The sun had barely risen when Bai Yuan's family began preparing to leave.
A dozen Bai family guards and several dozen tenant farmers would accompany him back to Bai Family Fort. The journey from Gaojia Village would take a full two shichen, roughly four hours, so naturally, everyone needed a proper meal before setting off.
Shan Shi'er borrowed pots and pans and set about preparing breakfast. White rice, bok choy, and shredded chicken went into several enormous cauldrons, where he cooked batch after batch of fragrant porridge. Before long, the delicious aroma had spread throughout the village, making even those who had already eaten feel hungry again.
Everyone ate until their stomachs were fit to burst.
For the tenant farmers, this was practically a life-changing experience. Some of them had never tasted food this good in their entire lives. As they gulped down the steaming porridge, tears began rolling down their dusty cheeks.
I've spent dozens of li running for my life, chased by bandits the entire way. Yet somehow, the food I'm eating while fleeing from death is better than anything I've ever had at home. What kind of world is this?
Another thought soon followed.
If we want to keep living like this, what exactly do we have to do?
Bai Yuan watched the farmers eating and let out a quiet sigh.
"My abilities are limited. I cannot lead all of you to prosperity through my own efforts alone. But don't lose heart. With Tianzun's blessing upon us, Bai Family Fort will surely rise again."
Before the caravan departed, Mrs. Bai and the young master climbed into the carriage. They had barely settled in when two heads suddenly popped out from behind the curtain, both wearing expressions of alarm.
"Master! Why is the carriage full of flour balls? There's nowhere left to sit!"
Bai Yuan glanced at them and snorted. "Endure it."
There was no room for negotiation. Half the carriage was packed with compressed balls of flour, leaving precious little space for its passengers. Worse still, the road was uneven, and every jolt sent the flour balls rolling into one another. Fine white powder rose into the air, quickly turning the carriage into something resembling a flour mill in the middle of a storm.
Mrs. Bai and her son seriously considered abandoning the carriage and walking several times. Unfortunately, four hours on foot was hardly an attractive prospect for two pampered members of the gentry.
So they gritted their teeth and endured it.
By the time the caravan finally reached Bai Family Fort, both of them stumbled out looking as though they had been rolled through a sack of flour. From head to toe, they had become two white people.
As expected, Bai Family Fort had been thoroughly looted. Furniture, bolts of cloth, grain, silver, and just about everything else of value had vanished. The halls stood empty, with little left to suggest that this had once been a wealthy household.
Bai Yuan didn't seem particularly troubled.
After dismissing the guards, he took his son to the rear courtyard. There, he approached a large bluestone slab embedded in the ground and pried it open, revealing a concealed passage.
At the bottom lay a secret cellar.
And inside that cellar were piles upon piles of gold, silver, and precious jewels.
Bai Yuan casually picked up a sack of valuables, climbed back out, and carefully returned the stone slab to its original position.
Hmph! My Bai family is far from finished.
Standing before the fort, Bai Yuan raised his hand and addressed the assembled tenants and guards.
"Each of you will receive one tael of silver and two catties of flour. After that, go and find our scattered neighbors. Bring them back here. We are going to rebuild Bai Family Fort!"
He paused, allowing his words to settle before his expression turned stern.
"One more thing. Remember this well: don't commit crimes or break the law. If you do, don't expect even the gods to save you!"
"Yes, sir!"
The crowd answered in unison.
Bai Yuan nodded, stroking his chin thoughtfully. I've spread Tianzun's teachings and conducted myself according to proper etiquette. Surely the Rites score in the Six Arts of a Gentleman can be restored now?
---
The sky over Gaojia Village was clear.
Mrs. Shan stood clutching a bundle of jars. Her hands trembled with wild joy.
They were filled with medicine.
Tianzun had personally bestowed these heavenly remedies upon her, delivering them with nothing more than the tip of his finger. She had carefully transferred every portion into the finest ceramic jars she owned, taking great care to label each one.
"Burns."
"Wounds."
"Skin Rash."
"Cold and Flu."
"Stomach Ailments."
The collection was a rather chaotic assortment of Western medicines and traditional herbal remedies. Li Daoxuan knew very little about pharmacology, so he had simply raided his household medicine cabinet and given her tiny portions of whatever common medicines he could find.
Ointments were straightforward enough. He only needed to scrape off a little.
Tablets, on the other hand, were much more troublesome. He had to break them into microscopic pieces, which Mrs. Shan then ground into powder herself.
The whole process took two days, and by the end of it, they had filled more than a dozen jars.
Throughout the process, Li Daoxuan repeatedly warned her about the importance of dosage. Medicines applied externally were relatively forgiving, but swallowing too much of the wrong medicine could be fatal.
The problem was that people in this era had no concept of grams. Converting modern measurements into the traditional units of jin, liang, and qian was also liable to cause mistakes. So, rather than risk a disastrous misunderstanding, Li Daoxuan resorted to comparing the medicine with familiar physical objects.
"For this cold medicine," he instructed, reading the information on the packaging, "always err on the side of caution. A smaller amount is better than too much. Never exceed half the size of your little fingernail per dose. Take it three times a day, strictly after meals. Do not take it on an empty stomach, or you may suffer severe abdominal pain."
Mrs. Shan listened attentively, committing every word to memory.
"Rest assured, Tianzun. These are heavenly treasures. I would never waste them by giving someone too much!"
"For this detoxifying pill, you must be even more careful. Again, no more than half the size of your little fingernail. Twice a day. Remember, less is better."
She carefully wrote down every instruction and attached the corresponding labels to the jars.
To Mrs. Shan, these containers were practically priceless treasures. For two entire days, she guarded them like a dragon sitting on its hoard. Whenever someone came too close, she would instinctively hide the jars behind her back.
Unfortunately, Shan Shi'er made the mistake of reaching out to inspect one.
He was immediately greeted by a furious barrage of punches from his wife. By the time she was finished, his face was black and blue.
"Do you have any idea what these are?!" she shrieked. "These are Celestial Pills! Celestial Pills! Tianzun entrusted them to me with His own hands! And you dare reach out and touch them? Take that hand and chop it off quickly!"
Shan Shi'er had no particular desire to lose a hand, so he hurriedly apologized. He was practically on the verge of kneeling before his wife just to calm her down.
Once her temper had finally subsided, he made sure to keep a safe distance before cautiously asking, "Wife, now that Tianzun has entrusted you with all these divine medicines, what do you intend to do?"
"What sort of question is that?" Mrs. Shan declared without hesitation. "I'm going to the county town!"
Shan Shi'er blinked. "You're going there?"
"Of course! Tianzun commanded us to save the suffering. How many people can I possibly help in this tiny Gaojia Village? Everyone here is already under Tianzun's protection. I need to go to the county town and spread His grace among the masses!"
Shan Shi'er frowned. "The county town is chaotic and dangerous. It's no place for you to wander around alone. What happens if another mob attacks? You'll be in serious trouble. Besides, Tianzun doesn't even manifest there. Haven't you noticed? He seems to favor Gaojia Village exclusively."
Mrs. Shan paused.
For a brief moment, fear flickered across her face. After all, she was still an ordinary mortal. No matter how divine the medicine in her possession might be, she couldn't exactly fight off an entire mob with a few jars of ointment.
But the hesitation lasted only a moment.
She quickly rallied her faith, giving herself a fanatical faith BUFF, and her fear of death faded.
"Hmph! I am carrying out Heaven's will and saving mankind. Even if I'm not a Saintess, I am still a Divine Messenger! Evil spirits and demons should be the ones afraid of me. What do I have to fear?"
Shan Shi'er: "..."
How was he supposed to argue with that?
Even Shan Shi'er, who prided himself on being quick-witted, lost his ability to respond at this moment.
He could only sigh. "Very well. Give me a few days to finish handling matters in the village. I'll gather some young men to escort you to the county town. Once you've settled in safely, I'll return to Gaojia Village and handle miscellaneous tasks for Tianzun."