The gates of the County Magistrate Government Office opened, and a woman dressed in a flowing celestial dress appeared at the entrance, accompanied by the County Magistrate.
The starving people waiting outside for the porridge immediately knelt down and bowed, exclaiming, “County Magistrate!”
and fervently kowtowed.
Bao Gu, seeing a Female Immortal for the first time, was struck by how beautiful her dress was.
Her second thought was that the Female Immortal truly lived up to her title, glowing all over except for her face.
The books always said Female Immortals were stunningly beautiful, but this one had her face covered.
Could she be an ugly Female Immortal?
Aunt Zhou tugged Bao Gu’s sleeve and whispered, “Bao Gu, kneel down quickly! Do not offend the County Magistrate.”
Bao Gu hurriedly lifted her skirt and knelt, still curiously peeking at Aunt Zhou.
She whispered softly, “Aunt Zhou, is her face covered because she’s ugly?”
As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed the Female Immortal suddenly turn and stare at her with bright eyes.
Bao Gu felt a chill and thought, “Can she really hear that well? I spoke so softly.”
Aunt Zhou, kneeling with her head down, didn’t notice the Female Immortal’s gaze.
She lightly patted Bao Gu’s back and whispered, “Stop talking nonsense. It’s offensive to the Female Immortal. There are no ugly Female Immortals; the ugly ones can’t become Female Immortals. It’s great that a Female Immortal is here; we are saved.”
Bao Gu muttered softly, “Aren’t we dealing with a Drought Demon? I heard from Scholar Sun that the Drought Demon can swallow clouds and kill dragons. To defeat it, we need a giant, powerful immortal. Look at this Female Immortal, she’s so slender. I saw earlier, it wasn’t her flying, it was the sword under her feet carrying her. Could she be an apprentice… Ouch, Aunt Zhou, why did you pinch me? It hurts!”
Aunt Zhou exclaimed, “Stop talking! Ancestors!”
She quickly moved her knees away from Bao Gu, pretending they weren’t together.
The County Magistrate told everyone to stand up.
Bao Gu stood up, dusted off her knees, and looked again at the County Magistrate and the Female Immortal at the entrance.
She had to admit, even if the Female Immortal’s face was ugly, her figure was excellent, and her flowing celestial dress was truly beautiful.
The County Magistrate spoke loudly, “Everyone, this immortal is Immortal Yu Mi from the Xuantian Sect in the Yunling Mountains, eight thousand miles away…”
Immortal Yu Mi!
Bao Gu was shocked.
Corn can become an immortal?
Then could Bao Gu also become an immortal?
She imagined herself greeting Immortal Yu Mi, but she didn’t dare to actually do it.
However, she did have an issue with the County Magistrate’s words.
The Yunling Mountains were only eight hundred miles away, not eight thousand.
Bao Gu silently grumbled but didn’t dare to contradict the County Magistrate in front of everyone.
The County Magistrate continued, “Immortal Yu Mi was passing by and noticed the unusual weather here, so she came to investigate.”
Suddenly, he saw Immortal Yu Mi staring intently at a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl in the crowd.
Sensing something unusual, he quickly gestured towards Bao Gu and said, “Immortal Yu Mi…”
Bao Gu thought, “Oh no!”
and quickly hid behind Aunt Zhou.
Aunt Zhou, fearing trouble, moved away, exposing Bao Gu.
A melodious voice rang out, “I see that child has a strong affinity with immortality.”
It was Immortal Yu Mi speaking, her gaze fixed on Bao Gu.
Everyone’s eyes followed hers, looking at Bao Gu with newfound respect.
Bao Gu broke into a cold sweat.
When her father was alive, he often hired laborers to move grain.
If any laborer deliberately opposed him, he would “praise” them in front of everyone before punishing them severely.
Feeling guilty, Bao Gu lowered her head, wishing she could hide.
But there was no one else within three feet of her, not even Aunt Zhou.
Fearing punishment, Bao Gu steeled herself, knelt down, and pleaded, “Immortal Yu Mi, I am Bao Gu. Our Qing Shan County hasn’t seen a drop of rain in three years. The crops have failed, and countless people have starved to death. Please, use your powers to bring rain and save us from this disaster.”
“Please, bring rain to save us…”
Outside the County Magistrate’s office, everyone knelt down, crying as they recalled the suffering and loss of the past three years.
A sharp glare shot towards Bao Gu’s head, but with her head lowered, Bao Gu didn’t notice it at all.
Immortal Yu Mi said, “I observe the celestial phenomena here and sense the presence of a demon causing trouble. Let me subdue and eliminate it, so you all can be at ease.”
Bao Gu felt this sounded like an excuse and quickly said, “Immortal Yu Mi, I’ve heard that immortals have the power to summon rain, turn beans into soldiers, and create food out of thin air. Now, with the Three-Year Drought, countless people are starving. Please, Immortal, use your powers to bring rain and produce some food to save lives. Qing Shan County will be forever grateful and will record your deeds in books, build shrines, and offer incense in your honor.”
The County Magistrate glared at Bao Gu, as if blaming her for stealing his lines.
He clasped his hands in salute to Immortal Yu Mi and said, “Immortal, on behalf of the people of Qing Shan County, I earnestly plead for you to save the populace.”
The starving people below knelt down in unison, begging.
Immortal Yu Mi asked, “County Magistrate, do you want to treat the symptoms or the root cause? If it’s the symptoms, I can immediately call upon my fellow disciples to summon rain for you; if it’s the root cause, I will personally subdue the demon causing trouble here, bringing peace to the people.”
Bao Gu, hearing “call upon fellow disciples to summon rain,” suddenly realized, “So Immortal Yu Mi can’t summon rain herself! Clearly, her skills aren’t sufficient!”
The County Magistrate and the kneeling starving people repeatedly begged Immortal Yu Mi to subdue the demon plaguing Qing Shan County.
Immortal Yu Mi said, “I will go now!”
She formed a sword gesture with her hand and waved it in the air.
Suddenly, a small, palm-sized sword emitting a rainbow light appeared before her.
The small sword spun in the air and transformed into a large sword, seven feet long and one foot wide, appearing under Immortal Yu Mi’s feet, lifting her straight into the sky.
Bao Gu watched as Immortal Yu Mi’s figure flew towards the direction of Yun Ling, growing smaller and smaller.
She muttered doubtfully, “Can this slender Immortal Yu Mi really defeat a demon? Could she be using the demon as an excuse to escape back to Yun Ling Immortal Mountain?”
Just as she finished speaking, she saw the figure in the sky suddenly shake violently, then plummet downwards, disappearing without a trace.
The County Magistrate cleared his throat and shouted to the starving people kneeling outside the County Magistrate’s office, “Folks, Immortal Yu Mi has gone to subdue the demon. Qing Shan County will soon be peaceful again. Everyone, go back and wait for the good news from Immortal Yu Mi! Get up, disperse!”
The starving people knelt outside the County Magistrate’s office, staring at the County Magistrate, unmoving.
The County Magistrate said again, “Folks, disperse! Go back!”
Bao Gu looked down at the clay pot in front of her, touched her stomach that was already faintly aching from hunger, and resolutely stayed put.
A steward-like person whispered in the County Magistrate’s ear.
The County Magistrate suddenly understood, stroked his beard, and said to the steward, “Go check if the porridge is ready. If it is, bring it out.”
He then remembered something, turned around, and beckoned to Bao Gu, who was clutching the clay pot tightly, with a kind smile, “Come, come!”
Bao Gu looked at the County Magistrate, pointed to her own nose, and asked softly, “Me?”
The County Magistrate nodded with a smile and said, “Little girl, come over here.”
Bao Gu quickly got up, holding the pot, and walked to the County Magistrate’s side.
She lifted her skirt and curtsied, saying, “Bao Gu greets the County Magistrate.”
The County Magistrate looked Bao Gu up and down and asked, “Are your parents here?”
Bao Gu replied softly, “They have both passed away.”
“Oh!”
The County Magistrate sighed deeply and said, “It’s all because of natural disasters! Is there anyone else in your family?”
Bao Gu replied, “It’s just me.”
The County Magistrate asked with a hint of surprise, “Just you?”
Clearly, he was somewhat incredulous.
Bao Gu responded, “Yes.”
A man who looked like a steward interjected, “Bao Gu, I see your clothes are neat and your face is clean. If you’re the only one left in your family, how did you manage…”
Bao Gu understood what the steward meant.
They probably thought her family had starved to death.
In a place where people were dying of hunger everywhere, she was the only one left in her family who hadn’t starved, nor had her food been stolen by desperate people.
She seemed to be in a much better situation than the surrounding hungry people.
She replied, “My father was the owner of a rice shop on East City Alley. He passed away at the beginning of this year due to illness. After he died, I broke the brick platform we used to weigh grain at home and found a few pounds of moldy mixed grains. I also pried up the floorboards of the grain storage in the backyard and dug out the mouse holes, finding a few more pounds of grain in the floor cracks and mouse holes. That’s how I’ve survived until now.”
The County Magistrate sighed, “Alas, how pitiful! I have heard of your father; he was a good man.”
He turned to the steward and instructed, “Go get a few White Flour buns for Bao Gu.”
He sighed, “Bao Gu, what a name, it means grain!”
Then he turned and walked through the main gate of the County Magistrate’s residence.
Bao Gu watched the County Magistrate’s back: “…”
After waiting for a while, the steward came out with a plate holding five buns and placed them into the clay pot Bao Gu was carrying.
Bao Gu was so hungry that she wanted to stuff the buns into her stomach immediately, but she knew it would be unseemly to do so.
After expressing her thanks, she carried the clay pot with the five large buns back to Aunt Zhou by the stone lion.
She took out a bun and handed it to Aunt Zhou, who was staring at the buns and drooling, then grabbed one for herself and started eating.
As soon as she brought the bun to her mouth, she noticed a circle of people around her, all staring at the White Flour bun in her hand with glowing eyes and swallowing their saliva.
Aunt Zhou quickly hugged the clay pot to her chest, glaring warily at the hungry people approaching.
With a bun in her mouth, she mumbled something.
Bao Gu didn’t understand, but the situation around her made her feel uneasy.
She swallowed the bun in her mouth and asked, “Auntie, what are you saying…”
Before she could finish her sentence, a hand suddenly reached out and snatched the bun she had just taken a big bite of.
It fell into the hands of a starving person who immediately stuffed it into their mouth.
Aunt Zhou was also quickly overwhelmed by the hungry people.
Bao Gu then heard the sound of porcelain breaking and saw her clay pot shattered on the ground, the buns inside covered in dust, and in the next moment, they were snatched away by countless dirty, emaciated hands.
The buns were torn into pieces in the scramble, and the extremely hungry people immediately stuffed the bun crumbs into their mouths.
In the blink of an eye, the buns were completely devoured.
The still unsatisfied hungry people were crawling on the ground, searching for bun crumbs.
Aunt Zhou sat against the stone lion, crying and pounding the ground, shouting, “You heartless people, even the County Magistrate’s reward you dare to snatch!”
Her clothes were torn, her hair was a mess, and her dirty clothes had several fresh shoe prints.
Her skin-and-bones neck and collarbone had several scratch marks.
Bao Gu’s eyes welled up with tears as she stared at her broken clay pot, pursing her lips and gasping, trying hard not to cry!
But in the end, she couldn’t hold back and wailed, “My White Flour buns!”
Tears streamed down her face.
Her White Flour buns, her clay pot!
She finally understood what Aunt Zhou’s mumbled words meant: “Eat quickly, don’t let them snatch it!”
Tears!
She understood too late!
Her White Flour buns were gone!
Waaa…
Thank you so much, this Nobel is so interesting .