Chapter 123 Extra (9) The Story of Da Taohe
Baojing Prefecture bordered the capital, with Yuchang to its left, nestled between the two prefectures.
Huo Anding set out from Tongzhou, passing through Lianping Prefecture and heading north, he could reach Baojing Prefecture.
The journey wasn't considered too far. Pushing a horse hard would take about ten to fifteen days, but it was hard to say if one dawdled.
Changshan Academy started in the third month of the lunar calendar, which meant he had the entire second month to travel. The schedule was quite relaxed.
Eating, drinking, having fun, stopping and going along the way, it was truly so carefree.
By the time he entered the boundaries of Baojing Prefecture, twenty days had already passed.
"Hey, move, move along..."
"You mule, you've been sightseeing the whole way, has your heart grown wild too, hasn't it?"
Just after crossing the border checkpoint, the mule went on strike and refused to move.
Huo Anding gave the mule two more flicks of the whip, but it only dug in its heels further.
Left with no other option, he slid off the mule's back, took hold of the reins, and began leading the stubborn mule on foot.
"Do you have any idea how unreasonable you are? Not slacking off earlier or later, but you had to pick this exact moment to quit, right here in the middle of nowhere with no help in sight. You're just trying to make things difficult for me, aren't you?
"I haven't mistreated you the whole way. What fresh grass or tender shoots didn't I let you eat? I almost let you go root up the cabbage in people's fields."
"If the owners had allowed it, wouldn't I have let you? And yet you hold a grudge against me here."
Huo Anding pulled the mule along while lecturing it.
Truly playing the lute to a cow. The mule shook its head, turning a deaf ear.
[对牛弹琴 (duì niú tán qín): lit. Playing the lute to a cow; fig. Preaching to the deaf, wasting effort on an unappreciative audience]
Huo Anding glanced up at the sky. The hour was already growing late, yet there was no hint of the sun breaking through. If anything, the clouds and mist had drawn in more densely.
The wind of the late spring cold snap in the second month blew over, peculiarly cold and biting.
He estimated it was about to rain. The spring rain was never torrential, but it was bone-chilling and lingered. It couldn't compare to summer rain, which, despite its sudden, violent gusts and downpours, was always over quickly.
Without a fast horse, walking in the rain, even if he had copper skin and iron bones, he probably couldn't withstand it.
Just as Huo Anding was pondering what to do, the sound of a carriage and horses came through.
He pulled his mule to the side of the official road. From afar, he saw a carriage drawn by two horses approaching, with two strong attendants riding on either side.
One man led the way in front, and four brought up the rear.
The carriage nestled in the middle was spacious and grand, visibly roomy.
"Tsk, a wealthy family~"
Huo Anding narrowed his eyes slightly and patted the mule in front of him: "Look, that one seems about your size, but its value is vastly different."
The horses of this party seemed short and ordinary, an average horse connoisseur would consider them inferior horses.
However, these horses were actually superior horses from the outer regions, called Grey Wind.
Ordinary in appearance, but in reality, they had exceptional endurance and ran very swiftly.
This made them the preferred horse for wealthy families when traveling—low-key and durable.
But they only fooled ordinary people. Huo Anding's family had a horseback archery range, he had been around horses since childhood and could see their quality at a glance.
Seeing that this party was clearly wealthy and noble, Huo Anding didn't think twice. As the carriage and horses approached, he immediately latched on.
"This humble scholar begs your pardon."
"I am from Tongzhou, currently preparing to go to Baoding Prefecture to seek refuge with relatives..."
"Yes, yes, this humble scholar is a xiucai."
"My mule decided to act up right after we crossed the border. Now I'm stranded here, miles from the nearest village or inn, and it looks like it's about to rain. I truly don't know what to do."
The man leading the way looked at the young man before him. Reasonably, when meeting people on the road, many wouldn't engage for the sake of safety.
However, Huo Anding had an honest and harmless face. Though tall in stature, his frame was lean rather than burly. This, combined with his habit of slightly rounding his shoulders and offering humble bows, created the unmistakable impression of a frail scholar without him needing to say a word.
So the man leading the way exchanged a few words with him.
But allowing him to chat was one thing, after speaking, the man still said: "I see. Forgive us, we cannot accommodate."
With that, the man tugged his horse's reins to move on.
Huo Anding's brow twitched: The conversation was going well, wasn't it? How can you turn cold so quickly?
He was just about to speak again when a clear, cold voice, neither loud nor soft, like wind passing through a snowy landscape, came from the previously silent carriage.
"What is the matter?"
The man immediately replied, "Young Master, it's a scholar. He has asked if we might offer him a ride."
There was a moment of silence inside the carriage.
Then the carriage window curtain was slowly rolled up, revealing a figure inside that appeared extremely upright and proper.
The person in the carriage wore dark, elegant robes, with slender shoulders and a thin waist. His hands loosely held an embroidered hand warmer. His eyes were lightly closed, as if he had been napping.
Perhaps noticing the light, he opened his eyes and slightly turned his head to look out the window.
Their eyes met. When Huo Anding caught sight of that face, all his playful antics seemed to freeze solid, leaving only his inherent seriousness.
Although he had been accustomed to beautiful appearances since childhood, having grown up among beauties and possessing a striking face himself, he should have long been unmoved by physical looks.
Yet, when he clearly saw the appearance of the person in the carriage, he still felt a moment of astonishment.
The "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River" contains the lines: "...her long eyebrows, delicately arched... her radiant face, like polished jade; her graceful demeanor and noble bearing, every aspect of her form fitting the ideal image..."
All such praises were not the least bit excessive when applied to this person.
Although using so many flowery words to describe a man might seem somewhat affected, this face, so androgynous and difficult to distinguish, fully deserved it—it was by no means an exaggeration.
Today, he had indeed witnessed the meaning described in books.
What was most rare was that the person in the carriage was also just a youth, likely around the same age as himself.
Huo Anding immediately rushed forward and delivered a vivid and emotional self-introduction.
He found it very difficult not to feel a sense of kinship and mutual appreciation towards a youth with such appearance.
However, the youth by the window only gave Huo Anding a cold glance, the aloofness between his brows as chilly as moonlight.
He uttered only a single phrase: "A scholar?"
"Yes. This trip to Baojing is partly to visit relatives, and also for study. I have heard that Baojing is near the capital, with many great Confucian scholars and famous masters. This humble scholar has long admired them..."
Before Huo Anding could finish, the youth, as if annoyed by his verbosity, first spoke indifferently to the man leading the way: "Give him a horse."
"Yes, Young Master."
Seeing this, Huo Anding's eyes curved. He was just about to express thanks and offer some flattery, but before he could perform, the carriage curtain had already fallen.
Thoroughly rebuffed, Huo Anding furrowed his brow: This young master is certainly aloof...
Yet a moment later, a sly glint flashed in his eyes.
The corner of his mouth quirked upward. As it happened, this was exactly the type that appealed to him.
An unattainable flower on a high peak, a noble and self-restrained young master—could anything be more intriguing?
"Take this horse to ride for now."
The attendant led over a horse and said: "Keep up with the team yourself. If you fall behind, we will not delay our schedule for you."
Huo Anding hugged his bundle and thanked him repeatedly, but looking at the horse in front of him, he said with difficulty: "Big brother, um... this, this horse won't kick me, will it? I've been riding a mule the whole way. Mules have a gentle temperament, it's just a pity their endurance is too poor. I've heard horses have good endurance, but they are very wild..."
The man looked at the young man holding the reins, his face full of weakness and helplessness, and couldn't help but take a deep breath.
If it weren't for the family head's respect for scholars, given their young master's temperament, he definitely wouldn't pay any attention to this young man.
Seeing this, Huo Anding quickly said: "How about I go drive the carriage? I've driven an ox cart for my family before, so I have some skill in handling vehicles."
The man shot Huo Anding a sidelong glance. How could the master's carriage possibly be driven by an outsider?
He paused: "Fine then. Go sit honestly next to the coachman in front of the carriage. We'll give you a lift for a stretch, but you absolutely must not disturb the Young Master's rest."
"Ah, good, good, good! Thank you, Big Brother!"
This was exactly what Huo Anding wanted. He quickly hugged his bundle and scurried over.
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