As he was leaving, he loudly splashed the water with a "squelch, squelch" sound.
But after just a few moments, the "squelch, squelch" footsteps returned. The old man lifted the fish basket, "Give me a fish!"
Pei Ye rolled his eyes, "Didn't catch any!"
...
Ridding himself of the old stick, Pei Ye headed westward.
Starting two years ago, Pei Ye dared not indulge in the refreshing experience of the rain because even if he lay wrapped in a quilt indoors on rainy days, the pain of his wounds in his chest and abdomen would often flare up.
There were a few Dantian protecting pills prescribed by Doctor Qian left, but the strong liquor he took them with was already running low. Feeling that this weather would not let him off, Pei Ye decided to head to the liquor store to get some more.
However, as soon as he got to the west of the town, seeing him carrying a liquor gourd, a familiar face shouted, "Are you going to Old Zhang's for liquor? He's closed! He sold his store a few days ago and moved to the county after striking rich. Now you have to go to Uncle Lu's in the north of town if you want a drink!"
So Pei Ye headed north. This detour would take him past the Big Willow Tree. He intentionally took a look and sure enough, didn't see the tall, limping beggar with the big ears under the tree, but there were two constables there apparently discussing something.
It is said that Big Ears made a mistake while practicing martial arts in his youth, offended some people who broke his legs in retaliation. Then he had a series of misfortunes in his family, his loved ones passed away one after another, and he eventually fell into the depths of despair.
Luckily, he wasn't that insolent back in his days at the Martial Arts Hall. Pei Ye smirked at his self-mockery, and with a few strides he was beyond the Big Willow Tree, heading straight for the Lu Family's Liquor Store.
Soon, the beckoning sign of the liquor store could be seen, and Pei Ye quickened his pace to reach the entrance.
The curtain was lifted, a wave of noise and warmth immediately rushed into his ears. The heat mixed with the fragrance of the liquor hit his face, drawing a clear line between the little tavern and the cold, misty rain outside.
There were always more people during slack times. Pei Ye maneuvered around the egotistically excited men, walked over the legs casually stretched out on the ground, and placed the gourd on the counter.
"Uncle Lu, fill it up."
"Alright." Lu Youcai, in his forties with eyebrow sharply defined, uncorked the gourd and moved to the side of the liquor barrel, "Little Pei, ever since you moved, you rarely come by."
"Well, I had no choice. If it hadn't been for the money from selling the house, it would've cost me my life." Pei Ye quipped with a laugh.
"Ah, fortune comes with disaster and no fortune brings harm to oneself. Little Pei, you are lucky. You must look on the bright side of things; that's where you'll see hope."
"Absolutely, I have no complaints." Pei Ye took the gourd, "Is it still four copper coins?"
"Nonsense!" Lu Youcai quickly raised his eyebrow, thumped the filled gourd on the table, "Did I ever charge you in the past? Now you're a poor devil acting big today?"
Pei Ye chuckled heartily, still counting out four copper coins, insisting on pushing them towards Lu Youcai, "It's precisely because I'm a poor devil now, that I have to keep everything clear."
Lu Youcai sighed, took the copper coins, as Pei Ye was about to leave, Lu Youcai suddenly said, "Oh, by the way, I see that you're going out of town again? You ought to be careful these days, apparently there have been cases of people being eaten by tigers and wolves out of town."
"That's okay, I'm not going into the deep forest." Those who lived off the mountains were bound to have collectors of medicinal herbs and hunters getting trapped, although it wasn't frequent, it wasn't uncommon either. Pei Ye didn't really mind.
"It's not the mountains, it's out of town." Lu Youcai corrected, "Someone saw this this morning, outside that ramshackle temple to the east of town. Only a torn piece of cloth and blood were left, no trace of the person, flesh or bones, and no one knows who was victimized."
Pei Ye was taken aback: "What? The run-down temple to the east of the city?"
"Yes. This beast dares to come that close. The residents to the east of town are afraid that it might enter the city at night to eat people."
Pei Ye recalled what the old stick said and frowned, "Have they reported it to the officials?"
"Of course, the constables were there first thing in the morning."
Pei Ye remembered the two constables under the Big Willow Tree. It seemed that the authorities had already marked off the victims, so he no longer worried. He bid Lu Youcai farewell, went out, picked up his fishing rod and basket, and paced back to his house.
Pei Ye's home was next to Old Xiangzi's dilapidated courtyard - equally decrepit.
He pushed open his door to reveal a basket of medicinal herbs he had gathered along the way.
Pei Ye selected a few herbs, ground them finely in a stone mortar, then took out a clean piece of cloth and headed to a corner of the court, where he plucked out a dark fur ball from a basket.
He lifted the little black cat and looked into its bright, emerald eyes for a moment before gently placing it on his lap.
Small and soft, it had a wound bandaged belly that was slightly bloodstained. Pei Ye knew a fatal wound was hidden beneath those bandages.
He had found the black cat the previous day when he was fishing by the stream. Its stomach had been slashed by a sharp rock, or something of the sort.
It couldn't be said for certain whether it was a domestic cat or a feral cat. There were several households in the city that owned cats, and these cats mated indiscriminately, resulting in groups of cats that sourced their food from the grey area between the county and the thick forests.
Truth be told, this little cat was quite attractive with its sleek, black coat devoid of any impurities, fine fur, and absence of scars or illnesses. It also lacked the cunning and cruel disposition of feral cats that had braved multiple fights.
If there were a social ladder amongst cats, this one would fall into the aristocratic rank. It didn't make a sound or resist when Pei Ye was treating its wound and was amazingly calm and composed.
Pei Ye removed the old dressing, and though the wound had clotted, he reapplied a fresh layer of herbal medicine and bandaged it again.
Once done, Pei Ye went inside the house to fetch an old man who appeared terrifying, akin to an evil spirit.
If the old man could stand, he would be taller than Pei Ye, but Pei Ye knew that would never happen. The old man was motionless on his crude and rudimentary wheelchair, appearing like a piece of old and weathered wood, as if even his breathing had stopped.
Under the dim daylight, the details of his face grew more frightening - the scars on his cheeks spread like fleshly centipedes all over his forehead and down to his neck. His eyes were completely gone, leaving two dark pits. His scant white hair revealed large patches of exposed scalp.
"Grandfather Yue, I'm going to start sword practice. It's just past the hour of Shen, I will continue till quarter past You."
"Good, I'm listening..."
Whenever the old man spoke, he stretched out his neck, lifted his lower jaw, and leaned back slightly away from his wheelchair, straining all his energy like a pelican catching fish, a sight that was both ridiculous and terrifying.
The so-called sword practice was the swordsmanship that the old man had taught Pei Ye after the latter's Dantian got injured - the old man had said, "At least, you might have a chance to learn it now."
The process of learning was challenging and peculiar. Since the sword skill was conceived by the old man after he became paralyzed, he had never physically practised nor could he see the boy's moves. He had to rely on his hearing to judge whether Pei Ye's actions were accurate and his force was appropriate.
Fortunately, the old man truly had a deep understanding of swordsmanship. Even in these circumstances, he could always pinpoint where Pei Ye was going wrong. But there were inevitably times when he couldn't discern the mistake or answer Pei Ye's questions. These were the times when the old man would say, "Just practice blindly. It's not about this."
Regardless, it was indeed a profound sword skill. After practicing for two years, Pei Ye's swordsmanship had improved; he had a better grasp of the principles and was getting a better feel of it. He could be considered a master swordsman, yet he hadn't truly learned even a single form.
Even this realization of "not having actually learned" came to Pei Ye only after his swordsmanship had advanced to a certain level. Before that, he had assumed mastering those moves was enough and had completely overlooked a further level beyond that.
"When you have truly learned it, I will definitely be able to hear it," the old man had said, "I might even be able to see it."
But clearly, today was not the day. As usual, Pei Ye practiced for sufficient time before wiping the sweat from his forehead. Perhaps due to the sweat, his forehead began to itch, and he wiped it a couple more times.
Seeing that the weather was getting colder, he pushed the old man back inside, ready to start preparing dinner. At the same time, he started brewing a mild, nourishing herbal decoction for himself.
Even though it had already rained heavily in the morning, the dark clouds had not dispersed; instead, they seemed to grow thicker, and it started drizzling as if the clouds could no longer bear the pressure.
The incessant cold wind and rain, the cramped and decrepit courtyard, the brittle and dried-up jujube tree, the horrifying paralyzed old man, and the old, faded sword formed the backdrop of Pei Ye's life for the past two years.
A willow branch brushed against his face as the wind blew, making the young boy break off a piece, remove the pith, and whistle through it cheerfully.
He lifted his head; the last light of the day had vanished into the horizon.
Night had fallen.