In the conference room of the Academic Affairs Building at Nanchu No. 1 Middle School.

"Xiaoxiao, what do you think about the lighting I have in mind for the performance?" Wang Xiao'an asked.

Tan Xiao was in a meeting to discuss the school's anniversary performance. Next week was the anniversary celebration of Nanchu No. 1 Middle School, and the homeroom teacher had asked Tan Xiao to sign up long ago.

Wang Xiao'an was the director of this evening gala. She also graduated from Nanchu No. 1 Middle School and now worked at Nanchu TV Station. The school specially invited her to plan the gala. She was also an old acquaintance of the Tan family - Tan Xiao had participated in many cultural performances in Nanchu with Tan Chunying, and had collaborated with Wang Xiao'an before.

Wang Xiao'an respected his opinion quite a bit, after all she knew the Tan family was very experienced in performing, starting even earlier than when she became a director. Moreover, Tan Chunying had long ventured beyond Nanchu to perform both inside and outside the province, and even abroad.

"Oh, we may also need a spotlight on my drum," Tan Xiao said. He was going to perform the Chu shaman drum dance "Feather Dance". After communicating with Wang Xiao'an, they finalized the overall plan.

"Okay, we can rehearse together later to work out the stage blocking and such." Wang Xiao'an was very reassured about Tan Xiao. After all, he was a professional. Many programs were arranged just for this evening gala, but Tan Xiao's performance was something he had practiced since childhood.

"Alright." Tan Xiao nodded.

Senior Ruan, who had given a lecture before, was also there. The school anniversary invited some alumni. It seemed the alumni also had a joint singing program.

After the meeting, the students had to return to the classroom as there were still afternoon classes. The adults made plans to go eat together.

"Teacher Ruan, come join us for fish at noon," Wang Xiao'an called out to Ruan Zhanxue.

"I still need to go back and clean up," Ruan Zhanxue said helplessly. "The kitchen in my place caught fire a few days ago, so I need to tidy up."

"It wouldn't happen to be that residential area next to the school, would it? I think I saw a video in my Moments. It was one of our school's teachers who also lives there, filming that someone's home was on fire. So it turned out to be your place... Ah, as long as no one was hurt, that's good. Just need to be a bit more careful when using fire."

"Yeah, it was a moment of carelessness on my part too. I've lived alone for so many years and this is the first time it happened. Luckily it was just a small fire in the kitchen, nothing too serious." Ruan Zhanxue also looked quite frustrated as he recalled something else.

"You know that small park nearby with the fortune tellers? I was out for a walk and got pulled in to have my fortune told. They actually predicted that I've been having a streak of bad luck recently. Then he said it was because my kitchen is in the northwest corner, which is prone to fire accidents, and if not resolved, it will still be easy to catch fire in the future. I said, what, do you expect me to renovate then? The fortune teller said I should change my name, charging 500 yuan for a name change."

"Hahaha, that place is full of fortune tellers and name changers with stalls. Just ignore them. If you engage with them, they'll pester you until you spend money," Wang Xiao'an said with a mischievous smile, pointing to Tan Xiao. "If you really want your fortune told, you're better off asking our junior schoolmate Tan Xiao here. He's the real deal."

Ruan Zhanxue looked at Tan Xiao with interest. "Oh?"

"Fortune tellers are all talk. They make things up on the fly and everything sounds mystical, but you shouldn't put too much stock in it," Tan Xiao knew all too well how fortune tellers fooled people.

"Charging for a name change is purely to make money. Five hundred yuan is way overpriced. Street fortune tellers charge a hundred yuan for a name! Here in Nanchu, to ward off fire accidents, the custom is to find someone with good luck to fetch some silt from the bottom of a well and smear it by the stove."

"Haha, interesting." Ruan Zhanxue was already laughing when he heard Tan Xiao talk about the going rate. He immediately made a note of it on his phone. For him, it was quite interesting and could be used as writing material. "Looks like I'm not too familiar with the ways of the jianghu."

Tan Xiao reassured, "It's very normal that you don't know, senior. It's mainly because I've also studied it before."

Ruan Zhanxue: "..."

......

In the afternoon, as soon as the geography teacher entered the classroom for the first period, she had the class monitor distribute some paper materials to everyone. Looking at them, she said, "I have an announcement. We're going to carry out a geography subject practical activity outdoors..."

As soon as she said the word "outdoors", cheers erupted from the entire class.

Outdoors, activity - wasn't that basically a field trip?

Practical activities were done every semester, but the plans varied each time. Their previous ones were all done indoors, making models, drawing maps and such. This was the first time going out.

"Hahaha, alright, alright." The geography teacher had been a student herself and understood their excitement. "As per the usual practice, everyone will form teams to complete it. There are different plan options to choose from. We will take a bus together the day after tomorrow and carry out the activity at Qiyun Ridge in the afternoon. It will take about three to four hours. You can do some preparatory work in advance."

Tan Xiao took a look. The plans included researching information, understanding Nanchu's soil and the use of geographical tools, selecting points for problem observation and soil sampling, taking photos to document; or observing and learning about Nanchu's traditional folk dwellings. All required completing a written report afterwards.

"There are choices, that's great." Lin Yang was always able to be silly and happy about anything. He immediately made plans with Tan Xiao, "Boss, which plan are you choosing?"

Tan Xiao looked and said, "I might choose soil sampling. What about you?"

Compared to architecture, he'd rather dig in the dirt.

"Heh, as expected of someone who has excavated the Chu emperor's tomb. I'll go with you then," Lin Yang couldn't help but joke about this again. "It's just that Qiyun Ridge seems a bit far. I went to play there during summer vacation and sat in the car for a long time."

There was no choice. Soil sampling was one thing, but the urban areas were all modern buildings with few old houses. Where would you find traditional dwellings? Only in some old villages and towns in Nanchu were there still many traditional folk houses, and even some well-preserved Ming and Qing dynasty villages. Qiyun Ridge was one of the representative ones.

"Kong Xuan, why don't the three of us form a group?" Tan Xiao asked very naturally. After all, not only had they let bygones be bygones, but Teacher Ji had also repeatedly asked him to counsel Kong Xuan in his studies.

Kong Xuan also found it pleasant to hear. Since Tan Xiao invited him to be in the same group for the field trip, he originally wanted to say it didn't matter, but after some thought, he slightly raised his head and said, "Sure, I guess."

"Okay, then let's do some research first and complete the preliminary work."

Tan Xiao collected information about Qiyun Ridge to study in advance. There was an ancient official road of Nanchu preserved on Qiyun Ridge, traversed by the Nanxi River. Even now, it was a place where many Nanchu people went to escape the summer heat, relax and spend their leisure time.

There were many inns and B&Bs at the foot of the mountain. Further up the mountain lived quite a few Yao people. These Yao, who crossed the mountains, retained the characteristics of mountain living. Because they were on Qiyun Ridge, the locals also called them the Qiyun Yao.

Many ethnic minorities lived in the Chu region, and they had a profound influence on each other with the Chu people during the long historical evolution. Moreover, whether it was the Yao, Miao, Dong or other ethnic groups, the shamanic culture was equally prevalent, and they also had mutual exchanges with the Han shamans.

Because Yu Zhenzhen chose to study the Qiyun Yao ethnic dwellings, Tan Xiao also helped her ask Tan Chunying, "Mom, are you familiar with the Yao people of Qiyun Ridge?"

"How could I not be familiar?" Tan Chunying was applying a facial mask, her eyes full of memories, "In the past, everyone was researching cultural tourism. Those Yao folks competed fiercely with me! Just because they are ethnic minorities, the tourism bureau and travel agencies all said they wanted diversity and gave them routes. It made me so angry that I went to get a tattoo, to look more convincing. This huge snake tattoo, oh my, it hurt like hell!"

Tan Xiao: ??

Tan Xiao's pupils shook, "Wait, didn't you tell me this was a centuries-old tradition of the shamans, and that you had to get a tattoo when you reached a certain age?"

Tan Chunying's hand that was pulling the mask paused for a moment. She nonchalantly picked up the water glass and took a sip, then another sip, her eyes darting around.

Tan Xiao said in despair, "Haven't thought of how to explain it yet?"

"Oh!" Tan Chunying put down the glass and comforted, "Mom didn't just lie to you, mom said this to everyone, to the TV station too! Life forced me, I had no choice!"

Tan Xiao: "..."

Great, starting from me, you're creating your own folklore, huh?

Tan Xiao now began to doubt whether some of the other things he learned were also made up by Tan Chunying for business.

"Alright, have you packed the kettle and everything? Aren't you going to Qiyun Ridge to do homework?" Tan Chunying awkwardly changed the subject. Qiyun Ridge was still some distance from the city, so you had to bring some snacks, fruits and water for the round trip.

"Mm..." Tan Xiao went upstairs listlessly.

He saw the Peacock God suddenly appear beside him, looking at him with a mocking gaze. He probably heard what Tan Chunying said just now too. Tan Xiao calmly said, "Don't say it, I know my mom's quality is quite poor."

Kong Xuan choked for a moment and raised an eyebrow, "Did I mean to say that?"

"It must be something like that." Tan Xiao muttered. He packed a backpack and did a final check, but saw the Peacock God tapping his left foot on the tiles, as if he was a little impatient.

A little strange... Tan Xiao suppressed his doubts and said, "God, I'm going to school then. Make yourself at home."

Kong Xuan: "OK."

Tan Xiao laughed inwardly. The Peacock God even learned some English, he couldn't have secretly read my English books, could he?

......

At noon that day, the entire Class 2 (3) gathered together to take a bus, departing from the school.

Lin Yang patted Tan Xiao and whispered a few words to him. Tan Xiao sat next to Kong Xuan, while Lin Yang sat with Yu Zhenzhen.

Yu Zhenzhen held a camera in her hands, which she rented from the store. "My mom said she'll only buy me a camera when I graduate. I plan to buy a second-hand one from this store then, they both rent and sell."

"Then you'll have to choose carefully."

"That's right," Yu Zhenzhen said, "When I went to pick one, some had auto-focus that wasn't working well."

She secretly looked at Kong Xuan and Tan Xiao. As the saying goes, the three elements of portrait photography are: the model is good-looking, the model is good-looking, and the model is good-looking.

Today, Yu Zhenzhen had a goal. In addition to completing the assignment, she would take candid shots of Kong Xuan and Tan Xiao.

Kong Xuan found that Tan Xiao deliberately changed seats to sit with him, and felt smug. He was about to say something when the bus started, and Kong Xuan couldn't feel smug anymore. He felt unfamiliar... strange... dizziness.

Kong Xuan rubbed his forehead and shook his head, wanting to stay alert, but the dizziness followed him like a shadow, becoming even more severe. Who was casting a spell on him, and it was quite powerful!

Kong Xuan's phoenix eyes flashed coldly, about to use a technique to slash off this person's head, but no matter what, he couldn't detect who was making mischief around him.

At this time, a hand patted Kong Xuan's shoulder. Tan Xiao asked, "Do you get carsick?"

Kong Xuan slowly turned his head and saw Tan Xiao's questioning face. He said expressionlessly, "No, how could I possibly..."

He was born with the qi of the five elements. Within the five elements, nothing could overcome him... Ugh!

Kong Xuan felt a stuffiness in his chest, nearly vomiting out his internal organs. Damn, it must be that this substitute body wasn't made of good enough materials, actually getting carsick! This was really too ridiculous! If he had known, he would have flown to Qiyun Ridge, how could he lose face like this.

Tan Xiao gradually became sympathetic. Kong Xuan's carsickness seemed quite severe. "Quickly close your eyes and try to fall asleep. If you sleep, you won't get carsick."

Kong Xuan held onto the chair, his face pale with anger, "I'm not carsick."

Look how stubborn he is, Tan Xiao thought to himself. How come he felt Kong Xuan was similar to the Peacock God? The Peacock God flies around, at least he definitely wouldn't get carsick, right?

Kong Xuan leaned against the window, nearly angered to death by himself.

This useless substitute body!

The geography teacher saw Kong Xuan's condition and said from the front, "Kong Xuan, why don't you see if any classmates have oranges or ginger, it can relieve carsickness."

Kong Xuan: "I'm not carsick."

"Maybe he doesn't want to eat anything," Tan Xiao looked at Kong Xuan sympathetically, "Won't you feel even more uncomfortable leaning against the window? It's shaky. Why don't you lie on my lap, having a lower center of gravity will be better."

Kong Xuan looked at Tan Xiao, his lips moved a few times but didn't say anything. He held his forehead and leaned towards Tan Xiao.

The people in the back row only saw Kong Xuan's tall body gradually tilting to the side, slowly disappearing from view.

Kong Xuan stuffed himself into the empty space beside him, just right. He lay on his side on Tan Xiao's legs, unlike his usual puffed up arrogance, now looking a little bit weak.

"Is this a bit better?" Tan Xiao asked with his arms around him. It seemed Kong Xuan was really feeling terribly carsick, he wasn't even talking back.

"Not as dizzy." Kong Xuan said softly. After lying down, the seat in front, Tan Xiao's legs and his own arms formed an enclosed space. In this space, his heartbeat seemed to be infinitely amplified, even louder than his speaking voice.

......

After about an hour's drive, the bus finally arrived at the foot of Qiyun Ridge. Here there were stretches of ancient towering trees and bamboo forests. At the foot of the mountain, Han and Yao people lived together, with many old-style dwellings, quite a few converted into inns. A large river flowed down from the mountain, providing irrigation.

Because it was already the dry season, the water flow was not as great as when Lin Yang had come before. In the summer, there were rafting activities here.

Along the way, you can see some fishing enthusiasts who have driven to Qiyun Ridge. This is one of the special features of Qiyun Ridge. In addition to rivers, there are various wild and self-contained ponds on the mountain that can be rented out for leisure.

"Has anyone researched the history of Qiyun Ridge?" the geography teacher asked with a smile.

Lin Yang immediately raised his hand. He had not only researched the information but had also been there once before. "The highest point of the Qiyun Ridge mountain is 2,000 meters, spanning tens of thousands of hectares and connecting to the surrounding counties and cities. In the past, various ethnic groups lived here together. Now it is mainly inhabited by the Yao and Han people. Since ancient times, they have relied on the mountains and waters for their livelihood.

"This river is called Nanxi River and it flows all the way to Yunmeng Marsh. In the past, the Nanchu people living here often cut down trees, loaded the wood on rafts, and floated downstream to the Yunmeng Marsh basin for trade. This was called 'fang pai'."

"Well said." The geography teacher applauded, then looked at Tan Xiao, "Tan Xiao, since he mentioned fang pai, would you like to tell everyone about the folk customs of fang pai? You must know about this, right?"

"Yes, because the water system in the Chu area was well-developed, many places had folk customs born from fang pai. People lived on wooden rafts all year round, transporting wood, and often encountered dangers on the water. In order to seek good fortune and avoid harm, a relatively niche folk Taoist sect called Pai Sect emerged."

Tan Xiao understood and, after a brief thought, spoke slowly, "They learned from the shamans of various ethnic groups and religions, including the Yao shamans here, to form their own system. It is said that the Dao Gongs of Pai Sect mastered the magic to suppress water monsters and drive corpses home."

"Driving corpses, is it like driving corpses in western Hunan?"

When it came to mysterious cultures, everyone was very interested.

"The corpse-driving of Pai Sect has similarities with that of western Hunan, but Pai Sect lived on the water. They drove floating corpses in the water, making the bodies of those who died in foreign lands and sank to the bottom of the water float up by themselves and driving them back home."

"Wow, we've never heard of that!"

—With the gradual disappearance of the fang pai profession, Pai Sect naturally declined as well, and now there are few successors. Most of the class were locals, but even they had not heard of this organization.

It was only because Tan Xiao was from a family of shamans that he had some understanding of the history of his peers.

"That's right. In fact, it's because of the geographical conditions here. There are many hidden reefs under the water of Nanxi River. What the Dao Gongs called magic was actually what? It was a kind of mastery and resolution of the underwater situation." The teacher took the opportunity to steer the topic towards the geography of this place.

With this introduction, everyone listened with great interest. It was both educational and entertaining, and the lecture continued until the bus stopped at the village parking lot.

"Okay, let's get off the bus and make on-site observations."

The whole group got off the bus one after another and could start activities under the teacher's guidance.

Kong Xuan gradually sat up from his prone position. He saw that Tan Xiao also didn't want to get up and remained in place. The two looked at each other for a few seconds. Kong Xuan wanted to look away, but Tan Xiao didn't either, so he didn't move his gaze...

Tan Xiao stared at Kong Xuan and said slowly, "My legs are numb, you're so heavy."

Kong Xuan: "..."

"Hey Brother Xiao, you haven't come down yet?" Lin Yang was in the same group as Tan Xiao and Kong Xuan. After getting off, he found that the two hadn't come yet, so he went back to find them and helped Tan Xiao, whose legs were numb, stand up.

He sighed, Brother Xiao was really good to his junior, "On the way back, you should lean on his shoulder, hehehe."

Kong Xuan: "...!"

"Why don't you sit for a while longer, we'll go get you some warm water to drink." Tan Xiao said to Kong Xuan. Most of their classmates brought cold drinks, while Tan Xiao brought water but not hot water.

"...Okay." Kong Xuan was unusually obedient.

Tan Xiao and Lin Yang walked towards the residential area. Yu Zhenzhen and the girls in her group were observing the houses, so they were all going the same way.

The first house at the head of the village was an old-style Nanchu residence with some farm tools placed at the entrance. The main door was open, sunlight pouring in, and a shrine could be seen in the main hall, which was a custom in many rural households in Nanchu.

Below the shrine was a bamboo rocking chair, where an old lady with white hair, wearing gray-green cloth, was nestled, holding a cat in her arms, looking very leisurely.

This leisurely atmosphere was immediately filled to the brim.

"Grandma?" Lin Yang originally wanted to ask for water here, but the old lady didn't seem to have good hearing either.

Yu Zhenzhen pointed to the opposite side, "Hey, that's a homestay, it's better to ask for water there."

That made sense. The group took steps towards that direction. Yu Zhenzhen and her girlfriends discussed for a bit and also went over to ask the owner which house in the village was the most representative.

The owner behind the counter heard the commotion, looked up, saw a handsome young man, and Yu Zhenzhen was holding a camera beside him. He immediately said, "Are you internet celebrities? Here to shoot a video?"

Actually, Tan Xiao had been a minor internet celebrity for a while before, but the internet was so vast, and some time had passed, so of course he wouldn't be recognized.

Lin Yang gestured and laughed, "Have you seen internet celebrities like this? We're even wearing school uniforms."

The owner said knowingly, "What's wrong with wearing school uniforms? There are even people who come here to shoot videos wearing Hanfu."

"Hahaha, we just have a classmate who got carsick, could we get some hot water?"

"No, I just feel like you look a bit familiar." The owner laughed a couple of times and enthusiastically said, "There's still some in the kettle, I'll pour it for you. Are you here to play? Do you need accommodation?"

"We're here to do extracurricular practical assignments."

While the owner was boiling water, Yu Zhenzhen wandered around and asked, "Uncle, I want to ask, is your house a renovated old house or a new one?"

"My house is new, but the exterior is built according to the old Nanchu houses, just with improved lighting. You see my main door, it's recessed a bit, and the lintel is carved with Taotie*, this is called a 'Swallow the Mouth' style, meaning eating ghosts." The owner was very knowledgeable about old customs. He himself was actually a Qiyun Yao, but highly modernised and had long moved down the mountain to do business.

*T/N: A mythological beast that looks like a mix between a wolf and a tiger.

Since Qiyun Ridge was called "Qiyun"* , it also implied height. From the foot of the mountain to halfway up the mountain to the top, there were villages, but the lower the residence, the higher the degree of modernisation.

*T/N: Riding Clouds

The owner poured a cup of hot water for each of them, saying that young people shouldn't just drink cold water.

Lin Yang walked around with the water in his hands. Seeing that the owner also had a shrine here, he guessed that every household had one. The owner also had a rocking chair, and Lin Yang couldn't resist wanting to lie down and try it out.

As soon as he was about to sit down, his wrist was suddenly grabbed by someone. The boss had already been standing in front of Lin Yang for some time, his demeanor completely different from the enthusiastic hospitality he had shown earlier.

With a heavy tone, he said, "Young man, you can't lie down here. The chair is placed here for ventilation. In front of the shrine in our main hall, only the dead are allowed to lie down."