Fu Tingyun took the medicine bowl: “I’m not hungry, you eat it!”

“Ah!” A-Sen widened his eyes, looking at Fu Tingyun.

“Go ahead and eat!” Fu Tingyun drank her medicine.

A-Sen glanced toward Master Zhao Jiu.

Master Zhao Jiu cast a glance at Fu Tingyun, who sat stiffly at the end of the kang, and nodded slightly.

“Really!” A-Sen was elated.

Master Zhao Jiu couldn’t help but smile as he watched, and nodded again.

A-Sen’s large eyes curved like crescent moons with delight as he held the egg in his hand, examining it thoroughly before gently peeling the shell.

“How beautiful!” He studied the smooth, tender white egg in the lamplight for a long time before taking a small bite. “So delicious!” He squinted his eyes, showing an expression of pure happiness.

Fu Tingyun was shocked.

It was just an egg, yet A-Sen acted as if he were eating some rare delicacy like dragon liver or phoenix marrow.

She found it difficult to connect the A-Sen before her with the one who had mercilessly raised his staff to strike the dogs earlier!

In the lamplight, A-Sen’s features still showed childlike innocence.

Fu Tingyun suddenly felt very angry.

No matter what, A-Sen was just a child. What did he understand? He simply did as he was taught! If anyone was to blame, it was Master Zhao Jiu, the one who raised and taught him.

With this thought, she was even less inclined to speak to Master Zhao Jiu.

Once they reached Weinan, she would ask her uncle to give him some silver and send him away!

However, it would be best if she could persuade A-Sen to stay with her, to prevent him from developing a heart of stone by following him…

…

The three of them—Master Zhao Jiu sitting at the head of the kang, Fu Tingyun at the foot, and A-Sen squatting beside it—each had half a bowl of water and one steamed bun for dinner.

“You should rest early!” Master Zhao Jiu stood up after he finished eating. “We’ll set off at the hour of Yin tomorrow.”

The hour of Yin—before daybreak!

Fu Tingyun hadn’t finished eating yet and couldn’t help asking: “So early?”

“The midday sun is too scorching, you couldn’t bear it,” Master Zhao Jiu said. “We can only travel in the early morning and late afternoon.”

Again, because of her…

Fu Tingyun’s heart was somewhat confused, and she responded with an “Oh.”

A-Sen had already taken out an old straw mat from the small cart: “Miss, I’ll sleep in the courtyard. If you need anything, just call me!”

Fu Tingyun smiled and responded with a “Good.”

A-Sen happily followed Master Zhao Jiu out.

The steamed bun was very dry. After Master Zhao Jiu and A-Sen left, she forced herself to eat a few bites but could eat no more, though she did finish her water.

Fu Tingyun placed the bun in the empty bowl, lay down on the cool bamboo mat that A-Sen had prepared, blew out the fire starter that was stuck in the window lattice, and lay down fully clothed.

The porcelain pillow had a slight coolness that made her rest her cheek against it.

In the quiet night, sounds were amplified infinitely.

Fu Tingyun could hear A-Sen spreading his straw mat and moving about.

“Where are you going?” Master Zhao Jiu asked him.

“Master!” There was a hint of ingratiation in his voice. “I’m going to skin those dogs and make them into dried meat. Then I can make soup for Miss. Didn’t the doctor say Miss was deficient in both qi and blood? Brother Yuancheng said dog meat is very nourishing. If Miss drinks the meat soup, she might recover quickly!”

“Nonsense!” Master Zhao Jiu reprimanded A-Sen in a low voice, then his voice gradually became inaudible.

That fellow, what is he going to make A-Sen do now?

Such a good child, and he’s being taught poorly!

Fu Tingyun felt angry and quietly got up to place her ear against the partially open window lattice.

“…How could wild dogs suddenly appear? They’ve probably survived by feeding on the corpses of those who starved to death… Otherwise, they wouldn’t have pounced on us immediately upon seeing us… Be careful of corpse poison… Not only should you not eat them, you shouldn’t even touch them…”

Dogs eating people!

The corpses of those who starved to death!

She was staying here with these things!

Just thinking about it made her feel sick… Her chest felt like a surging sea, and with a “Wah!” she vomited everything she had just eaten!

“What’s wrong?” Master Zhao Jiu knocked on the window lattice, his voice somewhat urgent. “I’ll send A-Sen in!”

Fu Tingyun held onto the edge of the kang, unable to speak.

A-Sen peered in from the doorway: “Miss!” Seeing her clothes were neat, he pushed the door open and ran over. “What happened to you? You were fine. How did you suddenly start vomiting?”

Hearing this, Master Zhao Jiu quickly called to A-Sen: “Feel Miss’s forehead and check if it’s hot!”

A-Sen went to feel Fu Tingyun’s forehead: “Hot!”

“How hot?” Master Zhao Jiu asked anxiously.

“Hotter than my hand!” A-Sen said. “But not as hot as my forehead!”

What kind of answer was that?

Master Zhao Jiu felt somewhat helpless and said: “Miss Fu, then I’m coming in!”

“No need!” Fu Tingyun had recovered her breath. “I just felt a bit uncomfortable in my chest.” Having been unconscious for more than ten days, and then rushing to travel as soon as she woke up, and now having just vomited, her voice was inevitably weak.

Master Zhao Jiu didn’t respond immediately, and after a good while, he said softly: “At times like these, it’s easiest to contract an epidemic. You’d better be careful!”

By this time, A-Sen had helped Fu Tingyun onto the kang, and upon hearing this, he immediately added: “Yes, Miss, several dead bodies are swarming with maggots in the thatched cottages at the village entrance…”

No wonder there was a stench when they entered the village; it was the smell of corpses.

The thought that she had smelled the odor of corpses made Fu Tingyun’s chest churn again, and she leaned over the edge of the kang and began to vomit.

Master Zhao Jiu seemed to understand what was happening and didn’t ask if she had a fever again. He simply instructed A-Sen: “Pour some water for Miss, clean up the room, and bring out another egg.”

A-Sen efficiently followed Master Zhao Jiu’s instructions, pouring water, cleaning the room, and bringing out another egg.

Fu Tingyun drank the water and held the egg, somewhat dazed.

“Miss, please eat quickly!” A-Sen urged her from the side. “Master Nine had a hard time finding five eggs, which are very nourishing.” He looked at her eagerly, even licking his lips, as if savoring the delicious taste of the egg he had just eaten.

Fu Tingyun felt somewhat anxious looking at him, with her throat feeling as if something was blocking it, and her chest feeling heavy.

“Alright,” Master Zhao Jiu said from outside, “let Miss Fu rest early! It’s getting late.”

“Eat quickly!” A-Sen urged Fu Tingyun with a grin, then turned and ran out.

She blew out the fire starter and lay in the darkness.

The palm-leaf fan was heavy; after waving it a few times, her wrist would ache. The sweat from the journey hadn’t been washed off, sticking to her body, making her feel dirty and smelly… Fu Tingyun’s thoughts jumped from Master Zhao Jiu’s sweaty brow as he traveled, to his indifferent expression when he handed her the water pouch, to his cold voice when he ordered A-Sen to kill the dogs, to the egg held in his large palm… Confused and disordered thoughts came one after another, like mixed flavors that she couldn’t distinguish.

She tossed and turned, unable to sleep soundly, yet the fragrance of the cool bamboo mat lingered at the tip of her nose.

…

It seemed she had just closed her eyes when A-Sen’s voice came: “Miss Fu, Miss Fu, are you awake? We’re about to set off.”

Fu Tingyun responded vaguely.

From the courtyard came Master Zhao Jiu’s voice: “Just ‘Miss,’ why call her ‘Miss Fu’? Don’t call her that in the future.”

“I know, I know!” A-Sen’s response carried a hint of cunning. “Brother Yucheng said not to tell anyone about Miss’s affairs. I remember!”

Fu Tingyun was stunned for a while, then slowly packed her bundle and left the side room.

Before dawn, the fire starter cast a rosy glow on the faces of Master Zhao Jiu and A-Sen.

“Miss!” A-Sen happily came forward to greet her, then went into the room to pack things.

Master Zhao Jiu merely nodded slightly at her.

Again, each had half a bowl of water and a steamed bun. After eating, the three set off while it was still dark.

When passing the village entrance, Fu Tingyun covered her nose and moved to Master Zhao Jiu’s right side.

Master Zhao Jiu glanced at her but said nothing, though he quickened his pace.

Having not slept well at night and rising early to travel, Fu Tingyun was dispirited, but A-Sen was very energetic. Holding a twig he had picked up from somewhere, he hopped and skipped ahead, sometimes poking at small stones on the ground, sometimes prodding withered trees by the roadside, full of vitality.

Fu Tingyun watched him with a heavy heart.

When they stopped to rest midway, and Master Zhao Jiu had gone off somewhere, she chatted with A-Sen: “How old were you when Master Nine found you?”

“Don’t know!” A-Sen replied carelessly. “Master said I looked about four or five years old, so he counted me as five, and made the day he found me my birthday.” There wasn’t a trace of sadness in his voice.

Fu Tingyun felt even more emotional: “Do you remember your family?”

“I don’t remember!” A-Sen handed her the water pouch. “Master said everyone in the village died, and only I still had breath. Brother Yuancheng said I have great fortune, and will surely have blessings in the future.” As he spoke, he smiled at Fu Tingyun, looking quite proud.

Fu Tingyun was shocked: “The entire village died?”

“Mm-hmm!” He nodded. “Master found me in Liangzhou, where Tatars often appear. Brother Yucheng said the village was probably massacred by Tatars.” As he spoke of this, he became somewhat morose.

Fu Tingyun couldn’t bear to see him like this and quickly said: “It’s already very good that you survived!”

A-Sen smiled and nodded repeatedly: “Yes! So I must live well, and enjoy good fortune in the future!”

Fu Tingyun also smiled and reached out to pat his head.

He tilted his head away, and Fu Tingyun’s hand missed: “Master said, men’s heads and women’s waists, look but don’t touch.”

Fu Tingyun laughed loudly, her voice like silver bells scattering in the air.

“Miss, your voice sounds so nice!” A-Sen was genuinely praised.

Fu Tingyun had never heard such straightforward compliments before. She blushed slightly and softly said, “Thank you.”

Master Zhao Jiu returned, and from a distance, he heard the laughter. His gaze moved back and forth between the two of them.

A-Sen quickly ran over to him: “Master, which way are we going?” His face was full of eagerness to please, like a puppy wagging its tail at its owner.

Fu Tingyun found it amusing and turned her face away.

Master Zhao Jiu didn’t quite understand. He had only been away for a moment, yet Fu Tingyun, who had been dispirited, was now laughing and chatting intimately with A-Sen. Moreover, they stopped talking when they saw him, as if he were some outsider!

A hint of confusion flashed in his eyes.

“We’ll head southwest,” Master Zhao Jiu said flatly, “bypassing Huayin!”

Are we already reaching Huayin?

Fu Tingyun’s smile gradually faded.

She stood on tiptoe to look in the direction from which Master Zhao Jiu had come.

There was only an endless expanse of yellow earth and scattered withered trees standing in the fields.

An inexplicable desolation welled up from the depths of her heart.

Are we going to Weinan?

From now on, forget the young girl who chased butterflies in spring, forget her mother’s warm embrace, her grandmother’s silver-white hair, the joyful smiles of her sisters, the peonies by the cool pavilion, the ginkgo tree behind the house, the yucca flowers blooming in the courtyard…

Who would she be?

Who would she become?

In the vast sea of humanity, Huayin would henceforth be a memory that could only be gazed upon from afar!

Was this choice right or wrong?