Chapter 11: Seeking Immortals and Asking for the Way Wang’s family in Hengcun, inside the main hall. Lin Jue came again. Although the matter of staying overnight in the ancestral hall to drive away evil spirits had been resolved, he still got a seat and a bowl of tea when he came again. The red soup and golden chrysanthemums in the tea made it look like a good tea. Lin Jue brought a pheasant caught in a mountain trap. It was not a very precious thing in the mountains, but it was much more valuable than common bamboo shoots and rice. It was a little token of his appreciation. "Thanks to the old gentleman's help, my uncle has recovered from his illness and is now fine." "The credit goes to you, not me. We don't owe each other anything, so there's no need to thank me specially." Old Master Wang looked at him, "But this way, you can study and pass the exam with peace of mind." "To be honest, I have decided to leave." "Going out? Aren't you studying in the village?" "There is a lack of talent in the village. In recent years, the villagers have not been able to go to school smoothly. Besides, my parents are no longer around, so I thought it would be better to go out and see the world." Lin Jue said almost the same thing.

"is that so……" Old Master Wang was a well-known local scholar, so he could tell that the so-called lack of talent was actually a euphemism for the lack of talent of the old teacher in the Shu Village Academy next door. He was just a teacher, and the old teacher's virtue was admired even by the demons in the ancestral hall. Over the years, there had never been any reckless, rebellious or unfilial people among the Shu Village students, so naturally no one blamed him too much for it. Not only that, he could also guess that the reason why Lin Jue was in such a hurry to leave was probably because of his family's poverty. At this time, he carefully looked at Lin Jue, took a breath, took a sip of tea, and thought for a moment before Old Master Wang said, "If you really want to study, but are limited by your family's poverty and other reasons, you can come to our academy in Hengcun to study. As for the expenses of writing materials, my Wang family can also provide financial support." "Old sir, you are too kind. If that is true, it is a great favor. I will remember your kindness, but my mind is no longer on studying." Lin Jue paused and bowed to ask, "I just hope you can help me issue a voucher." "Ugh……" Old Master Wang was not as persistent as his uncle and aunt in making him study, nor was he as kind to him as his uncle and aunt. It took Lin Jue several days to patiently persuade him and dispel his concerns. He just waved his hand: "You can talk calmly with demons and ghosts, so I think you have some ideas. People like you should be able to achieve success in this world. If you return to your hometown in the future, whether you are successful or not, you should come to this old man for another cup of tea." "Of course I should come and see the old gentleman." "I have a bookcase that was used by my juniors when they went out to study and take exams. It's not worth much, so you can use it." "I won't refuse any more." Lin Jue thanked him first, and then said, "Sir, you are very knowledgeable. I would like to ask you how to get to Mount Qiyun." "Qiyun Mountain? It's a bit far." "Want to take a look." "Well, it's not a bad thing for you to go and worship. I heard that the Taoist priests have been very busy recently, and they should have finished their work by now." Old Master Wang recalled, "The last time I went to Qiyun Mountain was about 20 or 30 years ago... Go to the county town first, and when you cross the bridge halfway, turn left and follow the main road to the neighboring county. I won't tell you too much, because you won't be able to remember it. I don't know if there have been any changes over the years. Ask when you get to the neighboring county." "Thank you..." Lin Jue thanked him sincerely. As for the matter of support, there are countless officials in this county who are from the Wang family or have received funding from this old man Wang. For him, it is just a small matter. …… It was early morning in mid-April. Lin Jue has embarked on the journey away from home.

The boy was wearing a single layer of clothing, like a scholar, and on his back was a bookcase given by Old Master Wang, a square bamboo backpack with a coarse cloth lining and a sunshade on top. It was also a common luggage carrier for scholars going out to study or to Beijing for exams. It contained a few books, some spare clothes, a self-defense knife, dry food, a water bottle, and some copper coins. Anyone who sees this will think that this is a scholar. Many people from the village came to see Lin Jue off. In addition to his uncle, aunt and cousin, there were several nearby neighbors, a village elder named Shu who often dealt with Lin Jue, several childhood friends, and an old teacher from the academy. What surprised Lin Jue very much was that there was also the woman who was a priest in the Sangu Temple in the village. Some of the people took a few boiled eggs, some took a small bag of rice and flour, and some took some dry food, and they all sent him to the pavilion outside the village. "Lin Jue, if there is no teacher outside to accept you and you can't make ends meet, you should come back soon. Both rooms in your house are reserved for you." His cousin admonished him seriously. "understood." Lin Jue agreed. I know in my heart that if I succeed in my studies or get rich outside, I will most likely come back, or at least I will send some money back. But if it is really like what my cousin said, and I can't make ends meet, with my personality, I have to think carefully. "We didn't take good care of you..." The old lady was a woman of modesty, and she was already covering her face and crying. "Nothing." "The world is not peaceful right now. You are young, and I am worried that you will become like your father..." "I know it well." "You must be careful and don't go too far. Just go to the neighboring county. If that doesn't work, come back quickly!" "I know." The last person to come before Lin Jue was the priest from the Sangu Temple. This ordinary middle-aged woman was carrying some seasonal fruits in a basket, and what she said to Lin Jue surprised him: "This is given to you by your third aunt." "Ok?" "This morning I took a nap in the temple and suddenly had a dream. In the dream, the third aunt came alive and the eldest aunt told me that someone in the village was going on a long journey and asked me to give you the fruit on the altar to satisfy your hunger and thirst on the way." "Third aunt?" Lin Jue was stunned. "I don't know whether it's true or not, but it seems real. After I sent Third Aunt away, I suddenly woke up on the threshold. Before I woke up, I didn't even know it was a dream." "This……" "Why don't you thank Third Aunt?" "Thank you, Third Aunt." Lin Jue said one sentence first, then turned around blankly, looking towards the Sangu Temple and the mountains in the distance, and said another sentence. But he couldn't help thinking in his heart -

The three gods are worshipped in the village, and they have been worshipped for several dynasties or even thousands of years. The legend goes that there was a family in the village with three girls. In their spare time, they went to a nearby fairy mountain to play, stole fairy peaches from the mountain and ate them. Then they turned into carp, and later turned into three mountains, which are the three peaks of the continuous mountains behind the village that are like a sky wall and a screen. This story spread widely and was even recorded in the county annals. Therefore, these three gods are not only worshipped by Shu Village, but many local people believe in them, which is why there is a temple fair. If the three gods were real, then I would not be able to hide the fact that I often sat cross-legged and breathed in the mountains, streams, and woods near Shu Village from their eyes. Perhaps it was because they knew about their breathing practice that they asked the temple keeper to bring them fruits. Lin Jue became alert. If so, would they know every time I flipped through ancient books in my room? What did ancient books look like to these gods? What was the character of the gods in this world? But the alertness only lasted for a moment. Lin Jue soon felt that it was unnecessary—— This omission is unavoidable, and there is no way to remedy it now. Although I have learned the method of nourishing qi, how can I resist the gods with a trick? I am really ignorant of the facts of this world. At present, all I know is the goodwill that the three gods have put into my pockets through the temple priests. In this case, it would be a mean person to make more random guesses. It’s better to be more open-minded, at least you will feel better. Just pay more attention to these things in the future. Thinking of this, I feel happy. "Thank you, Third Aunt!" Lin Jue said again and walked forward. There are fewer and fewer people around me. At the end, even his cousin had been persuaded by him to go back, walking back with a lonely figure. Lin Jue looked back several times like him, until he turned a corner in the bamboo forest and was the only one left on the road. I couldn't help but stop and look around. There are deep bamboo forests on both sides of the road. The bamboo here is much greener than I imagined. This green extends to the high mountains on both sides, and the mountains are all the same color. Walking alone in it, I felt that the mountains were big and I was small. When I thought about the vast world, I suddenly felt even smaller. Even though he had already made up his mind, he couldn't help feeling confused for a moment. The world is vast and the path to immortality is hard to find. After standing here for a while, Lin Jue calmed down and continued walking. Mostly it is heading towards Qiyun Mountain. It was April and the weather was not yet hot, and the bamboo forest was even cooler. There was often a breeze around, rustling the bamboo leaves, and birds were chirping, and the whole mountain was filled with the same sounds. It is naturally harder to walk faster with books on your back than to walk empty-handed. Lin Jue's destination today was just a temple between the two counties, so he was not in a hurry and stopped to rest from time to time. If I was hungry, I would take out the tart cakes made by my aunt and eat one piece. If I was thirsty, I was too lazy to take out the bamboo water bottle in my bookcase and just found a place with running water to drink some mountain spring water. If I was neither hungry nor thirsty, I would take out the fruit given by my third aunt and eat a few bites of it, because it would not last for a few days anyway. It’s true, even though these fruits have been on the altar for a day or two, they are still very sweet.

"Third Aunt..." Lin Jue muttered to himself. It turns out that besides monsters and ghosts, there are actually gods in this world. It's really interesting. …… It rains a lot in the mountains and the weather is unpredictable. Lin Jue encountered rain on the afternoon of the second day. Fortunately, the rain did not come suddenly, and the gloomy sky had been predicted in advance. Lin Jue had found a tea stall to shelter from the rain in advance. There were many merchants and pedestrians in the stall, so he was able to listen to their chatting. The sound of wind and rain, the mountain and road scenery, and the expressions of the people talking at this moment, outline this plain yet real world. However, the rain lasted a while. It rains from the end of the Wei hour to the Shen hour, and it does not stop until the You hour. If you don't hurry, you'll have to grope in the dark. Lin Jue often heard fragments of words flying into his ears. "The world is not at peace now..." "There may be ghosts on the road..." "I heard two days ago..." Such words add a touch of anxiety to people. Fortunately, Lin Jue was well prepared—— Today's journey was not long. If one walked slowly, one could reach the destination in one day. However, he walked very fast in front of him, just to be on guard against accidents. Now he was not far from the place where he would rest tonight. Even so, there are often pedestrians who are unwilling to wait. When they see it getting darker, they run their hands through their hair and leave in the rain. Some are anxious, some are open-minded. An anxious person is in a mess. Open-minded people are carefree. As the hour of You approached and dusk approached, the rain began to subside. Many business travelers went out to watch the rain. Lin Jue also went out to take a look. He saw that the raindrops hitting his face were so small and sparse that they could almost be ignored. The sky was bright again. He saw that many business travelers had set off. Lin Jue also put on his bookcase and walked quickly forward. (End of this chapter)