# Chapter 188: Great Rules and Trivial Matters
(Chapter Two.)
The bamboo slips lay quietly on the courtyard wall, soaking in the warm sunlight of early spring along with their owner.
Then an uninvited guest arrived.
Dong Shuijing.
That simple boy who had once chosen not to follow Li Baoping and their two other classmates on their long journey to Great Sui. Dong Shuijing had opted to stay in the small town, while Shi Chunjia, the little girl with goat-horn braids, had chosen to follow her family's relocation to the Great Li capital.
The five who had remained in Mr. Qi's school thus parted ways, scattering to the four corners of the world.
Upon seeing it was Dong Shuijing, Chen Ping'an quickly invited him into the courtyard to sit down. The pink-skirted girl nimbly brought out snacks and refreshments. Dong Shuijing seemed somewhat reserved, even a little embarrassed, like a naughty child sitting in the school waiting for the teacher's punishment.
Chen Ping'an truly didn't think Dong Shuijing had been wrong to stay in town.
During their journey, one night when timid Li Huai had called him over to relieve themselves together, Chen Ping'an had heard Li Huai casually mention Dong Shuijing's background. They said he was named "Shuijing" (Water Well) because when his mother was pregnant with him, she had gone to the Iron Lock Well to fetch water while heavily pregnant, and when she bent over, she gave birth to him right there. This had become a joke among their schoolmates, but Dong Shuijing never bothered to explain himself. If others wanted to laugh, he let them.
As for the matter of Dong Shuijing and Lin Shouyi both liking Li Huai's sister, Chen Ping'an knew all about it, but he wasn't particularly interested in whether it was true or false.
Song Jixin next door had long ago said that for boys their age in town, the young masters from Fortune Street and Peach Leaf Alley already had chambermaids, while those from Dragon Riding Alley and Apricot Flower Alley might already have matchmakers helping them find partners. A year or two older and they'd become fathers—this was normal in the small town. Meanwhile, for the poorest alleys like Mud Vase Alley, it was possible for men to remain bachelors into their thirties or forties.
Dong Shuijing briefly talked about the new school in town, and Chen Ping'an shared some interesting stories from their travels, careful not to mention anything too fantastical for fear of making Dong Shuijing overthink things. After all, being honest didn't mean being simple-minded.
When Dong Shuijing learned that the town would have its own post station in the future, he asked Chen Ping'an for the mailing address of the Cliff Academy in Great Sui. The boy was very happy, saying he absolutely had to write to Li Baoping and the other two. Chen Ping'an hesitated slightly—he knew that sending letters through the post station required real silver and gold, and Dong Shuijing, now alone and without support, might not be able to afford it. But in the end, Chen Ping'an said nothing, silently committing the matter to memory.
Dong Shuijing left happily.
The azure-clad boy tutted, "Not bad, this big fellow. I thought he came here to freeload from you, Master. If he'd dared to ask..."
He glanced subconsciously at Chen Ping'an, swallowed the words that had been on the tip of his tongue, and changed his tune, "Then I would have spoken to him gently and reasoned with him properly, telling him that in life, one must put oneself in another's shoes."
Chen Ping'an smiled and patted the azure-clad boy on the head. "That must have been hard for you."
On the second day of the first lunar month, the town custom was to start New Year's visits to relatives.
Chen Ping'an had no relatives to visit, so he simply took the two little ones to Fallen Mountain.
Fallen Mountain was located southwest of the large prefecture of Longquan, surrounded by three hills of varying sizes, but none could compare to Fallen Mountain. They were called Leapfish Mountain, Fuyao Slope, and Celestial Capital Peak, each bought by immortal factions from outside Great Li. In order to build distinctive residences, work had continued feverishly day and night until New Year's Eve.
Today, when Chen Ping'an and his companions passed by Celestial Capital Peak, the mountain was finally quiet.
Over the past year, on every mountain peak, one magnificent and bizarre construction after another had risen from the forests—mansions and temples, pavilions and towers, courtyards and high halls, viewing platforms on mountain summits, suspended rope bridges between peaks—all breathtaking to behold.
As for Fallen Mountain, which belonged to Chen Ping'an, because almost all of it was funded by the Great Li Ministry of Works' predetermined budget, and its mountain master had no additional construction needs, despite having a large mountain, it appeared rather desolate. Even with the mountain god in residence, Fallen Mountain was like this. Treasured Record Mountain, Rainbow Cloud Peak, and Immortal Herb Mountain were even more lifeless, causing the cultivators overseeing nearby peaks to find it amusing every time they looked over at their neighbors.
Having spent big money to buy a mountain but not having enough small change to develop it—how absurd.
As Chen Ping'an and his group approached their mountain, Wei Bo appeared again, as mysteriously as ever.
Chen Ping'an handed Wei Bo a small pouch containing a top-grade snake gallstone, asking him to deliver it to the fierce black snake from Chessboard Mountain. Wei Bo accepted the New Year's gift with a smile, saying he would definitely deliver it and wouldn't embezzle it.
As they climbed the mountain together, Chen Ping'an asked Wei Bo about the school. Wei Bo, of course, knew more inside information than Dong Shuijing. He explained that it was a family school run by the Dragon Tail Creek Chen clan, but open to everyone without charge. Even many of the young children of the Lu clan's criminal exiles could attend. This had effectively saved dozens of lives right away, because it was uncertain whether those frail children would have survived last year's harsh winter otherwise.
As Longquan Prefecture prospered, many families from nearby prefectures had migrated in—mostly wealthy and powerful clans with plenty of money and people. They bought houses and land in the town and surrounding areas, spending money like water. The large estates on Fortune Street and Peach Leaf Alley were naturally their first choice, and now even in Dragon Riding Alley and Apricot Flower Alley, many old residences had changed owners.
In just one year, the school had over a hundred students, and all the teachers were renowned literary masters and great scholars.
At this point, Wei Bo smiled and asked, "Do you think it's like using a butcher's cleaver to kill a chicken? Why would those scholars, who usually put on airs, be willing to leave their hometowns and come here to suffer? And the objects of their teaching are just a bunch of children and youths?"
Chen Ping'an nodded and asked, "Did the Dragon Tail Creek Chen clan spend a lot of money?"
Wei Bo laughed heartily, waving his hand. "It's not about money. Among those learned teachers, there are two worthies. How could they be in it for money? They are hoping to enter Cloudy Cloak Mountain, because a fascinating place called the Forest Deer Academy will soon appear there."
The azure-clad boy interrupted, "You said before that you live on Cloudy Cloak Mountain. Could it be that you're just a handyman there?"
"Shoo, shoo, go cool off somewhere. I'm discussing great affairs of the world with your master."
Wei Bo made a shooing gesture, then continued to Chen Ping'an, "Actually, even a blind man can see that Great Li is planning something big. The Forest Deer Academy is clearly meant to rival the Cliff Academy in Great Sui. Once Great Li's southward expansion succeeds and the Hong clan of Great Sui is destroyed, the Lakeside Academy... "
"The sooner one enters the Forest Deer Academy, the more likely one is to become a 'subject who follows the dragon.'"
"It can't be helped. If scholars want to realize their ambitions and govern the country and benefit the people, they need a seat in the imperial court. Otherwise, it's all just talk on paper. Of course, if they can't get into officialdom, they can retreat, cultivate their own virtue when poor, and focus on scholarship. Teaching in local areas, educating the people, guiding customs—that works too, but compared to the former, it's a bit lonelier."
"Outside the academy, one of the seventy-two Confucian academies in the Gem Bottle Continent, the second one, will inevitably fall to the Forest Deer Academy."
Wei Bo spoke these words lightly, his two large sleeves swaying as they climbed the mountain, like two white clouds floating toward the summit.
The pink-skirted girl carrying the book box watched intently, imagining that one day her master would be so elegant and distinguished.
Chen Ping'an suddenly asked, "Wei Bo, are you a mountain god now?"
Wei Bo smiled knowingly, "Chen Ping'an, I've been waiting for you to ask that question."
The azure-clad boy curled his lips, full of disdain.
Mountain god?
I have a water god brother who commands great rivers too.
Wei Bo pointed toward Cloudy Cloak Mountain, "For now, I am temporarily the mountain god of Cloudy Cloak Mountain."
The azure-clad boy walking alongside the pink-skirted girl secretly shook his head and made faces.
Wei Bo added, "If there are no surprises, Cloudy Cloak Mountain will soon be promoted to the Northern Sacred Mountain of Great Li."
Chen Ping'an stopped walking and asked, "Northern Sacred Mountain? Not the Southern Sacred Mountain?"
Wei Bo shook his head, "It's the Northern Sacred Mountain."
The pink-skirted girl let out a "wow," her eyes full of admiration. The Five Sacred Mountains' true gods were truly great deities, especially for a dynasty like Great Li.
The azure-clad boy swallowed his saliva, moistened his throat, then quickly walked over to Wei Bo, looked up, and smiled, "Immortal Master Wei, are you tired from walking? Do you need to sit and rest? Should I rub your shoulders or tap your legs?"
Wei Bo squinted with a smile, "Oh ho, not going to argue with me anymore?"
The azure-clad boy said with a righteous expression, "Immortal Master Wei! You are my master's good friend and brother. My master and I are family, so that makes us half-friends. Isn't that right, Immortal Master Wei?"
Wei Bo reached out and pinched the little water snake's cheek, not lightly, "Naughty."
The azure-clad boy's smile stiffened, but he dared not resist.
No help for it—if Wei Bo wasn't lying, then both he and his master were living under someone else's roof now. Even though Chen Ping'an owned many mountain peaks, as long as he was still in Longquan Prefecture, he had to depend on others' favor. As a lofty great mountain deity, Wei Bo could make the mountains in his domain tremble with just a sneeze, and could intercept spiritual energy or dig into mountain veins without anyone noticing—effortlessly.
Wei Bo smiled and asked, "Over at Divine Beauty Mountain, there's a lot of activity. Even though they haven't stopped development today, Chen Ping'an, do you want to take a look? It's very interesting."
Chen Ping'an looked eager and nodded vigorously, "Yes, I've been wanting to see it."
Wei Bo whistled, and soon a rumbling sound came from the mountain, growing louder and louder. Eventually, an enormous black snake with a golden line on its belly slithered into view. The azure-clad boy and pink-skirted girl were both nervous—among dragon-kin, internecine conflict was common, and this black snake was already showing signs of becoming a true dragon, displaying the potential to transform into a river-dragon.
Among the diverse descendants of dragon-kin, many powerful demons who had cultivated human forms and reached the seventh, eighth, or even ninth realm showed no signs of becoming dragons at all.
The azure-clad boy often muttered that their cultivation depended on talent—it wasn't entirely an excuse for laziness. He was at least half right.
Wei Bo tossed the pouch to the black snake, "Chen Ping'an's New Year's gift to you. No need to swallow it right away. Now, carry us to Divine Beauty Mountain."
The black snake's eyes were extremely calm, showing no resistance or struggle. It slowly lowered its head, displaying sufficient docility and goodwill.
The four of them stood on the black snake's body, crossed over Fallen Mountain, and descended from the northern foothills. During the journey, the black snake carefully avoided the mountain god temple.
After leaving Chessboard Mountain and arriving at Fallen Mountain, the formerly fierce black snake had calmed down considerably.
Clearly, the credit went to Wei Bo.
They advanced swiftly. The white-robed Wei Bo pointed to a group of people at the foot of a distant mountain. "Those are Mo family disciples skilled in mechanical arts, along with a few Yin-Yang specialists in geomancy and feng shui. They were all hired to work in the mountains of Longquan Prefecture. These two groups often appear together, working seamlessly. They are key figures needed for establishing sects and building immortal residences."
Later, halfway up a mountain, they saw several enormous gray toads with bulging, snow-white bellies slowly moving upward.
These were River-Swallowing Toads, capable of carrying tens of thousands of pounds of river water in their bellies. Once at the top, they only needed to open their mouths over the excavated pools, and water would flow endlessly into them.
There was also a smaller type of toad called the Road-Opening Toad, with extremely tough bellies. As it crawled, it could flatten a smooth road of appropriate width.
However, they didn't get to see the young Mountain-Moving Apes raised by the Great Li court that Wei Bo had mentioned.
Then, near Yellow Flower Peak, Chen Ping'an and his companions encountered a group of Daoist priests commanding two-zhang-tall Yellow Turban Warriors, who were breaking open mountains and moving giant boulders.
It turned out that creating a paradise realm almost inevitably involved Daoist talisman sect cultivators. In their hands, sheets of talisman paper transformed into puppets upon touching the ground. These puppets had a hint of intelligence and could obey the simplest commands, working without rest or sleep until their spiritual energy was exhausted, at which point they automatically turned into piles of talisman ash.
Wei Bo took Chen Ping'an to Parasol Tree Mountain. Even viewed from the foot of the mountain, it was a magnificent sight—the entire peak of this sprawling mountain range had been leveled. When the black snake carried them onto that dusty plateau, they learned from others that this mountain plateau covered an area of four or five square li. It would eventually become a "ferry port." But while the common people's ferry ports had boats floating on water, cultivators' ferry ports involved sailing on cloud seas. As for what the "ships" would be, Wei Bo deliberately kept it a secret.
Beyond Parasol Tree Mountain, Divine Beauty Mountain wasn't far. Between them lay only Treasured Record Mountain, which belonged to Chen Ping'an, and Oxhorn Mountain, purchased by a cultivator from the Southern Creek Kingdom. Oxhorn Mountain wasn't tall, with a robust appearance. From foot to summit, buildings rose in successive layers.
Wei Bo jumped off the black snake's back and told Chen Ping'an to dismount as well, then instructed the snake to stay at the foot of the mountain and not move.
At the foot of the mountain, a memorial archway hung with a plaque reading "Bundle Shop" in gleaming gold characters.
Wei Bo was an expert in these matters. As they walked, he explained, "This place is both a pawnshop and an antique store. It has everything imaginable. You can sell anything and buy anything. As long as you agree on a price, it's cash on delivery. The founder was originally a poor itinerant cultivator who could only carry a bundle of junk, traveling everywhere to buy low and sell high for a profit. After striking it rich, he named his business 'Bundle Shop.' Oxhorn Mountain is one of their branches. Each building sells different categories of antiques and treasures. The buildings are mostly finished now, but only a small portion of the goods have been delivered. They're probably waiting for the Parasol Tree Mountain ferry port to be completed before large-scale transportation can begin."
Up and down Oxhorn Mountain, whether it was the Bundle Shop's actual managers or wandering cultivators sightseeing there, everyone showed utmost respect to the white-robed man who was about to become a sacred mountain deity of Great Li. Their politeness bordered on sycophancy and servility. So the group had an unimpeded path, and the Bundle Shop even sent out an elegant woman to personally guide them, explaining the treasures in each building.
Chen Ping'an's eyes were opened wide. In "One Slice Tower," there were seven special "green lyric poetry jars" inscribed with lyric poetry from Daoist scriptures. The tallest was about half a man's height, the shortest as long as an arm. It was said they contained spring water collected from a hundred famous springs across the world. The water was clear as jade and flowed like rainbows, perfect for brewing tea for guests.
"A person can go without grain for a day but cannot go without water for a day. Water is the essence of food. So the saying 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do'—water comes first."
"At our Bundle Shop, we have specialized cultivators who precisely measure water from various springs. They use small silver square measures and a small scale to weigh it. Light, clear, and sweet—only when all three qualities are present do we store it in these green lyric poetry jars. I dare not call it nectar, but I can guarantee it is rich in spiritual energy. Every pound of spring water is absolutely not mundane."
Though the woman was not stunningly beautiful, her voice was as gentle as a babbling spring, pleasant to the ear.
In "Magnificent Tower," as soon as they crossed the threshold, they saw a set of folding screens as tall as a person, painted with twelve peerless beauties. Each was selected from a continent or a country's most beautiful women, painted by a master painter. What was even more remarkable was that the beauties appeared lifelike—one bowed her head to play a zither, her sleeves flowing like water; one rested her cheek on her hand and gazed at them; another held a fan to chase butterflies, charming and moving.
At a glance, the screens were filled with stunning beauties, each with her own merits, an endless feast for the eyes.
There were also weather screens depicting the twenty-four solar terms. The one for "Waking of Insects" showed lightning and thunder, "Clear and Bright" had drizzling rain, and "Mid-Autumn" displayed a full moon hanging in the sky, its light pure and clean.
All kinds of ingenious ideas made onlookers applaud in admiration.
Because of Wei Bo's presence, the woman made an exception to let Chen Ping'an and his companions tour the private spiritual garden. At that time, some agricultural cultivators carrying rare flowers and herbs were working in the fields. Cultivating spiritual gardens not only allowed for selling precious plants but also retained the mountain's feng shui aura while pleasing the eye. That's why immortal factions had always favored them.
After seeing these unbelievable sights, Chen Ping'an finally understood what true wealth meant.
He thanked the woman, who still hadn't introduced herself, and took his leave. As they descended the mountain and passed through the memorial archway, Wei Bo first had Chen Ping'an turn back to look at Oxhorn Mountain. He snapped his fingers in front of Chen Ping'an's eyes and smiled, "Look again. See any difference?"
Chen Ping'an concentrated and saw that the entire Oxhorn Mountain was shrouded in a layer of bluish-gray mist, with occasional streaks of white lightning flashing through.
Wei Bo explained, "This is the so-called mountain-protecting formation. Oxhorn Mountain's formation comes from the famous formation diagram 'Steam Rising Over Yunmeng Marsh.' It was originally a landscape painting by a Confucian sage, later continuously deduced and perfected until it became a formation diagram. Besides protecting the mountain and resisting attacks, it also has the effect of positioning feng shui stones, warding off evil miasma, and converting turbid qi into clear qi."
Chen Ping'an sighed, "Truly impressive."
Wei Bo smiled, "Makes you feel poor all of a sudden, doesn't it?"
Chen Ping'an shook his head, "I don't feel poor, but I do feel not rich."
Wei Bo laughed heartily. The group mounted the black snake again and continued toward Divine Beauty Mountain.
Wei Bo told Chen Ping'an that in mountain transactions, real gold and silver weren't absent, but they were essentially just numbers. Unless both parties possessed rare inch-sized or foot-sized storage items, it was too troublesome. This treasure costs eight hundred thousand taels of gold—what then? Converting it to silver would be even more absurd. So for large-scale deals on the mountain, there were specialized "coins."
Soon they saw Divine Beauty Mountain up close.
Divine Beauty Mountain was exceptionally tall.
If not for Cloudy Cloak Mountain, this would be the most towering and handsome peak, enough to overshadow all others.
Chen Ping'an asked, "Is Miss Ruan on the mountain?"
Wei Bo shook his head, "No."
On one steep cliff face of Divine Beauty Mountain, half-hidden by surging clouds, four large characters were carved: "Heaven Opens Divine Beauty." Unless one flew on the wind, even a qi refiner looking up might not be able to see them clearly.
Because Ruan Qiong had established a rule that within the jurisdiction of Longquan Prefecture, no cultivator could fly through the air without permission. This caused countless troubles for qi refiners around Great Li, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say there were widespread complaints.
Earlier, when a large group of sword cultivators from the far north outside Gem Bottle Continent had passed southward over the small town, they had still lowered their altitude as a gesture of goodwill.
Besides acknowledging the sword forger Ruan Qiong, it was more a sign of respect for the two words in this Haoran World: "rules."
This invisibly increased Ruan Qiong's prestige. Among those sword cultivators heading to Inverted Suspension Mountain, there was more than one terrestrial sword immortal, and they still acted this way. So Ruan Qiong's status in the Great Li dynasty rose like a rising tide, and some dissenting voices that were already quiet were completely silenced.
In this world, once one cultivated to become a mountain immortal, one could certainly be quite free and unfettered, not bound by many secular conventions.
But don't forget the existence of the three Confucian academies, seventy-two colleges, and nine majestic towering buildings.
Mountains, seas, demons, sword immortals—the nine towering buildings could suppress anything.
Even though Ruan Qiong was from the Snow Wind Temple and not a Confucian disciple, as long as his personal rules aligned with the greater rules and the Confucian great way, Confucian dominance would in turn benefit Ruan Qiong, ultimately helping his small rules form a silent deterrent. The two sides complemented each other and ultimately enhanced each other's glory.
This was the great rule of heaven and earth personally established by the Sage of Rites long ago.
Invisible and intangible, yet omnipresent.
Wei Bo didn't ascend the mountain. Instead, he had the black snake turn back. Sitting cross-legged, he said with emotion, "Take this place. On the map of any dynasty, there are countless mountain peaks, each with immortal residences, sects, and schools. On the mountain, they are mountain lords; in the water, they are dragon kings. Some monarchs see them as the dynasty's shield, while others consider them semi-independent forces—different-surnamed kings, local emperors, too big to control—but they have to deal with them cautiously because the mountain forces are powerful. However, at the root, the rough peace between the mountains and the secular world is still thanks to the Sage of Rites' creation."
Chen Ping'an sat beside Wei Bo and said softly, "These are too far from me."
Wei Bo smiled, "Far is far, near is near."
Chen Ping'an looked back at Divine Beauty Mountain and murmured, "Is that so?"
---
Mud Vase Alley. A young woman in blue stood outside Chen Ping'an's ancestral home, looking at the closed courtyard gate. She glanced at the Spring Festival couplets and the door gods, then was about to turn around and go home.
Then three matrons hurried over, dragging two children around ten years old. When they saw the young woman, they smiled and said, "Miss Xiu Xiu has come too!"
Ruan Xiu acted as if she hadn't heard, paying them no attention. In her heart, she was somewhat annoyed.
The street women didn't mind. Although they didn't know exactly who the young woman's father—that Mr. Ruan from the blacksmith shop—really was, they roughly understood that Mr. Ruan was extraordinary. There were all sorts of mysterious rumors, like how the county magistrate treated the man as an equal. They neither fully believed nor disbelieved, just half-believed.
But after many interactions with the young woman at the two shops on Dragon Riding Alley, their initial unease had turned into comfort. They didn't think she had a young lady's temper—she just never smiled.
Ruan Xiu wanted to hold her tongue as usual, but today she simply couldn't help it. She looked at them and said coldly, "It's one thing for you to take things from the shop for free. I can not tell Chen Ping'an and just count it on my own account. But how dare you come to Chen Ping'an's home to make a scene?"
"Oh dear, Miss Xiu Xiu, you don't know how close we are to Little Ping'an. When we were young women, we were very good friends with his mother. So after Little Ping'an's parents passed away, not to mention other things, just for the two funerals—who among us didn't contribute money or effort? Later, when Little Ping'an was all alone, if not for us kind neighbors helping out, such a small child would have starved to death long ago. How could he have today's great fortune?"
"That's right, that's right. When Little Ping'an sees me, he still has to call me 'Second Aunt.' In those days, when he ate at my house, I would save the meat and fish for myself, save it for my own children, and put it in Little Ping'an's bowl instead. This kindness may not be worth much, but now that Little Ping'an has struck it rich, not only does he have two big shops, but I hear he even owns several mountains. He can't just burn the bridge after crossing it, can he? Doesn't he remember how good we aunties were to him? How could he be so ungrateful?"
"Miss Xiu Xiu, we know you come from a prominent family. We've always been polite to you—you can't deny that, right? But Miss Xiu Xiu, you truly don't understand the hardships of poor folks like us. The children need to go to school, the dragon kiln business is bad—we're suffering! Besides, we're not asking Little Ping'an for thousands or tens of thousands of taels of silver. It's the New Year, so we just want our children to get a few dozen taels of New Year's money from their big brother Ping'an. Miss Xiu Xiu, put your hand on your heart and tell me—is that too much to ask?"
Ruan Xiu's expression was cold. She simply dropped a line, "I think it's very excessive."
The chattering alley fell into an extremely awkward silence.
One matron slapped her thigh, "Miss Xiu Xiu, you can't say that. Last time Little Ping'an left town, Miss Xiu Xiu did send people to give us some thank-you gifts. I won't lie about it—we did accept some things. But those things can't be exchanged for copper coins! Poor families like ours need money to buy rice. If we can't even open the pot, how can we live? The adults can manage, but the children are still so young. Miss Xiu Xiu, look at my son's thin arms—they're no better than Little Ping'an's back then. How can you bear it?"
Ruan Xiu nodded with a straight face, "I can bear it."
The matrons were dumbfounded.
One came to her senses and said softly, "Let's not talk to her. We'll just find Chen Ping'an. If he dares to be stingy, we'll talk behind his back and see if he still cares about his reputation."
The other two matrons nodded. This method would surely work. One said with glee, lowering her voice, "Chen Ping'an hates it most when people speak ill of his parents. That's the most effective."
"Get out!"
Ruan Xiu pointed one finger toward one end of Mud Vase Alley, her face expressionless. "Or I'll beat you to death."
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