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墨書 Inktalez
The Village Chief gently stroked the wooden box, his eyes filled with nostalgia. After a long pause, he solemnly handed the box to Mo Wen and said, “Please accept this, young brother.”
Mo Wen looked at the Village Chief with confusion. “Senior, did Junior say something inappropriate earlier? What I did was sincere and without any expectation of reward. This gesture of yours…”
Before Mo Wen could finish his sentence, the Old Village Chief gestured for him to stop. The Village Chief smiled and said, “Haha! Young brother, please let the Old Man finish. You have been living in the village for over two months now; you must have noticed the unique aspects of our village.”
“The layout is well thought out, and the houses are orderly; the villagers are well-educated and perceptive. Moreover, there is equality between men and women here; there is no sign of male superiority or female inferiority. Although my experiences are limited, I sense that your village is not an ordinary one. It feels more like a fallen noble family. I hope you can forgive my boldness,” Mo Wen expressed his feelings from his time here and was eager to hear what the Village Chief would say next.
“Indeed, my clan originally did not reside here but migrated here tens of thousands of years ago…” Kao Shu Village moved here thousands of years ago because of the item that the Village Chief intended to give to Mo Wen. It is said that the ancestors of Kao Shu Village were once a prominent family within the Empire, controlling much of its trade and maintaining close ties with the imperial family. By chance, they acquired this item, but before they could study it further, their clan was attacked by an unknown force. After a fierce battle, the clan leader led the remaining members into hiding. However, what caused the leader to despair was just beginning; the Empire that had once protected them confiscated their assets, and all clan members were placed on the Empire's wanted list, hunted down by officials. The entire Empire became inhospitable to them.
With no other choice, the clan leader led those who managed to escape into Cloud Mist Forest. It is said that they were guided by a wise person and changed their name to live in seclusion here. Shortly after arriving, the clan leader succumbed to his injuries and left behind a final decree: from this day forth, our clan shall bear the surname Li, and future generations must not trace their roots. This item is to be kept for aiding our clan's revival by a Noble Person. He also destroyed all historical records of the clan. Thus, Li Xing Village emerged in Cloud Mist Forest.
The clan members adhered strictly to their ancestor's decree. After several generations, even the Village Chief—who knew many of the village's top secrets—was unaware of their original surname. For a long time, they were isolated from the outside world; at one point, their population dwindled to only forty or fifty people. During this existential crisis, the then-clan leader sent someone out to gather information and learned that the original Empire had long since fallen. Only then did they begin to interact with the outside world again, intermarrying and ensuring their lineage continued. Their history was continuously rewritten until it became known that their ancestors had chosen seclusion out of disdain for worldly affairs. The true history was thus submerged in the river of time. By the time of the Village Chief’s generation, apart from him, only the Elders knew that their ancestors had left behind an item along with a prophecy that one day someone would help them thrive; this item was to be entrusted to that person.
After listening to the Village Chief’s words, Mo Wen finally understood what had transpired. However, he still felt something was amiss. After pondering for a while, he finally realized where his confusion lay and asked, “I see now. But how does Senior determine that Junior is indeed that Noble Person?” In Mo Wen's view, labeling someone as a Noble Person seemed rather hasty.
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