Chapter 5: An Unexpected Encounter with a Vixen |
The raft drifted out of the small stream and entered the large river. Niu You Dao steered the raft, drifting freely with the current. He was heading towards the destination Dong Guo Hao Ran had indicated before his death. There was no reason for his master to deceive him.
Sitting on the raft, he arranged the prepared kindling on a stone. Taking out a large reed box, he began to produce fire by drilling into the stone amidst the kindling. Eventually, a small flame appeared on the stone. Niu You Dao blew on the flame and fed it more kindling. Next, he placed bamboo close to the fire to thaw and slightly dry it. Steam began to rise from the bamboo. Once the bamboo was sufficiently dry and pliable, Niu You Dao cut it into small pieces and even split it. Then he took out threads he had obtained from the village and used them to tie the bamboo splints together. Once he was certain the bundle of bamboo splints was sturdy enough, Niu You Dao tightly wrapped the finely split bamboo around both ends of the bundle. Again, he pulled a sturdy stem from his bosom, cutting it into small pieces, ensuring they were still pliable enough to bend. Bending the stems so their edges met, he lightly tied them to prevent them from straightening. Then he took a handful of grain from his pocket. He had collected this grain on his way from the village. Evidently, looters had scattered the grain when they left the village. He took the grains and stuffed them inside the stems. In this manner, he created more than ten such ingenious mechanisms.
Afterward, he cast the resulting snare into the water, tying one end of it to the raft. Resigned to fate regarding his catch, Niu You Dao paid no further attention to his device. He took a bamboo tube and scooped some water from the river. He held the water in his mouth, waiting for the cold river water to warm before swallowing. After that, Niu You Dao sat on the raft, admiring the scenery on both banks.
It was unclear how much time had passed when suddenly, he felt as if something underwater was tugging at the raft. Niu You Dao instantly rejoiced but remained still. Not long after, the movements ceased.
Niu You Dao pulled the bamboo splint back and saw a fish, weighing 2-3 jins, caught within it. The fish's gills were spread open by the stretched stem, and it now appeared half-dead.
One should not underestimate such a rudimentary mechanism. Fish use their gills to breathe underwater. However, if spread wide, they can also cause the fish to drown in the water itself. That was why it quickly ran out of oxygen and succumbed. Whereas with a hook-and-line fishing system, the fish would struggle for much longer.
Of course, this system had its drawbacks. Large fish could not be caught with such a mechanism.
There was nothing to be done about it. One had to make do with what was at hand. And in the village, conditions were indeed limited.
After taking out the fish, he placed grain inside the stem, bent it again, lightly tied it, and cast it back into the water. He had already thoroughly crushed the remaining grains, so the chances of a good catch should now be higher.
After roasting the fish and taking just a few bites, Niu You Dao felt another tug. Clearly, another fish had been caught.
However, at the same moment, far on the shore, a black carriage could be seen speeding along the road. Horsemen pursued it, quickly catching up. From both sides, the horsemen drew their bows towards the carriage. And when they loosed their arrows, cries of pain rang out. The carriage came to a halt.
At this moment, the raft floated past, and Niu You Dao, slowly eating his fish, witnessed with his own eyes several corpses tumbling from the carriage. But one person, it seemed, had not died. He fell to his knees, begging for mercy. A single horseman approached him, drew his pike, and pierced the unfortunate man.
Such a brutal murder in broad daylight was too much for Niu You Dao. He had already heard how the villagers spoke of the government troops. And now, he certainly held no sympathy for them.
The commander of the pursuers, in turn, noticed Niu You Dao on the raft. He was curious: how was he catching fish on a raft?
Niu You Dao also realized he had been spotted. Immediately feigning the innocent air of a villager, he pulled the bamboo splint from the back of the raft and retrieved a fish.
That commander turned out to be a girl. She found this amusing and said to her nearby subordinates:
“In the harsh winter season, clad in ragged winter clothes, he still found a way to fill his belly. This young man is resourceful. If he were trained, he could become a fine talent,” the girl remarked.
Her subordinates understood that she wished to recruit this young man into the army, and immediately shouted towards the raft:
“Young man, hasten to the shore. We need to ask you something,” a subordinate called out, trying to deceive Niu You Dao.
Niu You Dao naturally had no desire to approach the shore and pretended not to hear them. He continued eating his roasted fish.
—Swish!
An arrow pierced the raft, rocking it. It landed precisely a jump away from Niu You Dao. Had the raft tilted even slightly, that arrow would have struck Niu You Dao.
Angrily raising his head and looking at the archer, Niu You Dao saw the commander, having put away her bow, shout:
“Young man, paddle closer!” a clear, resonant voice rang out. It sounded pleasant and melodious. Only now did Niu You Dao realize it was a girl. In these tumultuous times, with soldiers wearing armor, it was difficult to discern whether one was facing a woman or a man.
Niu You Dao immediately bristled and showed the girl his middle finger:
—You brute!
The girl didn't understand the meaning of Niu You Dao's gesture, but thanks to his accompanying comment, she realized that Niu You Dao was far from praising her. A mere commoner dared to be rude to her and the government troops. This was quite interesting. Whereupon she smiled a cold smile.
Her more than ten subordinates immediately drew their bows, ready to fire.
—Damn it!— Niu You Dao cried out in astonishment. In his fit of rage, he had forgotten about their bows. Otherwise, he certainly wouldn't have cursed at them. Niu You Dao immediately dove into the icy water.
—Swish, swish...more than ten arrows struck the spot where Niu You Dao had just been. Several arrows hit the burning kindling on the stone, overturning it. Whereupon the entire raft began to catch fire.
Hmm.
An ordinary person would long since have been lost in such a situation and been killed, but Niu You Dao's first reaction was to immediately evade. Definitely, if she could capture him, an unrivaled talent could be cultivated from him. She would very much like to have such a subordinate.
The commander raised her hand, signaling her subordinates to cease fire. She ordered everyone to follow the raft.
Clinging to the edge of the raft underwater, Niu You Dao poked his head out. He saw that the raft was beginning to burn. He immediately began scooping water to extinguish the spreading flames. The main thing was that Dong Guo Hao Ran's body didn't catch fire. Otherwise, how would he be able to enter the Supreme Purity Sect?
However, he saw that the horsemen were following him along the bank. Clearly, his adversaries had no intention of letting him go. Therefore, Niu You Dao began to kick his legs and pull the raft towards the other bank.
Seeing his maneuver, the girl took out her bow and shot an arrow.
Niu You Dao watched as the arrow swiftly crossed the river and embedded itself in a tree, making the tree tremble. What a skilled archer! The river's width reached 60-70 meters. With this shot, the girl made him understand that even if he landed on the other bank, he would still be unable to escape them.
Niu You Dao was left with the choice of letting Dong Guo Hao Ran's body sink into the river and attempting to escape to the other bank himself. No matter what, one couldn't stay in icy water for long if one wished to remain alive. But would he even manage to escape?
The girl watched Niu You Dao with a smile. Her smile seemed to ask him, "How long can you last in the icy water?"
Moreover, she ordered her subordinates to spread out along the bank, guarding the shoreline in case Niu You Dao attempted to hide and escape underwater.
Shivering from the cold, Niu You Dao's teeth chattered, and unable to bear it any longer, he shouted at the girl:
“General, this humble one has no enmity or hatred towards you. Why do you attack so relentlessly?”
The girl replied:
“No enmity, no hatred? Then who were you just cursing at?”
Niu You Dao was at a loss for words, and finally said again:
“You are a noble person, you can forgive a humble one. Alright?”
The girl immediately retorted:
“No!”
Niu You Dao said:
“Then what must I do for you to let me go?”
The girl: “Very simple. Become my subordinate, become my soldier!”
*So cruel. You're likely deceiving me and intend to kill me.* Niu You Dao dared not believe them. He wouldn't allow himself to be caught by deceit, that was for sure. Since that was the case, he immediately shouted without ceremony:
“Becoming your soldier holds no appeal. What if I become your husband instead?”
The girl displayed a cold smile:
“You have nothing, yet you dare to be so stubborn. Let's see how long you can last in the water!”
She drew her bow again.
Niu You Dao took a breath and hid beneath the raft.
After a short while, he resurfaced again. Only to find arrows aimed at him, forcing him to dive beneath the raft once more.
After several repetitions, Niu You Dao realized his opponents were amusing themselves with him. If he didn't hide, there was a ten percent chance they would shoot him. However, he began to doubt Dong Guo Hao Ran's words. Why weren't his protective amulets defending him? Weren't they supposed to protect him until he reached the Supreme Purity Sect?
He absolutely could not allow the kindling on the raft to be revealed. For beneath the kindling lay Dong Guo Hao Ran's body. Fortunately, there were no truly hopeless situations. And as he pondered how to find a way out, a difficult path appeared on the other bank. It became increasingly difficult for the horses to gallop further. The river, on the other hand, began to twist and turn. Evidently, they had reached mountainous terrain. And the river's current was accelerating.
One of the girl's subordinates rode up to her and whispered something. The girl frowned, looking at the mountainous terrain ahead. Then she took out a wooden tablet, tied it to an arrow, and shot the arrow towards the raft.
“Boy, listen to me closely. Today, this noble one was merely amusing herself with you. However, you are talented. Chaos reigns outside, and it is difficult to survive in our times. If you understand this, you may take this tablet, come to Kuangai County, and find the local authorities. You will find me there. I guarantee you will live in comfort and warmth. Who knows, perhaps you can achieve great heights. You would do well to learn to distinguish between good and evil!” After saying this, she turned her horse and rode back with her squad.
Comments 2