Great Tang Idyll

"What, what nonsense are you talking about? Do we need you to save our lives? Explain things clearly to us." Yuan Xing'yi shivered when he heard Zhang Xiao'bao's words. Feeling a little uncomfortable, he asked angrily.

Han Yong'yao, who was next to him, stared at him as if he would not let Zhang Xiao'bao go if he didn't give them a reasonable explanation.

Zhang Xiao'bao waved the grass in his hand and said to the two of them, "Do you see this? This grass is different from other places. Take a good look, is it a little longer?"

Listening to Zhang Xiao'bao's words, the two of them looked around and found that the grass around them was indeed a bit longer than the grass in the distance, but they didn't know what was wrong with grass being taller. Could it be that it could kill people if it grew taller?

"You don't understand? Let me tell you, there is an old tomb under the place where you were sitting just now. Grass grows taller on old graves. Why? Because grass needs water, how can it grow without water? Old graves are places with shade, and the shade is cool, and if it is cool, there will be more water."

Zhang Xiao'bao explained to them. The truth was that this place was facing the sun, and there weren't many trees nearby, so naturally, the place the two were at would have taller grass. Even if it was shorter, it would be fine since Zhang Xiao'bao could come up with another saying.

"Don't try to scare us. We're not afraid. Why would we continue to sleep here? What does this have to do with you cutting the grass?" Yuan Xing'yi stopped in his tracks, but he still refuted what Zhang Xiao'bao said.

Zhang Xiao'bao sighed, shook his head again, and said, "It's hard to get you two to understand. Have a look, this grass has been cut, so now there is not so much grass in this place, right? Look, there are still some grass that have not withered and are still slightly green. The grass that I cut was like this, do you understand?"

The two shook their heads together. Han Yong'yao shivered, feeling a bit cold, and asked, "It's enough to just cut the grass? The stuff inside won't come out?"

"Yeah, smart. It's just like that. You two laid on top of someone, so you have to do something for them. This place is a shady area, and the thing inside likes shade. Once the grass is cut, the grass that has withered would not be able to absorb the water from below, and the thing inside would be happy. Only then will they be able to forgive you."

When Zhang Xiao'bao spoke, his voice trembled slightly. He thought about the degree that the people here believed in things like this. If he had the guts to talk like this to people during modern times, people would directly jump up and punch him.

Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao glanced at each other, nodded, and felt that what Zhang Xiao'bao said did make sense. Yuan Xing'yi walked back and squatted next to Zhang Xiao'bao and asked, "You helped us cut the grass, so everything should be okay now, right?" Why can't we leave?"

"Who said that it's okay? You have to let the thing inside know that the two of you did the work? You have to put this grass under your body when you sleep and at night, the thing inside comes out to have a look, it will not harm you. Remember, you must not let the grass touch water, otherwise, you will find that when you sleep, something will be sitting on your body, making it hard for you to breathe."

Zhang Xiao'bao continued to cut the grass, and when he was done, he rolled the two bundles of grass over to Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao. The two of them hesitated and then chose to listen to Zhang Xiao'bao. The main reason was that a few people nearby also came to watch what was going on, and they nodded as they listened to Zhang Xiao'bao. At the same time, everyone began to look around to see if the grass on the area they planned to sleep in was too tall or not.

Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao were tying the grass alone, and dragged them to another place. The grass was short here, so they spread the grass, and then looked at where they were sitting and standing.

While Zhang Xiao'bao made his way back to Wang Juan, he spoke to Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao one more time, "Remember, don't let the grass under your body touch water, otherwise you will be crushed by that thing when it comes out. That thing holds grudges. Who knows how many nights it's going to crush you for. Once they crush you, you'll find that when you get up in the morning, your body is sore and sticky."

"Xiao'bao, you are really amazing." Wang Juan said in a low voice when she saw that Zhang Xiao'bao had come back. She shifted over a spot to let him sit down.

"I'm a good person, I didn't poison them, and I even helped them. Tell me, what should be done if that thing down there comes out?" Zhang Xiao'bao looked serious, making Wang Juan unable to hold in her laughter.

"You're a good person? Yeah, you're just tricking ghosts by burning newspaper instead of incense paper. I'm going to sleep first. Keep an eye on the fire and don't let the mosquitoes bite me. This should be the last batch of mosquitoes, they keep biting me."

Wang Juan muttered, curled her body and slept on her side. Zhang Xiao'bao held a handful of grass in his hand and sat there, watching the fire. Occasionally, he waved the grass over Wang Juan's face to prevent mosquitoes from flying near her.

In the middle of the night, Wang Juan woke up. She touched Zhang Xiao'bao, and then Zhang Xiao'bao laid down again. When dawn was near, Wang Juan did not stay on watch anymore. She got into the blanket. She napped for a bit while hugging Zhang Xiao'bao. Then, they both got up.

Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao didn't have to stay awake to keep watch last night. Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan volunteered to do so so that they could each spend the time to scheme against the two.

Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan packed up their things, and then they came to the place where Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao slept. They squatted down to watch them. Several other people who had gotten up also came over.

"Oh no, there's water." Among the few people who came over, one person pointed to the grass under them and yelled out. This voice awakened the two of them. Just when the two were about to move, they suddenly felt sore and sticky. They didn't know what was going on, and the people around started asking questions one after another.

Some asked if they had nightmares last night, if they felt crushed, if they felt sore and uncomfortable, and some even came over and touched them to see if they were sticky.

Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao listened to the people around them. Looking at the water drops on the grass, they touched their own bodies. They thought about last night, and it seemed like they did dream of something. They couldn't piece the fragments together but their faces still turned pale from shock.

"Why did you do that? Didn't I say to keep the grass dry? It's over now." Zhang Xiao'bao sighed sadly and said.

Wang Juan nodded beside him, pointing to the faces of the two people and said, "Why are they so pale? Could it be that their yang energy has been taken away?"

The people around looked at the pale faces of the two people and nodded one after another. Yuan Xing'yi's and Han Yong'yao's facial expressions turned ugly. They looked at each other and immediately gasped.

Han Yong'yao was the most cowardly one, and he almost cried out of fear. He kept muttering, "It's over, it's over, what should I do now? Someone, come over."

The servants of his family also knew about this and they came over to look at him at night but they couldn't see clearly. The grass felt a little damp when they touched it, but there was no water. One of the servants was a bit more clever, and he said, "Young Master, don't be afraid, this is just dew."

"I don't care what kind of water it is. Right now, my body feels sore and uncomfortable. Figure out a solution for me." Han Yong'yao had no time to care about the dew at this time. Dew was still water.

The servant thought for a while, then took a fabric pouch from his neck and placed it in Han Yong'yao's hand. He said, "Young Master, mother begged this talisman for me last year. Wear it, maybe it's useful."

"Okay, I will definitely reward you when I get back." Han Yong'yao took this thing and put it on his neck, and finally felt much better. Then the man immediately said,

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's much better, but it's still a bit pale, better than before." A person said affirmatively.

Han Yong'yao let out a long sigh of relief, and he was finally not so scared. However, the uncomfortable feeling on his body did not disappear.

Yuan Xing'yi was still scared. He found the people from his household and asked them. They actually managed to obtain him a talisman. He wore it and thanked Zhang Xiao'bao.

"When you arrive somewhere else later today, you still have to use that kind of grass to pad underneath yourself, and see what happens. If that doesn't work, then you can only go home early."

Zhang Xiao'bao didn't seem to think that just wearing a talisman would work, and continued talking.

The two of them believed now and they nodded their heads. They tried to endure the uncomfortable sensation as they ate, but they felt nauseated when they placed good into their mouth.

Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan took out two dried steamed buns, and they also made some cucumber goose egg soup with extra minced ginger in it. They ripped the steamed buns into small bits and soaked them in the soup. They ate until they were full. They didn't want to catch a cold like Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao. How could they not feel uncomfortable for lying on top of fresh grass? If they were adults, they would definitely fall ill.

Zhang Xiao'bao didn't want to kill them, so he only told the two people to lie on top of grass for another night. There was a lot of dew on the mountain, so even dry grass would have a layer of dew, let alone fresh green grass.

By the time everyone was up, those who wanted to arrive there first, had left already. This didn't have any use. If the people who left first had the guts to sleep in a different area, then it might have some effect. But unfortunately, even if they knew that there were people looking after them, they still wanted to rest with the main group of people.

Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan changed their usual way of not talking this time and talked as they walked. Usually, Wang Juan asked and Zhang Xiao'bao answered.

"Xiao'bao, do you think that thing from underneath will go looking for the two of them tonight? Will it stumble upon us?" Wang Juan's voice was not quiet, and she glanced at Yuan Xing'yi and Han Yong'yao.

"Who knows? I hope it doesn't find us. Let's stay away from them at night, and don't sleep too deeply at night, otherwise if something does happen, we wouldn't be able to respond."

Zhang Xiao'bao also looked back at the two people and shook his head. This meant to sleep less at night.