LZR Chapter 6 Part 2) Xiaguang Town

Seeing the guard panic when his captain walked over, I knew the guard was up to no good. The guard turned and bowed to his captain before turning to me. “If you want to use a qi pill you will need to hand it over to get it inspected.”

 “No thanks, I would rather speak to your captain about how you just tried to steal my token.” I did not plan to let this go. If it was not me, another person might end up being targeted, and they might actually hand it over, not realizing what the guard was up to.

I watched as the guard’s face turned red with anger. He pointed at me and yelled: “Little girl I think you should stop messing around you are holding up the line.” After yelling at me, he pointed at my mother and began yelling at her. “And you. Why are you letting your daughter act so unruly!? The both of you shouldn’t be allowed in the cit-ahhhh! Let go!”

I jumped up, grabbed his finger, and yanked him down to the ground while bending his finger back. “Who said you could point at my mother!? First you try to take my token and now you want to keep us from entering the city by trying to bully us?”

“That’s enough little one.” I turned to see the captain smiling at me. I could see some surprise in his eyes. He must not have expected me to be able to take down one of his guards.

“Fine.” I reluctantly let go. I knew if I kept holding the guard down, it would work against me. But that did not mean I was not going to air my frustration. “This man, first tried to take my admission token and then tried to kick us out when he saw we were not going to let him go. Is this how the guards of Xiaguang are taught?”

“By no means, little miss.” The captain did not seem to be angry at all by my actions. “You and your mother can enter. Leave the rest to me.”

The captain took two tokens from the box and handed one to me, then my mother. “Thanks you.” I bowed my head, my mother following suit. She did not say a single word this entire time. She seemed to trust all my actions. Or maybe she was afraid of causing more trouble for me if she had said something.

I took a clay bottle from my shirt and handed it the the captain. “A qi pill for entry. I have no silver.”

“Keep it. As an apology I will pay for you and your mother’s admission into the city. Plus this qi pill is worth more than the few silver it costs to enter the city.” The captain knelt down in front of me and pushed the bottle back. He then used his big hand to pat the top of my head. “You did well. So young yet so powerful. I am sure you will be someone big in the future. I saw what happen when I was walking up so don’t worry, I will deal with this man. He will be jailed and investigated.”

“Thank you.” I smiled and bowed at the captain. He then ushered my mother and me off. I can tell he was a good person. Hopefully, that is. There is always a chance he was putting on an act, but for the time being, I will trust what I saw.

This world was not a good place, especially for those who cultivate. You are already going against the heavens by trying to become immortal. But mainly because anything can turn a person against you at any time. A person could have been your friend for years, by one treasure could turn them into a mortal enemy. This was the life I had chosen.

The main street of Xiaguang Town was bustling with many people. Merchants were selling their goods and people were walking around browsing their wares. It was much different than the little village I grew up in in my short life so far.

I did wish to look around a bit, but since we had been sitting for so long, I wanted to make sure my mother could get a decent rest. And in order to do that I first needed money. “Mother, let’s go to the side alley. I will let you back into the space so you can rest before I go try to sell some pills.”

“Ruo’er be careful.” My mother had a worried look on her face. I smiled and squeezed her hand. “Don’t worry. You saw just now. Not even the guards can defeat me.”

“Mm.. But Ruo’er, you should not act with violence unless it is absolutely necessary. You do not know who is backed up by who here. You said it yourself that there are two clans fighting each other in secret here.” My mother’s words did give me a reminder.

“I know. I will be careful from now on.” I reassured my mother before sending her into the pagoda. Only then did I exit the alley and head down the street. When I spotted a guard, I stopped and asked: “Sir, can you direct me to the closest medical pavilion?”

 The guard turned and looked right over me, which made me giggle as I called out to him. “Down here.”

“Ah! Little miss! I thought I was hearing a ghost for a second. You want a medical pavilion right? The closest one is the Benevolent Heart Pavilion but I do not recommend them. I would suggest going a little further down to the Heaven’s Pavilion. They are much more reputable.” The guard made me raise an eyebrow. I never expected him to be so kind to actually look out for my well-being. I guess being young has some perks.

“Thanks, I will head there now.” With that, I cupped my hands and gave a slight bow to the guard before heading down the street.