Song Jimin was so frightened that he immediately jumped onto Song Luyuan’s back, clutching tightly around his neck.
Song Luyuan reached into his sleeve and fumbled around for a long time before he remembered that his great sword was no longer with him—it had been given to Song Xian earlier to be used as a kitchen knife.
“Jie jie tun.”
SRSK……
A terrifying laughter tore through the silent ancient forest, pushing the fear to its limit.
The ghostly figure drew closer and closer, hair disheveled, rushing toward them as if it had no facial features.
“Ah ah ah—”
Song Luyuan and Song Jimin screamed in unison,
“A ghost! Run, run!”
In the blink of an eye, Song Luyuan scrambled away with Song Jimin on his back, disappearing more than eight zhang away.
“Don’t be afraid, Dad will protect you all!”
Song Xian raised his dagger, standing guard in front of Song Hancheng.
Song Hancheng had already noticed that the “ghost” had a shadow, so he stood his ground without moving.
Song Xian’s protective stance surprised him—he had expected Song Xian to be the first to run away.
After the White-Robed Ghost missed its target, it scurried swiftly on all fours like a spider, heading straight toward where Song Xian and Song Hancheng stood.
“Back off! We don’t entertain superstitions here. Your arrival is useless!”
“Amitabha, Balala energy, by the law’s command, the brilliance of socialism shines brightest, exterminate all evil spirits!”
Song Xian waved his dagger while chanting.
You have to try every method—what if one works?
“Awuu, awuu, awuu……”
The White-Robed Ghost stopped crawling near the campfire and began circling it.
It turned out the White-Robed Ghost was eating the roasted mushroom slices on the stones.
“Hey, you can’t eat that!”
Song Xian hurriedly went to stop it, but the White-Robed Ghost suddenly let out a howl and collapsed motionless on the ground.
Song Luyuan successfully knocked out the White-Robed Ghost and clicked his tongue in annoyance.
“Daring to pretend to be a ghost to scare me! Look at you, just like that Heilv Fendan!”
Song Luyuan casually prodded the White-Robed Ghost’s head with his foot, and its messy hair scattered, revealing a coal-black face.
Song Hancheng lowered his gaze and said,
“Her skin color isn’t natural. Second brother, fetch some water, carefully wash her face.”
“Why wash carefully?”
When dealing with a trickster like this pretending to be a ghost, you have to be as ruthless as sweeping fallen leaves in autumn!
Song Luyuan dampened a cloth and roughly wiped the White-Robed Ghost’s face.
As he wiped, his hand involuntarily softened because beneath the dirt, he uncovered an exceptionally beautiful woman’s face.
The woman’s skin was pale, her forehead delicate, eyebrows like moth wings, lips naturally red—a beauty capable of overshadowing fish and birds.
“She’s so beautiful. Why would she pretend to be a ghost in the ancient forest?”
Underneath the woman’s collar was an old wound, and at her sleeve cuff was white embroidery with the words “Red Sleeve House.”
Song Hancheng said,
“Someone from Red Sleeve House. She probably fled into this ancient forest at the risk of her life to escape capture.”
Song Luyuan and Song Jimin both nodded silently, accepting this without question.
Song Xian was puzzled.
“What’s Red Sleeve House?”
Song Jimin answered,
“It’s the most famous tavern in Yongzhou Prefecture—a place where officials and nobles go to indulge their refined tastes.”
Song Luyuan sneered coldly,
“Hah, in this chaotic era, what good place can there be? Outside the tavern they eat people, inside they eat people even more. A woman as stunning as her won’t survive there.”
Song Hancheng pondered,
“Red Sleeve House must have laid a trap to catch her.”
Song Xian was very confused.
“Why?”
“Beauty is always one of the most violently contested treasures in this chaotic world.”
Suddenly—
“Jie jie jie…………… Meow! Meow!”
The woman woke up, suddenly laughing weirdly, then howling strangely.
When she saw Song Xian and his family of four, she grinned broadly and laughed loudly.
“Ha, little kids, hello there! Which New Year painting did you jump out of?”
“Come, let big sister see which one of you is the most handsome. Oh, this one’s skin is dark, not cute! Oh, this one’s cute but too short, easy to overlook.”
The woman pushed past Song Luyuan and Song Jimin, slowly turning her head, eyes settling on Song Xian and Song Hancheng.
“These two are good! Whichever little rooster points to, I’ll choose—stick you to the wall!”
“Stick you, you Heilv Fendan egg.”
Song Luyuan delivered a chopping strike to the woman’s neck from behind, knocking her out again.
“She’s crazy, no cure.”
“There is a cure. She must have been poisoned by eating undercooked mushrooms.”
Song Xian searched around, hoping the saying “there must be an antidote within five steps” would hold true here.
It was too dark; visibility was limited.
Within sight, no living thing was listed as having detoxifying properties.
“I need a torch.”
“Here.”
Song Jimin pulled out a Bamboo Tube Wax from his pocket, removed the cap, blew on it, and the wax wick ignited, emitting a strong flame.
Song Xian cupped the flame with his hand and searched around, finally finding a dark red climbing vine in a hollow of a tree big enough for seven people to hug.
A small white flower bloomed on it.
[Value Description]:
Fengxue Vine—bears two-colored flowers; red flowers are highly poisonous, white flowers detoxify all poisons.
After plucking the white flower, Song Xian thought for a moment and decided to uproot the entire Fengxue Vine.
The world was chaotic and dangerous.
He needed to protect the children well.
He planned to plant the Fengxue Vine at home—if it bloomed white flowers, they could be used as antidotes; if red, they could be used against villains.
After the woman took the white flower of the Fengxue Vine, she soon regained consciousness.
“I- I’m Baige. I’m a beggar. I hadn’t eaten for three days and went crazy from hunger. I ran into the ancient forest to find food. Just now, I suddenly smelled a fragrance and lost my mind. I’m truly sorry.”
Baige’s voice was hoarse, and when she forced out sound, her tone was strange.
It turned out that the strange “jie jie” sounds she made while running through the forest were actually her shouting
“sister’s hungry, sister’s hungry.”
Her voice distorted, making it sound like eerie laughter.
“Sorry, I hallucinated from hunger. After smelling that fragrance, I went mad, my mind only thinking of food.”
Song Hancheng asked directly,
“Did you escape from Red Sleeve House?”
Baige was stunned for a moment, then touched her face and realized the black soot had been washed off.
She trembled all over, fear rising in her.
“You don’t need to be afraid. Me and my three kids won’t harm you, nor would we covet your beauty.”
Song Xian’s timely reassurance calmed Baige.
“I was tricked by my ruthless fiancé into Red Sleeve House. I traveled thousands of miles to meet him, and he sold me—for a mere three thousand wen! The Red Sleeve House owner wanted to train me as a Slim Horse to serve those officials and nobles. I refused and was beaten every day… I barely escaped that hellhole. I beg you, kind benefactors, please spare me a chance to live! Please!”
Baige wept like rain, repeatedly kowtowing and begging.
Song Xian carefully helped Baige up.
“Miss Bai, rest assured, my sons and I are not bad people. We won’t send you back to that hell for some money.”
“Right, we definitely won’t do that.”
Song Luyuan and Song Jimin echoed in unison.
Song Hancheng’s reaction was relatively cold.
“You can leave now.”
Baige hesitated, embarrassed,
“But I have nowhere to go. Can you take me in?”
Song Hancheng said,
“Sorry, we mean well but are powerless. We don’t even have a home ourselves.”
Baige cried, occasionally stealing glances at Song Xian and the others.
Her gaze finally landed on the dagger in Song Xian’s hand.
“What should I do? I really have nowhere else to go. My home is thousands of miles away in Shuzhou. I came here to marry my fiancé but was betrayed by that dog… sob sob…”
Baige’s tears fell drop by drop onto the Fengxue Vine.
Song Luyuan said,
“Then stay.”
Baige was just about to break into a smile when Song Hancheng doused her hopes.
“This forest isn’t ours to begin with. You can stay if you want, but we won’t help with any extra troubles—you have to rely on yourself.”
“All right, all right.”
Baige bowed repeatedly in gratitude.
At that moment, Song Xian noticed the Fengxue Vine on the ground withering and rotting, shocked.
“What’s going on?”
Song Hancheng said,
“Maybe it can’t tolerate women’s tears?”
Song Xian paused, then realized Baige’s tears had just fallen on the Fengxue Vine.
“Oh, so it’s sensitive to water.”
No wonder he had searched so many places but only found one Fengxue Vine in the tree hollow—it must need a dry, rain-protected environment.
What a pity, Song Xian sighed.
Next time he encountered a rare species, he would observe it first, ensure he could replicate its natural environment, and then consider transplanting it.
The next day, dawn light barely breaking, birds chirped cheerfully.
Song Hancheng and the others gradually woke up.
“Good morning! Breakfast is ready.”
Song Xian smiled brightly as he called everyone to eat.
On the leaves were roasted slices of boletus mushrooms, and ceramic bowls were filled with hot mushroom and corn porridge, accompanied by a pile of yellow fruits.
Song Xian distributed breakfast according to need.
Song Luyuan smelled the rich aroma of the roasted mushrooms and porridge, both tempted to eat but also wary.
“Are these mushrooms safe this time—”
“Don’t worry, I guarantee they’re fully cooked.”
Song Xian ate a few slices first to show everyone.
The three Song brothers waited a moment, seeing Song Xian was fine before cautiously following suit.
It was understandable they were concerned—they had seen Baige go mad from poisoning the night before.
Heavens, these roasted mushroom slices were truly delicious!
Fragrant and flavorful, with a pleasant chewiness, they even smelled better than meat.
The porridge was tasty too, with the fragrance of rice mingled with the unique aroma of mushrooms, smooth on the tongue, warm and comforting inside the stomach.
Song Jimin ate with a dazed expression.
Song Luyuan also felt inexplicably happy while eating.
The food was good, so the taste of the yellow fruits must be good too.
After finishing their meal, the three brothers and Baige all bit into the yellow fruits.
Suddenly, an indescribable spicy sensation spread through their mouths, fiercely spreading to every limb and joint.
One of the three brothers, brimming with anger, asked,
“What is this?”
“This is Fatherly Love as Steadfast as a Mountain.”
Song Xian quipped offhandedly.