Please Send the Mountain Lord Back to the Mountain

"Is that Xuzhou's border up ahead?"

"How do you know?"

"There's a boundary stone over there."

"A boundary stone?"

Three Flower Cat poked her head out to look ahead, then broke into a trot, running toward the visible end of the bluestone path. She stopped in front of the boundary stone, tilted her head up to inspect it top and bottom, and only then trotted back to say:

"There really is a stone."

Song You looked at her, then looked ahead.

"The next time we rest somewhere and have some free time, I'll teach Three Flower Lady how to read."

"Why learn to read?"

"Knowing how to read allows you to read books."

"Why read books?"

"Books are the ladder of human progress."

"What about cats?"

"They're a ladder of cat progress too."

"Why?"

"Because they embody the wisdom of our predecessors."

"What wisdom?"

"Never mind if you don't want to learn..."

Song You's expression remained calm.

Getting closer, the characters carved on the stone tablet became clear.

Facing his side, the three large characters "Yizhou Border" were carved, with smaller characters on the left and right detailing the prefecture and county boundaries and the year the stone was erected. Walking past this boundary stone, the other side was carved with "Xuzhou Border", with the prefecture, county, and erection year carved in the same format on the left and right, set up at the founding of the current dynasty.

In the second year of Mingde, Song You arrived in Xuzhou.

Oh, and Three Flower Lady and Red date horse.

Song You felt it was worth commemorating.

Yet there was no need to linger here; after a brief stop to eat some dry rations and drink a little water, they set off on the road again.

"We don't have much food left."

"There's food everywhere."

"I don't have much food left."

"Three Flower Lady will catch bugs for you to eat."

"I don't eat bugs."

"They're very delicious."

"No need."

"Then I'll catch mice for you."

"Your kindness is appreciated."

"Then I'll catch little birds for you."

"We should find a village or market town and see if we can buy some easily portable food." Song You gazed far ahead, seeing only azure skies, yellow grass, rolling mountain ranges, and no sign of villages, with only a grayish-white haze that was hard to tell if it was smoke or fog resting at the edge of his vision. "Just in time, we also need to ask someone the way to Long Commandery."

"That old man told you how to get there."

"How was that clear? We still need to ask someone."

"You aren't clever."

"Three Flower Lady is clever, Three Flower Lady tell us how to walk."

"Three Flower Lady will follow you."

The man, cat, and horse walked for another stretch of road before finally seeing a village that looked quite bustling.

By the roadside stood a bluestone with the three characters "Liu Family Village" written on it.

Looking at this village, backed by deep mountains with mountain springs converging into a meandering stream, featuring patches of fertile fields and thousands of mu of rich soil along the banks, it was a good place not far from the highway, which explained why it was so prosperous.

Song You left the highway and led the horse forward.

As he was about to draw close to the village, he saw a group of men carrying knives and holding clubs rush out, hurrying toward the main road outside.

Seeing Song You's party, they involuntarily stopped.

An older elder stepped out, walked close to appraise Song You for a few moments, his brows somewhat anxious:

"Is the Young Mister heading to our village?"

"I am Song You, a wandering mountain recluse. Passing through your esteemed territory and having just run out of dry rations, I hoped to buy some easily portable food in your valued place and ask for directions by the way." Song You courteously saluted them. "I wonder why you gentlemen are heading outside with knives and clubs like this?"

"Ah, Young Mister, you'd better not go for now." The elder was holding a sickle. "Our village has been troubled by a big tiger these past few days. It came down from the mountains in the back and is still in the village without leaving. We're just heading to the county seat to ask someone to come and beat it to death. It's not that Liu Family Village doesn't know how to treat guests; if you had come a few days earlier or a few days later, this old man could have asked the head of the household to gift you some food and silver. If not for this matter, the head of the household was originally going to celebrate a major birthday the day after tomorrow, so we couldn't have spared keeping the Mister for food and drink for a few days either, but now it's just not possible."

"Oh? Could it be a mountain tiger that has turned into a spirit?"

"It hasn't turned into a spirit, but that thing is extremely crafty; as soon as there are many people, it runs away." The elder said, "Young Mister, if you're going the same way, come with us, and you can reach the county seat in half a day."

"Has that mountain tiger eaten people?"

"Not yet, it only eats livestock."

Though it was only early spring, the elder was already covered in sweat. "Mister shouldn't go in; I'm afraid you'll lose your life, and with so many of us, we can't do anything to it either, so we have to go to the county to report to the authorities and ask for specialists."

"Judging by what the elder says, I might actually be able to try driving it back into the mountains, saving you all some trouble and money."

"You? How will you drive it away?"

"I possess a modest amount of Daoist arts."

The old man immediately turned his head and exchanged blank, mutual stares with the men behind him.

"Does the Mister have certainty?"

"I'll try."

"How should we cooperate with the Mister?"

"Just bring me over."

"I wonder how much money the Mister charges?"

"Not a single cash, just give me some easily portable food."

The group exchanged blank stares all over again.

"Alright!"

Though it was only for guidance, the old man did not dare to take it lightly. He still brought all the men, gripped their knives and clubs, and walked forward nervously.

As they walked, he spoke with Song You.

Although this Liu Family Village bordered deep mountains, the fierce beasts in the mountains usually avoided people and rarely came down; on the contrary, wild boars often came down to ravage the crops. Recently, perhaps because it was just early spring and the animals in the mountains were dormant, this fierce tiger had been unable to catch prey for a time, and for some reason learned of the village at the foot of the mountain, so it came down to visit. It hadn't hurt anyone yet, only biting and killing some chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep to eat.

The villagers were terrified. Led by the wealthy gentry, they had organized the able-bodied men and set traps, but none of it worked, which was why they went to the county seat today to report to the authorities and find help.

Walking along, they saw that every household's doors were tightly shut.

The group made a circuit and stopped outside a homestead in the middle of the village.

Someone pointed forward to Song You.

His voice was lowered to the extreme:

"Right in there."

Song You looked along where he pointed and saw a patch of yellow and black stripes exposed amidst a circle of pens. Looking closely, it was still moving; just this patch of fur already revealed the creature's massive size.

"Everyone retreat a bit further, keep your distance, and don't startle it."

Hearing this, the crowd hurriedly retreated backward.

Song You lowered his head to look at the cat beside him.

"Does Three Flower Lady want to go too?"

"W-want to go..."

"That's a tiger, you know."

"N-not scared..."

"Don't stutter."

"You heard wrong..."

"Then let's go."

Song You merely stepped forward, his pace as unhurried as ever.

His line of sight gradually shifted toward the corner of the wall, and the body of this striped fierce tiger presented itself before Song You's eyes.

He had also seen tigers behind Yin Yang Mountain, and even tiger spirits that had attained Daoist arts. The tigers of Yizhou were average in size, and the tiger before his eyes looked to be of the same breed as the Yizhou tigers, only larger. Its fur looked like fine, brand-new silk, reflecting the light in the sunshine; no exquisite artistic textile could ever reach this realm.

It was lying prone on the ground, eating a pig, having already eaten nearly half of it.

At the same time, the fierce tiger also discovered him, instantly halting the motion of its mouth and turning its head to stare fixedly at him.

Its entire mouth was covered in fresh blood, and its pupils were terrifying.

It then stuck out its tongue to lick its muzzle, revealing the barbs on its tongue and sharp fangs longer than a finger.

If a large crowd had come, it probably would have run away long ago. Seeing only a single person and a small cat before its eyes, its gaze remained filled with vigilance as it looked them up and down, occasionally flashing its eyes as if it were pondering—amidst the vigilance, there was no lack of composure.

This showed that it was very clever.

Song You often saw a similar expression on Three Flower Lady's face; even when she turned into a cat, through this thoughtfulness in her eyes, one could tell her extraordinary nature at a glance.

Thus, while this mountain fierce tiger vigilantly investigated, and while the group of people behind him grew nervous and worried, Song You merely raised his hand and leisurely bowed:

"Greetings, Mountain Lord."

"Roar!"

Startled by his movement, the fierce tiger instantly stood up, continuing to stare fixedly at him.

The crowd behind him also froze for a moment.

The Three Flower Cat stood a few steps away from him, her eyes wide as she stared at the behemoth, fortunately without shivering.

Only the young Daoist priest's voice was heard.

"Mountain Lord need feel no panic. My surname is Song, given name You, style name Menglai. I am a mountain recluse from Lingquan County in Yizhou. Passing through here on my travels, I wanted to buy some food, and by chance encountered the village folk out seeking help. Hearing that Mountain Lord had a conflict with the village folk, I have come specially to mediate."

Wild tigers in the mountains did not understand human speech, but hearing Song You's words, for some reason, the vigilance in its eyes gradually receded, turning to contemplation, and then to puzzlement.

The villagers behind him, meanwhile, were practically dumbstruck.

From their angle, they could not see the fierce tiger in the pigpen, only seeing the young Daoist priest bowing and conversing with the fierce tiger. For a moment, they felt astonished, absurd, and frightened.

The tiger hadn't even turned into a spirit; how could it understand human speech?

And what reason was there to speak with a tiger?

"Observing behind this village are a thousand miles of great mountains. Instead of hunting in the mountains and living a carefree life, why has Mountain Lord come down the mountain to hunt livestock?"

"Roar..."

The fierce tiger's roar scared the villagers half to death.

They feared that the next second, the tiger behind the wall would charge out and knock the Daoist priest flat to the ground.

Yet they only saw the Daoist priest shake his head and say:

"This is not a good method."

Song You lowered his head to glance at the half-pig beneath it.

The pigs here were mainly small black pigs that didn't grow very large. Given this tiger's appetite, it probably ate one in two meals. At this rate, no matter how prosperous a village was, it wouldn't be able to sustain its toll.

"Mountain Lord has a huge appetite, and this patch of villages alone cannot support Mountain Lord's food consumption. Besides, people need to make a living too." Song You shook his head and said, "When I arrived earlier, the farming households in this village were already preparing to go to the county seat to ask people to hunt Mountain Lord. No matter how great Mountain Lord's abilities are, you ultimately cannot contend with humanity."

The fierce tiger stared at him without speaking.

"I observe that Mountain Lord already possesses considerable wisdom; in the future, you may not necessarily fail to awaken your spiritual intelligence and attain the Dao to become a demon. Now that Mountain Lord has eaten quite a bit of livestock, you should return early and not ruin your own prospects." Song You said, "From now on, do not cross the line again. The mountains are your hunting ground, while down the mountain—especially where the roads lead—is the world of humans."

"..."

Lustre flickered in the fierce tiger's eyes as it fell into contemplation.

It was seen shifting its gaze, looking now at Song You, now at the cat behind Song You, and now back at the half-pig beneath it. After a moment, its claws actually loosened their grip on the half-pig, and it walked a few steps to the side before lowering its head to Song You in a gesture of thanks and obeisance.

Song You hurriedly returned the greeting.

Then, to the utter astonishment of the assembled villagers, that ferocious tiger actually crossed the village path and galloped all the way up the mountain.

By the time they recovered their wits, the Young Mister they had chanced upon along the road had already arrived before them.

"From now on, it won't come down the mountain again."

"Many thanks, Mister!"

The same elder reacted the fastest. He bowed to Song You and hurriedly said, "Mister, please come this way! This old man will go report to the master of the house first. These past two days were originally the master's birthday, and because this ferocious tiger was wreaking havoc, we didn't know whether we could still celebrate on time. Now that Mister has driven away the ferocious tiger, you are an honored guest of our Liu Family Village. We ask Mister to stay in the village for a few more days and let us properly entertain you!"

"No need, just give me some food."

"Mister must not decline! If we let Mister leave just like that, my master will surely blame us!" The elder said, "Mister, rest assured, we will certainly host Mister with the finest food and drink. If the birthday celebration in a couple of days goes smoothly, there will even be an opera troupe! It'll be very lively!"

Song You truly could not refuse.