Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Chapter 590: Western Rhinoceros

He looks a little strange.

He looked to be in his thirties or forties, but he had no beard, wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, and was rather plump. When he spoke, the corners of his mouth were always raised, and he seemed to be smiling even before he spoke.

Seeing his master's eyes closed and silent, he immediately knew that he was unwilling to leave, so he said, "Why not withdraw first and quickly send someone from Chang'an..."

"Oh, waiting for someone from Chang'an?"

The young man on the bed finally spoke. His lips were a little thin and pale. "If that's the case, wouldn't it be better for you and I to return to Chang'an right now?"

"this...."

This is venting anger on others.

Feng Shiliang was already used to it, and just as he was about to speak, he saw the three guards suddenly stand up.

Suddenly, there was a rustling sound outside the bamboo building...

Xisi looked around anxiously, and after making sure that no one saw her, she quickly ran through the weeds that were almost as tall as her, ran into the small bamboo building, and pushed the door open to go in.

"Who!" A vigilant and sharp voice sounded from the dark room.

"it's me!"

Xisi raised his little face for the other person to see, and looked at the bamboo couch with concern: "How is he? Is he okay?"

"Thank you, young lady. My boy was just a little frightened..."

Before he could finish his words, Xisi pushed him away and slipped under his arm. Three sounds of half-unsheathed long swords were heard in the room.

"Ahem, Xisi, why are you here?" The young man who was originally sitting cross-legged on the bamboo couch lay down the moment he heard her movement.

Even at such a young age, it was not difficult to tell that he would be handsome in the future, and the noble air he carried about him could not be concealed even in this simple environment.

As he spoke, he stood up from the couch and said to Feng Shiliang, who was standing respectfully with his head bowed, "Why don't you go and boil some hot water?"

Xi Si waved his hands quickly, "No one has lived here for a long time. Where can we get firewood? All those clay pots and bowls are broken. Even if they are usable, they are extremely dirty. If you want to drink, you can drink it. I won't drink it."

Feng Shiliang had been in the political arena for many years, but this was the first time he had encountered someone who spoke so directly. However, he was always good at acting, and after a brief pause of one second, he immediately said, "I wonder if the young lady can find a way to get some pots and bowls. My young master hasn't eaten or drunk anything..."

"There's a mountain behind us, and there's a bamboo waterway down there that we connected to ourselves. There's not much water, but it's enough for you guys to drink. Just use your hands to collect it."

Xisi always felt that the brains of these Central Plains people seemed different from those of them, the Westerners. How could some of them not even know to find water to drink when they were thirsty?

Feng Shiliang was rarely at a loss for words, but at this moment he felt that he really couldn't explain something clearly to this country girl.

What is the status of my master? How can he drink the water flowing directly from the mountain?

Li Zhi nodded happily. "Xi Si is right. I've heard that Lingnan has beautiful mountains and rivers. I'm sure the water from this mountain stream must be exceptionally sweet. I'll go try it later."

"What you heard is indeed true. The water in our mountains is very clear and tastes cool and sweet."

Xisi liked to hear people from the Central Plains bragging about their homeland. Hearing this, he showed his happiness without hiding it: "What are you doing in the mountains? It's so dangerous here. Look at you, your body is not even as strong as a calf..."

She kept rambling on, all about how reckless they were for running into the mountains and not finding a place to hide after dark. "You were unlucky, too, to have run into that giant snake. But you weren't particularly unlucky, you only ran into one."

Li Zhi grasped the key point of her words: "Could it be that there are many giant snakes like this in this mountain?"

Thinking of the giant snake last night, he still felt a lingering fear.

Those scary big eyes that still emitted a bright yellow light in the darkness were really frightening.

"How can there be so many?"

Xisi raised his head and said, "If there were so many, how would we survive? There are only two of them. If you run into both, there's no hope for you."

She went out to release the poison at dawn today, and apart from seeing the broken flesh, blood and torn clothes, she also picked up these people.

Of course, the main one is Li Zhi.

Although Li Zhi looked a little sick, he exuded a scholarly and noble air that was different from the people in their village.

After hearing this, not only Li Zhi, but even the three remaining guards felt that they were lucky.

If it weren't for the guards who fought to the death to protect them, the three of them would not have been able to escape with their master.

Xisi opened the bundle and found inside a pottery jar and something wrapped in green leaves of an unknown plant. The thing inside seemed to be alive.

She opened the pot and pushed it toward Li Zhi. "Weren't you scared by that giant snake yesterday? I can't defeat it, but I'll catch its offspring and stew them for you. It'll be my revenge."

"Is this... snake soup?"

Li Zhi looked at the pottery jar in front of him without reaching out.

"Yes."

Seeing that he didn't move, Xi Si thought he was embarrassed and invited him again warmly: "Come on, don't be polite, you can make up for it."

As he said this, he stuffed a pair of simple twig chopsticks into his hands.

"master!"

Feng Shiliang was horrified by what he saw.

"Then what is this?" Li Zhi took the chopsticks and slowly stirred the contents of the pottery jar. A strange smell wafted out.

"This is honey! It's delicious and sweet."

Xisi felt like drooling as he spoke.

"Honey?"

A trace of doubt flashed across Li Zhi's face. He reached out to open it, only to see a group of pink-colored live rat fetuses still moving inside. His face immediately turned pale, and after a moment's pause, he forced a smile and said, "I'm weak and had a fright last night. I'm afraid I can't eat meat right now. Do you have any Hu bing?"

"You don't want to eat something so delicious, but want to eat Hu Bing?"

Xisi was puzzled: "This honey-chi has been fed with honey and has never eaten anything else. It tastes so sweet like honey. Are you really not going to eat it?"

Honey-chih-mi-chih is the raw consumption of mouse fetuses raised with honey, which make a chirping sound when put into the mouth.

Li Zhi's lips were pale, and he smiled weakly: "I have this disease since my mother's womb. I shouldn't eat too much meat or it will only make the condition worse. I'd really let Xisi down."

Although Xisi was a little disappointed, he also felt a little sorry for him after hearing that he had been sick since his mother's womb. "It's a pity that you couldn't eat so many good things since you were a child. We also have monkey head soup here, which is also very delicious. I was thinking of catching a monkey to nourish you later."

Li Zhi closed his eyes and changed the subject: "Xi Si, did you see any Central Plains people other than us in the mountains?"

"I didn't see it, but Qiqige said that many people have come to the mountains recently."

Xisi usually does not go out except to release the poison. When it is called releasing the poison, it actually means taking the poison to a certain place and letting it forage freely, and then taking it back when the time comes.

She is not a hardworking person.

"Oh? Do you know where they are?"