1354 Osiris and Khonsu (1/2)
Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
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The northern boundary of the country...
”Are you asking us why we are so respectful toward young girls? It's because of a legend that everyone here believes...” an old herdsman said as he moved along.
Fresh air without a single trace of dust swept past. With just a deep breath, one felt like they were taking the unique fragrance of a vast and spacious land into their lungs. The area was surprisingly open. There were no trees, no mountains, and no buildings within sight. There was only a wide expanse of flat valley and spectacular geometric lines with a slight arc further away connected with the blue sky on the horizon...
The vast land would occasionally be embroidered by a silver ribbon; it was clean and simple, yet it turned out to be a most stunning scene!
”A legend, I love legends. A local legend always reflects how stupid the local people are,” a teenage boy wearing a pair of sunglasses replied indifferently.
”You can listen to the story first, before coming to a conclusion. In the early days, the valley was barren. There wasn't any grass, the water was dried up, and the land was constantly troubled by locusts. The locals were struggling to make a living. The livestock kept dying, there was no production of milk and meat, and barely any agriculture...” the old herdsman casually flicked out his whip.
”A very cliche opening,” the teenage boy snorted.
”To stop the people from leaving their hometown and living as nomads… oh, it means without having our own land and source of water… a young girl called Qiqige decided to climb the mountains. She knew the source of the rivers was the springs in the mountains. She went far away and climbed to a great height to find the source, and she discovered the source had frozen because of the cold. The temperatures are lower when the altitude increases,” the old herdsman went on.
”So what did the girl do?” the teenage boy asked. He seemed a little intrigued now.
”She did not have any power, but a sincere heart to help her people. She took off her clothes, revealing her body as she hugged the bone-piercing ice tightly. She tried to use her body temperature to melt the ice. The water from the ice she melted with her pure body entered the stream. The spring and the water veins contained the fragrance of her virginity… the spring came back to live again, returning life to this land. What we have here… is Qiqige's statue. It was her holding the ice, the spring that nurtures our lives,” the old herdsman pointed ahead.
In front of them stood a unique statue; a young woman painted white. Its shape was quite abstract. Most people would assume it to be a boulder that served as a landmark if they did not hear the story behind it.
”I see, no wonder half of the girls here are given the name Qiqige,” the teenage boy said with a smile.
”Exactly, every young woman is a blessing to us. Every family is proud to have a girl too,” the old herdsman said with a sincere smile.
The young man walked around the statue in circles. He looked at the map he was holding with a sinister smile.
He turned around and looked at the glamorous woman in a short dress accompanying him and said, ”I believe it's a sign from the Heavens. We should set our coordinates here, right where the status is.”
”If you say so,” the glamorous woman smiled.
”Old mister, have you heard of another legend that isn't from our country? I think it suits the story you just told pretty well,” the teenage boy turned back to the old herdsman.
”Is that so? I'm rather curious about it, please tell me.” The old herdsman sat down and started smoking. He was quite relaxed.
”It happened in Egypt, where women have always had a low status. They were slaves and toys to the men. You could even trade two healthy cows for a healthy woman. There was a girl called Khonsu. She was greatly tortured and humiliated, living a lowly life. One day, she stole a beautiful gold necklace from her master. She tried to sell it for money and run away, but the necklace was special. A demon spirit came out of it at night… Ah, you can think of it as a genie, it doesn't really matter… the demon spirit told her that it could fulfill a wish for her, but the girl would have to trade her soul for it. Khonsu immediately agreed to it in exchange for respect and love from the people. After that, she enjoyed ten years of fame and the love of countless men. She ended up with a higher status and more wealth than the slave masters.