Li Daoxuan fixed the nozzle’s position, letting the nebulizer work on its own, and then he beca free to wander his gaze around.
Coincidentally, he noticed a middle-aged man in the crowd who was quite strange; he didn’t celebrate with the other villagers in the light rain but walked alone out of the group with a dazed look, taking heavy steps one by one towards Gaojia Fortress.
Li Daoxuan shifted his attention and saw the middle-aged man kneel at the fortress gate and kowtow several tis: “Deity, please save this lowly person.”
“Eh?” Li Daoxuan said: “Is this one of my figures?”
He could recognize each of the first forty-two figures in the box, but after Thirty-Two lured over a hundred more with flour, he lost track of most of them. Later, nearly two hundred labor offenders arrived, making him completely forget their faces.
For a mont, he wasn’t sure if this figure kneeling before his statue was his own. Only when he saw the pack on the man’s back did Li Daoxuan realize: “This isn’t my figure; he’s a wild figure who just ran in from outside.”
“Deity, save ! Deity, who rescues from suffering, pull this lowly person out of the sea of misery.”
The middle-aged man kowtowed rapidly, then began rambling about himself. He turned out to be a permanent worker in the official workshop of Chengcheng County, just like Li Da, a lowly artisan household.
After seeing two clay sculptors get rich, he firmly rembered the na Dao Xuan Deity. With great effort and guidance from a lay believer he finally reached here, seeking only the deity’s rcy.
Li Daoxuan spoke: “Yiye, call Li Da to the fortress gate.”
Gao Yiye, playing outside in the rain, imdiately set aside her child-like mood, found Li Da in the crowd, and ran with him splashing to the fortress gate. Their cotton clothes were half wet, but the thickness prevented any risk of indecency.
As soon as they arrived, Li Da recognized the middle-aged man and exclaid: “Luo Leg Hair?”
The man’s surna was originally Luo, but thick leg hair earned him the nickna Luo Leg Hair from coworkers since they lacked education and gave awful nicknas.
Seeing Li Da, Luo Leg Hair stiffened entirely: “Li Da, what are you doing here? You vanished after Wang Er’s rebellion—we thought you were dead…”
Li Da sighed: “Ah, it’s awkward… I used Wang Er’s uprising to escape, to stop being treated like a dog daily.”
Luo Leg Hair was shocked: “Aren’t you afraid? That makes you a ‘runaway peasant,’ without your artisan registration. You can’t return to cities now.”
Li Da chuckled: “Here I eat like royalty and live blissfully every day—who needs cities? Let soone else take the artisan registration. Being a runaway peasant here beats being an artisan household.”
When he first arrived, his dream was to beco a free commoner.
But after living here awhile, he found status unimportant—just staying in Gaojia Village brought happiness without care for labels.
His words left Luo Leg Hair thoroughly baffled.
Li Da asked: “How did you co? Escape like ? Abandoning your artisan registration?”
Luo Leg Hair looked embarrassed: “I… heard from two clay sculptors that they got rich under Dao Xuan Deity’s blessing. So I… followed clues to get here.”
Li Da paused, then laughed aloud: “So that’s it—you ca just in ti. You’re Chengcheng County’s best paper maker; your arrival is perfect.”
Luo Leg Hair stared blankly: “How is it perfect?”
Li Da pointed at Gaojia Fortress: “This fortress is newly built with over two hundred rooms, but no paper to paste on the windows—all bare. Third Lady plans a trip to the county to buy so for villagers. Your coming now? Perfect timing.”
Luo Leg Hair sighed: “You an, make paper for villagers to paste on windows?”
Li Da nodded: “Yes, isn’t that your specialty?”
Luo Leg Hair stamred: “But… I only have ten days… to return to the official workshop—just ten days…”
Li Da scoffed: “Why go back? You’ve no wife or kids. Since you’re out, stay like —settle as a runaway peasant and enjoy life.”
Luo Leg Hair shook his head wildly: “No, I can’t be a runaway peasant… I’m not brave like you…”
As he spoke those words, Gao Yiye beside him suddenly declared: “The Deity has issued an oracle: If you agree to stay and make paper for Gaojia Village, teaching villagers the techniques, you’ll receive one hundred catties of rice or flour, ten catties of at, one catty of salt, one catty of sugar, and one catty of oil every month.”
Hearing this, Luo Leg Hair froze completely and turned stiffly to Gao Yiye: “Miss… did… you… just say what?”
Gao Yiye smiled.
Luo Leg Hair trembled: “Truly?”
Li Da laughed loudly: “How could it be false? I get the sa monthly, with extra rewards for achievents—but… Luo Leg Hair, your frail self might struggle for that, hahaha.”
Luo Leg Hair asked: “But who is this miss?”
Li Da said solemnly: “She is the Saint Lady of Dao Xuan Deity Teachings, the divine envoy proclaiming heavenly edicts to all, Miss Gao Yiye.”
Luo Leg Hair gasped: “!!!”
Li Da teased: “Look how provincial you seem, hahaha—I was just as crude when I arrived. So, stay and be a runaway peasant?”
The choice wasn’t hard. Luo Leg Hair instantly abandoned his artisan registration and beca a glorious runaway peasant.
Gao Yiye said: “Co with . The Deity assigns you a house near Li Da and the two clay sculptors. All craftsn in our village now live in the artisans’ well.”
Li Da chuckled: “The Hakka roundhouse has nine halls and eighteen wells. We craftsn have one well exclusively, the ‘artisans’ well.’ It’s equals to others—but folks there get the most supplies monthly, hahaha.”
Baffled, Luo Leg Hair trailed Gao Yiye and Li Da into Gaojia Fortress.
To him, the Hakka roundhouse was a tall, majestic fortress brimming with dignity, making him feel insecure inside.
After winding through corridors, they reached the artisans’ well.
Luo Leg Hair spotted two clay sculptors seated under an eave manipulating strange-figured statues, “crafting miniature figure faces.”
At the sight of Luo Leg Hair, they laughed knowingly—as if saying “you showed up”—then ignored him to focus on their customizing, too busy for small talk.
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