Idle Chatter, Distant Tongchuan Town

When Chen Mo hurried home, it was already nearly dark.

The courtyard gate was just as it had been.

Chen Huan was reading inside. Hearing the commotion, she immediately ran out.

"Brother, why did you come back again?"

"I came back to have a look."

Chen Mo answered, his gaze sweeping over the courtyard first.

His father was sitting beneath the locust tree, repairing a bow.

Seeing him rush back in such a hurry, his father found it rather baffling.

"The martial hall let you off again?"

"No."

Chen Mo set his things down on the table.

"I heard someone got hurt out west again, so I came back to check on you."

His father froze for a moment, then smiled.

"What could possibly happen to me?"

"Don't laugh."

Chen Mo sat down beside him.

"Go into the mountains less often lately."

"Got it."

His father lowered his head and fiddled with the bowstring in his hands.

"I haven't gone deep into the mountains lately either."

Chen Mo stared at him for a long while. Only after confirming that his father truly seemed fine did he finally let out a breath.

His mother said from nearby:

"You child, you hear a few rumors at the martial hall and come rushing home in a panic."

"I was worried, that's all."

Chen Mo muttered quietly.

His father heard him and raised a hand to knock him on the head.

"If you're worried, then practice your fists properly. Don't keep running home all day long."

Chen Mo clutched his head.

"Easy."

Chen Huan watched from the side and laughed merrily.

"Brother got hit."

"Eat your meal."

Chen Mo shot her a glare.

Early the next morning, he returned to the martial hall.

After this, Chen Mo finally felt somewhat at ease.

As long as his father did not venture deep into the mountains for the time being, he would not have to keep worrying about it every day.

As for the rumors outside, he would leave them for the adults to fret over.

Life at the martial hall returned to normal.

Of course, that was only on the surface.

After the expansion of enrollment, the number of people never went down.

Every day, people fought over the wooden posts in the training ground. The dining hall was more crowded than before, and even the shaded spots beneath the corridors had become prime territory.

Chen Mo had gradually grown used to it.

After finishing his fist practice that morning, he found a relatively quiet corner and sat down.

He had only taken two sips of water when Zhao Chuan ran over.

"Move in a little."

"How do you manage to find me everywhere?"

"Because I'm smart."

"I think your skin's just thick."

Zhao Chuan did not care. He sat down right beside him.

The two rested for a while before Zhao Chuan suddenly said:

"Chen Mo."

"Hmm?"

"How big do you think the world outside really is?"

Chen Mo turned to look at him.

"Why are you thinking about that again?"

"The more I think about it lately, the more I feel that Qinghe Town is just too small."

Zhao Chuan gestured outside.

"From east to west, you wouldn't even need long on horseback."

"These are the same people we see every day. I'm practically getting to know even the bun sellers on the street."

Chen Mo smiled after hearing that.

"Didn't you used to say Qinghe Town was great every day?"

"That was before I knew there were even bigger places outside."

"So now you know?"

"Of course."

Zhao Chuan sat up a little straighter.

"I even asked my father yesterday whether there were other big places besides Westplain City."

"He said there were plenty."

"But when I kept asking, he told me to stop letting my thoughts run wild."

Chen Mo chuckled.

"Because you haven't even left Qinghe Town yet."

"Isn't that why I'm working hard?"

Zhao Chuan patted his chest.

"Once I've gained some skill, I'll definitely go out and see the world."

Just then, an older student nearby happened to overhear them.

"What are you two talking about?"

Zhao Chuan immediately perked up.

"The outside world."

"Then do you know what the nearest big town is?"

Zhao Chuan thought for a moment.

"Westplain City?"

The older student burst out laughing.

"Westplain City?"

"Do you really think that once you leave Qinghe Town, you're in Westplain City?"

Zhao Chuan looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Then where is it?"

"Tongchuan Town."

"Tongchuan?"

Zhao Chuan repeated it.

Chen Mo turned his head as well.

It was the first time he had heard that name.

Seeing that they were all interested, the older student leaned against a corridor pillar and sat down.

"It's normal that you haven't heard of it."

"Qinghe Town is remote, and there's little news here."

"Tongchuan Town is different."

Zhao Chuan immediately asked:

"How big is it?"

"Much bigger than Qinghe."

"How much bigger?"

"You'll know once you go see it for yourself."

"..."

Zhao Chuan immediately felt a little unconvinced.

The older student smiled.

"Tongchuan is a key point on the trade routes around here."

"Many merchant caravans pass through."

"The town has a large population too. Its streets are wider than ours, and it has more shops."

"During the day, there's no need to even mention it."

"Even at night, it's still just as lively."

Zhao Chuan's eyes lit up as he listened.

"There are people out at night too?"

"There are."

"Wouldn't that make it far livelier than Qinghe Town?"

"Of course."

Zhao Chuan could not help sighing.

"I knew it. Places outside had to be more fun."

Chen Mo said from beside him:

"All you think about is having fun."

"Aren't you curious?"

"A little."

"Then there you have it."

Zhao Chuan immediately looked pleased with himself.

The older student continued:

"Tongchuan also has a garrison."

"Patrols along the trade routes are stricter than they are here."

"The town has several martial halls as well. The largest of them is much bigger than our Clear River Martial Hall."

As martial halls were mentioned, Wang Lie happened to pass by.

Hearing that, he stopped.

"How big?"

The older student glanced at him.

"The training ground is at least quite a bit bigger than this one."

"And there are more apprentices."

"What about the martial instructors there?"

Wang Lie asked bluntly.

The older student thought for a moment.

"Naturally, there are more of them than here too."

Wang Lie nodded.

"Oh."

Then he asked no more and turned toward the wooden posts.

Watching his back, Zhao Chuan could not help saying:

"See? Here he goes again."

Chen Mo smiled.

"What he cares about is different from what you care about."

"I care about martial halls too."

"How many questions did you ask just now?"

"I..."

Zhao Chuan thought for a while.

"Fine, I really do want to know more about whether they have good food there."

Chen Mo smiled and shook his head.

The people nearby all laughed.

The atmosphere remained light and relaxed.

Until someone suddenly asked:

"Is Paulownia River right by the mountains?"

The senior student nodded.

"Yes."

"Paulownia River is prosperous, but its location is special too."

"Head west, and there's a vast stretch of mountain forest."

Zhao Chuan frowned.

"Isn't that the same as here?"

"It's different."

The senior student said:

"Paulownia River is closer to the mountains."

"The trade routes pass through there because several roads lead west."

"It's convenient for business, but more people go into the mountains too."

Upon hearing this, the smile on Chen Mo's face gradually faded.

He remembered the news he had heard over the past few days.

Hunters getting injured.

Livestock dying at the foot of the mountains.

And herb gatherers going missing.

Qinghe Town had already been thrown into turmoil.

If Paulownia River was closer to the mountains, then over there...

He could not help asking:

"How has Paulownia River been lately?"

The senior student shook his head.

"I don't know about that."

"But I heard fewer people have been entering the mountains lately."

"Why?"

"Not sure."

"It seems a few things happened over there too."

The people nearby immediately fell a little quieter.

Zhao Chuan asked:

"Wild beasts too?"

The senior student nodded.

"That's what I heard."

"What did the authorities say?"

"What else could they say?"

The man smiled.

"They said it was all caused by wild beasts in the mountains."

"Anyway, whenever something happens, that's always what they say in the end."

After hearing that, Zhao Chuan did not press further.

"Then it probably isn't anything serious."

Once he said that, he grew excited again.

"But I still have to go see Paulownia River."

Chen Mo glanced at him.

"Aren't you afraid of wild beasts?"

"I never said I was going into the mountains."

Zhao Chuan spoke with utter seriousness.

"I'm going to see the girls and restaurants in town."

"See?"

Chen Mo smiled helplessly.

"This is what you really want to go for."

Their voices made the others around them laugh again.

Zhou Ye was sitting not far away, wiping his hands.

He had only joined the martial arts hall recently, and training was usually what interested him most.

But this time, he had been listening the whole while as well.

It was not until Zhao Chuan mentioned Paulownia River Martial Arts Hall that he raised his head.

"Are the people over there much stronger than the ones here?"

The senior student nodded.

"There are definitely far more of them than here."

Zhou Ye fell silent for a moment.

"Then that's good."

Zhao Chuan glanced at him.

"What do you mean, that's good?"

Zhou Ye said:

"Only with more people are there opponents."

After saying that, he rose and walked toward the training ground.

Zhao Chuan watched him and kept shaking his head.

"I surrender."

But Chen Mo smiled.

"That's more like him."

"You really want to fight him?"

"Sooner or later."

Zhao Chuan immediately perked up.

"Then I want to as well."

Chen Mo looked at him.

"Practice your defense first."

Zhao Chuan's face instantly fell.

"Here we go again."

As they chatted and laughed, someone suddenly shouted from afar:

"Food's ready!"

The people beneath the corridor immediately scattered in all directions.

Chen Mo stood up as well.

After taking two steps, he suddenly turned back and looked west.

There was nothing to be seen there.

Only a stretch of sky lit by sunlight.

Tongchuan Town.

This place whose name he had never even heard before now seemed not as far away as he had imagined.

And that place stood beside the mountains too.

Chen Mo thought about it, then did not continue dwelling on it.

Zhao Chuan was already calling to him from ahead:

"Chen Mo, are you coming or not?"

"Coming!"

Chen Mo quickly caught up with him.

Just as they reached the entrance to the dining hall, Zhao Chuan suddenly remembered something else.

"Oh, right."

"What?"

"Does your father still go into the mountains lately?"

Chen Mo's steps halted.

"Sometimes."

"Then you'd better persuade him more."

Zhao Chuan said:

"There's more and more news coming out of those mountains lately."

Chen Mo said nothing.

After a while, he finally spoke:

"I already tried persuading him yesterday."

Zhao Chuan nodded.

"Then that's fine."

The two entered the dining hall together.

Behind them, beneath the corridor, the apprentices who were still chatting began talking again.

"I heard a road into the mountains near Paulownia River was closed recently."

"Really?"

"I only heard it from someone else."

"Why was it closed?"

"It seems... someone else didn't come back."