On Dazhu Peak, the back mountain is a whole bamboo forest. And everyone's houses and buildings are on the front peak. The largest and most important one is the main hall, Shou Jing Hall. Tian Buyi, his wife and their daughter live in the back hall of Shou Jing Hall.
Next to the Jingtang Hall is the cloister courtyard where the disciples live. However, because there are too few people, there are more houses than people, so everyone lives alone in one room. Even the newcomer Zhang Xiaofan has one. In terms of living conditions alone, Dazhu Peak is rare.
He has surpassed all other members of his family.
The only things left were the Tai Chi cave where they practiced, the kitchen and the dining hall. At this time, all the disciples gathered in the dining hall. Du Bishu, the sixth man in charge of meals, brought the food to the table one after another. Most of them were vegetarian dishes, and some of them were vegetarian.
There was a smell of meat. The disciples sat down on the right side of the long table in the hall one by one. Song Daren sat at the front, and Zhang Xiaofan respectfully accompanied the last one. There was a large chair and two smaller chairs at the head of the table and two smaller chairs on the opposite side. It seemed that they were for the field.
Not easy for a family to prepare.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at the empty seat next to him, which was the seat of the busy sixth man Du Bishu. After a while, Du Bishu finally finished serving the food, washed his hands, sat back down, and waited for the master with everyone.
Du Bishu looked quite young, with a thin and pointed face, big triangular eyes, and a sneaky and active look. He was very smart. After he sat down, he looked at Zhang Xiaofan and said with a smile: "Junior brother, what's your name?"
Zhang Xiaofan said honestly: "Zhang Xiaofan."
Du Bishu nodded, pointed at himself, and said, "I am your sixth senior brother Du Bishu."
Zhang Xiaofan respectfully called out: "Sixth Senior Brother."
Du Bishu coughed, patted his shoulder, and said with a smile: "You can come and try my senior brother's craftsmanship later."
When Zhang Xiaofan saw the delicious aroma of the food on the table, he couldn't help but swallowed and nodded vigorously.
Du Bishu suddenly smiled, with a hint of ambiguity. He pointed at the door of the hall and said, "Junior brother, where will the master, wife and junior sister come in later? Let's make a bet, okay?"
As soon as Zhang Xiaofan was stunned, everyone else in the seat turned around with smiles on their faces. Lao Wu and Lu Daxin, who was sitting on top of Du Bishu, smiled and said: "Lao Liu, have you got your gambling addiction again?"
Next to him, He Dazhi, who looked thin and lean, smiled and said: "He hasn't won for a long time, and now he wants to lie to children?"
"Go, go, go!" Du Bishu waved his hands repeatedly, ignored everyone, and said to Zhang Xiaofan with a smile on his face: "Junior brother, guess who among the three masters and his family will be the first to step through this door? Hmm?
, you have just started, let me guess first, don’t let your senior brother bully you."
Wu Dayi, the second child sitting far away, shouted loudly: "Junior brother, even if it's a bet, you first ask him what happens if he loses and what happens if he wins?"
Du Bishu snorted and said: "Are you afraid that I will default on your debt? I, Du Bishu, travel all over the world because of my good reputation in gambling (everyone laughed: You have never won!), little junior brother, if you guessed it right
, I will help you chop bamboo for ten days, and if you lose, you can help me wash the dishes for ten days, how about that?"
Everyone laughed again, and Song Daren laughed and scolded: "There is no future."
Zhang Xiaofan saw that all the senior fellow apprentices had kind smiles and cordial attitudes, and did not regard him as an outsider. He felt warm in his heart and said, "Okay."
Du Bishu slapped his thigh, and his whole body suddenly became energetic and radiant, and said: "Junior brother, tell me, master, junior wife or junior sister, who will come in first?"
Everyone’s eyes fell on Zhang Xiaofan. Zhang Xiaofan thought in his mind that Master Tian Buyi must be the first to come in since the Qingyun Sect respects his master the most. He then said loudly: “I guess Master must be the first to come in.”
Everyone laughed, Lu Daxin shook his head and said: "I didn't expect that I was actually deceived by Lao Liu once today."
Du Bishu was overjoyed. He looked at the confused Zhang Xiaofan and said cheerfully: "Junior brother, let me tell you, in fact, every time in Master's family, the younger sister is the first one to rush in. Haha, you can come and help me wash it after a while.
Bowl."
Zhang Xiaofan touched his head, couldn't help but laugh, nodded and said, "Yes, Sixth Senior Brother."
The short and stocky Zheng Dali, the third eldest child, smiled and said, "Sixth eldest child, are you embarrassed?"
Du Bishu strangely rolled his eyes and said: "What are you talking about, third brother? I'm not forcing you. Everyone is willing to admit defeat. Isn't that right, junior brother?"
Zhang Xiaofan nodded and suddenly heard Song Daren say: "Master is here."
Everyone's expressions changed, and they all stood up and faced the door to greet the teacher. After a while, Tian Buyi's short and fat body appeared at the door, and behind him was...
Nothing!
He actually came alone.
Everyone was stunned, and Du Bishu couldn't help but said: "Master, where are the master's wife and the little junior sister?"
Tian Buyi glanced at him and said calmly: "Your junior wife has returned to her parents' home with her junior sister."
Everyone was stunned, but after a while, some people couldn't help but laugh. Seeing Tian Buyi wandering in, Zhang Xiaofan looked embarrassed, wanting to laugh but not daring to laugh, while Du Bishu was dumbfounded.
Tian Buyi sat on his big chair, waved his hand and said, "Let's eat."
The disciples then sat down and looked at Du Bishu with half-smiling faces. Tian Buyi glanced at Zhang Xiaofan and said to Song Daren, "Have you told him the sect rules and precepts?"
Song Daren nodded and said, "Yes, I have told my junior brother the twelve sect rules and twenty precepts. As for the basic Tao cultivation methods, I see that my junior brother is a little tired after coming here today, so I plan to formally teach them tomorrow."
Tian Buyi nodded in agreement and said to Zhang Xiaofan: "Old Seven."
Before Zhang Xiaofan could realize it, Du Bishu next to him pushed him, and then he realized that the master was calling him, and he quickly stood up and said: "Disciple is here."
Tian Buyi shook his head, and his confidence in this slow-responsive disciple lost a little bit, and said: "You should follow senior brother first, remember to study hard, the road is boundless, and work hard to build a boat. Even if your qualifications are inferior,
But as long as you persevere and work hard, you may not be unable to learn, do you understand?"
Zhang Xiaofan said respectfully, "Yes."
Tian Buyi waved his hand: "Eat."
Zhang Xiaofan was short in stature and was sitting on a chair holding a big bowl. He couldn't reach the dishes that were a little further away. However, Du Bishu beside him was kind-hearted and helped him several times and laughed in a low voice: "
Junior brother, eat more." It looked like he didn't care at all about losing the bet, and the quality of the bet was indeed not bad.
Zhang Xiaofan felt grateful and nodded repeatedly. After eating for a while, he secretly asked: "Sixth Senior Brother."
Du Bishu turned around and said, "What?"
Zhang Xiaofan asked: "Why does the master's wife still have her own family?" In his little heart, the people of the Qingyun sect are all gods and immortals, and they have no worries about the world.
Du Bishu spat: "Of course, Master's Wife is a human being too. But when Master said that Master's wife went back to her parents' home, she didn't mean her real parents' home, but that she went back to Master Shuiyue's place in Xiaozhufeng, our sect."
Zhang Xiaofan was surprised: "What?"
Du Bishu lowered his voice and said: "When Shi Niang was young, she was originally from Xiaozhu Peak's lineage. She was sister to Master Shui Yue, the first master of Xiao Zhu Peak. Their relationship was very good. Later, I don't know what happened, but Shi Niang was like a flower.
, actually married the master, I heard that at that time many of the male masters and uncles in the Qingyun Sect couldn’t think of it..."
"Pfft", a chopstick hit Du Bishu on the forehead with a strong force, which caused a blush. The two of them were startled, but they saw Tian Buyi with an angry face and one chopstick missing from his hand. Du Bishu turned to face
Zhang Xiaofan stuck out his tongue, and the two of them didn't dare to say anything more. They lowered their heads and ate hard.
At this time, Song Daren said to Tian Buyi: "Master, this time the real master convened the Seven Meridians gathering, why is it that only Master Shuiyue didn't come?"
Tian Buyi snorted, picked up another pair of chopsticks, and said: "That old Taoist nun pretended to be sick and sent someone to tell the head brother that the headache and fever were gone. The head brother also believed it.
, if she comes today, even if I can't grab a good one, I won't necessarily share it..."
The fourth disciple under the seat, He Dazhi, coughed twice and whispered: "Master, Uncle Shuiyue's lineage never accepts male disciples."
Tian Buyi suffocated, shook his head, and said: "And your master wife, as soon as she heard that there was something wrong with Shui Yue, she immediately took Ling'er over to see her. It felt like the sky was falling. It's true."
All the disciples looked at each other with happy faces. Song Daren hesitated for a moment and then asked tentatively: "Master, I don't know how long my wife will stay at Uncle Shuiyue's place?"
Tian Buyi glared at him and said angrily: "How many days? I'll go today and come back tonight."
"Alas!" All the disciples sighed, and all of them looked disappointed. Tian Buyi looked around, snorted, and said to Song Daren: "Master's wife is guiding you in practice again today?"
Before Song Daren could speak, the second-in-command Wu Dayi had already said, "Master, please don't ask him. Senior brother escaped from the battle today. It's so shameless."
Song Daren said angrily: "Nonsense, I was ordered by Master to help my junior brother..."
"Uh..." Everyone booed.
The meal lasted for half an hour. After everyone left, Zhang Xiaofan wanted to stay and help Du Bishu wash the dishes, but Du Bishu smiled and said: "Junior brother, thank you very much, but I can do the things here. You win the bet
Don't worry, I will help you chop bamboo tomorrow."
Zhang Xiaofan was quite embarrassed and was about to say something when he heard Song Daren's voice saying: "Lao Liu, don't help him." As soon as he finished speaking, Song Daren walked in from the door and said to Zhang Xiaofan: "
Junior brother, come, I will take you to your room."
Zhang Xiaofan nodded, but Du Bishu said from the side: "Elder brother, what did you say?"
Song Daren said: "Junior brother has just started and is about to lay a solid foundation. It's not time to be lazy yet."
Du Bishu scratched his head and said: "That's right. Let's do it this way. Junior brother, just think that I owe you this time. If you ask me to do anything for you in the future, just ask me, okay?"
Du Bishu's face became solemn and he said solemnly: "What are you talking about? I am the kind of person who doesn't distinguish between right and wrong, and who doesn't argue between loyalty and evil. If I promise you, I will definitely do it. Otherwise, I will be ridiculed by all the senior brothers for nothing."
Zhang Xiaofan nodded, but in his heart he still didn't understand what this had to do with not distinguishing between right and wrong, and being loyal and traitorous.
Song Daren took Zhang Xiaofan's hand and said, "Junior brother, come here, I will take you to your new room."
The two walked out of the kitchen. It was already dark. A bright moon slowly rose and hung in the east sky. They walked past the entrance of the quiet hall. Zhang Xiaofan looked inside and saw that all the lights were turned off and it was pitch black. Only the moonlight shone on it.
In front of the hall, there is a rather eerie atmosphere.
After walking for a while, they returned to the corridor where the disciples lived. Song Daren took him to the last room on the right and said: "Junior brother, I live in the room you woke up in during the day.
The other junior brothers all live in order, on the right side. The seven rooms on the left are unoccupied." After a pause, he looked at Zhang Xiaofan and said, "Are you afraid of living alone?"
Zhang Xiaofan shook his head.
Song Daren smiled and said: "That's it. How can we men be afraid of being alone! Come on, let's go in." After that, he led Zhang Xiaofan in.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at this strange place that he would be with for a long time in the future: a small courtyard, with a green pine on the left and five or six bamboos on the right, two or three people tall. The courtyard was paved with small pebbles, and there were lawns on both sides.
When the wind blows, the leaves and bamboo branches sway gently, and a faint fragrance of green grass comes, which is very pure.
Song Daren opened the door, went in, lit the lamp, and said, "Junior brother, come in."
Zhang Xiaofan walked in and saw that the furnishings in the room were as simple and plain as Song Daren's room, with tables, chairs, beds, and nothing else.
Song Daren said: "I have cleaned this place today, so you can stay here temporarily. Living in the mountains is difficult, and you are young, so you may feel lonely, but we Taoists have to endure all kinds of hardships.
You have to do everything you need to do in your daily life."
Zhang Xiaofan said: "I understand, senior brother."
Song Daren nodded, looked left and right, and said, "If there's nothing else to do, I'll go back. You've been tired for a day, so go and rest early."
Zhang Xiaofan responded and escorted his senior brother to the door. He suddenly thought of something and said, "Senior Brother, how come it's just dark now and none of the senior brothers have come out to walk around?"
Song Daren smiled and said: "You don't know, at least one of us has been studying Taoism at Dazhu Peak for decades. We rarely go out on weekdays. We have long been familiar with walking around Dazhu Peak, so we are too lazy to move around. Like the fourth child who loves to read.
, the second child likes to hum music, while the more diligent ones like the third child practice in the house and usually don’t come out.”
Only then did Zhang Xiaofan understand. Song Daren smiled and touched his head, gave him a few more instructions, turned around and left.
Zhang Xiaofan returned to the house, closed the door, and suddenly felt that the whole world suddenly became silent, without any human sound. He silently walked to the table, sat there for a while, having nothing to do, and then blew out the
Turning on the light, I took off my coat and lay down on the bed. I tossed and turned, and I don't know how long it took before I fell asleep in a daze.
"ah!"
In the darkness, Zhang Xiaofan let out a low cry and sat up, gasping for breath. Just now he dreamed of returning to Caomiao Village, meeting his parents, children and playmates, and other uncles and aunts, and he was very happy.
But suddenly they all turned into corpses, and blood flowed into rivers, which was extremely terrifying. His whole body trembled, and he woke up like this.
He sat on the bed for a while, his breathing gradually calmed down, and his eyes gradually adapted to the darkness. He saw that the window was slightly slanted, and a beam of faint moonlight shone in slantingly, and sprinkled on the blue brick floor, like frost and snow.
Zhang Xiaofan lost his sleepiness, climbed up and walked to the door. He opened the door with a "chie" and walked out.
There was silence all around, with the faint sound of insects coming from unknown places, one, two, low and earnest, and the moonlight was like water, shining on his body.
He raised his head and looked at the sky, only to see stars dotted with stars and the moon in the sky, bright and clear.
"I wonder how Jingyu is doing now. Is he unable to sleep?" He muttered something in a low voice, sighed, and was about to turn around and enter the room. Suddenly, his chest relaxed and something rolled out of his close-fitting clothes.
,Dropped on the floor.
Zhang Xiaofan was startled and leaned over to pick it up. It was a dark purple dull round bead with a fine hole in the middle. It seemed that Puzhi had strung it on the jade rosary that day. What happened to him these days
After a big change, I had forgotten this thing for a long time. Now I remember that Puzhi told me to throw away this bead.
Thinking of this, he suddenly felt a pain in his heart. His parents had nothing left for him. Pu Zhi had a close relationship with him, but when they got together for one night, they were like relatives. And this ugly bead was the only thing Pu Zhi left for him.
s things.
Zhang Xiaofan raised his hand, lifted the bead into the air, faced the moonlight, and against the clear moonlight, he saw that the color of the bead actually became lighter, turned into lavender, and translucent, and there was a faint smell inside.
The green energy keeps spinning, as if it is spiritual, and wants to break out of the shell. But every time the green energy comes close to the surface of the bead, a small "swastika" will light up there, blocking it back.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at it for a long time, feeling a little fond of it. He also thought that this was the only thing Pu Zhi kept as a souvenir, and he really couldn't bear to throw it away. After thinking for a long time, he untied a red rope from his neck. It was his parents.
Tie it on him to wish him long life and safety. Most people would hang some gold and silver locks, but his family was poor, so he had to use a red rope instead.
Now he tied up the bead with a red string and hung it on his chest. It didn't feel cold, but felt a little warm. He smiled to himself, looked up at the bright moon in the sky, and turned around.
He turned around and walked back to the room and went to sleep again.