The Sorrowmender

Chapter 5 – My territory, my rules

The north wind blew, and snow fell from the heavens.

In front of the small Pavilion of Forgetting Worries, though it was crowded with people, the scene was as silent as a cicada in winter, with only the occasional whistling of the wind and Zhang Meilan's cries breaking the stillness.

"Oh... my back, it's broken, broken... ah!"

People watched all this in silence, and it took a while for the two house servants to react and hurriedly rush over to help their master.

But after all, she was a several-hundred-pound woman, and with the ground slippery from snow, it took all their strength just to help her sit up.

Zhang Meilan had been beaten badly and had fallen hard.

Her mink fur coat and hair were covered in white snow, making her look very disheveled, and her face, full of fat, twisted in pain and anger.

She pointed her trembling finger at the broken wooden door.

"You dare... hit me, you dare hit me."

At this moment, a young man walked out.

"Look quickly, it's Mister Forgetting Worries."

"The mister has come out."

The young man, graceful and refined, wore a white crane robe and held a fan depicting mountains and rivers, his appearance unmatched in the world.

His hair was a bit unkempt, yet it added an unintentional touch of carefree elegance.

He first glanced at the little figure lying in the snow, then turned his gaze to Zhang Meilan in front of him, his eyes filled with disgust, disdain, and anger.

Impatiently, he said, "Early in the morning, making such a racket, it's so annoying."

"My brother is Zhang Erhe, you're finished, I won't let you go, just wait, I'll have my brother kill you."

Even though Xu Qingzhou had beaten her into such a miserable state, Zhang Meilan remained arrogant, issuing threats.

Upon hearing this, Xu Qingzhou was speechless. He was the esteemed mister of the Pavilion of Forgetting Worries, the dream lover of countless young women.

How could he bow to the powerful?

He immediately retorted sarcastically:"So what if I hit you? You think you can come out and scare people, but no one can hit you? What kind of logic is that?"

Pointing to the couplet by the door, he continued, "And, can't you read? Look closely, my Pavilion of Forgetting Worries ferries young ladies, not pigs, especially not a big fat pig like you."

The words were not highly damaging but extremely insulting, each word piercing the heart, each sentence a critical hit.

The disdain in his eyes was evident.

The surrounding women sighed, some stifling laughter, others staring in shock.

Zhang Meilan's mind went blank, stunned, momentarily forgetting the pain in her body, she pointed at Xu Qingzhou and asked:"You... who are you calling a pig?"

Xu Qingzhou replied calmly, "I'm talking about you, isn't it obvious?"

"With your fat head and big ears, why don't you just die?"

It's not the person who curses you that you should fear, but the one who tells the truth. Zhang Meilan was completely broken, never having been humiliated like this before.

And in front of such a large crowd.

She was so angry her whole body trembled, convulsed, her face flushed red.

"You... you... you..."

Xu Qingzhou glared at her, continuing to mock:"What you, what you, is telling the truth a crime?"

Zhang Meilan panted heavily, her eyes wide as she looked around, feeling the world spinning.

"Huff huff huff huff!"

She couldn't catch her breath, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.

Xu Qingzhou raised an eyebrow, letting out a light snort, feeling quite satisfied.

He then turned his gaze to the two accompanying men.

"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and carry this pig away, don't ruin my good feng shui."

As he spoke, he flicked his folding fan, and a move called Geese Descend on Flat Sands, nurtured by his inner energy, shot out.

As the wind moved, it sliced through the falling snow, and a stone pillar by the roadside was cut in half.

Showing off a little, he squinted his eyes and said:"If I see you loitering in front of my pavilion again, you'll end up like this stone."

Joking aside, if you don't show a bit of strength, how can you make people fear you?

This scene naturally startled everyone present, who had been watching Zhang Meilan faint in anger with schadenfreude, but now their smiles froze, leaving only shock.

Everyone knew that Mister Forgetting Worries of the Pavilion of Forgetting Worries was no ordinary person, but no one had ever seen him in action.

And today, having witnessed it, they were greatly shaken.

Although most of these women didn't understand martial arts or immortality techniques, this feat of conjuring wind and slicing stone was beyond what they believed a mere mortal could achieve.

The two house servants, seeing this, dared not linger any longer. They were just working for a living, risking their lives was not an option.

"Understood, understood, we'll leave right away."

Dragging the several-hundred-pound woman, they hurriedly fled the scene.

Xu Qingzhou shook his sleeves, his eyes confident and composed, and under the gaze of the crowd, picked up the slip of paper that had fallen on the ground, then walked toward the little figure lying in the snow.

The Little Beggar Girl, in her daze, felt a shadow envelop her. She used all her strength to try to open her eyes, but in the end, could only manage to squint them open slightly.

Yet through that slit, endless sorrow and panic welled up.

"Don't... hit me, I'll... I'll give it to you."

She hadn't seen the face of the person who approached, and in her dying state, she was in pain, her instinct was only fear, she didn't want to hurt anymore, weakly pleading for mercy.

Xu Qingzhou looked at the bloodied figure lying in the snow, the thin and desolate, yet shivering child, and frowned slightly.

He knew very well that such a scene was all too common in this world.

Not seeing it from the pavilion was one thing, but witnessing it up close, his heart couldn't help but tremble, inexplicably giving rise to a sense of compassion, as if tinged with guilt.

He mused to himself, "The world is harsh, and self-preservation is difficult. There are so many injustices, I can't manage them all.

Sigh—well, since this matter started because of me, I'll save your life."

He slowly bent down, brushing aside the few strands of hair on the Little Beggar Girl's forehead, her pale little face trembling.

As his hand fell, the Little Beggar Girl instinctively curled up her body once more, tightly closing her eyes.

But what she awaited was not the beating she imagined, but a warm hand gently touching her forehead.

This warmth was like a fire in the winter night, instantly warming her already scarred heart.

She opened her eyes in disbelief, staring blankly at the figure before her.

It was a very handsome face, with a smile as warm as the spring breeze, and she murmured in her heart.

"Is this an immortal?"

Xu Qingzhou, however, did not notice the change in the Little Beggar Girl's eyes, only muttering softly, then naturally took off his outer robe, wrapping the little beggar, and gently picked her up.

"Don't be afraid, the injuries aren't severe, you won't die." he said softly.

Then he stood up.

"Young ladies, since the lucky one has been chosen, that's it for today, come back another day."

With that, he turned and walked back into the Pavilion of Forgetting Worries, not forgetting to throw out one last instruction.

"Wang Er, go find Carpenter Li to come and fix the door."

"Understood, mister."

The Little Beggar Girl, feeling the warmth of Xu Qingzhou's embrace, still felt like she was dreaming, everything seemed so unreal.

She couldn't remember how long it had been since the world had shown her any kindness.

But when she was picked up, everything felt so real, that phrase "don't be afraid" seemed to have a special magic, calming her shattered heart, soothing her restless mind.

Her eyes reddened, her vision blurred, perhaps the warmth made her fall asleep peacefully, or maybe she just fainted again, after all, she was truly hungry, tired, and weary.

"Am I really going to die? But it's so... so warm, dying doesn't seem scary at all."

As Xu Qingzhou entered the house, the crowd began to disperse in groups, gossiping as they gradually moved away.

"Mister Forgetting Worries is really amazing, not only handsome but also gentle."

"Indeed, even when scolding someone, he's so elegant, he made that wicked woman faint with anger, hahaha."

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"I always knew the mister wasn't an ordinary person, but an immortal, a living Bodhisattva, even saving a little beggar, he truly values fate, I'll come again tomorrow."

"I'll come too..."

"Ah! But I wonder if that wicked woman will cause trouble for Mister Forgetting Worries."

"Mister Forgetting Worries is an immortal descended to the mortal world, why would he fear a mere Scholar Zhang..."

"That's hard to say, I heard that Scholar Zhang is very protective..."

On the second floor of the Pavilion of Forgetting Worries, Xu Qingzhou placed the Little Beggar Girl on the bed and lit a stove.

He then exchanged for a pill to stabilize and nurture her vital energy, feeding it to the little one.

To save this dying little life.

"That old bastard, such a heavy hand, utterly immoral."

After feeding the medicine to the Little Beggar Girl, he muttered to himself, not forgetting to stoke the coals in the stove.

The coals crackled, sending a few sparks flying from the stove.

Xu Qingzhou sat cross-legged, using his mind to take out the Worry-Free Book, taking a deep breath, he drew a line with his fingertip.

"Come on, let me see, what is your name, what worries do you have? What calamities does your fate hold?"

Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan