Chapter 40: Sympathy for the Greenery (Seeking Readers)

Chapter 40: Sympathy for the Greenery (Seeking Readers)



Xiang Ling had a tendency to talk a lot, and her thoughts were a bit different from others. She was a bit cunning, but not overly so, and her words were often scattered and varied.

However, after listening to her for a while, Meng Yuan finally understood what her dowry was all about.

It turned out that in the area where Xiang Ling lived, near Great Head Mountain, there was a hidden, narrow crevice where a Treasure Tree grew, and it had already borne two fruits.

Xiang Ling had discovered this place by accident, and after discussing it with her wet nurse, the two of them decided to hide it. They used dry branches and leaves to conceal the tree and even marked their territory by spreading scented urine nearby.

Xiang Ling had been guarding Great Head Mountain, and her wet nurse had even given her the title of Chief Patrol of Great Head Mountain before returning to her hometown.

The two of them were waiting for the fruits to ripen so they could take one as a dowry and marry into a wealthy family.

"Since you've found the Treasure Tree, why didn't the two of you stay and guard it together? Why did your wet nurse insist on returning to her hometown?" Meng Yuan was genuinely curious.

The wet nurse had gone to Great Tail Venerable to collect his fur, which showed that she was greedy for wealth, yet she neglected the Treasure Medicine and insisted on returning to her hometown. This seemed inappropriate.

"My wet nurse has a new love interest!" Xiang Ling said angrily, her big eyes filled with indignation. "She's so foolish! She goes to listen to the monk's morning chants every day, rain or snow, without fail, and even sticks her butt out at him!"

As she spoke, she lifted her tail and stuck out her butt, "That's how my wet nurse got distracted!"

What kind of karmic entanglement is this! For a man, she forgot about the Great Dao? And you shouldn't learn from her!

Meng Yuan rubbed his eyebrows, remembering that when he went to the Medicine Estate, he did see a small mountain by the Canglang River with a temple on top, but the incense offerings seemed sparse.

"Didn't the monk say anything? Did he accept your wet nurse's gratitude?" Meng Yuan asked.

"My wet nurse didn't dare speak in front of him, and the monk didn't know that she was a Great Immortal. Some people even called her a foolish doe! She's not foolish at all!" Xiang Ling said earnestly.

What kind of Great Immortal sticks their butt out?

Meng Yuan didn't want to talk about butts anymore, so he said, "Can the fruits be picked now?"

"My wet nurse taught me how to recognize them. They just ripened yesterday, so I came to find you." Xiang Ling seemed to be talking about food, and she sat down on the ground, no longer appearing as clever and capable as before. She carefully opened the eggs that Meng Yuan had given her and started peeling them one by one.

As she was talking about her wet nurse, she cried and sniffled while eating the eggs.

"Why aren't you eating the fruit now that it's ripe?" For some reason, seeing Xiang Ling cry made Meng Yuan feel like laughing.

"My wet nurse isn't here, and it's not fun to eat alone." Xiang Ling opened the egg and offered it to Meng Yuan, who shook his head. She then happily said, "Besides, I need to save one as a dowry!"

Let's not talk about your marriage anymore, Meng Yuan thought helplessly.

"My wet nurse said that the fruit is amazing. People who eat it become strong, and we become smart!" Xiang Ling finished the eggs in one go and burped. She said earnestly, "You saved me once, and I'll give you one fruit, and I'll keep one for my dowry!"

Meng Yuan looked at Xiang Ling and saw that this little one's confidante had been deceived by the fox matchmaker, and her wet nurse had been eaten, leaving only the dowry. However, Xiang Ling didn't show any disappointment; instead, she was wholeheartedly focused on repaying her gratitude.

"How far is Great Head Mountain?" Meng Yuan asked.

"Not too far, just two or three trips to cook." Xiang Ling sat on the ground with her butt, tilting her head back and smacking her lips. She stretched her arms wide to gesture the distance, "Your eggs are really delicious!"

She was hinting that she wanted to eat more.

Meng Yuan understood that Great Head Mountain was very close to the village, which was why Xiang Ling and her mother were willing to live there to avoid other spirits. It was by chance that the two of them ended up guarding the Treasure Tree.

This was the third time Meng Yuan had met Xiang Ling, and he had been observing her eyes the entire time. Xiang Ling was sad when talking about her wet nurse, enthusiastic when discussing repayment of gratitude, and dejected when mentioning marriage, proving that she wasn't lying.

Moreover, Xiang Ling had a good heart and wasn't cunning. During their first meeting on the carriage, she had even paid the carriage fee, showing her good upbringing.

Meng Yuan had saved Xiang Ling before and knew that she was just an ordinary spirit, capable of human speech and a bit clever, but with no other special abilities.

Great Head Mountain wasn't far; it was just at the foot of the mountain. Meng Yuan had asked Big Head Zhao about it, and the nearby villagers often hunted and gathered there, saying there weren't any dangers but also nothing to catch.

"I'll go with you." Meng Yuan decided to accompany her, curious about the Treasure Tree and its fruit.

With this treasure's assistance, he might be able to quickly achieve perfection. After that, he could temper his body again and progress even faster after entering the Eighth Rank.

"Okay!" Xiang Ling was delighted by his words and jumped up happily.

"You lead the way." Meng Yuan said.

"I never get lost!" Xiang Ling confidently walked forward.

The mountain, there was a path leading to the village nearby.

The spring morning urges the greenery, and though the sunlight is mostly blocked, a reddish glow shines in.

The mountain air is damp, and the morning sun stirs the mist. Amidst the tranquility, the birds chirp in the empty valley, and the feeling of returning to nature deepens.

"Ouch, I ran too fast and got a side stitch!" Xiang Ling was in front, sitting down with a thump.

Meng Yuan took out the last boiled egg and tossed it to her. Xiang Ling happily received it, "Little Castrator, you're so nice!"

Perhaps it was because they had traveled together for a while, Xiang Ling no longer feared Meng Yuan's bow and arrow. She grabbed the hem of Meng Yuan's clothes and, in a flash, climbed onto his shoulder.

"So tall! Taller than me hanging on a peach tree!" Xiang Ling pointed the way and peeled the egg, then stuffed the yolk into Meng Yuan's mouth, "Eat this."

"I don't want it." Meng Yuan refused.

Xiang Ling clearly didn't understand the principle of three refusals, and immediately stuffed the yolk back into her own mouth, humming with satisfaction as if it were the most delicious thing.

After traveling for a good while, they finally reached Xiang Ling's hometown, Da Tou Shan.

There was a bare hill ahead, and this was Da Tou Shan. Of course, Da Tou Shan also referred to the surrounding area.

In front of the hill was a ten-zhang-wide depression with a pond inside. The water didn't seem shallow, and this was the Old Turtle Pit.

Xiang Ling chattered on, talking about the fun things to do here, the comfortable places to sleep, and how good the water tasted.

"It's here." They went around Da Tou Shan and saw a small hill amidst the dense forest.

The hill was covered in brambles and hawthorn, surrounded by withered leaves and broken branches.

"Hold this for me, don't get it dirty." Xiang Ling took off her floral head wrap, carrying a small floral bundle on her back. She jumped down and dove into the brambles, pushing aside the withered leaves and broken branches. She found a crack in the hill, barely a finger's width at its narrowest and only two fist-widths at its widest. It was indeed hard to notice.

Meng Yuan looked down from his higher vantage point into the crack and saw that the interior was dim, about three or four zhang deep, and there was indeed a small green plant inside.

The plant was about knee-high, bearing two green fruits.

The plant probably only got some sunlight around noon each day, but it still thrived, clearly extraordinary.

As the sun approached noon, the warm rays steamed out a faint, delicate fragrance.

"I'll pluck one for you right now, hehehe!" Xiang Ling was delighted, but she saw that the Little Castrator wasn't responding. She turned to look at him and noticed that he had taken down his longbow and was calmly nocking an arrow.

Xiang Ling started crying, "Little Castrator, you're so mean! You're like a husband who carries his child, acting like a good old granny! The yellow marmot comes to pay New Year's greetings, acting like a good person! My wet nurse said you can't trust people, and it turns out she wasn't lying to me, waaa..."

She simply lay down, closed her eyes, and raised her white belly, "Waaa, my wet nurse said it's better to live on than die, so you'd better be quick. If it hurts too much, I'll say you're a bad castrator!"

Xiang Ling kept crying and whining, but she never felt her belly hurt. She opened one eye to look and saw that the castrator had nocked an arrow, but he wasn't aiming at her. Instead, he was aiming at something in the distance.

Xiang Ling quickly stood up and crawled out of the brambles. In the distance, under a pine tree, there was an old fox about half a person's height.

The old fox wore a green robe, held a bamboo staff, and hunched over as he looked in their direction.

"Old Matchmaker, what are you doing here?" Xiang Ling was delighted, "What did my fiance say?"

She had just been lying down, waiting to die, but now she was suddenly concerned about her marriage.

The old fox ignored her and stared at Meng Yuan's arrow, smiling, "Little friend, two fruits, one for you and one for me. How about it?"

"One is a gift from Miss Xiang Ling to me, and one is Miss Xiang Ling's dowry. You should ask her."

The fox looked at Xiang Ling and said, "Xiang Ling, your fiance has sent me to collect the dowry."

Hearing this, Xiang Ling shook her head vigorously, "The dowry is for me to bring along and save face. I don't need to give it to my fiance. If things don't work out, I can still bring the dowry back!"

She seemed to understand marriage customs quite well.

"She doesn't agree." Meng Yuan said.

The old fox fell silent for a moment, then said, "An ox plowing half a field, the harvest depends on heaven, and the ruin also depends on heaven. Will you reap or ruin?"

"What does that mean? I don't understand!" Xiang Ling wasn't a fool, and she realized something was amiss. She crouched on the ground, afraid to move.

"The fox is saying that this treasure medicine was planted by her, and now that it's ripe, she's here to collect the payment. Whether she can receive it or not depends on my ability." Meng Yuan explained.

"This is what my wet nurse and I raised with our urine and feces." Xiang Ling cried.

"I've always been kind to people, but this time I have an urgent need." The old fox took a step forward and said, "You may not win against me. How about we each take one, and later, the heavens are vast, and the young man's future is bright and promising. There are many joys in the world."

"I'm not happy right now." Meng Yuan said.

The old fox's face turned dark, "Little fool, like the grass and trees, you can die in an instant. Why must you be so stubborn?"

"I've understood the vastness of the world, but I still pity the grass and trees." Meng Yuan drew his bow like a full moon and released the arrow.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end