Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

He still vividly remembers the last time they drank and chatted at home, but now he can't see him anymore, only receive a letter.

Cai Bei solemnly wrote these words on the letter paper. The old man took the letter and checked it to make sure there were no mistakes and that his grandson's handwriting was not crooked before telling his grandson to put the letter paper in the best envelope.

In addition, the old gentleman asked his grandson to fetch a large stack of fine gold-embroidered five-colored silk paper, wrapped up, and said that Zhuang Xing should take it back as a gift for the old Taoist priest.

Chapter 282 Visitors from Another Land

Zhuang Xing accepted the letter and the old gentleman's gift, saying, "Don't worry, sir, I will definitely deliver this letter and gift to my master intact."

The old man had a stern face, waved his hand, and didn't say anything.

After delivering the letter and completing the task assigned by his master, Zhuang Xing felt a weight lifted from his heart.

He sat in the paper shop for a while and had rested enough.

He promised Cai Bei he would come back in the afternoon to pick up the other half of "The Demon Slayer". It was almost noon, so he planned to take his sister and Xiao Moli out for a stroll. He had bought a lot of snacks in the morning, and his sister wasn't hungry yet, so they weren't in a hurry to eat. They were tired from walking around, so they decided to go home first.

Tomorrow is the temple fair, the main event. If we exhaust my little sister's energy today and make her sore all over, that would be putting the cart before the horse.

"Old sir, Brother Cai, then we'll take our leave now." Zhuang Xing cupped his hands in greeting.

"Brother Zhuang, take care!" Cai Bei called out.

“Go ahead,” the old man said.

Zhuang Xing bowed one last time before leaving the paper shop.

No sooner had Zhuang Xing left than he saw several people step into the paper shop.

He frowned slightly and stopped. Judging from their appearance, those people were not locals of Yidu, nor were they people from Chenzhou or the surrounding prefectures.

Zhuang Xing even speculated that they weren't even considered people from Dayu.

The difference in appearance and physique is too obvious. These people have dark skin, which is obviously due to long-term exposure to the sun.

They wore felt hats and clothes made of sheepskin and wool, which were quite old; the wool had turned yellow, and the felt was stained with dark red blood. There were also claw marks from wild animals on their leather armor.

Their noses and cheekbones are high, and their nasal cavities are large, which allows them to breathe more air than people from Yidu and to adapt better to places with thin oxygen.

Their faces were covered with totems painted with unknown pigments, and their animal-hide snow boots gave them a savage air. The adults in the group were very tall, and the other children looked much stronger than the local children.

It is not difficult to determine that they came from a foreign land. Perhaps they were herdsmen from a plateau far away from Dayu, and they traveled a long way to reach Yidu, a place in the middle of Dayu.

However, that's not the most important thing. The most important thing is the aura they exude. Every one of them has a solemn expression, like a pilgrim. Even on a joyous holiday, there is no trace of joy on their faces. The boy in the middle is even more furrowed in his brow.

Zhuang Xing looked at the men's hands, which were calloused from years of holding knives and bows. Zhuang Xing judged that they were a group of warriors from the grasslands, and that there were many of them who were full of vigor. However, at this moment, they were unarmed.

Scimitars and bows and arrows were not in their hands.

Zhuang Xing stopped in his tracks. Since these foreigners had entered the city and were swaggering down the street, they must have been inspected by the soldiers at the city gate and had official documents.

It's not that the Great Yu has no dealings with people from other lands, but they are very rare, so rare that they are almost unheard of. At least as far as Zhuang Xing knows, the Great Yu has never established diplomatic relations with any other country.

The dynastic conflicts on this land were confined to this land itself; beyond that, like beyond the sea, lay a blank expanse.

The east and south of Dayu are the sea, while the north and west are blocked by continuous mountain ranges. What kind of place lies beyond the mountains is only described in a few words.

Zhuang Xing had lived for thirteen years and had never seen people from other lands in person. The only thing he had ever heard of was from his aunt when he found cotton. She said that many years ago, a merchant from another land had come to Yidu and sold the seeds of the flower, which symbolized beauty, to his aunt for a few copper coins.

This was the first time Zhuang Xing had seen so many people from a foreign land. They were organized and disciplined. The two boys surrounded in the middle were probably of high status. They were in a protected position, and the adults on the side would lower their heads and listen to what the two had to say.

They were communicating in a language that Zhuang Xing had never heard before. Zhuang Xing was worried that these people would cause trouble at the paper shop, so he stopped to observe.

The younger sister was already uneasy about the arrival of this group of people, and she held her brother's hand. Little Jasmine was the same, hiding behind Zhuang Xing.

The locals in Taipei all kept their distance, no one wanted to deal with or have a conflict with these foreigners, their large physiques were very intimidating.

Zhuang Xing sensed an inhuman aura emanating from one of the two youths. One of them was not human, but a demon in human form. As for what kind of demon or beast it was, Zhuang Xing had not seen its true form and could not tell. However, since it could transform into human form and interact with people so skillfully, it must have considerable cultivation and was definitely not an ordinary person.

Zhuang Xing became wary. Just then, two government officials followed closely behind the group of foreigners and arrived in front of the paper shop.

One of the two constables saw Zhuang Xing, who was also stopped in front of the shop. After glancing at Zhuang Xing, he noticed the little girl beside him. Their eyes met, and he paused for a moment.

"Master Zhuang Xing?" the officer with the sword suddenly asked, "Are you Master Zhuang?"

Zhuang Xing turned his head in response and recognized the official's identity: "Officer Liu, it's been a long time."

The visitor was Liu Songshi. Zhuang Xing had saved Liu Songshi's life from the pig demon. That year, Liu Songshi had even delivered the emperor's invitation to him. Zhuang Xing hadn't met him many times, but he had a deep impression of him.

My younger sister recognized him too. When she saw Liu Songshi, she waved to him and called him "Uncle Liu".

"Master Zhuang, did you bring your sister to the temple fair?" Liu Songshi asked kindly.

“Exactly.” Zhuang Xing said, glancing at the foreigners over there.

Liu Songshi's companions had already walked over, seemingly monitoring the group's movements. Nearby, Taipei City's officers and soldiers responsible for maintaining order could also be faintly seen gathering.

"Officer Liu, the old gentleman in that paper shop is a friend of my master. I wonder where these foreigners came from and why they are here?" Zhuang Xing inquired.

He needs to at least figure out what these people do to prevent them from causing trouble.

“Master, there’s no need to worry.” Liu Songshi saw that Zhuang Xing was worried and said, “These guests probably have never seen paper before. They’re probably just going to the paper shop to take a look.”

As Liu Songshi spoke, the boy picked up a piece of Xuan paper from the paper shop, spread it out, and placed it on the table. A group of people gathered around, their faces showing disbelief, as if it were not an ordinary piece of paper, but a priceless treasure engraved with gold and gemstones.

Chapter 283 Western Barbarians

These foreigners seem to have never even seen paper before.

They stroked the ordinary Xuan paper with admiration in their eyes. But that Xuan paper was just the simplest kind of paper in Cai's paper shop. In addition, there was oiled paper soaked in special methods, colored paper that had been dyed, and hard paper that was smoother and less prone to bending and tearing. All kinds of paper were on display.

If they really came from a remote plateau and had never seen paper before, that would be understandable.

Nomadic peoples live by animal husbandry and hunting, moving from place to place in search of water and pasture. As the seasons change and the grasslands shift, they migrate accordingly.

In this constant movement, they could not make a living from agriculture, could not establish a unified social system, and had no extra energy to study things beyond survival.

If this were their first time visiting Dayu or Yidu, then what they were seeing would undoubtedly be a miracle to them.

Liu Songshi said, "These guests come from the distant country of Xifan. A month ago, they crossed the Xuelong Mountains and arrived at the northern border of Dayu. Then, the soldiers on the border took them to the imperial city. His Majesty welcomed these guests from afar, so he sent them to Yidu to participate in our temple fair."

"Does Officer Liu know that among these guests, one is not human?" Zhuang Xing continued to ask.

Liu Songshi nodded and whispered, "I know. That is said to be the auspicious sheep seal of the Western Barbarians. It is their sheep god. They came here because they followed the sheep god's revelation. Daoist Zhuang, you don't need to worry. We are here on the orders of the prefect to lead the guests to visit Yidu and the temple fair. There will be no accidents."

Zhuang Xing felt a little relieved and said, "I see. Thank you so much, Officer Liu."

Judging from the scale of the procession, the prefect was well prepared; wherever these Western barbarians went, there were officials following them.

If the guests really cause trouble, officials will also intervene.

"Of course." Liu, the constable, smiled. "Master Zhuang, please take your sister to play without worry. We have been preparing for this temple fair for a long time. Tomorrow, the prefect will preside over the procession at the Dongwang Temple. The streets will be brightly lit all night. Master Zhuang, please don't miss it."

"Thank you for the reminder, Officer Liu." Zhuang Xing smiled and said goodbye.

"Well then, I have official business to attend to, so I'll take my leave now," said Officer Liu, bowing respectfully.

"Take care, Officer Liu," Zhuang Xing said goodbye.

There are officials watching over things here, so there shouldn't be any problems. If these Westerners are smart, they won't commit any offenses during such a festival.

Even so, Zhuang Xing did not leave immediately. He waited until the Westerners had seen enough of the paper, bought some, and went elsewhere before leaving with his younger sister and Xiao Moli.

The three of them wandered around to other places. In a roadside teahouse, there were opera singers performing. The younger sister had never seen such costumes before and insisted on going to see them, so Zhuang Xing took her to sit in the teahouse for a while.

Afterwards, on Xiao Moli's recommendation, we found a restaurant and ordered some dishes.

In the afternoon, I took a stroll in the scenic alleyway above the bridge, and eventually returned to Wu's Tea House.

The Wu family members all gathered around with concern, asking if Xiao Moli felt unwell. Xiao Moli said she felt fine. The adults looked at each other, somewhat incredulous that the heartache that had troubled her for so long had been overcome so easily. They could only marvel at how divine the Taoist priest was, wondering if the priest had used some kind of magical means.

As the temple fair approached, Wu's tea shop became increasingly popular, with no seats available in the shop itself, so customers had to rest in the courtyard.

After walking around, the little girl's belly was round from eating.

After returning to the courtyard, she sat on a stool and then lay down.

"Brother, I really can't eat anymore."

"Can I skip dinner tonight?"

"Let's talk about it tonight," Zhuang Xing said. "You might get hungry tonight."

"Will I be hungry at night?" she asked.

"Maybe, maybe not," Zhuang Xing said.

"Okay." She touched her stomach through her clothes.

"Little sister, I have to go out for a bit later. You stay here and let your older sister play with you." Zhuang Xing stroked her soft hair.

"Brother, carry me!" she said sweetly.

“It’s too windy outside, you’ll catch a cold and won’t be able to go to the temple fair tomorrow,” Zhuang Xing said.

Upon hearing this, she immediately shook her head and stopped insisting on going out with Zhuang Xing.

She was indeed tired. After eating and drinking her fill, she felt exhausted and didn't want to move once she lay down.

Zhuang Xing handed his younger sister over to Xiao Moli, went inside to sort out the old books, and then went to Taipei.

He gave the book he had written to Cai Bei, who took it with great relish. The book was originally about the story of the heroine Yan who killed a tiger. When Zhuang Xingcai started writing, the story was incomplete because he did not know the origin of the tiger demon. However, he later met a fox who had stayed on the tiger demon's mountain and found out the truth. He then completed the story.

He recorded everything: how many demon kings were on the mountain, how they oppressed the people below and treated them like livestock.

Of course, a great deal of ink was devoted to describing how the heroine valiantly broke through a mountain peak, drove the unbridled tiger demon to its doom, and then beheaded it with a single stroke.

Cai Bei read the story and praised it repeatedly. He thought that Zhuang Xing had heard the story from somewhere. After all, in his mind, the Great Yu Dynasty was a prosperous era. He himself had no worries about food and clothing and had never encountered any disasters. He thought that the story of seeing monsters occupying mountains and eating people, which even the government could not control, was just a fabrication.

It wasn't until Zhuang Xing told him that these things had actually happened, and that it had only been thirteen years since then, that he gasped in shock. When he saw that the tiger demon held a human flesh feast every month, his hands trembled slightly.

Zhuang Xing didn't laugh at him; it's only human nature. Cai Bei's family wasn't extremely wealthy, but they were still much better off than most people in the world. The fact that he was frightened actually made Zhuang Xing feel gratified, as it meant that Cai Bei had hardly ever encountered any evil spirits.

This is a good thing. If you are not scared, or even get used to it and feel numb, that would be a bad thing.

In the end, Zhuang Xing handed the half of "The Demon-Slaying Chronicles" to Cai Bei. Cai Bei carefully put the book away, took off his coat, and wrapped it up in layers. Judging from his manner, he cherished it even more than Zhuang Xing, the author.

Cai Bei said he would go to the printing factory tomorrow to make arrangements. Zhuang Xing wanted to cover the printing costs himself, but Cai Bei didn't need to spend the money. He said the content of the book was excellent, and he would print a few copies first and take them to the storytellers in Yidu to see. He was sure they would sell for a good price and he could quickly recoup his investment.

That makes sense. Zhuang Xing felt that although Cai Bei didn't have a talent for studying, he seemed to be quite capable in other aspects.

Chapter 284 Secret Recipe