The next morning, with the fire still smoldering, Bai Lingyu washed her face by the stream and sat down next to Jiang Lin.
The four children were still asleep by the fire. A Shan was the worst sleeping man; he was sprawled out with his arms and legs spread out haphazardly. Xiao Man was huddled next to him, like a little animal curled up in a huddle.
Yi Chen lay on her side, breathing lightly, seemingly asleep, but she had actually opened her eyes once when the fire went out. Lin Du was the furthest away, with his back to the fire, curled up, as if he wasn't used to being too close to people.
Bai Lingyu glanced at them and lowered her voice, saying, "We've almost finished traveling south. After passing that village yesterday, the map marks a vast uninhabited area further south, without even any villages marked."
Jiang Lin neither answered nor refuted.
Bai Lingyu continued, "We've taken what we needed to take, and we've helped what we needed to help. Continuing on would just be a waste of time. Besides—"
He gestured with his chin toward the four children. "All four of them can sense the Soul Power, but they don't even know how to use it."
You can't keep running around with them, teaching them as you go, can you? There needs to be a place where they can settle down, be properly taught, and practice properly."
Jiang Lin listened quietly without responding immediately.
As the last wisp of smoke dissipated from the fire, he looked at the ashes and uttered, "Return to Heaven Dou."
Bai Lingyu raised an eyebrow. "Return to Heaven Dou?"
"That piece of land bestowed by the emperor," Jiang Lin said, "Has never been used; now it's time to put it to use."
Bai Lingyu nodded, didn't ask any further questions, stood up and patted her trouser leg. "Okay, I'll go pack."
A Shan had actually been awake for a while. He had his eyes open when Bai Lingyu spoke, and when he heard Jiang Lin say "return to Heaven Dou," he sat up, rubbed his eyes, and asked in a hoarse voice, "Master... we're not going south?"
"I'm not going," Jiang Lin said. "We've found what we needed to find, and we've helped what we needed to help. I'll go back and settle you down."
A Shan was stunned for a moment.
"Settle down?"
"Okay," Jiang Lin said, "From now on, the four of you will have a fixed place to live. It won't be a place where you sleep in this village today and that ferry crossing tomorrow; it will be your own place."
A Shan blinked, as if processing those words. He stood up, walked over to Jiang Lin, and asked again, "So, what's the name of the place we're staying?"
Jiang Lin glanced at him and said, "I'll let you know when it's finished."
A Shan didn't press further, but he grinned. Then he turned to Xiao Man, who was still asleep, and called out, " Xiao Man! Wake up! We're going home!"
Xiao Man sat up groggily, rubbing her eyes. "... Go home? Go home which home?"
"Master said he'll go back to Heaven Dou and give us a home!"
Xiao Man paused for a moment, as if he wasn't fully awake yet, but when he heard the word "home," his lips twitched, and then he got up and began packing his little bag.
Yi Chen had already sat up. He wasn't as excited as A Shan, nor as confused as Xiao Man.
He sat quietly, looking at the distant ridgeline. After a while, he lowered his head and tightened the straw rope at his feet again.
Lin Du was the last to sit up. He had woken up very early, before A Shan called out "Let's go home." He had his back to the fire and didn't participate in the conversation, but he heard every word.
He stood up very quietly, walked to the stream, squatted down, and washed his face. The stream water was very cold. He paused for a moment on the surface of the water with his hands cupping it, then stood up, walked back to the group, and stood next to A Shan.
A Shan glanced at him, said nothing, and simply handed him a piece of dry rations. Lin Du took it, took a bite, and remained silent.
The six people packed their things and began their return journey north.
After walking for about an hour, A Shan, standing beside Jiang Lin, suddenly asked, "Master, what will that 'home' look like in the future?"
"I haven't decided yet," Jiang Lin said. "What kind of design do you want it to look like?"
A Shan thought about it seriously for a while and said, "It needs to have a big yard, the kind where we can run and jump around. There should be a tree in the middle of the yard so we can sit in the shade."
Why do we need trees?
"Because where I used to live, there was a tree right in front of the door," A Shan said. "After I moved away, I don't know if that tree is still there. If our new home also has one, I'll feel... that's my home."
Jiang Lin didn't reply, but he slowed his pace.
Yi Chen followed behind, heard A Shan's words, but said nothing. He was thinking about what "home" meant.
In the village where he used to live, in that low-ceilinged house, no one ever told him it was "home." It was just a place to live.
Xiao Man followed beside Yi Chen, muttering to herself, "I want a tree too... but the yard doesn't need to be too big, otherwise I won't be able to find Brother A Shan."
Lin Du walked at the back, listening to the conversation ahead without saying a word. He simply put away the remaining dry rations in his hand, then quickened his pace, shortening the distance between himself and A Shan.
Bai Lingyu walked at the front, flipping through the map, and said without turning her head, "When we get back, we need to go to the City Lord's Mansion first to confirm whether the land deed for that piece of land is still valid."
"Yes," Jiang Lin said, "I've been keeping it."
Bai Lingyu turned and glanced at him, then chuckled, "Alright, it's good that you're prepared."
The group headed northeast along the mountain path. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds, casting long, uneven shadows on the six people.
Jiang Lin walked in the middle of the group, with Bai Lingyu in front of him and four children behind him. He didn't turn around to look at them, but he could hear their footsteps— A Shan's steps were the heaviest, Xiao Man's were the lightest, Yi Chen's were the lightest, and Lin Du's were the steadyest.
Jiang Lin walked for a while, then looked up at the distant horizon. That direction led to Heaven Dou City.
The word "home" may be a foreign concept to these four children. But from today onward, it will become a real place.