As soon as we got out of the car, we saw a line of beautiful young women welcoming us at the village gate. They were all dressed in dark green, embroidered Miao traditional clothes, adorned with silver ornaments on their heads that jingled pleasantly with every step they took. It’s really nice to look at as well as hear.
The leading girl was exceptionally beautiful, with picturesque features. Her silver crown was adorned with tiny silver tassels that swayed in perfect rhythm with her movements.
The Miao girl stepped forward, showing no shyness at all. She graciously held out a cup made from an ox horn and said, “To enter the Miao village, you must first drink ‘Lanmen Wine.’ The more you drink, the more our Miao sisters will like you!”
After she spoke, the girls behind her covered their mouths and chuckled.
An Pu quickly stepped forward and said, “Ah Li, these are students from Yancheng University. They’re young and don’t really drink. Who in the village doesn’t know about your rice wine? Two sips and I’m afraid they’d get so drunk they’d die here.”
The girl called Ah Li feigned displeasure at his words, pouting, and said, “Fine, but someone must drink a cup of my Lanmen wine today! And I also want to choose him myself as well!”
An Pu gave a wry smile, turned back to us, and waved his hand, signaling that he had done his best.
Xu Zirong, however, was beaming with excitement, puffing out his chest, almost having “Choose me!” carved on his face.
Ah Li’s gaze swept around us, her eyes bright and lively. She deliberately prolonged the suspense with a thoughtful hum, but then her gaze firmly settled on me. Holding the ox horn filled with rice wine with both hands, she stepped forward, her sparkling eyes smiling as they fixed on me.
“This Ah-ge[mfn]Big brother/young man[/mfn] is so handsome; me, Ah-mei[mfn]Younger sister/girl[/mfn] is delighted in my heart and wants you to drink my Lanmen wine!”
Just as I was about to reach out and take the ox horn, I suddenly remembered what An Pu had said earlier: that one shouldn’t casually accept things from Miao girls or touch their skin, as doing so could easily lead to “not being able to return.”
I half-squatted and opened my mouth. Ah Li then raised the ox horn and slowly poured the liquid into my mouth.
The clear liquid, when it entered, wasn’t spicy like other liquor. Instead, it was crisp and sweet, with a faint rice fragrance.
It didn’t seem hard to drink at all.
The wine kept flowing over my lips, some splashing onto my face, carrying a hint of chill. I had to constantly swallow to barely avoid choking.
Just then, out of the corner of my eye, I seemed to catch sight of a figure standing in the dense forest outside the village gate, seemingly watching me. An inexplicable chill immediately crept up my spine, accompanied by a disquieting sense of being observed and a sudden pounding heart.
Ah Li noticed the slight change in my expression, assuming I was overwhelmed by the alcohol. Her smile unchanged, she gently raised her hand, stopping the flow of rice wine.
An Pu, seeing this, also smiled and said, “Alright, alright! Any more and he’ll be drunk!”
Ah Li retracted the ox horn cup and gave me a thumbs-up as I straightened up. “Ah-ge, you can really hold your liquor!”
I curved my lips slightly and turned to look towards the dense forest outside the village gate—
But where was the person?
Perhaps I had seen it wrong.
Xu Zirong came over and slung an arm around my neck, saying, “Good brother, I can’t tell ah! When we get back to Yancheng, we definitely have to have a drinking contest and see who’s tougher…” Midway through, Xu Zirong caught sight of Qiu Lu’s face, dark as the bottom of a pot, and quickly lowered his voice, giving her a nervous, dry chuckle.
An Pu clapped his hands, making a sound to get our attention. “Alright, the Lanmen wine has been drunk, let’s get into the village! There’s plenty inside that will make you guys interested!”
Under An Pu’s lead, we said goodbye to the beautiful Miao girls and officially entered the Miao village.
Dongjiang Miao Village was built into the mountainside, with layers upon layers of stilt houses occupying a large part of the valley. I imagined that at night, when all the lights came on, it would be incredibly brilliant to see from above.
We entered through the village gate, planning to first drop off our luggage at the guesthouse we’d booked in advance and then go explore the village. Fortunately, An Pu was very familiar with the Miao village and led the way for us; otherwise, it would have taken us quite a bit of effort to find our guesthouse on our own.
“Dongjiang Miao Village is known as ‘Eighteen Echoes of a Love Song’ because our village is built in a canyon, surrounded by mountains on all sides. If you sing loudly, echoes reverberate from all directions,” An Pu explained as we walked. “In the center of the village is our square; bonfires and large events are usually held there.”
“Wow!” Qiu Lu’s eyes widened. “Is there anything happening now? Didn’t you say there’s ‘Wandering and Making Friends’ recently? There should be an evening party, right?”
Qiu Lu had handed all her luggages to Xu Zirong. She wore a sun hat, her hands empty, looking as relaxed as a tourist.
An Pu smiled and nodded, “Yes, there is. Our distinctive Miao stilt houses are built in—layers around the central square, relying on the mountain terrain, it’s quite beautiful!”
As he spoke, we stepped onto a flagstone path and arrived at a street with rows of stilt houses lining both sides.
I looked up and saw more wooden stilt houses on the hillside above. Long, slender wooden poles stubbornly propped them up, supporting the entire weight of the structures.
Suddenly, my vision blurred, my head swam, and the scenery before my eyes seemed to spin slightly. I closed my eyes and shook my head vigorously, forcing myself to stay clear-headed.
Darn it, that large cup of Lanmen wine was starting to kick in.
An Pu had warned that the Lanmen wine had a strong after-effect. When I drank it, I only found it sweet, but I hadn’t expected the full potency to hit later.
Fortunately, my tolerance for alcohol wasn’t too bad; I was just a bit lightheaded, nothing that would really affect me. I also didn’t want to ruin everyone else’s fun because of myself.
An Pu walked ahead, diligently and enthusiastically explaining to us, “This street is a commercial street, it was built later. As you know, if we don’t develop and attract businesses, it would be hard for our Dongjiang Miao Village to become well-known. Our Miao people used to suffer, but in recent years, good days have slowly arrived.”
Xu Zirong, dutifully dragging both their luggages, said, “We understand; this situation is common now! Oh, by developing tourism, everyone can earn money!”
Hearing this, An Pu gave Xu Zirong a thumbs-up, praising him, “As expected of Professor Ye’s student, you speak so articulately!”
Xu Zirong smiled bashfully, dragging the luggage with even more vigor.
The shops on both sides were decorated in ethnic styles, some even playing loud and clear Miao love songs from speakers. There were also shops selling local specialties and trinkets. Of course, the most popular were the photography studios.
There were quite a few tourists on the road, and some girls dressed in red, green, or blue Miao traditional clothing walked by, each looking very joyful.
Perhaps the mysterious culture here truly attracted many visitors.
An Pu said, “These lower areas are all commercial streets; you guys can explore them well these next few days. The further up you go, the less commercialized it becomes, and the more authentic Miao customs you’ll experience.”
I quietly noted An Pu’s words and tapped my slightly dizzy head to keep myself feeling normal.
Soon, we arrived at our pre-booked guesthouse. It was peak travel season, and there were many tourists visiting the Miao village. If we hadn’t booked in advance, we might have had to sleep on the streets.
Our expenses were covered by Professor Ye Wensheng’s research funds, so naturally, we had to be frugal. We had originally booked two standard rooms, one for Xu Zirong and me and one for Qiu Lu and Wen Lingyu.
But at the front desk, Qiu Lu looked shy and kept poking Xu Zirong in the waist. Xu Zirong dodged, then awkwardly said to me, “Uh… Ah Ze, I snore at night, I’m afraid it’ll disturb your rest…”
I paused for a moment but quickly understood.
They were a young couple, truly treating this trip as a publicly funded vacation; they didn’t even want to stay in separate rooms.
“I booked an extra room just for myself, and I’m paying for it out of my own pocket, not from Professor Ye’s funds!” Xu Zirong said, quickly pulling out his ID card to check in.
I understood his unspoken meaning; sometimes, saying everything out loud just makes things more awkward. I was quite happy to have a room to myself anyway.
An Pu had brought us here, completing the first part of his task. He said, “For today, you guys can explore the village and rest. When you’re ready to start your visits and research, just give me a call. I’ll take you guys around; they’ll definitely be very welcoming!”
“Okay, thank you, Brother An Pu!” Qiu Lu’s voice was sweet.
An Pu waved a dismissive hand and turned to leave. We were then led to our rooms by the guesthouse owner.
This guesthouse had three floors. The first floor was the lobby, which also offered dining services. The second and third floors housed the rooms, all currently full of tourists. The entire stilt house was made of wood, and walking on it produced a “creaking” sound, which added to its unique charm.
Our three rooms were right next to each other. Wen Lingyu stayed in the middle, and as expected, Qiu Lu took her luggage and went into a room with Xu Zirong.
I didn’t care how they arranged their sleeping arrangements, as long as it didn’t affect our work.
As soon as I entered the room, a unique scent of wood in damp air filled my nostrils. It wasn’t unpleasant, and I just took it as part of the ethnic charm. The bedding was neatly folded and very dry, indicating that the guesthouse owner was a diligent and skilled proprietor.
My room was right on the cliff edge, the part that jutted out from the ground, supported by wooden stilts. On a second thought, it might have warned of the hidden dangers, but the moment I pushed open the window and saw the sweeping view of the valley and the Miao village below, any concern quietly faded away.
I was quite satisfied with my room.
No sooner had I set down my luggage than there was a knock at the door.
I opened it to find Wen Lingyu with her face flushed. She had straight bangs and large, bright eyes that made her look delicate, like a porcelain doll. Perhaps because she was short, only reaching my chin, she always looked up at me when speaking, like an innocent, pitiable rabbit.
“They asked me to ask you if you want to go out and explore together. Since it’s our first time here, we can get familiar with the area, relax a bit, and even bring our cameras to shoot some footage as well.”
I was still a bit dizzy, but I figured it wouldn’t hinder anything, and I also didn’t want to just sleep all day on my first day in the Miao village either, so I gladly agreed to their suggestion.
Our group of four quickly joined the throngs of tourists.
