Chapter 7: Dressing as a Courtesy

When Dazai woke up, the sun had already begun to set in the west. Yunlang, dressed in strange attire, brought him food. As he ate, he watched Yunlang tidy up the disordered stone house.

The dead clothes brought by Dazai are also made of hemp, and wearing them feels like being scraped with a rasp, which has caused great suffering to Yunlang's delicate skin

Otherwise, it is impossible to explain how a person who cannot move could survive alone in the wilderness for three days

That bear skin is indeed very beautiful, and with a gentle blow, the thick layer of fur will swirl, representing the finest quality of leather

The feeling of waiting for others is extremely unpleasant. Yun Lang has never liked waiting for people; as time passes, he becomes increasingly irritable.

The essence of life lies in the two words: diligence. A person's living environment can largely reflect their spiritual outlook.

Dazai still has not returned

After catching his breath, Dazai silently took the yellow rice brought by Yunlang, which was topped with some meat broth. He did not eat any vegetables and finished the yellow rice in large bites before collapsing onto the pile of bamboo slips, instantly snoring like thunder.

Yun Lang brought the sand table over and, in front of him, wrote the three characters for "First Emperor" in three different styles.

Tazai turned around and looked at Yunlang, smiling, "A lifetime"

Without Dazai, Yunlang is not very sure if he can survive alone in this desolate place

I do not wish to, for outside is the realm of the Han, where there is no place for a Qin person like me to stand.

This matter is akin to food that has already been consumed; one knows how full they are, and there is no need to regurgitate it for the whole world to know

Yunlang did not ask who struck, only that the ship Taizai seemed rather unstable

Until now, Yunlang has been doubting that from the very first day he appeared in this world, Dazai should have discovered his existence.

In fact, this room lacks nothing; it is merely made to resemble a pigsty by Dazai.

It was not until the hemp thread became soft that he found a stick, tied a stone to the bottom of the stick, and began to twist the hemp rope

"One cannot be unyielding; a true hero does not resort to unscrupulous means; a great man remains steadfast in his original intentions! Yunlang, you must remember, once a person becomes flexible and changes, they lose their resolve."

He stretched lazily and glanced over the stone house once more, unable to suppress a sigh

It is important to note that he is now tender and soft, and it must be very delicious to eat, far from the charred appearance he had when he first arrived

A promise made by the Qin people is worth a thousand gold pieces, and they would rather die than go back on their word

The only thing we can do is to safely crouch on the rock with the tiger and wait for Taizai to return

As the sun was about to set, Yunlang's pair of trousers was finally completed. They were not the kind of deep garments worn by the great writer, but rather a pair that would leave a dark, exposed backside when climbing over broken stones

The yellow rice has been steamed, the pickled meat for the tiger is also ready, the wild vegetables have been drizzled with wild boar oil, and the chopsticks have been boiled in hot water

Even the sharpest knife will become dull and rounded at the edge after cutting bear skin for a while. Yun Lang has no choice but to make a few cuts and then rub the knife vigorously against a stone to ensure that it remains sharp.

The garments produced in this manner are naturally not of high quality; they are essentially made by sewing a layer of burlap inside a bear skin, and then using hemp rope to tie several Chinese knots as buttons

He was not impulsive enough to run outside to the big rock; at least, he would not go until he was certain that it was indeed safe outside, not even for Dazai. An existence capable of killing the highly skilled Dazai would have no difficulty in killing Yunlang.

This aligns very well with the values of people in this era, much like Bo Yi and Shu Qi who refused to eat the grain of Zhou, or like the five hundred valiant men of Tian Heng who, isolated on a desolate island, ultimately took their own lives. As for the brutal loyalty exemplified by the Zhao family's orphan, it is precisely the kind of ideal that individuals like Taizai yearn for

These individuals share a common characteristic of never showing off in front of others

Yunlang nodded slightly; he did not want to question whether it was worth spending a lifetime guarding the grave of a deceased person.

"Why do you not ask me why I returned so late yesterday?" Dazai put down the bowl of rice in his hand and said thoughtfully

It is customary to have two meals a day. When night fell, Dazai finally ceased his teaching, coughed as he stood up, and went outside the stone house, staring blankly at the remaining glow of the sunset on the horizon

Moreover, due to Yunlang's obsession with cleanliness, he boiled this tattered garment in a gray pottery jar for a full three days

After all, it is situated to the south with mountains at the back, and is surrounded by water on three sides, namely the east, west, and north. The phrase "surrounded by mountains and water" is indeed the most prominent geographical feature of the Mausoleum of the First Emperor of Qin

Yun Lang had never imagined that sewing a piece of clothing would be so difficult

On the large rock, the sunlight is abundant, and the tiger sprawls lazily on top, basking in the sun. Seeing the tiger, which does not seem tense, Yun Lang's tightly wound heart gradually relaxes back into his belly. This place seems more suitable for work.

This is a symptom of fatigue

A large bundle of hemp hung on the wall, and Yun Lang let out a low moan as he tore a thick strand of hemp from the wall. He skillfully split the coarse hemp and then divided it into several fine strands, placing them on a wooden board and vigorously pounding them with a wooden mallet

During the recently concluded period of the Qin Empire, they were always on the offensive side

However, after waiting for quite a while, that foolish old tiger was still crouching on the rock, panting, and did not see Taizai come from behind the rock, which made him somewhat worried

Yunlang has a small knife. According to Dazai's assertion, every Qin person should possess a knife, to be used for eating meat during leisure and for killing during times of necessity

In the past, it was Dazai who took care of him, and now it is his turn to take care of Dazai; this is how things turn around so remarkably.

Yunlang believes that this guy Dazai can be slovenly, but since his new life has just begun, he absolutely cannot develop the habit of being untidy. Over time, feigned slovenliness will turn into genuine laziness

Dazai quickly forgot the question he had just asked, carefully examined Yunlang's homework, pointed out two inappropriate areas, and then continued to teach him how to recognize characters

Before going to bed, Yunlang not only finished mending his own shirt but also properly repaired the clothes that had been torn by Taizai.

This statement undoubtedly reveals the offensive mindset of the ancient Qin people; they have never had a concept of defense

One must be cautious in unfamiliar environments; this statement is always true

In this lifetime, Yunlang has never experienced any good fortune, therefore, he does not believe in coincidences

Certainly, this is his thought, yet Dazai would regard his own persistence as a form of honor

At the moment when Yunlang was fiercely battling with the animal skin garment, a tiger, as was its habit, suddenly sprang out from behind a large rock, crouching atop a high stone, its mouth wide open as it continuously exhaled hot breath

The small mountain path is empty, having just been traversed by a tiger, with not a single mischievous squirrel in sight

After Yunlang finished his meal, he washed the dishes and then sat back down by the fire pit, using a large needle to sew his coat.

How long have you been here

If there is silk or satin, Yunlang can create even more beautiful buttons, a skill learned while making qipaos with Grandma Yun

A cool breeze swept by, and finally, Dazai has returned

He looked very disheveled, his tattered robe was covered in mud, and the exquisite sword sheath was so caked with dirt that its original appearance was unrecognizable

This task alone consumed a full hour of his time, as he held a large bundle of fine hemp thread wrapped around a stick, filled with countless emotions

Yunlang thought for a moment and said: "Staying here is actually not bad; as long as one is happy, any place can be a paradise"

He is measuring Dazai, believing that Dazai is also measuring him. Yunlang does not believe that someone he has just met for a short time would place too much trust in him, and presumably, Dazai would not overly trust him either

When the wet clothes were stripped off Dazai, there was a large bruise on his chest, appearing as if he had been struck by someone's fist

Yunlang has encountered several exceptionally talented individuals due to his work

Even if he is the First Emperor, he does not have the qualification to still tightly control a group of people for his use even after his death

Do you not want to go out and take a look

Is he going to be alright? Yun Lang instinctively asked the tiger

Even so, this garment has been worn by the deceased for a long time, already worn and tattered with countless holes.

For Yunlang, the large stone serves as a boundary ridge; outside the large stone, in the realm of the map and the book, lies the wilderness, while inside the large stone is a temporary refuge.

Yunlang stepped forward to offer support, but Taizai pushed Yunlang away, stumbling and falling onto the bamboo slips, breathing heavily like a bellows

Yunlang is currently doing just that

Dazai believed that he only recognized names, and he enjoyed teaching him to recognize characters. He followed Dazai closely to learn the characters, and he did it quite methodically. After all, his understanding of clerical script was merely recognition.

Tying the half-finished bear skin pants around his waist, Yun Lang exerted himself to climb up the large rock, holding the tiger's head and looking towards the path.

Do you not feel any regret

In the past, he, as an orphan, had done many such small handicrafts, and even during his most clumsy times, his work efficiency was far higher than it is now

A knife is meant for expanding territories; otherwise, what is the purpose of sharpening its blade

The tiger, of course, remained oblivious, still focusing its gaze on the doe that sought refuge on the stone, wanting to leap up to it.

The clothes had turned into fragments, and Yun Lang was completely bare, naturally unwilling to crawl on the stones with his bare bottom

In fact, Yunlang's little knife is not sharp at all; how sharp can a knife made of bronze be?

During these days of immobility, Yunlang contemplated many things, from the identity exposed by Dazai to the lush and towering earthen mound across from the stone house. If he could not deduce that the mound across was the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, it would be exceedingly foolish.

As dusk fell, it began to rain lightly outside. Yunlang sat cross-legged in front of the door, watching the rain while glancing at the already cold meal.

The useless doe let out a cry and plunged into Yun Lang's embrace, disturbing him and making it impossible for him to sew his clothes in peace

Wearing pants feels great, but Dazai still hasn't returned