Chapter 77: Farming

Fortunately, there were still two months left before the New Year.

At this time last year, Wen Xu had just completed his three years of mourning. Having shed his mourning clothes, he was leaving Bizhou Prefecture for the capital to sit for the imperial examinations. The night before his departure, he had sat before his adoptive father’s grave, promising that he would do his best to pass the jinshi exam^[1]. If he succeeded, he would strive to be a good official in the future and uphold the reputation of the Wen family.

The old scholar had no wife or children, having spent his entire life chasing academic honors. He was bound to be lonely in the afterlife. At the time, Wen Xu had planned to return at least once a year to sweep his grave, but he never expected that in his very first year away, he wouldn’t be able to return.

“What are you thinking about? You look so gloomy today.”

Wen Xu touched his face. “Is it that obvious?”

“Extremely obvious. Still unhappy? How about…” Bian Chunzhou could understand. After all, losing by half a strike was just as frustrating as scoring a fifty-nine on an exam. He knew all too well the feeling of failing when a passing grade was right within reach.

Wen Xu tried to explain, “It’s not because of that.”

“I get it, I get it!”

“No! You don’t!”

Bian Chunzhou blinked. He could feel Wen Xuxu’s emotional fluctuations quite clearly now. Why was he still denying it?

“Then tell me. Once you tell me, I’ll understand.”

How was he supposed to say it? Could he really just tell him that the Divine Dragon Venerable he worshipped had come up with a terrible idea, asking him and his two friends to skirt the high-risk boundaries of the Punishment Hall’s rules? Wen Xu was a man of dignity; he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

He opened his mouth, uncharacteristically at a loss for words. Only after a long pause did he manage to speak. “New Year is coming up. What are your plans?”

Was he trying to change the subject? Bian Chunzhou considerately followed his lead. “Making dumplings, of course!”

…What did that even mean?

“To be specific, I’m planning to introduce two new dishes to Gongshang Bistro. One of them is hotpot dumplings. I’m really good at making fillings. When the time comes, I’ll make whatever filling you want!” Bian Chunzhou patted his chest, promising generously.

Wen Xu listened for a while before finally realizing that the “jiaozi” Chunzhou spoke of was actually bianshi.

“In Bizhou Prefecture, where I grew up, we didn’t have the custom of eating bianshi for the New Year. But on the winter solstice, jiao’er soup was very popular.” Because bianshi looked like ears, eating jiao’er soup was said to prevent one’s ears from freezing off. High officials, noble lords, and wealthy merchants naturally didn’t have such worries, but for the common folk at the bottom of society, a bowl of jiao’er soup was the most luxurious blessing they could give themselves.

When Wen Xu was a beggar child, he had once received a free bowl of jiao’er soup on the winter solstice. Although it only had two broken bianshi in it, it was the first time he had ever eaten hot, meaty soup. Life was hard for a young beggar; anything you received was only truly yours once it was in your stomach. So, he devoured it immediately while it was still piping hot. The scalding soup slid all the way down his throat and into his stomach. Though it burned, he tasted a delicacy unlike any other.

It was also that night, after hearing that ordinary families could drink jiao’er soup every winter, that an unprecedented ambition sparked in his heart.

He didn’t want to be a beggar who went cold and hungry. He wanted to rise above others. He wanted to…

“So that’s the story behind it. How interesting,” Bian Chunzhou said cheerfully. “Actually, I really like pickled cabbage filling, but I don’t know how to pickle it myself. I’ll ask the shopkeeper later to see if he has a way to get some…”

“Chunzhou.”

Bian Chunzhou looked up. “What?”

“In this first year of the New Calendar, do you want to watch the sunrise together?”

How romantic. Bian Chunzhou saw no reason to refuse. “Sure! Where are we going? Foguang Temple? I heard there’s a pagoda at Foguang Temple outside Langyuan City. Every year, people have to draw lots just to burn the first incense. Apparently, that first incense stick is rolled from Hanhai Qinan^[2] and various precious spices. It’s only as thick as a thumb, but it can burn for a whole year without going out.”

“It’s not Foguang Temple.” Wen Xu hesitated for a moment. “You’ll find out when the time comes.”

“Alright, we’ll invite Chen Zuizui too. The three of us can celebrate the New Year together this year, hehe!” Last year, they had just entered the sect and were busy stabilizing their cultivation and adapting to sect life. Before they knew it, the New Year had already passed. “Speaking of which, we’ve known each other for a year now, but I feel like we’ve known each other for a very, very long time.”

Wen Xu was taken aback, but he felt the same way. “Perhaps it means we were destined to be good friends.” This friendship had started with cautious calculation, followed by a life-saving debt, but now, he was beginning to understand the true meaning of friendship.

“Of course!” Bian Chunzhou thought to himself that he was very lucky to have made friends like Wen Xu and Chen Zui, who were willing to tolerate all his little quirks. They had also helped him integrate into the cultivation world much faster.

“Actually…”

“What?”

Wen Xu pursed his lips, the ribbon over his eyes trembling slightly. “Actually, you are my first good friend.”

Bian Chunzhou: OvO “Eh?!”

“Your first good friend in the cultivation world, right?”

But Wen Xu shook his head firmly. “Chunzhou, I’m not as good as you think. You don’t know about my past. Actually…”

Bian Chunzhou was a little surprised. He had felt that Wen Xuxu was acting a bit differently today. “Wait, what do you mean by ‘not that good’? Wen Xuxu, wake up! You’re absolutely worth it!”

“No matter what your ‘actually’ is, I’m your best friend. Aren’t friends supposed to be biased, show favoritism, and look at each other through rose-colored glasses?” Now he was starting to believe it, but Wen Xuxu was such a good person. How could he not have had any friends before? Hmph, the people he met in the past must have had terrible taste.

When Wen Xu studied in the past, he read that “the friendship of gentlemen is as plain as water^[3],” and believed that true friends should be like that. But now he realized his past definition of a friend had been far too strict. Just like the impression many had of him, he seemed to wear a gentle, approachable mask, but in reality, he kept everyone at a distance.

Wen Xu was not someone who liked to open up to others. If Bian Chunzhou hadn’t saved his life, he would never have taken that first step.

“Actually, I’m a very cowardly person,” Wen Xu heard his own voice say.

Huh? Cowardly?

Once the first sentence was out, the rest came much easier. “My upbringing was very complicated. To put it simply, I was an abandoned baby.”

“You did mention before that you had an adoptive father…”

“Yes. My adoptive father was an old scholar who failed the imperial exams time and again. Eventually, he grew too old to keep taking them. Since he had no children, he decided to adopt a talented child. When I heard about this, I racked my brains and did everything in my power to get him to take me in.”

So that was why Wen Xuxu had been so focused on his studies, and why he had passed the provincial exams to become a Juren at eighteen? Was it because, from the very beginning, Wen Xuxu felt he had used schemes, and so… he constantly strove to be the perfect son his adoptive father wanted?

Hearing no response for a long time, Wen Xu looked up, only for a figure to suddenly throw themselves at him.

He disliked physical contact and was about to push the other away, but Bian Chunzhou clung even tighter. “Ah Xu, you’re so brave!”

What? Chunzhou, what on earth are you imagining?

“But I have to criticize you.” Bian Chunzhou released his stiffened friend, barely managing to blink back the tears that had almost spilled over. Sob, no wonder my friend is such an overachiever. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. None of this is your fault. Or is there a possibility that, since you’re so smart, your adoptive father wanted you from the very beginning?”

Bian Chunzhou felt he wasn’t looking through rose-colored glasses at all. Wen Xuxu was simply a hardworking, ambitious, and good kid. Who wouldn’t want a son like him? If he had a child in the future who was even half as good as Wen Xuxu, he would wake up laughing from his dreams.

Wen Xu froze. He had never thought of it that way.

Bian Chunzhou immediately threw an arm around his friend’s shoulders. “You’re worth it. For the New Year, I’ll make you a giant vat of dumpling soup. I’ll make it on the winter solstice, how about that?”

“…Did you use the wrong word?”

“No, I didn’t. If you can’t finish it, Chen Zuizui and I will help you eat it.” That fellow Chen Zuizui had gone completely silent since entering the secret realm, and there was no telling if he would be out in time for the New Year. Every single one of them was a handful. Hmph, without him, this family would fall apart sooner or later. “Losing a match is no big deal. From now on, I’ll support you in beating Chen Zuizui!”

Wen Xu: …Forget it, it was fine to let Chunzhou keep misunderstanding like this.

Besides, opening up did make his heart feel a lot lighter. Having played the role of a gentle, refined scholar for so long, he had almost forgotten what he used to be like. Though, he wouldn’t be able to change back anytime soon.

“Then if Chen Zui loses in the future, you can comfort him the same way.”

Bian Chunzhou grinned, showing a row of pearly white teeth. “Wow, how generous. As expected of Yonglu Mountain’s Little Grand-Uncle Master.”

…There was really no need to tease him like that.

*

During this period of settling his thoughts, Wen Xu was in no hurry to cultivate. However, he was not one to sit idle, so he found something to occupy himself. This so-called task was farming on Lingyao Peak.

Lingyao Peak was a very unique peak. To be precise, it was subordinate to Alchemy Peak, serving as its subsidiary peak. It was mainly used for cultivating spiritual flowers, herbs, and trees. Rumor had it that the Danxiang Grass in the Poyun Secret Realm had been planted by an elder from Lingyao Peak.

So, when Wen Xu signed up, how should one put it… he was warmly welcomed and sought after by the senior brothers of Lingyao Peak.

Bian Chunzhou: …Oh no. It felt like the nightmare of the King Danxiang Grass was about to return.

Since it was the first time either of them had taken on a spiritual field reclamation mission, there was a beginner’s guide. The senior brother from Lingyao Peak who led them was in the Foundation Establishment Stage. After briefly familiarizing them with the layout of Lingyao Peak, he revealed… his sinister colors.

With a tongue like that, no wonder even a blockhead like Chen Zui steered clear of him. It was truly sharp. Bian Chunzhou felt that if Lingyao Peak were a palace intrigue drama, he probably wouldn’t survive past the third episode.

In short, he felt three days would be his absolute limit.

Sorry, Wen Xuxu. Although our friendship is as solid as gold, could it… not include reclaiming spiritual fields together? When he first got here, his brain was still the size of a walnut. Now, going down the mountain, it felt like it had shrunk to the size of a grain of rice.

This was far more than just tempering one’s Dao heart; it was practically reforging it over and over again! How terrifying. He highly recommended adding this Lingyao Peak senior brother’s sharp tongue to the hundred methods of torturing evil cultivators. Without a natural talent for it, who could possibly endure this?