Chapter 554: Still have to go out

Li Er and Li Shi walked toward the village.

He walked slowly, each step steady, but his eyes were bright, looking left and right, as if trying to make up for everything he had missed over the past three years.

"Li Xiaozi is back!"

The first person to see him at the village entrance was Chen Shen, who was drying grain.

She straightened her back, squinted her eyes at him for a while, then slapped her thigh, her voice loud enough for the whole village to hear.

"Oh dear, it's really Li Er! You've grown so tall!"

Li Er grinned, showing his two fully grown front teeth, and waved at her.

"Hello, Chen Shen! How's your grain harvest this year?"

"Pretty good, pretty good!" Chen Shen laughed, unable to close her mouth, "You kid, after going out you still care about this?"

A few villagers who were idly chatting nearby also gathered around.

"Li Er is back!"

"You've gotten thin—did you not eat well out there?"

"Nonsense, you're clearly taller! Look at this leg—it's grown a lot longer than when you left!"

Surrounded by a crowd asking questions all at once, Li Er wasn't annoyed; he answered each one with a smiling, squinting face.

"I've eaten, eaten—Mr. Yao took me to eat lots of delicious food."

"I'm not thin—I'm sturdy!"

"Yeah, I've been to many places; I'll tell you about them later."

Just then, a confused rush of footsteps came from the distance.

"Big brother!"

"Big Brother Li is back!"

A group of children rushed out from every corner of the village, big and small, boys and girls, a noisy crowd like a flock of startled birds, flying toward Li Er.

The one leading them was Chen Kang's son, Chen Hui, who was a year younger than Li Er and used to be his top follower.

He ran at the front, his face flushed from running, shouting as he went:

"Big brother! You've finally come back!"

"Did you bring us something tasty?!"

In an instant, the children surrounded Li Er completely.

"Big Brother Li, where did you go?"

"Li Er brother, what fun things did you see?"

"Great King, are you still leaving?"

Li Er looked at these familiar faces, and his smile grew even brighter.

He put his arm around Chen Hui's shoulders, then patted another little girl's shoulder, and said proudly:

"What's the rush? Take it slow, speak slowly."

"Let me tell you, I've been to many places! The walls of Qi State are this high!"

He tiptoed and gestured, "The army of Chu State is a vast black mass, bigger than the wheat fields at our village entrance!"

The children listened with wide eyes, each opening their mouths to exclaim "Wow!"

"And there's more!" Li Er said with growing excitement: "I've ridden a dragon! I flew in the sky—higher than the mountain behind our village, with clouds beneath my feet!"

"I've also seen a cow whose foot can emit Thunder Light..."

"Wow——"

The exclamations grew louder.

Li Er stood with hands on hips, proud, enjoying the admiring gazes of his little followers.

At this moment, he was neither the prodigy who followed Yao Xian, observing the feuds of the feudal lords, nor the child who silently pondered on the city wall.

He was simply Li Er of Qu Ren Li.

He was the leader of this group of children.

After a while, Li Er finally broke free from the little followers and headed toward the east end of the village.

Before he even reached Yu Lin's house, a scent drifted over.

That scent was strong and overpowering, carrying the roasted aroma of burning fat mixed with some indescribable spice, shooting straight up his nose.

Li Er's steps halted.

The followers behind him also stopped.

Gurgle.

"I don't know whose stomach growled first."

Soon after, gurgle-gurgle, rising and falling, like a bunch of starving little frogs.

Li Er swallowed saliva, feeling that just a moment ago he wasn't hungry, but now he felt as if he hadn't eaten for three days, his stomach empty, longing to pounce and eat his fill right away.

He looked up.

Yu Lin was sitting in front of his house, with a strange-shaped object placed before him.

It looked like a long table made of piled earth, with several iron rods placed on top, beneath which charcoal burned, glowing red and emitting tiny sparks.

On the iron rods were strung strings of things.

There was meat, vegetables, and things Li Er couldn't name.

They turned over the fire, sizzling, fat dripping onto the charcoal, rising in wisps of white smoke; that tempting aroma came from there.

The little followers stood far away, not daring to approach.

Yu Lin's status in the village, they had known since childhood.

That's the person the teachers all have to treat with respect, the one their parents warned them not to bother.

But Li Er wasn't afraid.

He had never been afraid since childhood.

He walked over in a carefree manner, crouched beside Yu Lin, stretched his neck to look at the sizzling meat skewers, his eyes shining bright.

"Yu Lin!" he shouted, his voice brimming with undisguised excitement, "I'm back!"

Yu Lin didn't look up, his hands never stopping, turning the skewers and sprinkling some fine powder.

"Just coming back is enough." he said, "I'm making barbecue."

"Barbecue?" Li Er tilted his head, "What's that?"

Yu Lin finally lifted his head and glanced at him.

"It's delicious." he said, "Just wait and you'll get to eat."

Li Er nodded vigorously, his eyes never leaving the meat skewers.

Yu Lin looked at his greedy expression, the corner of his mouth twitching up, then changed the subject.

"How's it been out there these three years?" he asked, his tone casual as if chatting about daily life, "Was it fun?"

Li Er froze for a moment.

Fun?

He thought of those wars, those corpses, those feudal lords who'd cracked their heads, those commoners crying on the city walls.

He shook his head.

"Not fun."

Yu Lin glanced at him, didn't press further, and just asked again:

"So will you go out again next time?"

Li Er hardly hesitated.

"Go out."

Yu Lin's hand paused, then he turned his head to look at him.

"Why?"

Li Er lifted his head and met his eyes.

Those eyes were much calmer than three years ago, yet still clear and bright.

"I want to go see why the world is so chaotic." he said, his voice low but each word clear and distinct.

"I want to see what those who fight, those who die, really want."

"I want to see if there's any way to make the world… less chaotic."

He paused.

"Perhaps the answer lies in the books."

"But the answers in the books also need someone to verify them."

Yu Lin looked at him, silent for a moment.

Then he withdrew his gaze and continued turning the skewers in his hand.

He didn't say more, just gave a nod.

Then he raised his hand and pointed to the side.

"Go, bring those skewers over to me."

"Sure thing!"

Li Er responded with a shout, ran to the side, grabbed the bundle of skewers, and held them up to Yu Lin.

He crouched there, eyes unblinking, watching Yu Lin's movements.

The firelight flickered on his face, now bright, now dim.

The skewers turned over the fire, fat dripped, sizzling, and waves of aroma rose into his nose.

He swallowed, then swallowed again.

The little followers still stood far away, necks craned, gazing over, eyes full of longing, yet they dared not come closer.

Li Er glanced back, then turned and looked pleadingly at Yu Lin.

"Yu Lin, my friends… can they eat?"

Yu Lin's hands kept moving, without looking up he said:

"Sure."

Li Er's eyes lit up instantly.

He sprang to his feet, turned, and waved vigorously at the little followers, his voice loud enough for the whole village to hear:

"Come on over! Everyone come over! Mr. Yu says you can eat!"

The group of kids froze for a moment, then——

"Whoa!"

A cheer rose, and they all came rushing in, forming a circle, squatting beside Li Er, each pair of eyes sparkling as they stared at the sizzling skewers.

Yu Lin glanced at the scene, said nothing, merely twitching the corner of his mouth.

His hand movements sped up a bit.

Not long after, the first batch of skewers was done.

Golden-brown skin, oil sizzling on the meat, the spices sprinkled on top giving off a rich fragrance—just looking at it made the appetite surge.

Yu Lin picked up a skewer and handed it to Li Er.

Li Er's eyes lit up, he reached out to grab it——

Just as his hand was halfway out, the meat skewer suddenly retracted, slipping away from in front of his fingertips.

Li Er was stunned.

Li Er looked up at Yu Lin and saw Yu Lin smiling warmly at him, the smile carrying a hint of mischief.

"What about the treasure you promised to bring me?"

Li Er blinked, then slapped his forehead.

"Got it, got it! Of course I brought it!"

Li Er sprang to his feet and turned to run.

The group of little followers were eagerly waiting to share the meat, and when they saw him dash away like a puff of smoke, they were instantly dumbfounded.

"Li Er brother, where are you going?"

"Meat! The meat hasn't been eaten yet!"

"Wait for us—"

Li Er didn't look back, sprinting straight toward where Li Shi and Yao Xian were standing.

Li Shi was talking with Yao Xian when Li Er came running in a whirlwind, and they were momentarily stunned.

"Ah Er? What's wrong?"

Li Er couldn't bother to explain, and rushed straight to Yao Xian, looking up and extending his hand:

"Mr. Yao! Travel Pack! Give me the Travel Pack!"

"Okay." Yao Xian unfastened the Travel Pack on his back and handed it to Li Er.

Li Er took the Travel Pack, turned and ran, after two steps he looked back and shouted to Li Shi:

"Mom, Mr. Yao, you'll eat later too! The delicious food Yu Lin made!"

As the words left his mouth, he was already far away.

Li Shi watched his retreating back, shook his head, but a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Li Er clutched the Travel Pack, panting heavily as he ran back to Yu Lin.

The little followers still gathered there, and when they saw him return, they quickly made a path.

Li Er crouched, placed the Travel Pack on the ground, fumbled to untie the straps, and pulled something out from inside.

It was a Jade Crown.

Its whole body was azure‑green, warm and smooth as water, with exquisitely fine carvings.

In the afterglow of the setting sun, the Jade Crown emitted a faint light, unmistakably not an ordinary item.

Li Er cupped the Jade Crown with both hands and handed it to Yu Lin:

"Here! This is the treasure I brought for you!"

Yu Lin took the Jade Crown and nodded.

"Not bad, I'll say you have a conscience."

Li Er grinned, showing two rows of white teeth.

Then he stared eagerly at the meat skewer in Yu Lin's hand.

Yu Lin glanced at him and passed the meat skewer over.

"Eat."

Li Er took it and bit off a large mouthful.

"Mmm! Delicious!"

He shouted indistinctly, his mouth dripping with oil, his eyes narrowed into slits.

The little followers stared hungrily at him, their mouths watering.

Yu Lin shook his head, then picked up a few more skewers and handed them to the children.

For a moment, the front of the house was as lively as New Year.

The setting sun gradually sank.

Cooking smoke curled lazily.

The village was filled with the scent of meat and laughter.