Wei Lan’s fingers moved a few times on the clothing knot. The fabric of this garment was a type of silk made specifically for the Sima Huang family’s use, luxurious and comfortable to wear, but not durable. Wei Lan could easily tear this garment apart without exerting much force. However, when it was worn by Luo Wei, Wei Lan could only patiently untie the knot, bit by bit.
“Forget it,” Wei Lan was patient but Luo Wei was not, and said, “Just cut it off.”
“It’ll be done in a moment,” Wei Lan said, “Just wait a bit longer.”
“I can’t even untie it; can you…” Luo Wei’s words were cut short when Wei Lan successfully untangled the knot.
“There, all done,” Wei Lan helped Luo Wei take off the garment and said, “Put on your clothes, and we’ll be on our way.”
Luo Wei knocked on his forehead and complained to Wei Lan, “I have become stupid now. I can’t do anything!”
“Your have weak hands,” Wei Lan pulled Luo Wei’s hand away from his head and said, “If you can’t untie one knot, don’t you still have me?”
“I need your help with everything,” Luo Wei said, “Aren’t you exhausted?”
“As long as let me serve you, I am not,” Wei Lan dressed Luo Wei in the winter coat and straightened his clothes, saying, “Let’s go.”
“Sooner or later you will get tired of it,” Luo Wei, now stubborn again, said, “I might not be able to walk anymore. Lan, what am I going to do in Xuanzhou with you?”
Wei Lan lifted Luo Wei up and said, “I have money with me. The Young Master entrusted me with so much property, and I gave it all to the Senior Chancellor. But even if Young Master doesn’t want to take advantage of Senior Chancellor, he should still get a bit of this hard-earned money, right? So I took some.”
“How much is ‘some’?” Luo Wei asked. Of course if Wei Lan took some money, he wouldn’t object. Even if the Luo family lived as commoners, they wouldn’t care about feeding two more mouths.
“Not much,” Wei Lan said, “But enough for the two of us to live comfortably for a lifetime.”
“So, we won’t have to do anything in the future?” Luo Wei said, “Are we going to be landlords in Xuanzhou?”
Wei Lan gently placed Luo Wei in the carriage, which he had already prepared with a quilt inside to make the board softer. “We’ll buy a couple of plots of land,” Wei Lan discussed with Luo Wei, “When there’s nothing to do, we’ll just farm.”
“But I don’t know how to farm, Lan, do you?” Luo Wei asked.
“I’ve never done it either,” Wei Lan placed a pillow under Luo Wei’s waist and said, “We’ll learn. I’ve heard people say that the most important thing about farming is having strength. With strength, you won’t fear anything.”
Luo Wei felt depressed again, saying, “But I don’t have enough strength either.”
“I’ll farm,” Wei Lan replied, “When the time comes, Young Master can see if there’s anything else to do. Even teaching children to read and write can pass the time.”
The chestnut horse pulling the carriage snorted, and after Wei Lan waved his whip, it started to trot forward.
“I don’t want to be a teacher either,” Luo Wei said to Wei Lan, who was driving the carriage, “Dealing with slow-witted children will drive me crazy.”
“Then we’ll only accept smart ones,” Wei Lan coaxed Luo Wei.
“How can there be smart children everywhere?” Luo Wei asked, “Lan, are there more smart or stupid people in Xuanzhou?”
Wei Lan shook his head while sitting in the front of the carriage. If Luo Wei insisted on acting foolish, there was nothing he could do about it.
“Don’t you know?” Luo Wei asked again.
“Master,” Wei Lan said, “I’m from Xuanzhou. Do you think I’m smart or stupid?”
There was silence in the carriage for a moment, then Luo Wei’s voice came, saying, “Stupid.”
“Am I stupid?” Wei Lan couldn’t believe he was considered foolish.
“I’m already like this, and you’re still willing to take me with you, then what else could you be?” Luo Wei said.
“Then consider me stupid,” Wei Lan could only say, “Master, once we arrive in Xuanzhou, we’ll know whether the people there are smart or stupid.”
“It’s better to be a bit stupid,” Luo Wei added, “Simple-minded people are honest. I just want to live a peaceful life. It’s better to be with fools than with scheming people.”
“Alright,” Wei Lan agreed, “Then we’ll find fools as neighbors.”
Luo Wei laughed in the carriage, saying, “When we’re looking for a house, should we ask first if the neighbors are stupid? Lan, you’re the biggest fool.”
Wei Lan laughed too. Luo Wei’s carefree thoughts about their future in Xuanzhou indicated that he was single-mindedly focused on living a carefree life free from worldly affairs, which was exactly what Wei Lan desired.
In the early morning, the countryside echoed with the barking of dogs and crowing of roosters. The farmers who rose early had already left for their fields. The rural children who woke up early with the adults had finished their simple breakfasts and were playing in the fields with their friends. When they saw Wei Lan driving the carriage, these playful children didn’t avoid them but instead followed behind the carriage, playing a game of chase.
“Lan,” Luo Wei leaned against the window, watching the little kids running wildly, and asked Wei Lan, “What do you think they’re happy about? Are they happy chasing our carriage?”
“Children just want to play. As long as they’re happy, it’s fine,” Wei Lan said. “Young Master, did you open the window? Watch for a bit and then close it. Don’t catch a cold from the wind.”
“Mm,” Luo Wei agreed, taking a deep breath of the particularly fresh air after the rain in the countryside, and said, “Lan, I’ve thought about it.”
“What has Master decided?” Wei Lan asked.
“Let’s just go farming,” Luo Wei said. “I’ll learn with you, Lan.”
Wei Lan asked, “Young Master is going to farm too?”
“Farming is good,” Luo Wei said, looking at the farmers and oxen in the fields. “They say farming is the best. Plant seeds, water them and tend to them carefully, and you’ll get fruit. Isn’t that the simplest life?”
“Alright,” Wei Lan didn’t share Luo Wei’s leisurely mindset. He drove the carriage while keeping an eye on every passing place, afraid of attracting attention.
Luo Wei closed the window, and the children chasing behind the carriage gradually lost interest and stopped. Luo Wei closed his eyes and thought for a while before asking Wei Lan, “Will Sima Qingsha send troops to chase us, Lan? If we’re discovered, how will we escape?”
“Yesterday, there was a big fire at Ninglu Palace,” Wei Lan told Luo Wei. “People from the He Fangcheng think that Prince Jin Wei has already perished in the flames.”
“A fire?” Luo Wei said. “Will Sima Qingsha believe that I’m dead?”
“I don’t know whether he believes it or not,” Wei Lan said. “But a night has passed, and no pursuers have come yet. This is true.”
“Did you kill all the people in Ninglu Palace yesterday?” Luo Wei remembered the old eunuch Wang’s arrival and asked Wei Lan, “You didn’t kill them all, did you?”
“No,” Wei Lan lied this time and said to Luo Wei, “At most, we injured them. Young Master, rest assured, they’re all servants of Young Master. I will not kill them.”
“That’s good,” Luo Wei didn’t doubt Wei Lan’s words. Although the old eunuch didn’t treat him respectfully, he still took good care of him. He didn’t want the old eunuch to die because of him. “The fire wasn’t set by us, so who could it be?” After feeling relieved for a moment, Luo Wei started worrying again about who might have set the fire.
Wei Lan said, “Young Master, we’re not people from Northern Yan. Why bother about it? Anyway, the fire burned well.”
“The fire indeed burned well,” Luo Wei thought that he was already considered dead in Sima Qingsha’s eyes. His body and mind suddenly relaxed.
“We’re on the official road,” Wei Lan said to Luo Wei in front of the carriage. “I’m going to drive the horse harder, Master, sit tight.”
“Mm,” Luo Wei said in the carriage, “Let’s hurry up. Let’s leave here as soon as possible.”
The horse-drawn carriage sped along the official road. The two people on the carriage eager to return home. In the hearts of Luo Wei and Wei Lan, they envisioned Xuanzhou, which they had yet to see, like it was actually a paradise.
Boundless Dao 
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