Fortunately, the river wasn't too deep. Lin Xian hugged Lin Bao'er and they drifted to the other side with the current.
He didn't care that they were both soaked and cold. He held Lin Bao'er and kept running, afraid the landlord would catch up.
He didn't know how far they had run.
"Huff… huff…"
Lin Xian felt like his lungs were about to explode. Every breath felt like swallowing knives. He leaned against the cold earthen wall, his whole body like a fish just pulled ashore, gasping for air, his legs trembling like sieves.
The small body in his arms jostled with every step. Lin Bao'er's little face was buried in his sweaty collar, her small shoulders trembling slightly, clearly still shaken by their desperate sprint.
"He… he didn't chase us, did he?"
Lin Xian was still in shock, his ears perked up, straining to hear any movement from the alley entrance. Besides the distant, indistinct barks of dogs and the monotonous clanging of the night watchman's gong, there were no more of those life-threatening roars and heavy footsteps.
"Scared the hell out of me…"
Lin Xian let out a long sigh of relief. He realized that his and Lin Bao'er's clothes were completely soaked from the river, clinging damply to their skin, cold and uncomfortable. He looked down at Lin Bao'er in his arms. The little girl was also looking up, her big eyes still holding a hint of moisture, like a startled fawn. Her small hands were clutching his shirt tightly, her knuckles white.
"Bao'er, it's okay, it's okay now," Lin Xian quickly patted her back, his voice still a little shaky. "We're safe… safe for now."
While comforting the child, he recalled the terrifying scene with lingering fear: the landlord hoisting that gleaming hoe, which had missed his forehead by mere inches! If he hadn't fallen and rolled far enough, and if the landlord hadn't hesitated for half a second, eager to see how his precious fruit trees had been damaged, he would have been fish stew by now!
"Father/Master…" Lin Bao'er's voice was a little nasal, the grievance evident. "The fruit… delicious… landlord fierce…"
"Yes, yes, the fruit was delicious, and the landlord was fierce!" Lin Xian appeased her, but his heart was bleeding.
Delicious? It was bought with his life!
He subconsciously touched his lower back. He had landed on a protruding rock during his fall, and it still ached. Worse still, in his desperate scramble, he had no idea where the few remaining copper coins from his embrace had fallen! That was his last bit of fortune, the money he had planned to use to survive the next two days and buy steamed buns once the commotion died down!
"It's over, I'm completely broke…" Lin Xian felt like crying but had no tears.
His stomach growled again, playing the empty fort strategy. He despairingly looked around. The alley was narrow and deep, filled with a faint mixed scent of mold and night-blooming jasmine. At the end of the alley was a high wall, beyond which came faint, uniform shouts and dull thudding sounds.
"What's that noise?" Lin Xian strained his ears. "Huo! Ha!" The shouts had a powerful cadence, interspersed with the muffled thuds of something, perhaps wood or a sandbag, being struck.
"A martial arts school?" Lin Xian's mind sparked.
Right, this alley was right next to the back wall of the town's largest establishment, the Weiyuan Martial Arts School! He had heard that they practiced genuine, hard-core martial arts, had strict admission policies, and charged exorbitant tuition – far beyond the reach of a poor wretch like him, who lived hand-to-mouth.
But now, Lin Xian's eyes darted around, and an idea formed.
This was a good place! That furious landlord who had just wanted to eat him alive wouldn't dare cause trouble on the territory of the Weiyuan Martial Arts School, would he? This was a place guarded by people with real skills!
"Safety First, Safety First…"
Lin Xian muttered his mantra for survival, hugged Lin Bao'er, and tiptoed like a thief towards the deepest part of the alley, near the high wall. The closer he got, the clearer the sounds of martial arts practice from beyond the wall became.
He found a sunken, deeply shadowed spot at the corner of the wall and collapsed onto it. Scattered at the base of the wall were a few half-broken bricks and some withered yellow leaves. He gently placed Lin Bao'er on the ground and leaned back against the cold wall, letting out a long sigh.
"Be good, Bao'er, let's rest here for a while and wait for things to blow over," Lin Xian said weakly. "Master is really too tired to run anymore."
Lin Bao'er nodded obediently and sat down next to him. The little girl seemed exhausted too. She hugged her knees, resting her small face on her arms, her big eyes blinking as she looked at Lin Xian.
They were safe for the moment, but they were truly hungry! Lin Xian felt like his stomach was glued to his back. He licked his chapped lips and tried to feel around in his pockets again, hoping to find a copper coin or some leftover wild fruit crumbs, but it was in vain. He closed his eyes in despair, his mind filled with visions of white steamed buns.
The shouts and blows from the other side of the wall seemed like a monotonous background noise, buzzing in his ears. Lin Xian felt drowsy, his eyelids growing heavy. Just as he was on the verge of falling asleep, dragged down by hunger and exhaustion,
"Huh?" Lin Bao'er made a small, questioning sound.
Lin Xian jolted awake and suddenly opened his eyes: "What is it, Bao'er?"
He saw that Lin Bao'er had gotten up at some point. She was standing on her tiptoes, craning her neck, her eyes fixed on the not-so-high wall.
A thick tree branch extended diagonally over the wall, its foliage dense, obscuring some of the view but leaving gaps.
Lin Xian also stood up and followed her gaze. Through the gaps in the leaves, he could vaguely see the backyard of the martial arts school: a group of young men in uniform gray martial arts attire, standing in a relatively neat formation, practicing a set of seemingly simple basic fist techniques under the guidance of a sturdy instructor.
"Lunge! Straight punch! Unified waist and horse stance! Power from the ground!" the instructor's voice was loud and carried an irrefutable authority. "Movements must be precise! Punches must be fast! Retractions must be steady! Keep your stance firm! Don't be like you haven't eaten enough!"
The disciples practiced in rhythm with the commands, their shouts of "Hei! Ha!" echoing. Their movements weren't particularly exquisite, but they were neat and powerful. Each punch and kick carried the force of a charging tiger, striking several wooden dummies wrapped in thick cowhide, which stood in the courtyard, emitting dull "dong dong" sounds.
Lin Xian looked for a couple of minutes and lost interest. It was all show. Not as nimble as Bao'er climbing trees to pick fruit. He pouted, closed his eyes again, intending to continue his discussion about steamed buns with the God of Dreams.
But Lin Bao'er was very interested.
Her small body had already quickly climbed the tree. She craned her neck upwards, her dark, bright eyes wide open, staring intently through the gaps in the leaves at the uniform punches and kicks on the other side of the wall. Her focused expression was as if she were studying some rare treasure, even her breathing had softened.
Lin Xian waited for a while, but there was no movement. He quietly opened one eye again. When he saw what was happening, he almost jumped up from the ground in shock!