Chapter 130: Mountains and Rivers Youth
In the river of life, chance encounters often just swirl for a moment before parting.
The blind old Daoist, whose Daoist name was Xuanguzi, remained silent throughout the journey, which made the little girl Jiu'er feel somewhat unaccustomed.
Though the lame boy was reluctant to hand over that snake gallstone, after hesitating and struggling, he still took the initiative to give it to his ill-tempered master.
The old Daoist took the fine-textured pebble, held it in his palm and rubbed it gently for a moment, then, for the first time, returned it to the boy. "Keep it for yourself."
The lame boy took the pebble in confusion, looked at little Jiu'er, who also quietly shook her head, indicating she couldn't fathom their master's intentions.
The old man said softly, "Little lame one, this is your fate, your master cannot take it away. If I truly took it, it would not be good. Do you think that boy named Chen Ping'an went to the trouble of sending a letter back to Longquan County Town through the courier station for no reason? I reckon that if we reach that place called Taisui and Caotou Shop, and it is your master who takes out the pebble instead of you doing it yourself, our days there will not be easy. We might not face outright trouble, but don't expect to establish ourselves smoothly, let alone find a mountain to take refuge in for cultivation."
The lame boy just grunted an "oh." He was not someone with a twisty mind, not good at thinking about such issues.
The blind old Daoist rubbed the little girl's head. "You two are really fortunate."
Little Jiu'er, more meticulous than her brother, asked, "Master, is that group, including the elder sister, of unusual background?"
The old Daoist nodded. "That Longquan County was originally the Lizhu Cave Heaven above the Great Li Dynasty, which shattered and took root on the ground. Before, the Confucian sage Qi Jingchun presided there for sixty years. Now these children carry book boxes, each smarter than the last, and they say they are journeying to the Great Sui Academy. So tell me, whose students would they be?"
The little girl was somewhat envious. "Students of a Confucian sage—truly impressive."
The blind old Daoist chuckled derisively. "Otherwise, why would the Wind and Snow Temple Sword Immortal Wei Jin make rescuing them his first priority upon breaking through his cultivation barrier? Besides, these children have a yin spirit as a guardian, and one that could threaten the mountain root and water source of that ferocious female ghost. Not a single one of these children is an easy lamp to burn."
The old man sighed emotionally. "Their futures are limitless, truly limitless."
The little girl, slow to catch on, asked curiously, "Since Master knew they had an expert protecting them, why make an unnecessary move and tell them about the fierce ghost on Three Branch Mountain? They didn't need to worry at all."
The old Daoist habitually reached out to pinch the little girl's cheek and laughed. "Silly girl, this is called 'benefiting without cost.' Without spending a single copper coin, you can play the good guy—why not do it?"
The little girl said timidly, "But if they see through Master's intentions, wouldn't that mean Master was just gilding the lily?"
The old Daoist was speechless, shook his head and sighed, then patted the little girl's head. "Your master will treat you two better from now on. All these years, I always thought I might one day stumble upon a great windfall and pick up a gifted disciple by the roadside. I often looked down on you two for your humble origins and unclear backgrounds. But looking back now, it seems I was the one in the dark under the lamp."
The little girl was a bit scared; the old Daoist was too unfamiliar like this. Her face turned pale. "Master, are you possessed by a ghost? Jiu'er doesn't recognize you."
The old Daoist burst into laughter, then suddenly lowered his voice. "Jiu'er, earlier your master promised not to collect talisman springs for a year. Now let's discuss changing it from one year to half a year, how about? Think about it, in this trip to subdue demons and vanquish evil, it was truly a case of 'as virtue rises one foot, vice rises ten.' Not only did that female ghost give me a good beating, but my banner lost four characters, and I even gave away the ancestral 'Mountain-Searching Painting' of our sect. As disciples, don't you feel any pity for your master? Don't you want to show some filial respect?"
The little girl felt relieved—this was the master she knew. So she said crisply, "Half a year it is!"
The lame boy carefully put away that pebble, grumbling, "The stone is already mine."
The blind old Daoist's anger flared, and he cursed loudly, "A dog can't change its habit of eating shit!"
The little girl covered her mouth with one hand, snickering.
Little lame boy also started laughing.
―
In a remote place, the yin spirit revealed his true form, though his face was still blurry, black smoke swirling around his body, gloomy and eerie. He spoke hoarsely, "I failed to protect you all, and even caused you to be taken to the female ghost's mansion. I'm sorry."
Chen Ping'an really didn't know how to comfort people. After holding back for a long time, he finally managed to say, "Just do your best."
The yin spirit smiled bitterly. "Regardless, I cannot shirk responsibility this time. Especially because I was greedy for personal cultivation, I dragged you all into such a predicament. I truly cannot find peace of mind. If anything had happened to you, even if I afterward smashed the mountain root and water source here and perished together with the female ghost, it would be meaningless."
Li Baoping smiled. "When I was little, my big brother liked to tell me strange stories. Once he told a story about a City God, saying that the way to assess hidden virtue is different. I remember it clearly: 'Intentional good deeds, though good, are not rewarded; unintentional evil deeds, though evil, are not punished.' Human strength has its limits. If you have done your best and done your utmost, there is no need to feel too guilty. Otherwise, being human is tiring, and being a ghost is tiring too."
The yin spirit was speechless. Being taught a lesson by a little girl, even if she had previously shown the demeanor of a gentleman, was still somewhat awkward.
The little girl again retreated into her own world, somewhat annoyed, striking her palm with her fist. "Big brother always told these strange and marvelous things, and I only listened to them as interesting stories. If only I had known, I should have paid more attention."
Chen Ping'an seemed to want to speak but stopped.
The yin spirit looked at Chen Ping'an and smiled. "Can we talk alone for a moment?"
Chen Ping'an nodded and told Lin Shouyi and the other two to go ahead.
The yin spirit waited until Lin Shouyi and the others had walked about half a li ahead, then spoke. "I was arranged by Old Man Yang of the medicine shop to protect Li Huai."
Chen Ping'an scratched his head. "I thought you were here to protect Baoping or Lin Shouyi."
This yin spirit smiled. "Li Huai's father, Li Er, almost beat the Prince Song Changjing to death. He is very formidable. Once, Li Er came to Old Man Yang, saying his wife had been bullied and he wanted to leave the mountain to settle accounts with the ancestor of that family. He insisted on leaving the Lizhu Cave Heaven. Old Man Yang couldn't argue with him, so he had no choice but to agree."