The woodcutter sold out all the firewood before noon, and a group of people happily discussed at the city gate and decided to avoid the scorching sun and wait until the afternoon to return to the mountains.
After hearing this, a group of children cheered and ran towards Yu Xian at the foot of the city.
This Taoist can tell many interesting stories, and there is shade under the city wall, and there is a cool breeze from time to time, which is very comfortable.
This Taoist seemed to be particularly kind to these children. After a long time, even the adults dared to go to the shade to listen to stories, or lie down and take a deep sleep.
Yu Xian casually told the children a few short stories. Seeing that the man was very close this time, he immediately smiled and said, "I see that your parents have a hard time chopping firewood every day, why don't you find some other way to make a living?"
How could the children understand this? They looked at each other in shock after hearing this.
Perhaps seeing the scene cool down, or perhaps being aroused to talk, the man who was close sighed and continued, "The land in the mountains is dry and barren, and the output is very little. It is much worse than my hometown in Hedong."
.Does the Taoist priest know why we left the good land uncultivated and fled to Chenggao Mountain?"
Before Yu Xian could speak, the man said, "Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Hedong has been plundered several times by the Baibo bandits from the remaining Yellow Turban tribe. Later, the officers and soldiers came to suppress the rebellion and drove away the Baibo thieves. The officers and soldiers robbed us again.
The Baibo thieves refused to stop after suffering a loss, so they attracted Yufuluo, the Righteous King of the Southern Huns, who defeated the officers and soldiers and robbed us again."
"I worked so hard in the spring, but not even half of the grain fell into my mouth in the autumn. I had no choice but to leave my hometown and live in exile. In addition to cultivating a few acres of thin fields in the mountains, and relying on
I have the strength to chop some dry firewood and sell it at the foot of the mountain in exchange for some salt and cloth. It’s not easy to live in this day and age, so how do you choose to make a living?"
Yu Xian was very sad after hearing this.
He thought for a while, looked at the man and said, "I have an idea, I wonder if you are willing to listen to it."
The man looked at Yu Xian doubtfully and asked, "Does the Taoist Master have any ideas?"
Yu Xian listened and did not answer, but asked, "You collect firewood for a living, how many copper coins can you get every day?"
The man thought for a moment and said, "On a good day, I can have twenty copper coins."
Yu Xian nodded and said slowly to him, "Not far from here is the Yellow River. Why don't you go to the Yellow River to catch some fish. Those military attaches and businessmen like to enjoy it. If you send it to the city, you should be able to sell it for a good price.
"
When the man heard that this was the idea, he looked a little disappointed.
"The Taoist priest doesn't know. A few years ago, the Yellow River flooded and damaged a section of the embankment. Now if you want to catch fish, you can only walk a few miles further up the river. The weather is hot now. I'll wait until I catch three or five fish before catching fish."
When I come back, I'm afraid the fish will already smell bad."
After the man finished speaking, Yu Xian didn't reply for a long time.
He looked over curiously.
Yu Xian just looked back and said calmly, "How will you know if you don't try?"
The man hesitated and didn't respond.
But I thought in my heart, could this Taoist just entertain me?
The children were bored and interrupted frequently.
Yu Xian has done what he can do, and the rest depends on whether he and the treasure are destined.
So I took the opportunity to tell the story to the children again.
The children enjoyed listening to it and kept asking about the causes and consequences.
The person lying close could not sleep.
He was a little confused thinking about Yu Xian's words, and listened to the story for a while.
Suddenly, I felt that Yu Xian's story had some truth to it, and perhaps the idea he gave was not a bad one.
After noon, everyone slowly returned to the mountain.
On the way, the man was still in a state of confusion.
Someone inquired curiously, but before that person could reply, the children were already talking about the matter.
After hearing this, all the woodcutters felt that it was a bit unreliable.
"If you eat fish, eat it fresh. Who would buy smelly fish?"
"Actually, there is a way. We can put water in a jar and bring it over when we catch it."
"How much does the jar weigh? How much does it weigh when it is filled with water? Moving the jar back across the mountains and ridges is probably more difficult than collecting firewood. If it breaks accidentally, I don't know how long it will take to earn back the cost."
"I think you'd better stop thinking so much and don't miss the good times these days."
"I think we can try it in normal times, but the Mi family's caravan has just entered the city, and it's the time when we need firewood."
"There's something in that man's words. I'm afraid if I try again at normal times, it won't be the same."
The man listened dully all the way and didn't know what he heard.
When they arrived at the settlement in the mountains, everyone dispersed.
The man also returned home.
He threw a small bunch of money into a wooden box, lay down for a while, then stood up and shouted to his father who was bundling firewood in the car, "Let's dry the firewood for another day, I have other things to do tomorrow."
After saying that, he quickly got up and went to the forest outside to find bamboo and make a fishing rod.
Early the next morning, as usual, many woodcutters went to the city to sell firewood on their carts.
Only that man, as if possessed by a ghost, walked towards the Yellow River with his fishing rod and a simple fish basket.
Many woodcutters laughed or made trouble when they saw it, but they didn't take it seriously.
On this day, firewood is still easy to sell.
Mi Fang, the owner of the Mi family, is a luxurious person.
He was from a wealthy family in the Donghai Kingdom of Xuzhou, and he had a good relationship with Cao Bao, the captain who guarded Hulao Pass.
The two of them held a banquet, invited friends and company, and were so drunk that they felt carefree.
The rapid increase in consumption made the following merchants and people in the city active.
Not only was the firewood easy to sell, but other hard laborers also received a good reward.
After selling firewood, many woodcutters still went to take a nap at the base of the city wall.
When I saw Yu Xian, I couldn't help but think of that man who was so obsessed with me.
However, in front of Yu Xian, no one could joke around.
Just as it was about to pass noon, someone suddenly whispered, "Look over there, it's coming."
The dozing woodcutters opened their sleepy eyes and took a look, and they immediately became energetic.
I saw the man yesterday, covered in mud, holding a fish basket in his hand, rushing over in a panic.
Seeing everyone snickering and looking at him, the man couldn't help but complained to Yu Xian.
"Taoist Master, what I said is true, this fish really stinks."
Even if he didn't say anything, everyone could smell the fishy smell in the bamboo basket, and they all snickered as they pinched the money in their sleeves.
When Yu Xian saw that the man had indeed caught a fish, he knew that he was getting closer to the opportunity, so he couldn't help but smile and said, "Okay, okay."
As he spoke, he blew a breath of fresh air towards the fish basket.
Just when everyone didn't understand what Yu Xian meant, they heard a flapping sound, and a big fish of seven or eight pounds that should have died long ago jumped out of the fish basket.
After the fish landed, it swung its tail fin vigorously and jumped on the ground, as if it wanted to hide back in the water.
The other two fish in the bamboo basket also started to make a fuss with their dead fish eyes open, causing the bamboo basket to shake.
This is……
Return from the dead?
This extremely impactful scene made the woodcutter's legs weaken. They looked at Yu Xian in horror and fell to their knees uncontrollably.