Chapter 5

The Hu people were once a nomadic tribe in the north, fond of eating meat, and wherever they went, they left no chickens or dogs alive. Xiyang County is now a true ghost town, with no dog barking at night and no rooster crowing in the morning.

Mo Wen was injured and had caught a cold, lying in bed for three days. Xiao Wu was busy, using a cart to bring a coffin from a shop in the city to bury Lady Mo. He then searched the city for any remaining food. On the fourth day, Mo Wen's injuries and illness improved, and he struggled to get up, setting up a memorial hall in the main hall for his mother, burning paper money and mourning.

On the afternoon of the fourth day, Xiao Wu went out to look for food and did not return until the sun was setting. As night fell, Mo Wen began to feel uneasy. He was not afraid of his deceased mother; he was worried about Xiao Wu's safety.

After the hour of You (3-5 PM), Xiao Wu still had not returned. Mo Wen could not sit still and slowly moved to the front door. It had snowed heavily again the day before, and a trail of footprints was left in the snow. From the footprints, it was clear that Xiao Wu had gone to the eastern part of the city.

Mo Wen called out loudly for Xiao Wu but received no response. After hesitating for a moment, Mo Wen turned back to the house, picked up a lantern, and followed the footprints to search. The footprints showed that Xiao Wu had been searching for food house by house, but the fleeing people would not leave food behind, and with the Hu people's plundering, there was very little food left in the city. Xiao Wu's footprints extended to the lecture hall where he had previously studied, and then continued east into the mountains.

The door of the lecture hall was open, and it was pitch black inside. Mo Wen did not have the courage to go in, but he needed to understand why Xiao Wu had left from here and entered the eastern mountains.

After much hesitation, Mo Wen did not enter the lecture hall but followed Xiao Wu's footprints eastward. He soon noticed something unusual; the footprints in the snow east of the lecture hall were much deeper than before, indicating that Xiao Wu had carried something heavy when he left the lecture hall.

When the Hu people invaded, not all the residents of the city fled. Some of the elderly, weak, and women chose to stay, but their decision was clearly wrong. The city was filled with half-buried corpses in the snow. Each time Mo Wen saw a corpse, his fear increased. He wanted to turn back several times but ultimately decided to continue searching.

The footprints continued east into the mountains. At the edge of the city, Mo Wen stopped again. Not far ahead was a dark forest. He really did not have the courage to enter, and he could not understand why Xiao Wu had gone into the forest or what he had taken from the lecture hall.

Although the light from the lantern was dim, it gave Mo Wen some sense of security. After a long pause, Mo Wen came up with an idea. He removed the outer cover of the lantern and used the oil lamp to set fire to a stack of straw next to a house. The fire quickly spread, burning brighter and eventually igniting the house. The houses in the city were built in clusters, and once they caught fire, the flames would not go out for a while.

With the houses burning, the area around Mo Wen became much brighter, reducing his fear. He held the lantern and entered the eastern mountains.

In winter, the villagers would store grass for the winter, so there were no weeds or shrubs in the mountains except for the large trees that the government had forbidden to cut. Mo Wen followed the footprints with the lantern, occasionally looking back at the burning city to boost his courage.

After passing through the forest, Mo Wen saw a large area of graves. This was the cemetery of Xiyang County, where the dead from the city were buried.

Seeing the cemetery, Mo Wen should have been afraid, but he was not. He saw Xiao Wu digging a grave in the northwest corner of the cemetery, with a corpse lying nearby. Although the distance was too far to see the corpse clearly, Mo Wen guessed it was the body of the old teacher. Xiao Wu must have entered the lecture hall while searching for food, and knowing Mo Wen's respect for his teacher, he had brought the body here to bury it.

Mo Wen walked to the grave Xiao Wu was digging, which was already three feet deep. Xiao Wu was smoothing the bottom of the grave. Mo Wen bowed in front of the old teacher's body in remembrance.

When Xiao Wu saw Mo Wen, he sped up his digging. Mo Wen waved his hand and said, "No need to hurry."

Xiao Wu nodded and quickly smoothed the bottom of the grave, then picked up the teacher's body and placed it in the grave, filling it with soil.

"Teacher taught me the basics and the way of the world. He should be buried in a coffin, not like this," Mo Wen sighed.

Xiao Wu turned to look at Mo Wen and then continued filling the grave.

The grave was not large, and Xiao Wu soon finished. Mo Wen put down the lantern, knelt down, and bowed in worship.

One should bow three times when kneeling before the dead, but Mo Wen only bowed once before Xiao Wu helped him up. Mo Wen looked at Xiao Wu in confusion.

"I have misled my students and do not deserve your respect," Xiao Wu said.

Mo Wen's hair stood on end at these words, which were not only in the old teacher's tone but also in his exact voice.

"Don't be afraid, Mo Wen. I only want to rest in peace and have no intention of harming you," Xiao Wu said again.

Mo Wen was so frightened that he was speechless, trembling and backing away.

"Confucianism and Mencius' teachings are not suitable for chaotic times. Act according to your heart," Xiao Wu sighed, shaking his head. "There are too many restless spirits here. It is not a place to stay. Leave as soon as possible."

Mo Wen, who had not fully recovered from his injuries, fainted from shock.

When he woke up again, he found himself on Xiao Wu's back. Thinking of the earlier incident where Xiao Wu was possessed by the old teacher, Mo Wen screamed in terror.

"Master, what's wrong?" Xiao Wu quickly put Mo Wen down.

"You, you..." Mo Wen looked at Xiao Wu in fear.

"Master, why did we go to the cemetery?" Xiao Wu looked puzzled.

"I'm not sure. There are too many spirits here. We should leave as soon as possible," Mo Wen repeated the teacher's words.

"Alright, I'll carry you back first," Xiao Wu agreed, bending his knees.

"No, I can walk," Mo Wen shook his head. They were not far from home, and the fire behind them was still burning.

After this incident, Mo Wen no longer let Xiao Wu go out alone to search for food. They always went together, and at night, they set fire to the houses to keep the city lit.

Two days later, Lady Mo's memorial was completed, and the coffin was buried. They prepared incense and candles, went to the river to burn incense and mourn for the Lao Wu couple and Master Mo, who had all been swept away by the icy current and could not have been found.

Then Mo Wen took Xiao Wu to the Mo family ancestral hall and retrieved the gold coins that his father had buried there. These coins were his father's preparation for the future, but they were being used much sooner than expected.

Mo Wen did not take all eight gold coins, leaving one behind. This was something he had learned from his father. No one knows what life will bring, but it's always good to be prepared.

"Master, where are we going now?" Xiao Wu asked as they left the ancestral hall.

"Don't call me Master anymore. Call me by my name," Mo Wen sighed. The master-servant relationship had been dissolved by their shared hardships.

"You will always be my Master," Xiao Wu shook his head firmly. The Mo family had saved the Wu family's ancestors, and the Wu family had been grateful and loyal for generations.

"My father has passed away. Calling me Master is disrespectful to the ancestors," Mo Wen said.

"Master," Xiao Wu immediately changed his address. After the Master's death, the son should be called Master to show the continuation of the family line.

"Call me by my name," Mo Wen did not like the hierarchical connotation of the title.

"Master, where are we going now?" Xiao Wu asked.

"Wu, where do you want to go?" Mo Wen also changed his address, making it more intimate and somewhat diluting the hierarchical connotation of "Master."

"Master, I will follow your lead," Xiao Wu did not refuse the change in address, as he had no parents either.

"I heard that not everyone captured by the Hu people was eaten. Some were sold. I want to go north. If I find Lady Mo, I might be able to use this money to ransom her back," Mo Wen sought Wu's opinion, knowing that going north was very dangerous.

"Alright," Wu nodded immediately. He was not unaware of the dangers of going north, but he was used to following orders.

After making the decision, Mo Wen and Wu left Xiyang County, leaving their home behind to go north in search of Lady Mo...