Chapter 109: "Tao follows nature" from another world
Chapter 109: "Tao follows nature" from another world
Heaven and earth are not kind... Heaven and earth are not kind...
In the soup and noodle shop early in the morning, when Zhao Duan read out this sentence.
The old Taoist priest, who had originally not cared much and had no expectations, seemed to be struck.
He chewed on this sentence quietly, and his eyes, which were still as clear as a child's despite his age, suddenly brightened a little.
Strictly speaking, the "benevolence" mentioned by Zhao Duan and the "benevolence" mentioned by Zhang Yan just now are different in context.
Zhang Yanyi said that Heaven and Earth are benevolent, which is an emotion expressed in a specific context.
It refers to the fact that as a sorcerer who believes in "the Way of Heaven", he can get a glimpse of good and bad fortune from the operation of the Way of Heaven.
Thus, it can be avoided, which is like the "benevolence" of heaven and earth to the world.
It is a subjective sigh, but it does not mean that he really believes that "the way of heaven" has human-like emotions.
The sentence Zhao Duan repeated was a calm, even slightly cold description.
It means that there is no such thing as "benevolence" or "unkindness" in heaven and earth. Heaven and earth exist naturally, and all things in the world and human world arise and perish according to the laws.
In this way, the space between heaven and earth is like a huge bellows.
Being empty does not mean being dry; being agitated will only increase the wind; numerous government orders will disturb the people; it is better to remain empty and quiet.
In his previous life, Zhao Duan saw someone use this sentence to illustrate Lao Tzu's view of "ruling by doing nothing".
It is interpreted as a Taoist doctrine and advice to the upper-level rulers.
But the same sentence, in a different world, when spoken to this "official of the Tianshi Mansion", has a slightly different meaning.
It is more like how a "monk" should understand the world.
How to be alone, avoid external disturbances, and keep your inner expression.
……
"What a cruel world."
Zhang Yanyi couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
As a sorcerer who studied the Way of Heaven, he had a deep understanding of this, and he looked at Zhao Duan with more admiration for his talent:
"My friend, you have never practiced the Way of Heaven, but you have already gained such a profound understanding. It is a waste of your talent to choose to be a warrior."
Zhao Duan blushed a little because of the flattery.
Young Master Zhao still has some dignity.
Not to mention that this statement is plagiarized, even if we put this aside, anyone who has studied and taken physics classes in the previous life can reach this level of understanding of the laws of the objective world.
He looked serious:
"Old sir, please don't say such things again. I'm afraid His Majesty will misunderstand me."
The old Taoist priest smiled and said intentionally, "That girl Xu Zhenguan will only delay you."
But after thinking about it, he didn't speak, and said:
"Your explanation of the universe is quite insightful and easy to understand, but in my opinion, it is still a little lacking."
Zhao Duan was not convinced:
"I can't pretend I didn't hear what you said, sir."
Zhang Yan smiled and said:
"Don't misunderstand. This is not an insult, but an incomplete one. As you said, the world is not kind, and cultivators should keep themselves quiet. But if you only know how to keep quiet, you are still a mortal. How should you practice?"
Zhao Duan heard this but did not rush to speak. He slowly ate a few bites of the pancake and drank half a bowl of thick soup.
This piqued the old Taoist's curiosity for a moment, and then he smiled and said:
“This is even easier.”
"Simple?" Zhang Yan raised his eyebrows.
"Of course," Zhao Duan said calmly:
"Since you agree, old sir, that the heaven and earth are not benevolent, the laws of nature exist naturally. Then what we should do is very simple. I can summarize it in thirteen words."
He remembered his last experience and wanted to dip his hand into the soup to write.
But because there was too much fat in the mutton soup and too many words, I gave up.
Thirteen words?
The old Taoist priest was curious. There were twenty-one words and phrases in the Heavenly Book that summarized the description, and they had not been changed for nearly five hundred years.
How dare this young man make such a bold statement that he can explain it clearly in thirteen words?
Zhang Yanyi was somewhat looking forward to it.
I heard Zhao Duan suddenly sit up straight and speak word by word:
"Humans follow the earth, the earth follows the sky, the heavens follow the Tao, and the Tao follows nature."
Taoism...nature!
At this moment, even though he was mentally prepared, and even because of the lesson of "Tao gives birth to one" last time, the old Taoist priest quietly took a stand.
Cut off the connection between the two and heaven and earth.
But when these thirteen big words hit his ears one by one, they still stirred up layers of waves in the heart of this great sorcerer who stood at the top of this world.
"Fa" here means "to imitate."
Zhao Duan threw out two sentences that hit people, and put them together to say:
Heaven and earth are not benevolent; they operate according to objective laws. Human practice is to emulate the natural laws of heaven and earth.
And the last four words "Tao follows nature" do not mean that Tao imitates nature, but that Tao imitates itself.
Translated into vernacular, it is actually not complicated or profound.
Just like most of the true insights in this world, they are simple and plain.
But to truly understand it, many people need to spend their entire lives.
As for Zhang Yanyi, although he had understood these principles many years ago, he had never thought about them.
Such concise words can be used to clearly explain the understanding of "Heavenly Way" and the essence of practice.
No Heavenly Master in the history of "Tianshi Mansion" has been able to do this, and Zhang Yanyi is no exception.
But today, it was told out loud to a mere mortal warrior who took the path of a warrior.
How could he not be surprised and surprised?
"What do you think, old man?"
Zhao Duan was also observing the other party's reaction, with a triumphant smile on his face.
Well, it looks like these two sentences should be able to sell for a good price.
Zhang Yan came back to his senses and looked at Zhao Duan deeply, feeling mixed emotions:
Just by reading the four words "Tao follows nature", he knew that some of the words and sentences in "The Book of Heaven" had to be revised again.
Ironically, Zhang Yanyi's changes to the Heavenly Book during the hundreds of years he served as the head of the sect were less than the half sentence Zhao Duan made up.
The old Taoist priest said in a somewhat depressed mood, then stood up and said with a dull look:
"I still have something to do, so I won't bother you any more."
Having said that, he turned around and walked away. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared in the crowd, as if he had never appeared.
But none of the people around noticed it.
"no……"
Zhao Duan opened his mouth, a little dumbfounded.
What does it mean to say "not bad"? Shouldn't you express your feelings?
Give him a talisman paper or something... In a trance, he felt like he was getting taken advantage of for free.
He gritted his teeth and stuffed the silver "Divine Talisman" on the table into his arms as a trump card.
Zhao Duan ate up all the sesame cake and broth, then left after leaving a few large coins.
The shop owner chased out and said timidly:
"Sir, your friend hasn't paid for the soup and noodles he had."
"......?" Zhao Duan had no expression on his face:
"I do not know him."
The boss of the soup noodle shop was a straightforward man, he said with his neck stiff:
"You two have eaten at the store twice."
Zhao Duan looked up to the sky and sighed: "...What a sin."
……
……
Bafang Theater.
Because there are performances in the afternoon and evening, it is the busiest time at the theater.
Therefore, every morning, the theater does not receive guests. The actors close the door and start warming up their voices and honing their basic skills early in the morning.
As the new "top star", Wu Ling was given a separate courtyard to live in by the owner of the opera house.
However, this morning, when this young man with a fair and powdered face and a handsome appearance like a girl opened the door to the backyard, he welcomed in a group of uninvited guests.
They all wore gray burqas and covered their faces with veils.
The one in the lead was wearing an indigo ghost mask.
Judging from the exposed body parts, he should be a middle-aged man.
Wu Ling welcomed the group into the room, and after the door was closed, he saluted with an eager look in his eyes:
"I am here to see you, Captain! I didn't know you arrived in the capital ahead of time. I'm sorry for not welcoming you."
The middle-aged man wearing an indigo mask smiled:
"No need to be polite. You should have known that I came to the capital this time to take over the leadership of the capital branch of the Kuangfu Society from Master Zhuang. However, the capital seems to be uneasy recently."
Wu Ling said bitterly: "The captain already knows?"
The middle-aged man nodded, and his tone became more serious:
"I was outside the capital yesterday when I received an urgent message saying that the person buried in the imperial court had been removed, so I entered the city early. However, the letter was brief and did not explain the situation clearly. Please tell me in detail."
Wu Ling nodded.
He immediately shared the information he had about the exposed traitor in Zhaoya.
All the grey-robed men were moved, while the new helmsman listened quietly.
Finally asked:
"So, after the two people from Tiechiguan were arrested, they were immediately notified that their upper and lower connections should evacuate?"
Wu Ling said:
"Yes. But we were too hasty, and some members still got into trouble. For example, the person who was arranged to be next to the thief Zhao died at his hands."
The new helmsman frowned and said:
"As you said, yesterday's disaster was also planned by Zhao Duan?"
Wu Ling nodded and said seriously:
"From what we know, it is true. Everyone has underestimated the Zhao thief. Since the Grand Tutor was forced to flee by him, he has made many great achievements in the past two months and has become a disaster."
The new helmsman asked, "Have you tried to test him?"
Wu Ling smiled bitterly:
“I once tried to kill this person, but I didn’t even see him. The God of Drama’s substitute was destroyed by the great monk. I suspect it was the fake emperor who did it.
The importance of Zhao the thief in the false emperor's heart is far beyond expectations, and his tactics and wisdom are by no means as bad as the rumors say."
Upon hearing this, the group of members of the Kuangfu Society who had traveled all the way to Beijing from other places were greatly surprised.
Unexpectedly, the notorious pretty boy of the empress in the rumors had such a high evaluation in Wu Ling's mouth.
"Don't judge a person by his appearance. This incident is a lesson for you."
The new helmsman sighed and looked around at everyone:
"The capital is the territory of the pseudo-emperor. We have just entered and it is a time of unrest. Pass on my order that all members should lie low for the time being and avoid the limelight."
Everyone said yes.
The new helmsman changed the subject, looked at Wu Ling, and said with a smile:
"But don't be discouraged. After Master Zhuang left, you were leaderless, which gave the court and Zhao Duan an opportunity to take advantage of it. Now that I'm here, I will not let the brothers in the society sacrifice in vain."
Wu Ling was cheered up:
"Captain, what do you mean?"
The head of the New Capital branch smiled and said with a grimace:
“Since it’s as you said, let’s start with Zhao Duan. The fake emperor can protect him temporarily, but he can’t protect him forever.
Since he dares to be our enemy, we should kill him first to sacrifice to our brothers, boost morale, and avenge Master Zhuang for ruining his plan."
……
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(End of this chapter)