Chapter 613: Chapter 613

Over the next month, many nobles and high-ranking officials from Xianning City came to visit the Daoist.

It wasn’t that Lady Chai or the young master of the Yang family had gone around telling others, the matter was simply too hard to keep secret.

Xianning City, though considered sizable for the times, actually wasn’t very large. Take the main street that ran east to west just outside the inn, and walking from one end to the other didn’t take long. That street essentially formed the city's perimeter.

When Song You visited the Yang family, Lady Chai had been so excited that many servants had witnessed the visit. Then, she had come to the inn twice herself, once with her sickly, bookish young master in tow, along with other relatives and distinguished guests. Plenty of people saw them.

The tale of the mysterious guest in Xianning had already spread throughout the city and beyond, and Lady Chai was a well-known figure.

In her story, there had once been a Daoist who traveled with a cat. Now, here in Xianning, there was another Daoist, also with a cat. Wasn't that quite the coincidence?

In time, people naturally took notice.

Many in the world longed for the Immortal Dao and were fascinated by the mystical and strange. And now, with a real cultivator and an actual strange tale of Immortal Dao right before them, how could they resist coming to pay a visit?

This was no fault of Lady Chai or the young master.

As for the Daoist, he didn’t much mind.

He went out strolling daily, meeting all sorts of people. Sometimes he just ate a bowl of rice vermicelli, bought a fried shrimp cake or a brown sugar sticky rice patty, or visited little shops unique to the region. When people recognized him as a Daoist and struck up conversation, he would pause and chat. Sometimes, he would even take the initiative to speak first.

Among the wide variety of people he encountered, there were naturally also nobles and officials. They were just less likely to be found while he wandered about.

Since he would talk to street vendors, laborers, and common folk, he saw no reason not to talk to nobles and officials, especially when they came with respect and courtesy.

And he gained things from these conversations too.

Of course, the nobles had more direct intentions in visiting him, unlike the more casual nature of the commoners. But then again, commoners often approached just because he was a Daoist, without knowing who he really was, and they, too, sometimes had their own small motives.

Such things were inevitable.

So, the Daoist continued to go out each day, strolling, shopping, and doing his part to ease Lady Calico’s financial burden. If someone came looking for him and didn’t find him, then the timing simply wasn’t right. If someone visited and happened to catch him at home, he wouldn’t mind inviting them in for tea, perhaps asking about the scenic spots of Yunzhou, strange tales of Zhao Commandery, or whether they knew anything about Luchuan down south.

Lady Calico, meanwhile, continued to go fishing as usual.

Whenever rumors spread of monsters or demons causing harm outside Xianning, she and the swallow would be sent to take care of it.

But the weather was getting colder by the day. And as a cat, she didn’t particularly enjoy the cold. When she went fishing, she would often take a blanket and start a fire by the lake.

If the weather was especially bad, like if the sun didn’t come out, she sometimes wouldn’t go at all. Instead, she’d stay indoors to read, practice calligraphy, and cultivate her magical arts. That too gave her a sense of achievement and warmth.

When bored, she would sprawl on the windowsill and watch the people below dyeing fabric. Sometimes she would leap directly from the inn’s window into the Yang family’s textile workshop to observe up close, following Lady Chai around and watching them dye cloth.

Xianning’s famed “Xianyun Gauze” was a true marvel.

It was dyed using only natural plant-based methods. Step after step, the fabric was repeatedly soaked, washed, and dried, the color deepening layer by layer from pale pink to dark brown. Even the trace minerals in the lake mud were used to affect the fabric’s hue, and the morning fog was used to soften the texture. The entire process took at least a month or two to complete. The resulting Xianyun Gauze was so prized it was sent as tribute to the imperial court, and its value rivaled that of gold.

The complexity and ingenuity of the process amazed not only the calico cat, but the Daoist as well. Though of course, the Daoist had no use for such luxurious fabric.

Before long, even Xianning's daytime weather had turned bitterly cold.

Sunny days seemed to be growing rare, and when it turned overcast, the wind howled mercilessly outside.

Still, the Ottelia acuminata[1] blooming in the lakes outside the city were thriving.

Previously, a wealthy man had invited Song You to go boating on the lake. After several invitations, Song You finally agreed and joined him for a trip on the water.

The lake water was a clear, jade blue. Ripples shimmered on the surface, over which floated a thin layer of aquatic plants, like tender vines, with small white-yellow flowers blooming upon them. In the water, they appeared especially delicate and pristine, spotless and pure. Some were floating on the surface, while others bloomed just beneath. Tiny blossoms dotted the lake like stars across the sky.

With blossoms on blue waves, the sight struck the Daoist as truly beautiful. Lady Calico couldn’t help but reach out a paw to swat at them.

Only then did the wealthy man tell him that these were called “haicaihua.”

And since they had the word “cai”[2] in the name, it meant they were edible. The locals often ate this plant.

After returning, Song You mentioned it to the innkeeper. The very next day, the innkeeper went to the market, bought some, and cooked a dish with it. The flavor was quite excellent.

Now, as his departure drew near and the Daoist prepared to set off again, he went to the market once more, bought more haicaihua, and added two jin of pork. Back at the inn, he cooked a pot of lean pork soup[3], a dish etched deep in his memory.

Meanwhile, the innkeeper had started selling sour-and-spicy fish.

The chili peppers weren’t grown from the seed Song You had gifted him, but bought at the market. He had also adopted some of Song You’s techniques with other spices. Knowing the Daoist was about to leave, he prepared a pot of it along with a few other side dishes and brought them over as a parting gift.

Song You invited him to dine together. The two of them chatted idly over the meal.

Curiously, although Song You had stayed at the Yongchun Inn for a long time, and the innkeeper knew him best and should’ve been the one most aware of his strength and even the abilities of Lady Calico, the innkeeper rarely asked about cultivation, longevity, or matters of demons and spirits. What interested him most was... cooking.

At first, he only peeked secretly when Song You cooked. Later, realizing that not only was Song You skilled, but even Lady Calico, a mere child in appearance, cooked surprisingly well, he didn’t spare even her meals from his scrutiny.

Eventually, realizing the two didn’t mind, he began to ask questions directly and often.

Conversations like these were easy and relaxed.

Their exchange of cooking tips and techniques was far more engaging than those noble guests who endlessly pried about the secrets of cultivation and immortality.

The young girl sat nearby, quietly eating, but in truth, listening intently with perked ears.

“Lean pork soup is a dish from my hometown,” Song You explained, “though this is the first time I’ve made it with haicaihua. I used to like it best with tender pea shoots, but who would’ve thought the haicaihua works just as well.”

The texture of haicaihua was quite unique. They were tender and slick, making them particularly suitable for soups.

When stir-fried, they could be slightly crisp, but in soup, they became velvety smooth, so much so that they sometimes slipped down your throat before you even had to chew. Like kelp, but without the fishy odor. They were juicy but not slimy. Unexpectedly, they paired perfectly with lean pork soup.

The pork was smooth, and so was the vegetable.

And in this bitter cold weather, a bowl of steaming, fragrant soup was nothing short of comforting.

Especially after nearly three months of eating nothing but fish, finally having a proper meal with real meat, which was both lean and fatty with texture and substance, made it easy to understand why, in many places, fish isn’t even considered “meat.”

After the meal, the Daoist rose to begin packing.

“Thank you for looking after me during this time.”

“Oh, no no, not at all! If anything, it’s I who should thank you, sir. You taught me so much about cooking, and thanks to you, business at the inn has improved greatly,” the innkeeper replied respectfully.

“I’ll head back to pack my things.”

“Shall I help you with anything, sir?”

“No need, innkeeper. You go about your business.”

Back in the room, it was time to pack.

Lady Calico was quick and efficient, clearly having done this many times before. Every item she carried was firmly imprinted in her memory, and she knew the placement of each one by heart. Things they rarely used during travel were placed at the bottom; the frequently used ones went on top. Fragile items were packed in the most stable parts of the bundle, arranged in the most convenient order.

Some things went into the saddle bag, others into brocade pouches.

Before long, the packing was done.

The final step was slipping the swallow’s short sword into a seam in the saddle bag while leaving the hilt sticking out, so that it would be easy to grab in an emergency, and visible enough to serve as a warning to would-be troublemakers.

“I’ll carry the saddle bag down myself. But I need to trouble you with a little errand, Lady Calico.”

“What kind of errand?”

“Aside from the innkeeper, Lady Chai has also taken good care of us during our stay. She's sent over food and wine several times. We haven’t had the chance to return the favor.” The Daoist smiled. “I went up to Mount Cang the other day and picked a juicy and sweet peach. I’d like you to deliver it with me.”

“When did you pick a peach? Where did you get it? And how can there be peaches in this cold weather?”

Lady Calico turned around while rattling off questions, voicing her doubts. But as she did, she saw a large peach sitting plainly on the table right in front of the Daoist.

It was huge, nearly as big as a rice bowl.

The little girl sniffed the air, and the fragrance of ripe peach already filled her nose.

“Lady Calico, you’re getting smarter and sharper by the day,” the Daoist said with a smile. “Please run this errand for me. Go and come back quickly. We’ll meet you at the inn’s entrance when you return.”

“Mmm...” The girl accepted the peach.

It was larger than her hands, and she had to hold it with both palms.

She glanced around, eyes scanning the room. There was only a sheet of blank white paper on the table with nothing written on it.

But in her hands, the peach was very much real. Its rich fragrance, the weight and texture, the soft fuzzy skin, all vividly tangible. Its tender surface hinted at the abundant juice inside.

The little girl swallowed, her nose twitching. She looked around again, once at the door, once at the window, and eventually made her way to the window.

She blew gently, and the window opened with a soft puff. “Shortcut it is...”

She peered outside, then with a spring of her legs, leapt out the window. She landed lightly, almost without a sound, exactly like the calico cat she had once been when leaping from the same spot.

But she startled two nearby workers, who hadn't expected anyone to drop from above.

Soon, many of the workers in the textile workshop turned to look at her in confusion, only to see her walking calmly forward, cradling a large peach in both hands, making her way directly through the workshop toward the Yang family residence.

As for the Daoist, he let out a soft breath, and the blank sheet of paper instantly turned to ash.

Then he picked up his belongings, shouldered his pack, and walked out the door.

1. 海菜花 Ottelia acuminata, is a plant species endemic to Southern China. ☜

2. The 菜 in 海菜花 literally means ‘vegetable’. ☜

3. Huà ròu tāng (滑肉汤) is a well-known traditional snack, made primarily from lean pork, starch, and shiitake mushrooms. It is known for its delicious flavor and is believed to have health benefits such as nourishing the kidneys and blood, replenishing yin, and moisturizing dryness. ☜