Ancient Doomsday Traveler

Chapter 55: Starting the Project

After leaving the yamen, Lin Xiu saw that there were two more cows and four horses in the courtyard.

The cowshed and stable were both located in the courtyard of the government office.

Lin Xiu said, "I didn't expect there to be four horses here. If I really want to stay, I'll get you another horse and the donkey cart. What do you think?"

Yao Rongrong chuckled softly, "Sir, you should keep it for yourself."

Lin Xiu felt that Yao Rongrong's smile seemed like she was being difficult.

He and Yao Rongrong returned to their room. It was already dark, and without an oil lamp, they couldn't stay up all night to write. So they ate some dry food and rested.

Before going to bed, Yao Rongrong would inevitably ask Lin Xiu to tell her a story, as if she was afraid that she would not be able to hear it again, and she was eager for Lin Xiu to finish telling the story of "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils".

Lin Xiu continued his storytelling until midnight, recounting how the Shaolin Temple had stolen a chapter from the Yi Jin Jing. Yao Rongrong exclaimed, "This Chief Qiao is truly an upright and honorable man. He obtained such miraculous martial arts, yet he didn't even bother to learn them. If I were him, I definitely couldn't do that."

Lin Xiu laughed and said, "Same here, I can't do that either."

Yao Rongrong chuckled and asked, "Sir, are you going to write 'Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils' tomorrow?"

Lin Xiu said, "No, there are scholars in Lijiaji. I'm afraid they'll take my talk about the Song and Liao dynasties too seriously. Let's find something else."

Yao Rongrong's lips curved into a silent smile as she said, "Wouldn't it be a pity if these words were only meant for me alone?"

Lin Xiu sighed, "There's nothing I can do. Luckily, you're not a pedant."

"snort!"

Yao Rongrong said with dissatisfaction, "Sir, I can also read and have studied literature, but I just don't like to delve into the details and study things in detail."

Lin Xiu said, "So you're not a pedant."

Yao Rongrong felt slightly annoyed and didn't want to talk anymore.

The next day, when Lin Xiu and Yao Rongrong woke up, they heard footsteps approaching from outside. The footsteps were not in a hurry, but rather slow and deliberate, making them seem furtive.

Lin Xiu and Yao Rongrong immediately sat up, exchanged a glance, and looked warily toward the door.

Yao Rongrong's hand was already on her waist, ready to draw her sword at the slightest provocation—she always carried her sword, except when she was being searched earlier.

However, the footsteps stopped abruptly as they approached, and then a voice rang out: "Brother Donkey, one."

"Mmm~"

"Alright, alright! As expected of Brother Donkey, here you go!"

"Click, click..."

……

Lin Xiu and Yao Rongrong exchanged another glance, their expressions both bewildered, unsure whether to laugh or cry.

So it turns out someone came to feed Brother Donkey...

You made them so nervous!

It seems the news that Brother Donkey can count has already spread throughout Lijiaji. Perhaps someone even fed Brother Donkey when they went to the yamen yesterday.

Lin Xiu and Yao Rongrong didn't open the door or make a sound, so as not to embarrass anyone or scare the people outside away.

Why not have someone help feed Brother Donkey for free, saving them the trouble?

It would be even better if people kept coming to feed Brother Donkey!

Lin Xiu and Yao Rongrong both had the same thought in mind.

And then their dream came true.

The following day, Lin Xiu stayed in his room alone, writing his story, while Yao Rongrong went out. One reason was to find out if anyone had seen or heard of her master's whereabouts, and the other was to see what she could exchange for him.

Meanwhile, the donkey outside would occasionally bray.

Every time it barks, someone comes over to feed it, tells it a number, and makes it count with "uh-huh".

The villagers of Lijiaji Village seemed to have never seen such an "exceptionally clever" donkey before, and they were quite addicted to it. Of course, most of those who came to feed the donkey were teenagers, and occasionally there were adults, but not many.

Those people, regardless of age, basically traded grass for their goods.

Of course, some children, being ignorant, would bring vegetables, only to be grabbed by the ears and dragged back by their parents who rushed over, inevitably receiving a good beating.

This place of temporary residence has become a popular tourist attraction in Lijiaji Village, bustling with activity from morning till night.

The storyteller Han Cheng came to check on Lin Xiu once. Seeing that Lin Xiu had already started writing, he was afraid that the noise outside would disturb Lin Xiu, so he tried to shoo him away, but to no avail.

Later, he heard Lin Xiu say, "It's alright, with them around, it saves me the trouble of feeding Brother Donkey." Seeing that Brother Donkey's writing flowed like the wind without any hindrance, he was slightly relieved and stopped worrying about it.

Lin Xiu was not disturbed by the outside world. All the stories were in his mind. He only needed to transcribe them, roughly transcribe them, and he didn't need to use his brain much. How could he be disturbed?

For him, being in Lijiaji now might be the last time Yao Nvxia is his travel frog.

Yao didn't speak to him when she left in the morning, but he always felt that when she came back, she would give him something in return, so he was eager to repay her.

Therefore, he wanted to write this new story faster and in more detail.

The story he chose to write was "Journey to the West".

There is no Song or Liao dynasty in this world, nor is there a Tang dynasty or India. I originally wanted to find a background that fits and could make sense, but after thinking about it for a long time last night, I still couldn't find a direction, so I simply gave up thinking about it.

Forget it, let's just copy it. As long as the story is interesting, nothing else matters.

When I was young, I didn't understand anything either, but I could still easily accept the stories of Sun Wukong's havoc in the Heavenly Palace and Tang Sanzang's journey to the West.

As for whether Magistrate Xu, that scholar, will be dissatisfied at that time, so be it, he's not the audience.

Anyway, I wrote a little this morning. When I got to the part where the Monkey King went to the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars, learned the Seventy-Two Transformations and returned on the Somersault Cloud, Han Cheng had already come to see it and was very satisfied with the script.

By the end of the day, he had written up to the part about the Monkey King causing havoc in the Heavenly Palace, where he overturned Laozi's alchemy furnace and gained a pair of fiery eyes.

Journey to the West is too long to finish in a short time; it will take many days to complete.

But it's good that it's not finished; it's easier to negotiate a price if it's incomplete.

Make money, not shabby.

In the afternoon, Han Cheng came over to check on Lin Xiu's progress again. He read all of Lin Xiu's writings and was so excited that he scratched his head and became like a monkey. He simply stayed by Lin Xiu's side and wouldn't leave.

As darkness fell and it became too dark to write, Han Cheng hurriedly blew dry the page Lin Xiu had just written, intending to take all the manuscripts away.

But Lin Xiu stopped Han Cheng, saying, "Brother Han, please allow my sister to take a look before you get the manuscript."

Han Cheng paused slightly, then smiled and said understandingly, "Brother Lin and your sister truly have a deep sibling bond. Alright, then I'll come back tomorrow to collect the manuscript."

Yesterday, after hearing your sister praise Brother Lin's ability to write storybooks, I already thought Brother Lin was an expert in all sorts of things, but I never imagined that Brother Lin could be this good!

Today's story, "The Monkey King's Havoc in Heaven," has truly broadened my horizons! It's breathtaking! Absolutely breathtaking!

What does Brother Lin want? I'll fetch it all tomorrow.

Lin Xiu asked, "Could the horses in the yamen be given to people?"