In the early morning of the sixth day, a chill had begun to settle over the city.
The red sun emerged from the massive blood-red wound in the sky, then was shrouded in mist, like a pickled egg yolk, casting a desolate pall over Yuyang County.
Ji You pushed open the door of the ancestral Ji Residence and saw a scholar already on the empty street, walking out of the early morning mist with a bamboo box on his back, a cloth bundle in his left hand, and half a flatbread in his right.
“Brother Ji, good morning.”
Ji You had just locked the Ji Residence door and was somewhat dazed by his appearance: “Cai Chen, ah…”
Kuang Cheng didn't hear clearly and stepped closer: “I am also setting off for the capital today. The journey is long and arduous, so I bid you farewell here. May Brother Ji’s Immortal path be forever smooth.”
“You're going to the capital alone?”
Kuang Cheng nodded: “If it weren't for the delay of five days due to the Qiu Family's matter, I might have already departed.”
Ji You glanced at the misty morning, noticing that the western sky was still gloomy: “How do you get from Yuyang County to Shengjing?”
“First, I’ll take a carriage southwest, then walk around Dongshou Mountain, then take another carriage. Mortals are not allowed within a hundred li radius of the Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion, so I’ll have to detour around it, and then take a carriage from the Mogu Post Station…”
“That's so much trouble. How much silver will this trip cost you?”
“About five qian of silver.”
Ji You was slightly taken aback: “You're a young master, after all. Are you sure five qian of silver is enough?”
Kuang Cheng paused, then tightened his bundle and said: “A scholar must cultivate their will through hardship. There's no need to stay in inns; one can lodge in ancient temples. Although there have been many rumors of evil spirits and ghosts in temples these past years, I possess a spirit of righteousness, so I am not afraid.”
“Do you truly possess a spirit of righteousness?”
“This… I’m not entirely sure, but the books say so.”
“That’s too dangerous, Brother Kuang!”
Ji You narrowed his eyes, examining him closely: “How about I go with you? I’m very interested in haunted ancient temples.”
Kuang Cheng looked a bit confused after hearing this: “There’s no need for that, Brother Ji. Although the journey to the imperial examination is fraught with peril, two out of five can survive, and it might just be me.”
“Only two survive? Then indeed, there’s no need.”
Ji You pondered for a moment, then looked up at him: “You're the only heir of the Kuang Family. Wouldn't it be too regrettable if you died on the road?”
Kuang Cheng looked up at the still not fully bright sky and said: “If that were truly the case, then it would be fate.”
“Come along with me.”
“?”
Ji You slung his bundle over his shoulder: “I heard Fang Ruoyao is bringing a maidservant with her. I think I can naturally bring a reading companion. Taking a boat is always more comfortable than you going around in circles.”
Kuang Cheng was slightly startled, then after a moment of thought, he chuckled and refused: “How dare a mere Mortal like myself ride on an Immortal cultivator's treasure ship?”
“You can barely suppress the smile at the corner of your mouth.”
“I am not.”
After a long silence between the two, Ji You suddenly extended his hand: “Give it to me, the travel expenses, five qian of silver!”
Kuang Cheng hesitated for a long while, then took the bundle off his shoulder, opened it through layers upon layers, and finally pulled out a bulging money pouch, from which he found the smallest piece of silver and placed it in Ji You's hand.
Even this smallest piece, when weighed, seemed to exceed five qian.
What the hell about a scholar needing to suffer to strengthen his will? Ji You’s brows furrowed into a “river” character: “You have so much, give me more.”
“Brother Ji, too much money can cloud one’s mind…”
“Why aren't you afraid?”
Kuang Cheng held his money pouch and said: “Because I am a scholar, possessing a spirit of righteousness…”
Ji You was silent for another moment, then politely extended his hand to beg, managing to get about two liang and three qian of silver, which he put into his pocket.
By this time, the twilight was fading, and the light of day gradually spread, with people already beginning to move in and out of the city.
The period between autumn harvest and spring plowing was not a time of agricultural leisure; the people of Yuyang County still had to go up the mountains to cut firewood or work further afield, thus living a difficult life year after year.
Ji You watched for a long time, silent.
The mysterious stone statue, the heavenly demise in the walkie-talkie, the chaotic light clusters, and the unfulfilled bandit wish driven by fate…
He felt that he had not come here without reason, but rather had something to accomplish.
“Let's go, young man, to meet the wind of destiny.”
The autumn morning dew was heavy, and their clothes were already somewhat damp from the journey out of the city.
But fortunately, the sun soon broke through the clouds and mist, a ray of dawn light streamed through the city gate, illuminating the ground beneath the scholar and the youth with golden light, and stretching their shadows longer and longer.
By the time the two arrived outside the city, numerous figures were already standing in the open space in front of the county monument.
Cao Jinsong, Pei Ruyi, the Fang Family father and daughter, and the entire Qiu Family of three were all there.
In addition, the common folk who had acknowledged kinship with Ji You at the threshing ground that day had also gathered here to see him off.
Watching Ji You and Kuang Cheng emerge from the city one after another, little Qiu Ru suddenly broke free from her mother’s embrace, scurried over on her small legs, hugged Ji You’s thigh, and looked up at the corner of his mouth.
“Little girl, why are you getting heavier and heavier?”
“Young Master, Ru Ru ate meat at the county magistrate's house, it was delicious! Papa was lying. I wanted to save a piece for you, but my mouth wouldn’t let me, it made me so angry I cried!”
Ji You couldn’t help but chuckle, and then saw the Qiu Family couple rushing over, carrying a bundle: “Young Master, this is the silver we exchanged when we saved Ru Ru before. Please take it for your journey…”
Li Shuping also immediately knelt down with a thud: “Young Master, this foolish woman was ignorant before and always spoke ill of you, yet in the end, you still saved Ru Ru. This foolish woman kowtows to you here…”
“There's no need for that.”
Ji You reached out and helped Li Shuping up: “I consider the third house by the Nanya River to be my home, and Qiu Ru to be my younger sister. Before I achieve Immortal Ascension, I will surely return many times. If you always treat me like this, how can I comfortably return?”
Hearing the word “Ascension” spoken so lightly, Cao Jinsong’s eyelids twitched slightly.
This young man spoke with such understated dominance, truly not a Mortal.
Old Qiu now offered the bundle: “Young Master, please take this with you. Leaving home with no acquaintances, many things require silver. Don't shortchange yourself.”
“No need, Old Qiu, I still have money. Keep these for your family expenses.”
“When the Ji Family fled, they took all their wealth with them, not leaving you even one ingot. Old Qiu, I know better than you, Young Master, so please don’t decline.”
“It's not declining; Young Master, I truly have money.”
Ji You saw that he didn't believe him, and reached out to pat Kuang Cheng's bundle.
Kuang Cheng was silent for a moment, suddenly recalling the scene of Ji You covered in blood at the Ji Residence.
That day, Ji You had lamented to him that the Qingyun World had, after all, lost a peerlessly talented and extraordinary bandit. But why did he feel that it hadn't lost anything at all?
“Everyone, a thousand li journey must end in farewell. Let’s part ways here.”
“If any neighbors have free time, please help me clean my Ji Residence. If any Ji Family clansmen return, please entrust it to them. Farewell.”