who is this? Should I run now? The horse’s back was too high, and he dared not jump down, afraid of breaking his legs or even being kicked by the horse. He repeatedly calculated, not knowing whether to hand his destiny to this stranger or to himself. The key is, where can he escape? Just when he turned his heart, whether it was dead or alive, and when it was given to heaven, a figure flashed again at the alley. Then, Lang Junxia stepped on the stirrup and turned his horse.

“Go!”

The tall-headed horse stepped on the blue stone board road and made a series of horseshoe sounds. It galloped out of the alley and left Runan City in the empty night.

Sitting in front of Lang Junxia, Duan Ling rubbed his nose and smelled the damp smell of his clothes. Unexpectedly, Lang Junxia’s clothes were very dry, as if they had just been baked in front of the fire, and had nice scent of scones. A small patch was scorched at the cuff that held the horse’s reins.

Duan Ling noticed that the place had never been scorched before, what did he do?

Duan Ling remembered a story– it is said that in the Black Valley outside the city, there were rivers and lakes, also monsters who were killed in disputes in the past, buried in the mountains for hundreds of years, waiting for the children to enter so they could find a substitute. They first became human beings, all of them were beautiful and unparalleled in martial arts. After finding the children, they took them to the grave, exposed their true faces, and sucked in the spirits of the children.

The child used as a substitute had been lying in the grave since then, but the monster would change his skin and swagger to live a good life.

Duan Ling couldn’t help but tremble. He tried to dismount and escape several times, but the horse was too high. He might break his leg when he jumps.

Is he a monster?  Duan Ling’s thoughts run wild again, what if the monster wants to suck his spirit? Why not take him to find someone else? No no…… I can’t hurt anyone.

Someone waited under the gate of the city and opened it for Lang Junxia. The horse galloped all the way south along the official road in the heavy snow, not going to the burial post or entrance to the Black Valley. Duan Ling couldn’t help falling asleep during the bumps, and he gradually fell asleep surrounded by the dry smell of Lang Junxia.

In his sleep, the two rolling valleys are like the paintings on the shadow puppet play, passing across the curtain.

The feathers and snow were as thick as blankets, and the mountain peaks were as thick as ink while horses liked to pass away in this peaceful environment.

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