Sword of Coming

When the boy walked out of Mud Bottle Alley, he happened to meet Song Jixin's maid Zhigui. After sending the tall woman to Gu Can's house, she was not in a hurry to go home, but walked through the alley to go shopping. I visited the small shop on Xinghua Lane. Although I didn't buy anything, I was still in a good mood. I was jumping up and down, cheerful and light.

The girl who grew up in the wild waters of the countryside and smelled like green grass had a completely different style from the ladies who lived in big houses with high eaves and deep courtyards.

After seeing the boy in straw sandals, she did not lower her eyebrows as before, speed up her pace slightly and pass by sideways. Instead, she stopped and stared at this neighbor who she did not often interact with, and hesitated to speak.

Chen Pingan smiled at her, passed her by at a trot, and then ran faster and faster.

Zhi Guian quietly stood at the entrance of the Mud Bottle Alley, turning around to look at the shabby young man running in the sun. He looked like a tenacious wild cat, wandering around. He didn't look good, but he didn't seem to be hungry.

The girl was not popular in the small town. Due to the eccentric temperament of the young boy Song Jixin, the maid named Zhigui was either going to the iron lock well to fetch water, going to the market to buy things, or buying supplies for her boy's study. , girls always feel like they don’t fit in with others, and they don’t have many playmates of the same age. They never like to talk much when they meet acquaintances. For people in small towns who prefer liveliness and celebration, it is really difficult to get close to such a girl. stand up.

In this regard, Chen Pingan's situation is actually somewhat similar to that of the maid Zhigui. The difference is that although the boy doesn't like to talk, his personality is definitely not annoying. On the contrary, the boy is gentle and friendly by nature, and there is never anything irritating. It was only because of his declining family background that he went to the Long Kiln to make porcelain to make a living, so he seemed not to have a close relationship with his neighbors. Of course, the neighbors in Mud Bottle Alley do have some unexplainable fears about the boy's birthday. The fifth day of May is considered an "evil day" in the town's folk customs when the five poisons appear simultaneously. The boy is here Born on the same day, and with the death of his parents one after another, Chen Pingan has become the last lone seedling in the family. Naturally, it will make people murmur, especially the elderly people who like to join in the fun at the old locust tree. For this A young man from Mud Bottle Alley, he was particularly distant and would privately warn his children not to get close to him. However, whenever the children looked reluctant and asked why, the old people couldn't explain the reason.

At this time, a slender figure walked out of the alley and stood beside the girl. The maid Zhigui turned her head and walked forward without saying a word. The man then turned around and walked side by side with her in the Clay Vase Alley. It was the school teacher Qi Jingchun, the only scholar in the town and a serious Confucian student.

The girl kept walking, with a cold face, "We two, let's not interfere with the river, okay? And sir, don't forget, it was you who had the right time, place and people before. Of course, I am a little humble slave. I can swallow my anger, but from now on, sir, there seems to be something wrong with your dharma dojo, which is tens of millions of miles away, right? So now, sir, you are just the water in the well, and I am the water in the river!"

Mr. Qi, the uninvited guest in Mu Ping Alley, smiled slightly and said: "Wang Zhu, that's all. For now, I will do as the locals do and call you Zhigui. Zhigui, have you ever thought that although you were born under the blessing of heaven and earth, but do you really think that I don’t have the means to win? Or do you think that thousands of years ago, four saints who saw the dragon but never saw its end came here together and personally made the rules, just paying lip service and leaving no backup plan? After all, , you just sit in the well and look at the sky. The sky is so high and the earth is so vast, it is far from the scene at the mouth of the well."

The girl frowned and said, "Mr. Qi, don't try to bluff me with your words. I am not my young master Song Jixin. I am not interested in your high-sounding rhetoric and have never believed it. Sir, you might as well open the skylight and speak frankly. Whether it's life or death, whether it's a reunion or a breakup, I'll take care of it all."

The middle-aged Confucian scholar said slowly: "After you escape from the cage here, I advise you not to take advantage of it in the future. Fishing in the lake is not good for anyone. Especially after you and him embark on the road of spiritual practice, regardless of whether you become a Taoist couple or not, you should Reiner your energy and don't be domineering. This is not a threat, but some of my heartfelt words on the occasion of parting, which can be regarded as a kind reminder."

Logically speaking, the status of the two people is very different, but the maid Zhigui is extremely neither humble nor arrogant. She even has an aura that is half that of a Confucian scholar. She sneered and said: "Good intentions? For thousands of years, you amazing practitioners have been so superior. , draw the ground as a prison, use this land as a crop field, cut a crop this year and pull out a sheaf next year, year after year, the same for thousands of years. Why is it now that I start to think of "being kind to others" against this evil obstacle like me? Haha, I heard the young master say After a few words, being regarded as a model by many of you and being called someone who is not from my race must have a different mindset, right? So it’s no wonder Mr. Qi, after all..."

Mr. Qi continued to move forward, took a step gently, and said with a half-smile, "Oh?"

After one step.

The face of the maid Zhigui changed slightly.

The two of them stood in a place without knowing when. It was dark everywhere and they couldn't see anything. Only from the top of their heads far away, countless lights filled with sacred aura fell down.

They seemed to be at the bottom of a bottomless well, with the golden sunlight slowly falling from the well's mouth.

The middle-aged Confucian scholar was dressed in a green shirt, with bursts of brilliant colors flowing endlessly.

The aura of awe-inspiring, upright and bright.

The girl's face was ferocious at first, but she soon returned to her indifferent and numb expression, and murmured: "Sixty years of Buddhist Sanskrit sounds are like thunder in the ears, and the sound does not stop. Sixty years of Taoist talismans are like maggots on the tarsus, tearing them apart with all their strength. Bite. Sixty years of great righteousness, covering the sky and the sun, with nowhere to hide. Sixty years of military swordsmanship, like a cow turning over, being splashed everywhere. Every Jiazi is a reincarnation, for three thousand years, there will never be peace. Day... I just want to know where your so-called root of the Great Dao is. I can see and hear the black and white words in Mr.'s books, the subtle words and great meanings in Mr.'s teachings and teachings, but I can't find them..."

She looked longingly at the upright and awe-inspiring middle-aged man. He was not only an unknown teacher in a remote village, but also Qi Jingchun of the Confucian Cliff Academy, a scholar who even the powerful Diao Temple in the Sui Dynasty called him "sir".

The girl suddenly laughed and asked: "Why do you teach me, sir? How do you persuade me to be good? If I remember correctly, your most sage teacher of Confucianism and one of the Taoist ancestors once proposed that 'there is no distinction between teachings' '?"

The man shook his head and said, "It's useless to tell you ten thousand words of saint's teachings."

The girl seemed to be chatting calmly with the Confucian scholar, but in fact, her whole body was like a tight bow, and she was constantly looking around from the corner of her eyes, looking for clues to break the situation.

The Confucian turned a blind eye to this and sneered: "I know that you actually have endless anger, resentment, and murderous intent. I am not intolerant of aliens, but you must know that it is never appropriate to feel compassion and perform acts of mercy at will. The true teachings of the three religions.”

"Our young master often says that arguing with scholars is the most boring thing." The girl twitched her lips and narrowed her strange golden eyes, "It turns out that Mr. Qi has really returned to his former glory. Naturally, he is even more unhappy than before. So annoying..."

He laughed it off and said, "It doesn't matter if it doesn't make sense, but as long as I, Qi Jingchun, am alive and qualified to sit here for one day, you ungrateful villain, don't even think about showing your teeth!"

The girl pointed at herself and asked with a smile: "Am I ungrateful?"

The middle-aged Confucian scholar said angrily: "Back then, when you were at your weakest, you had to bow your head and take the initiative to make a contract with others. Who saved you on the snowy day in Mud Bottle Lane?! And who saved you little by little over the years? Eat away what's left of his energy?!"

The girl smiled and said: "When you are hungry, you have to find something to eat and fill your stomach. Isn't this a natural thing? Besides, he didn't have much chance in the first place. If he died early and was reborn, he might have little hope in the next life. , if a rootless duckweed like him is allowed to stay in the town, hey, that would be really..."

The Confucian scholar waved his sleeves and shouted softly: "Shut up!"

The scholar angrily said: "How can you judge the mystery of the great road and the clear principles of heaven?! Everyone in life has his or her own destiny. What qualifications do you have to make choices for others?!"

Above the girl's head, a bright golden hand appeared out of thin air. It was as majestic as the Buddha's palm subduing the devil, or the Taoist's hand suppressing evil spirits. He quickly pressed down on the girl's head, forcing her to kneel down instantly, and her forehead hit the ground heavily.

The sound of kowtow is loud and thumping.

The girl who lowered her head put her hands on the ground and struggled to get up. The faceless girl let out a sinister laugh: "You can force me to lower my head, but I will never admit my fault!"

That majestic big golden hand grabbed the girl's head, lifted it up and pressed it down, and kowtowed again.

This time the sound was as heavy as spring thunder.

The Confucian scholar said solemnly: "Don't forget! This glimmer of life was given to you by the saints, not earned by you! Otherwise, let alone suppressing you for three thousand years, how difficult would it be for thirty thousand years?!"

The girl whose head was always held down had a hoarse voice, "I won't leave your bullshit road!"

The Confucian scholar raised his arm high and snapped a shot at the void in front of him, "How dare you! Stop me!"

In the center of the golden light cast from the well mouth, a white jade seal appeared, more than ten feet long and wide, square and square. The seal was engraved with eight ancient characters, some of which were extremely bright red and dazzling Qin color. Countless purple thunder and lightning surrounded the seal and made a crackling sound.

Following Qi Jingchun's order, it could be said that the legendary seal fell from the sky and hit the back of the girl who was already kneeling on the ground.

This huge seal, which contained the pressure of heaven, did not seem to be a real thing. It did not crush the girl to the ground, but was quickly embedded in the ground with wind and thunder, leaving no trace, just like the big raindrops and the small thunder.

But a moment later, the girl's entire body seemed to have been smashed by a heavy object, and she collapsed on the ground like a puddle of mud. She was extremely miserable.

Even so, the girl had one hand with five fingers like hooks, and she tried her best, and the nails of her five fingers seemed to be carving words on the ground.

Qi Jingchun had no expression on her face and said in a cold voice: "Kowtow three times, I want you to respect heaven and earth! Common people! Dao!"

The girl's eyes were dull and she didn't respond.

Qi Jingchun gently waved her sleeves, dissipating the suffocating majesty, "I, Qi Jingchun, am just a rotten scholar in the sage's family, and I can make you kowtow three times. Once you go out, once you do whatever you want, I'm not afraid of meeting someone worse than you." An unreasonable existence that will crush you with just one finger?"

Qi Jingchun sighed, "You are indeed suppressed and detained here, and you are not allowed to be free. But have you ever thought about where there is absolute freedom in the world? Isn't it that I, the Confucian sage, who formulates all kinds of etiquette, are seeking another way for all living things? A kind of freedom? As long as you don't break the rules, don't violate the rules, and just abide by the etiquette, one day, the world is big and the earth is big, where can you go?"

The girl raised her head and stared at the middle-aged Confucian scholar.

Qi Jingchun took a step forward.

The world returned to normal, and he and his maid Zhigui returned to Mud Bottle Lane. The sun was warm and the spring breeze was gentle.

The girl stood up staggeringly, with a pale smile, slightly showing her serious teeth, "Sir, I will teach you today, I will take note of it."

Qi Jingchun stopped talking and turned to leave.

She suddenly asked: "Even if I am ungrateful to Chen Pingan, as an outstanding disciple of a saint, why do you stand by and watch? Why do you only show favor to your disciple Zhao Yao and my young master, but do nothing to Chen Pingan, who is an ordinary person?" ? Isn’t this the same as merchants doing business, if the rare goods are habitable, they will cultivate them carefully, but if they deal with the inferior goods, they will deal with them half-heartedly, and they don’t care whether they can sell them at a good price? "

Qi Jingchun smiled, "Heaven moves vigorously, and a gentleman strives to constantly strive for self-improvement."

The girl was confused.

When the middle-aged Confucian scholar disappeared at the end of the alley, the girl suddenly showed disdain on her face and let out a loud sigh.

She limped back to her yard. When she passed Chen Ping'an's house, she wrinkled her nose and frowned, feeling a little confused. It's just that because of the ruin of that damn scholar, the town is now leaking secrets everywhere, like a leaking boat. She has no time to take care of herself, and she has to carefully plan for the future, so she doesn't bother to worry about it.

When she pushed open the courtyard door, an inconspicuous four-legged snake sprang out from nowhere, quickly crawled to her feet, and kicked her away angrily.

In Chen Pingan's room, the young Taoist sat at the table, looking at his nose and heart.

The girl in black who was about to die not long ago was actually able to sit on the bed by herself, sitting cross-legged without wearing a curtain, revealing a face that is unforgettable.

This is not to say that the girl is so charming that she is so heroic that people forget her outstanding appearance to a large extent.

The girl's eyebrows are not like willow leaves but like narrow knives.

When she stared at the young Taoist with a look full of scrutiny, the latter felt a little embarrassed. He clearly had not done anything bad, but he felt guilty.

The young Taoist coughed and quickly distanced himself, "Girl, we agreed in advance that the poor Taoist saved the person, but there are other reasons for carrying you into the house, taking off your hat, washing your face, etc. His name is Chen Ping'an. The owner of this dilapidated house is a poor young man as black as coal. Both his parents are dead. He has worked as a porcelain potter and even asked Pindao for a talisman. Generally speaking, That’s all. If you have anything else you want to ask, girl, I’ll definitely tell you everything.”

Straw sandal boy, this is all sold out.

The girl nodded, without getting angry, but said openly and sincerely: "Thank you, Taoist Priest, for saving my life."

The young Taoist, who was even more worried in his heart, laughed and said: "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. It just takes a little effort and the girl is fine."

The girl in black asked: "Isn't the Taoist from Dongbaopingzhou?"

The young Taoist asked, "Not even girls, right?"

She hummed.

The Taoist also hummed.

The young Taoist with the lotus crown on his head smiled and said: "My surname is Lu, and my name is Shen. I don't have a Taoist name. You can just call me Lu Taoist in normal times."

The girl nodded slightly and glanced at the young Taoist's crown.

The young Taoist hesitated for a moment, then plucked up the courage to say: "Although the young man did something that was not in line with etiquette, he obeyed the authority in a hurry. In addition, the poor Taoist never thought that the girl would recover so quickly, so I hope that the girl will not offend him." Blame.”

The girl smiled and said: "Master Lu, I am not an unreasonable person."

The young Taoist laughed and said, "That's good, that's good."

The girl raised her eyebrows, and the young Taoist's smile turned rigid.

She looked around with flat eyes.

She said casually: "I heard that 'Master Ruan', the number one sword maker in this continent, plans to start a sword making furnace here. I followed him all the way here, hoping that he can help me make a sword."

The young Taoist sighed with emotion: "If it were really him, it would not be easy for him to forge the sword himself."

The girl in black was obviously troubled, "It's very difficult."

At this time, the young man was holding a bag of herbal medicines in his left hand and a small package in his right hand. He knocked on the door symbolically, then quickly crossed the threshold, put the medicinal materials on the table, and said softly: "Taoist Master, Check to see if you made a mistake. If so, I'll change it right away."

The boy was still carrying the package, and turned to look at the girl. The girl in black, sitting cross-legged on the wooden bed, looked at the boy in straw sandals.

The girl in black said calmly: "Hello, my father's surname is Ning and my mother's surname is Yao, so my name is Ning Yao."

The straw-shoe boy said subconsciously: "Hello, my father's surname is Chen, and my mother's surname is Chen, so..."

The young man looked a little embarrassed, but he quickly smiled calmly and said, "My name is Chen Pingan!"