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*Thud Thud Thud* 

This sudden noise caught her attention. Pan turned to see what it was, but soon relaxed. It was just Bah Bah grinding some herbs and medicine again. Lucky Bah Bah wasn’t teaching her today, or else she would have been the one doing the grinding. 

Bah Bah reached behind him to open one of the hundred little drawers. It always amazed Pan as to how Bah Bah always knew exactly where which herb or medicine was in which drawer. There was so many little drawers across the big wood shelves, with countless rows and columns. Pan only knew where to locate a few ingredients, like linseng, at the second row and second column from the bottom left corner, or mallow root, which was in the next drawer to the right. The other few hundred stuffs? Pan would always have to ask Bah Bah where, and he’d always know precisely where to find them. 

“Syan Pan and syan Pyan will learn everything in time. So, there’s no need to worry” Bah Bah would always say whenever Pan felt hopeless in trying to locate a specific ingredient. Bah Bah said it took him  a while, himself, before he memorized all the shelves. He said one thing that would always help him was ‘smell’. That didn’t seem to help Pan at all. There were hundreds of different smells to learn, let alone name them all, or even state what each one even did. The thought of this was always so overwhelming. Pan sighed at the sight of the medicine shelves. 

*Thud Thud Thud* 

At least she didn’t have to do the grinding today. She saw Bah Bah happily grinding away whatever it was he added. Bah Bah made that soft scooping motion he always did above the grinder to fluff the aroma of whatever he was mixing, even though he never needed to. The medicines always had a strong smell. Pan knew she’d be able to smell the mix from where she stood, as always… As always… 

Why wasn’t there a smell? 

*Thud Thud Thud* 

Wasn’t Bah Bah grinding a new medicine? 

*Thud Thud Thud* 

No. This thudding was different. The rhythm was off. And the thudding… it felt irritating… shaking her head with each thud. 

*Thud Thud Thud* 

What was this head shaking thud? 

The blare of wide-open air filled Pan’s ears. She heard movement. Slow, labourous trotting. And that irritating, inconsistent thudding. 

Ahh. Right. She wasn’t back home with Bah Bah. No. Bah Bah was gone, wherever the Fù had taken him. And Pan, she was with whomever had her now. 

Pan opened her eyes and saw other children sitting with her, all seemingly uncomfortable. They were in the back of a wagon, bags of grain cushioning this uncomfortable ride. Pan looked up front and saw it was Jo yan driving the johnny wagon. Oh, that’s right. She was with those people. The ones who came to save her and the other children. 

Riding beside the wagon on johnnys of their own were the other nyomkoh with Jo yan and Joy yan’s… wife? She must have been his wife. Pan just had a feeling. 

The jolting thud of the wagon was still irritating Pan. The dirt road they were travelling must have been rough. Where were they? 

Out beyond the company’s outriders, Pan saw endless open space. Stretching out were endless fields and plains until what must have been mountains shadowed so far in the back. The grass seemed never ending here. And the land here had a subtle flatness to it. You wouldn’t notice the flatness until you noticed how far down the fields you could see. Back in Ein Pei, Pan could never see that far out. There’d always be a close mountain or the next hill in the way. Here, there were no such barriers or confinements. Pan almost felt that she could breathe much easier here. This must have been where the hooves could galop far and free. 

Pan looked all around her, then she stood up to lean on the sides of the wagon to see how far her sights would go on that side. 

“Hah! Syan yan is finally awake” Jo yan looked behind him with his big smile. The other nyomkoh also giggled amongst each other. 

“Had a good sleep, syan mi?” Jo yan’s wife smile at Pan. 

Pan wasn’t sure what to answer. Why were they even asking about her sleep? 

“Of course, she did” Jo yan answered. “Anyone who snores that loud must be very tired.” 

“Oh, yes” Jo yan’s wife giggled. “A good snore must mean a good sleep.” 

“Pan jih always snores so loud” one of the other children spoke up. “Sometimes I can’t sleep because of her.” Were they complaining about Pan? 

“Oh really, syan yan? Syan Pyan was also quite loud, too. Almost as loud as your jihjih” Jo yan laughed. Oh. So, it was just Pyan complaining. 

“Noo…” Pyan whined. “Bah Bah said Pan jih was the loudest of us all.” 

“You sisters are quite alike, syan mi” Jo yan’s wife smiled. 

Similar to Pyan? Pan didn’t think so. Pyan… Pyan was just a helpless infant. Pan always had to look after Pyan. Especially whenever Bah Bah wasn’t around, just like right now. And here she was again, disturbing Pan from… from… what was Pan concerned about again? 

Why was Pan even standing up in the back of this wagon? Right. The expanse of this place. 

“Nyomkoh, where are we?” Pan asked Jo yan. 

“Huh?” Jo yan looked back at Pan. “Oh. We’re at Tunya.” 

“Tunya?” Pan wasn’t sure. 

“We’re quite far easy, syan mi” Jo yan’s wife added. “Closer to the Grass Countries, but nice and far from the major clans and their silly wars.” 

Far away from the major clans. To Pan, that meant further away from Bah Bah. How would he ever find her if she was so far away? 

“Why are we here, nyomjih? Where are we going?” Pan couldn’t hide her lack of enthusiasm. 

“It will be safer out here, syan yan” Jo yan told. “The clan lords are always fighting, and the common yuan are all affected. But out here, they’re not in charge. The villages out here can take care of you.” 

The villages? Great. Pan was going to be stuck in some country village in the middle of nowhere. 

“Jo yan, how long will syan yan have to stay at these villages?” Pan asked. 

“How long?” Jo yan seemed confused about the question. But why? Was he expecting the children to stay out there forever? His wife saw that the yan was lost about Pan’s question. Then she saw Pan’s face. 

“Syan mi,” she spoke up, “the village is safe. That’s why we need to bring syan yan there. It’s best to stay out here. It’s safe than the Center worlds. The imperial family and the clan lords cannot be trusted to keep the people safe. Once the true protector of the people arises, then maybe the cities will finally be safe again. But until then…” 

“I don’t care if it’s safe or not” Pan couldn’t hold her manners. “I just want to go home.” 

“Pan jih.” Pan heard Pyan whisper. 

“Talking like that won’t make things any better, syan mi.” Jo yan’s wife was not pleased. “Show respect to those who saved you, syan ya.” 

“We didn’t need saving!” Pan couldn’t help but speak back. “Lung daikoh was looking after us.” 

“Lung daikoh is a murderous lunatic!” Jo yan’s wife spat. “We saved you.” 

“No you didn’t. He was nice to us” Pan argued. 

“Trust nyomjih, syan yan. There is too much darkness around Lung Chun. The yan will only bring misfortune.” 

“Misfortune? Syan yan won’t ever find Bah Bah out here. Lung daikoh would have helped syan yan. But now syan Pan has to be stuck with a bunch of hogs and johnnys.” 

The ying’s face turned foul. “How ungrateful!” 

“Yutin!” Jo yan sighed at his wife. “The children have had a hard time. We don’t need to raise our voices at them.” 

Yutin ying made a long huff to the side. 

“We’re sorry we have to bring syan yan so far away. Nyomkoh are only trying to keep syan yan safe.” Jo yan spoke gently. “We can’t find bah right now, but Bi Jo promises to help find him in the future. Or to let your bah know to find you out here. Okay, syan yan? And please speak nicely to daijih, syan yan. She only cares about you.” 

Pan looked at Jo yan’s wife, Yutin ying, and saw her face had softened, but was purposely looking away from Pan. 

“Pan jih,” Pan heard from her side. “Say sorry.” It must have been Pyan. Pyan awalys wanted things to be peaceful. 

Pan saw Yutin ying was still looking off into the distance. “Sorry, daijih” Pan said to Yutin Ying. 

The ying still didn’t look back. “It’s okay, syan mi. We want to help syan yan as much as we can.” Why didn’t Yutin ying face Pan back. Lucky Jo yan asked Pan to be nice. If not for Jo yan, Pan might not have bothered. 

“Syan Pan has such good manners.” Jo yan smiled. “Everything will work out.” 

Pan wasn’t sure she believed him. But it was nice to just hear Jo yan say anything, really. 

** *** 

The ride was still rickety, but somehow Pan had fallen back to sleep. It wasn’t until she heard a sudden gnarling – someone’s gnarling – that she woke again. 

They had stopped. The wagon was no longer moving. Looking about, it seemed that they had finally reached their destination. One of the nyomyan was leading the johnnys to a stable. Even the johnny pulling the wagon was already gone. At least the rocky ride had finally stopped. But who was making all that commotion. 

Further down past the stable, everyone had gathered, with a few extra new nyomyan. Farmers. They looked it. Pan really was out here in the country, now. But what was the problem? 

Pan jumped off the wagon and made way to where they all gathered. The nyomyan Pan recognized had gathered in a sort of circle around the other children. And before the children, curled away in disgust was an old ying. 

“No, no, no! Not this one!” the old ying hissed. She was pointing at one of the children. 

“Come on, daijih. Don’t talk about the syan like that” Jo yan implored. 

“I can take care of the other syan. Not a problem. But… But this one…” the old ying’s eyes were wide and… scared? angry? just out right wild? What had gotten this old ying so startled? 

“Peitin daijih…” Pan could hear Jo yan’s frown. “We’ve all pledged to turn this life into a true sanctuary for all. How could Peitin daijih treat a syan like this? Syan yan has done nothing wrong.” 

“There are only so many Peitin Li can foster at a time” the old ying argued. “The Way will issue its blessings to each in their own way.” Then Peitin daijih tried to make away like she was done. 

“Everybody promised to play their part, daijih” Yutin ying stepped in front of the old ying. Then she peered at the children. “What is even the problem?” 

“Can’t you tell?” The old ying made that foul gnarl again and turned away from the children. 

“Daijih…” Yutin ying was disappointed. Then she glanced at Jo yan, who felt much the same. 

“Won’t Peitin daijih tell Bi what’s wrong, so maybe Bi can do something about it?” Jo yan pleaded. 

“You all really can’t tell?” Peitin ying cried. Then she covered her nose and mouth with a hand. “The smell!” 

Pan finally got to where the nyomkoh and syan were gathered. Jo yan noticed her arrival and made way so Pan could stand with the other children. One of the children began to cry and whine. Did they do something to make the old ying so upset? 

The crying child turned and noticed Pan’s arrival, causing her to cry even more. “Pan jih…” Oh. It was Pyan making all the fuss. What did she do now? “Daijih said that Pyan smells!” Pyan whined even more after that. 

“Pyan probably stinks of medicine” Pan told Pyan. Pan remembered how other kids used to tease her of smelling like funny herbs and medicines, especially after her turn at grinding the ingredients. 

Jo yan bent over to have a whiff of Pyan but couldn’t seem to smell anything in particular. 

“Noo, Pan jih.” Pyan sobbed. “We haven’t mixed anything in weeks.” Wait! Pyan had a good point. 

“You smell fine, syan Pyan. It’s okay. “Bi Jo yan assured her. 

“And, another one!” Peitin daijih shrieked from behind her covering hand. This time the old ying was glaring at Pan with furious wide eyes. The ying began stepping back in fear. 

Everybody around was confused at the old ying’s reaction. The nyomyan, and even the other children began looking at one another, then at Pan and Pyan. Some even began to step away from Pan and Pyan while seeming unsure at what was even the matter. Everybody’s reactions disappointed Jo yan. 

“Hey… Come on” Jo yan pleaded to the others. 

“What is daijih even talking about?” Yutin ying asked the old ying who was still backing away. 

“Those two cannot be trusted!” the old ying cried. “There is something off about them!” 

That caused the others to back off a little more from Pan and Pyan. 

What? 

“Hey… Don’t say that, daijih.” Jo yan frowned. 

“What’s the matter, Peitin? I can hear you from down the road” a strong voice called from nearby. 

In the near distance, an old yan dressed in a simple blue robe was approaching. An old monk perhaps. His long beard and top knot were white with age, but this face wasn’t wrinkled like an old yan’s face would normally be. 

“Cai!” Peitin daijih called out to the monk. “Bi Jo has brought some wicked ones back with him.” The old ying kept her nose and mouth covered. 

Wicked ones? 

The monk finally reached the gathering. 

“Daishu Cai!” Jo yan, Yutin ying, and the other nyomkoh all overlapped their hands and gave a polite bow. The children, seeing the nyomkoh’s greeting, did the same. 

Daishu Cai then looked straight at Pan and Pyan, eyes curious. Did he noticed what the old ying was talking about? Pan worried why he suddenly gave her and Pyan any real attention. Did he smell them as well? 

But daishu Cai’s next reaction gave Pan sudden relief. The old yan eased into a pleasant smile, his eyes goring even more gentle. “Don’t mind Peitin ying, syan yan” he told Pan and Pyan. “Peitin ying was used to being the prettiest mi in this country. And so, she feels uncomfortable to see that two very pretty mi have arrived.” Daishi Cai had a nice smile. 

That old ying was pretty? Pan found that hard to imagine. 

“But, Cai,” Peitin daijih spoke up. “Can’t you tell that…” 

“Cai will look after these syan mi” daishu Cai just smiled. 

“Thank you, daishu!” Jo yan’s big smiled finally came back. How nice things were turning out. 

The old ying tried to tell daishi Cai, “But we mustn’t have these…” 

“Cai Mun is sure these syan mi will be well taken care of with me at the temple.” The daishu spoke like his word was final. The daishu then swiped his nose with a thumb. “And besides, there are certain issues I know these two can help us solve.”  

Certain issues to solve? 

“The way has blessed us today with the syan yan” daishu Cai told. 

Pan noticed that Yutin ying seemed confused at daishu Cai’s announcement. She was looking at Jo yan for understanding, but Jo yan looked just as lost. Jo yan’s uncertainty was concerning. Didn’t he know what daishu Cai was talking about?