Chapter 1 (1/2)
Why stick with a lackluster draood novel coreat novel coht around this ti Hua‘s Da Mo Yao (Ballad of the Desert) and fell pro with Each Step) and wanted to keep on going with her lyrical prose and DMY was just the right type of soaring fun romance novel with a dash of historical flavor After translating DMY I dived into its sequel Yun Zhong Ge (Song of the Clouds) and found it ait so muchthe early Han dynasty and ro that era, Tong Hua’s next ambitious novel endeavor takes her back to pre-history in Chinese lore While Greek y of the Olympian Gods and Goddesses are well known in Western literature, Chinese literature also has one of its earliest written texts the Classics of the Mountains and the Seas (山海經 Shan Hai Jing) detailing Chinese y of Gods, Goddesses, de Hua takes on the events and faures in this text as the backdrop for her two novels Once Promised (曾許諾 Cen Shu Nuo) and its sequel Lost You Forever (長相思 Chang Xiang Si)
While Once Pro and fiery, action-packed and intense, it’s the sequel Lost You Forever that really shi+nes as aThe leads of these two novels are all s, the Gods and Goddesses and deic and sorcery and power These beings live for hundreds and thousands of years, and so their loves and pain and lost also feelsHua has written before Once Proe of h that prettyGe see that would be leading readers into ato be pretty I hesitated to read the sequel Lost You Forever and waited until all three volu it in case it was also a rocks fall down ending It turned out to be si and thetiue How can a story be this good, be a happy ending, and still so painfully , and once she finished Lost You Forever she’s revealed that this is her personal favorite book and what she considers her best writing to date Tong Hua publicly says Lost You Forever is her best book? How can I not want to translate it Care to dive into the ain?
Koala’s note:
I will try to add details fro characters and events) as I’e of the first novel is helpful to better understand what is happening The setting of this novel is a world where powerful beings such as Gods, Goddesses, deside hus live for hundreds and thousands of years and can possess various powers and , Xuan Yuan, and Gao Xing – that each govern a region of the world In Once Prododo the balance of power By the tidooverned by the now destroyed Sheng Nong kingdo kingdoh aware that eventually Xuan Yuan will try to destroy it as well and rule the entire world alone The female lead of Lost You Forever is probably one ofTong Hua has written before She spends the majority of the first volume as a man (really, a man, since she can shape shi+ft)
In fact, many of the characters in this novel will have multiple identities and it’ll beco so be patient I will also refrain fro hand this early – there are three male leads in this novel but I won’t reveal which one had my heart (and yes, he totally hashe is) so as to not influence shi+pping I can reveal that the shi+pping war in the Chinese novel forums are CRAZY intense Way aywars in BBJX, DMY, and YZG For those of you whoin the comments section please This is a journey, a love story, a story about drea how it ends doesn’tunless you take the journey with the characters The three male leads will be introduced with one in each of the first three chapters so get ready to start feeling around for what captures your fancy Tong Hua’s writing style has changed significantly from when she did her earlier novels so be prepared to be surprised in a good way This novel starts off oddly with a very low key rescue in a very nondescript medical clinic in a hardscrabble town
Chapter 1 – Life is Short Like a Temporary Stay:
That day, was the same as the last thousand days before it
A few rooster crows and there gradually was the sound of hu Shui Town Lao Mu (Old Mu) from the Hui Chun Clinic hurried to pick up fresh la for the start of the day’s business
The town doctor Wen Xiao Liu (Xiao Liu means Little Six) had a bowl of lamb stew in one hand and a biscuit in the other and was squatting on the backyard stoop noisily eating Past the steps were two pastures planted with medicinal herbs, and in betas a little pathway that led to a slow on the river surface The floere bloo on either side of the river banks and the birds were flying and landing, lending it a very poetic view Xiao Liu ad the swans must be very plump and would be tasty to catch a few and roast them
After the steas in his stomach, he put the dirty bowl in a pail next to the door where other dirty bowls already resided He picked up the pail to take down to the river to wash There was a black shadow next to soe of the river and it wasn’t clear what kind of bird it was Wen Xiao Liu put down the pail and picked up a rock to toss at it The rock hit the black shadow but it didn’t et so accurate? He walked over and saw that it wasn’t a bird but was a person Wen Xiao Liu ie of the river to wash his dishes, as if he didn’t just saw so that resembled a human corpse
Wen Xiao Liu coet dirty at the nextcleaned now Why wash after every meal? If one eats out of one’s ol, it’s not dirty, so one can wash every few days”
Wen Xiao Liu neverIf he folded his blankets he would just have to ht so ould he et aith neverhis bed, but he had to wash the dirty dishes otherwise Lao Mu would have smacked him already
Xiao Liu complained under his breath and rinsed all the bowls one ti back, his eyes never once glancing towards the logs
The people of Qing Shui To more dead people than people outside the town had eaten meals, even the kids were desensitized to it
Hui Chun Clinic e clinic but Wen Xiao Liu was especially skilled at treating infertility, with ten ladies co to seek help and he could cure perhaps six or seven of the busy for half a day, it was noon when Wen Xiao Liu wandered into the backyard
Ma Zi (his naatory ter the herbs in the backyard and pointed to the door “A beggar came by and I tossed hi The kitchen only stoked the fires twice a dayso Xiao Liu took a biscuit and a scoop of water fro outside as he ate
Outside the door was a round His clothes were tattered, his hair was matted, his skin was scratched and shredded, and he was covered in dirt Other than his shape rese else looked like a one
Xiao Liu squinted and could see a dirt trail that had already been dried by the sun It ended by the beggar and extended all the way to the river banks by the water logs Xiao Liu raised an eyebrow and then took a drink of the water to help s the hard biscuit
He gli ever so slightly Xiao Liu turned towards the beggar and saw that Ma Zi’s aiood The biscuit landed by his body but he appeared to have no strength to even reach for it so it just laid there Xiao Liu munched on his biscuit and looked at him After a few minutes, he finished the biscuit and wiped the cru the water ladle back into the pail He hu by the time Xiao Liu came back and everyone noisily started dinner
Xiao Liu finished dinner and used the back of his hand to wipe histhe hand on his shi+rt He intended to head back to his roohts and took him out of the back door Ma Zi asked “Brother Liu, where are you going?”
“Talking a walk after dinner for digestion”
Xiao Liu took a stroll around the river and hu the little path, he stopped next to the beggar and stepped on that biscuit beside him Xiao Liu knelt down “I stepped on your biscuit, what can I do to ar did not respond and Xiao Liu looked up at the sky, the crescent e of the horizon as if the Heavens were srin at the mortals below
After a few ar He was a man, his fraht as a feather Xiao Liu carried hi into the backyard “Lao Mu, Ma Zi, Chuan Zi, coan]
The three sitting in the backyard chatting didn’t appear to find this strange and iar on the bed pallet and Ma Zi brought in a basin of ater and lit the flame in the room Xiao Liu ordered “Wash his body, feed souys take care of it”
Just as he stepped out of the room, he heard Ma Zi scream in horror and Xiao Liu immediately turned around He saw Ma Zi with an ashen face like he had just seen a ghost, and even his voice was shaking “Brother Liu, you…you need to see this This person can’t possibly survive”
Xiao Liu walked over and took a good look The man’s entire face was battered and bruised so badly it ollen like a pig’s head His features were couishable On a reed thin body, paired with a giant head, it was freakishly scary
Xiao Liu pushed aside his clothes, or more like scraps of cloth, and the man’s entire body was criss-crossed with scars and wounds of all types – whips, knives, burns, and there was a coht on his chest that came from a brand Because he didn’t have any excesson his rib cage
Xiao Liu picked up his hand and all his fingernails had been plucked off and the hand had swollen after being in the water Xiao Liu gingerly put his hand down and inspected his legs His right leg femur was snapped in half and all ten of his toenails were also plucked out There were so nails drilled there Ma Zi and Chuan Zi were accustohtened even them Each took a few steps back and averted their eyes, unable to look any “Bring sorab the cleaning herbs and wanted to offer to clean the injuries but couldn’t bring himself to say it Xiao Liu knew he couldn’t count on any of the the man himself He used a clean cloth soaked in medicinal herb wabter and carefully cleaned thebecause the man woke up Because he had an injury on his eyelids he couldn’t open his eyes so he just tensely pursed his lips
Xiao Liu gently said “I am Wen Xiao Liu, you can callyour wounds If it hurts, you need to cry out”
But Xiao Liu cleaned his entire body and he never made any sound but his forehead was beaded in sweat Perhaps his fortitude and endurance led Xiao Liu to develop some respect for him and his heart finally softened He used a towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead and then Xiao Liu started to take his pants off Thea bone deep hatred that he kept under control
Xiao Liu wanted him to relax and joked “You are ayour pants off?” After the pants came off, Xiao Liu fell silent
Frohs, some one the wounds were fresher than others so the injuries ranged fro that has been mended too many times The person who performed the torture was clearly well aware of a person’s endurance levels and also knehat areas in the inner though was the most sensitive Every time he stabbed an area there, a man would have prayed for death but he wouldn’t die Xiao Liu ordered “Alcohol, candle wax, scissors, bone cutting knife, boards, gauze, ointet the items while Ma Zi stayed to help, but his eyes always averted away from the man’s body
Xiao Liu saw Chaun Zi come back with ointment and furrowed his brow “Go to my room and take a jar hidden on the bottom of my dresser”
Chuan Zi couldn’t avert his eyes fast enough and paused for a entle as can be and fully concentrated on tending the wounds But no matter the care taken, there were a multitude of wounds, some with rotted flesh that needed to be cut away, others with dead skin that needed to be snipped, and his broken leg needed to be set
Because of the pain, Xiao Liu could feel the htly bit his lips quietly enduring He battered body was naked and everywhere was the signs of torture rade and shame him Yet his behavior remained lofty and composed
Xiao Liu realized he probably reacted this way to the torture as well, the person being sha The person torturing hie and therefore increased the torture After three hours, Xiao Liu finally finished cleaning all the wounds and he was also covered in sweat He wearily said “External ointht delicate scent wafted out Xiao Liu reached in and scooped out a golden oint it on thewith his face
The cold ointment alleviated sohtly Xiao Liu saw the blood staining his lips and applied some ointment there as well The er into his lips It was the only ti soft from his body
Xiao Liu was momentarily stunned but the er He gently lifted his ar medicine
After another half hour, the auze
Wen Xiao Liu covered him with a clean blanket and softly said “I will need to check on your wounds often these next few days so I won’t give you any clothes Don’t worry, we don’t have any females in this household Even if you flash someone, no one will hed Wen Xiao Liu started to recite the list of ingredients for the herbal rab the herbs
Xiao Liu looked outside and figured he could still sleep for another hour But then he saw thefor Chuan Zi “Cloth, hot water, basin, pail” Xiao Liu sat down on the edge of the pallet, put his legs inside a pail, lifted up the man’s dirty head and placed it on his knees to wash his hair
Chuan Zi sheepishly offered “Brother Liu, toet some sleep and I can do this”
Xiao Liu scoffed “With your clumsy hands, I’ his wounds You can just change the water” Xiao Liu’s handso theit, he ladled ater over the hair to rinse away the blood and dirt He used a scissors to snip away the ruined patches
After washi+ng his hair, Xiao Liu’s hands moved across his scalp and he lowered his hair to check He could feel the man tense up and Xiao Liu explained “I want to check if you have any head injuries”
The irony was that the torturers wanted him lucid to feel every bit of the pain so they didn’t harm his head
Xiao Liu didn’t want to use any pressure so he used uphis hair He worried the hair brush would hurt hiers like a thick soft hair brush to detangle the strands After arranging his hair, he had Chuan Zi get a clean pillow before laying his head on the pillow
The sun was already rising when Xiao Liu stepped outside that room He washed his face with cold water and ate his breakfast while ordering Ma Zi “Don’t worry about the clinic for the next few days just take care of hietables mashed up to feed hiood and picked up his basket of medical supplies and went to the clinic
Ma Zi spoke to the person laying on the pallet through the“Beggar, Brother Liu spent an entire night saving you and used up all thefor himself You have to survive” When Xiao Liu came back in the afternoon, he was so tired and sleepy his eyelids were battling each other
He tossed a wild duck on the ground and went to the kitchen to get a bowl of hot soup, cru some biscuits to toss inside He sat behind the stove and noisily slurped his h and said “I heard about that man’s injuries from Ma Zi”
Xiao Liu drank his soup “Uhm hmmm”
“Ma Zi, Chuan Zi – neither can see it, but you must be able to tell He is from one of the God tribes , and he is definitely not one of the lowlier types of Gods like us
Xiao Liu drank his soup and didn’t respond
“Killing so off a head These kind of injuries has a big reason behind it Saving so death to the door”
Xiao Liu chewed and said “Clean up that duck and put a bit of salt on it and nothing else, then roast it over a slanced over and saw that Xiao Liu didn’t care so he sighed and said “Understood”
Xiao Liu finished eating and went to ask Ma Zi “Did he eat today?”
Ma Zi said softly “Likely his throat also has an injury so he can’t s He couldn’t eat the mashed soup”
Xiao Liu walked into the room and saw a cold bowl of ar up “I’nize my voice? I’m Xiao Liu, let’s take some medicine” The er than yesterday because he cracked open his eye a little bit
Xiao Liu fed hisa child and it all dribbled out The htly shut his eyes Xiao Liu softly asked “Did they torture your throat area, too?” The man imperceptibly nodded
Xiao Liu said “Tell you a secret, I drool when I sleep One ti a roast chicken and woke up with my pillow half soaked I can’t cure my probleendary healer like uarantee you’ll be healed in a few days”
Xiao Liu crawled into the bed and cradled the man in his arms and took a small spoonful of medicine and dribbled it into his mouth a drop at a time The man tried to cooperate and valiantly sed In the end he drank every drop of the reood half an hour later
The man was covered with sweat like he just ran many laps and was exhausted Xiao Liu wiped his forehead with a cloth “You rest first and after the duck soup is done let’s have some duck soup”
Xiao Liu walked out with the e at hi at?” Chuan Zi spoke “You’re evencare of a newborn If so they would think you were his mother”
“Screw you! You’re hisand kicked Chuan Zi in the butt
Chuan Zi grabbed his hurting butt and ran off Ma Zi and Lao Mu regained their senses and Lao Mu said “Yup, this is definitely Xiao Liu, not an imposter” Ma Zi patted his chest, comforted by the confirmation
Xiao Liu yawned and said to Ma Zi “Close the clinic for the day, noto take a nap and wake me up when the duck soup is ready”
Ma Zi wanted to say he could do it, but then he thought about thescene and realized it was as delicate as e and he definitely couldn’t do it