Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

It's not a bad thing to cherish the little jasmine plants. If they are preserved well, they may one day appear in a museum for people to visit.

How someone uses the gifts they've given away is their business, and Zhuang Xing didn't offer any further advice.

In the afternoon, he spent time with his sister in a teahouse. As dusk fell and night enveloped the city, the streets were still brightly lit.

The streets were packed with people enjoying the lanterns and the fair. In the evening, the number of people not only didn't decrease, but it was even greater than during the day.

During the day, people go to work, and now it's time to get off work, so many families come out to enjoy themselves.

Even if you don't have money to buy anything, you can still come and watch the variety show.

Tonight, even the city gates are open, there is no curfew, and people can freely move in and out of the city.

Vendors selling snacks, trinkets, and lanterns, as well as acrobatics and magic tricks, created a grand spectacle. Smoke and light mingled with the flow of pedestrians, and cheers mingled with laughter, all contributing to the grand celebration of this era.

Zhuang Xing led his younger sister under the lamplight. He bought her a small lantern, which hung on a wooden branch and swayed with her steps. Someone released a flower lantern into the water, and the paper lotus lanterns drifted with the current, their sparks floating into the distance. Each lantern seemed to carry a person's wish.

Unbeknownst to him, he and his sister had arrived at an arched bridge, where many people were admiring the lanterns.

As luck would have it, he ran into the Westerners again, and two of the Westerners' boys looked at him and walked towards him.

Chapter 290 A Land of Abundance

The dim yellow light of the lanterns illuminated the faces of the two boys. The barbarian warriors behind them wanted to keep up with them, but one of the boys turned around, said a few words in an unknown language, and shook his head. The warriors then obediently stood still, but their eyes remained focused on the boy, never leaving his side.

Zhuang Xing could sense that the two men were coming for him. He had run into the Westerners in Beishi yesterday, and he could tell that there was a sheep god among them who had transformed into a human. Others could also tell that he was different from the people of Yidu and knew that he was a cultivator.

But the mere fact that he was a spiritual practitioner should not have aroused the interest of the Westerners.

Zhuang Xing didn't know when they had arrived in Yidu. Perhaps they had stayed there for some time before the temple fair. They might have heard the legend about a lucky star descending to earth. And yesterday, when Liu the constable recognized him, it piqued their interest.

Regardless of their purpose in coming, Zhuang Xing, a native of Chenzhou, was willing to have a chat with his guests.

He was actually a little curious about what the country on the other side of the mountains was like. What kind of land was it, and how did the people there live?

The fact that these two young men had those burly warriors guarding their backs was enough to demonstrate their good intentions.

Zhuang Xing faced them calmly, meeting their gazes without flinching.

The younger sister also blinked curiously at them. The tall Tibetan warriors easily gave people a sense of intimidation and oppression, but these two boys looked to be no more than fourteen or fifteen years old. Although their appearance was obviously different from the locals, their eyebrows and eyes were not fierce.

She didn't hide; she just blinked and looked up at the two unfamiliar brothers.

To Zhuang Xing's left was the Sheep God. His gaze met that of the boy to his right. The boy's eyes were very bright, like those of an eagle.

The boy, mimicking the gesture of the Dayu people, introduced himself in broken Dayu dialect: "Agula, that's my name."

"My name is Zhuang Xing." Zhuang Xing returned the greeting.

“Your land is very good,” Agula said. “Your warriors are very strong.”

Agula looked towards the other side of the arched bridge, where a street was lined with houses made of blue bricks. Lanterns illuminated the bluestone pavement, and well-dressed Yidu people walked across the arched bridge, chatting and laughing.

A look of envy appeared in Agula's eyes. Everything he had seen since arriving in this land filled him with longing.

It turns out that there really is such a beautiful land in the world, where people live in peace and contentment, without having to worry about wild beasts lurking in the night, or fight to the death with wolves in the snow just to get a bite of meat.

Agula did not come here for exploration. He was the ninth child of his lord and embarked on this distant journey with his most loyal warriors in search of a way for the clan to survive.

Before he set off, there were already many rumors circulating in the clan.

Some say that the clan's disrespect angered the gods, who then sent heavy snow to the grasslands, causing the sheep and cattle to starve to death in the wilderness and the starving tribesmen to freeze to death in the snowstorm.

Some say that the ancestral spirits were dissatisfied with the warriors who had lost their passion, and that the tribe's bravest warriors had to take up longbows and shoot down the eagle king who reigned in the sky in order to restore glory.

To quell the anger and discontent of his people, the lord gathered his sons together.

On the grasslands, there is no concept of eldest or second son; only strength and courage matter.

The lord said that whoever could find the way to continue the clan would be the next lord.

So Agula, following the guidance of the sheep seal, set off for the distant south.

The mountain range that divides the grassland is a dangerous place, inhabited by many ferocious beasts.

They traveled for more than two hundred days and nights, overcoming countless hardships, and finally arrived at this fertile land.

He almost thought he had arrived in the land of the gods. The magnificent buildings and well-organized warriors amazed him. The people of this land were more powerful than he had imagined.

He envied the people of this land, and he longed for his clan to live as carefree as they did.

Zhuang Xing saw the thoughts in Agula's eyes. Although this stranger did not speak his language and communication was difficult, some emotions could be felt without being spoken.

Zhuang Xing had not expected that Agula had only come to praise them. The dark-skinned boy sincerely praised the country before him, then bowed and left.

The two exchanged names but did not communicate further.

Zhuang Xing watched the departing figure of the Westerners and memorized the boy's face.

He took his sister back to Wu's tea shop. It was late at night, and the lights outside were still on. But his sister was rubbing her eyes and looking sleepy on the street.

She had been shopping for a long time during the day and for a long time at night, and she felt very tired, so Zhuang Xing took her back to the house to rest.

The next morning, the noise outside continued unabated.

That day, Cai Bei came to visit, saying that he had handed over all the matters concerning the book printing. The printed edition was being prepared, and he was also busy with this matter. Woodblock printing was being used, which required carving each character onto a wooden block. Printing a book consumed a lot of energy, and it would be impossible to produce a finished product in a short time.

But once all the text in a book is engraved, printing can be done very quickly.

Zhuang Xing was initially puzzled as to why movable type printing wasn't used, wondering if it hadn't been invented yet. However, after talking with Cai Bei, he realized that movable type printing wasn't much better than woodblock printing. With the effort of finding the characters, they could have carved out two or three characters.

This printing method is not suitable for single characters. After thinking about it, it would be more convenient if there were only twenty-six letters.

"Don't worry, Brother Zhuang, I will definitely urge them to print the book before the New Year." Cai Bei patted his chest and said, "I don't know where Brother Zhuang lives in Manggu Village. Once the book is printed, I'll see if I can ask someone to send it to you via the official road so you can take a look."

Zhuang Xing said, "Brother Cai is very kind. If you can print the book before the end of the year, just say that it will be sent to Zhuang Liangqing's home. The officials there should know where my home is."

"That's good, I've got it!" Cai Bei said.

After saying that, he rushed out again, saying he had to go back to check on the shop.

It seems he ran away secretly. Having a very strict grandfather is not an easy thing. In his grandfather's eyes, going out means he's out fooling around, so he doesn't dare to stay outside for long. Even helping Zhuang Xing print books was done secretly.

Seeing Cai Bei leave, Zhuang Xing and his sister went out to pick out gifts for their family. They had done most of their shopping yesterday, and today was the time to wrap things up.

They returned before noon. Zhuang Xing decided to go home tomorrow. It would be perfect to leave tomorrow; if they left any later, it would be the end of the temple fair, and even more people would be leaving, making it difficult to find carriages, horses, or boats.

When he returned to the teahouse, he saw a familiar face again: Bai Yu. Xiao Moli and Bai Yu were sitting at the table, looking at the blueprints for the scooter.

Chapter 291 Do you still recognize me?

Bai Yu has grown up. She is no longer a naive child. Her features are sharper, but she still keeps her shoulder-length short hair and hasn't grown it long.

The people of Dayu do not prohibit haircuts. Although there is a saying that one's body and hair are given to one by one's parents, barbershops can still be seen everywhere. Noble children would even get their hair done regularly. It was a popular trend, but it was rare to see a woman with her hair cut so short.

People who cut their hair like that are mostly martial artists.

However, it seems that Bai Yu has been honing her martial arts skills recently.

She was dressed in a practical gray outfit, with a sandalwood waist tag and a curved knife hanging from her waist. If you saw her from a distance, you would probably think she was a patrol officer and wouldn't mistake her for a woman.

She didn't have the typical gentle and weak aura of a woman; she seemed more like a martial arts expert.

She and Xiao Moli did not notice that Zhuang Xing and his younger sister had entered the courtyard, or rather, the two were engrossed in something else and had no time to notice the subtle movements outside.

"Sister Baiyu, look, if the two of us hold the rope together, won't we save a lot of effort?"

As Xiao Moli spoke, she took out a straw rope. She and Bai Yu each held one end of the rope and put a hook on it. A salted fish was hanging below the hook.

This salted fish and the steamed fish that Zhuang Xing tasted at the Wu family's dinner table last night were pickled in the same batch. The taste was very good. The steamed fish had a sweet and sour plum flavor. It was not just a simple dried fish rubbed with salt. It could be considered a delicacy.

At this moment, the salted fish, weighing about two or three pounds, did not appear in the kitchen, but became a bargaining chip on the straw rope.

Bai Yu frowned slightly, seemingly lost in thought.

Zhuang Xing pulled his sister to a stop, so that he and his sister wouldn't interfere with Bai Yu's rapidly working brain.

It's best not to disturb others when they are thinking; once their train of thought is interrupted, it's easy for them to get stuck.

People need to be focused to solve difficult problems. For example, an important rule in the exam room is to keep quiet. If you are doing math problems and there is constant music from square dancing aunties outside, the problems that you could have solved will become a mess.

Zhuang Xing could tell that Xiao Moli was explaining the principle of pulley systems to Bai Yu, so he wisely didn't disturb her.

The younger sister looked up at him, puzzled. He shushed her, and she suddenly nodded, her eyes lighting up. She then covered her mouth tightly with her hands.

Perhaps she felt that her brother was playing a "whoever speaks first loses" game with her, and no matter what whimsical ideas were in her head, it was enough that she was willing to remain silent.

Zhuang Xing and his younger sister stood quietly under the eaves a little distance away, without making a sound.

Bai Yu tugged at the straw rope, his gaze fixed on the dried salted fish.

She discussed several more questions with Xiao Moli, and Xiao Moli answered them one by one.

As the teacher who imparted knowledge to Xiao Moli, Zhuang Xing nodded in satisfaction.

Children can be taught.

Little Jasmine is very quick to understand. After hearing Zhuang Xing explain it only once, she was able to clearly express the principle of the pulley system without using her own notes, simply relaying it without any notes.

After listening to her explanation, Bai Yu seemed to understand.

She picked up the straw rope separately, holding one end in each hand and pulling it up and down. This action was somewhat like that of an old man playing diabolo in the park, except that what was hanging on the rope was just a salted fish, not a specially made bamboo tube that could spin and make a whirring sound.

After watching for a while, Bai Yu suddenly realized that the problem that had troubled her for so long had finally been solved. It turned out that the pulley needed to be designed in this way to save effort. The truth was so simple. When she broke through that barrier, the world became clear in an instant.

"An unfixed pulley...so that's what an unfixed pulley is used!" she murmured.

Overwhelmed with emotion, she finally looked up and saw Zhuang Xing standing there.

Zhuang Xing was holding several boxes in his hands. These were gifts he had bought for his family, mostly food and pastries that could only be bought in Yidu.

The main reason is that my younger sister likes to eat, so she thought my parents would like to eat too. They picked out so much food together.

There's nothing wrong with that. The family has plenty of supplies. On the contrary, it's hard to find these kinds of foods if you don't come to Yidu. He was even thinking of going to the fishing ferry outside the city tomorrow to buy some fresh fish and shrimp from the fishermen so that his family could have a good meal.

Seeing that Bai Yu had noticed him, Zhuang Xing raised his hand to greet her.

"Do you still recognize me?" Zhuang Xing asked with a slight smile.

This might sound a bit annoying to someone who isn't very familiar with you, especially when you add, "I even held you when you were little." It just makes you feel annoyed and makes you want to brush it off as quickly as possible.

Zhuang Xing and Bai Yu were old friends. They had collaborated a lot when they were both on Xuanqing Mountain. They were friends. Although they met very rarely after Bai Yu left Qingxuan Mountain and entered the mortal world, they still remembered the past vividly.

"A gentleman's friendship is as light as water." Bai Yu was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Zhuang Xing, it's been a long time."