The Cultivator's Reborn to 1970s
Chapter 54

Chapter 54: 54

Entering the Qi Cultivation Stage, one can emit Spiritual Energy, which to some extent can resist the cold. Lan Tian did not want to stand out and attract attention, so naturally, he did not use Spiritual Energy to defend against the cold. After soaking in herbal baths three times, his body was more resistant to the cold than others.

On such a cold day, even adults wore thick cotton-padded jackets; Lan Tian was not cold and still dressed like the other village children, round and puffy, looking like a balloon.

As the New Year approached, the town became busier, with villagers nearby rushing to the town to buy New Year’s goods.

With the New Year nearing, every household was busy. Mo Yuanle told Yanhua not to come anymore and to wait until after the 15th day of the first lunar month.

The family of four set out, Mo Yuanle driving the cart while Lan Tian and two others sat at the back. A thick layer of straw was spread on the cart, making it soft and warm to sit on. Grandma Sun, worried that Lan Tian might get cold, also laid out an old quilt on the cart.

Grandma Sun and Zhao Li sat side by side, leaning towards Mo Yuanle’s side, with Lan Tian sitting in Zhao Li’s lap, the three of them warming up together under the quilt. A couple of days ago, they received his report card, Lan Tian scored perfect on all subjects, earning two red flowers as a reward. Zhao Li and Grandma Sun talked about it again, and even after so many days, they were still enthusiastic, making Lan Tian’s ears almost calloused from listening.

The town was crowded, and it was impossible for carts to enter the market entrance. During this festive season, cattle thieves were particularly rampant, with many carts being stolen. Lan Tian’s family had borrowed their cart, and they were even more afraid of mishaps, which would be difficult to explain when returning. Grandma Sun, being old, did not want to join the hustle and wished to stay and watch the cart.

"I’ll stay and watch the cart with grandma."

Lan Tian also wanted to stay and accompany her to watch the cart, but Grandma Sun chuckled; there was nothing interesting about watching an empty cart. Being old with limited energy and mobility, she really did not want to push through the crowd as the influx of people shopping for the New Year really wore her out.

"No need, you go with your uncle and aunt, there are so many more interesting things to see on the street than watching a cart."

At Lan Tian’s age, she was lively and active. What was a little girl doing staying here? She was slightly different from other children; the festival period was especially chaotic, and an old lady like her could not keep an eye on her.

Hearing their conversation, an old grandpa nearby praised Lan Tian for being sensible.

Lan Tian did not need to watch the cart and cheerfully followed Mo Yuanle and his wife around the market. With the crowd, it was easy to get separated; Lan Tian had once been abducted, so the couple was very worried about her walking alone. In the end, Mo Yuanle carried her.

As for what to buy for the New Year, Zhao Li had a plan. First, they went to buy dry goods, and the family of three went to the dry goods area. They bought two bundles of sweet potato vermicelli, half a bag of flour, five bags of white sugar, two bags of brown sugar, three to four jin each of dried fruits, candies, cookies, a bundle of sugarcane, and two jin each of dried bamboo and dried mushrooms.

Mo Yuanle made several trips to carry the items to the cart, while Zhao Li and Lan Tian stayed put and waited for him. Unconsciously, it became noon, and the four went to a nearby noodle stall, each eating a bowl of sauerkraut and shredded pork noodles, and continued their shopping in the afternoon.

Passing by a firecracker shop, Mo Yuanle glanced at Lan Tian and ran in to buy a few strings of firecrackers and some noise-making toys for children, then went to a nearby stall to buy couplets and New Year paintings.

After buying these things, the three went to a grocery store to buy various condiments like oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and went to a fish stall to buy two grass carps weighing four or five jin each. Having almost finished buying the New Year’s goods, the family hurriedly drove the ox cart back to the village.

On the 25th, they cleaned the house, with every household cleaning their own homes from the inside out, meticulously. The symbolism was to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, sweeping away all the bad omens of the old year and welcoming the goodness of the coming year.

Lan Tian was wearing a hat, an apron wrapped around her, holding a sorghum broom, standing on a stool to clean the dust and cobwebs from the windows. She saw the village chief coming from the window.

Mo Yuanle was outside cleaning the yard when the village chief came in and walked over to him. The two chatted idly about everyday matters for a while. Lan Tian glanced at them and continued sweeping her windows, which was her task for the day. The dust she swept off covered her all over.

At this moment, she especially missed the times when her cultivation was high. With a dust cleaning technique, the house would be guaranteed to be as clean as new. Now her cultivation was low, only at the Qi Cultivation Second Level, and once she reached the Third Level, she could start to cultivate spells.

Lan Tian wanted to cultivate many different spells, such as Sleeve Universe, Spring Breeze and Rain, Fireball Technique, Fire Flame Technique, Fertility Technique, Wood Needle Technique, Quicksand Technique, Earth Sinking Skill, Dust Removal Technique, Cleaning Technique, Light Body Skill, and so on. Lan Tian was used to having her home along with her portable cave dwelling, which wasn’t particularly inconvenient now. She could only compromise and practice the Sleeve Universe.

The Jade Scroll mentioned that when the Sleeve Universe was cultivated to the extreme, it could evolve a world of its own, even superior to a portable cave dwelling. A portable cave dwelling could be taken away, while the Sleeve Universe could only be used by the cultivator who practiced it.

While sweeping halfway through the windows, Mo Yuanle came in and handed Lan Tian a letter. Lan Tian pointed to herself and asked, "For me? Who wrote it? Could there be a mistake? I know everyone from the village, who would write to me, and I don’t know anyone from outside."

"Sent from the army."

The envelope was stamped with the army’s unique seal, clearly visible.

The only person from the village who joined the army was Mo Junhua. The village chief delivering the letter surprised Mo Yuanle. When Mo Yuanle received the letter and saw the seal, he knew it was from him. The village chief mentioned the young man had sent two letters, one to his family and one to Lan Tian. Mo Junhua wrote to his family, which Mo Yuanle understood, but why also to the girl, what does it mean?

Lan Tian was momentarily distracted, then remembered Mo Junhua had joined the army. Initially, he had agreed to write her a letter once a month, but after her seclusion, Lan Tian had forgotten about it. If not for seeing the letter today, Lan would not have remembered him.

The envelope was bulky, and Lan pinched the thick stack, puzzled. There were at least a few pages. They weren’t close; did Mo Junhua have so much to say to her?

"Auntie, are you sure the village chief didn’t deliver it wrong? Was it meant for Chuntao or Chunhua?" Lan Tian shook the envelope, wanting to throw it away, but she dared not do so in front of Mo Yuanle, fearing he might scold her.

"Your name is written as the recipient on it. Besides you, is there another Lan Tian in the village?"

Lan’s distressed expression made Mo Yuanle laugh. Actually, Mo Junhua was not bad and treated Lan Tian well, but the girl just didn’t like him, always finding fault with him.

Lan Tian felt this man was just troublesome. In her previous life, she treated him like a God, yet never even received a smile from him. In this life, she ignored him, and yet he kept pursuing her relentlessly, perhaps really as others said, we always want what we can’t have.

Grandma Sun and Zhao Li knew that Lan Tian received a letter from Mo Junhua, and they temporarily stopped cleaning. The two joyfully urged Lan to open the letter and see what it said. Lan didn’t feel it was invasive, as her family members could see it.

Lan originally intended to wait until evening, when her family was asleep, to throw the letter into the latrine. By the time they found out, it would be too late to retrieve it.

Being watched by the two Supreme Masters of the house, with four eyes staring at her, Lan had no choice but to open the letter, comforting herself that if there were some inappropriate content, it would be even better, to show them what kind of person Mo Junhua was, saving her trouble from always hearing her family praise him, so they wouldn’t blame her for ignoring him later.