Xuanyuan Chronicles

The Next Day.

Xuanyuan: Yawwwnnn... listening to bedtime stories is truly relaxing and enjoyable.

Xuanyuan then went to the dining room.

Xuanyuan: Mama, what's for breakfast today?

Yuloria: Today you're having egg toast.

Xuanyuan: Egg toast, my favorite food, thank you my dear mama who loves me so much.

Yuloria: Eat quickly before it gets cold.

Xuanyuan: Okay mama.

Xuanyuan quickly finished his favorite egg toast.

Xuanyuan: Mama, I'm going out to play.

Yuloria: Alright, be careful and don't faint.

Xuanyuan: I'll remember that.

Xuanyuan then went to Haolin's hut.

Xuanyuan: Haolinnnnn! Let's go playyy.

Ruoshan: Oh.. Xuanyuan is here.

Xuanyuan: Aunt Ruo, good morning, where is Haolin?

Ruoshan: Good morning to you too, Haolin is eating breakfast inside, he should be done soon.

Xuanyuan: Alright, please tell him I'll be waiting.

Ruoshan: Okay.

Xuanyuan then went to Lianrou's hut.

Xuanyuan: Lianrouuuuuu! Let's go play.

Lianrou: Waiiittt.

Xuanyuan: What are you doing?

Lianrou came out of her hut and showed the necklace made from a beautiful stone they found at the river yesterday.

Lianrou: Look, isn't it beautiful?

Xuanyuan: You made it into a necklace? Wow, it's very pretty.

Lianrou: Of course, Uncle Bo'an made it for me.

Xuanyuan: Uncle Bo'an? He's always cared a lot about you but is always cold to me.

Lianrou: Are you jealous? Hahaha, where's Haolin?

Haolin appeared from behind them.

Haolin: I'm here.

Xuanyuan: Finally you're here, what did you have for breakfast? Took you long enough.

Haolin: Of course, my favorite noodle soup.

Xuanyuan: Whoa noodle soup, Lianrou what did you have?

Lianrou: I only had two steamed buns. Haolin, look at this, is it beautiful?

Xuanyuan: There she goes again showing off.

Haolin: You turned it into a necklace? Pretty nice, Uncle Bo'an must've made it.

Lianrou: Of course, where are we going to play today?

Xuanyuan: How about we go into Qianlong City?

Haolin: Honestly, I've never been inside Qianlong City.

Lianrou: Right, but they wouldn't accept us as beggars.

Xuanyuan: What's to fear? We're just going to have fun, we won't bother anyone. Let's go!

Haolin: Alright, let's go.

Lianrou: Are you sure this isn't dangerous?

Xuanyuan: Don't worry, Haolin's strong, if we have to fight he can protect us.

Haolin: If it's kids our age, maybe, but if it's adults, you're insane.

Xuanyuan: Let's gooo!

Xuanyuan, Haolin, and Lianrou headed to Qianlong City and entered it.

Xuanyuan: Wow, so this is what Qianlong City looks like? Pretty beautiful.

Haolin: Yeah, beautiful but... as expected they don't like our presence.

Lianrou: Should we go back? They're looking at us like they want to eat us.

Xuanyuan: Relax, as long as we don't bother anyone, we'll be fine.

Suddenly, they were blocked by a big man.

Gao Rutong: Who are you? How dare you enter Qianlong City!

Xuanyuan: We just wanted to walk around and enjoy the city, we don't mean any harm.

Haolin: Right, I don't think an adult like you would bully six-year-old kids, right?

Lianrou: What should we do...

Gao Rutong: Hahaha... look at your little scared faces, relax I'm not here to stop you, in fact, I'm offering myself as your protector. Kids like you, still so innocent, it's too dangerous to wander around Qianlong City. Even though this city is small, there are many terrifying people hiding in the shadows. If you make even a small mistake, your lives could vanish in an instant in this city. So what do you say?

Xuanyuan: How can we be sure that you're not one of those terrifying people?

Lianrou: Yeah, exactly.

Gao Rutong: Hahaha... good question. Then what should I do to prove I'm not a bad guy?

Haolin: Treat us to a nice meal, how about that?

Gao Rutong: That's all? Hahaha, you've met the right person.

Xuanyuan: The right person?

Gao Rutong: That's right, because I'm the owner of the best restaurant in this city, what do you say?

Xuanyuan, Haolin & Lianrou: Whaaat, really?

Gao Rutong: Come on, follow me.

Xuanyuan, Haolin, and Lianrou followed Gao Rutong and arrived in front of a restaurant called Thousand Flavor Meat Restaurant.

Xuanyuan: Wahhhh, this restaurant is huge.

Gao Rutong: Of course, come on in.

Lianrou: The aroma of the food reaches even outside.

Haolin: Yeah, smells amazing.

They entered the restaurant with Gao Rutong, but the people around didn't seem to like it.

Nearby customer: Look, he's bringing in street kids again from who-knows-where.

Another customer: Gross, how can he bring those filthy things in here?

Nearby customer: Hmph, he does this all the time, just ignore him.

Another customer: Tch, so annoying.

Gao Rutong: Just ignore them, come sit here.

Xuanyuan, Haolin, and Lianrou sat at the table.

Gao Rutong: Wait a moment, I'll order the food.

Xuanyuan: Okay.

Lianrou: Turns out he really is a good person.

Haolin: But we don't know what his real motive is. Maybe he just wants to help, or maybe not? Either way, we should stay cautious.

Xuanyuan: As always, Haolin never trusts people easily.

Haolin: What's wrong with being prepared?

Soon, Gao Rutong returned with lots of delicious and appetizing food.

Gao Rutong: Food's hereeee!

Xuanyuan: Wahhhhh it smells so gooood.

Lianrou: I can't wait to eat it.

Gao Rutong placed all the food on the table.

Gao Rutong: Try it, see how it tastes.

Haolin: How can we be sure it's not poisoned?

Gao Rutong: Hahahaha...

Xuanyuan: Haolin, what are you saying? This uncle has been kind to us, at least we should be respectful. Sorry, uncle, my friend isn't good with words.

Gao Rutong: It's okay, it's normal to not trust people easily, that's a good thing. You two should learn from him not to trust too easily. Come on, try the food.

Xuanyuan: Okay, I'll go first.

Xuanyuan quickly picked up one of the dishes with chopsticks and put it into his mouth.

Lianrou: How is it?

Xuanyuan: It's... SO DELICIOUSSSS!

Lianrou: Really? Let me try it too.

Lianrou also tasted one of the dishes on the table.

Lianrou: It really is... so delicious.

Gao Rutong: Hahahaha, eat up. You too, kid—eat. Don't worry, if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't need to do it with delicious food.

Haolin also picked up some food and tasted it.

Haolin: It's very tasty...

Gao Rutong: See? Hahaha...

Xuanyuan: Uncle, why do you want to help beggars like us?

Gao Rutong: First of all, my name is Gao Rutong. And you are?

Xuanyuan: My name is Xuanyuan.

Lianrou: Lianrou.

Haolin: I'm Haolin.

Gao Rutong: Nice to meet you Xuanyuan, Lianrou & Haolin. Simply put, I've always liked helping those in need. And especially, you're just innocent kids who don't know how cruel the world really is.

Lianrou: Is the real world really that scary?

Gao Rutong: Good question, but that answer can only be found when you experience it yourself. Whether the world is cruel or not depends on your own understanding of what the world really is. But to me, this world is indeed very cruel to all living beings. Never mind that, finish the food quickly while it's still warm.

Then the three of them quickly finished all the food Gao Rutong brought.

Xuanyuan: So full...

Haolin: Yeah...

Lianrou: This is true worldly pleasure...

Then Gao Rutong noticed the necklace Lianrou was wearing.

Gao Rutong: (That's... an artifact? Looks like she doesn't know it yet) Kid named Lianrou, do you know what you're wearing around your neck?

Lianrou: This... we found it by the river.

Gao Rutong: If you want to stay alive, take that necklace off and store it safely. That necklace will attract a lot of danger to you.

Lianrou, frightened, immediately took it off and stored it.

Lianrou: Alright, it's done.

Gao Rutong: Now, didn't you want to walk around the city? I'll accompany you.

Xuanyuan: Let's go!

The four of them left the restaurant and went to Shuilian Bridge, one of Qianlong City's iconic bridges.

Xuanyuan: Wow this bridge is so beautiful.

Gao Rutong: This place is usually visited by young couples or elders seeking peace, since this bridge isn't used as a main road, but just for relaxation.

Lianrou: Right, there are lots of young couples here, elders too, even kids and teens.

Haolin: If we could live in this city, that would be great.

Xuanyuan suddenly hugged Haolin.

Xuanyuan: Haolin, as long as we work hard in the future, we can elevate our status. Believe in yourself.

Lianrou: That's right Haolin, don't worry too much about the future, live in the present.

Gao Rutong: (These kids complete each other so well) Let's go to the next place, Yueming Flower Market.

Lianrou: Flower market? Are there lots of beautiful flowers there?

Gao Rutong: Of course, if there weren't, why would it be called a flower market? Haha.

Xuanyuan: Sometimes we need to use our brains properly.

Haolin: Exactly.

Lianrou: Are you teasing me?? Hmph...

The four of them spent the whole day together in Qianlong City.

Xuanyuan: I didn't even realize it's getting dark.

Lianrou: Yeah.

Haolin: Uncle Gao, I'm sorry about earlier...

Gao Rutong: Hahaha, don't worry, I'm not someone who gets offended easily. In fact, I'm glad you have that kind of attitude. Keep it up.

Haolin: Okay, thank you Uncle Gao.

Gao Rutong: Alright, it's getting dark, you better go home before your parents start worrying.

Xuanyuan, Haolin & Lianrou: Thank you Uncle Gao, see you tomorrow!

They parted ways at the city gate of Qianlong, and the three of them went home to rest.