Chapter 60: The Mysterious Doll
The carriage moved forward, Shi Hao and Xu Xiaoyan careful not to make too much noise.
As they passed through a sparse section of forest, the sounds of fighting echoed from the other side of the hill – angry shouts and screams.
A loud crash resonated as a stone peak exploded in the distance. Judging by the commotion, it was likely a battle between sixth-rank, or even fifth-rank, experts.
The scent of blood hung heavy in the air.
They continued further, passing a stone forest where another fierce battle raged.
A cold voice sneered, “This is a mess of your Black Lotus Realm’s making. Don’t blame us.”
An angry voice retorted, “You came for ‘her’! Don’t try to shift the blame by inventing a non-existent person!”
Another explosion echoed as two surges of energy spiraled upwards and collided.
Xu Xiaoyan cracked her whip, urging the horses forward, quickly leaving the battlefield behind.
As they moved further away from the mass grave, they reached a dirt road connecting several villages.
Cart tracks crisscrossed the road, fields of wheat stretched out beside them, and the sounds of woodcutters echoed from the nearby mountains.
Xu Xiaoyan smiled, “We’re quite lucky.”
Shi Hao also smiled, “Indeed.” He hadn’t expected their escape to be so smooth.
Perhaps he wasn’t destined to be the kind of “protagonist” who attracted trouble wherever he went, turning minor incidents into major catastrophes.
Xu Xiaoyan said, “We should change our clothes. We can’t be driving around in black outfits in broad daylight. It’s too suspicious.”
They turned to look inside the carriage… and froze.
Instinctively, they recoiled, staring into the carriage with apprehension.
Xu Xiaoyan had carefully chosen this carriage for its speed.
Although it had two horses, the carriage itself wasn’t very large. The grey canvas roof was arched, and the crate they had stolen barely fit inside horizontally.
There were two narrow benches on either side. To sit comfortably, one had to lean back against the arched roof, their legs cramped.
If two people sat facing each other, their knees would constantly bump.
This carriage was designed for transporting small amounts of cargo quickly.
The crate of pills lay horizontally in the carriage, their bags containing their clothes and Shi Hao’s sword placed on the benches.
But there was something else.
A small figure sat on top of the crate.
It was a doll, a female doll.
It had an elaborate hairstyle, a perfect “morning cloud near fragrance” bun, with a long wooden hairpin.
Its face, made of an unknown material, was lifelike, its two eyes, black gemstones, gleaming faintly in the dim light of the carriage.
It was this faint gleam that had startled them.
For a moment, they even thought it might be a shrunken girl.
“She” wore a beautiful, feather-light “rainbow robe,” woven from the finest silk, pink and white, spotless.
The rainbow robe wasn’t traditional Chinese attire, but the imagined clothing of celestial beings, often used in dances.
Beautiful, noble women would wear it, their graceful movements resembling celestial maidens.
“She” sat there, facing them, her small feet clad in blue and red embroidered shoes.
Shi Hao and Xu Xiaoyan exchanged glances… They had no idea who had placed this doll in their carriage.
In Chinese tradition, there were no toys like “dolls.”
Dolls were often associated with witchcraft and curses.
Finding a doll in someone’s room often meant they were cursing someone.
Even in Shi Hao’s previous world, the tradition of “clay figurines” hadn’t appeared until the Qing Dynasty, much later than most people thought.
Before that, children didn’t play with dolls.
In this era, dolls were considered cursed and ominous objects by ordinary people.
Shi Hao and Xu Xiaoyan, being martial artists, weren’t superstitious.
This didn’t mean they didn’t believe in the supernatural, but they had encountered things like supernatural abilities and demonic essence.
These so-called ominous objects held no fear for them.
But now, such a delicate and beautiful “ominous object” had mysteriously appeared in their carriage.
Xu Xiaoyan said, “Who… who put it there?”
Shi Hao instinctively stood up and looked around.
Sunlight streamed down, illuminating the sparse, sickly crops in the fields. Some fields were overgrown with weeds, seemingly abandoned.
There was no one in sight… And Shi Hao realized this was pointless.
They had no idea when the doll had been placed there. They were certain it hadn’t been there when they loaded the crate into the carriage after escaping Jing’an Monastery.
But they hadn’t looked back since then.
And the carriage, designed for transporting goods, had no windows. Theoretically, it would have been difficult for anyone to place the doll inside without them noticing.
Could it be some kind of supernatural ability?
But who would be so bored as to place a beautiful doll in their carriage?
Xu Xiaoyan said, “I… I have a bad feeling about this. It feels like it’s watching me.”
Shi Hao stared at the doll and said thoughtfully, “I feel like it’s watching me.”
Xu Xiaoyan said, “Just throw it away. It’s creepy.”
Shi Hao reached out, feeling the doll’s gaze on him, sending shivers down his spine.
He picked it up. Beneath the beautiful rainbow robe, its skin felt smooth and delicate. He wondered what it was made of.
He stepped out of the carriage and placed the doll on a rock by the roadside.
The doll sat there, motionless.
“Let’s go!” Xu Xiaoyan cracked her whip, and the carriage sped away.
“Wait for me!” Shi Hao shouted, using his light-foot skills to catch up and climb back onto the carriage.
Xu Xiaoyan whipped the horses again, urging them to go faster.
After several li, they slowed down.
If they continued at that pace, the horses would collapse from exhaustion.
They stopped in the shade of a tree. Xu Xiaoyan said, “I’m going to change. Don’t look back.”
She climbed into the carriage, “Don’t peek!”
Shi Hao said, “Don’t worry, I won’t.”
The rustling sounds from behind him were tempting.
But Shi Hao, being a gentleman, naturally wouldn’t peek.
After a while, Xu Xiaoyan emerged, still disguised with the Evil Shadow Disguise Technique but now wearing her simple dress and without the mask.
Shi Hao climbed into the carriage, “Don’t peek either.”
Xu Xiaoyan snorted, “As if I’d want to look at you.”
The carriage was small, and with the large crate inside, it was difficult for Shi Hao to change his clothes.
He glanced over his shoulder and saw Xu Xiaoyan, her fingers spread over her eyes, peeking at him.
Realizing he had caught her, she quickly turned away.
Shi Hao thought, Completely untrustworthy.
He changed his clothes, keeping his disguised appearance, just like Xu Xiaoyan.
They sat side by side. He asked, “Where are we going now?”
Xu Xiaoyan said, “There’s a town up ahead. Once we reach it, we can find a boat and continue to Chang…”
She trailed off, a sense of unease washing over her.
Shi Hao also felt something was wrong.
They both turned and looked at the space between them.
The doll sat there, prim and proper.
They jumped out of the carriage and stared at the doll.
The same morning cloud near fragrance bun, with the long wooden hairpin.
The same spotless pink and white rainbow robe.
The same blue and red embroidered shoes.
It was the same doll they had just left by the roadside.
The only difference was that before, its legs had been straight, and it had been sitting on the crate.
Now, its legs were bent, like a well-behaved little girl, sitting in the driver’s seat.
They had no idea when it had gotten back into the carriage.
A chill ran down their spines as they cautiously approached the carriage.
Xu Xiaoyan whispered, “What is this doll? Is it… alive?”
Shi Hao whispered back, “Can dolls be alive?”
Xu Xiaoyan muttered, “I don’t know. I know there are foxes that can talk. Maybe there are also dolls that are alive. Although I’ve traveled all over, I’ve never seen anything like this before.”
Shi Hao couldn’t help but look at her, “Foxes that can talk?” He thought, Is she talking about fox spirits?
Xu Xiaoyan, clearly unnerved by the doll, didn’t bother hiding anything, “Don’t tell anyone, but the organizer of the Red Hill Gathering… yes, the one behind the veil… she’s a fox.”
Shi Hao thought, Are there really fox spirits in this world?
Xu Xiaoyan, staring at the motionless doll, shivered, “How do we get rid of it?”
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