After the upheaval at Tianlang Lake, suddenly arriving at secluded Dongming Mountain, with its almost idle pace of life, took some getting used to.
After breakfast, all that remained was to idle about. Ye Jingtang was not the sort to sit still, and his injuries had not healed enough for martial practice, so he followed Qinghe into the mountains to look around the medicinal fields, making an early spring outing of it.
Silly had spent previous years in Cloud Peace City. Now that she was beyond the pass, she naturally wanted to look around. With her master present, however, she could hardly support her lover like a little wife as Qinghe did. She merely followed behind, carrying some picnic supplies and wandering about with her master.
Shui'er seemed interested in everything by nature. She strolled leisurely through the mountains and streams, occasionally teasing Qinghe when they stopped to rest:
"As expected of the Thief Sage, whose Lightness Skill is unrivaled under heaven. After working hard all night yesterday, your legs are still so nimble climbing mountains this morning..."
"Would it kill you to keep quiet?"
"It's just the four of us, no outsiders. How dull it would be not to talk..."
Ye Jingtang basked in the gentle early-spring sun as he wandered through the mountains dotted with green. Since the three ladies had no milk for him to drink, he could hardly get handsy along the way and simply listened quietly to their conversation.
Dongming Mountain's medicinal fields had all been reclaimed on the slopes, planted with medicinal herbs such as gastrodia. There was cultivated mountain ginseng in the woods as well. Since harvests were generally measured in years, few people tended them regularly; only the clan elders responsible occasionally made a patrol through the mountains.
After walking for