act14mini

From my personal experience... this certainly seems like something he would do.

It's the temple at the village entrance, isn't it? It looked pretty unique, even at a glance. Who's it dedicated to?

Our very ancestors.

Back in the day... eight hundred years ago, or a thousand? How long ago exactly, I'm not so sure myself. The story has been passed down from generation to generation, after all.

Anyway, in those times, there was nothing here but mountains, so dense that not even fowlbeasts could fly over.

Our ancestor, alone and armed with only a hoe, dug out a mountain and turned it into arable land, eventually forming this village.

You should have seen it on the way here, Miss? Barren land in all directions, as far as the eye can see, but here we manage to farm and feed our hundred or so people. We're sheltered from most Catastrophes.

He took a hoe and plowed out a living from Heaven itself.

We call it the Yishan Temple, in thanks to our benevolent ancestor, and to commemorate that he lives on in us forever.

This here temple has blessed our Moushan village with a thousand years of peace and quiet.

We all know that a few measly buildings made of wood and dirt won't affect the harvest at all.

But us Moushan villagers have lived like this for generations. We have our nostalgia, and it puts our minds at ease.

Dad, iff you want to yell at me, just do it.

The way you're staring at me, it's awkward.

You've grown tall, but not much otherwise.

You must not have been eating well while out there, all these years.

Of all the things to say...

As long as you're alive... that's all that matters... I was just worried...

How did you make your way here?

We walked along the Chidao, and occasionally hitched a ride with merchant caravans we came across, hopping on their burdenbeasts.

How long was the journey?

Probably about a month.

You went so far...

Dad...

All these years, you...

Barely making a living

The harvest has been getting worse these past few years. First, an infestation destroyed our crops. Then came the drought, Heaven refused to give us a single drop of water, not from the sky, not from the wells, no matter how many we dug.

And now this year, Chunfen has come. It's the right time for sowing, but then we face a brutal storm.

Who knows if the land has always been this temperamental, or if Heaven has turned against us.

Or maybe the village ancestors refuse to bless us...

And it's because I blew up that temple. That's what you want to say, right?

That's not what I meant...

That's what a lazy person would say.

'Farming is all about working the soil with the tool in your hand.' That's what you told me.

The idol in the temple can't move, how could it help us with the harvest?

We can't say things like that... we've got to talk it through with them. Besides, we're the ones who wronged them first...

Dad, the villagers bully you because they think you're a coward!

What about the mountains slowly eating up the fields? Sooner or later, even the temple is going to get washed away by a mudslide. It's just a monument, why not put it in Zhou Liu's backyard? He has so much room and he's not even growing anything.

They bully us because we're outsiders!

*sigh* Let's just drop it already, alright...?

I see, so that's why the villagers had such a visceral reaction to Fang Xiaoshi.

Well, not exactly.

We all thought the boy was already...

He was injured when he fled into the wilderness after blowing up the temple.

Did you not look for him?

We did.

I gathered a party overnight and we spent several days searching dozens of li, to no avail.

I hear the villages of Jiangnan stand out like bright lights in the darkness.

But for us here, in the mountains, all you see is gray and yellow, or boundless white in winter. Settlements look more like perfect hiding spots.

Beasts roam freely, so the roads are not safe. Sometimes, you even run into fleeing bandits.

So a boy that small, hurt so badly...

Is still alive and well. Seems like the kid has been through a lot.

As long as he is safe.

Elder, I have something to say...

Please, speak freely.

I happened across Fang Xiaoshi, and brought him here. I have no reason to meddle in your village's affairs.

However, since I took on the initiative to bring him back, I am also responsible for his safety.

...As you should be.

I can't say I'm good at reading people, but after having traveled with him for a while, I at least understand him a little.

He may be stubborn and willful, but he is by no means a bad person.

So I hope you won't make things difficult for him.

Oh, I thought you were going to say something else.

Please, rest assured, Miss. We Moushan villagers may be poor, but we are reasonable people.

To hold a grudge... who or what exactly should we hold a grudge against? The mountains, Heaven, or...

A little boy around ten years old?

As you said, life is hard here. Moving the temple was just to put the villagers' minds at ease. Though now when I think about it, we were indeed quite inconsiderate at the time.

That is to say, I'm the one at fault here.

You are a man of sense.

You don't have to explain it all to me. After all, Fang Xiaoshi did do wrong. If still hasn't matured, even after so much hardship these last three years, he will have to be disciplined.

Make mistakes, suffer the consequences, remember your actions and gain insight. That makes life less painful.

You're very perceptive.

Not really.

I have my explanation, and I'm relieved.

Yes, yes...

Yes, I bombed the temple. And after three years I, Fang Xiaoshi, have returned. If they can't get over that, they can come find me.

Even now, today, I still want to blow the thing up.

Fine, go do it! Blow it to pieces!

Three years ago, your nerve was as high Heaven itself, and now three years later, it's soared even higher.

What did you come back for? Just to blow it up and run away again?

I'm done talking, Dad.

*sigh*

What did you bring that log in for anyway?

...I'm making a coffin.

Your father's health is failing with each passing day, and all the money I saved for my burial went to rebuild the temple.

I didn't know if you were dead or alive, so I... I thought I should at least make my own coffin while I could.

Hey, come on, no need to talk like that...

I spent a whole month looking for you.

I was hurt. I passed out near the Chidao...

You sure are smart.

A caravan carrying goods from the mountains found me and threw me onto the back of some burdenbeast carrying fodder. By the time I came to, I was already in a nomadic city.

It's lucky some good people found you, and not a pack of beasts.

What happened after you healed up?

I, I decided to make a name for myself before coming back.

Why aren't you asking me what I did in the city?

If you actually accomplished something, there wouldn't have been a swordswoman escorting you home.

I said it before, you can't bear to live here, but I'm afraid you'll suffer even more if you go out to a town or nomadic city. Returning with your life intact is already a blessing to me.

I've never been to a city, so I have no idea of what it's like. When you feel like talking about it, you can let me know.

...Okay.

So, are you going to cause a ruckus this time?

Only if they bully us.