The days went round and round, and soon the first month came out, and this day happened to be the second day of February.
This day is not one of the twenty-four solar terms commonly mentioned in the calendar, but the people of Liangzhou have a very auspicious name for this day, called Dragon Head Head Festival or Dragon Head Festival.
Regarding this festival, there are also some different and widespread customs in various places, such as eating dragon food, calling noodles dragon beard noodles, and dumplings called dragon horns. Various foods have different meanings. The name is basically linked to the word "dragon" to bring good fortune.
Another example is knocking on the beams of the house, also called knocking on the faucet. This involves knocking on the beams of one's house with branches and sticks while reciting some folk proverbs, such as "On February 2, knock on the faucet. If the dragon does not raise its head, I will. If the big village is full, the small village will flow." "Every year good times begin with spring" and so on, which are also the same good wishes as eating dragon food.
Because there is a small river named "Pengying" flowing through the town in Yanguan Town, Liangzhou, there is also a custom that has been passed down from generation to generation: placing dragon lanterns, making small boats with origami or wheat straw, and placing a lantern made of dough on top. Then put the small boat into the river, and let it float down the river into the distance. Legend has it that the longer the dragon lantern stays on, the more prosperous and prosperous the house where the dragon lantern is lit will be, and the family will be rich, prosperous and safe. , so many people will try to make the lamp as large as possible to ensure that it does not sink to the bottom of the river and can stay on for a longer time.
In the past few years, although the poor boy at the east entrance of the town lived in poverty, every year after dark on this day, he would squeeze out the few bites of food he had to save a dragon lantern and put it in the small river. , hoping that God will bless him and bring him some good luck in the coming year.
This habit has been done every year since the old drunkard was still a child. At that time, the old drunkard took him there personally. Later, after the old drunkard passed away, he would go alone. He would find a secluded place at the bend of the creek with few people, and then carefully put the old drunkard in a quiet place. The small, shabby-looking lantern was placed on a small boat made of weeds and firewood he picked up in the red maple forest. He clasped his hands and watched it go further and further away in the river, muttering something to himself. The old Dragon King seeks good luck.
Ever since the fist fight between Hou Junchen and Jiang Chang, in the past few days, the young man had exactly what the sloppy man said when he came back from Zhendong that day. He got up early in the morning and went into the mountains every day to hunt a few hares, or Either catch a few pheasants, or go to the river to catch two fish and come back as a reward to the small town watchman who spends his days doing nothing but sunbathing.
On the day when the dragon raised its head, at noon, the young man took two bowls of fish soup to the door of the thatched house opposite. One bowl was given to Hou Junchen, who was lying on the bamboo chair to warm himself. The other bowl was for himself, and then the two of them leaned side by side. On the facade wall outside the hut, the same sound of snoring while blowing hot air and drinking soup can be heard one after another.
Both of them seemed to be accustomed to squatting against the wall or under the old locust tree as long as they were holding a bowl to eat, no matter in winter or summer. It seemed that only this posture of squatting while eating could taste the aroma of the bowl of rice. If one day I change my habit of finding a place to sit, I will not get used to it. I always feel that even the movements of carrying the bowl will become awkward.
Holding the rice bowl and downing half a bowl of steaming fish soup in one go, the sloppy man raised his head and let out a long sigh, then turned his head and glanced at the young man beside him, and asked with a smile: "How have you been studying these past two days? How do you like the "Thousand-Character Essay" that Mr. Cui gave you? How many words can you memorize?"
The young man who was still immersed in cooking was slightly stagnant when he heard the words, and then he started scratching his ears and grinning, with a sad expression on his face, as if the fish soup that was delicious and fragrant just a moment ago was no longer fragrant in an instant.
The sloppy man was a little amused, "I'm just reading a book, why do you feel so sad? Even when you go up and down mountains and rivers to eat a bowl of rice every day, I haven't seen you so sad?"
The young man listened to Hanzi's teasing words, turned his head and glared at him, and said angrily: "You old bachelor said it lightly. I used to think that reading was the best thing, but I didn't find out until I opened that book. A thousand-character essay is really a thousand-character essay! None of the words in that book were the same. Not only did I have to ask someone about each word, I also had to come back and memorize them myself, not to mention understanding them. What do you mean? Just remembering and barely being able to write has burned half of your brain... No wonder it’s not easy for a scholar to be respected!"
After listening to the words, Hou Junchen put the porcelain bowl in his hand to his mouth and took a big mouthful of fish soup. Then he looked at the young man with a smile and said strangely: "I'm afraid you think scholars should be respected, right? Go ask the man in Wufang Pavilion. Shopkeeper Liu next to me, let’s see if she really respects scholars. Before those foreigners came here, she was really happy to send her precious son Han Yuanfu to a rural school to study. But since she knew this After there are still a group of immortals in the world, do you think she is still willing to let her son learn to read and read word by word starting from the "Thousand Character Classic"?"
Most things in the world cannot withstand careful chewing. The saying that it is rare to be confused is never an empty talk.
Chu Yuanxiao was silenced by Hou Junchen's casual remarks. He had been used to seeing all kinds of people's faces since he was a child, so he could understand many things, but sometimes he would be speechless. Many people Things that are undesirable will become a matter of course and taken for granted in the hands of others. It is also the right thing to climb higher step by step and never look back. The differences between people can be seen at a glance and cannot be argued with.
Ordinary words, ordinary things, ordinary things, ordinary hearts, all ordinary things, the most difficult thing is extraordinary.
Just like the spring breeze carries the spring scenery, the autumn breeze changes clothes and the ground turns yellow, we are all guests on the cup seat, and everything in our heart is normal.
The watchman in the small town turned his head and saw the young man in a daze with a hint of hesitation, so he smiled slightly and drank the fish soup in a few mouthfuls without disturbing him. Then he gently placed the porcelain bowl in his hand on the ground, and then raised his head towards the long man. He glanced at an intersection on the west side of the street, then disappeared.
…
When the young man came back to his senses, the person beside him had quietly changed. He was no longer the slovenly man, but had changed into a green shirt. He stood alone with his hands behind his back, looking at the old tree across the street. The locust tree and the bronze bell hanging on the tree were silent.
The young man stood up quickly. It was inconvenient to hold the soup bowl, but he still bowed and saluted the scholar, "Hello, sir."
The small town private school teacher turned back to look at the young man, with a gentle smile and a soft and gentle voice: "No need to be polite, just finish your meal first."
After that, he saw some hesitation on the young man's face, so he added with a smile: "Don't be in a hurry, just drink slowly."
Chu Yuanxiao was a little unsure of the purpose of Mr. Cui's visit. He could only roughly guess that the things that required the sloppy man to deliberately avoid going out were probably not just a matter of teaching how to read.
The gentleman didn't speak, and he couldn't press him to ask, so he hurriedly drank the half bowl of fish soup in his hand, then stacked his own bowl with the bowl Hou Junchen put on the ground, and thought about it. After thinking about it, he ran back to his yard across the street with two pairs of empty dishes and chopsticks, washed them cleanly, drained them, and put them in an orderly manner. Then he turned around and walked out of the yard, walked to the opposite side of the street. He bowed to the scholar solemnly and said, "Sir, I've finished eating."
The scholar saw all the boy's actions in his eyes, and the faint smile on his face has never been taken away. Sometimes, some people, and some things come naturally. He doesn't need to teach you, he can do it himself.
"That day after I accepted your apprenticeship ceremony, I sent a letter to the Middle-earth Divine Continent to explain all the recent events to the Confucian Temple Academy. Judging from the news sent back, it seems that some people did not agree with it. voices, and there are quite a few.”
The scholar in green shirt spoke slowly, choosing to get straight to the point and explain certain things to the young man face to face.
At this time, Chu Yuanxiao still folded his hands in front of him and did not take them back. After hearing the words, he looked up at Mr. Cui, his eyes did not change much, and he waited quietly for the next sentence.
Cui Jue smiled, his tone was relaxed but not solemn, as if he had always had a calm state of mind, and continued: "Someone also suggested that I should step down from the post of town guard and return to China for questioning. If I can't If you give a reasonable explanation, I will be expelled from Confucianism and the family will be cleaned up."
The latter sentence, as expected, finally made the young man's face change. He looked at the Confucian scholar with some worry and hesitated to speak.
Cui Jue didn't look back at the young man's expression, but as if he knew what he was going to say, he slowly raised his hand and waved it, smiling: "It's okay, it doesn't seem like the problem is big at the moment. Your husband has been criticized by others. And your husband’s husband was holding a cane in front of him to protect him, and this matter was finally suppressed temporarily by my husband’s husband.”
As he spoke, he flipped his wrist and took out a square green jade plaque from his sleeve robe. There was no special carving on it except for the neat regular script "Ru" engraved on it. The surface was flat. Smooth and extremely finely polished, it shows the rigor and rigidity of the jade maker.
The Confucian scholar in green shirt who took out the jade plaque glanced at the plaque, then lowered his head and slowly handed it to the young man. He smiled and said: "This is the jade plaque used by the Chinese Confucian Temple to send letters when replying. This 'Confucian scholar' 'The calligraphy is the handwriting of our Confucian sect's sub-sage, and it has a long history. Today, sir, I will give it to you by offering flowers to the Buddha, as another gift in return for your apprenticeship besides the "Thousand-Character Essay"."
The young man first looked up at the jade plaque, then looked up at Mr. Cui, hesitantly.
Mr. Cui smiled when he saw this, and said: "Don't worry, Ya Sheng is not that stingy. Even if he is, someone will naturally explain it to him. He will not come to you and me specifically to question you just because of a jade plaque. , In addition, although this jade tablet is a letter talisman, it is also a Xumi Mustard Seed of not particularly high quality. It can be called Xumi Object or Mustard Seed Object. It can help you with some storage purposes and accommodate space. It’s about the size of six or seven rooms, and it’s enough to simply put things there.”
As he spoke, the Confucian scholar in green clothes put it into the young man's hand that was still bowing, and gently forced him to hold it. Then he said: "I have cast a spell to make it connect with your mind. You only need to wear it." When you need to access something on your body, just think about it."
Seeing that the young man still had a worried expression, Cui Jue simply smiled and added: "In fact, we don't use this kind of sumeru objects to send messages in normal times. It will only be an ordinary jade plaque. Since this trip After using this, the old man in the sect who spoke uprightly for you and my master and disciple intends to keep it with you, so you don't have to worry. The sage has a saying, "The elders give it, and the young and the humble dare not resign." You want Understand this principle, and it is not considered rude to be generous and take whatever you need."
Seeing that Mr. Cui had spoken so thoroughly, Chu Yuanxiao could no longer refuse, so he gently held it in his hand and took it.
The Confucian scholar in blue shirt smiled gently, then turned to look at the old locust tree, and continued to talk about other things, "I have told you something about cultivation before. The journey of spiritual cultivation is within Jiuzhou. Except for the Buddha of Buddhism, other spiritual cultivators basically come from my Confucian sect. The main reason for this pattern is that Confucian disciples are less skilled than other sects in writing books. Having gained some upper hand, the world's literary fortunes share one stone, and Confucianism has eight fights. This is the biggest general trend. Therefore, you should pay more attention to reading. It will be beneficial to your practice. As for when you can gain enlightenment. The threshold for entering the realm of spiritual cultivation depends on your talent and luck."
The young man pursed his lips when he heard this, then looked at his husband and nodded solemnly, "I understand, sir."
Cui Jue nodded in response, and added: "Now that you have lost your way to the great road, it is not easy to embark on the path of cultivation. The path of fellow practitioners in the three paths is not easy. If you want to make a breakthrough, you must gather the three paths, and then Waiting for a God-given opportunity, this matter cannot be led by me as a spiritual master. The other two paths... I have introduced Su Sanzai to you before. He has both good and bad points. Although There are other things going on between me and him, but they don’t have to be with you, so you don’t have to worry too much about it. Whether you want to spend that money or not depends on your own needs.”
The young man nodded, hesitated for a moment and then said: "Sir, what path did Mr. Su cultivate?"
After asking this question, the Confucian scholar in blue, who turned his back to the young man and faced the old locust tree, was slightly silent, and then smiled and said: "He is a special person, and it doesn't matter to you which path he cultivates." , it just depends on which way you want to learn from him. Just like what he told you before, he is very capable and can teach you anything. Even if you really want to learn a cooking skill from him, he can really teach you. Yes, that’s not a joke, it’s a fact.”
this……
The young man was a little confused by Mr. Cui's answer. What does "you can teach me anything" mean? Isn't it just a lie? Doesn’t it mean that there are no fellow practitioners of Three Paths? Then he can still learn the roads he has never practiced before? What is this statement?
However, regarding the young man's doubts, the Confucian scholar in green shirt seemed to just point it out and did not intend to give a detailed explanation. Seeing that he still looked dull and confused, he just smiled and said nothing more. .
When he arrived here, the master of the green-shirted private school who had made a special trip from the village school to explain some things to the young man had probably finished everything he wanted to say. Then he looked at the young man and said, "There is nothing else for the time being." That's right, if you have any questions while studying, you can go directly to the study in the backyard of the rural school to find me. I will always be there when there is nothing special."
After the young man nodded in agreement, the middle-aged Confucian scholar nodded, turned his head and glanced at the slowly swaying bronze bell hanging on the treetop, and then slowly left and returned to the small town school.
The young man stood there, watching his husband leave. After a long time when his husband turned the corner and disappeared, he slowly walked to the hut, sat down gently on the bamboo chair that belonged to the night watchman, and looked at the street. The bronze bell opposite began to recite the sentences he learned from that book in his heart.
The sky and the earth are dark and yellow, and the universe is primitive. The sun and moon are full, and the stars and constellations are arranged. The dragon master, the fire emperor, the bird official and the human emperor. The phoenix sings in the bamboo, Baiju Food Court...
——
Zhennan North Lingguan.
Today, the frail old man who had discussed knife sharpening with the old Taoist priest earlier visited the Taoist temple again. As before, the two of them sat together under the pavilion in the backyard of the Taoist temple, facing the one in the east of the town. The towering sword mountains tower into the clouds, sitting side by side across the stone table.
The old man still had a smiling expression. He glanced at the silent old Taoist priest on the other side of the stone table who had been holding the green bamboo pole with both hands all year round. He smiled and said, "They say people are not as good as God. This year's... The solar terms are so special. It just so happens that today is the Dragon Head Festival and tomorrow is the Spring Equinox. It just so happens that the date of Jiazi is coming to an end. Seeing that your Yanguan Town is about to close its doors again, it is such an interesting coincidence at this time. , you don’t have anything to say?”
The old Taoist sat quietly with his eyes closed, listening to the old man's questions, with a little helplessness on his brows, "The sage's rule is to do nothing, and then everything will be cured."
The old man smiled and said, "Don't say I didn't warn you in advance. I took a closer look in Liangzhou City these days, but there were a lot of unfamiliar faces, and they were all there trying to hide themselves. As a result, the stench almost made me unable to eat. If I hadn't thought that they and you would have to meet each other, I couldn't help but go to Commander Li who was in charge of the border army to get someone. , I made a special trip here today just to talk about this matter. Show everything you should do in advance, and don’t let others beat you half to death with a sap. I’m afraid you won’t be able to explain to the Chinese side.”
Hearing this, the old man nodded slowly and thanked softly: "On behalf of all the disciples, I would like to thank Xue Chenghuang."
The frail old man waved his hand and said with a smile: "I've been neighbors for many years. I'm just polite when I say this. If you need help, just ask. I guarantee that I can bring Governor Li here with you."
The old Taoist Priest was not surprised when he heard the old man's generous offer. He just smiled and nodded, which was regarded as a response. The reason why the old man in front of him was always frail when he appeared was not because of his special cultivation path, but because of his special cultivation path. Because his true identity is the City God who sits at the altar table in the Liangzhou City God Temple.
As early as ten thousand years ago, before the war between the five clans broke out, people like Xue Chenghuang were completely different from the human monks who followed the path of becoming immortals. It can be said that the immortals who truly ranked in the immortal class did not return. The people under the jurisdiction of the human race cannot appear in front of people at will like the Xue Chenghuang now. Whether they become gods or not and their rank are all decided by the strongest god among the five races. However, the last person later After the emperor's sword sealed the Tianmen and the Jedi Heavenly Power, these golden gods who suddenly lost their immediate bosses were like losing their parents' families. They were all lost and had no future. They were about to scatter into the world as future troubles. The situation was helpless. It was then brought under the jurisdiction of Linyuan Academy as a joint force of Jianghu.
According to the regulations set by Linyuan Academy, the canonization and supervision of these landscape gods are managed by Taoist official offices such as Qintianjian and Taoluyuan in various countries. Lu Zhengshen, as well as the local city gods and their subordinates, Tu Gong, Tu Tu Po and other gods, if they want to achieve a true Shinto golden body, they must first send a letter to Linyuan Academy for permission from Mingfa Dibao in the empire where they live. , and then the Taoist officials from the first lineage of the Taoist sect went to the place of sealing for inspection. Finally, the Imperial Daolu Academy asked the emperor to seal the decree and seal it together with the Taoist officials from the Middle Kingdom. Only in this way can he be qualified. Good luck all the way!
The Xue Chenghuang of the Liangzhou City God's Temple was the Yizhou City God who was jointly enthroned by the Chengyun Empire and the Taoist lineage, and had a very high status.
Among the various righteous gods in the Chengyun Empire, the Five Mountains Tiger, the Sidu Water God, and the City God of Chang'an, the capital city, are all first-class righteous gods. The second-ranking ones are, for example, the Tiger of the Five Mountains Chushan and the Sidu Water God. The first-class river god Hebo and the Shangzhou City God, the capital of the fifteen provinces under the empire, are second-class gods. The Xue Chenghuang of Liangzhou is the first-class second-class god this time. Longyou Dao The land of the city gods in various places within the jurisdiction of the city with a radius of thousands of miles is under his command.
It can be seen at a glance that Xue Chenghuang is a real frontier official in Shinto.
Of course, in addition to the various gods who have been officially canonized, there are also a few people who have not been canonized in some places where neither the government nor the gods can see it, but because there are people offering incense, they are also The half-way gods who can survive are because according to the rules of Shinto, half of the great supernatural powers of the righteous gods come from the seals of the imperial court and Daoluyuan, and the other half come from the incense offerings of the common people.
Concerning this matter, the most sage Confucian teacher who was most concerned about etiquette and rules once said: "Sacrificing something other than what it is intended to sacrifice is called obscene sacrifice. Obscene sacrifice brings no blessing."
Therefore, those who do not have the ability to get the approval of Linyuan Academy and get an imperial edict from the court are the evil priests. And those who are evil priests will be unlucky enough to meet a righteous monk or a righteous god. , there is no good fruit to eat. After all, if they are not canonized, they are not the legitimate gods of the country's mountains and rivers. These half-way gods who came from prostitutes, although they have incense but cannot be canonized, will have innate deficiencies. If they are not lucky enough to meet If a regular god wants to fight, it is equivalent to tying up half of the hands and feet before the fight begins. If you fight with your hands and feet tied up, you will not be able to take advantage.
It's not easy either.
Xue Chenghuang of Liangzhou is a local righteous god who has been enthroned by the imperial court and is highly respected by the people in Liangzhou. Although this Chenghuang never appears in front of the people, he is just a ghost in the eyes of ordinary people. God, but as long as the people who have lived in Liangzhou for a long time, they all know that the City God is very effective. Not only does he answer all requests, but for many things, as long as the people who offer incense sincerely and are willing to reason, they will basically get what they ask for. Because of this, the incense in Liangzhou City God's Temple is never bad, and there is an endless stream of people who come to offer incense on weekdays.
In the eyes of those Xianjia monks who have reached a certain level of cultivation, this Xue Chenghuang looks like the old man sitting under the pavilion in the backyard of Beilinguan. He and Li Qinghe, the governor of Liangzhou, are old neighbors who have lived next to each other for many years. It's not shallow. Dare to guarantee that the old Taoist priest can bring the chief governor over to help, and it's not just an empty lie.
The old Taoist accepted Xue Chenghuang's feelings, then slowly turned his head, facing the sword to the east of the town, and remained silent without saying much.
All causes and effects always have their destination. Today, in Yanguan Town, Liangzhou, everything is ready and waiting for the guests to come.
Let's wait for the vernal equinox tomorrow and wait for a dragon to raise its head!
