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The sound of hooves outside the window disrupted his thoughts. Li Nan pushed open the window and glanced next door.
The carriage was parked at the entrance of the neighboring courtyard, and judging by its decorations, it seemed to belong to a wealthy family. Li Nan let out a soft hum, but his gaze fell on the anxious young woman who was getting out of the carriage.
This young woman was none other than Li Siniang, the owner of the Li Family Tavern, who had been sent back by Li Mao in the carriage. Li Siniang was naturally beautiful; even though she usually wore coarse cloth, it couldn't hide her striking features. If it weren't for her stubbornness in running the tavern and her fiery temper, suitors would likely have lined up from Zhuque Avenue to Xuanwu Avenue.
At this moment, due to her anxiety, her originally fair face was tinged with a layer of redness, and her chest rose and fell dramatically. The light from the carriage illuminated her further, making her look even more attractive. Li Nan found himself momentarily entranced, his hand resting on the window sill stiffening.
Li Nan was also aware of the situation next door. He and Li An were classmates and had studied at the same academy. In terms of grades and talent, Li An was indeed stronger than him, though he was reluctant to admit it. Unable to bear being overshadowed by Li An at the academy and feeling slightly older than him, he had married as per his parents' wishes and switched to another academy where he taught while continuing his studies, hoping to excel in the imperial examination next year and bring honor to his family.
While lost in thought, his gaze continued to follow Li Siniang. Perhaps sensing someone watching her, Li Siniang looked up and met his eyes.
Their gazes locked, causing Li Nan's heart to race involuntarily; his face flushed slightly as he nodded towards her.
Li Siniang was preoccupied with thoughts of Li An and felt somewhat flustered. However, since he was a neighbor, she felt obliged to return the greeting and nodded back slightly.
Seeing the faint smile at the corner of her mouth made Li Nan's heart leap into his throat, and he quickly lowered the window. But as soon as he did so, regret washed over him; he felt that as a neighbor, he should have asked how she was doing to leave a good impression on the beautiful young woman. Perhaps if they met again in the future, something wonderful might blossom from it.
While Li Nan was lost in these thoughts, he heard footsteps approaching. Judging by their rhythm and weight, it seemed to be a woman.
Could it be that young woman from next door coming to find him?
Li Nan thought as he opened the door. Outside stood a girl about three or four years old, dressed in red with two buns in her hair. Her round face sparkled with two moon-like eyes as she held a lantern in her hand and smiled brightly at him.
"Excuse me, are you Li Nan?"
The girl tilted her head and asked. Without thinking, Li Nan glanced toward next door. The carriage remained at the entrance, but both the young woman and the young man driving it had disappeared. The once dark room now glowed with light; he could hear voices from inside along with sighs from Li An's father. Through their conversation, Li Nan learned that the young woman's name was Si Niang and that she had come regarding matters related to Li An.
"Excuse me, are you Li Nan?"
The Girl waited for a moment, but seeing that Li Nan did not respond, she raised the lantern a bit higher and gently tugged at his clothing.
"Did you come here with that carriage?" Li Nan asked, bending slightly to appear more friendly.
The Girl glanced at the carriage and then nodded.
"Excuse me, are you Li Nan?"
"I am Li Nan! Did that aunt next door send you to ask me?"
Li Nan said, secretly pointing towards Li An's Family, which was separated by a fence.
The Girl widened her eyes at him but did not answer.
"If you don't answer, I already know who sent you."
"My mother sent me!" The Girl lifted her chin and looked into Li Nan's eyes. "Do you know my mother sent me?"
"So she is your mother!" Li Nan felt a slight sense of disappointment in his heart.
Indeed, the woman he had just seen was dressed like a married woman. Given her age, it was not surprising that she had a daughter this big. Yet, somewhere in his heart, something was still gently stirring, so he reluctantly asked again, "Where is your father?"
The Girl's eyes flickered for a moment, then she reached out her hand and pointed at Li Nan.
"My name is Li Lu, and my given name is Lulu. I was named this way because I was born at dawn. You should remember that."
Li Nan looked at the girl's smile and couldn't bring himself to refuse, so he nodded, "I remember, your name is Li Lu. Does your family live around here too?"
The girl shook her head, "No, I live far away with my mother. But if you want to see us, you can come visit. You know where that is."
"I know?" Li Nan searched his mind but couldn't recall where he had seen that woman.
He wanted to ask a few more questions, but the girl lifted her lantern and waved goodbye, "It's getting late; I have to go back. Look, my mother is waiting for me over there."
The girl pointed behind her, and Li Nan looked in that direction, seeing only darkness.
Li Nan smiled, crouched down, and patted the girl's head, "You're wrong; your mother is right here, not over there! Alright, go back now so your mother won't worry."
The girl nodded, lifted her lantern, and turned to leave.
At that moment, a cough came from another room, followed by a slightly rough voice of an old woman: "Who is out there?"
The girl glanced at the room with her lantern in hand, and her eyes instantly darkened.
"Oh, it's me!" Li Nan quickly responded, "Mother, are you awake?"
"Nana, what time is it? Why aren't you resting yet? Studying is important, but your health is even more important. Hurry up and sleep; don't make me worry about you."
"Got it, Mother. I'm going to sleep now!" Li Nan said as he urged the girl to hurry home.
The girl tightened her grip on the lantern, and a wave of dark energy suddenly radiated from her face. Unfortunately, due to the night, Li Nan could not see it clearly. He watched as the girl left his yard and followed suit by closing the door behind him.
The girl held the lantern, which swayed in the wind. When it turned around, a blooming safflower was revealed. This safflower also had another name: saffron, which people in later generations preferred to call it.
According to legend, Zhang Qian brought back the red and blue flower seeds from the Western Regions, and saffron was one of them. This flower could be used for medicine or in soups; when used properly, it could save lives, but if misused, it could harm people.
The light from the lantern illuminated a hazy red shadow, within which stood a woman. The woman was slender and beautiful but had a pale face. Upon seeing the girl approach, she smiled lovingly and reached out her hand to take hers.
"Mother, I saw Li Nan," the girl said as she looked up. "He is not as good as you described."
The woman shook her head with a smile and led the girl into the night.
That night, Li Nan had a dream. In his dream, there was an old tower that stood nine stories high. It felt as though he was trapped inside; no matter how he tried to escape, he couldn't find a way out. Just as he was about to go crazy, the girl appeared. She held a lantern and stood at an entrance, pointing upwards. "This tower is inverted; going up means going down, and going down means going up. The higher you climb, the deeper you fall. Do you know what this last level is? It's the entrance to Hell! Once you reach that door, just give it a gentle push with your hand, and you'll enter the Eighteen Layers of Hell. Would you like to take a look? You're almost at the last layer."
Li Nan shook his head anxiously. "I don't want to go to Hell; I want to go home. I haven't finished my studies yet."
The girl had somehow already perched on the window sill of the tower. She tilted her head, swinging her legs back and forth while her lantern swayed along with her movements. "What a pity; Hell is actually quite fun. Liars will have their tongues cut out, and thieves will have their hands severed. Now tell me, if someone steals another's heart but doesn't cherish it properly, what do you think will happen when they go to Hell?"
"Will they have their hearts dug out?" Li Nan asked tentatively, though he didn't really want to discuss this topic. However, the girl's innocent expression made it hard for him to ignore her; he felt compelled to follow her line of thought.
"Dig out their hearts?" The girl propped her chin on her hand and thought carefully before jumping down from the windowsill and walking over to Li Nan. She stood on tiptoe and pointed at his chest, asking, "So Li Nan, do you have a heart?"
Li Nan suddenly woke up with a start. He stared blankly at the ceiling, drenched in cold sweat.
"Naner, are you trying to scare your mother to death?" Li Nan's mother clutched her chest and stepped back several paces. "Have you been studying too hard last night? I called your name many times, but you didn't hear me."
"Mother!" Li Nan called softly, sitting up, and the cold sweat on his forehead began to trickle down.
"It's the middle of winter; why are you sweating so much? Are you sick?" Li Nan's Mother touched his forehead. "What did I tell you before? Studying is important, but your health is even more important. Look at you; did you catch a cold last night? If you're sick, it's one thing to spend money on treatment, but it's the worry that pains me the most."
"Mother, I'm fine. I just had a nightmare, which is why I'm drenched in cold sweat!"
Li Nan wiped his forehead and stood up.
Li Nan's Mother quickly grabbed a coat and draped it over him, her gaze drifting as she asked, "What kind of nightmare was it? Could it be that Safflower came to disturb you again?"
"Why are you bringing up Safflower again?" Li Nan's expression changed.
"Don't worry about that; just tell me if that wretched Safflower caused you to have a nightmare. If she truly is the cause of your troubles, even if she's dead, I would have someone dig up her corpse and whip it mercilessly. That wretched star of misfortune couldn't leave my son alone while she was alive, and now that she's dead, she still haunts him. Does she think she can bully an old woman like me?"
"Mother! Let's not talk about Safflower." Li Nan's face showed slight displeasure. "Besides, she's already dead; why do you need to say such harsh things? After all, she was once your daughter-in-law and treated you with respect when she was alive!"
"Respect me? It's a miracle I haven't died from anger because of her!" Li Nan's Mother huffed through her nose. "When you wanted to marry her, I didn't approve, but you were stubborn, so I had no choice but to go along with my son. And what happened? It turned out she was nothing but a complete star of misfortune. Thankfully, she died first; otherwise, it would be me buried in the ground out there."
"Mother!"
"Alright, alright, let's not talk about her anymore; we don't want to ruin our good mood." Li Nan's Mother said as she pointed to the next room. "Do you know what happened next door last night?"
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