Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 1239 A Chance Encounter

In March, a time of warm spring weather and blooming flowers, the Harshan Mountains, located in the Outer Khingan Range, are still covered in a blanket of white snow. Thick white snow covers every inch of the mountain, with only a few mountain valleys showing faint green hues.

The Harshan region is less than ten kilometers from the Aldan River, and the Sea of ​​Okhotsk lies to the east. This place had never been inhabited before, but at some point, it became a refuge for many people. Some desperate bandits, refugees, and families fleeing war all came here to settle down, and it gradually formed a place that seemed chaotic but was relatively peaceful.

In this place, new people constantly arrived and people constantly left, starting from the fall of the last feudal dynasty. This continued for decades. All the residents of this place, whether old or new, tacitly understood that no one asked about anyone else's past or future. Today someone might be drinking on the kang (a heated brick bed), and tomorrow they might mysteriously disappear. This was a common occurrence.

After the war, the victorious Russians became very proud and soon sent an army to garrison the area, also as a prelude to the construction of the railway.

But they had no idea about the region. The entire Harbin area was very complicated, with not only Russian outlaws, but also bandits from Northeast China, many families migrating there, and even Japanese soldiers frequently appearing.

The Russian army crossed the river in a grand manner, set up camp, and organized some local Russians and their own engineering corps to build their base. However, just two days after construction began, things became strange. More than twenty people from the engineering corps went missing one after another. The Russian commander was so frightened that he immediately sent people down to investigate. The people were sent down, but after more than two months, they did not return. The commander felt something was wrong, so he sent another squad down, including his capable lieutenant nicknamed "Silver Fox." This guy was a famous sniper who always worked alone and was good at mountain warfare.

Unfortunately, another two months passed, and the team mysteriously disappeared again. This time, the commander became frightened and immediately ordered the entire team to retreat to the north bank of the Aldan River. They were to first lead the team out of the danger zone, and after that, they never came back. It is said that the commander voluntarily applied to be transferred to the Liaodong Peninsula. He agreed to deal with the Japanese and did not intend to stay there.

After years of chaos, the region of Har gradually settled down after the war. The various forces kept to themselves and lived in peace. No one needed to fight to the death. Markets, workshops, farms, manors and so on gradually appeared. People of different skin colors and languages ​​gradually increased their communication. After a few more years, it became a paradise.

In this world, there are good people and bad people. If we're talking about the biggest villains in this region, the ones that every village, hamlet, and estate in the area hates the most, there are three people here who are best left alone.

The first group we couldn't afford to offend were the Taoist priests of Wuliang Temple on the main peak of Haer Mountain. Although they were called Taoist priests, there were actually only three of them. One of them was a damned lecherous old man, the abbot of the temple, whose name was Chen Yuanyi. No one knew if it was his real name or a pseudonym, but his Taoist name was Yuanyi. No one knew how old this old guy was, but everyone knew that he was a lecherous old man who would seduce widows whenever he had nothing to do, whether they were newly widowed or old widows. What was infuriating was that he was always successful. When faced with accusations from outsiders, the widows who were seduced would always defend this lecherous old man.

He has a disciple whose Taoist name is Xuanming, and whose real name is Wang Huiyuan. He looks to be around forty years old this year. In the entire Haershan area, few people know that this Taoist is a guy with real skills. Not to mention ordinary people, even extraordinary people can't get close to him. Wang Huiyuan's ancestors were inheritors of the ancient martial art Tongbei Changquan, which has been passed down in his family for thousands of years.

But this strong man was not only lecherous but also gluttonous. He would often peep at people bathing, and if he saw a pretty woman, he would flirt with her regardless of whether she was married or not, completely disregarding those around him. When he was hungry, he would gather whatever was available and go up the mountain to cook and enjoy himself. He was hated to the bone by several surrounding mountain villages. Even though they knew he was a thief, they could never catch him. Not only could they not catch him, they could not even see his shadow.

The last person in the Taoist temple was Wang Wenyuan's disciple, whose secular name was Su Yun, originally Su Qingyun, and nicknamed Er Gouzi. He was an elusive figure, rarely seen by anyone, but legends about him were everywhere. Some said he peeked at a widow bathing at the age of three, stole chickens from all over Su Family Village at the age of five, and started stealing young wives' undergarments at the age of seven. Others even said he was sworn brothers with Huang Daxian and drank with the Silver Wolf King. In short, there were all sorts of rumors.

Wuliang Temple is located halfway up the main peak of Haer Mountain, actually inside a huge cave. Who built Wuliang Temple and how it was built are unknown. Even Su Yun's advisor couldn't explain it. There is also a cave on the west side of the main peak where a black bear mother and her two cubs live. Her two cubs were born in the same year as Su Yun. This is the main reason why people in the surrounding area rarely go up the main peak except for the first and fifteenth days of the Lunar New Year. The bear mother is the queen of this forest. No guns or cannons can stop her. Someone actually tried to do this. Dozens of Russians from the north mountain tried to hunt the bear mother with weapons. After a night of gunfire, not a single one of them came out of the forest in the north mountain.

Time flies, and the year is 1946. The war in most of the surrounding areas has ended, and the changes in the surrounding areas have also affected the Halshan area. Many people have left one after another. The most people who left were the Russians from the north and the Japanese. They can hardly be seen anymore. The Han and Manchu people from the south were also eager to try. Many of them quietly went back. For a while, a few families who had fled and settled down stood out and became the masters of this land.

On the main peak of Mount Har, in a valley filled with strange rocks, there is a small lake. Su Yun, with his thin body, carries a bucket to fetch water from the mountain spring. He never draws water from the lake, as he always feels that the lake water is not clean.

Su Yun was eight years old at this time. She looked frail and weak as she carried the water she had just filled back home. At this moment, a middle-aged Taoist priest slowly walked over and said, "Little Yun, there's hardly anyone here. Who are you trying to impress with this look?"

(End of this chapter)