Chapter 507: On the Road

"A rich fragrance permeates the cosmos, a clear scent burns and reaches the Heavenly Gate, the golden bird streaks like an arrow, the jade rabbit's light shines like a wheel."

Lu Zhuangyuan, with one foot propped on the cart and the other dangling, was stuffing tobacco into his dry pipe when he heard the familiar chanting. He couldn't help but frown.

Following the sound, he saw his youngest son, Lu Xiucai, by the bonfire, with his rear end sticking out, holding an incense stick, chanting and meticulously drawing something on a canvas.

"Hmph! Praying and chanting every day, yet he's not even this filial to his own father!"

However, no matter what Lu Zhuangyuan said, Lu Xiucai in the distance diligently continued reciting the main incantation.

"The Southern and Northern Dippers illuminate the sky, five-colored clouds dance in profusion. In the Ziwei Palace, a sacred hall opens, and the Peach Blossom Maidens invite the immortals. A thousand-mile journey, the incense offers invitation, flying clouds and galloping horses descend. We humbly receive the three benevolent masters of this altar, and all the sacred, unborn venerable ones."

After Lu Xiucai, filled with gratitude, diligently recited the chant three times, he carefully inserted the burnt-out incense stick into the soil.

He bowed three times towards the canvas. As he put the painting away, Gouwa, who had been lounging nearby, rubbed the sleep from his eyes and opened them.

"Xiucai, what are you howling about every day? You woke me up early this morning. You never howled like this when you practiced the White Lotus Sect's spirit-beating techniques."

Lu Xiucai looked at him with disdain. "The first stage of cultivation is complete; now, of course, I must cultivate the Second Spiritual Diagram. The cultivation method is naturally different."

"Even though you have those few things your master gave you to show off, that's as far as you'll ever go in life. You can only rely on external objects and won't advance another half-step. I'm different; I get a little stronger every day. Soon, I'll be able to surpass you!"

Gouwa impatiently waved his hand as if shooing away a fly, then turned over, intending to go back to sleep.

"Yi yi ah ah ah."

The apprentices of the Lu family troupe were doing their uneven voice exercises, causing Gouwa to painfully cover his head with a pillow.

In such circumstances, he naturally couldn't fall back asleep. Annoyed, he suddenly sat up and walked towards the stream to wash up.

The weather gradually warmed, and the stream's water was refreshingly cool, making it pleasant to stand in.

When Gouwa finally ambled back, Luo Juanhua, Lu Juren's wife, had already prepared breakfast. Today's meal consisted of wild vegetables with bread soaked in soup, accompanied by salted dried radishes.

Gouwa, with eyes half-closed, took a bite of the salted radish and a sip of the soaked bread, then shook his head. "Far worse than the kid's cooking."

Luo Juanhua wasn't one to indulge him. Having spent so much time together, she had figured out Gouwa's status in Niuxin Village. He was nothing but a joker.

"Oh, Master Gou, this is the food we serve in the Lu family troupe. If you don't like it, you can go back."

"Sigh, do you think I want to be here? Elder Brother Li hasn't returned for so long. If the village hadn't insisted that someone go out to gather information, would I bother to come out and suffer with you? Not a speck of oil this morning; how are we supposed to travel all day?"

"Didn't you earn a lot of money performing plays? How come I only see you earning but not spending?" Gouwa grumbled as he picked up his bowl of soaked bread and began to eat.

Hearing this, Lu Zhuangyuan, as if performing a magic trick, produced a salted duck egg from somewhere. He first put the oily yolk into his three-year-old granddaughter's bowl, then placed the egg white into Gouwa's bowl.

"Master Cao, you absolutely cannot leave! With all this chaos and war, the Lu family troupe depends on you and my son for protection. If you go back, this old man truly wouldn't dare to travel to Shangjing."

Hearing this, Lu Xiucai, who was nearby, instantly stood up. "Old geezer! Who the hell are you calling a dog?!"

Seeing that they were about to quarrel again, Gouwa reluctantly stepped in as a mediator.

He was just speaking his mind; if Gao Zhijian and Xiaoman found out he had returned halfway without even reaching Shangjing, they would surely curse him to death.

The simple breakfast ended amidst the squabbling, and the three carriages of the Lu family troupe began to drive along the dirt road towards Shangjing.

"Shangjing! That's the imperial capital of Daliang! I heard it's the largest city in the world; it must be much grander than Yinling City," Luo Juanhua said, her eyes filled with longing. She had heard of the place name when she was young, but it had always remained a legend.

Following her lead, the entire Lu family troupe became lively, chattering excitedly about the exaggerated legends of Shangjing they had heard from peddlers.

As Lu Juren silently walked, holding his daughter like an old ox, he saw his father approach him.

"Juren, we've earned quite a bit of money here in Daliang. When we reach Shangjing, let's inquire about land prices. If we don't owe too much, we can borrow a bit more from the young Daoist priest, and then buy a theater in the biggest city in the world!"

As he spoke of "theater," Lu Zhuangyuan's eyes practically glowed. One could say he had lived his entire life for those two words.

It had always been an unattainable dream, but upon arriving in Daliang, he had finally seen hope.

"Once the theater is built, we'll move our ancestral graves there. Oh, just thinking about it makes me so happy!"

While Lu Zhuangyuan was lost in his pleasant thoughts, Gouwa leaned over. "Aha, I knew it! No wonder you agreed so readily back in Niuxin Village. So it wasn't just about finding Elder Brother Li."

"Cough, well, that too, that too. It's just that I believe the young Daoist priest is immensely powerful; there's no need to worry about him. If something could truly stump him, you wouldn't necessarily be able to help anyway."

At this moment, Li Huowang was, in Lu Zhuangyuan's mind, practically a land immortal, destined to ascend to godhood very soon.

"Heh, you never know. What if he has another episode on the way?"

The group continued walking and talking, but their enthusiasm didn't last long. As the sun climbed higher in the sky, everyone became too hot to speak.

When they spotted a pond at the edge of a village, they were overjoyed, rushing over to wash their faces and drink water.

"Father, we've finally found a village; let's borrow a stove there. The sun is so scorching; we can't possibly build a fire outside," Luo Juanhua complained to Lu Zhuangyuan as she wiped her daughter's face.

Lu Zhuangyuan thought for a moment and nodded. "Hmm, don't offer money yet. First, ask if there's any business in the village. If there is, we can save on a meal."

Cooler now, they led their carriages towards the village. It was a large village, and many people came out, bowls in hand, pointing at the Lu family troupe from their doorways.

Lu Zhuangyuan didn't approach them directly but instead quietly observed the doorways. To get a free meal, he had to find the wealthiest household in the village; ordinary farmers who dug for food wouldn't have spare money for a play.

After wandering around for a while, Lu Zhuangyuan's eyes suddenly lit up. Inside a fence, bundles of tobacco leaves were drying.

He asked an old man inside, who was smoking a water pipe from a large bamboo tube, "What's the price for your tobacco leaves? I'd like to buy some; I've just run out."

"What? So expensive! Sir, I don't need you to cut it, nor to dry it; I'll process it myself."

Lu Zhuangyuan persisted, eventually buying a large handful of freshly picked, still green tobacco leaves for five copper coins.

"Hehe," Lu Zhuangyuan chuckled, cradling the tobacco leaves in his hands. With this much tobacco, and a little chili leaf added, he could make it last more than half a year if he smoked sparingly.

"Father! Father! There's some noise over there, sounds like gongs!"