Mo Shan glanced at him. Her eyes looked blank and even a little confused. It was clear that she was really not very good at it, though she was a world-famous Calligraphy Addict.
Ning Que forced himself not to laugh. He looked at the dry meat in his hands and began to chat with the Desolate woman.
He was very good at chatting. The reason why he could survive in such a dangerous environment since childhood was that he was ruthless enough and good at flattery, which was another important quality. So every general in the City of Wei, His Majesty the Emperor, Master Yen Se and the female professor Senior Sister beside the east window all liked him very much.
Therefore, soon the Desolate woman, who lowered her head and dealt with the animal skin, began to chat with him enthusiastically. Although her accent was slightly weird, they had no problem conversing when both of them slowed down.
“There are a lot of fish in Hot Sea, a wide range of fish.”
The Desolate women grabbed a pile of dry grasses and wiped out the bloodstains on her hands. And then she made a gesture by separating her arms. “My man has seen such a long fish. But talking about deliciousness, every annual festival of sacrificial light, the patriarch will send brave men to dive into the sea in search of roe fish. That kind of fish is really tasty.”
Ning Que put aside the dry meat in his hands and curiously asked, “Roe fish?”
“Yes, we call it roe fish because its roes are big.”
The Desolate women stretched out her fingers and drew in the air exaggeratedly. And then she shook her head and said, “After coming to the south, we raised more sheep than before. But it’s inconvenient to eat fish.”
From the conversation, Ning Que knew that in spring Desolate Men moved southwards from Hot Sea in a cold area and robbed many meadows of the palace. Before the winter, they have reserved enough forage as well as sheep. But probably due to tradition, their tribe still sent Desolate Men to hunt around.
Cold wind and pieces of snow hit the tent. It made a dull sound in the wind as the tent was painted with a kind of peculiar paste. Ning Que thought of the previous situations seen along the way and felt somewhat puzzled. So he asked, “Even if you came here to hunt, you didn’t have to come to such a faraway place. It’s always unsafe to be far from the tribe.”
He had hunted in Min Mountain since he was young. So he was well aware of the dangers associated with hunting away from one’s tribe.
The Desolate woman said, “This is a tribal rule. In the winter ceremony, one must live alone throughout the winter.”
Ning Que asked curiously, “What is the winter ceremony?”
As soon as he finished his words, he suddenly raised his brows. And Mo Shanshan who had been quietly sitting beside also looked towards the door.
A heavy curtain was lifted up and a short figure rushed in, delightedly shouting. “I’m back.”
It was a thin little boy with a fat round-headed badger on his shoulder. His face was full of joy and pride. But when he saw Ning Que and Mo Shanshan, he suddenly became alarmed.
“They’re guests.” The Desolate woman stepped forward to take over the prey on his shoulder. She used her fingertips to gently pull it, swiftly blocking a bloody wound of the badger, and then patted the little boy’s head with a smile.
Ning Que guessed that the boy was no more than 12 years old. He could not help but be shocked that the boy was actually able to hunt such a big cold badger that in such a cold weather. And then he remembered the life in Min Mountain when he was younger than the boy many years ago and could not help the emotions welling up within him.
“This is my son.”
The Desolate woman looked at the two astonished Central Plains people and laughed heartily, saying, “The winter ceremony I just mentioned is his ceremony. According to the tribal rule, in the winter when a kid turns twelve, his parents will accompany him into the mountains to hunt. The kid can be regarded as an adult if he is able to hunt half a cart of prey before the North Hot Sea thaws.”
She looked at the little boy sternly but could not conceal the tenderness in her eyes. She said, “Next year, he will become a warrior and then will have his own family. Therefore, this winter ceremony is the last time for us to be with him.”
A 12-year-old Desolate boy would become a warrior? Before Ning Que got out of such a shock, he immediately remembered her previous words of “have his own family” and could not help feeling envious. He said, “We Tangs can’t get married so early.”
Upon hearing the word of “Tangs”, the little Desolate boy who had been somewhat precarious suddenly became more nervous and subconsciously wanted to hide behind his mother. But he remembered that he was having a winter ceremony and would soon become a tribe warrior. So he forcibly summoned the courage to walk in front of her mother and glared at Ning Que mercilessly.
The Desolate woman slapped the back of his head heavily and reproached harshly. “Does a fat Badger count? You need half a cart of prey in the winter ceremony. It’s fine if the cart is a little one like the one back home. But have you not seen the big one pushed over by the man in autumn? The cart those barbarians use is so big. It’s not easy to fill half the cart.”
The little Desolate boy was kicked out of the tent by his mother’s stick and intimidation. He carried a wooden bow and arrows and once again started the difficult hunting that was compulsory for one to become a Desolate warrior. Ning Que listened to the Desolate woman’s conclusion on home-made carts and barbarians cart and could not help but laugh happily.
The Desolate woman bowed her head and continued working. She held a piece of smooth wood and kept rolling it on the fur at her feet. From time to time she raised her arm to wipe the sweat on her forehead. Ning Que thought of those prey that had been covered with snow outside the tent and thought that this kind of work was really hard. So he asked, “Sister, where is his father?”
“He died in the war with those barbarians in spring.”
The Desolate woman did not lift her head or change her tone. She still spoke in a hard and straight tone as if she was telling a story that had taken place a long time ago and had nothing to do with herself and even was nearly forgotten.
Suddenly, she looked up and stared at Ning Que, asking, “You… will the Tangs come and fight with us?”
“Probably not?” Ning Que looked at the woman’s facial expression and said in an aggravated tone, “Certainly not.”
It would be a decision made by the emperor and the imperial ministers whether the Tang Empire would send its armies to combat the Desolate Men. Ning Que certainly did not know about it. But whether it would happen or not, he could only say it would not and gave an absolute negative answer in front of Desolate Men.
Mo Shanshan did not say anything but just glanced at him again.
The Desolate woman was startled for a moment after hearing his reply and gave a rare smile. She said, “That’s great.”
Mo Shanshan looked at her quietly and suddenly asked, “Even if the Tangs don’t come, there are many other countries in Central Plains, especially the Divine Hall. Aren’t the Desolate Man worried?”
The Desolate woman leaned forward and pressed her weight onto the wood piece against the animal skin. And then she muttered. “As long as the Tangs don’t come, there’s nothing to be worried about.”
It was dark and the snow outside the tent stopped. The Desolate boy came back. But this time he looked a little ashamed, for there was nothing in his hands or on his shoulder. The Desolate woman did not say anything but cooked a pot of hot soup. And then she found a lamb leg from a snow pile and put it into the pot with some spicy seasonings. The four ate the meal in silence.
“You can only stay here for a night.”
The Desolate woman put away an evisceration knife, looking at Ning Que, and added, “This is a rule of the winter ceremony.”
Ning Que expressed his gratitude and then took Mo Shanshan out of the tent.
The two walked toward a snow slope that was not far away.
At this moment, the snow and wind outside the tent stopped and the clouds had scattered. There were numerous stars in the lofty black night dome. Starlight was scattered on the hills of the wilderness which were covered with snow, reflecting a faintly blue light.
“From Chang’an City to the Wilderness, I have heard some stories on Desolate Man from the Instructor of the academy.”
Ning Que breathed in the cold and fresh air outside the tent, looking at faintly visible dry tree silhouettes under the star light, and then said, “Do you know why it’s called the Wilderness?”
Mo Shanshan had lived in the south of the Great River Kingdom for a long time. So she was very unfamiliar with this area. After hearing his question, she could not help but furrow her eyebrows slightly and said after a short moment of thought, “Isn’t it because this land is wild?”
“There are endless evergreen grasslands and all kinds of beautiful lakes. There are evergreen forests in the magnificent Tianqi Mountain and countless beasts living here. How could it be wild?”
Ning Que looked at her side profile and said smilingly, “The Wilderness is not wild. The reason why it is called the Wilderness is that this beautiful land belongs to Desolate Men.”
Mo Shanshan looked at his eyes and asked, “What do you want to say?”
“Nothing.”
Ning Que said, “You looked at me many times in the tent. What did you want to say?”
Mo Shanshan looked at him and said earnestly, “I want to remind you that they are Desolate Men, our enemies. Be careful not to forget your position when you try to get information and deliberately show goodwill to them.”
Ning Que laughed and looked at her after a pause. He said, “What position should I hold?”
Mo Shanshan asked blankly, “The Devil’s Doctrine survivors are certainly our enemies.”
Ning Que looked at her and asked puzzledly, “I have always wanted to know, why are the Devil’s Doctrine survivors our enemies?”
Before Mo Shanshan answered him, he continued. “I think the Devil’s Doctrine has a different cultivation method with Haotian Taoism sect’s. So it’s just at most regarded as a branch of the Divine Hall. How could it become an incarnation of evil?”
Mo Shanshan silently frowned and stared at his eyes, as if she was seeing a very strange thing. Her eyes were filled with a sadness and sympathy. She said, “Don’t let others hear you say so. Don’t… let me hear that.”
Judging from her expression, Ning Que felt that she was not joking and could not help but feel slightly startled.
After a long while, he stepped on a dry branch, driving it into the snow with his soles and said calmly, “In the past, you practiced in the Ink Lake and did not experience many worldly affairs. Now that you’ve seen so many ugly things and the Divine Hall people’s performance on the meadow, do you still feel reverence for the Divine Hall?”
Mo Shanshan looked at the stars in the night sky and blinked. Her eyes drifted as she tried to focus on something but found it difficult to do, making her look slightly disconcerted. After a long time, she said softly, “Even if I don’t revere the Divine Hall, I must revere Haotian.”
Ning Que followed her gaze, shaking his head, and then said, “Reverence is meaningless.”
Mo Shanshan looked back at him and said very seriously, “But the Devil’s Doctrine’s evil behaviors are real.”