Translator: Myuu Editor: Myuu
“Big brother, do you want to buy flowers?”
Perhaps Yan Liqiang had been standing too long at the western city gate of the Imperial Capital since his figure was still like a statue amidst the bustling traffic. A little girl who was selling flowers nearby finally went over and shyly called out to him, thinking to sell him the flowers she had gathered.
Her voice forced Yan Liqiang to snap back to reality. He lowered his head and saw a little girl about five or six years old standing in front of him. She was holding up a bunch of brightly colored marigolds as she looked at Yan Liqiang with her hopeful eyes. “Big brother, look at these flowers. I plucked them from the hill this morning, so they’re still fresh. This bouquet only costs ten copper coins…”
The flower girl had an emaciated face. She was dressed in rather faded light blue clothes which had been patched in some places. When she raised her hands, her sleeves slid all the down to her elbows, perfectly proving how ill-fitting her clothes were. Her small hands which were holding the flowers seemed rather callused with some cracks on the backside. Not only that, but there were also several fine cuts on her palms.
One could tell that this little girl was from a poverty-stricken family with just a glance and that she was out selling flowers to make ends meet.
It was the fourth lunar month and spring was still in the air. People who came out from the city gates, especially in the afternoon, were mostly out for a leisure walk and sightseeing. The little girl was selling the fresh flowers she gathered there. If those wealthy young lords and ladies who were either sitting in carriages or riding on huge horses were in a good mood, they might just fish out a few copper coins to buy her flowers. There were also a few other children selling flowers nearby. It seemed like they were from a village not far from the Imperial Capital. Despite being the Great Han Empire’s capital, there were also poor people in the Imperial Capital. Not only that, but there was also quite a number of less fortunate people at the bottom of the social hierarchy.
Yan Liqiang was dazed by the little girl’s wide and dark eyes. They reminded him of a photo from Project Hope which he had seen online in his previous life. The little girl in front of him had the same eyes as the little girl in the picture.
Since Yan Liqiang didn’t speak, the little girl had no choice but to try to market the flowers in her hands. “Look, big brother. If you take these flowers back and put them in a vase, they can last for a few days. You can also give them to a big sister. I know many big sisters who love marigolds. If big brother doesn’t like to look at them, these flowers can be used for cooking too. They have cooling and detoxifying effects…”
“Alright, I will buy the flowers!” Yan Liqiang smiled, then searched his body. He found a silver fragment that was worth less than five maces, then put it in the little girl’s hand before he took her marigolds.
“Ah, big brother, do you have smaller change? I don’t have the change for this silver…” the little girl said with a troubled face.
“No worries, you can keep the change!”
The little girl blinked her eyes when she heard Yan Liqiang’s reply. After finding out that he wasn’t joking with her, a brilliant smile broke across her face. “Thank you, big brother…” The little girl gripped the silver fragment Yan Liqiang gave her and ran off. After a few steps, she abruptly stopped as though she recalled something. She turned around and bowed to Yan Liqiang, then ran toward another boy about the age of seven or eight who was also selling flowers nearby and handed over the silver fragment to him.
“Brother, the big brother over there gave me five maces of silver and told me to keep the change! This will be enough to pay your tuition fee this month at the martial arts dojo in the village! Now you can train there and mother won’t need to do laundry for others…!”
Yan Liqiang could vaguely hear the little girl chirp to the little boy.
“By the time I learn martial arts and grow up, I will be able to protect Yingying and mother from the bullies. Then, I will also be able to earn money and buy tons of good food and beautiful clothes for both of you!” The little boy shook his fist and said all of that in an extremely earnest voice. The little girl looked at her brother with a smile on her face.
Watching the scene in front of him, Yan Liqiang stared at the marigolds he was holding as he felt even more conflicted. He raised the marigolds to his face, took a deep breath, then walked toward the gates and entered the city.
It was the afternoon of the 28th day of the fourth lunar month in the 13th year of the Yuanping reign!
Ten days, four months, and four years before this city would be destroyed!
Four years later, on the seventh day of the ninth lunar month in the 17th year of the Yuanping reign, a meteor would fall from the sky at night. This city and everyone who lived in it would be completely wiped out…
If nothing changed, then the little girl from just now would disappear from this world along with her mother and brother in the catastrophe that would occur in four years time.
Yan Liqiang was standing by the city gates in a daze earlier because he was looking at the magnificent city walls and the crowds that were passing through the gates. Unbeknownst to him, his mind had wandered for half a day while recalling the inevitable disaster that would strike in four years.
Among those who were coming in and out of the city gates, there were merchants who were always on the move, energetic-looking young men, innocent young ladies flying their kites, bow and sword-wielding warriors, numerous wealthy clans traveling with fleets of carriages and horses, and happy families that were out on a leisure trip…
At this point in time, no one living in this city would expect everything around them to dissipate like a mirage in four years.
If it was possible, Yan Liqiang would rather have everything that happened in the Heavenly Realm to be a mere a nightmare instead of the impending future.
What could he do? How could he save all these people from being reduced to ashes? How could he save everyone?
These thoughts kept running through Yan Liqiang’s mind endlessly. The pressure was suffocating him!
This wasn’t just about three or five lives, certainly not three or five hundred people either. He was looking at the lives of a few million to even several million people…
A few days ago, Yan Liqiang was still feeling complacent about his own strength back at Deer Villa. Right now, Yan Liqiang immediately felt just how truly pitiful, weak, and helpless he was.
At this point in time, who would believe him if he shouted at the top of his lungs to warn everyone to evacuate because there was a catastrophe that would annihilate the Imperial Capital in a few years time? This would probably lead to an ending where he wouldn’t be able to save a single soul because everyone would just think of him as a madman trying to mislead the public with lies. He’d be arrested and be thrown into prison. In the Great Han Empire, anyone captured by the authorities for publicly promoting the extraordinary and spiritual ideas to incite fear into people’s minds, would be decapitated without question because these were taboos to the ruler.
What should he do?
Yan Liqiang was at a loss…
After practicing spear techniques the whole morning away on the mountain behind the Deer Villa archery range, Yan Liqiang remembered the appointment he had made with Lu Peien. He left Deer Villa and came to the Imperial Capital again, thinking of meeting up with him…
It had only been twenty days since he last met Lu Peien.
Lu Peien had come to the Imperial Capital this time due to the lotus root briquette. Establishing this business and opening up a new prospect in the Imperial Capital would definitely take more than two or three days. Therefore, Lu Peien should be staying at the Gan Provincial Guild Hall during this period of time…
Yan Liqiang’s heart was filled with anxiety as he entered the city with the marigolds he bought in his hands. He didn’t feel like something was off until he walked a hundred meters in — he was being followed as soon as he entered the city…
