Chapter 175: Side Story 1: Banxia Remembers the Time with Sixi

Side Story 1: Banxia Remembers the Time with Sixi

Banxia had been feeling quite depressed these days. The sect had previously said she must descend the mountain to undergo trials and sever her worldly ties, but her family was eager to cut all relations with her; even if she were to live or die and never see them again, they would not feel a shred of heartache.

Although the departure had been delayed for some time due to the visit of outsiders, she would eventually have to go out for her trials...

Since she was small, everyone in the village had viewed her as a jinx. Although she had long since grown accustomed to it and no longer cared, she had even learned to find joy in the midst of bitterness.

But looking at it now, she truly had nowhere to return to.

If only Sixi were still here; at least she would have something to look forward to.

"Alright, they've been scared off by me, no need to be afraid anymore."

Hearing this, the little girl raised her head and gazed at Banxia for a long time, then asked, "They are going back to tell your mother."

Banxia seemed not to care at all: "What's there to fear? I get beaten when I go home anyway, one more time won't make a difference." As she said this, she began to laugh.

"My name is Banxia, what is yours?"

The little girl looked at the beaming Banxia; the sunlight filtered through her messy hair, making her look just like an immortal in a temple.

"I don't have a name, but the older sister I served used to call me 'Little Girl'."

Banxia clicked her tongue: "What kind of name is 'Little Girl'? My name used to be Sixi, but my family thought I was too unlucky and didn't deserve such a name, so they changed it for me. How about this, from now on you shall be called Sixi."

The little girl frowned upon hearing this, as if wondering whether the name sounded good or not. Banxia smiled and said, "A name is just a thing to let others know who you are. Although the name Sixi sounds a bit ugly, at least it's a name, isn't it? Look at me, my name is Banxia, and I'm just a wild weed in the mountains."

The girl smiled: "It's not that I think the name is unpleasant, I just didn't know how to face it for a moment. After all, I've never had a name from the time I was small, so my heart felt truly strange. But I am genuinely happy that I finally have a name."

"Geez!" Banxia sighed, and sat down right where she was beside the girl now named Sixi. "If I had read books and had some learning in my belly, I could have picked a nice name for you. But it's a pity, our village is in such a remote backwater that there isn't even a single scholar. Even those boys just spend their days playing in the fields and mountains; I'm afraid they'll only be able to face the yellow earth and look up at the sky for the rest of their lives."

Sixi smiled upon hearing this and said, "You want to read?"

"Naturally I do!" Banxia said, sitting cross-legged, propping her chin with one hand, and sighing as if she were talking nonsense. "If I could read, I could walk out of these mountains and go see the capital. I imagine it must be extremely lively."

"In this world, how could women be allowed to read? If we're really talking about it, it's not as free as these mountains; at least there aren't so many rules here." Sixi said, also sighing.

Seeing her like this, Banxia was a bit surprised. She had been too busy talking just now and hadn't paid attention, but thinking about it now, the way Sixi spoke was quite refined, just like...

Just like those young ladies from the city.

"The way you say that, it's as if you've seen it before. In that case, how did you end up in this village?"

"I originally served in a brothel in the city. A few days ago, the madam of the house said I was getting too old, and it was time... it was time..."

Banxia understood immediately and hurriedly interrupted her: "Alright, alright, I know everything. Since you've come to our village, just settle down with peace of mind. There is a Song Popo at the end of the village; she is a very good person, but she has no children of her own. Why don't I take you there to stay? I imagine she would certainly be willing."

Banxia stood up as she spoke and reached out to pull up Sixi, who was sitting on the ground. Sixi's smile was like a flower.

"You said just now that you wanted to read. How about I teach you from now on?"

Hearing her say this, Banxia was stunned.

"You have read books?"

"That is only natural," Sixi said, linking arms with Banxia. "Don't look at me as just a servant; women in the brothel all have to learn some poetry and songs so they can please the guests. Although I cannot write poetry or compose odes, I have read quite a few, and naturally, I know how to write some characters."

Banxia was overjoyed upon hearing this and pulled her toward the end of the village.

The days passed quickly. Ever since Sixi moved into Song Popo's home, Song Popo seemed to have grown much younger, and the house was no longer as desolate as it used to be.

Sixi was naturally capable. She kept many things in Song Popo's house in perfect order. The water vat that had been empty for years was now filled to the brim every day. Even the fence in the yard that had been broken for a long time was repaired by Sixi, who even planted some morning glories underneath, waiting for them to grow in the coming year, which would surely look much better.

Song Popo truly liked Sixi. Her husband had died early, and she had been a widow since she was young. Her own child had also died of illness in childhood. For many years, she had lived alone. Now that Sixi had come to her home, she cherished her like a granddaughter, and whenever she had anything, she would always save it for Sixi.

Previously, Banxia had often come to Song Popo's house. Song Popo had never shunned Banxia like the others in the village, and whenever Banxia had been wronged, she would often go to find Song Popo to pour out her grievances. Come to think of it, this Song Popo was more like family to her than Banxia's own family.

Now that Sixi was living at Song Popo's, Banxia came even more frequently. Firstly, because she had a companion of her own age, and secondly, to find her to learn how to read.

It must be said that although Sixi was only a servant girl, she really had a knack for teaching. She wasn't like the old master at the school who only dryly taught those bookish things or led the students in shaking their heads while reciting classical texts—Sixi naturally didn't have that kind of learning.

Her method of teaching was simply to take Banxia out into the mountains and fields, find some objects, and casually tell Banxia the names of those objects. Teaching this way, while it wouldn't produce a talented woman, allowed Banxia to recognize characters much faster.

Such peaceful days passed by plainly, until one day...

Banxia and Sixi had just returned from the mountains when they saw many burly men surrounding Song Popo's yard, and Song Popo was lying outside the yard, as if she had been beaten.

The two hurried forward to help her up, but Song Popo struggled to push them both away, shouting for Banxia to take Sixi and run quickly.

It was at this moment that the people in the yard saw Sixi and immediately began to shout:

"Brothers! The little girl is here! Hurry and grab her so we can go collect the reward from the madam!"

The other men heard this and immediately stepped forward to snatch Sixi, but Banxia was very quick-witted; she grabbed Sixi and started running.

Sixi was naturally unwilling, looking back at Song Popo as she ran.

"If we run like this, what will happen to Popo?"

But her strength was no match for Banxia's; she was dragged by Banxia until she stumbled, taking several large steps.

As she ran, Banxia urged Sixi: "These people are here for you. Since they've seen you, they will naturally follow and chase after us; only then will Popo be safer. As for you, if you don't run fast, do you really want to be dragged back to that man-eating, blood-drinking den?"

Sixi naturally understood what Banxia said, but from the time she was small until now, she had never met anyone who treated her so well. If she just ran away like this, how could she face Song Popo?

Seeing her hesitate, Banxia said urgently: "If you really can't bear to leave Popo, then go hide for a while first. It won't be too late to come back and see her after the storm passes. What's urgent now is to run quickly."

Sixi looked back at Song Popo and saw her lying on the ground, waving her hand with difficulty. Tears streamed down Sixi's face, but she finally listened to Banxia and turned her head to run with her.

The two ran desperately along the riverbank. Banxia was fine; she was used to running wild, so she was naturally fast, but Sixi couldn't keep up with her. In a short while, the two were caught red-handed by the men.

One man grabbed them both, one in each hand, and laughed as he said to his companions:

"I originally thought about catching one to collect a reward, but I didn't expect to make another sale today. It seems our brothers' wine money for the next few days is covered!"

—————

A group of men laughed as they walked back, while Banxia and Sixi struggled, but it was in vain. They were just little girls; how could they have the strength of these burly men?

It was at this moment that a whirlpool suddenly appeared in the river beside them, and before long, a Flood Dragon darted out.

The Flood Dragon was golden-red all over, with black dragon manes that fluttered like silk as it soared.

The men were scared out of their wits and screamed as they tried to run away, but the Flood Dragon seemed starving; it roared and pounced toward them, eating them one by one. In a moment, it had eaten them clean, not even spitting out the bones.

Banxia and Sixi were also terrified, but they didn't dare to move at all. The Flood Dragon stared at the two for a long time, then soared into the air and transformed into the shape of a human.

He was seen in a red and gold robe, the collar as shiny and black as the dragon-mane of the Flood Dragon form from before. He had thick brows and large eyes, a high nose and thin lips, but there were two dragon horns on his forehead, and his ears were not like a human's, but rather resembled the tail of the fish one usually eats.

He strode toward the two of them with great strides and opened his mouth with a smile:

"Which one of you is willing to bear children for me?"

W-wife?

A wave of confusion washed over Banxia; could this monster be a fool? No one would come up and talk about bearing children to a girl right away. Even in the wild mountain villages they came from, no man was as reckless as he was.

Just as she was astonished and deliberating on how to open her mouth to refuse, she heard the man say again:

"If neither of you is willing, then I have no choice but to eat you." As he spoke, he opened his mouth, and his head actually transformed into the appearance of a Flood Dragon, only much smaller than the dragon form from before.

This opening of his mouth was no small matter, and it nearly scared the soul out of Banxia. Just at this moment, she saw Sixi block in front of Banxia and ask the Flood Dragon:

"If I am willing to bear children for you, will you be able to let us go?"

Upon hearing this, the Flood Dragon changed back into his human form and opened his mouth to reply: "Naturally not. If she is willing to bear children for me, I will of course marry her back; how could I just let her go like that? Wouldn't that be abandoning her after starting the relationship?"

Banxia rolled her eyes at this—you may not want to abandon someone and ruin your reputation, but isn't this just forced abduction? What kind of good reputation could that possibly be?

Just as Banxia was rolling her eyes, she saw the Flood Dragon pinch his chin and lean close to the two of them.

"Hmm..." He pointed at Banxia and said: "You are truly too ugly. If you were to bear children for me, what if the child took after you? Wouldn't that lose face for my Dragon Clan?"

Banxia's eyes widened at these words, and she immediately roared at the Flood Dragon: "Who are you calling ugly? Even if I am ugly, I haven't eaten your food or gotten in your way, so why are you being such a chatterbox?!"

The Flood Dragon was not angry at these words; he only used his hand to pick at his ear: "Your temper is also quite poor. If you were to have children in the future, I fear you would teach them badly. How could a child of my Dragon Clan be so ill-bred?"

As he spoke, he looked at Sixi: "This young lady is quite quiet and gentle, and she looks good too. If she could be the mother of my children, I imagine she would certainly be able to teach them well."

As soon as he finished speaking, he took Sixi's hand and placed a jade tablet into it: "Then it is settled. In a few days, I will come to your door to marry you. Let this red jade tablet serve as a token of our love!"

Once he finished speaking, before the two of them could react, the Flood Dragon took a leap and dove into the river.

Sixi looked down at the jade tablet in her hand; the characters "Chili" were carved into it. She stared at the tablet in a daze for a long while, but Banxia suddenly snatched it away and threw it fiercely into the water.

"What kind of person is he? Even in the human world, marrying a wife requires the three letters and six etiquettes. He decides so casually without even asking if the girl is willing—a creature who knows nothing of propriety!"

Sixi smiled at this; Banxia had improved quite a bit, actually knowing the term "knowing nothing of propriety."

But just then, the jade tablet was seen bouncing out of the water, hitting Banxia on the head, and then landing steadily back into Sixi's hand...

Since the training had been postponed, one naturally had to continue practicing within the sect.

On this day, just after the public lecture, most of the crowd had already left, but Banxia did not want to move for a long time.

Thinking of Sixi, she couldn't help but sigh and lay lazily on the desk.

Later, she found out that the "Chili" written on the jade tablet was the name of that Flood Dragon. A long time ago, because he was injured, he had transformed into the shape of a fish, but unexpectedly, he became entangled in a fishing net belonging to the villagers. No matter what, he could not break free. Fortunately, Sixi was washing clothes by the river at that time, discovered him, and rescued him.

Ever since then, he would often sneak over to see her, and he even knew about Banxia.

Of course, after learning about these things, Song Popo was truly overjoyed, saying that the River God had manifested to marry her Sixi, and she actually began to arrange their wedding.

And after that, Chili even took Song Popo away, saying he would support her as an elder.

She still remembered that he had once said something to her, saying that she would face a calamity in the future, and if she wanted to pass through it safely, she must stay away from wind.

Stay away from wind? There was wind in these mountains whenever there was nothing going on; where was she supposed to stay away to? She couldn't just stay in her room all day and never go out!

Since the martial demonstration of the Mountain and River Map, Lianqiao and Banxia had become good friends. When there was nothing to do on ordinary days, Banxia would go to Youyuan Hall to find her.

Seeing Banxia so listless, Lianqiao leaned in to tease her. But Banxia was in a half-dead state, and Lianqiao was very surprised.

Although this silly girl Banxia was usually scatterbrained, she was also quite lively. Since she had known her, she had never seen her like this. She hurriedly asked for the reason, and Banxia told her the whole story.

After hearing it, Lianqiao couldn't help but sigh.

As for training, she truly had nowhere to go. If she returned home, she would definitely be locked in her room by her father and never be able to come out again; otherwise, she would have invited Banxia to go home with her.

"Hey? Aren't you on good terms with Liu Xia? Since you two have that kind of relationship, why not go to his place and make do?" Lianqiao seemed to have thought of something and hurriedly pushed Banxia, who was lying on the table.

Banxia immediately got up upon hearing this: "What kind of relationship do I have with him? How could I be on good terms with him! Who is spreading such nonsense!"

"You aren't together with him? But it was spread all over during the outer sect days, saying that you two were of one heart and mind, and everyone had long thought you were a pair."

What? There was such a thing?

While Banxia was astonished, she suddenly remembered that she had indeed intentionally approached Liu Xia because of Fucang Elder's talisman techniques, but wasn't that just to get to know Fucang Elder!

However...

Although everyone was spreading such rumors, this indeed did not fail to be a good method...

That Liu Xia fellow was still quite interesting!