Unintended Immortality

Chapter 52: The Jianghu is Everywhere

A group of people gathered around the stove, eating beef with chopsticks in one hand and gnawing on steamed buns brought by Chen Han and his wife with the other.

The woman was a jianghu person who always did not take things to heart. Moreover, she had provided meat and did the work, so she had no reservations. She was eating the meat in big bites without concern for etiquette or her image.

The Chen family was initially somewhat restrained. After all, they had only provided the steamed buns, and they already owed the Daoist priest and the heroine a favor. Now, they even had to cook for their family, which really made them feel very apologetic. However, Song You's cooking skills were truly ahead of this era. Faced with such delicious food, their restraint lessened.

Song You's cooking skills were indeed exceptional. Not to mention this era, even in the previous world with such a variety of seasonings, abundant and easy-to-obtain ingredients, and convenient information exchange, the level of cooking skills nationwide was still uneven, with no shortage of culinary low points.

No one wanted to admit that the food from their province was bad, but most acknowledged that people from certain provinces were better at cooking.

This was even more true for this era.

Song You even spent a lot of money buying spices. In this era, mainly the wealthy used spices for cooking regularly. Common folks had to be frugal even with salt, and couldn’t afford to be particular.

“Burp…” The woman finished drinking up the soup. Chen Han and his wife hurriedly stepped forward to voluntarily clean the pot.

“Shall we go together?”

The woman glanced at Song You, “We already know each other, and we had a meal together. We're going the same way. If we don't travel together, we'll keep running into one another on the road. Should we greet one another each time?”

“You’re right.” Song You also nodded in agreement.

When they resumed their journey, they had gone from one to a party of six. Chen Han and his wife were taking their children back to their hometown to see their elders. The children couldn't walk fast, making the journey much slower than before.

The woman's personality was quite lively.

Although she seemed calm when they first met, after traveling together for a while, she probably couldn't repress herself any longer and revealed her playful and active nature…

Sometimes she would run over to talk to the calico cat, sometimes she would inspect Song You's horse, sometimes she would tease the Chen family's children, sometimes she would lie on her horse in a daze, sometimes she would jump onto a roadside boulder to gaze ahead, and sometimes she would stay behind alone to slice grasses with her saber for fun. When the Chen family’s children got tired, she would put one of them on her horse to ride. She was a kind person.

Song You saw the endearing side of jianghu people in her.

In this era, common folks lived hard lives. Girls married young, boys took on family responsibilities early, and everyone appeared prematurely aged under life's burdens. Such a personality could probably only be found in the jianghu, and only the jianghu of this world.

In the afternoon, they encountered mountain bandits again.

The woman, being a responsible jianghu person, naturally did not shy away from dealing with jianghu matters. She immediately took the lead and went forward to negotiate.

Song You found the process quite interesting…

First, they greeted each other with cupped hands and acknowledged that they’ve both worked hard. Then they humbly introduced themselves. This was the way of the jianghu.

The bandits couldn't just let her approach and talk either. They tested her with some moves and words, which seemed to be a kind of custom among jianghu people, so it did not feel like an offense or provocation.

Once she dealt with everything, it indicated she was indeed one of them and it also proved that she indeed had the skills to demand equal dialogue, thus making negotiation possible.

It was also a special time.

The Great Liujiang Gathering was imminent, and Anqing was less than a hundred li away, attracting numerous jianghu people.

Usually, these bandits wouldn’t necessarily let even jianghu people from famous schools and major sects go easily. If they were traveling alone, they would probably have to leave something behind. However, disciples of famous schools and major sects usually didn't come alone to the gathering at this time. If not treated respectfully, a large group might come seeking justice, and other jianghu people who heard about it might also come to join in the commotion.

At least, the bandits they encountered that day were smart.

However, the woman was not alone either.

The bandit leader pointed to the group behind and asked, “Who are these people? This place has little profit to offer to begin with. If you pass by our mountains, we’ll let it go. But are you taking them with you too?”

“They are my uncle, aunt, and cousins. As for that Daoist, he lives a life of poverty. Why bother with him?”

“Really?”

“Our Xishan Sect came for the Great Liujiang Gathering. My sect elders and brothers have all gone to Anqing. If I didn't have to pick up relatives, why would I go alone to that remote Lingbo County?”

“Xishan Sect is in Yizhou. Why are your uncle and aunt here?”

“They are unfortunate people just seeking a way to survive.” She glanced at the bandits, cupped her hands, and sighed, “Like you brave men, who would be up on the mountain if there was a way to earn a living below the mountain?”

Regardless of the truth of these words, they really resonated with the bandits.

Becoming a mountain bandit wasn't glamorous.

Robbery often involved bloodshed, deepening their sins by the day, and their nights were restless. Every year, government soldiers came to cut down bandits. Who knew whether their turn would come that year?

They looked at one another in dismay and cupped their hands. “Farewell, heroine...”

“No need for thanks. Until we meet again!” She returned the greeting, then came back and led the group through.

Song You passed by slowly, simply lost in thought.

What the woman said was a mix of truth and falsehood, with truth in the falsehood and falsehood in the truth, reflecting the helplessness of life in this era. Her every word and action seemed to follow jianghu etiquette to the letter. Upon closer reflection, whether it was the initial respect she showed, the seemingly unintentional revelation of her sect as intimidation later, or the final heartfelt exchange, it was the mutual combination of these elements that allowed her to pass through in the simplest way.

Had they fought, it would have been bloody and troublesome.

Victory was also not guaranteed.

“Heroine.”

“Yes? Calling me?”

“Who else?”

“Hey! No longer addressing me formally?”

“You seem to prefer ‘heroine.’”

“How did you know?”

“I could tell.”

“How could you tell?”

“From your expression and tone.”

“You...”

She recognized that these were her own words that she had said to him last night and grinned. Then she asked, “Why did you call me?”

“I want to hear about this jianghu from you.”

“Why do you want to hear about the jianghu?”

“If I'm traveling the world, how can I miss the jianghu?”

“Fair enough.” She nodded, acknowledging, then smiled, “But that's not something that can be explained in a few words.”

“It will probably take until tomorrow night to reach Anqing.”

“Ten wen.”

“Clink...” Song You took out a small handful of wen from his bosom, counted out ten, and handed them over.

She took them and began to speak.

Song You listened quietly, organizing his thoughts.

Jianghu in ancient books was a very broad concept, meaning “all” or “infinite”, the opposite of "limited."

Later, when Buddhism was introduced into the country, Buddhist monks needed to preach and communicate with one another. They often traveled in the region of the Three Rivers and Two Lakes, and this was referred to as “walking the jianghu”.

Later on, this concept was extended and amplified, gradually becoming not just associated with Buddhist monks, but belonging to the whole world. At this point, it had become a term that stood in contrast to “the imperial court” and “the authorities.” Though it wasn't as vast as the jianghu described in ancient books, it had still become a very broad term.

Monks, Daoists, traveling merchants, and porters were also jianghu.

So were mountain bandits and city thugs.

Jianghu included gangs among the people, transporters of salt and transporters of goods by water, even mountain recluses.

Jianghu was the myriad aspects of the world, as well as the warmth and coldness of human relationships. The various major factions and their fighting and killing only constitute a very small part of it.

Speaking of jianghu forces, they were indeed diverse and flourishing.

However, most were not like in martial arts novels, where everyone was either practicing or teaching martial arts, as if their sole purpose and way to survive was to train expert fighters. Martial arts were just one of the tools to help earn a living, but martial arts alone cannot be used directly as a means of living. The primary purpose of the establishment of these groups was still to make money, or to help themselves make money more effectively.

There were armed guard agencies that mainly relied on protecting goods for income.

There were organizations like the water transport gangs and salt gangs, which were initially secret societies spontaneously formed by laborers, sailors, and smugglers to protect their own interests.

There were local gangs with various ways of making money.

There were those established through faith, such as some Daoist and Buddhist temples where people may study just martial arts instead of magic, or a bit of both. There were also sects founded under the banner of certain deities or even by outright illegal religions.

There were also martial arts schools relying on recruiting disciples and teaching martial arts for income.

Some nobles, generals, and ministers would also support some jianghu sects for various reasons. Some of these jianghu sects even consisted of people with mixed ancestry, showing subtle features similar to those from the Western Regions or the northern tribes.

Onlythe jianghu was dangerous. The laws were inadequate and there were also demons and ghosts. Besides understanding the rules, one also needed some martial arts skills to serve as assets to travel the jianghu.

The Xishan Sect was located in Yizhou at the foot of snowy mountains. Its mountain gate was three hundred li away from Yidu. It had gradually expanded by relying on the flourishing economy and culture of Yizhou over the past few centuries. It could be considered one of the major sects in jianghu. According to this woman, it was among the greatest forces in jianghu, known for its disciples' martial prowess.

When traveling in the jianghu, few people resorted to drawing sabers and killing unless necessary.

Negotiation was preferred if possible.

Take these bandits, for example. In the words of the woman, most bandits in the world were evildoers. If you count them, there were plenty who deserved to die. Yet, taking a life carried great weight after all. Even such a large court must report death sentences to the central authorities and have them approved by the emperor personally. They divide the guilt of murder into many parts, sharing it among everyone for peace of mind. Normally, who would willingly take someone's life rashly?

Most ordinary jianghu travelers had their hardships. Some might even have families to support. Killing someone just due to a minor dispute could have grave consequences.

This could be considered a common jianghu mindset in this era.

Song You pondered while listening.

Not discussing right or wrong, good or bad, just this common mindset and philosophy of jianghu people in this era alone was already more or less a glimpse into the era. It was enough for him to contemplate and gain insight from.

By the next afternoon, they reached the old ferry crossing.

It was where Song You had disembarked previously.

Chen Han respectfully said to Song You and the woman, “Thank you both for your help along the way. It's still a few dozen li of mountain road to Anqing. Traveling by water isn't necessarily faster, but it's more comfortable. Why not join us on the boat and disembark at the Anqing ferry crossing? We'll cover the boat fare as a token of gratitude though it isn’t much.”

The woman glanced at Song You. “What’s your choice?”

“Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Chen, but I originally came by water. I should continue by land to Anqing.” Song You replied as he cupped his hands.

“Just as I thought!”

The woman smiled as she cupped one fist in the other hand at Chen Han, “No need for formalities. The mountains are high, the road is long, until we meet again in the jianghu. We’ll part here. If one day I happen to be down-and-out and pass by your door, a meal will suffice.”

“I will always remember this kindness.” Chen Han said as he bowed deeply to them.

“Hurry along...” She didn't stop him from bowing but accepted it graciously. She just waved her hand repeatedly, urging him to leave quickly.