v8c5: Seeing the World (Patreon)

Seeing the Grand Ravine was fascinating to Meiling; it was as interesting as when, earlier in the year, they had been visited by the Soaring Heaven’s Isle Sect.

She had always loved learning, and listening to just how differently people lived scratched an itch deep in her mind. But previously, she could only really listen. Read scrolls. Gaze at a drawing for an hour, or more recently, see images projected in front of her eyes.

Now? She actually got to be here herself. She got to see everything first hand, and it was amazing. The sights, the smells, the colours.

And the people.

The feast had turned into several groups of people talking to each other—Jin and Wa Shi were discussing cheesemaking with what had to be half the cheesemakers in the Ravine, her husband deep into the conversation. His eyes were sparkling as they always did when he was learning how to make new food, and Wa Shi was right beside him. At least most of these cheeses didn’t smell—even Zhuye didn’t mind them save for the particularly pungent ones.

Yun Ren and Biyu were, of course, showing off recorded images.  Several of the women around them practically swooned as the image of Biyu’s arm, tied in red rope, showed up.

“It’s so simple and elegant—oh, I need to talk to Hangai—his clan lives so far away, but with this…!” one of the girls gushed. “What do you think, Elder?”

An old lady, who was wearing her hair in an elaborate head dress, squinted at the rope with suspicious eyes. She considered it at length, puffing her pipe.

“It keeps to the letter of our ways, but the spirit? Hmm,” she said in her wizened voice. “That it is the custom of our cousins is a mark in its favour, but it needs a proper discussion.” Several other older folk nodded seriously, but most just looked curious.

On the other side Gou Ren and Xianghua were talking about hunting. Gou Ren was holding one of the Ravine’s bows, while a man was holding Gou’s, and both were nodding, while Xianghua was stroking the feathers of a magnificent-looking hawk. The proud beast was headbutting her fingers, begging for more. With their headbands and clothes, Gou and Xianghua looked the most like they belonged here— Xianghua looked like a Ravine princess, if they had such a thing, with how her presence effortlessly dominated the attention around her. She laughed her booming laugh, and people laughed along with her.

“Earth and Sky, that's a woman. Look how fierce she is,” she heard one of the men mutter.

“And how loud she can yell! No children will be able to say they can’t hear!” a woman joked.

Ravine ladies were supposed to be fierce and loud, and good at hunting apparently, which was interesting.

Bi De, Ri Zu, and Bei Be were all gathered around a selection of art, and discussing its merits.

Suyan was still nearby, but was getting drawn into conversation herself, and there was at least one bee beside everyone.

And Meiling? She was satisfying her own curiosity. Zhuye was in her lap, dozing after the meal.

“And what did you say this was called?” Meiling asked, looking at the knives that were attached to a long rope.

“Olsokh Ir, Lady Hong,” came the prompt answer from Tarkhan. “Or an Ascending Blade in Imperial. Every child when they come of age makes their own, and families have their own styles. Long has my family been defenders of our home, so our blades are more suited to combat, than purely as a tool.”

She could see what he meant. His blade was long, hooked, and vicious-looking, sharpened to a razor’s edge. There were some parts of it that looked like the Nezin tribe’s blades, in the way it curved for hacking. The other example Tarkhan had brought up with him looked much more like a grappling hook. It had only a small cutting surface, while the rest was designed to be able to catch on to ropes and serve as an anchor point. 

“Olsokh Ir,” she repeated, and Tarkhan blinked, before a small smile overcame his features. 

“Your pronunciation is very good, My Lady.” He sounded impressed and surprised.

She had once been shocked that there was more than one language people spoke… but really, how could she have known? None of the scrolls she had read had ever mentioned humans speaking other languages, or if they did, it was always mentioned that it was far, far in the past, and when the Empire came everyone just started speaking the same language.

Everyone speaking the same language was something she had thought happened naturally. Of course everyone would want to communicate! What a good idea! Which… was probably a bit naive of her, thinking back on it.

The Nezin tribe just spoke the common tongue too. Occasionally one of them would have a name that sounded different, and they had accents like Auntie Hu Li, but everyone could understand each other.

After the visit from Soaring Heaven’s Isle, she had even asked Auntie Hu Li and the tribe chief, Grandpa Han, if they knew any other language. Auntie Hu Li hadn’t actually known, but Grandpa Han had just been amused.

“You’re using some of them,” he had said… and then pointed out several plants, three birds, what they called a specific kind of storm, and how they described light sparkling off rivers.

None of which were the “proper” names of things, but it was what her ancestors had recorded as the right name, and basically everyone in the Verdant Hill Commandery used. It was the common tongue to them, and she would be the confusing one if she went anywhere else.

It was actually rather funny how little she knew; it was humbling and exciting in equal measure.

“What about the hat, what is the hat called?” she asked, turning to Sarnai. She had a rather fetching red, round cap on her head.

The young woman brightened, and began to explain.

===

Even after months in the province, Su Suyan could still marvel at how different things were in the Azure Hills.

“You came from the Howling Fang Mountains, cousin?” one of the Ravine folk asked, genuinely interested. Everyone here was looking with awe at her ears and her tail. Several children had their eyes locked completely on to the appendage, their fingers flexing like they wanted to run their hands through it.

How cute.

There was no hate in their eyes. No distrust. Just complete and utter fascination. The blue hair tie that she had been given by Chief Han seemed to be a magic talisman; every Ravine folk she had met who had noticed it had immediately become warmer.

It was odd, that people not family were so eager to claim her as cousin. Almost suspicious, if she was honest. They didn’t smell like the Nezin did, like home and safety. They were not truly kin.

But the earnestness of most of them were endearing. And they, more than most others… could understand the foxes of the Howling Fangs. They too had been fighting to preserve themselves for thousands of years. The circumstances were different. They had, largely, won.

But there was a common thread there. 

“Yes, we came following our Young Master,” she answered. “His family, and Master Jin, took us in. We have settled under his protection.”

There were noises of understanding, and then one of the cultivators spoke. One of what were the Ravine’s Elders, judging by her power… but most people here were weak. The only cultivator of note was the Patriarch.

“Perhaps we could arrange a visit, so we can better get to know our cousins!” the woman said. She looked in her thirties at most, her arms a riot of bangles, and her eyes sharp and calculating. “We can have some of our young ones build an outpost, so we can keep in touch better.”

The tone was slightly off. She recognised it instantly. The request was not entirely pure, and she knew why it was made. They lived near Master Jin. If the Ravine was allowed to visit, well, they might just run into Master Jin, or somebody might “get lost” and stumble into his home.

The very thought of people disturbing the sanctuary that was her Master’s home was repulsive. Every instinct that had served Suyan in the years of hiding spasmed in her chest at the question. Suyan’s soft smile died instantly. Instead, one eye opened, just so that the woman before her could see an amber iris… and the predatory slit of her pupil.

The woman’s good mood died as fast as Suyan’s had, the other cultivator’s face going white as a sheet.

“That will not be happening,” Suyan snapped, her tone cold. Possibly too cold. Her Master wished for friendly relations with these people… but boundaries had to be set.

The woman swallowed and another of the Elders slapped the first on the shoulder, his glare scathing. This one was clearly older, his body that of a man well past his prime.

“She just got done telling us that they had to move into a different province, fool. We may be distantly related, but we’re still unknowns. Shall I go up to some Imperials and tell them where to find your house?” he demanded.

Instead of taking offense at her blunt denial, several of the Ravine folk were looking at her with sympathy, turning glares on the woman who had pushed, who let out a spluttered apology, before bowing briefly and practically fleeing.

“Wet behind the ears at that age. She's spent too long in the Ravine, she needs to see what the world truly is,” the older man huffed. “Some people have more guts than sense. They see the might of Master Rou and they want to see more of it. It's like standing at the very edge of the Ravine, without checking if the ground is unstable. ‘One more step’, you say, then you fall.”

The conversational tone belied the warning that there would be others who wanted to politic about her Master. Suyan inclined her head at the warning; she would pass it on to her Master later, even if he probably knew already.

“That is an apt metaphor. We take our Master’s privacy very seriously,” Suyan gave her own warning, her tone turning mild again.

“If every one of his servants is as mighty as you, it's less stepping too close to the edge and more jumping down head first,” the older man snorted.

“As mighty as me? This Suyan is, at best, a middling talent,” Suyan denied. The old man’s eyes widened. “This one was chosen because she is good at attending to children without being too weak. Our actual combatants remained home, guarding our Master’s land while he attends to matters here.”

“...I see.” the old gentleman said, his voice grave. “Well. It's a good thing there shall be no trouble, because nobody is foolish enough to disturb Master Rou.”

“Indeed,” Suyan said, taking a sip of her butter tea. Out of everything, this was perhaps the best invention of the Nezin and these distant relatives. The flavours seemed tailor made to the fox parts of her. “This is very good,” she said, raising her cup in salute.

The older gentleman took the out. “Thank you! It's our pride and joy. We build terraces into the side of the Ravine for the tea—we call it ‘monkey picked!’ hoho!”

“We had something similar, up the sides of the mountains,” Suyan replied.

The boundaries were set; perhaps, they might loosen in the future, but for now… they needed to get to know each other first.

===

Night came early in the Ravine, the walls blocking out the sun, but the stars and the millions of fireflies more than made up for it, rising up over the river in great glowing clouds.

There were still demonstrations ongoing, and things had broken up further, the people of the Ravine singing and dancing.

We had exchanged gifts; my patented “farm produce” technique was as well received as always, the entire crowd gasping as I laid out the food, drink, and Spiritual Herbs. I didn’t know much about their cultivation style, but they were the most numerous sect… so I had settled on quantity rather than something more tailored.

Still, they clearly liked what I had given them.

In return, we had gotten things I had liked; art and fabric was nice; the Ascending Blades were cool as hell, but the crown jewel of what we received?

Rope.

Specifically, rope made by the Patriarch of the Ravine himself, and let me tell you, this stuff was absolutely insane. It was quite frankly the best rope I had ever held in this life. Every fiber was hand-selected by the Patriarch and woven with the expert precision of a man who had been doing it for hundreds of years.

And oh boy, I had so much use for rope. The drop hammer, Babe’s harnesses, my trestles for the climbing beans, fixing my fences…

Really, endless uses.

Even Tianlan was boasting about the rope quality from here. She had been in a good mood all feast, telling me to try this and that, and mentioning how much she liked other things. The food had changed a bit, but plenty of the flavours were still things she enjoyed.

And so I was in a really good mood, when Baatar asked to speak with me, privately.

I had nothing better to do, so I followed him into the biggest yurt on the grounds here… where a bunch of other people were already seated, waiting for us.

I raised an eyebrow at what had to be all the Elders of the Sect, as well as people who were clearly mortal chieftains.

“Is this about what you said, back when we were atop the Ravine?” I asked.

“Yes, Master Rou,” Baatar said, his voice heavy. “We have long had a prophecy. A prophecy  of a Herald of the Earth, who would one day return to us. They would know our customs as if born to them, and walk the earth, putting everything to right. We believe you are the Herald of the Earth.”

I blinked. I felt Tianlan blink.

Well, I mean, it wasn’t entirely wrong… that was honestly a pretty good prophecy. lt nailed what having Tianlan in your head looked like.

But there was one thing that was more important than this at the moment.

“Ha! Suck it, there is an ancient prophecy! You said there wouldn’t be one!” I shouted in my own head.

Tianlan spluttered. “How?!” she demanded, feeling absolutely baffled. “Wait, does this have to do with that Qi we felt?”

“Doesn’t matter how, what actually matters is how we defuse this! No holy wars allowed! No holy wars allowed!”

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Mei being seen as one of the friendly ones for once, while the maid fills the role of "oh god why is she so scary"

Edited by:  BargleNawdleZouss,