Pei Qiu held the paper with a little anxiety on his childish face. When the old gentleman on the seat took it with a smile, he breathed a sigh of relief.
This is a small house, but it is packed with dozens of students. There are ignorant children around four years old who have just started school and are still dragging their noses, and there are also young boys who are about 4 years old and have grown up a little.
On the paper was yesterday's homework, with a few lines of large splash-ink characters, and some scrawling at the end of the pen, but the character was still faintly visible.
While waiting for the review, Pei Qiu, who was standing respectfully, was anxious and a little bored.
He turned to look out the window. The weather in midsummer was unpredictable, especially in southern places like Xichu. The weather in May and June was just like a child's face, which could change at any time.
Thick clouds were rolling in, stacked on top of each other, as if they were about to sink. The summer breeze was blown away by the slightest cool breeze, and there was even a chill.
"It's going to rain."
Pei Qiu thought this in his heart and blinked his eyes.
I don’t know if grandma has collected the corn kernels that were drying in the sun. If it rains, they will probably be washed away. I don’t know if yesterday’s clothes are dry.
This is a small mountain village at the foot of Jiannan Road in Western Chu. The folk customs are simple, but it is also isolated from the world.
Pei Qiu lost his father when he was young, so he relied on his widowed mother to help him grow up. During this period, he also had the support of his fellow villagers, and he ate a lot of food from hundreds of families.
If there had been no accident, his life would have been like that of his late father who died young, becoming a hunter in the mountains. Every time he held a hunting fork and ran around in the vast mountains, he would be killed by tigers and wolves at some point.
Big mouth.
But half a year ago, with the appearance of this old man, Pei Qiu felt that everything about him was different.
The old man's name is unknown, but everyone calls him Mr. Li. I heard from the elders that he is a scholar.
A scholar came from outside the mountains. No one knew why he came to this remote mountain and what he wanted to do.
But no matter what, this is a great thing for people in the mountains.
Except for the occasional officials who collect taxes from outside, this small mountain village is rarely passed by even traveling businessmen. It can be said that the sky is high and the emperor is far away.
After taking out two pieces of wax wax to make a bundle, Pei Qiu and the children in the mountains became Master Li's students and so-called scholars.
Unexpectedly, contrary to the lack of interest of others, Pei Qiu soon fell in love with scriptures after learning to practice calligraphy.
Contrary to the feeling of holding a hunting fork, he prefers the aroma of pen and ink on white paper.
When he holds the pen, he always has an absurd feeling, as if he was born to do this.
"God is the leader of the people. God of speed and majesty has many blessings. God is born to be good to the people, but his destiny is unfavorable."
When Pei Qiuleng was in a state of ecstasy, his teacher, the white-haired and pale-faced Master Li, read out the ink words on the paper with a smile:
"There is no beginning, there is no end..."
After being silent for a long time, Master Li put the white paper with ink writing on the table and smiled warmly: "I asked you to copy a classic, why did you choose this sentence?"
"Disciple thinks this part is very good." Pei Qiu looked at the teacher's face anxiously and hesitated to say: "Disciple doesn't know why it is good, I just like it very much."
"Do you know what it means?"
Pei Qiu shook his head, not knowing.
"O proud and indulgent God, He is the king of his subjects. God is greedy and tyrannical. His decrees are evil and abnormal. God provides for the people. If the decrees are not trustworthy, they are all lies."
The rickety old master slowly stood up. His voice was hoarse and calm. Pei Qiu's body trembled. He shuddered and felt inexplicably afraid. He didn't know what he was afraid of. Maybe it was the meaning of those words.
Or maybe it's the calm and sad look on the old master's face.
"There is no one in the world who refuses to start well, but very few can finish well."
"Pei Qiu, you must remember this sentence."
The old master touched Pei Qiu's head: "I don't know that I can't die a good death, but you are still young, so you should be different."
Pei Qiu nodded with half-understanding and smiled hard.
"Have you heard a story?" The old master also smiled: "Let me tell you a story."
"OK!"
Before Pei Qiu could speak, a dark and skinny child jumped up and cheered: "Okay, let's tell a story!"
"Since the Tai Feng era, there has been a kalpa of immeasurable length, in which the 1.2 billion sages of the south, tens of billions of Ganges sands, and other supreme beings are all trapped in the cage."
The old master stroked his long gray beard and sat down on the ground. A group of children cheered and formed a big circle around the old master, who was smiling at the corners of his eyes.
"After the Maosu period, the calamity started from the place where the wheel of the wheel was reincarnated, and three gods died in the sea of emptiness."
"What is Tai Feng, and what is Mao?" A half-year-old child with a runny nose raised his hand and said angrily: "Master, why haven't I heard my grandma say this?"
"That was a long time ago."
"How long?" The child insisted.
"Head, look at the head in the sky." The old master raised his head and pointed at the heavy clouds outside the window: "It's longer than that end."
The children all clucked their tongues and were startled.
"The true holiness neither increases nor decreases. It lives with the Tao forever in the world, and is almost eternal and free in all time and space."
The old master spoke calmly and said words that the children could not understand: "Time has fallen and is irreversible. In order to avoid immeasurable disasters and try to make a comeback, there is a sacred body that sinks into chaos and transforms into the mother's energy, which is indelible and indestructible; there is a sacred body that sinks into chaos.
Transforming into thousands of worlds, coexisting with the vastness, there is another divine being who transforms into different ways and coexists with the world."
"These three types of ways to avoid disasters." The old master smiled and stretched out his hand: "Which one is higher?"
"..."
The children looked at each other, like a group of stupid birds sizing each other up.
"I don't understand." Pei Qiu said blankly: "Disciple doesn't know."
"It doesn't sound good!" The child holding a snotty nose put his hands on his hips and jumped up: "Master, please change it!"
"Change it!"
"Change!"
"Don't listen to this!"
In the midst of the noise, the pale-faced and white-haired old master nodded helplessly and said with a wry smile: "Then change it."
"Okay!"
"School ended early today, but..." the old master deliberately prolonged his tone, and before the children could cheer for joy, he quickly spoke again: "Copy the article you learned today three times, and treat it as homework. It will be handed in tomorrow!"
After a brief sigh, the children hurriedly saluted the old master, and then filed out like mad dogs.
Suddenly, cheerful laughter sounded outside the window. Pei Qiu, who was putting away his pen and paper, did not laugh to himself when he heard their laughter.
"Master."
Before leaving the house, Pei Qiu stopped and bowed seriously to the old master: "Disciple, I have resigned."
"Let's go, take this."
Pei Qiu took a thin piece of letter and was a little confused.
"A young man came to your house?"
"Brother Xun is a businessman in the county. He was bitten by a big tiger. His leg is still not healed yet. Grandpa asked brother Xun to live in his disciple's house." Pei Qiu didn't know why Dao Dao asked about this, but he remained calm.
With a small face, he spoke seriously: "Brother Xun is in poor health. Auntie said he has lost vitality and needs to eat more to replenish his health."
"Let's go." The old master smiled and said, "Read well."
Pei Qiu nodded ignorantly, then took off his short legs and ran out of the school.
It's going to rain. The clouds are all piled up together. The sky is dark and dark, like a big black cloth covering it.
Pei Qiu looked back for the last time. In the dark school, the old master stood silently, motionless, like a solemn stone sculpture.
On the table a few steps away, the wind blew, and the little light on the oil lamp was extinguished.
"bring it on."
After Pei Qiu had run away, the old master gently spread his hands and smiled at the sky:
"I've already gone to the lower realm, why don't you come over?"
