By the Butterfly Spring

Foreword:

If Heaven had feelings, it too would grow old; the true path of humanity is fraught with vicissitudes.

[Part 1: Disappointment]

The two had originally agreed that once the matter was over, Jianxiong would take his knife and settle accounts with Wu Xiuwen, seeking revenge with three cuts and six holes—but in the end, Zhao Jianxiong never did stab him with those three cuts.

After dealing with the Hundred-Eyed Demon Lord, Master went to sleep.

Jianxiong dared not delay, carrying Zhang Congfeng down the mountain to the town, walking quickly and steadily.

After traversing more than ten miles of winding mountain roads, we arrived in the town around noon. There was not a soul in the streets and alleys; the townspeople were all sheltering indoors, afraid to go out.

Jianxiong went from house to house searching, hoping to find a quiet place to put his master down. At first, he couldn't find him and became anxious, until Xiangxiang reminded him.

"Hero, go to Mu Family Village. It used to be the dwelling place of the Golden Dog Demon. Now that the Buddha Sculptor is dead and the Hundred Eyes Demon is dead, it has been abandoned and left unattended."

"You're right!" Zhao Jianxiong immediately grabbed his master and headed towards Master Mu's house.

Upon arriving at the dry rock platform, he saw that the village and its surrounding area were crowded with people. It seemed that the bolder villagers from Black Wind Town were dividing up their property. Since there was no Buddha Sculptor to take care of this family, the law-abiding citizens naturally became bandits—everyone was doing what they tacitly agreed to.

In less than half a day, the villagers, along with the able-bodied men of their households, emptied the Mu family village. Only a canopy bed remained, but since someone had died in that bed, the villagers dared not take it—it was considered unlucky.

Zhao Jianxiong walked into the inner courtyard, where only a few scattered households remained. They were rummaging through the cotton, hemp, and millet in the storerooms. Although they weren't worth much, they figured they might as well pick them up.

When these ordinary people saw Zhang Congfeng and his group, they scurried away as if they were plague carriers, without even a word of thanks.

At this moment, Zhao Jianxiong was angry, but after thinking for a while, he felt relieved.

"Master came to kill the demons, and also cut off these unruly people's path to immortality—they must resent Master and dare not harm us, they only dare to hide."

Jianxiong helped Zhang Congfeng onto the canopy bed, then nervously watched his master's expression, wondering what had happened.

Jiang Xueming was able to control his sleep time; before tidying up Baimu, he hadn't slept for over sixty hours. When they rested at Mujiazhuang a while ago, the Zhao Brothers and Wu Xiuwen had all slept well, but Xue Ming dared not sleep.

Once everything was over, Xue Ming went straight to sleep, wanting to replenish the energy she had expended over the past few days.

Zhao Jianxiong grew anxious and hurriedly turned around to ask his elder brother—but he couldn't find him.

Just then, Xiangxiang seized the opportunity and secretly discussed with Zhao Jianying. They had already walked outside Black Wind Town towards the official road. It was clear that they had secretly pledged their lives to each other and that it was best to make a quick getaway.

"My lord," Xiangxiang changed her address, calling Zhao Jianying "my lord," "take me away and don't worry about your younger brother anymore."

Zhao Jianying was still hesitant, but his legs seemed unwilling to listen to him; his body was telling the truth.

"I don't think that's going to work. I have to go back. What about the second brother? He's all alone now. What if he gets harmed by the people of Black Wind Town?"

Xiangxiang quickly tried to dissuade him. "My lord, who could harm him? If Zhang Congfeng wakes up, he might harm this foolish apprentice as well."

"They want to smash the Blood Jade Guanyin Bodhisattva and force the people of Black Wind Town to give up their elixir of immortality to make a living—there's no such thing as a free lunch. Even I, a prostitute, know that it's hard to go from extravagance to frugality."

"My jade-like arms have been the pillows of ten thousand men, and my two crimson lips have been tasted by a thousand men. I have never heard a man say that after coming to Yingchun House, he still remembers other girls."

"If you don't mind, sir, you can take me as your servant. If you want to marry another wife, I'll fetch water for you both, chop wood, cook, and make a living—or give me to the prefect as a gift, and you'll gain some good fortune. Why bother fighting with your second son over this foreign monk?"

"Once the clan elders of Black Wind Town realize what's happening and come to question Zhang Congfeng —who knows if this devil will go on a killing spree? He himself said he's a lawless man who never cares about the laws of Great Xia. If he's unhappy, he'll kill both of us."

"Make sure you remember clearly what he called us."

Xiangxiang whispered her instructions.

"You're the next Hyakume? I'm the next Zhuzhu? What kind of joke is that!"

"Moreover."

At this point, Xiangxiang rolled her eyes.

"I envy that Pearl Fairy. She didn't have to sell herself or live a life worse than pigs and dogs. She only needed to trick a farmer into marrying her four sisters."

"If I do another human flesh deal with the Buddha Sculptor, I can become Lady Hundred Eyes, where I don't have to do anything and food will be delivered to my mouth every day."

"She and her husband lived a carefree and happy life in Black Wind Ridge for decades, even centuries. If Zhang Congfeng hadn't come, they could have continued living like that."

"This Zhang Congfeng keeps calling others demons and heretics."

"But if we really had this opportunity, let's ask ourselves honestly, how could we give up this evil path to fortune? How could we overcome this inner demon?"

Zhao Jianying fell silent; he couldn't get past this hurdle.

Xiangxiang continued--

"--Let's go, my lord. If we stay by Zhang Guiren's side, we'll be killed by her moral sword sooner or later."

"You can't bear to part with Zhao the Second, but all the way to Mu Family Village, all he kept saying was 'Master, Master.'"

Has he ever called you that? Has he ever called you "big brother"?

"His heart has already been given to that wicked monk Zhang Congfeng. Everyone says there's a hierarchy of heaven, earth, ruler, parents, teachers, elders, juniors, and superiors, but Jianxiong is no longer your brother—he doesn't recognize you anymore."

Zhao Jianying reached into the bundle and found the book, "Knight's Combat Techniques," which Jianxiong had given him. His brother said it was a divine technique that would grant enlightenment once mastered.

He couldn't bear to throw it away, so he quickly hid it. After a while, he finally nodded in resignation, grabbed Xiangxiang's arm, and left without looking back.

As the two left Black Wind Town, Xiangxiang began to speak sweet words.

"My lord, look at this beautiful landscape. Where is there any sign of dark clouds obscuring the sun and demonic aura?"

"Perhaps Zhang Guiren was deceiving us from the beginning, using some illusions and sorcery to kill and seize power in Black Wind Town, steal the Buddha Sculptor's cultivation, and even want us to be her accomplices."

Zhao Jianying quickly believed it and immediately replied, "He is quick and ruthless when he kills people, that's definitely true."

After walking another three hundred steps or so, Xiangxiang came to a stream and spring. She immediately took off her clothes and went to soak in the stream.

Zhao Jianying wanted to avoid suspicion, but then she heard Xiangxiang's seductive laughter.

"What are you hiding from, my lord? I am yours! If we go to Taiye, are you going to lock me in a cage, put a label on me, and sell me off like that?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jianying was immediately aroused. He took off his outer clothes, went into the spring, and became intimate with Xiangxiang.

The clear spring water was sweet and warm. Before long, the two washed off the mud, exchanged academic ideas, and changed their clothes. It was as if all the manic-depressive disorder and madness of the journey had been swept away, and all the horrors and bizarre events of the journey had become fleeting clouds.

Jianying held Xiangxiang in his arms, looking at the jade-like beauty in his embrace. He had almost forgotten his imprisonment in Zhuzhou City. He thought to himself, time is such a terrifying yet fascinating thing, capable of fading everything away.

"My lord." Xiangxiang's cheeks flushed red. Sensing the "masculine scent" emanating from this imposing man, she involuntarily leaned forward, wanting a kiss. "You don't hate me anymore?"

Upon hearing this sentence, Zhao Jianying felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave.

He got goosebumps all over his body and finally realized that the woman in his arms was not someone he should have. At first, Wu Cheng Zhang sent her here, and after a dreamlike banquet, he tore off the mask and found out she was a vicious person.

But he couldn't bear to part with it; who in this world can control their desires?

Even if Jiang Xueming is destined to fall into the hands of 9527, they still have to make a two-way trip.

Zhao Jianying was filled with rage, not so much for Xiangxiang that he hated her for harming him.

He hated this land, he hated God.

He regretted not arriving in Zhuzhou sooner. The girl in his arms possessed a beauty that could shame the moon and flowers, and a captivating charm that could ensnare the soul, yet she could only be sent to a brothel to work as a prostitute, never to recover. He feared that all these words of soft jade and warm fragrance were part of a carefully orchestrated transaction. He worried that Zhao Jianying had abandoned Xiangxiang to secure his own survival.

[Part ②·Freedom]

"My lord." Xiangxiang felt a pain in her wrist; Zhao Jianying had clearly pinched her hard. So she said, "My lord, I might be pregnant with Young Master Zhao. Even when other guests have their way with me, none of them are as vigorous as you. They always have to use sheep intestines and pig bladders, saving the pimps a lot of money on abortion medicine."

Zhao Jianying didn't want to listen anymore. He felt that the whole world had become brand new, and he could no longer have anything to say to Jianxiong.

He pulled Xiangxiang along, his eyes gradually hardening, and headed towards the official road in Taiye.

He didn't aspire to be a great figure, nor did he dream of being a hero. If that bear hadn't killed his brother, he wouldn't have been able to unleash such astonishing strength—where would he have found the courage to kill a bear and rid the world of a menace?

He couldn't go to Zhuzhou; that period of wealth and status never belonged to him. Now that he had a clear mind, he knew how to walk the path of life.

Since he couldn't keep Zhao the Second, he would have to live with this bad woman by his side. If he could bring back a beautiful woman, he would be happy and at least be able to continue the family line.

"Let's go, Xiangxiang." Zhao Jianying wanted to live a normal life. He suddenly said, "I'll find a security escort agency or a post station, work as a porter or laborer, and earn some money to rent a house. Once I have a long-term job, I'll marry you."

Xiangxiang suddenly couldn't hold back anymore--

When she heard about the marriage, she saw that the lotus leaves by the roadside had become even greener, and the sunlight filtering through the leaves created ten thousand points of light.

What did you say?

Zhao Jianying nodded, as if trying to convince herself, and then her tone became sincere.

"I will marry you."

These two unfortunate souls came together, and throughout the entire journey, they hardly uttered a single truthful word.

Xiangxiang couldn't believe it. She only wanted to rely on Jianying's strength to escape from the den of demons and truly return to the civilized world. She would be lucky if she could pick up her old business with this body. She never thought about redeeming herself and getting married properly.

She knew perfectly well that men's words couldn't be trusted.

What did you say?

She asked twice more, feeling like she was dreaming.

What did you say?

Zhao Jianying cleared away the crooked weeds ahead, using the razor Zhang Congfeng had given him to cut the wild wheat awns, making way for the woman beside him.

"I want to marry you. After that, Zhao the Second won't exist anymore. He's been separated from me, but he'll have someone to take care of him now. He has a master now—so I'll marry you."

"You don't mind me?" Only after Xiangxiang finished speaking did she realize tears were falling and her lips tasted salty. When she asked "You don't mind me" instead of "You're not lying to me," she already believed it, she had already succumbed, she had already broken the lock, she was already free. "Jianying, I have no money for you."

"What are you crying for!" Zhao Jianying felt agitated. Seeing a woman cry made him feel uneasy—when someone died in Zhao Family Village, when there was a plague or famine, or when people wanted to eat mutton, he would immediately hear a woman crying.

"I won't cry." Xiangxiang was initially too frightened to cry, but then she quickly composed herself—she might as well be Mrs. Zhao in the future—and immediately went to the field to scoop up some mud and smeared it on her face.

Zhao Jianying: "What are you doing?"

"I'm scared!" Xiangxiang babbled. "I'm scared!"

Zhao Jianying: "What are you afraid of?!"

"If I cover my face, I'll avoid trouble when I meet people on the street," Xiangxiang said logically. "Once we're in the city, Jianying, you won't have any money. If someone sees me and wants to buy me, I'm afraid you'll change your mind."

"Hahahaha," Zhao Jianying laughed and cried at the same time, but he also felt that what this woman said made sense—if someone really took a fancy to Xiangxiang and offered several hundred coins to buy her, how would he get rid of this trouble?

"Then it's your way, Xiangxiang, you're much smarter than me."

Guan Xiangxiang in mud, followed behind Zhao Jianying, her heart filled with worry again.

"Jianying."

This time, she no longer wanted to call him "sir," as that was a business term.

"Jianying, what if there are Bodhisattvas and demons in Taiye Prefecture? I want to have your child. If it's a girl, that's fine; once she's married, she's like water spilled from a cup—but if it's a boy, he'll have to go far away from home too. We can't let this elixir harm him."

Zhao Jianying: "Then let's keep going, we won't stay here."

"Where are we going?" Xiangxiang pressed.

Zhao Jianying: "Wherever Zhang Guiren goes, we'll follow. There's bound to be a suitable one."

"Hey! You filthy man, talking badly about others while trying to take advantage of them!" Xiangxiang scolded.

Zhao Jianying smiled and said, "I have no ability. Zhang Guiren is right, how can someone without ability talk about morality or be a good person? If you were still healthy, we really might have one or two children—"

He took out the <Knight's Combat Techniques>.

"I'm just a nobody; I'd rather this child learn immortal arts than have such a small ambition."

He grasped Xiangxiang's hand and spoke sincerely.

"Besides my own little family, there's no room for anything else."

That night, Jiang Xueming got out of bed and heard the news that Zhao Jianying had run away with Xiangxiang. He cursed under his breath.

"Damn it"

Wu Xiuwen chimed in sarcastically, "I told you, this Uncle Zhao is unreliable. If I were to run away with a beautiful woman, I'd at least have to repay his kindness, right?! At least leave a note and say something nice, right?"

As he said this, Xiuwen couldn't help but glance at Zhao Jianxiong, fearing that this brute might pull out a knife and stab him.

"How about at night? We can sneak away at night! I'll always choose nighttime!"

"Under the clear blue sky, I can just leave! I can leave without saying goodbye!"

"Even Master was so angry he started swearing!"

"I don't blame him," Jiang Xueming said.

Wu Xiuwen: "You're so angry you've lost your mind!"

Jiang Xueming: "I didn't blame Jianying and Xiangxiang."

Wu Xiuwen: "Huh?"

Jiang Xueming had long known that Zhao Jianying was unlikely to amount to much, and that if Zhao Jianying could actually get together with Xiangxiang, it would be a happy occasion.

One of them died of illness and his entire family, while the other was sold into slavery.

The best thing is to help each other, not to look down on each other, to overcome the ordeal of life and death, and to finally resolve this enmity.

However, there were two details that Xue Ming was very dissatisfied with.

"They didn't even give me the money for their own travel expenses."

Xue Ming cared about this, and said through gritted teeth.

"Ten silver dollars, a full ten!"

Another detail is

"Has your older brother always been this brave? He grabbed a beautiful woman and set off without a second thought of staying with me!" Jiang Xueming exclaimed. "I was even thinking of seeing them off! It's still dozens of miles from Zhuzhou to Taiye. Wouldn't it be safer for them to stay with me?"

Zhao Jianxiong replied awkwardly, "Uh, my older brother has always been like this; he's not very cunning."

When Jianying first sold his ancestral property in Zhao Family Village, he was swindled out of a fortune by a powerful local tyrant who seized land during a famine year. Otherwise, why would he have set off with only an ox and a cart?

Later, when Jianxiong and I went into the mountains, we had no route planning at all and just followed our instincts, which is why we were attacked by wolves and bears.

It can be said that Zhao Jianying is a typical example of the masses of this era.

He lived a very simple, simple, and happy life.

"Let's not talk about him then. We're going to Taiye anyway, we'll run into him eventually." Jiang Xueming pursed her lips, then asked, "Xiuwen, where's that old monkey?"

Wu Xiuwen picked up the cloth bag and patted the Wood Virtue Star Lord inside.

"I'm here!"

Jiang Xueming: "Open it!"

As soon as the cloth bag was opened, the three of them immediately changed their expressions.

The old demon Di Jiang picked at his teeth with his claws, sat on the table with a contented expression, and let out a burp.

Looking at the Wood Virtue Star Lord again, this old yellow ape's flesh and internal organs were empty, leaving only a skeleton.

Jiang Xueming: "WTF"

Di Jiang shrugged indifferently, then let out a foreign-style fart.

"Soryy!"