Lanke Chess Edge
Chapter 220: Three Pecks

“Crashshshshshsh… Crashshshshsh…”

The heavy rain showed no signs of easing throughout the night. in the middle of the night. The hill where the three foxes were located was about a mile away from the deserted waystation.

Although the rain affected visibility, with the three vixen’s eyesight, they could still vaguely make out some firelight and smoke coming from the barren outpost.

“I’m so angry! I’m so mad! We were driven away by a group of mortals!”

“Oooh…that damn old man grabbed my tail, he almost, almost… That scared me to death…”

The fox on the left still had lingering fears. Old Lu had almost hit it with his knife. Judging from the murderous intent of the traveling merchants just now, if it had been a hit, he would have struck to kill.

“Hmph, I blame you two cowards. They’re just a bunch of mortals. They might be a little fierce, but so what? With your fox body, you can easily bite them to death, but you panicked. I really…”

“Boom…crack!”

Lightning struck a large tree by the hill.

“Ah…”

“Ah…”

The three foxes’ fur stood on end, and they screamed and fled in three different directions.

Inside the barren waystation, everyone was tired after their previous fight. However, they could not relax their vigilance now, so the number of people on night watch significantly increased.

Half of the traveling merchants went on night watch, while the other half rested. Meanwhile, Yin Qing and his friends took turns sleeping in pairs. Although the merchants said that they could sleep freely and that they would keep an eye on them, the scholars had grown a bit more mature, after all, and knew that one should always be on guard.

When Lei Yusheng woke up early in the morning, the sound of rain outside had stopped.

“Are you awake?”

Yin Qing rubbed his eyes, yawned, and asked. Then, he stood up, stretching his arms and legs. Lin Xinjie, who was sitting beside him, was still sleeping soundly on the low table.

Lei Yusheng looked at Mo Xiu next to him. Yin Qing and Lin Xinjie were supposed to wake him and Mo Xiu up in the latter half of the night to replace them on watch, but based on the current situation, Yin Qing and Lin Xinjie had on guard all night; or, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that Yin Qing was the only one keeping watch for most of the night.

“Yin Qing, you didn’t sleep?”

Yin Qing stretched out his arms and turned back with a smile.

“I’m in better spirits, so it’s okay for me to sleep less.”

“That’s right, this Young Master Yin also read books to us at night, telling us about the customs and practices of other regions. He is in good spirits, and his knowledge is also outstanding!”

“Indeed, he is quite knowledgeable.”

“Young and promising.”

One merchant who had already gotten up informed Lei Yusheng cheerfully, and the people around him echoed his words.

As more people got up, the noise in the outpost grew louder. Lin Xinjie and Mo Xiu were also woken up, and the whole deserted waystation became lively once again.

Old Boss Lu picked out some thin pieces of firewood, threw them into the charcoal pile, blew on it a few times, and rekindled the campfire with the remaining charcoal. Then he set up a pot and began to prepare breakfast.

Everyone including the four scholars was given a bowl of corn porridge, with a steamed bun heated by the fire and a small spoonful of pickled vegetables.

Even Lei Yusheng and Lin Xinjie, who were used to fine food, ate it with relish and praised the merchants for their good cooking skills.

After everyone had packed up, the group of nearly twenty people finally hoisted their bags and book packs and walked out of the deserted outpost.

After the rain, the mountains seemed to have been purified. The air was fresh and the sun was bright. Just taking a few deep breaths outside could make one feel refreshed.

“Let’s go, let’s hurry up. It will only take two more days to cross Datong Mountain. Will you scholars also come with us?”

Yin Qing and the others looked at each other, and Mo Xiu asked straightforwardly.

“Two days? I heard that it takes seven to eight days.”

“Hahaha, that’s along the postal road, which twists and turns along the mountainside. We have our own familiar roads. They’re a little harder to walk, but much faster. In the early years, many of Wan Province’s silk fabrics were transported on the backs of people like us. There was no road back then, after all!”

They had already encountered fox spirits on this mountain, so Yin Qing and others did not dare to continue on by themselves. When they heard Old Boss Lu’s suggestion, they naturally agreed immediately.

The group walked along the postal road for about half an hour. After that, they no longer followed the winding path, but traveled directly to the top of the mountain, and, following Old Boss Lu’s lead, turned off in another direction.

To be honest, aside from Yin Qing, the other three scholars seemed to be struggling and slowing them down, even Mo Xiu, who was not from a wealthy family.

So later on, the merchants simply traded out the contents of their book packs for a few of the lighter items and placed the boxes on their backs, then helped and supported them onwards from time to time, which allowed the scholars to persevere.

Only Yin Qing did not ask for help from beginning to end, and was able to maintain a good physical strength to keep up with the pace of the traveling merchants, making the other men look at him with even more admiration.

“Haah… haaah… haah… We finally made it to Huanggou Ridge!”¹

After climbing over the mountain, the group’s leader, Old Boss Lu, was also out of breath. Because it had rained the night before, the air was fresh, but the ground was also muddy. Even if they found places with more rocks to step on, it still consumed more energy than normal.

Looking at the ones behind him, they all showed signs of fatigue, and the couple of scholars were huffing and panting like bellows with punctured holes.

“Everyone, let’s take a rest. No one is allowed to go too far. Even if you need to relieve yourself, find someone to be with you!”

“Okay.”

“Oh, a break.”

“Finally, we get a break…”

“I’m going to fall apart…”

Some people joked while others complained, and they all dry spot to sit down nearby.

A crow flew by overhead, giving a series of caws.

Lin Xinjie murmured subconsciously.

“Mr. Lu, isn’t the crow’s cry unlucky?”

A man who was drinking water next to him was amused at his words.

“Hahahaha… You, scholar, aren’t most of you not superstitious? There are so many birds and beasts in the mountains. If you get scared hearing a crow, you’ll be trembling all day; why don’t you leave? I’ve even heard a King of Beasts² roar!”

“In other words…”

“This scholar…”

Hearing others teasing him, Yin Qing perked up.

“Uncle, have you truly heard a tiger roar? What kind of roar was it? Were you scared at the time? I have a friend who often hears tigers roar, and he says he is scared to death every time. Is that true?”

A few of the traveling merchants nearby looked at Yin Qing strangely. The man who was being asked also asked a question back out of curiosity.

“Your friend who often hears tigers roar, is he alive or dead? He must be really brave!”

“Hahahaha, you say he’s brave? He’s the most cowardly guy I know!”

Thinking of Hu Yun’s cowardly behavior, Yin Qing couldn’t help but laugh. The Old Turtle told him storied before about how the fox had looked when he was frightened by him.

“My friend said that the tiger’s roar was so loud that it could be heard for from my friend that the tiger roar he heard can be heard from ten li away, and all the birds and beasts of the mountains fled. Uncle, tell me about the tiger roar you heard!”

When the others heard Yin Qing’s words, they thought that this friend must have been bragging.

“The roar of a tiger is indeed scary, but it’s not that exaggerated. With a dozen or so of us traveling merchants together, even if we meet the King of Beasts, the creature probably won’t dare to harm us. The Blade Song is not just sung.”

“Yes, in fact, we heard a King of Beasts roar at that time, and went down the mountain to tell the hunters. The next day, more than 20 hunters came up the mountain with their tools to lay traps.”

Mo Xiu said dazedly, “You’re willing to sacrifice your lives for the sake of a hide?”

Old Boss Lu smiled and shook his head.

“At that time, the King of Beasts must have wandered over from other mountain areas. We couldn’t help it because it was too close to the other villages over there. It’s not that the hunters want the hide, but rather that their entire families, young and old, all live at the foot of the mountain, so they were worried!”

“Did you catch the King of Beasts in the end?”

Lei Yusheng was also curious.

“We had already left the region by then, and we only came back several months later. It was said that they still hadn’t caught the King of Beasts. Finally, several villages around there raised money to build a Land God Temple, and went to the City God Temple to pray to the City God. The old temple priest helped preside over the ritual and invited a Land God to protect them. Let me tell you, it really worked…”

This was also an interesting story. The scholars listened to it with great interest. For a couple of young people who had just joined the traveling merchant group, this was also their first time hearing it, too.

Yin Qing was listening when he suddenly felt an itch on his neck. He turned his head and found a paper crane had landed on his shoulder, and was pecking at him with its small paper beak.

Yin Qing’s expression was filled with joy at the sight of the paper crane. He stretched out his hand to cover his shoulder, turned his head, and and lowered his voice.

“Little Paper Crane, is Mr. Ji here?”

After thinking for a while, he added.

“Peck once for yes, twice for no.”

The paper crane tilted its head to look at Yin Qing, then pecked the hand that was covering it three times.

Yin Qing frowned, then asked tentatively.

“He came here, then left again?”

This time the paper crane pecked once, then flapped its wings and flew behind a bush to one side. Yin Qing saw it leave and quickly followed.

“Hey Yin Qing, where are you going?”

“To relieve myself!”

“Then I’ll go with you!”

Mo Xiu was listening to the traveling merchant’s storytelling. When he saw Yin Qing running away alone, he quickly followed. However, Yin Qing ran too fast, and he obviously lagged behind by a large distance.

Of course, Yin Qing didn’t care that Mo Xiu was following behind him. He kept chasing the paper crane around several bushes, then turned to the side of the mountain wall. Suddenly, he saw something behind him, and let out a frightened cry: “Ah!”

A hairy, squat, hunch-backed monster with a tan body and wearing a tattered coat stood there, the paper crane circling above its head.

“I-I great Y-Young Master Yin! I-I am-m the Mountain God of of Datong Mountain, I’m Zun, Immortal Zun…”

“Yin Qing~!”

Mo Xiu’s voice rang out. Yin Qing looked back, and when he turned back around, the monster claiming to be a Mountain God had disappeared.

T/n: Yin Qing has been getting those spiritual jujube buffs

1. 荒 (huāng): desolate/to neglect, 沟 (gōu): ditch/ravine/gully — “Desolate Ditch Ridge” — a charming name, truly
2. Refer to ch. 4 footnote 6 for why a tiger is referred to as King of Beasts