Chapter 17 The Great Iron Bird

A strange dream, an inexplicable mole loss, the words of Wang Dabao, the memories of his childhood - all of these made Shu Guan feel an uncontrollable urge.

He wanted to dig up Elder Lame's grave to see if he was truly dead.

However, despite his impulse, Shu Guan ultimately chose not to disturb Elder Lame's resting place.

He had outgrown his impulsive youth. Even though he was still two months shy of his eighteenth birthday in this world, his soul was already that of a man in his forties.

His current speculations were all conjectures. Having lived with Elder Lame for eighteen years, besides realising that Elder Lame might not have heart, he had not noticed anything unusual about him in those past years.

So, what if he dug up the grave only to find that Elder Lame was an ordinary man after all?

Just because he had never heard of a man living without a heart on Earth in his previous life, it didn't mean it wasn't possible in this world - a world where even immortals might truly exist.

Laying to rest in peace, regardless of whether it was in the Huaxia where he had existed in his previous life, or in this world, was a traditional and important concept.

Shu Guan did not want to disturb Elder Lame's peace in death just because of his own speculations.

So, although he hesitated for a long time, until he reached the end of the mourning period, he ultimately didn't disturb Elder Lame's grave.

After spending fourteen days and nights by Elder Lame's grave, on the fifteenth morning, he squatted by the grave, smoked a pipe in silence, knelt down and kowtowed three times, then finally prepared to return to the village.

As he passed the brook outside of the village, Shu Guan stopped to take a look at his reflection in the water.

he was still as ugly as ever.

But if there were ranks for ugliness, he was sure he previously held the position of the strongest king. Now, he was downgraded to Supreme Star Glory level.

Over the past few days, many molasses had fallen off his face. But because he had so many to begin with, even though they were falling off daily, his face was still covered with them.

After all, visually there's not much difference between a countenance with a hundred or fifty molasses on it.

Shu Guan reached up to touch his face. The touch was less bumpy than before, fewer molasses.

Probably in a few more days, all the molasses on his face will fall off.

By that time, Yadan would surely agree to marry him.

Get married, have children, start a new life.

Although it might seem ordinary, isn't an ordinary life still a life?

Shu Guan had known from a young age how his life was planned out to be.

As he strode across the brook and reached the opposite bank, Shu Guan let go of his grief and prepared to start a life without Elder Lame.

Not long afterwards, he reached the grain drying yard at the entrance of the village.

In the yard, a number of villagers were spreading out basketfuls of dark green leaves to dry.

The annual fern season had arrived.

Shu Guan noticed that Wang Dahu was also in the yard at that moment.

The fellow was out with his kids.

A twenty-year-old, robust, and honest-looking young man from a rural village. He was holding a one-year-old boy in his arms and was followed by a three-year-old little girl. He was leisurely strolling around the drying yard with a somewhat painful and helpless expression.

It's his own fault for being too frisky with his wife, as a result, her third baby was almost on its' way, leaving him to look after the others.

The joy in some aspects of life often comes with a price to be paid in other aspects.

However, Shu Guan was quite envious of Wang Dahu's pleasurable life in that regard.

He couldn't help but touch his face again.

Just a little bit longer - it won't take long!

He reassured himself in his heart.

At this moment, Wang Dahu also saw Shu Guan standing at the edge of the drying yard and hurried over with the child in his arms.

"Shu Guan, after keeping watch for Elder Lame's mourning period, you're back...huh?"

Upon reaching Shu Guan, Wang Dahu suddenly paused; he stared closely at Shu Guan's face with a weird expression.

"What's wrong?"

"Shu Guan, you seem to look...different."

"What's so different?"

"Hmm...Before, if I had to stare at your face and count to ten, I would definitely retch. But today, I've discovered that I might be able to endure it all the way to thirty."

"You can actually count to thirty now? That's an improvement!"

"Of course, I've seriously studied the math that Freckle-face you taught me."

Wang Dahu laughed proudly.

Originally, Shu Guan planned to go straight home. After Elder Lame left, the inside of the house hadn't been tidied up, and now it was probably covered in dust.

But after running into Wang Dahu, Shu Guan thought it would be a good opportunity to get him to help him with something. So, he decided to sit on a bench by the drying field and leisurely pulled out a pipe from his belt.

Wang Dahu looked at the emerald-colored pipe in Shu Guan's hands with envy, and sighed:

"Elder Lame had promised that when my third child is born, he would also make a pipe for me. I didn't expect him to leave us so suddenly..."

I haven't even had a turn yet.

Shu Guan muttered to himself, took a pinch of tobacco from the pouch hanging in front of his pipe, stuffed it into the bowl, and then pulled out a flint striker.

"In a few days, I'll make one for you. Although it won't compare to a pipe made by granpa, there should be no one else in the village who can make a better one than me now."

As he lit the tobacco, Shu Guan spoke.

Wang Dahu's eyes lit up because what Shu Guan said was not a boast. In the past, Elder Lame was the most capable man in Taoyuan Village, but as he aged, Shu Guan, in fact, had become the actual most capable man in Taoyuan Village. Be it farming, hunting, fishing, or even house building and blacksmithing, he was as skilled as Elder Lame had been in his prime.

Therefore, Wang Dahu's eyes lit up immediately.

Meanwhile, Shu Guan took a drag from his pipe, then slowly spoke:

"Invite Yadan out tonight, say we're playing cards."

Wang Dahu immediately looked hesitant yet eager. He glanced at the child in his arms and somewhat embarrassedly mumbled:

"I don't have time, I have to look after the baby…"

"Not you, just invite Yadan out."

Shu Guan said, waving his hand.

Wang Dahu immediately understood and snickered:

"Freckle-face, you still can't let go of Yadan, huh? That girl has high standards. It seems like she doesn't like any of the young men in the village."

"With a face like yours, better not to overthink. Or I can ask my wife to ask her younger sister, if she's willing to marry you, then we'd become family."

"None of your business, just help me invite her out."

Shu Guan said impatiently.

In the past, he wasn't confident, but now things were different. As long as he waits until his face is free of freckles, with his skills and experience as a transcender, couldn't he handle a naive ancient village girl who's never really seen the world?

In a few days, when the peach blossoms bloom, he'd pick nine hundred and ninety-nine of them and form a giant "heart" on the river bank. Let's see if the young girl can resist then!

Just as Shu Guan was planning his blissful future, above the grain-drying field came a strange noise.

Because Shu Guan was deep in his fantasy about when he could play Dou Dizhu alone with Zhang Yadan, he didn't look up immediately.

But Wang Dahu next to him did. The country youth, who also hadn't really ever seen the larger world, slowly opened his mouth, looking blank and stunned at the sky.

Wang Dahu's little girl also looked up like her daddy, then let out an excited cheer:

"Wow, such a big iron bird."

Iron bird?

What iron bird?

So Shu Guan also looked up at the sky.

The next moment, Shu Guan suddenly stood up, because at that moment, many overly complicated emotions welled up in his heart, and, in his panic, he knocked over the bench behind him.

He looked up at the sky, at the two "iron birds" in the sky. His palm tightly gripping his pipe, his fingers whitening with the intensity, he didn't even notice his nails digging into his palm.

"Helicopters!"

In Shu Guan's throat, three words came out in almost a moan.