Chapter Seventeen: Zeng Family Village

  Three or four miles away from Feisheng Peak, there is a small village. At dusk, when the sun sets in the west, smoke rises from every household in the village, which is dinner time.

  The village is not big, and there are not many households, only about twenty or so. However, the location of each household is scattered, resulting in a relatively large area occupied by the village.

  In the empty space of the village, several children ran back and forth, frolicking and playing, bursts of clear laughter ringing out one after another.

  "This is great, this really is a village."

  Arriving at the village entrance, Zhao Ji exclaimed with joy.

  Ding Dian and Tian Hong's faces also showed joyful expressions.

  The arrival of the three attracted the attention of those playing children, with curious and clear eyes staring at them.

  It can be seen that the living conditions of these children are not very good. The cotton clothes they wear have been washed until they turned white and became somewhat tattered, and each of them has a pale complexion, obviously malnourished.

  "Little friend, may I ask, is your adult at home?"

  Approaching the oldest one among a group of children, Zhao made an effort to put on a gentle and amiable expression, saying to this child.

  "Who... who are you?"

  The little kid took two steps back and said weakly.

  These little kids should have had very few encounters with strangers and were also somewhat timid. When Zhao Ji asked them questions, the child only showed a hint of fear and nervousness.

  "Don't be afraid, little friend. We're not bad people, just travelers passing by. Go call your parents out, okay? And here, I have a piece of chocolate for you to eat."

  He took out the last piece of chocolate from his pocket and handed it over to the little boy, saying "Zhao Ji's kindness".

  "Okay, fine."

  Perhaps it was Zhao Ji's gentle attitude that made the little boy abandon his fear, take the chocolate and "dada" run towards a house.

  "Dad, someone is looking for you."

  With a loud whoop, the kids burst into the house.

  A moment later, a sturdy middle-aged man walked out and looked up and down at Zhao Ji and the others with a scrutinizing gaze, asking aloud: "Who are you three?"

  "Hello big brother, we three are travelers who have been traveling all around and happened to pass by this place. We want to rest for a few days, so we were thinking of borrowing a place to stay in your village."

  He smiled kindly at the robust man and said, "Zhao Ji said."

  He glanced at Zhao and the other two with a scrutinizing gaze, perhaps thinking that they were not bad people. The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment before responding, "Alright then, I'll go talk to the village chief."

  This small village is called Zengjiacun, as the name suggests, most of the villagers are surnamed Zeng. The village chief is a man in his fifties named Zeng Yu, and that strong young man just now was called Zeng Dazhuang.

  A person in his fifties is not considered old in modern times, but in a society similar to ancient China, being over fifty has already entered the ranks of the elderly.

  "Three of you, I don't know where you are from."

  In a stone-built hall, several people sat down as host and guest. Zeng You brought some turbid eyes, constantly sizing up Zhao Ji and the others, and asked with a smile.

  "Haha, we are from a very far place, where exactly, I won't say, afraid that even the old man wouldn't know."

  Zhao Ji forced a laugh and said, "Haha."

  "Don't underestimate me, sir. Although this is just a small village, I often go to the city and know many things, such as how many cities are in our Wu State, I can recite them all."

  With a glare in his eyes, Zeng Yu proclaimed loudly.

  Although he didn't think so in his heart, Zhao Ji still reluctantly said: "Yes, yes, Elder is indeed a knowledgeable and experienced person."

  Next, the two sides chatted for a few more sentences. Zeng Yu's words were intended to probe into Zhao Ji's trio's details, but under Zhao Ji's clever conversation skills, not only did he fail to ask anything, but his own details were all revealed instead.

  Two or three hundred years ago, a group of people with the surname Zeng fled to this place and established Zengjiacun Village, which has been passed down for generations until now.

  The origin of the Zeng family, Zhao Ji didn't ask about it, perhaps even the Zeng Yuans themselves weren't very clear. However, since the establishment of Zengjia Village, for several generations, the Zeng family had never risen to prominence.

  In addition, Zeng Yu had previously said that his vision was not shallow, and it wasn't entirely boasting. At least, among ordinary villagers, his vision could be considered broad.

  Thus, Zhao Ji knew that his location was a sea island called Divine Turtle Island, which is now under the rule of Wu State.

  About a dozen miles away from Zengjia Village, there is a town called Qiaomu Town; the nearest city is Linhai City, which is over 100 miles away. Finally, Zeng Yu also knew that the largest and most famous city on the Turtle Island was Wangcheng.

  This information, though limited, was enough for Zhao Ji to get a clear understanding of the current situation and have a general idea of his surroundings.

  Having a pleasant conversation with Zeng Yu and Zeng Dazhuang, Zhao Ji's request was responded to, and the three were accommodated in an idle house in the village.

  In Zeng's village, there was a vacant house that happened to be idle. The original owner was a bachelor who suddenly fell ill and died a few years ago, leaving the house empty.

  Leading Zhao Ji and the three of them to the front of the house, Zeng Yu said warmly to Zhao Ji: "Zhao little brother, this house is idle anyway, temporarily lend it to you for living, live as long as you want, by the way, you are still short of two quilts, wait a while and come to my house for dinner, then help you bring them over."

  "Then, thank you so much, Zeng brother."

  Zhao Ji's face was filled with gratitude.

  Under Zhao Ji's superb communication skills, in just a short half-hour, the two became sworn brothers, their relationship incredibly close.

  "Don't be polite, come on, let's sweep the house first. It's been a long time since anyone lived here, and there's dust everywhere."

  Zeng Yilang smiled and patted Zhao Ji's shoulder.

  Then the four of them walked into this stone-built house and started cleaning together. Zhao Ji and Zeng Yu were still okay, but their movements were stiff and awkward. Ding Dian and Tian Hong, on the other hand, seemed extraordinary, and their hands moved with a mysterious and beautiful rhythm as they cleaned.

  Tian Hong grasped a broom with both hands, gently sweeping the ground. With a swing of her arm and a flick of the broom, dust flew everywhere, churning and swirling, quickly gathering in mid-air and piling up together.

  It was as if the courtyard was walking leisurely, Tianhong's feet moved quickly, and his figure flashed through several rooms in the house. The dust and garbage on the ground were swept away, and they were all piled up at the door.

  Compared to Tianhong, Ding Dian was in no way inferior, also holding a broom, his figure moving up and down in the room, sweeping away spider webs on the walls and some dirty marks.