Light Dance Jiajing

From that day on, Zaihou became more obedient and was particularly respectful in front of the Three Protectors. One day, he pestered the Three Protectors to learn kung fu. The Three Protectors thought about it and felt that he had no time to teach a disciple, but Zaihou might be the future emperor, so he could be a cheap master. So he told Zaihou not to call him master in front of others or tell anyone about it. From that day on, Zaihou began to practice martial arts. He had practiced riding and shooting since he was a child, and his body was well trained. It was not too late to start practicing martial arts now. Every day, except when he was on the road, he made good use of his time to practice.

Mei'er rested for more than half a month. She was no longer seriously ill. Zaihou was relieved when he saw that Mei'er's face was gradually getting rosy. Mei'er hugged Zaihou and said distressedly: "You are so hardworking, you want to be a man who can stand tall and proud!"

"I want to protect my sister. I will kill anyone who dares to hurt you." There was a chill in Zaihou's childish voice.

Meng'er choked for a moment and said, "I will protect myself. I just want you to grow up happily. Huo'er, do you understand?"

Zaihou stopped talking. He had long hated the boy who hurt his sister. He practiced kung fu so diligently just to seek revenge on him. Since he couldn't do it now, he would wait. When he had the strength, he would never watch Meng'er being bullied again. He seemed to have grown up these days, and suddenly realized that those books that Meng'er asked him to memorize were nonsense. The truth is that only powerful fists can do it. He was so weak that he could do nothing but endure it. He had to start accumulating strength to protect himself and his loved ones.

After days of traveling, the group finally approached the Hunan-Guizhou area. The further they went, the higher the mountains and denser the forests, and the heavier the humidity. Villages were scattered among the mountains and gullies. After crossing a ridge, it became increasingly sparsely populated. The three protectors ordered the team to stop. Further ahead was the Miao area, which is the mountainous area at the junction of Hunan, Guizhou and Chongqing. It borders the two lakes to the east, Bashu to the west, Guanzhong to the north, and Guangdong and Guangxi to the south. This area is inhabited by some ethnic minorities who live together with the Han people. After passing the area where the Han and Miao people live together, some Miao people live deep in the mountains. These people are not very friendly to the Han people and rarely come out of the mountains. People outside call them raw Miao.

Since the Hongwu period, the Ming court had never stopped fighting against the Miao people. During the Tianshun period, the army penetrated deeper into Miao territory, resulting in the killing of thousands of Miao people and the capture of hundreds of women. The situation has been relatively calm in recent years, although small-scale conflicts have occurred from time to time. Fortunately, the court did not launch major expeditions, so the Miao people were able to catch their breath. This time, Mei'er and his companions are going to the "Miao Sheng" area in Yunnan and Guizhou, where Miao uprisings have occurred frequently.

The further they went into the mountains, the more rugged the road became. The carriage could not move forward, so they had to unload the carriage and everyone rode horses through the mountains and gullies. Meng'er didn't know how many valleys they had passed. This area had long been deserted. There was always a sense of uneasiness walking on the ridges, and gradually, miasma rose. The group walked for half a day and found themselves back to the same place. The three guardians frowned and ordered the team to stop. At this time, a group of people and horses suddenly rushed out of the valley in front of them. The leader was a man on horseback, and behind him were two groups of people, all on foot. This man reined in his horse and stopped about ten feet away from Meng'er and the others.

Mei'er and her companions had been accustomed to the Miao people's attire along the way. They saw that all of them had cloth towels wrapped around their heads. The man on the horse wore a left-breasted shirt and straight-leg cloth trousers. The people following behind him all wore double-breasted shirts and straight-leg trousers with leggings tied below the knees. It was obvious that the man on the horse was the leader of this group. The native Miao people were extremely hostile to the Han people. Seeing that Mei'er and her companions were all Han people, the man's face had already sank, and his men also drew their swords as if they were facing a great enemy.

The third guardian was not at all flustered. He got off his horse and slowly walked towards the Miao people. He took out something like a token from his arms and handed it to the leader. The leader took the token and examined it carefully. After a while, he also jumped off his horse, and his guard was much lowered. He asked, "Are you from the Sanyang Sect? What's the matter with you here?"

The third guardian nodded and said, "My leader has always been on good terms with the Miao King. We are here for an important matter. Please take me to see your great wizard."

The young leader frowned and said, "Didn't your people just arrive the day before yesterday? Why are you looking for the Great Wizard again? Besides, the Great Wizard is not in the village now. Our King and the Great Wizard have left the mountain and will not be back for a few days."

The third Dharma Protector talked with the young leader for a few more words, then came over to ask the team to follow him. Meng'er found that the third Dharma Protector had a gloomy face and was thinking about something all the way. With the Miao people leading the way, they could save a lot of detours if they went deeper into the mountains. After they climbed over a small hill, the buildings of the Miao village near and far began to appear vaguely. There was always fog in the deep mountains and forests, and through the clouds that appeared and disappeared from time to time, the whole Miao village seemed to appear and disappear from time to time, making people feel as if they had entered a fairyland.

Passing through patches of woods and overlapping terraces, the Miao village surrounded by green mountains appeared more and more clearly before her eyes. Meng'er opened her mouth in amazement, and saw one-, two- or three-story wooden buildings on stilts built against the mountain, scattered high and low. The wooden houses where the Miao people live are very distinctive. Some are built one or two meters above the ground, and some are suspended in the air with tree stumps as frames. Each house is made of "trees", with wooden boards as walls and tree bark as tiles, blending in with the mountain scenery, accompanied by the gurgling sound of mountain springs and the occasional cries of chickens and dogs. Meng'er felt it was very quiet and charming.

The residence of the Miao King was also built against the mountain. From a distance, it was only slightly larger than ordinary houses, and there was not much difference in other aspects. Although the Miao people also had a sense of hierarchy, they were not as strict and clear as the Han people in terms of food, clothing, housing and transportation for different classes. To put it bluntly, the Miao King was just a tribal chief. Although the Miao King was not there, the soldiers standing guard outside the residence were not slacking off, and they were so far away that people consciously did not approach.

The residence of Meng'er and Zaihou was a stilt house. Meng'er felt very happy and walked around the house twice. She saw several neighboring houses, all surrounded by lush trees halfway up the mountain. There was a small stream in front of the house without any waves. Behind the house, there were towering mountains and mist in the distance. It was quiet and peaceful, as if it was a fairyland. Meng'er said unconsciously, "If I could live here forever, I wouldn't want to leave."

Zaihou lay on the hard bed and frowned, "Sister, this bed is too hard."

Meng'er ignored him and looked at the mountain scenery in the distance and said, "This is just what a paradise is like. It would be great if you and I could live in a place like this. Well, let's bring mother over as well." Zaihou curled his lips. He had had enough of living in the mountains. This area of ​​the mountain was damp and cold, not even as good as their cold palace in the suburbs of Beijing. Zaihou thought he didn't want to stay here.