Chapter 17 Dreams, Trees and Flowers
"Let's go."
Jiang Xia was struggling, half carrying and half dragging Su, and rubbed Jasmine's head. This time, she did not resist the action, perhaps because she was afraid of dropping the water jug in her arms.
This is a valuable item.
The three men climbed up the mine with great difficulty. The night had reached its darkest hour, but dawn would soon arrive.
"It's so heavy."
Jiang Xia threw the unconscious Su on the ground and cursed. He looked in the direction of Fengshan Street and then turned back to look at Jasmine. The girl was staring at everything in front of her in a trance.
She can see everything in the dark through her prosthetic eyes.
She saw the world.
The vegetation, the clear air, and the breath of life were a scenery she had never seen before. She was stunned for a moment and did not notice that her waist bag had been opened by Jiang Xia.
" give me back!"
When Jasmine saw Jiang Xia holding the thing wrapped in tin foil in his hand, she screamed and pounced on it. That was her food!
She got it herself!
As a result, as soon as he rushed out, Jiang Xia reached out and pressed his head, and his short body was also pressed in place.
Jiang Xia glanced at her, opened the tin foil, and looked at the rat meat inside with some hesitation. Finally, under Jasmine's gaze, he picked up a piece, put it to his mouth, and took a small bite.
smell……
It’s hard to put it into words.
Then, he handed the meat back to Jasmine with a big smile.
Jasmine was stunned.
When Jiang Xia threw the skewers just now, he couldn't hide the disgust on his face. Jasmine saw it clearly. Why did this person...
Oh, right.
Is he apologizing?
Or does he mean well?
But no matter what, no matter what Jiang Xia was thinking, this was the first time in Jasmine's life that someone else took her feelings into consideration.
The person in front of her did not ignore her and did not treat her as a walking part.
perhaps……
Jasmine held her precious skewer of meat, tilted her head, and watched Jiang Xia carry Su up again, she thought.
This person is not as bad as I thought, right?
——
"Master Jiang, where did you pick up that child from?"
At dawn, in Manager Huang's house, Mrs. Niu rolled up her sleeves and swiftly placed dishes on the table. Because she didn't want to attract attention, all the dishes were cold, with no hot dishes.
But if so, it is already very abundant.
Jiang Xia also changed into Huang Guanshi's clothes and was eating a steamed bun. When he heard Mrs. Niu's question, he raised his head and said:
"What's wrong?"
“It’s too dirty.”
Mrs. Niu was born in a farming family and was a down-to-earth and capable person.
This was forced upon her by the situation. Standing on Jiang Xia's side, she did not have many complaints. While delivering a tray of steamed buns, she glanced outside the house and said:
"That child probably hasn't had a bath in years.
I just went to take a look, and I could see mud all over their bodies. They didn't look like locals, and they spoke a language we couldn't understand. I'm afraid they are children from the Southern Wilderness."
"Mrs. Niu does have a keen eye."
Jiang Xia continued to eat, and followed her words, making up something nonsense:
"This is the posthumous child of a friend of mine in the Southern Wilds. He was sent to me a few days ago. The child has no father or mother and is very pitiful. I hope Madam Niu can take good care of him these days.
Tell others that he is a distant relative of yours."
As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Laosi walked into the room stealthily, with a large bag of things in his arms. He piled those things in a corner of the dining table as if he was offering treasures.
Good job.
A large bundle was filled with various copper coins, small change, and some things similar to silver bills and jewelry.
"Boss, I found it."
Liu Laosi said proudly:
"Thanks to Mrs. Niu, I found the old man's private collection in the backyard. There was also a large cellar with some heavy items such as rice, silk, etc.
People say that being the manager of Ruyifang has a bright future. Today I have really broadened my horizons.
These riches are enough for us to travel far away, buy some land somewhere else, and become rich."
"Look at what you have accomplished."
Jiang Xia didn't even look at the bundle or the money inside.
These things are of no use to him.
He finished the steamed bun in his hand, clapped his hands, took out a stack of silver bills from his bag, thought about it again, and simply picked up the entire bag and handed it to Mrs. Niu.
The latter didn't dare to answer and was a little confused.
"Take it back and keep it safe. When you have time, send it to your family and ask them to move out quickly and keep a low profile. The farther away the better. It would be best if they could move to a place outside of Ruyifang's influence."
Jiang Xia advised:
"Just say it's your own private money. When the dust settles, you can go with them. I said before that I won't harm you, and this is proof of that."
"Eh? Okay, okay."
Mrs. Niu was at a loss.
She knew that her husband was hiding something, but as a concubine warming her bed, how could she dare to have any bad thoughts?
Now he thought Jiang Xia's words made sense, so he took it with trembling hands.
So much money!
Her family could never earn that much working hard in the fields in their entire lifetime!
With this money, my parents won't have to work all day, and my third and fourth sisters can also marry into a good family. It's better for me to be a concubine of an old man and be bullied all day.
The future of a family is in your own hands.
Mrs. Niu was dizzy at the moment. She walked out holding the bag, half excited and half nervous, as if floating.
"Do you have anyone available?"
Jiang Xia looked back at Liu Laosi, who looked distressed. The latter smiled awkwardly, touched his head and said:
"The people around me are all drinking and eating friends. We can get rich together, but I'm afraid it's impossible for us to work together."
"trouble."
Jiang Xia said with a frown.
He thought for a moment and then said:
"I'm afraid I can't keep it a secret for too long using Lord Bao as an excuse. We must cut the Gordian knot before they react! Tell me about the situation in this mining village. Apart from Ruyifang, is there anyone else in charge here?"
"have."
The skinny Liu Laosi stroked his whiskers and said:
“The Fengshan Mine is nominally an asset of the imperial court. Although it was taken over by Ruyifang several decades ago, there is still a mine supervisor in Fengming County.
He was just a small official, and it was said that he was ostracized by his colleagues and ended up in this position.
He usually doesn't take care of things, and no one takes him seriously, but to be honest, he is the chief officer of Fengshan Mine."
The fourth brother showed no respect for the mine supervisor in his words , so he was right. Even a lowly person like him did not take the mine supervisor appointed by the court seriously.
"How many people are there in Ruyifang?"
Jiang Xia asked again.
Liu Laosi shook his head and said:
"No.
There are a group of boxers who fight underground in the mines to make money, and servants under the managers. Boss, there are hundreds of strong miners in this mine, and they have all signed contracts with Ruyifang.
If something really happens , even if everyone holds a stick, they can walk sideways around this mountain.
This place is called a government-owned property, but in fact it is just like the feudal state of Ruyifang, where they are like local emperors. Their business is huge, they have properties in every county of Fengming State, and they also have connections with the imperial court.
Who dares to provoke them?"
"How many roads are there between the mountains and the outside world? How far is the nearest town from here?"
Jiang Xia continued to ask.
Liu Laosi is not a local, but he has been here for more than ten years, so he is naturally like a worm, and he answered fluently:
"Fengshan Street is deep in the mountains. A road was specially built to transport the ore. There aren't many towns and villages nearby. It takes half a day to get out of the mountains from here by horseback. If you walk, it will take more than two days."
"I heard that Ruyifang is connected to the immortals?"
Jiang Xia picked up a piece of meat with chopsticks and put it in his mouth. He said:
"If Fengshan Mine is sealed off and all routes out are blocked, will they have some immortal means to transmit sound over a thousand miles?"
“There might be some out there.”
Liu Laosi shook his head and said:
"Even if there really is a fairy treasure, how could it be placed in Fengshan Mine?
Boss, Ruyifang has mines in other places besides here. Fengshan Mine is an old mine, but it produces enough ordinary ores every year.
But spiritual mines have become increasingly scarce in recent years.
Although this place is valuable, it is not the real lifeblood of Ruyifang. There are only seven managers here, and even their private soldiers have not been stationed here, so naturally there is no way there is such a treasure."
"Yes, I understand."
Jiang Xia already had a rough idea in his mind, so he nodded and said to Liu Laosi:
"Go and look after the man whose arm was removed. Call me when he wakes up. Then take these vegetables and steamed buns to that girl. Don't let them go out. I'm going to take a nap first.
Don’t think too much.”
Jiang Xia said:
"The share given to Madam Niu was to thank her for helping us cover up the matter and calm her mind. It was all small fortune. Steward Huang alone had so many good things, and there were six other stewards like him.
There is no use for me to have those goods, they will all be yours in the future."
He said to Liu Laosi:
"Whether you want to be a rich man or continue to follow me, it's up to you. We just met by chance and it's our destiny to work together.
Don't put too much pressure on yourself.
If the sky falls, I will hold it up."
After making a wish, Liu Laosi also left the room with the plate of food.
Jiang Xia yawned. There were too many things to do today. He was just fighting hard in the wasteland, and now he had to fight wits and courage with local tyrants and evil gentry in the ancient world.
The change of time and space made him feel unreal.
Now that he had relaxed, he felt sleepy. He didn't even go to bed, but lay on the table, and fell asleep with his arms as a pillow. His left hand was still on his waist, clasped on the handle of the gun.
But this time the dream was a bit strange.
It was no longer about Jiang Shusheng's past. The moment Jiang Xia closed his eyes, starlight gathered and dispersed in front of his eyes, as if he had stepped into the consciousness space that had trapped him for three years.
In the light stars and streams before his eyes, in the shadow, the strange-looking tree was still there.
It still has the terrible shape of a potted plant.
It's just magnified many times.
In the midst of reality and illusion, it seems as if the starlight gathers to form the main body of the tree.
The trunk was divided into seven parts and was bare without a single leaf. However, at the end of the twisted branches, there were fruit-like things hanging down.
Out of the seven, six are illusory and seem not to really exist.
But at the edge of the lowest branch, there was one last fruit that was solid, shining with white light, and very small, like a date.
Rather than being a fruit, it is more like a bud that has not yet blossomed and borne fruit.
"You've just bloomed and you've already borne fruit... that's really strange."
Jiang Xia smiled and placed his hand on the branch.
It still feels cold to the touch, but there is nothing magical about it. The only difference is that every time I touch the tree trunk, the stars around this dreamland will change a little.
It's not real, it's still vague, between reality and illusion.
Until Jiang Xia's fingers touched the buds of the newly formed flowers at the end of the branch.
The moment his fingers touched the little flower, the starry sky in front of him suddenly changed, just like the reflection on a movie screen, and a very familiar scene emerged.
The sky is filled with yellow sand, stretching as far as the eye can see.
There was also the desert town wrapped in brown vegetation that stood out under the scorching sun. Jiang Xia even saw Rogge's figure in the reflection. The guy was busy cleaning up the ruins with a group of people.
The reflection is right in front of you.
It is so incredible that it is like being separated by a layer of water curtain. Just take one step forward and you can walk into it.
This is a door!
Jiang Xia was filled with joy.
He finally understood the use of this strange star tree.
I finally understood why this tree suddenly bloomed. It must have been stimulated when I walked through the star array.
He turned around and carefully observed the buds on the branches of the tree and found that its small flowers were very dim, but after a few minutes, they became brighter than before.
Perhaps, I have to wait until this flower is lit up before I can set foot in the wasteland world again.
It's like a charging process.
"Good baby!"
Jiang Xia hugged his tree, feeling extremely happy.
"Rogge, Black Hand Society, haha, our fate has not yet ended, wait, I will find you soon."
"Let's talk about the 'trust issue' between us."
