Chapter 47 Good Fortune
Chapter 47 Good Fortune
The next morning, Chen Yuan and Zhao Shan came to the courtyard where the old scholar lived.
Compared to when he left, this dilapidated courtyard has changed its appearance. It has a brand new elm door and the walls have been replaced with fine blue bricks. Compared with the dilapidated courtyards around it, it seems out of place.
Zhao Shan knocked on the gate and said:
"I asked Mr. Yan to move to Xingyefang before, but he didn't want to move. He said that he had saved money for more than ten years to buy this small courtyard, and he wanted to die here. I tried to persuade him several times, but it didn't work. I could only renovate the courtyard again..."
Before he finished speaking, a tall man opened the gate and bowed respectfully when he saw Zhao Shan:
"Manager Zhao!"
Zhao Shan patted his arm and said with a smile:
"Thank you for your hard work. Have you had any activity in the past few days?"
The man said respectfully:
"Three days ago, there were some petty thieves who had just arrived in the county. They were tricked by the thief leader and entered the hospital late at night. I broke their hands and feet and sent them to the county government office. The thief leader was also arrested by Captain Lei and thrown into jail."
Zhao Shan said with satisfaction:
"You did a good job. When you collect your monthly salary next month, you will receive an extra ounce of silver."
The man said happily:
"Yes!"
As he spoke, he made way for the two men to enter the courtyard. Zhao Shan turned to Chen Yuan and said:
"There are all kinds of people in the east of the city. I have already informed all the gangs, but there are always some youngsters who don't know the rules. I specially sent two brothers to protect Mr. Yan."
The two men walked into the courtyard, and there was another tall and thin man standing under the eaves. When he saw Zhao Shan, he also bowed respectfully.
Chen Yuan nodded:
"Brother, you are thoughtful."
The interior of the courtyard has also changed. Originally there was only a main house and a wing room, which were dilapidated. Now it has been renovated, and the courtyard wall has been expanded outward by more than ten feet, and two new houses have been built.
A young maid walked out of a newly built bedroom. When she saw Zhao Shan, she hurriedly saluted and said:
"Manager Zhao!"
Zhao Shan waved his hand and said:
"No need to be polite. How is Mr. Yan's health?"
The maid lowered her voice and said worriedly:
"Doctor Li came again yesterday and said that Mr. Yan was running out of energy and should have... passed away a long time ago. He was hanging on by a breath, but he has been hanging on for several days. Even if he drinks ginseng soup every day, he won't be able to hold on for much longer..."
Before she finished speaking, Chen Yuan's face changed and he walked quickly towards the bedroom.
The maid was about to go in, but was stopped by Zhao Shan, who shook his head and said:
"Don't go in and disturb me. Follow me to the main hall and wait."
Chen Yuan entered the bedroom. The room was brightly lit, but filled with a strong herbal smell, giving people a sense of decay.
The old scholar was dressed in plain white clothes, lying on his back on the bed, with sparse hair, a thin face and dull eyes.
Hearing the footsteps, he turned his head with difficulty, blinked a few times, and then saw clearly that it was Chen Yuan. His eyes suddenly lit up, and the corners of his mouth curled up, and he said:
"Erniu, you...you're back."
His voice was as low as a mosquito. Chen Yuan stepped forward quickly and said:
"Sir, I'm back."
The old scholar slowly raised his left hand and murmured:
"Okay, I'm glad I'm back. I drank so many herbs, and it wasn't in vain."
His palms were dry and waxy, like chicken claws, and covered with dark brown age spots.
Chen Yuan held his hand, slowly injected a trace of magic power into it, and said:
"I am sorry that I failed to serve you at your bedside, and I made you suffer."
The old scholar's body was nourished by the magic power, his eyes became brighter, his voice became louder, and he smiled and said:
"Although you are not here, Manager Zhao has taken good care of me. How can you say that I am unworthy? I have been depressed all my life. The luckiest thing is that I have you as my student, so that I can enjoy my old age. If you can come back to see me, I will be satisfied."
"gentlemen……"
"Cough cough!"
The old scholar coughed twice, his voice became louder, he looked at the beams above his head and said slowly:
"In my life, I have loved nothing more than reading. I know everything about classics, history, poetry, songs, Taoist classics, and military books. I consider myself to be well-versed in the classics and have a broad understanding of both the past and the present. However, there are only two things that I cannot understand: the imperial examination and life and death."
"The imperial examination required writing eight-part essays. I knew exactly how to write them, but I just couldn't. Whenever I started writing, I felt a blockage in my chest, dizziness and shortness of breath. I was never able to go to school, and I couldn't even pass the examination for a student."
"Between life and death, there is great fear. Last winter, I closed my eyes every night, fearing that I would not be able to wake up. I was extremely terrified. God was kind enough to let me survive. But this time, I couldn't survive. I was in a state of panic all day, just waiting for the day of death to come."
Having said this, the old scholar turned his head with difficulty, looked at Chen Yuan, showed a stiff smile, and said:
"If I hadn't held on to my last bit of obsession, wanting to see you, I would have collapsed long ago. You respect your teacher and allowed me to enjoy my old age in peace. I have no way to repay you, so I can only give you this room full of books and my family's heirloom treasures."
As he spoke, he slowly raised his other hand, reached into his arms, took out a jade pendant, and handed it to Chen Yuan.
This is a green jade pendant, with mountains, rivers, and Baiyun Fairy Palace engraved on one side, and the word "Lingyun" engraved on the other side. It has a delicate and smooth texture, and the carvings are lifelike and exquisitely crafted.
"This Lingyun pendant is an heirloom from my ancestors. No matter how poor I was, I never sold it. I am giving it to you today."
Chen Yuan let go of the old scholar's hand, stood up, took the jade pendant with both hands, and bowed deeply to the old scholar:
"Thank you, Mr., for the gift!"
The old scholar smiled contentedly and said:
"My wish has come true. I finally don't have to endure the pain anymore. I will give you one more word. Everything in the world, except life and death, is illusory. Don't be disturbed by external things..."
His eyes gradually became unfocused and his voice became lower and lower until it was inaudible.
Chen Yuan hurriedly held the old scholar's hand, infused his magic power into his body, and called out repeatedly:
"Sir! Sir!"
But he didn't respond. Chen Yuan sighed and withdrew his magic power.
The old scholar's vitality disappeared, and he had no power to recover. But at this moment, Chen Yuan's face changed, and he looked at the old scholar in disbelief.
When he was infusing his magic power just now, he actually detected signs of spiritual roots in the old scholar's body!
He quickly injected a bit of magic power, sensed it carefully, sighed, and withdrew his hand.
The old scholar not only has spiritual roots in his body, but also dual spiritual roots of earth and wood. If he embarks on the path to immortality, he can build a foundation and there is also great hope for forming a pill.
But he never came into contact with the world of immortals in his entire life. He lived a mediocre life in the mortal world and eventually died on his sickbed.
Even the spiritual roots in his body became barely visible due to his old age and physical weakness.
If Chen Yuan hadn't continuously infused magic power into his body, he wouldn't have been able to discover it.
As the old scholar passes away, the spiritual roots in his body will slowly disappear and disperse into the world.
Chen Yuan felt mixed emotions, his expression changing constantly, he looked down at the Lingyun Pei in his hand, and murmured:
"Fate plays tricks on us. It's hard to find a chance to be an immortal..."
……
That afternoon, Zhao Shan arranged the old scholar's funeral and buried him in a place outside Leping County with beautiful mountains and rivers and excellent feng shui.
Chen Yuan personally carved a stele for him, on which was inscribed "Tomb of my late teacher and scholar Yan Xiangpei, erected by my student Chen Erniu".
After erecting the tombstone, he stood in front of the old scholar's tomb for a long time, stroking the Lingyun pendant with a complicated expression and surging emotions.
The old scholar had earth spiritual roots and outstanding talents, but he never became an immortal and died on his sickbed.
However, he was a cultivator with fake spiritual roots, but he was lucky enough to obtain the immortal cultivation method and cultivated to the fourth level of Qi Refining.
There is nothing better than this when fate plays tricks on people.
But he and the old Confucian scholar have one thing in common: if he cannot become an immortal, no matter how far he goes on the path to immortality, he will eventually turn into a pile of bones.
Outside of life and death, everything is false.
Only by cultivating immortality and attaining enlightenment can one achieve longevity.
Chen Yuan's eyes gradually became firm. He buried all his emotions deep in his heart, put away the Lingyun Pei, and turned to leave.
……
When Chen Yuan returned to Zhao's house, Zhao Shan had already prepared a table of wine and food and comforted him:
"Junior brother, I am deeply saddened. Mr. Yan passed away peacefully..."
Chen Yuan said calmly:
"Life and death are determined by fate. I am already satisfied that I can see you for the last time."
Zhao Shan invited Chen Yuan to take a seat, but Chen Yuan declined.
"Brother, I have something else to do. I have to go to the county town today and won't stay long."
Zhao Shan tried to persuade him to stay, but Chen Yuan had made up his mind, so he had to give up.
Before leaving, Chen Yuan said:
"I am going to the county town and I don't know when I will be back. I hope you can take care of my parents for me."
Zhao Shan said solemnly:
"Don't worry, Junior Brother. As long as I'm here, nothing will happen to my uncle and aunt."
"Thank you, senior brother."
Chen Yuan clasped his fists and bowed, then said:
"My younger sister is only thirty-five years old, and it's time for her to get married. I have asked my family to help me find a good family. We don't ask for a rich family, but a family that is well-off and honest, and will not let my younger sister suffer or be bullied."
Zhao Shan supported Chen Yuan and said in surprise:
"From what Junior Brother said, this trip will take a long time? Leave it to me. Your little sister is my little sister, and I will never let her suffer any injustice."
However, Chen Yuan insisted on bowing again, and Zhao Shan couldn't stop him.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Senior Brother. I love my little sister the most. When she gets married, please help me put a veil on her head."
Zhao Shan realized something and said softly:
"I've made note of it, don't worry, Junior Brother."
Chen Yuan bowed for the third time, then took out a thin booklet from his pocket, handed it to Zhao Shan, and said:
"The Six Yang Gong that I gave you before was incomplete. This is the complete Six Yang Gong, a first-class secret manual that includes the Scarlet Sun Sword Technique and the Shadow Step. They are all rare magical skills in the martial arts world. I will give it to you today."
Zhao Shan's expression changed, and he stared at the Liu Yang Gong in Chen Yuan's hand, his Adam's apple rolling up and down, and said:
"This... this is too expensive..."
"This item is no longer useful to me, so please accept it. This is Master's family technique, and I need you to pass it on."
When Zhao Shan heard the word "Master", his expression darkened. He took the booklet and said solemnly:
"Thank you, Junior Brother. Don't worry, as long as I am alive, the Chen family will be prosperous!"
Thanks to the honest and reliable young man for the reward!
(End of this chapter)