Chapter 18: Heavy in the Hand

On the opposite shore, the mountains were still encircled by accumulated snow, and looking forward along that bamboo pole, a small skiff was actually floating on the water's surface.

On the skiff was a person, wearing a raincoat, lying lazily on their side on the boat planks, one leg bent and one extended, one hand propping up their head, the other hand holding that straight and well-balanced yellow-green bamboo pole.

From beneath the bamboo hat came the voice of a young woman:

"I thought it was a big fish, turns out it's just a little water ghost."

This voice was excessively lazy, as if in this desolate mountain wilderness, upon seeing the "water ghost" she spoke of, she felt neither fear nor panic, only disappointment.

Her disappointment and disdain were expressed with utter directness, not giving Shaowei a chance to catch her breath and speak; the bamboo pole in her hand knocked against Shaowei's head, driving her away: "Little ghost, scatter, don't disturb my angling."

The wet bamboo pole striking her head was especially painful; Shaowei shrank back in pain, her whole little face wrinkling up, her body sinking down uncontrollably, and when she bubbled up again, she suffered two more heavy knocks.

Shaowei got angry.

Not only did that bamboo pole hit her, but when probing into the water it always cleverly blocked her path; it was truly bullying too far, hateful to the extreme.

She could perfectly well give up this life, but how she died was her business; being toyed with and bullied like this was something she could not endure even in death!

Seeing that bamboo pole probing down to knock again, Shaowei reached out and gripped it tight, her body pressing forward along it, legs kicking hard, suddenly swimming toward that small skiff.

The distance was not far to begin with, and Shaowei moved fast; in a few breaths she gathered some strength, putting it all into one thing — Shaowei one hand clutching the boat gunwale, one hand seizing that woman's arm, without a word dragging her down from the boat with force!

Since she called her a water ghost she would act the part of a water ghost, drag a burial companion to die together, on the road to the Yellow Springs just right to beat up and relieve boredom!

Shaowei one hand clinging to the boat, one hand pressing the other's head, forcing her into the water to drown; the woman flailed and struggled, shouting between sinking and surfacing: "Mo Li, mm, save me, save me!"

From the shore came a young man's response: "Oh, coming!"

A slender, tall, thin black figure ran from the shore, stepping on the thick rope connecting the shore to the small boat and flying over, one hand lifting each, hauling the two tearing and struggling in the water up onto the small boat.

Shaowei crawled trying to lunge over and hit, but was restrained by that black-clad youth's arms.

The woman sat there, removed her bamboo hat, panting heavily, revealing a fair goose-egg face.

Shaowei struggled in that youth's grip while asking: "Who are you!"

"Me." A smile appeared on the woman's soaked face, she answered: "A wandering angling guest of the four seas, Jiang Taimu is my name."

"..." This nonsense appearance made Shaowei feel even more toyed with; she lowered her head and bit hard on the black-clad youth's hand, taking the chance to break free, then lunging at that woman again.

"What a fierce little ghost."

As the woman's words fell, with a fine silver needle flying in and piercing her neck, Shaowei suddenly collapsed, her whole body losing strength.

The woman withdrew her needling hand, wringing the water from her clothes.

The youth Mo Li shook his bitten, bleeding right hand, hurriedly crouching down to help wring water: "Head of Household, very cold, right?"

"No matter." The woman braced both hands at her side, a face of sweet contentment, without any complaint saying: "When a person does bad things, no matter how bitter or tired, they'll feel it's very worth it."

Mo Li wore a puzzled face: "But Head of Household saved her, isn't that doing a good thing?"

The woman looked at that unconscious girl: "She did not wish to survive, I forced her against her will, how do I know it's not doing a bad thing?"

Mo Li couldn't understand, only asking: "Then is she the person Head of Household is waiting for?"

Mo Li finished asking, looked at that girl's stature, evaluating like a fruit: "She's also too small."

"Right, also too small." The woman shifted closer to Shaowei, reached out to feel Shaowei's frontal bone and occipital bone, then carefully examined her brows and eyes, and only then looked at that injury-riddled body, sighing: "Simply a civet cat that's both small and broken."

Amidst the woman's sighs, the small boat slowly returned to shore.

Mo Li jumped off the boat to lead the ox.

The woman bent over, both hands lifting Shaowei up, but her body shape bent down involuntarily, couldn't help saying: "Ah, actually quite heavy in the hand."

She again tossed the unconscious girl up and down, finally somewhat satisfied: "Though small and broken, the merit is there's some weight, raise and mend a bit, seems usable."

As they spoke, the woman boosted Shaowei onto the ox's back, herself also mounting sideways: "Leave this place first, seek a concealed spot to make fire."

Mo Li leading the ox, asked: "Head of Household, which direction to go?"

The woman fished out an object from the bundle carried on the ox's back, cupping it in her left hand.

It was a copper lacquer star disk, the whole star disk composed of a heaven plate and earth plate, the earth plate below square, the heaven plate above round, the exact center joined by an axle, the heaven plate able to rotate.

"The earth plate is fixed, called the earth chen, cannot be moved. The heaven plate can rotate, called the heaven gang, changes can only appear here..." The woman grasped Shaowei's dangling right wrist, saying: "Little ghost, you rotate this heaven gang, determine the front path direction."

Shaowei, with faint awareness lingering, even in unconsciousness subconsciously tried to pull back her wrist, and in the movement, her still-bleeding fingers happened to flick that heaven plate.

A trace of blood smeared onto the depicted Big Dipper handle pattern on it, the star disk rotating in the heavy snow, emitting an inaudible sound, yet seeming to resonate with this heaven and earth.

The star disk pointed the way, the youth led the ox, thus heading south.

In the heavy snow, the woman sat leisurely on the ox's back, turning back to take one last look at the direction of Tianlang Mountain.

On Tianlang Mountain torches flickered, like stars in a snowy night.

The situation in the mountain stronghold had been brought under control, Liu Qi stood in the stronghold gate, watching the women and children in the stronghold being led out in order, quietly asking the Marquis beside him: "Uncle, is that Lady truly the Lu Hou Mansion's young lady?"

Ling Ke seemed to sigh almost imperceptibly, nodding lightly.

Liu Qi: "Surviving a great disaster, fortunate indeed; if the Lu Marquis and Madam knew the family's young lady still lives in this world, they would surely rejoice ten thousand times over!"

Ling Ke nodded again, but hearing his nephew's speech slightly slurred, couldn't help turning his head to look, only then seeing the swelling on half of Liu Qi's face and mouth corner, raising his brow to ask: "Who injured your face?"

Liu Qi subconsciously did not want to expose that girl's whereabouts and actions: "... It was a startled little wolf, accidentally knocking me to the ground."

How could Ling Ke not hear the oddness in that.

Only this little nephew, though somewhat unmanageable due to being too opinionated, had the merit of sufficient propriety; as an uncle he need not dig to the bottom over such a small matter.

And Ling Ke at this time had other matters on his mind.

Liu Qi sensed something, tried asking: "The Lu State chaos is pacified, now also eliminated the bandit trouble here, rescued the Lu Hou Mansion's young lady, return to the capital is imminent, why is Uncle not cheerful?"

Ling Ke looked deeply at his little nephew for a moment, finally said: "Thinking of retiring, you come with me."

Good morning, Invincible thanks everyone's support, rewards, monthly tickets, comments, recommendation tickets!

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(Chapter End)