Sueños Florales en la Ciudad - Capítulo 163
The young man was dressed in tattered clothes, his shirt open, revealing his undergarment, the color of which was indistinguishable from the greasy fabric. On his feet were a pair of worn-out shoes with several holes, six of his ten toes sticking out arrogantly, each dirtier than the last. He wore a soft hat askew on his head, which, though not new, was relatively clean, but his messy hair had not been combed in who knows how long, as tangled as a crow's nest, with bits of grass clinging to it, as if he had just crawled out of someone's chicken coop. Looking at his face, it seemed he hadn't washed it for years, his face covered in filth, making it impossible to recognize his original features. His hands, blackened with dirt, were on his hips as he walked, shouting and yelling.
Despite his filthy appearance, resembling a slovenly ghost, he was surprisingly imposing when he was cursing, even displaying a certain air of arrogance and pride.
Behind him followed thirty or forty people. These people were all the same old, weak, sick, and disabled, the oldest being over seventy and the youngest just fifteen or sixteen. They were all dressed in tattered clothes, and the able-bodied ones either had extra or missing body parts. What was striking was that this group of people were pushing a cart with two people on each cart, on which were two large wooden buckets and a long-handled wooden spoon. Even from dozens of feet away, the stench was so foul that it made one want to vomit.
This group of people marched in this direction in a large, imposing manner, exuding a murderous aura.
The men and women visiting the peach blossom grove glanced sideways, and upon recognizing the newcomers, they quickly covered their noses and moved away. One boorish man cursed, "Damn it, even the chamber pot purgers in Qingyang City are rebelling!"
The impoverished scholar, a staunch supporter of Du Zimei, shouted, "Where did these lowly servants come from? Is this a place for you? Get out of here!"
The disheveled youth in the lead snarled, "Shut your bird mouths! Get the hell out of my way!"
Those who supported Li Bai were trembling with anger: "You scoundrel, how dare you be so disrespectful to us! Guards, take my letter and go to the yamen in the city..."
The hooligan kicked him in the butt, sending him tumbling over.
When a scholar encounters a soldier, reason is useless. Scholars are incredibly eloquent, but when faced with a barbarian who eats raw rice, they can only flee in terror!
Seeing the situation was turning against them, the "pro-Liu Mengde faction" and the "pro-Du Zimei faction" grabbed the "pro-Li Taibai faction" members and the three of them ran away in a flash, shouting as they went, desperately trying to save face: "You wait! You wait! We're going to report this to the authorities right now!"
The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Part One: The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Chapter 3 (3)
The ruffian ignored them, craned his neck to look into the Liuhua River, pointed at one of the magnificent vermilion flower boats, and roared, "That's it—Rouge Qi! Everyone, charge!"
Feng Xuese and the man in blue both looked at the sign "Rouge Qi," a light red brocade banner embroidered with three large black characters—it was clearly "Rouge Studio." Apparently, this rascal couldn't read very well, not even distinguishing between "Qi" and "Zhai"!
The group of old, weak, sick, and disabled people, all eager to get started, shouted in unison, pushed their carts towards the riverbank, and when they got close, they opened the wooden buckets, scooped up the yellowish-white substance inside with long-handled wooden ladles, and threw it forcefully at "Rouge Qi".
Before "Rouge Qi" could react, she was already doused with countless drops of "gold." The singing girls on the boat screamed in terror, their delicate cries tugging at one's heartstrings.
A fat madam and a skinny pimp jumped out of the cabin, pointing their fingers and cursing, "Where did these bastards come from, daring to act wildly here!" Before they finished speaking, a ladle of "golden soup" flew over and smeared her fat face completely.
The fat madam was so overwhelmed by the stench that she tumbled onto the deck, crying and cursing. The skinny pimp, quick-witted as ever, darted back into his cabin and never came out again.
The scoundrel laughed loudly, "You dare bully my Hua Hua? I'll make you all pay! Everyone hurry up, they're trying to escape!"
Upon hearing this, those on the shore swung their ladles even harder.
For a moment, urine rained down like rain over the Liuhua River, and excrement flew like shooting stars; on the river's surface, peach petals glistened like pink, and human excrement shone like gold. Besides the "rouge-colored" excrement, many innocent boats in the Liuhua River were also affected, their occupants scattering like startled eels across the water. It was truly a spectacle!
The people on the "Cherry Blossom" were almost suffocating from the stench. Maple Snow and the man in blue were both annoyed and amused, and hurriedly ordered, "Close the windows! Close the doors! Set sail and get out of here!" Damn it, this street rascal is too ruthless, he can even come up with such a despicable trick!
"Rouge Qi" finally came to her senses, and the boatmen shouted and braved the rain of excrement to escape.
That rogue was utterly shameless. Seeing that the enemy had escaped the attack range, he grabbed a "golden bucket" in his left hand and a "golden spoon" in his right, then leaped onto the nearest boat. Standing at the stern, he swung the spoon with imposing grandeur. His aim was superb; every spoon struck the boatmen of "Rouge Qi," making them cry out in pain.
The ship he occupied was in dire straits. The people on board cried out, "Oh no!" and with a "bang," two figures burst out of the cabin through the roof, one white and one blue. The white was like the snow on a high mountain, and the blue was like the waves of the deep sea. Like startled cranes, they gracefully swept towards the shore.
The rogue glanced back, somewhat surprised, but then turned back again. Seeing that the people on "Rouge Qi" were unable to withstand the attack and had jumped into the water to escape, creating an extremely embarrassing scene, he couldn't help but burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.
Feng Xuese and the man in blue robes flew dozens of feet away without touching the ground before stopping side by side under a deep red peach tree. When they looked at each other, they found that they still had lingering fear on their faces. These two were both unparalleled geniuses among the younger generation in the martial arts world. Even when faced with a forest of powerful enemies and bizarre and dangerous situations, they would not necessarily frown. However, that pile of yellow and white things made by millions of people successfully forced them to flee in panic.
Although they were upwind and could no longer smell the pungent stench, the two still felt as if they were in a nightmare, as if they were soaked in that extremely vicious smell.
The man in the blue shirt shook his clothes, both amused and annoyed: "That kid is really shameless! In all my years of wandering the world, this is the first time I've ever seen such a street ruffian!"
Feng Xuese plucked a peach blossom, held it to his nose and inhaled it gently, as if using the fresh scent of peach blossoms to dispel nightmares. After a long while, he shook his head and sighed softly: "The dignified leader of Jietianshui Island, Fang Jianwu, was actually chased away by a rogue faster than a rabbit. If this gets out in the martial arts world, it's a real joke!"
"I remember you were the one who rushed out first!" The man in blue glanced at him sideways and said coldly, then added fiercely, "This kid absolutely cannot be let off easily!"
This rascal knew some kung fu—at the time, "Cherry Broken" was at least three zhang away from him, yet he leaped over carrying a bucket of excrement weighing over a hundred jin (approximately 50 catties) without any effort. But for a martial artist to commit such despicable acts against those poor brothel workers was even more insidious than a street ruffian who didn't know "martial arts"!
The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Part One: The Sky Over the Martial World is Clear - Chapter 3 (4)
Meanwhile, seeing that "Rouge Qi" was almost completely soaked in excrement and stank from the inside out, and that it would be impossible to entertain guests without spending a lot of money to clean it up, the rogue was finally satisfied. He kicked the wooden bucket into the river, and after several feet, he leaped ashore with a "whoosh," laughing loudly as he led his group of old, weak, sick, and disabled people away.
The sky is vast and the bright moon is rising.
The sudden, fleeting drizzle during the day washed the spring night sky clean and made it exceptionally clear. The pale moonlight cast a long shadow over the Yanhe Pagoda.
Yanhe Pagoda is a seven-story Buddhist pagoda, but it has long been neglected. The grass at the foot of the pagoda is lush and green, and it looks desolate and quiet under the pale moonlight.
On the first level of the tower, against the wall are several broken Buddha statues missing heads and arms, with piles of rotten straw at their feet. Among the straw, a creature lies half-reclined, its round body dressed in a white fur coat sprinkled with a few black spots, with large ears, squinting small eyes, its belly pressed against the ground, lazily staring at a patch of leaping red on the stone slab in the middle of the tower.
It was a bonfire, burning brightly. On a thick tree branch, a plump, half-cooked chicken was skewered, its fat dripping into the roaring flames, sizzling and filling the air with its aroma.
Beside the fire sat a disheveled boy, slowly turning a tree branch with a hand covered in ashes.
Seeing that the chicken was almost cooked, the boy, not caring about getting his hands dirty, tore off a chicken leg and threw the rest of the chicken towards the person on the straw, saying while chewing on the chicken leg, "Huahua, we need to find a new place to hang out tomorrow!"
Today, I stole a chicken from a farmer not far away, and that old widow chased me with a broom, yelling and cursing at me, saying she'd break my legs if she caught me! Damn it! Did she even manage to catch me? If it weren't for her age, I would have driven her to her death on the spot! I only ate a dozen or so of her chickens, is it really worth risking my life for her?
The one in the straw was munching and chewing, occasionally letting out a couple of "humming" sounds, presumably indicating that it had no objection to moving.
"By the way, I'm wondering why you've become so lecherous! It's one thing to flirt with the girls wherever you go, but you've only been in Qingyang City for a few days and you've already developed a new habit. You keep trying to seduce the fat girl from Old Man Cai's house. That girl isn't pretty at all, with small ears and a short mouth. I just don't understand, what do you see in her?"
The woman, annoyed by his nagging, looked up and gave him a disapproving glance, as if to say, "You'll never understand my feelings."
With a "plop," the boy threw a chicken bone at "Huahua's" head: "I'm warning you, I heard that Old Man Cai used to castrate pigs when he was young. Be careful, or he might make you childless!"
"Hua Hua" seemed a little scared, and burrowed into the straw, making a "humming" sound.
“I know you’re reluctant to part with Cai’s daughter, and I’m actually reluctant to part with Widow Sun’s chickens too! Behind Widow Sun’s house, there’s a patch of Dream-Breaking Grass growing on the slope. Those chickens grow up eating Dream-Breaking Grass and its worms, so their meat is tender, flavorful, and has a special sweetness. After leaving Qingyang City, we’ll never be able to eat them again!” The young man sighed. “But we have to move. If one of us gets his leg broken for stealing chickens, and the other gets castrated for having an affair, how are we going to roam the world?”
"Tap, tap, tap!"
A soft knock sounded on the ajar door on the first floor of Yanhe Pagoda. A cheerful voice asked, "Is anyone home?"