It seemed that this was the first time in three years that someone wanted him, and Guo Song almost agreed.
But he still held back. He was no longer the same Guo Song who had been eating wild vegetable batter and porridge for seven days. He still wanted to try the opportunity to eat the imperial grain.
Seeing his hesitation, the old Taoist priest smiled and said: "I will wait for you outside today. When you come, we will leave!"
After saying that, the old Taoist priest floated away. Guo Song watched the old Taoist priest walk away, but he unexpectedly discovered that the wooden sword on the old Taoist priest's back turned out to be a Western-style cross sword.
Who is this old Taoist priest?
………..
Zixiao Temple is the largest Taoist palace in Kongtong Mountain. It is high up in the sky, but it does not select Taoist boys. It usually selects outstanding Taoist priests from the five affiliated Taoist temples.
The five affiliated Taoist temples of Zixiao Temple are called the Two Palaces and Three Temples, namely the Red Ape Temple, the Black Tiger Temple, the Qingniu Temple, the Aries Temple and the Yellow Crane Temple.
They are the protagonists today. The five real people sent by the Two Palaces and Three Houses are sitting high on the wooden platform, drinking tea and watching the children's performance expressionlessly.
Each child has about twenty seconds of performance opportunity. They must show their strengths within twenty seconds, and then their fate is decided by five real people, whether they tick or cross.
Of course, there will be situations where five real people like one person at the same time, but they already have a tacit understanding on how to coordinate.
The three hundred and twenty children waiting to be selected were arranged into five teams according to the roster. Each team took turns to come forward, and they would immediately know the result of their selection.
Guo Song was in the fourth team. In front of him was Han Xiaowu, and in front of him was Zhang Huer who almost beat him to death.
"Next, Gyeongju Wei Ping!" the steward of the reception hall shouted.
A child stumbled onto the stage. He was of average physical fitness, neither strong nor thin. He took out a letter of commitment and shouted loudly: "This kid is the prayer boy of the Wei family, the largest wealthy family in Gyeongju. The family has promised to donate 80 incense money every year."
Through."
The five masters looked at each other. Master Wu Miao of Xuanhu Palace ticked his name, and the Taoist boy Xuanhu Palace accepted it.
There are only three situations where you can be selected, either you are powerful, you have money and food, or you are physically strong.
This time the rich Xuanhu Palace accepted it, then the next rich one will be accepted by Qingniu Temple, and the next one will be accepted by Aries Temple, and so on. This has been the path chosen for more than 20 years.
Everyone has a tacit understanding of the rules.
The Taoist priest behind Master Wu Miao raised the red card, and the steward immediately shouted: "Xuanhu Palace has been chosen!"
Wei Ping was overjoyed. He knelt down and kowtowed three times before exiting happily.
"Next, Qizhou Ma Mingming!"
Another child ran up. He had no background, suppressed his blush, and struggled to lift a stone lock weighing thirty kilograms. There were three types of stone locks: thirty kilograms, forty kilograms, and fifty kilograms.
If you want to show that you are stronger than others, you must lift forty kilograms above your head, or lift fifty kilograms to your chest. Like this Ma Mingming, who only lifted thirty kilograms, Ye Dao may want him, but the two palaces
I definitely don't like the three views.
Guo Song quickly glanced at the gate. There were dozens of Taoist priests standing at the gate. They were all wild Taoists. After the selection of the Taoist Taoist priests in the two palaces and three temples was completed, they would come back to pick out the mistakes.
Guo Song didn't find the old Taoist priest, and he didn't know if he went back?
The five real people shook their heads, put a cross behind Ma Mingming's name, raised the black card, and the steward said coldly: "Failed!"
Ma Mingming walked off the stage with a frustrated face and walked quickly towards the gate. At this time, he could only count on Ye Dao to accept him.
……….
Time passed quickly, and an hour later it was the fourth team’s turn.
"Next, Weizhou Zhang Huer!"
Zhang Huer walked up to the selection stage with great momentum. He did not hesitate to lift the fifty-pound stone lock and lifted it high in one breath.
The Taoist priest behind Xuanhu Palace raised the red card, and the steward shouted: "Xuanhu Palace has been chosen!"
Zhang Huer arrogantly waved his fist to the audience and swaggered down.
"Next, Lingzhou Han Xiaowu!"
Han Xiaowu rushed onto the stage in a panic, bowed deeply, and lifted the thirty-kilogram stone lock with all his strength...
"Did not pass!"
Han Xiaowu lowered his head and walked towards the gate. He knew that he could not pass, so he hoped that there would be some wild road willing to accept him?
"Next, Lingzhou Guo Song!"
The audience burst into laughter, and someone shouted in a strange voice: "Commander Guo Cao comes to the stage to pay his respects!"
The laughter in the audience became even more wild.
Guo Song walked up to the selection platform, and the five real people frowned. They all remembered that this child, the thinnest one in the reception hall, actually came again.
Guo Song didn't wait for the black card to be raised, and immediately took out the Tao Te Ching he had written and said loudly: "This is the Tao Te Ching silently written in regular script. I can also silently write the Analects of Confucius, so I guarantee that every word is good!"
The courtyard suddenly became quiet, and everyone looked at each other. This is the first time in more than ten years that someone has shown that he can write and that he is good at literature. Will it have any effect?
The five real people looked at him coldly, as if they were looking at a humble and shouting ant. They unanimously put a cross behind Guo Song's name and raised the black card.
"Failed!" the steward shouted expressionlessly.
Guo Song sighed in his heart, as the old Taoist priest had really said it right. Literary education was in decline, martial arts was prosperous, and there was no future for studying literature.
He slowly walked down the channel selection stage, and like other children who failed the exam, walked towards the gate, where there was another channel selection.
Han Xiaowu came up to him and whispered: "I was selected by Jingle Palace."
Guo Song nodded and smiled: "Congratulations!"
"Hey! What's there to congratulate about being selected by the Wild Road? You should try it too!"
When Guo Song came to the gate, dozens of Taoist priests shook their heads and took a step back. It was not that every Taoist temple looked down on Wen Dao. It was because Guo Song was too thin and he would definitely be a burden when entering the Taoist temple.
After some weighing, the Taoist priests still gave up on him.
Guo Song walked towards the gate with heavy steps, wondering if the old Taoist priest was still there? He came to him when he was down, would he look down on him?
He walked out of the door in an anxious mood, only to see an old Taoist priest looking at him with a smile under a pine tree. Guo Song's nose felt sour, and he quickly walked forward and bowed, "Guo Song is willing to go up the mountain with the real person!"
……………
Kongtong Mountain is located in Pingliang County, Yuanzhou. It is a branch of Liupan Mountain with a radius of hundreds of miles. It borders Liupan Mountain to the west, looks toward Qinchuan for 800 miles to the east, is adjacent to Guan Mountain to the south, and Xiaoguan to the north. It is surrounded by the Jing River and Rouge River from the north to the south.
Intersecting in front of Wangjia Mountain, it is a strategic location for entering Guanzhong from the northwest.
The mountains here are majestic, with overlapping peaks and steep cliffs, which look like miraculous craftsmanship. The vast forest sea and the year-round smoke and fog make it look like a misty fairyland. It has been known as the first mountain in the West since ancient times.
Guo Song had been to Kongtong Mountain in his previous life. He knew that this famous Taoist mountain occupies a huge area and has dozens of peaks, large and small. The highest peak is more than 2,000 meters. Even the most famous Wutai Peak has to be climbed.
More than a thousand meters away, I wonder where the Taoist temple of the old Taoist priest is?
He walked very slowly, and the old Taoist priest was also very patient. He stopped and walked without rushing him. At this time, there were no stone steps and plank roads in later generations. They were all mountain trails, which were steep and slippery. Walking was very difficult, and sometimes he had to
Climbing vines.
After walking for less than half an hour, Guo Song couldn't walk anymore.
He was breathless and asked: "Old Master, are you...your Taoist temple on...Wutai?"
The old Taoist priest shook his head, "Wutai is the place where the emperor's food is eaten. Where is our turn? The Qingxu Palace I will take you to is at Cuiping Peak at the west foot of Xiangshan Mountain."
Guo Song felt chilled in his heart. Xiangshan is the highest peak of Kongtong Mountain! It is actually in Xiangshan. Can he climb it?
"Why, do you regret it?" the old Taoist priest asked calmly.
Guo Song shook his head, "I don't regret it at all, but Xiangshan Mountain is too high and far away. I'm afraid I won't be able to climb it."
"You have to climb even if you can't climb. I won't help you. This is your first experience. Even if you climb for ten days, you still have to climb into the Taoist temple."
The old Taoist priest took out another piece of bean cake and handed it to him, "Eat something and rest before leaving!"
Guo Song has only eaten one meal a day for three years. His body has long been accustomed to hunger. He does not feel unusually hungry at this time, but having something to eat will definitely replenish his physical strength.
He took the bean cake, sat on a stone and started chewing it silently. The old Taoist priest handed him the kettle and said with a smile: "I can see that you are confused, but you are very silent. Are you confused? Can you calligraphy?"
Knowing the Analects of Confucius, there is no place to establish a cone in Kongtong Mountain?"
Guo Song nodded, "Is literary education really in decline?"
The old Taoist priest smiled and said, "To be precise, there should be no future for the children from poor families who study literature. The imperial examination has been suspended for more than ten years. The wealthy families have controlled the official career. They study literature and become officials and govern the world. The children from rich families can still do it by studying literature.
You can work as a staff member and ask favors to enter the government office as a clerk, but what about the children from poor families? At most, you can work as an accountant, or set up a stall, write letters for others, etc. It is difficult to support your family. "
Guo Song was silent for a moment and said: "This is only temporary. The Tang Dynasty will eventually have to rely on literati to restore order. From ancient times to the present, literati have always been at the top. They can conquer the world immediately, but there is no reason to rule the world immediately!"
"You are right. The status of literati may be restored in the future, but not for at least twenty or thirty years, especially in the northern part of the Tang Dynasty. Thousands of ordinary people in Shengdou have spent their lives to understand a truth. Only with hard fists can they survive.
So if you want to survive, there is no other way except practicing martial arts."
"You really mean that I also want to practice martial arts?"
The old Taoist priest glanced at him and said calmly: "Do you think I went down the mountain just to find a Taoist boy who only knows how to eat?"