Chapter 324: Chapter 288: Everyone’s Here

Under the morning light of Bright Moon Mountain, mist shrouds the landscape, the trees are lush, and the fields everywhere are a pleasing emerald green, the wheat sown earlier has already begun to sprout.

In the mountains, the kiln smoke curls continuously, bustling from dawn till dusk.

In the renamed village of Dongpo Village, the village head, Cao Zhengyuan, set off early with a hoe to farm the nearby fields.

The children laughed and chased the sheep out of the village, passing by Cao Zhengyuan, holding steaming buns in their hands, nibbling as they ran.

“Run slowly, don’t go to the other side of the mountain, understood?”

Cao Zhengyuan stroked his beard and loudly reminded the children. Zombies roamed behind the mountain; initially, everyone was quite scared, but later found out these zombies patrolled the mountains at night, never harming anyone, and actively avoided living people, so no one was afraid anymore.

“Village Head, off to the fields again?”

The woman in the house beside the road, wearing an apron, was feeding chickens when she greeted him.

Now, every household not only has food and land but can borrow chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep from the Big Boss to raise, repaying slowly after the spring harvest.

No interest is charged, and this year, no taxes either; they’ll only talk about grain taxes when everyone has a house, stored food, and can catch their breath.

This life is better than what they had in Qinzhou; no one imagined that leaving their homeland would lead them to such a good Big Boss, such a good place.

The village’s young and strong people also got up early, working together; some were digging river channels, building Chaotian Pass, and helping that Kun Dao build the Taoist Temple in the village.

The most crucial is the Eight Diagram City, the plan for which hangs on a large wooden board, making it clear what each area is for.

Kun Dao even said the Big Boss of Bright Moon Mountain has promised that when the Eight Diagram City is built, it will be all courtyard houses made with blue bricks, and everyone who helped build Bright Moon Mountain will be assigned one.

It’s like working hard to build their own houses, motivating both the original refugees and the bandits in the mountains, who sometimes didn’t even know where their next meal would come from, to hope and work hard.

In the fields, Cao Zhengyuan crouched to observe the seedlings, his face beaming with joy, wondering where the Big Boss bought these excellent wheat seeds, with grains so large and plump, seeds he’s never seen in his life.

“It’s great, the future harvest will surely be good.”

Cao Zhengyuan put down the hoe, picked up a yoke and bucket, and went to fetch water from the nearby well, which the village’s original inhabitants had dug.

The river channel by the west is only dug up to the vicinity of West Slope Village; it will take some time to reach Dongpo Village.

But what does it matter, as long as there is hope, he is willing to work hard now.

*

Outside Chaotian Pass, beside Little Stone Forest.

Yao Zhen saw that the walls around Qingfeng Temple she longed for had been completed, while the main and side halls of the temple had their foundations laid, unable to suppress the smile on her face.

Despite running around tirelessly these days in the mountains, busy day and night, patrolling the mountains and dispelling ghosts at night, and studying various maps left by the lazy Shopkeeper Sang Que, Yao Zhen has learned many new things and feels fulfilled.

Especially seeing the living conditions of these people in Bright Moon Mountain improving, Yao Zhen feels a sense of unprecedented fulfillment.

Previously, she treated the sky as her blanket and the ground as her bed, traveling wherever fate led, witnessing many customs and tragedies, thinking this was the state of the world.

With Evil Spirits rampant, true peace and safety seemed impossible.

But now, the small Bright Moon Mountain has overturned her thoughts.

Although everything here is still imperfect and some dishonest individuals secretly cause trouble, the joy and abundance on most people’s faces are genuine.

Yao Zhen leaned against a large tree opposite Qingfeng Temple, holding a pen to write a letter to her master, describing everything in Bright Moon Mountain.

“…Master, I finally understand what you meant by where the noble are noble. You said if I follow Sang Mulan and can govern Bright Moon Mountain like an Immortal Mountain Blessed Land, does it mean the world can change? I suddenly want to stop and try.”

After finishing the letter, Yao Zhen folded the paper and placed it in an envelope.

She ordered a batch of silkworms from Zhang Junyao and asked for help finding some carpenters; the Dragon Bone Water Wheel diagram given by Sang Que was too advanced for the inexperienced craftsmen in the mountains.

When the appointed time arrives, she will go to Pu’an County to mail the letter and also visit the government to explain her construction of the Taoist Temple in Bright Moon Mountain, obtaining government documents.

“There’s so much to do, relying solely on me will be exhausting, Master must send me some help!”

Yao Zhen picked up her pen again and wrote another request for help; her master has a good relationship with Nine Songs’ Bell Doctor, might as well ask Doctor to be tricked here, so the mountain folks have someone to turn to for their ailments.

If Bell Doctor could bring a batch of apprentices, that would be even better.

“Kun Dao! Kun Dao!”

Someone hurriedly ran from inside Chaotian Pass.

“Quickly go to the western river channel; there’s something strange turning all the river water black.”

Yao Zhen’s expression turned serious; is the Zhuangyuan Ghost reappearing?

*

At that time, along the road to Pu’an County, the Black Donkey’s reins were suddenly tugged, and the girl inside the carriage began to cry loudly.

“Little Chan doesn’t want to go, Little Chan wants to go back!”

Meow!

The black cat held by Xia Chan nodded in agreement, indicating it too wanted to return.

A nearly thirty-year-old woman sat on the shaft of the carriage, with a plain appearance that blended into a crowd unnoticed.

Her palms and fingers were rough with calluses, and she had a pig-killing knife tucked into her waistband, outwardly a pig-slaughtering Butcher, named Qiao Ling.

In fact, Qiao Ling is the Bell Doctor of Nine Songs. Before the accident in Wangshan City, she had been slaughtering pigs in a county not far from Wangshan City; she met Xia Chan at the camp outside Wangshan City.

She originally intended just to help disaster victims there and leave, but He Buning set up a scheme waiting for her.

She and He Buning didn’t directly clash, as during several raids by the Evil Suppression Bureau, He Buning secretly spared her, preventing her from indiscriminately killing innocent people for survival.

He Buning always wanted her to abandon Nine Songs and join the Evil Suppression Bureau; she knows He Buning’s purpose for helping her but indeed owes He Buning some favors.

This time, she’s tasked by He Buning with taking Xia Chan, helping Xia Chan search for an opportunity to break through to the fourth layer.

Xia Chan initially resisted, unwilling even to speak, silently crying in a corner after her daily tasks, hugging the black cat while eating and crying.

One day, He Buning hurriedly arrived, showing Xia Chan a letter with an ugly drawing.

A girl holding a Bow and Arrow, dragging a long-haired girl, with a black cat at their feet.

After seeing it, Xia Chan cried hard, then finally began talking and agreed with He Buning to travel and learn skills.

But after just half a month from leaving Wangshan City, this little girl caused countless troubles.

Qiao Ling sighed, asking gruffly, “Tell me, what do you want to eat again?”

“Meat!”

Xia Chan immediately became docile, looking eagerly at Qiao Ling, thinking about the sister who always brought lots of food every day, her nose began to tingle again; Qiao Ling could only buy buns and pastries for her, stingy with food expenses but generous in buying those unpleasant herbs.

Qiao Ling pursed her lips, knowing Xia Chan was hungry again, eating non-stop along the journey, thinking that even with He Buning’s money, it wouldn’t last long.

Her pig shop collapsed, and she has a rule of not charging for medicine, so no income, unable to afford meat.

“Why not kill the donkey and let you eat it?”

The Black Donkey brayed loudly at those words, and Xia Chan shook her head vigorously.

“The donkey belongs to sister, we can’t eat it.”

Qiao Ling cracked the whip, “Then wait until we arrive at Pu’an County; I’ll buy two taels of meat for you.”

Two taels?

Xia Chan raised two fingers, glaring angrily, secretly cursing her miser.

Looking around her, Xia Chan reached out to pull the reins and pointed toward the eastern mountains.

“Go to the mountains, Little Chan will capture wild boars herself! Catch a lot!”

Qiao Ling considered it; if she didn’t feed her meat, this girl would surely cry all the way there. To the mountains then, so be it, treat it as gathering herbs.

Go!

Qiao Ling tugged the Black Donkey, turning onto a path toward the eastern mountains, which was also the direction of Bright Moon Mountain.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep