Of Mountains and Rivers Chapter 11
Chu Huan Didn’t Rashly Ask; This Place Had Too Many Unimaginable Features, So His Eyes Were Working More Than They Could Deal With.
Chu Huan used an informative tone to efficiently report to Old Wang his new course of action and expressed his opinions to the other party. Before the other could curse his mother, he took the first initiative to hang up the phone. Then, they sat on a big bus that was going to who-knows-where.
The moment Chu Huan sat down, he closed his eyes and rested his mind; until now, his mind couldn’t help but constantly replay the scene where Nanshan punished the scammer. If he could, he would’ve recorded it and analysed frame by frame.
Back then, when the scammer fell to the ground spitting white foam, he attracted many people to stop and watch; however, the scammer had been there for quite a while, so the locals were familiar with his face. The onlookers were just onlookers; at the beginning, everyone thought he was just pretending so nobody cared to help him.
The cause of the disaster, Nanshan, just brazenly stood away from the crowd, his hands behind his back and his expression calm and natural as if he wasn’t involved.
The scammer spat and twitched, the twitching making him appear like a marionette with invisible hands fiddling with his limbs. At first glance, not only did it look fake, the acting even seemed exaggerated; someone beside him laughed with amusement until they saw him spit out something red.
It started with blood foam, then there were blood clots mixed in it.
When the crowd saw blood they finally got serious. An elderly man took the lead and came forward, his expression hesitant, wanting to raise some money to help bring the youth to the hospital. Chu Huan glanced at Nanshan and saw his unique ‘Virgin Mary’ eyebrows slightly raised as if he was mercifully saying ‘I still have something to do today, I’ll leave this be’, before reluctantly turning around and leaving.
When he lifted his leg to leave, it was as if someone had pressed a pause button on the person still vomiting blood – he immediately stopped rolling around the ground; in the next second, the scammer inexplicably crawled up, his face filthy with grime.
The onlookers dispersed with a roar of laughter and the expression on the kind elderly man instantly changed; feeling like he’d been deceived, he spat on the scammer’s face. As angry as a calabash, he left.
Maybe Nanshan used some unknown medicinal herbs? Chu Huan didn’t understand Chinese herbal medicine, so he didn’t think too deeply about it, but how should he explain the twenty-dollar note that floated over?
Could it be that the sudden and inexplicable gust of wind just coincidentally flipped over the scammer’s begging basin, which coincidentally blew over an exact twenty dollar note into Nanshan’s hand?
Chu Huan almost suspected this was the power of the legendary qigong1; it wasn’t that he wanted to promote feudal superstitions, it was just he’d truly analyzed it frame by frame and still couldn’t figure out how Nanshan achieved this.
Thus, his subjective ideas of the Shangri-la were baselessly covered in a layer of mystery.
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Chu Huan expected the long journey, but he didn’t expect it to be this long.
They first rode on a big bus that leaked air everywhere and sat until they reached the deserted terminal. Nanshan and Xiao Fang sincerely thanked the confused bus driver, then began walking on foot. They walked more than ten kilometres of mountain road and arrived at an isolated and empty remote wilderness.
Seeing how Nanshan stopped, Chu Huan thought the other wanted to take a rest; he didn’t expect Xiao Fang to jump onto a big tree with vigour and flexibility completely incompatible with his robust build.
The tree was quite old, thick, and straight, and must’ve been seven or eight metres high. After a few ups and downs, Xiao Fang effortlessly climbed to the top of the tree as if he was walking on the ground. Chu Huan shaded his eyes with one hand and looked up at him; he finally understood the origin of ‘hairy monkey’.
From his waist, Xiao Fang removed a metal horn before bringing it close to his lips and blowing into it; it was barely a palm’s length, so Chu Huan always thought it was just a belt ornament.
The horn’s deep, low toots reached far and wide, containing a biting frostiness similar to that of a metal’s ringing. As the wind sent them away, Chu Huan’s eyes narrowed, feeling like these few blows sounded like some kind of call.
Sure enough, after a while, he heard the sound of horse hooves. Chu Huan raised his head and looked over in amazement. He saw three horses running towards them from a distance. They stopped in an orderly manner in front of Nanshan and, as if gambolling, they surrounded Nanshan and neighed with raised heads. The leading one even coquettishly drooped its big, long face, letting Nanshan stroke its nose.
Another unimaginable skill.
Just like this, their means of transport changed from ‘walking on foot’ to ‘riding on horseback’.
On the road, Chu Huan discursively and foolishly pondered whether the young man he’d briefly encountered back on the bus knew how to ride horses – most ordinary people would only encounter horses in leisurely or recreational situations. If this was just a simple ride, then maybe the problem wouldn’t be so big, but riding on such rugged mountain roads… It probably wouldn’t be very recreational.
It seemed that the dear friend’s decision to escape just before the battle was more correct than anything else.
They walked through the desolate wilderness, the area remote and deserted; at night, the sky was their canopy and the earth their mattress.
Nanshan and Xiao Fang, these two country bumpkins, still couldn’t figure out how to use the Polaroid even after fiddling with it back and forth, so they most likely didn’t know there was something called a ‘tent’ in this world. These two had sufficiently shown how rough their skin and how thick their flesh were by eating in the wind and sleeping in the dews; just by casually making a campfire would make them happy and content for the night.
Chu Huan wasn’t even sure if a weak intellectual would reach the destination alive under these two’s leadership.
This showed just how typical it was for nobody to come even after applying for so many years.
But for Chu Huan, the journey was very enjoyable because Nanshan would blow different tunes with leaves during vigils. While he blew, Chu Huan would use the hidden chip in his glasses to record. The notes drifted into the night breeze, sweet and romantic, combining them into one; it didn’t even need a late-stage arrangement as it had a style of its own.
Chu Huan became this native musician’s hardcore fan.
They rode on horseback for an entire day and night; just when Chu Huan suspected he’d already left the country, they arrived at a riverside.
The moment he saw the strip of the river, Chu Huan understood why Nanshan said ‘river here’. Before this, the Chu Huan who thought he’d already travelled the entire world would’ve never thought he’d stand, stunned, by a river.
Behind the river were hundreds of thousands of large mountains joined together in a long and continuous stretch, the other shore wrapped within a shallow mist; Chu Huan unexpectedly couldn’t see through it even with his eyesight. The river was like a ribbon winding down between the mountains, and although the water wasn’t deep, it was very clear. They should be able to directly cross on horseback, but Chu Huan had a lingering feeling that the other side of the river was another world.
Xiao Fang hurried his horse forward and howled, his voice swinging back and forth within the mountains. In the forest, a flock of birds flew up in fright, charging straight to the hazeless, azure-blue sky.
Nanshan turned his head to look at Chu Huan. “We’ll arrive after crossing the river.”
Chu Huan: “Your home?”
Nanshan's eyes curved. “My home.”
After he finished speaking, he gently squeezed the sides of his horse’s belly, prompting it to wade across the river. Chu Huan followed. When he reached the heart of the river, the mist seemed to become increasingly expansive – gradually spreading to the waters – causing the visibility of his surroundings to also decrease.
Chu Huan fell into a trance for a moment and remembered the fable《The Peach Blossom Spring》he’d once learnt as a child.
At the end of the forest and creek, there was a mountain. There was a small opening in the mountain, seeming to radiate light.
A hand stretched over and grabbed his horse’s rein.
Nanshan: “I’ll lead you.”
At first, the dense mist became increasingly thicker; at its thickest, the visibility was less than half a foot. It was unknown how far they’d travelled before the mist began to thin out again. Gradually, sunlight penetrated through and the mist, thinned by light, instantly turned into a fairyland.
So he abandoned his boat and went in. At first, it was extremely narrow, only allowing one person to pass. After dozens of more paces, it suddenly opened up. The ground was flat and vast, with neatly arranged residences…
Suddenly, Chu Huan’s ears moved and he heard a long and tender yell sounding like it came from a child. He couldn’t understand what was being yelled, but the voice was crisp and pleasant.
Then, slightly deeper children’s voices joined in, creating a lively discussion with everyone talking at once.
Nanshan suddenly patted Chu Huan’s horse’s backside. Chu Huan felt the horse soar with a leap, so he couldn’t help but tug at the reins. The dense mist before him suddenly dispersed and his vision cleared.
Chu Huan was astonished.
The southwestern area was mountainous, so the local villages all had small populations – one neighbourhood made a village. Here, however, there was a rarely seen wide expanse of flat country; that mysterious stream of river branched off here like a snake spirit making its way into the village’s centre. On one side was the lush forest stretching as far as the eye could see and, on the other, were the uneven residential storied buildings.
Because the area was big, there were large gaps between buildings, forming a charming irregular arrangement. A group of brats who’d just learnt how to walk were running around in groups, the adults not managing them either as if they were completely unworried about them falling into the river.
A few older children were already waiting by the river. Seeing them come over, a little girl who seemed to be the leader bounced up three feet high and waved at them excitedly. She yelled out an extremely long name. Chu Huan had heard Xiao Fang call Nanshan this way before, so he guessed it probably represented Nanshan’s status in this clan.
Chu Huan didn’t rashly ask; this place had too many unimaginable features, so his eyes were working more than they could deal with.
The valiant girl flew off with a kick, her feet landing on her little attendant’s butt, causing the shirtless boy to step away several paces. She rapidly said something and the little boy wasn’t angry either; he simply touched his head, turned around, and ran off. Probably to call someone over.
The three of them reach ashore. The little girl immediately led a group of growing children to surround Nanshan.
Xiao Fang pretended to be angry and his hand rushed out to tap her on the forehead as if reprimanding her for being rude. The little girl was unafraid; like a wild dog, she immediately rose up to counterattack. With a jump, she bit Xiao Fang’s hand.
Just like this, a big one and a small one began pinching each other as if nobody was around them.
Nanshan didn’t stop them either. He looked back at Chu Huan, who was still standing on the shore and pointed to the girl. “This is his child, Mumu Gutu, which is… A flower just budded.”
Chu Huan: “…”
This ‘flower bud’ really showed how a feline father couldn’t have a canine daughter; she was so fiercely filial.
A large group of children gathered near Nanshan, their necks craning as they stuck their heads out to size up Chu Huan. It was as if he was a panda that’d come from outside the mountains, an extreme oddity. They just didn’t know the character of this rarity, so they just watched him, not daring to go over.
Chu Huan actually didn’t like children that much; whenever a spoiled brat made a racket, his head would grow two laps larger. However, he remembered his fraudulent position as a teacher and, feeling like he shouldn’t be so serious with them, he slightly bowed his head; with a smile, he nodded his head to show friendliness towards the brats.
The children clamoured as if terrified and disappeared like wisps of smoke to hide behind Nanshan.
Chu Huan: “…I don’t bite, really.”
Soon, other people received the news, so the adults also ran out one after the other.
Here, no matter if one was a man or a woman, all had long hair. Most of the men didn’t wear shirts and it was common for women to have big eyes, making them appear vivid and full of life. Only, many of them had stout bodies that carried a noticeable fierceness.
Other than the not-so-respectful children, every adult who met Nanshan would stop and respectfully salute. Then, from the crowd, several elderly people walked out. The elders who appeared to be of great status stood in a row and greeted Nanshan together. Nanshan waved his hands somewhat carelessly, then turned around and pulled Chu Huan’s wrist. He raised it and announced something.
After, he pulled Chu Huan through the crowd; everyone just followed behind, nobody passing them.
No matter how blind Chu Huan could be he’d figure that Nanshan was their patriarch.
On their territory, the patriarch of a clan could receive a hundred responses with one call and always kept their word; even an extremely aged elderly man who met him would appear to be itching with the desire to prostrate in worship. Yet, he only brought one attendant to a distant and unfamiliar county seat to pick someone up, dressed with such a strange style, and spoke in such shameful mandarin; in addition to his unconventional conduct, he probably didn’t lack people seeing him as a laughing stock… His heart would always fill with expectation, only to come away empty-handed, never able to pick up the person he wanted to find.
Chu Huan suddenly felt this young friend of his was quite amazing.
