422, the road encounters pears (seeking full order)
Under the supervision of the Jin Yiwei, the group packed up their things in the magistrate's mansion and headed south in a carriage.
Half a month later, we arrived in Guobei County, Suzhou.
Because Bai Gui repeatedly used magic to treat Nie Xiaoqian, the journey was bumpy, but instead of getting worse, Nie Xiaoqian's complexion gradually improved.
Mr. Nie received the official documents from the imperial court and took office as the magistrate of Guobei County.
There is spare time for sweeping the court.
Bai Gui and Nie Xiaoqian came out together.
Child servants and maids follow...
Suzhou is a prosperous place, and Guobei County is not bad either. The shopping streets are full of vendors selling goods, some are farmers who come to the city early to sell their own fruits and vegetables, there are also some jugglers, and various snack vendors.
Although vegetables can be grown in the city, they are not of high quality at this time and require careful care and selection of the best ones before they can be sold as vegetables.
There are storytellers and singers in the west.
Under the eaves of the pavilion, a few bamboo poles were pulled up to support a tarpaulin. Below were a few simple tables and stools, and the audience in twos and threes had already sat down.
The storyteller took a sip of tea at this moment and was raising his voice.
In the shack, there are children boiling tea and scalding water.
Bai Gui walked over with Nie Xiaoqian, sat at an idle table in the corner, ordered a pot of high-quality tea, and waited for the commentary to begin.
There is a bean curd stall next door and the business is good.
The seller of tofu pudding is a young woman with a somewhat pretty face. Her breasts are tight and she wears a close-fitting shirt. She is very graceful.
"Two bowls of bean curd, one salty and one sweet."
Bai Gui sent Nie Xiaoqian's personal maid Cui'er to buy two bowls of bean curd at the bean curd stall next door.
The tofu pudding is white, tender and plump, and looks extremely delicious.
The desires of the mouth and stomach, the pleasures of the world.
"The Three Sovereigns and the Five Emperors of Morality were famous after the Xia Dynasty, Shang Dynasty and Zhou Dynasty. The five hegemons and seven heroes were in trouble in the Spring and Autumn Period. They rose and fell in an instant."
"There are a few lines of names in the history of Qing Dynasty, and there are countless barren hills in Beimang. The predecessors sow and others will reap. It is nothing more than a fight between dragons and tigers..."
The storyteller came up with a few concluding verses, took some tea, moistened his throat, and was about to start storytelling as soon as he woke up.
But this time.
There were several noises coming from the downtown area.
It attracted the attention of the listener in the tea shed.
On the street.
It was a Taoist priest dressed in rags, wearing a torn scarf and cotton clothes, begging for pears.
Naturally, the villagers at the pear stall refused. These were early pears, specially selected high-quality pears from the pear orchards, which could be sold on the street.
Although a pear is not expensive, it cannot be given up easily.
A Taoist has no attitude towards begging for pears.
Maybe he wasn't arrogant before, but as the villagers scolded him, this man's face didn't look very good either, turning blue and white.
The patron in the market saw the Taoist quarreling with the pear seller and was worried about the impact on his income, so he bought a pear with his own money and gave it to the Taoist as a gift.
"Everyone, take a look."
After the Taoist finished the pears in three or two mouthfuls, he bowed to everyone and said, "I have beautiful pears. Please try them once to express my gratitude."
He was referring to the pears the policyholder bought for him.
The onlookers were a little surprised. After all, just now the Taoist was begging for pears from the villagers, and now it was changed to him giving pears to others. How strange it seemed.
"I need this pear core for seed."
The Taoist explained.
The next moment, the pear core he planted began to sprout, and a small sapling grew. Within a few seconds, the sapling became a tree, with lush green shade, and pear blossoms grew.
The pears are huge and fragrant, and the trees are covered with them.
Immediately afterwards, the Taoist dispersed the pears to everyone in the downtown area.
"Mr. Sir and Miss, why don't you try two pears?"
The Taoist held the pears, walked to the tea shed where Bai Gui and Nie Xiaoqian were drinking tea, and said with a smile.
Although there are many wealthy households in the bustling city, Bai Gui and Nie Xiaoqian are both outstanding among these people.
Nie Xiaoqian is a well-known lady from the capital. You can see the difference from the wealthy families in the local county in some subtle details, such as the rouge and gouache applied, and the exquisite hairpin and so on.
Besides, her beautiful hair and beautiful face are not comparable to those of other girls. Even if she wears a curtain and hat, it is difficult to cover it up.
But Bai Guiqi was calm and relaxed, without the shock of the onlookers.
No matter how you look at it, there seems to be something abnormal.
Even if it can be explained by the strategy of cultivating the chest well, it will still be different from ordinary people.
"This Taoist Priest, I wonder where the Immortal Temple is? Where will he stay?"
Bai Gui did not take the pear, but asked the question instead.
He is a disciple of Louguan Taoism and a direct descendant of the Taoist school of Zhenger Ba Jing.
This man seemed to be growing pears, but in fact he defrauded the pear sellers of their pears by substituting flowers with trees.
Such behavior will damage the reputation of Taoism.
Although he will not clean up the house, it is not his turn to do so.
But some necessary questions still need to be asked.
If you find one cockroach out and about, it means there are thousands of cockroaches lying in wait.
"You scholar, I kindly gave you a pear, but you asked me about it."
The ragged Taoist is dissatisfied.
"I see that the Taoist priest has great magical power, so I am interested in visiting him and learning from him."
Bai Gui stood up, cupped his hands and said.
You have done enough etiquette.
Along the way, he followed the Nie family and his daughter to Guobei County. On the way, he also encountered many strange things, such as corpse transformation, Mrs. Fox and so on.
Taoism is not a rare thing in this world.
Of course, this is from his perspective of the whole world. In real life, ordinary people may have difficulty encountering Taoists or monsters performing Taoist magic in their lifetime.
The ragged Taoist frowned slightly, "I am practicing in Shang Zhen Guan."
"If you are determined, go to Shangzhen Guan and become a disciple."
After he said that, he rolled up his sleeves and left.
Soon after the Taoist left, the blindness was lifted, and the pile of pears at the pear stall sold by the villagers was already empty.
The villagers howled and cried loudly.
"Bai Lang, where is the Taoist temple?"
"But you plan to go to escape from the world and practice Taoism?"
Nie Xiaoqian looked tense and asked.
When scholars get tired of reading, many people will go to escape from the world and practice Taoism. Even if they do not escape into Buddhism, it is common for them to live in Buddhist temples and Taoist temples for a few years or more than ten years.
She had occasionally heard Mr. Nie say these things, so she became worried.
"I have no intention of practicing Taoism now."
Bai Gui shook his head and reassured.
He could see that what the ragged Taoist said was probably true. But does a Taoist in a Taoist temple have to be a Taoist? This is not necessarily true.
Everyone knows that rabbits don’t eat the grass beside their nests and don’t commit crimes in the countryside.
Nowadays, if Taoist Taoists do this, even if it can relieve their temporary depression and make their thoughts clearer, for the local Taoist sect, this may not be a good thing. At least it will make the reputation of the local Taoist sect plummet.
People...are always lenient to themselves and strict to others.
"That Taoist turned out to be a Taoist priest from Shangzhen Temple?"
"I didn't expect him to be so vicious. This countryman just refused to give him pears. After all, these pears were the livelihood of his family... and because of this, he defrauded this countryman of his pears."
"Let's not talk about it anymore. I want to get the tablets of my ancestors from Shangzhen Temple. I don't plan to give you any more money for the sesame oil from Shangzhen Temple."
"I have long heard that these Taoists are greedy. During the Jiajing Dynasty, it was these Taoists who deceived the emperor..."
"Where are the ancestral tablets enshrined?"
"I heard... there is an orchid outside the city where incense is flourishing. You can go there to worship."
