Chapter 86: Like-minded People

Within the ancestral home of the Yuan family in Erlang Lane, Cui Chan, drenched in blood, sat upon a chair, his hands forming the treasure vase mudra, desperately trying to prevent his physical form from collapsing. This wasn't solely because this body was exceptionally difficult to acquire, but also because it acted as a prison, locking his soul within. In the short term, forget about the ability to travel with his soul between the Great Li capital and Dragon Spring Mountain like before. If this body were destroyed, he would become a separated, incomplete soul, truly relegated to the bottom of the middle five realms, a mud-dwelling fish. Those jackals and tigers who once trembled at his feet could now easily kill him.

Though both mind and body were severely wounded, Cui Chan spat out a mouthful of blood and, gripping the chair's arms, stood up with trembling limbs. He knew that the more dire the situation, the more he couldn't afford to give up. Cui Chan raised his head, looking towards the courtyard where the voice of the military strategist Ruan Qiong had once echoed. But now, he had even lost the magical ability to whisper with Ruan Qiong.

Cui Chan rasped, "Come out."

A youth with flawless features emerged from a side room, his face filled with fear and confusion. He walked to Cui Chan, at a loss for what to do.

Cui Chan trusted the spies and assassins lurking in the town, but only in their loyalty to him, the Great Li National Preceptor. He had no faith in their abilities, not even expecting them to safely escort him back to the capital. Perhaps before leaving the town, Song Changjing or that woman's pawn within the four noble clans and ten families would seize the opportunity to act.

Therefore, Cui Chan ordered the youth, "Go to the blacksmith shop and find Master Ruan. Ask him to come here. Tell him directly that Cui Chan seeks his help and wishes to make a major deal with him, regarding the imperial decree for the mountain deity of Divine Embroidery Mountain. And remember, ask him to come. If Ruan Qiong refuses, you need not return to this residence. The sliver of Yin soul I temporarily gathered and placed within you will not withstand the onslaught of Yang energy and winds for long."

The youth's face was as white as snow, and he nodded vigorously.

Cui Chan slumped back into the chair and instructed, "After you leave, act naturally. Don't look like you've lost your parents, or even an idiot will know something is wrong with me."

The youth timidly nodded and quickly departed.

But Cui Chan had only just closed his eyes. How ridiculous, to be reduced to drawing a circle as his prison, locking his soul inside. And now, he even had to help mend and repair, acting as the jailer of his own cage.

Familiar footsteps sounded, and Cui Chan suddenly opened his eyes, about to loudly reprimand the incompetent puppet.

But upon seeing the unwelcome guest beside the porcelain youth, Cui Chan immediately changed his expression, smiling at the youth, "Fetch a chair for Senior Yang and bring a cup of tea."

The old man puffed on his dry tobacco pipe, one hand behind his back, surveying the surroundings. He didn't look at the miserable National Preceptor, chuckling, "This place is warded by your own hand, Cui Chan. And yet, someone nearly forced their way in while the master of the house was sound asleep. National Preceptor, have you run into some trouble? Need me to lend a hand?"

Cui Chan's expression remained unchanged as he shook his head, "That won't be necessary."

The old man sat in the chair brought by the youth. He sat on the east side, while Cui Chan sat facing south, directly opposite the Yuan family's main hall plaque. The old man glanced at the restrained and curious youth, sighing, "Your mastery of soul matters is truly impressive."

Cui Chan asked, "Can Ruan Qiong hear us speaking now?"

Old Yang smiled, "What kind of temperament does Ruan Qiong have? He'd have to be bored out of his mind to eavesdrop on you. If you hadn't provoked him time and again, do you think he'd bother with you?"

Cui Chan said in a deep voice, "Better safe than sorry!"

This was the second time Cui Chan had said these words to Senior Yang. The first time was at Old Porcelain Mountain.

The old man puffed on his pipe, "That's true."

Cui Chan waited a moment before asking, "Is it safe now?"

The old man nodded slightly, "National Preceptor Cui, speak your mind."

Cui Chan used the back of his hand to wipe away the blood seeping from the corner of his mouth and asked, "Should I address the Great Master as Azure Child Celestial Sovereign? Or by his more famous name..."

The old man interrupted Cui Chan expressionlessly, "Enough."

Cui Chan indeed didn't continue speaking, sighing with emotion, "To be honest, I yearned for that battle."

Cui Chan inexplicably laughed, "I don't regret not seeing the gods, but I regret that the gods didn't see me. This was my heartfelt sentiment after first learning the inside story during my studies under the Master. At the time, the Master criticized me for being ignorant and talking nonsense. Looking back now, the Master was right, I was wrong."

The old man waved his hand, "I'm not interested in your master-disciple feuds or your siblings killing each other."

Cui Chan sneered, "Then you came here just to watch me make a fool of myself?"

Old Yang asked, "I'm curious, why are you so irreconcilably opposed to Song Changjing, the Great Li feudal king, a martial artist with aspirations for the eleventh realm?"

Cui Chan shook his head, "It's not that I, Cui Chan, want to fight Song Changjing to the death. It's that we have a formidable woman in Great Li who won't tolerate him. She was the one who orchestrated the breaking of Chen Pingan's natal porcelain behind the scenes. Even if the Apricot Blossom Lane Ma family, who coveted wealth, weren't willing to act, there would be others like the Liu and Song families. It was all to make it easier for her son to seize the opportunity. Of course, I don't deny that I later used Chen Pingan to target Qi Jingchun, it was just a matter of expediency. It was indeed one of the few strokes of genius in my life, Cui Chan's life. Qi Jingchun was one step ahead, I concede defeat, but I still don't think this move was any less brilliant."Old Yang exhaled a plume of smoke, squinting as he said, "Once that Natal Porcelain shattered, that Mud Bottle Lane boy became like a candle flame, exceptionally conspicuous, naturally attracting moths to a fire. The woman you mentioned was right. If that hadn't happened, the girl formed from the remnant divine essence of the True Dragon would have instinctively gone after Chen Ping An at first. But after she escaped the Dragon-Locking Well and staggered to the entrance of the two courtyards in Mud Bottle Lane, she realized that Song Jixin's house held a dense dragon aura, the most delicious thing in the world for her. So, she desperately wanted to knock on his door, but couldn't, and collapsed in the snowdrift outside Chen Ping An's door. Later, Chen Ping An saved her, of course. But after waking up, she was unwilling to sign a contract with such a mortal, as it would be suicide. A mortal's short life is insignificant compared to her long existence, not worth even a moment of freedom. So, she pretended to be a newly arrived maid for Song Jixin's family. Foolishly, Chen Ping An offered this greatest of opportunities from the Li Zhu Grotto-Heaven with both hands. Back then, Chen Ping An, like a rebellious son of a great clan, a treacherous minister of a great nation, was suppressed by the formless Heavenly Dao, unable to retain any fortune."

The old man shook his head. "Visible, but untouchable, unattainable."

After listening quietly, Cui Chan returned to the main topic. "Even His Majesty the Emperor believes that his brother, Song Changjing, has never been interested in the dragon throne. Unfortunately, once, His Majesty consulted me on a game of Go, and that woman was also watching, giving His Majesty advice to prevent the game from ending too quickly."

"His Majesty suddenly asked me if his meritorious frontier king would one day lead troops to the Great Li capital, demanding the throne with his sword."

"Of course, I honestly replied that the king would not do such a thing. However, if one day, the king's vast army of valiant generals were to have the idea of becoming dragon-supporting ministers, and the king had reached the tenth realm, or even the legendary eleventh realm, feeling life was meaningless, and everyone around him was inciting him, saying that wearing the dragon robe and sitting on the throne wouldn't be so bad, to avoid disappointing the hearts of the soldiers…"

"After I said that, the Great Li Emperor laughed. Finally, His Majesty turned to the woman and asked, 'What do you think?' The woman told him, 'His Majesty doesn't have enough ambition; half of the Eastern Treasure Bottle Continent can satisfy him. Song Changjing is different; the higher his martial arts achievement, the more he will want to climb higher.' After hearing the woman's words, His Majesty laughed and said that we were both talking nonsense, making treacherous remarks, destroying the pillar of Great Li, and should be dragged out and beheaded, but today is an auspicious day, good for Go, not beheading, so he would temporarily spare our heads."

Old Yang laughed, "Song Changjing is truly unlucky to have met you two opponents, one woman whispering sweet nothings into the emperor's ear, and one trusted advisor throwing dirt on him."

Cui Chan asked directly, "What do you want from me?"

Old Yang said something strange and without context, "We believe in the idea that generals and ministers are born, wealth has roots, and life is destined. You don't."

When it came to this matter, Cui Chan did not back down, showing no weakness of having his life in another's hands, coldly saying, "Although I don't think this group is any good, I certainly don't think you are any better."

Old Yang looked at Cui Chan. "Tell me, what did Qi Jingchun choose Chen Ping An to do?"

Cui Chan smiled. "Guess?"

Obviously, Cui Chan would not reveal the answer.

Because it concerned his Dao heart.

Old Yang asked, "Do you really think I won't kill you?"

Cui Chan nodded. "You dare not. Even a dog that I raised might dare to kill me for wealth and future prospects, but you alone dare not."

Old Yang laughed, "How could you, so clever, lose to Qi Jingchun?"

Cui Chan leaned back in his chair, self-deprecatingly saying, "Qi Jingchun has a saying that can answer your question. 'In this world, only a child's heart cannot be tested.'"

Old Yang shook his head. "See? This is the consequence of not believing in fate, inexplicable, ethereal, shrouded in clouds, without roots or foundation."

Cui Chan laughed heartily. "What, senior, you want me to walk your path?"

Old Yang asked back, "Don't you want to repair the broken mirror and return to your peak? Moreover, your advocacy of meritorious service is not entirely different from ours."

Cui Chan extended a finger, trembling as he pointed at Old Yang, almost laughing to tears, and mocked him thoroughly. "Although I, Cui Chan, am not as good as my teacher or Qi Jingchun, to become a watchdog for the sake of an immortal golden body, being ordered around by those I used to look down on, is it me who's mad, or you? Senior, I'm not saying this to be rude, but are you desperately seeking help, or are you in a similar situation to me, having encountered an unexpected event, ruining a long-planned scheme?"

Old Yang casually said, "Who do you think can order me around?"

Cui Chan suddenly narrowed his eyes, his face solemn, and remained silent.

Old Yang sat cross-legged, looking at the courtyard, his expression peaceful.

People say that the divine are three feet above your head.

But they've long gone.

Cui Chan took a deep breath. "Let me give you a piece of advice: if you've made any moves on that boy, cut them off as soon as possible."

Old Yang shook his head, slowly saying, "No."

Cui Chan laughed, "I guess Qi Jingchun also cleared up all loose ends before he died, and you and I are clean, then, except for that woman in the Great Li capital who might still have malicious intentions, Chen Ping An has no 'high and mighty' worries."

Old Yang suddenly said, "Since we can't be allies, that's fine. We can make a fair trade."

Without asking, Cui Chan answered without hesitation, "I agree."After walking five li, Chen Ping An let the little girl in the red padded jacket rest for a while. Then it was four li, and then they stopped to rest after three li. They sat on smooth rocks by the stream. They needed to detour south for the time being because they were generally following the stream's course; otherwise, the mountain paths would be difficult to navigate, and Li Bao Ping wouldn't be able to keep up at all. Although the little girl's physical strength was outstanding, far exceeding her peers, she was still only an eight or nine-year-old child. No matter how well-built her foundation was, her body couldn't compare to an adult's. Chen Ping An couldn't possibly carry the little girl along at his own pace.

Li Bao Ping, covered in sweat, sat there and saw Chen Ping An suddenly take off his straw sandals, roll up his trouser legs, and go into the water. The stream was much wider here, the water barely reaching his knees. He could see many small, agile green fish swimming around everywhere, mostly about the length of a hand.

Ever since Li Bao Ping first walked into the stream, she had dreamed of catching a fish one day. But fish were much more cunning than crabs or prawns, and Li Bao Ping simply couldn't handle them. She had once tried to imitate others, secretly cutting down a piece of green bamboo to make a fishing rod, but even with the same rod, hook, line, and earthworm, she never managed to catch any fish in the stream. The little girl often hid under the shade of a tree by the riverbank. Although she could squat there fishing for an entire afternoon, she never had any luck. Others would string several fish onto dogtail grass or fill small fish baskets with their catch, happily returning home to show their parents, but the little girl always came back empty-handed.

So, in the little girl's eyes, Chen Ping An, who seemed capable of anything – going into the mountains and down to the water, burning charcoal and collecting herbs, fishing and catching snakes – had an extremely tall image. She had only told these secrets to Shi Chun Jia.

At this moment, the little girl saw Chen Ping An first find a spot near the bank, where many fish seemed to gather and hide under a large blue stone. Then, he began to build a "dam" upstream, about as long as Li Bao Ping was tall, all made of large and small stones from the stream. Water still flowed through the gaps between the stones. Chen Ping An wasn't in a hurry to block the gaps with pebbles and sand, but instead built two more dams, one horizontal and one vertical, ultimately creating a small pond.

Li Bao Ping came to the bank near the pond and squatted down, her eyes wide, watching Chen Ping An begin to mend the gaps, his movements swift and full of grace. Li Bao Ping also noticed that when Chen Ping An lowered his head to work, his expression was calm and focused, his mind immersed in the task, without any distractions.

It was like when the little girl was studying at the village school and saw Mr. Qi writing for the first time, a feeling of unspeakable comfort arose in her heart.

As the upper dam became almost completely sealed, with no water entering, and the side dam was the same, the downstream dam was only used to prevent the fish from escaping, so it didn't need handfuls of stream sand to cover the openings. As a result, the water level in this "fish pond" gradually decreased.

Li Bao Ping's little face was filled with a happy expression, her hands clenched into fists, muttering to herself, even more nervous than Chen Ping An, who was resting on a rock.

Chen Ping An began to walk into the pond, using his hands to scoop water out.

Li Bao Ping clicked her tongue and said, "Chen Ping An, what you're doing is like draining the pond to catch the fish! Oh, no, that's a derogatory term, it should be like drawing the firewood from under the pot!"

Chen Ping An smiled and casually asked, "I always saw you by the stream fishing before. What's the biggest fish you've ever caught?"

Li Bao Ping sighed, "The fish are too smart. I can only use a blade of dogtail grass to trick crabs out of their burrows. Fishing is so hard."

Chen Ping An couldn't help but laugh and said, "Did you make the fishing rod yourself?"

Li Bao Ping nodded vigorously, "Yes! There's a patch of purple bamboo in the corner of my backyard, said to be planted by my grandfather's grandfather. My dad and the others guard it very strictly. As soon as I mentioned making a fishing rod, they refused. It took me a lot of effort to secretly cut one, and I used scissors to grind it down little by little, it exhausted me."

The water in the pond became increasingly murky, and some fish had already begun to flee, splashing water. Chen Ping An was used to this. He looked up and smiled, "That bamboo wasn't very thin to begin with, and you still cut off the top and bottom?"

Li Bao Ping was confused and said, "Yes. I was afraid that if the fishing rod was too thin, and I caught a fish that was too big, it would break easily. If I went to the purple bamboo forest for another fishing rod, even if my dad didn't beat me, I wouldn't want to use scissors to deal with those bamboos again."

Chen Ping An said helplessly, "Who fishes with a bamboo stick? The fish in this stream aren't very big. If the fishing rod is too thick, you won't be able to feel whether they've taken the bait or are just nibbling at it. They definitely won't bite the hook the first few times they take a nibble, fish aren't stupid. If you jerk the fishing rod too early, you definitely won't catch anything. To fish properly, you need to make fishing rods that are the right thickness, and you need to consider the season, the weather, and whether it's sunny or rainy. You also need to find fish lairs and cultivate them. The hooks and bait also matter."

The little girl in the red padded jacket listened as if to a heavenly book, her mouth wide open. She was a little embarrassed. There was actually one more thing she hadn't told Chen Ping An. The fishhook at the end of the line hanging from the bamboo stick was made by bending and twisting a sewing needle from her home. It might have been a little too big, making it difficult for the fish to swallow.

Li Bao Ping told herself in her heart, it's okay, it's okay, young and ignorant, it's understandable.

Seeing that the little girl was a little unhappy, Chen Ping An had to comfort her and said, "But you haven't caught a single fish in all these years, I think that's even more impressive."

Li Bao Ping's eyes lit up, as if a long-held knot in her heart had been untied, and she immediately perked up.

She asked curiously, "Why are we catching fish? We have so much food."

Chen Ping An explained, "Think about it, there's a saying that sitting and eating empties the mountain. Even mountains can be emptied, let alone our two small baskets. So we need to be frugal. We have a long road ahead."

Li Bao Ping deeply agreed, eager to try, and said, "Giving a man a fish is not as good as teaching him how to fish. Things like this, including cutting bamboo to make fishing rods, fishing, and catching fish, you can teach me in the future."

"Catch." Chen Ping An easily grabbed a stone slab fish with alternating blue and red colors, smiled, and gently tossed it to the little girl. Watching the flustered Li Bao Ping, he said, "You're too young, just do what you can. You don't need to compare yourself to me in everything. I'm here to take care of you on your journey to study at the Cliffside Academy."With great effort, the little girl finally grasped the fish with both hands, and declared righteously, "Wrong, wrong! Mr. Qi said we must read ten thousand scrolls and travel ten thousand miles. I only have five books in my basket, so I need to go to the academy's library for the rest. But traveling ten thousand miles is also something a scholar must do. To travel with a book case, is to say that we should carry our books and travel the great rivers and mountains, while honing our morals and learning. The two are indispensable, otherwise it's like a cripple walking."

"There are many foxtails beside you. You can string them together through the gills of the fish. If you're afraid they'll break, you can combine two or three foxtails together."

While Chen Pingan taught her how to deal with her spoils, he asked, "Is traveling with a book case, carrying a book box? Is it like the one Chen Songfeng from Dragon Tail County carries? Woven from bamboo, it looks very nice. If I pass by a bamboo forest in the future, I can make one for you. I also need to make a fishing rod. We must live off of the land, further down, the water will be deeper, we can't catch fish like this today."

The little girl squatted on the bank, stringing together the stone slab fish that had been thrown ashore one by one. Hearing these words, she jumped up with joy, "Really?!"

Chen Pingan smiled, "Why would I lie to you? Hey, be careful, don't jump, be careful of falling into the creek with the fish. The fish can't run away, what if you catch a cold?"

The little girl in the red cotton-padded jacket squatted down, her face beaming, "Happy, happy, I finally have my own little book box!"

Chen Pingan squatted in the almost dried-up stream, his head close to the stone, reaching under the stone slab to catch fish, "This kind of fish can be dried and eaten raw. If you think it's dirty, I'll remove the internal organs, I didn't need to before."

After some internal struggle, Li Baoping tentatively said, "Then remove the internal organs?"

Chen Pingan took out another stone slab fish and gently threw it into the grass on the bank, "It's up to you, I'll do it later."

Li Baoping, carrying three strings of fish, quickly said, "I'll do it, I'll do it."

Chen Pingan nodded and continued to feel for fish under the stones.

A moment later, with a splash, the little girl not far away stood in the stream, wailing.

Chen Pingan quickly got up, ran over, and asked anxiously, "What's wrong?"

The little girl cried so heart-wrenchingly, "There was a fish, I just took it off the foxtail, and it looked like it was about to die, but I didn't expect that as soon as I put it in the water, it flicked its tail and ran away! I couldn't even catch it..."

Chen Pingan couldn't help laughing. He first bent down to roll up her wet trousers, gently picked her up and placed her on the bank, let her take off her shoes, and said that he would deal with these fish.

The little girl obediently took off her shoes, but she was still very sad, feeling that she had done something very sorry for him.

She felt like the sky was about to fall.

Chen Pingan skillfully gutted the fish, squeezed out the internal organs, and tried hard to hold back his laughter, thinking that it was better not to rub salt in the little girl's wound.

Chen Pingan finally turned to the little girl and gently lifted the three strings of cleaned fish.

A great harvest.

The little girl smiled through her tears, her face full of tears, "One ran away, but there are still so many."

Chen Pingan walked over to her and sat down, handed her the three strings of fish, and rubbed her head, "That's right, so don't be so sad if you encounter this kind of thing again in the future."

The little girl held up the three strings of fish high in front of her eyes and said happily, "Okay!"

Chen Pingan said softly, "I'll weave a few pairs of well-fitting straw sandals for you in the future, guaranteed not to rub your feet."

The little girl's eyes lit up, "Really?"

Chen Pingan lowered his head to wring the water out of her trousers, "It's very simple."

The little girl sighed, "You know everything, I don't know anything."

Chen Pingan smiled, "You can teach me to read and write in the future. I don't know many characters now, only about five hundred."

As soon as Li Baoping heard this, she nodded like a chick pecking rice, "It's a deal!"

The two sat side by side, watching the slowly flowing stream. Li Baoping casually asked, "Do you know what this creek is called?"

"Dragon Whisker Creek."

"How do you know this creek is called Dragon Whisker Creek?"

"When I went into the mountains last time, I brought two maps. Master Ruan said they were maps of our Dragon Spring County, marked as Dragon Whisker Creek. But after the southeast flow turned due south, the red line on the map gradually thickened, and then it was renamed Iron Talisman River."

"Oh, then I'll tell you, our Great Li Dynasty has six ministries, and the Ministry of Rites has three officials of heaven, earth, and man. The earth official is responsible for drawing these maps, but there are also geomancers from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory who help lead the way, walking through mountains and rivers together. It's like measuring the territory of a dynasty, a thousand miles, ten thousand miles, step by step with their feet, and then drawing it on paper inch by inch. Chen Pingan, do you think those earth officials and geomancers are amazing?"

"What, do you want to be an earth official of the Ministry of Rites, or a geomancer of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory when you grow up?"

"Chen Pingan, don't you know? Women can't be officials. And it's not just our Great Li that's like this, it seems like the whole world is like this. Like me and Shi Chunjia, we can study, but I haven't heard of any women becoming teachers, or being called masters."

"Is that so."

"By the way, Chen Pingan, you said that jade hairpin on your head was given to Mr. Qi by Mr. Qi's teacher, and then Mr. Qi gave it to you."

"That's right."

"Chen Pingan, then from today onwards, I'll call you Little Uncle-Master!"

"Why?"

"After you become my Little Uncle-Master, if I make you unhappy one day, and you plan to abandon me, you will definitely ask yourself - I, Chen Pingan, am Li Baoping's incomparably beloved Little Uncle-Master, of course I must share weal and woe with such a good little girl."

"Can I not be some Little Uncle-Master? Don't worry, I won't abandon you anyway."

"No way!"

"Then I won't make you a little bamboo box and straw sandals."

"It's okay, I'm not afraid. I'm going to call you Little Uncle-Master!"

"Hmm?"

"What Little Uncle-Master in the world wouldn't make me a little bamboo box and straw sandals?!"