Writeathon Status: 33 Chapters, 70,356 Words
Lei Lanfen knew two things with absolute surety. One, she needed those pills. An entire day’s worth of food for her mother and little brother was worth as much to her as a pile of gold would be. And, two, she could not steal from cultivators. Even if she somehow managed to get away, which seemed impossible, they’d pursue. When they caught her and executed her, that was it for not just her but for her entire family.
Only one recourse occurred to her, one that was both humiliating in the extreme and highly unlikely to work. But any chance of saving her family, no matter how slim and personally mortifying, was infinitely better than no chance.
She got down on her knees and kowtowed to Zou Ai three times. “Please, Esteemed Cultivator, may this lowly one have two more pills to feed this lowly one’s family?”
Silence stretched for a moment, and Lei Lanfen finally gathered enough courage to look at the target of her subordination, Zou Ai’s eyes glistened with tears.
“Please get up.”
Lei Lanfen knew she’d messed up but not exactly how badly, so she quickly got to her feet. What happened next stunned her.
Zou Ai embraced her in tight hug. “Oh, you poor dear. How bad is it? How little food are you and your family surviving on?”
Lei Lanfen tensed. She would not cry. She wouldn’t.
“I promise you that we’ll get you and your family fed, okay?” Zou Ai said as finally released Lei Lanfen.
“Me want hug. Me want hug,” the little one, who had been playing with some sort of wood toy in the corner, said.
Instead of running to his babysitter, however, the little guy came to Lei Lanfen and held his arms up. When a toddler wanted you to pick him up, you really didn’t have much of a choice but to comply. Or, at least, that was how she felt. So she picked him up.
And the little guy hugged her just as tight as his babysitter had. That somehow made her promise not to cry even more difficult.
When she finally put him down, Zou Ai said, “He likes you. You must have good karma.”
What an odd thing to say.
The young cultivator handed Lei Lanfen a small empty burlap bag, which confused her to no end.
“Hold it open, please.”
Despite not quite having a handle on her emotions, she complied, and Zou Ai poured a handful of the green pills and a handful of the red pills into the bag, confusing Lei Lanfen even more.
“These are yours. Any registered citizen can take as many as they want. Normally, we prefer not to give out this many at once, but…” Zou Ai shrugged.
Lei Lanfen didn’t know what to say, so she simply cupped her hands.
“Promise me one thing,” Zou Ai said. “No one is to take more than one of either of the pills in a single day, no matter how malnourished or starved they are, okay? There’s no toxicity or anything like that, but you don’t want to accidentally overnourish the body. That can be just as bad as under-nourishing it.”
“Yes, Esteemed Cultivator.” Lei Lanfen’s stomach chose that exact moment to growl again.
“Oh, you poor dear.”
Suddenly, a bowl of rice with some kind of meat appeared from thin air.
“Eat this,” Zou Ai said. “That’s ordinary pork, by the way, so perfectly safe for you. My kids can’t eat spirit beast meat yet, either, and I always have plenty of snacks and meals available for them.”
Even if Lei Lanfen had wanted to disobey a direct order from a cultivator—which she most assuredly didn’t—the smell of the rice and meat was so tempting that she couldn’t have resisted if she’d tried. It was more food than she’d seen at once in a long time, and it was, somehow, still warm. If she didn’t know better, she would have thought it came fresh from the kitchen.
She took her first bite and savored the taste. So good. So, so good. If that was how cultivators ate, maybe she should try to become one.
After a while, though, she became self-conscious as two cultivators watched her eat. That didn’t stop her, though. It was too good. But another thought did make her freeze with loaded chopsticks halfway to her mouth.
“May this lowly one take the bowl home with me, Esteemed Cultivator?”
For some reason, Zou Ai teared up again. “You eat all you want right now, okay? I’ll give you two more bowls to take home for your family.”
Lei Lanfen awkwardly cupped her hands, a task made harder while holding a bowl of rice and meat and chopsticks. “Gratitude, Esteemed Cultivator.”
The two cultivators patiently waited while she ate, and the little boy played in the corner. His toy, now that she paid attention to it, was decidedly odd. It had wheels on it but it wasn’t a carriage or wagon.
“May this one ask what the toy represents, Esteemed Cultivator?”
She wouldn’t normally have been so bold as to make such an inquiry from a cultivator, but Zou Ai had been nothing but nice. Besides, Lei Lanfen felt a bit of comradery between the two of them as they both were menial laborers who were sometimes bullied by their peers.
“Master calls it a tractor. None of us are entirely sure what it does, but it has something to do with farming. He keeps saying that he’ll make one for real one day, so that will be interesting.”
Lei Lanfen’s guess about Zou Ai being important was obviously correct. In a sect, being the disciple of someone important lifted one’s status. All the others were simply jealous, thus the bullying.
When Lei Lanfen finished eating, taking the time to pick out every single grain of rice, Zou Ai said, “I’m so happy you like our pills, but I don’t think that’s why you came her today.”
“This lowly one needs a job, Esteemed Cultivator.”
“Excellent. I’ll personally escort you over there. The first day is always slow, so you probably won’t even have to wait.”
Lei Lanfen cupped her hands. “Gratitude, Esteemed Cultivator.” She paused as an idea struck her. “This lowly one is good with kids. Does the Esteemed Cultivator need help with babysitting?”
That would be a fantastic outcome. She could work with someone who had already shown a kind heart, and Zou Ai could get some help with her assignment. It had to be tough both babysitting and doing a job as an alchemist.
Zou Ai smiled widely. “You would make an excellent babysitter, but I’m afraid that role is already filled.”
The other cultivator grinned as well. Lei Lanfen didn’t have any idea what was so amusing.
The walk across and slightly down the hall was quick, and true to her word, Zou Ai introduced Lei Lanfen to the man there. His smile was nice, but he drew her ire as he, too, referred to Zou Ai as “Senior Sister.”
“What did you have in mind, miss?” the man said after Zou Ai had left.
Lei Lanfen stifled her irritation. The man appeared to be the one who could truly help her gain employment, so she had to be on her best behavior. “Anything that can help me earn money for my family, Esteemed Cultivator.”
The man had a piece of metal that looked identical to the one Lin Tao had and tapped on it in the same manner. “Hmm. Spiritual roots not finished growing, I see.”
“Is that a problem, Esteemed Cultivator?”
That issue again! Her heart thudded. She was so close.
“We prefer to slot applicants into positions that complement their qi aspects as we’ve found that makes the work much more palatable and efficient.”
“Does that mean you can’t assign me anything, Esteemed Cultivator?” If she truly could get as many of the fasting pills as she needed, having to wait for a job was less dire than it would have been, but her family still needed money.
“Don’t worry, I’ll get you sorted. It’s just that I recommend you accept a temporary position until you finish growing. Once we know your aspect, I can get you a permanent posting.”
That didn’t sound too bad. As long as she could earn money, she didn’t care what she did. Well, within reason. With access to the fasting pills, she wasn’t desperate enough to do anything untoward. “Gratitude, Esteemed Cultivator.”
“The easiest thing for a temporary assignment is farming. There’s plenty of demand all the time, and you can work daily, weekly, monthly, whatever.”
She cupped her hands. “That is acceptable, Esteemed Cultivator.”
Farming sounded physically demanding, but as long as she had access to food—or fasting pills—and was paid, she wasn’t afraid of hard work. And working the fields was good, reputable work as well. She couldn’t be happier with the choice.
“Hmm, it’s quite warm in this area,” the man said. “Would you be willing to work in a hot climate? A lot of workers prefer something more temperate, so the pay is a bit more, five taels a week instead of four.”
More pay? Five whole taels? Sign her up!
“Of course, Esteemed Cultivator.”
“Fantastic. The farm is near Eighth Resonant Heavens Town. They’ll expect you tomorrow morning one hour after dawn. It’s a forty-five minute walk from the square, so please take that into account.”
Lei Lanfen’s mind went blank. Her schooling had taught her enough geography to know where her village was in comparison to all the major cities, town, and sects. Eighth Resonant Heavens Town was on the other side of the continent. It would take her weeks, probably over a month, just to get there. And even if the job waited for her, it would mean moving away from her family. Who would take care of them?
“Is there anything else I can assist you with, miss?” the man said.
“No, Esteemed Cultivator,” she said numbly. “Gratitude.”
Somehow, she found the door and left the room before collapsing against the wall, tears finally streaming from her eyes.
They’d set her up, made her hope rise. Five taels was a dream, a miracle. But, of course, there was a catch. She’d never make it to the farm, if it even existed. If she would have asked, the man probably would have told her that he’d help her get there if she … signed a contract of indenture where the took nine tenths of her pay for a decade or something equally nefarious.
How could she have been so, so stupid to fall for such a con?
“Lei Lanfen? Honey, what’s wrong?”
Through blurry eyes, she saw Zou Ai. “Nothing. Please go away.”
Lei Lanfen fully expected to be struck down for being so impolite to a cultivator, but she was so disappointed that she was beyond caring.
Instead of either killing her or going away, Zou Ai lowered herself to the floor, sitting right next to Lei Lanfen and putting an arm around her shoulder.
“Did they not have any jobs, dear? Let me take you back in. I’m sure we can get this straightened out.”
Zou Ai had seemed so kind. How could she be so duplicitous?
“You know exactly what’s wrong! That man held out a carrot of a job paying five taels a week. Five! Only it’s on the other side of the continent! Like I can just somehow jump over there tomorrow! Like I wouldn’t have to leave my family!”
Zou Ai pulled her closer. “Oh, dear. I’m so sorry for the misunderstanding.”
The woman was quite evidently shaking, and at first, Lei Lanfen thought she was sobbing. But she was chuckling, openly laughing. What a horrible, horrible woman.
“I know that trust doesn’t come easily to you, but would you mind coming with me for just a moment? Please? I did give you all those pills.”
Lei Lanfen tightened her grip on the bag. If those were taken away, the entire miserable day would have been a complete waste. They were the only hope she had of saving her family. With that threat hanging over her head, she had no choice but to reluctantly agree.
She strode behind Zou Ai as they walked to the strange arch near the middle of the square. When they reached it, she forced Lei Lanfen to say the name of the town near the farm.
“System,” Zou Ai said, “two to travel to Eighth Resonant Heavens Town, please.”
“Acknowledged,” a strange voice said from the strange rectangular piece of metal mounted to the arch. “Transport prepared for two to Eighth Resonant Heavens Town.”
Zou Ai then grabbed Lei Lanfen’s hand and pulled her toward the arch. After passing through, the square disappeared, and she found herself in a closed hallway with ten arches, one of which glowed green.
“Can you figure out where we should go next?” Zou Ai said.
Lei Lanfen didn’t knew what was happening, but she wasn’t an idiot. She led the way to the green arch. And another. And another.
After that one, she found herself in a square, but one much larger that the one in her village.
“Welcome to Eighth Resonant Heavens Town, dear,” Zou Ai said.
Huh?