Mahal thought he had muddled through the officials’ inspection. But at dusk, Qiao Hu went to his house again. When asked if he was stopping the refugees from joining the festival, Mahal began humming and hawing.
He tried to excuse his behavior, “I don’t mean to stop them, but there are so many refugees here. If all of them participate, I’m afraid the farmers will complain. After all, every family will kill a goat to share that day, but the refugees haven’t made any contributions.”
Qiao Hu snorted, “They haven’t made any contributions? Haven’t they herded goats for you? I heard that they don’t have salaries but only get two naans a day. Now it is the Festival of Sacrifice. If you don’t let the people celebrate it, what the point of having it? Just to please Heaven?”
Mahal was speechless.
Qiao Hu continued, “Go and tell the refugees that all of them can celebrate the festival tomorrow. The goats can eat grass by themselves. They don’t need to be fed, do they?”
“…”
Mahal could only do as Qiao Hu said. Dati and Guri were also required to go with him.
…
Tarico’s house.
Tarico was braising fish at the door. After eating the fish that Ye Xiaoxian made, he had also braised fish several times. The fish he cooked tasted better and better and was now similar to hers.
As he enjoyed his dinner, a servant from the Liu family came up to him. The servant was called Wu. He usually met Tarico while fishing, so they were now acquainted with one another. Although Wu was not fluent in the local dialect, Tarico could understand his meaning by his body language.
“Tarico, good evening,” Wu greeted with a big smile.
Tarico said hospitably, “Have you had dinner? Sit down and join me.”
Wu waved his hand. “No, thanks. I can eat back home. I came here for the goat.”
“I’ll slaughter the goat tomorrow morning. If you want it earlier, you can come here to take it then.” Tarico thought Wu came to confirm the thing about the goat. After all, it sounded like a joke to sell a goat for one silver tael.
But Wu laughed. “No, we don’t need your goat. We have goats now.”
“Oh?” Tarico was surprised.
Wu stretched out three fingers and said with excitement, “The Seventh King came here and gave us three goats.”
“He’s here again?” Tarico asked.
“Yes! Thanks to him, we have three goats now. Hahaha! So we don’t need your goat and you can keep it for yourself.” Wu said this out of good will. Now that the Seventh King had given them the goats, Tarico then wouldn’t suffer any loss.
But hearing this, Tarico looked somewhat upset.
“Tarico, are you all right?” Wu sensed that Tarico was not happy.
But Tarico just smiled and said, “I’m fine. Now that you have goats, you don’t need to buy mine.”
Wu didn’t think much about the reason why Tarico was unhappy. “Apart from goats, the Seventh King has also brought us many other things. He’s such a nice man. I didn’t expect him to remember us after the journey, let alone visit us so frequently.”
Tarico smiled in reply.
After Wu left, Tarico looked at the braised fish in the pot, but he suddenly had no appetite for it.
…
The Festival of Sacrifice finally kicked off. It was a very grand occasion. All the people gathered on the grassland, facing the rising sun. In front of them were dozens of alters filled with roast mutton, fruit and snacks. The local wizards and seniors murmured on the stage, dancing a strange kind of dance. It was said to dispel any bad luck from the previous year and welcome good luck for the new year.
The refugees were standing at the back with solemn expressions. No one made a noise or laughed at these strange rituals. After all, this was a meaningful ceremony for the locals. Li Chengru was also standing quietly in the front. As a distinguished guest, he could enjoy the best position.
When the ceremony was over, all the people became relaxed. Mahal announced tht it was time for revelry – eating and drinking!
People took back their roast mutton, set up the grills and used the fire to reheat the food. Then, they cut off large slices of meat to savor while drinking the local sorghum liquor.
In theory, Li Chengru should dine with the tribal leader. But he just exchanged banalities with Mahal and let the other officials eat with Mahal’s family. Then, he went to join the Xiaos and the Lius. He was like their old friend who they could sometimes joke with. So Squire Liu asked him with a smile, “Your highness, why did you come here?”
Li Chengru looked at Ye Xiaoxian and said, “I’m not used to anyone else’s mutton but Little Ye’s, just like we ate in that inn.”
It was true that different people had different tastes. The Xiaos and the Lius were also impressed by the roasted mutton that night and were eager to eat once more. How could they resist the temptation of Ye Xiaoxian’s food?
Ye Xiaoxian just smiled. When the fire was ready, she applied the prepared seasoning to the mutton. Slowly, the mutton began to sizzle and smell delicious. They kept swallowing as they waited expectantly for the moment to devour it.
…
At this moment, Tarico was eating with Dilly’s family. But the mutton on his plate seemed tasteless to him. He looked at Ye Xiaoxian from time to time. As she roasted the mutton, the others showed great trust in her. Even the Seventh King was waiting patiently by her side.
Dilly noticed his absent-mindedness and suddenly understood something.
Has Tarico taken a fancy to Little Ye?
Dilly’s husband didn’t know why Tarico was looking over at Little Ye and her companions so frequently. He said somewhat enviously, “I heard that the Seventh King is their friend. They met him during their escape, but only when they reached Baoning city did they find out that he was a king. Hahaha!”
The others also laughed. Dilly’s son said, “They’re so lucky.”
“The southern people always say good things happen to good people. Perhaps it’s their kindness that has brought them such good luck.”
“The Seventh King looks like a good man. I thought he was an arrogant guy going anywhere by carriage, but he’s actually so easygoing.”
“…”
The more they praised Li Chengru, the sadder Tarico began to feel.
…
The roast mutton was finally ready. The good texture and seasoning, as cooked by Ye Xiaoxian, made the mutton even more delicious than last time. As soon as the meat was put onto their plates, they bit into it excitedly and fiercely.
Once living a disciplined life, Liu Qianqian and Xiao Baozhu were used to eating in a cultivated way. But at that moment, they had oil all over their lips while gobbling down the mutton. Li Chengru also forgot about his image while faced with this delicacy.
Squire Liu asked, “It’s said there will be a dance performance this afternoon and also an archery contest tomorrow. Will you participate in these activities?”
Li Chengru replied without hesitation, “Of course.” He loved the scenery and the people here very much. Every time he saw the mountains, grasslands and the grazing goats, he would feel more than relaxed and comfortable. He hoped that he could stay here as long as possible.
…
Li Chengru didn’t watch the performance that afternoon. Instead, he was having a sound sleep in the yurt. Since he was full and drunk after the morning meal, he couldn’t be bothered to watch the show. He said he had seen such a dance many times in the capital and had no interest in it.
Ye Xiaoxian, Xiao Baozhu, Li Hongmei and Liu Qianqian all went to see the performance. After all, it was held only once a year.
The first dance was performed by Guri and some other girls. To their surprise, Guri was the lead dancer in the middle. The other girls sometimes had to struggle to lift her, as the choreography required.
Liu Qianqian couldn’t help teasing. “Without her family background, Guri wouldn’t be the lead dancer. I feel so embarrassed for her. Each of the girls around her is more beautiful than her!”
Ye Xiaoxian didn’t like to gossip behind people’s backs, but she agreed with Liu Qianqian this time. What an obvious abuse of power!
Liu Qianqian continued, “Look, why can’t they lift a lighter and prettier girl? It must be very tiring to hold up a fat woman!”
Again, Ye Xiaoxian agreed.
Guri always felt that she was charming when she was dancing. But some of the sexy poses were not so sexy when made by her. While she was twisting her body, she sneaked a look at Tarico from time to time.
Since Tarico was with other young men, Ye Xiaoxian didn’t know who Guri was looking at exactly. Anyway, it was one of them.
Tarico would also perform a local dance with his brothers. It was a combination of strength and gentleness.
As these men went onto the stage, the local women began screaming and cheering. Ye Xiaoxian and her companions were too shy to cry out like that, but they also felt more than excited.
It was still cold in the early spring, but the male dancers wore sleeveless clothes to show their muscles. In this sense, it was indeed a show of strength and beauty. Since each of these men were carefully chosen according to their abilities, their dance was much better than the last one.
Liu Qianqian exclaimed with excitement, “Wow, look at that, and that… Wait, isn’t he the fishing man? As I see, he dances the best!”
In the last part of the performance, the men and women would dance together around a bonfire. They could dance however they liked.
But there was also a hidden rule. If a woman liked a man, she could dance to his side to see whether he would cooperate with her. A man could also do this to show his affection to a woman.