Shun Teng State

Xiaoyi was picked up by someone from the palace first. As he lifted the curtain and looked back at Zhuang Zhuang, he was already crying. He kept looking at his friend as the carriage traveled further and further away.

Zhuang Zhuang held back his tears and waved goodbye to Wen Xiaoyi.

After Xiaoyi left, Magistrate Liu started urging them to leave.

Zhuang Zhuang looked at Jiang Danhe in front of him and couldn’t hold it in anymore. He pounced on Jiang Danhe’s lap, and the latter picked him up and comforted him.

As Jiang Danhe comforted Zhuang Zhuang, he kept glancing at Xiaoguo, looking like he had something to say.

Xiaoguo saw him and said, “We’ll be back again next year.”

What she meant was, they had a long time ahead of them.

Feeling a little shy, Xiaoguo quickly got on the carriage.

When Jiang Danhe heard this, he was enlightened. Yes, they still had many years ahead of them.

After a while, Jiang Danhe carried Zhuang Zhuang up the carriage. Due to time constraints, the group left quickly.

Xiaoguo lifted the curtain and saw Jiang Danhe standing there. She couldn’t bear to see him like this, so she started waving at him.

Jiang Danhe was overjoyed. He was a little disappointed at first, but when he saw Xiaoguo waving her hand, his disappointment disappeared instantly. He raised his hands up high to ensure that Xiaoguo could see him. Then he began to wave his arm so vigorously, that it looked like his arm was going to fall off.

Xiaoguo saw it and laughed. “How silly…”

Jiang Danhe and Li Shouji returned to the residence. The house, which had been filled with laughter earlier, was exceptionally quiet now. The two of them exchanged glances.

Li Shouji raised his hand and placed it behind his head. He said faintly, “Sigh, it’s really too quiet…”

Jiang Danhe felt the same way. He was starting to miss them.

The two of them parted ways. Jiang Danhe went to the room where Xiaoguo used to sleep and quietly enjoyed the lingering fragrance in the air.

Shortly after, an eye-catching item came into view. Jiang Danhe walked over curiously and picked up the note. The words “Jiang Danhe” were written on it.

“This is for me?” Jiang Danhe said happily, his heart was thumping.

When he opened the bundle, a pair of fur-lined black boots was revealed.

Jiang Danhe was overjoyed. He picked it up and tried it on eagerly. It was a perfect fit!

Feeling the lush thick soles on his feet and the warmth in his heart, no word could describe what he was thinking right now. At this moment, he wished he could run to Xiaoguo and hug her tightly.

Jiang Danhe paced back and forth in his boots smugly, wearing a constant smile on his face.

Then, he carefully took it off and hugged it in his arms as if he had found a treasure.

–

“I remember now! I remember now!!”

Li Shouji called out to Jiang Danhe loudly, saying repeatedly that he had remembered something.

Jiang Danhe frowned and carefully put down his boots before opening the door.

“I just remembered something.”

Li Shouji looked like he had done something wrong. He was looking at Jiang Danhe nervously.

“What is it?”

Jiang Danhe’s eyebrows started twitching. He had a bad feeling about this.

“Hehehe…”

Li Shouji smiled guiltily. As the saying goes, one should never hit a smiling man.

–

“Mother, where are we?”

Zhuang Zhuang had asked her this question for the 38th time. Whenever they passed by a tree, he would ask her the same question.

“My dear son, we just left the capital.”

Xiaoguo patted Zhuang Zhuang’s head helplessly.

“Oh…”

When Zhuang Zhuang heard this, he instantly wilted. He suddenly thought of something and his eyes lit up. “Then we…”

“We are still far from home.”

Xiaoguo interrupted Zhuang Zhuang and repeated what she had said many times.

“Oh…”

Zhuang Zhuang laid listlessly on his mother’s legs and began counting the trees outside.

Xiaoguo stroked Zhuang Zhuang’s back. Since setting off, this kid had been asking non-stop about where they were and when they would get home. Xiaoguo gave her replies patiently. She knew that Zhuang Zhuang was just feeling upset and was looking for something to distract himself.

The carriage kept moving. When it was almost noon, they found a random place to rest.

Xiaoguo and Zhuang Zhuang ate the simple food that the officials delivered to them. After a short break, they set off again.

“Mother, where are we?”

Zhuang Zhuang asked again. Xiaoguo glanced outside casually. “We’re getting closer and closer to home.”

Zhuang Zhuang was a little speechless when he heard Xiaoguo’s reply. It sounded like she had already answered his question, but she actually didn’t. “Oh well…”

The journey went smoothly and they arrived at Shun Teng State, 70 miles away from the capital. The sky was turning dark. County Magistrate Liu ordered the convoy to rest for the night. They will set off the next morning.

Hence, the convoy entered Shun Teng State.

It was a beautiful island surrounded by mountains and rivers. As this place was close to the capital, the people’s dressing style and the buildings on the streets were similar to those in the capital. Therefore, Shun Teng State was also referred to as the “mini capital”.

Although the state was not very big, the temples located there were very famous. There were a total of 15 temples of various sizes. The most famous one was Lingqing Temple, where the Three Buddhas, the Second Heavenly General, and the Eighteen Arhats were enshrined.

It was said that every November, a large-scale sacrificial ceremony would be held there for a month. During that period, worshipers from all over the country would gather here to pay their respects.

Shun Teng State had another nickname, Nocturnal City, which was known for its sacrificial rituals.

It was not an exaggeration to say that the Nocturnal City was lit with candles and lanterns all day long. It was said that the immortals and deities did not like the dark.

Relatively speaking, Xiaoguo thought that another reason was more believable—Shun Teng State is the largest producing state of candles and oil lamps in the country.

After entering the mainland, there were officials waiting outside the carriage to provide Xiaoguo with information about this place. Xiaoguo listened and looked outside.

As the name of the city implies, the thick wooden doors of the city gates were not enough to block the glowing lights emanating from the state.

Xiaoguo couldn’t help but wonder if she would be blinded by the lights when she entered the city.

Although she felt that her thoughts were a little exaggerated, Xiaoguo still woke Zhuang Zhuang up.

“Zhuang Zhuang? Zhuang Zhuang, time to wake up.”

Xiaoguo pushed the boy gently.

“Oh… Are we home?”

Zhuang Zhuang rubbed his eyes and spoke in a nasal voice.

Xiaoguo sighed and shook her head. “No.”

Xiaoguo could feel calluses growing on her ears. Zhuang Zhuang just couldn’t stop asking if they had reached home.

When he was about to say something again, Xiaoguo quickly picked him up and lifted the curtain for him. “Look outside.”

The convoy had been registered and the soldiers were opening the city gates.

The light appeared brighter and brighter, emanating slowly through the gap in the door until it completely illuminated the surroundings of the carriage.

“Wow…”

Zhuang Zhuang and Xiaoguo exclaimed in unison.

It was clearly a different world behind the gates. Outside the gates, it was dark. But once they stepped in, it was bright and glorious. It didn’t look like nighttime at all.

At this time, people were still hanging out on the streets. The atmosphere here was even more bustling than that of the capital.

They passed through the crowd and soon arrived at the inn where they were residing for the night.

Xiaoguo carried the bag and led Zhuang Zhuang out of the carriage. She looked up at the inn where they were going to stay. The building looked nice and new.

“Rujia Inn??”

Xiaoguo couldn’t help but read out the name of the inn. It turned out that Rujia had been a chain store since ancient times!

Xiaoguo thought it was quite funny, so she laughed softly to herself.

Zhuang Zhuang heard Xiaoguo’s laughter and looked up at her curiously.

“It’s nothing.”

Feeling Zhuang Zhuang’s gaze on her, Xiaoguo shook her head to show that it was nothing.

“Madam General, let’s rest here for the night. We’ll leave tomorrow morning. The food here is not bad, and the accommodation is good.” When County Magistrate Liu saw Xiaoguo getting out of the car, he quickly came over to speak to her. The more he spoke, the more he went off topic. “Why do I know about this? This has to do with the last time I was here. I was very honored to have attended the Su family’s son’s full-month banquet, so I have tasted the dishes cooked by the chef here. The food was really delicious…”