100 Years

Plants. Growing up as a farmer boy outside the city of Kunlun, Juan Yuan is good friends with plants. He watches them grow, watches them flourish, tugs on them when they are in the wrong, and pushes them down into their rightful places.

Plants are interesting little beings. Some can grow in extremely harsh conditions, while some wilt away at the slightest touch of water not to their liking. Sort of like humans. They live extraordinarily long lives. They move with the wind, rise out of the falling earth, bloom in places inhospitable, and carry their progeny despite impossible circumstances. Like some humans.

However, plants have not willingly carried out sabotage and slaughter of a clan that spanned through generations. Very unlike humans. Juan Yuan definitely thinks so. Yet these foreign memories of a long-forgotten clan continue to haunt the boy like the weeds eat at the plants. Well, not these melons, they seemed quite healthy at least.

Yuan’s pondering is interrupted by a sharp and high-pitched voice. “Ei! Boy! Why are you staring at my melons again?!” Shooting up rigidly, Yuan came to bow profusely in the direction of the voice. He recognized it, on account of being called out so many times. “S-Sincerest apologies, Elder Hua! They were quite beautiful in shape to gaze upon, and sure to earn a great bounty from others!” Elder Hua. Rumors from Brother Shi say she was a beauty back in the day. But I find it difficult to imagine her being young once!

“Aiya. This boy! You pass by my farm every day and look at my melons every time! Does your family want some melons? I can give you a pair!” Yuan seriously considers the offer, looking to the Elder’s melons. I can take Melon seeds from those. Truly, Mother and Father would enjoy a treat in this heat. But more than simple food, we can grow more money. The boy’s eyes settle on the Elder’s other melons. Ai-yah, no. It will start a competition with Elder Hua. She has been nice to us.

“Forgive me, Elder! I cannot accept such a gift.”

“Eh? Denying a gift… nevermind! How about some tea before you run off on your errands again?” Yuan’s hand goes to his neck as he looks aside towards the dirt road, leading beyond the farms and to the city gates. I suppose… they would not mind if I took longer this once. Elder Hua may have some interesting plant raising techniques to give me! Clasping his hands plaintively, Yuan’s head dipped. “I would be honored, Elder!”

“Good, good! Come inside Mei Hua’s house.” She moves from the doorway, welcoming the farmer boy inside. Elder Hua’s abode is a quaint household, a small fire stoked in the middle of the hut to boil soup, and a carved roof thatching for the smoke to escape. Various small trinkets and clothes lay messily strewn around the house. A pair of teacups are set before Juan Yuan as he sits on an old table set against the wall.

“Little Yuan. You are smart, have good looks, a good body, and are hard-working! Are you going to waste away from being a farm boy for the rest of your life?” The boy humbly takes his drink, cup set in a lone hand. Looking to the Elder with a smile and enthusiastic reply, “If it is what my family desires of me, then I shall do so! It would be terrible of me to leave those who raised me for the road. Besides, Elder, there is good in this simple life they have wished for me.”

“I see, I see. Filial piety to your parents.” The elder takes a sip from the cup, before continuing in her gossiping tone. “What about your future then? Have you found a girl to settle down with? I hear Xin Yue from the carrot farm is soon to reach a suitable age.”

Red flushes Juan Yuan’s cheeks, as he quickly sips at the cup in some faint attempt to cover himself. “We… we’ve talked before. But, I dare not confess to her yet! Not without her father’s blessing.”

“I suppose you are correct. Good mannered as ever. Will your family be contributing to Kunlun’s yearly festival? I hear one Tianhuang’s nobles shall be visiting.”

A tinge of worry creeps into the boy’s face, smile faltering. The nobles… perhaps they will know something about my dreams. Forcing an enthusiastic nod to displace his thoughts, “Such is tradition! We will have to work hard to please our revered guests!”

“Good, good! Do you want food? Or will you have to go off for your errands now? Because I’m afraid I do not have any more questions to ask.” Elder Hua refills the cup, but the green-robed child drinks deeply from the fill to empty it. Yuan offers another plaintive bow from his seated posture, “Apologies! I cannot stay for too long. You have my gratitude for your hospitality, Elder. Should you come to my family’s house, we will strive to repay the same courtesy.” Yuan would swiftly depart with a sulk. Ai-yah. I would stay longer if not for my errands! Once the Juan boy had left the room, Elder Hua gazed at the empty pair of cups with a sullen outlook.

Past the farm grounds and winding terrace fields, Juan Yuan ran to the gates of Kunlun CIty. The present shift of guards there dismiss him quickly, recognized as the errand farm boy. Today, he was set to visit one of the local smiths, retrieving a bevy of rusted and worn hoes, spades, and sickles that were previously given in for maintenance. Navigating through the living, breathing labyrinth of people in the city, Yuan eventually found his way to the blacksmith’s shop. Blacksmith Huo Zi, a middle-aged man who they say is only useful is in his physical craft. Not a talented spirit crystal worker nor a formation specialist, but he opened a shop for the commoners.

“Little Yuan. The tools are here. Oh- and say hello to your father for me. Tell him that we should get a drink sometime.” The smith offers a brisk nod, hammering away at a plain sword while the boy takes the tools, bundling them with the lower half of his shirt.

“Amazing as always, Senior Zi! I will be sure to tell my father.” A tip of the head is given towards the sword, “Ah, Elder… perhaps, did an aspirant to become Heavenly Sword request this blade of you?”

“Bah. You think too highly of me, Little Yuan. A simple blacksmith like me with no talent for cultivation has no business crafting weapons for the Heavenly Swords. This is actually for one of the rice farmers, the Zhao. Their boy was having some grand fantasy about becoming the greatest swordsman under heaven. Normal for his age.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Juan Yuan scoffed at the thought, unintentionally derisive, as his free hand moved to his chin in some attempt to look older and wiser. “Hmph, Zhao Shi can dream. I will be sure to tell him about it.” Reaching into his back pocket, the Yuan boy took out a simple leaf-wrapped parcel containing the Juan family cabbage rolls. The offering was extended not to the busy workman, but on a flat surface nearby. “Before I forget, Elder! My family offers you these as thanks for taking care of our tools.”

Huo Zi only offers another brisk nod as he carries on his work, wiping sweat from his brow. Yuan firmly nodded back and set off to depart again. The city to a farm boy like him felt nearly as bad as the dark woods, with all the buildings cloistering together. It was like plants battling for sunlight, reaching out higher and higher. Shadowed alleyways, and the paths unnatural… I will need to make my way back. I think I took too long already. I shouldn’t have spoken with Elder Hua!

Making his way through each snaking path carefully, Yuan nonetheless finds himself lost in a sun-lit alleyway. Ordinary as it may be, the person inside it cannot be called such. Wearing bright, white robes, where most ordinary folk would be culturally mandated to wear a dull brown or grey, this figure must be someone important!

Little Yuan pauses for a moment, taking a long, doubtful look. It wasn’t often that he saw someone else of higher status. Though, unlike most commoners, he doesn’t turn tail and hurry along. What a beautiful robe. It seems like it shimmers in the sun. The boy’s eager curiosity blinds him to encroaching folly, as he quietly walks into the alleyway to get a closer look.

The white-robed figure turns, a lotus bun held in hand, calling out to the boy with a woman's voice. “You should stay where you stand. Any further, and my bodyguards will not take kindly to your approach.” Idly munching on the rest of her snack, the robed one waits.

Yuan freezes up. Heavens! A cultivator- or worse, a royal! Heavens have mercy! Yuan’s figure bows sharply face parallel to the ground. “My sincerest apologies, revered one!” He dared not speak any further.

One does not speak unless asked to.

“Calm down, boy. As I am now… you need not worry about status. Right now, we are both commoners.” The lady runs her gaze on the boy, taking note of his appearance. “You’re a farmer from around here?”

Yuan’s head slowly rises, eyes on the lower part of the robe of the woman. “Err… yes. I am a cabbage farmer.”

“Is that so? Tell me about your day.” The lady strikes openly, and casually.

Though, to the Yuan boy, he felt otherwise. Like hovering between the fine line of life and death when it came to respecting cultivators, Yuan slowly and carefully spoke out his routine. It was easy enough to state, given how similar his days were. “I woke up this morning, meditated on how I can better myself, brought water from the well, helped to cook breakfast. B-But today was different because instead of helping to cook, I was instead sent to collect our farm tools from the smith.”

Glancing further up at the woman's face, he found her strikingly beautiful. Sharp facial features, a dainty nose, slant eyes, and high cheekbones. The lady had braided auburn hair that fell to her shoulder. Yuan found a pair of icy blue eyes gazing back into him.

The lady exhales sharply through her nose, the corners of her mouth upturning slightly. “Really? That sounds tough. What are you going to do later?”

Yuan continued, his hesitation slowly fading as the conversation drew on. Perhaps, the fact that he was still alive truly meant no danger. “I am going home, eat my breakfast, then oil the tools. O-Or perhaps, I will oil them first. Then I will go to clear the weeds in the field.”

Looking on with a fond smile, the lady finishes her snack. “I see. That sounds like a nice day. What’s your name, farmer boy?”

“I-I am Yuan! Juan Yuan.” The boy slides back in footing, stuttering at the gaze brought back on him.

“Little Yuan. My name is Miao Ling. From the way you are reacting to me, you must think of me as either a royal or a cultivator. What do you know about the latter- no. Cultivators?”

“Cultivators. I know they seek to be strong. To be unrivaled under heaven, strong among peers. My Father tells me they are revered, know all manner of mystical forces, and hold wondrous power and knowledge. Like a plum blossom, they do the unthinkable, and flower in the hardiest of conditions.”

And like certain plants, they can kill if carelessly approached. Though, Yuan does not voice that thought out.

Miao Ling exhales sharply again, closing her eyes for a few seconds before looking at the boy. “Quite the aspiring poet and romanticist. Little Yuan, while some of those are true, beneath all the power and glory, cultivators are human.” Fishing out a small bound pouch from her robe, the bag is tossed at the farmer boy’s feet.

“If we meet again, I would like to talk to you once more. Perhaps those in the lowest class may be different. Perhaps it is just you. That bag contains a Spirit Pill. If you ever decide to reach out beyond your little farm to find out if those stories are true, open the bag and swallow it. If not, it will sell for a good price.”

“Unless you go beyond the boundaries of your little world, this will be the last time we speak again. Goodbye.” Miao Ling walks past the farmer boy and out into the crowd.

Little Yuan snatches the bag once they have left, quickly stowing it in his shirt. He dared not look into it immediately, too naive to question whether this lady in white was merely a con. Departing back to the village, he harbors only such thoughts.

Father will be displeased if I tell him about this! He’ll call me a dirt toad lusting after cultivator swans!