The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer. The leaves on the trees are thinning day by day, and the birds in the morning have disappeared and no longer call.
Under Zichun's careful care, there are still a few clusters of blooming flowers in the yard, but most of the rest have gradually withered, leaving a desolate scene.
Life in a poor family is not as interesting as imagined. Cultivation and studies are two eternal themes. But since Ji Yang and Rang Qilang came to train the two of them, Ye Changshan and Yingping discovered that their intensity of practice was very different. It could be said that they were no longer on the same level.
Since that time, Ye Changshan has to increase the intensity of any training he does. He also has to tie sandbags to his feet when he goes to fetch water from the mountainside. He also carries out some daily exercises. He even has to carry the big bag that day. Stones are carried out. At first, he was exhausted until he died, but as time went by, Ye Changshan slowly accepted this intensity. After feeling his progress, Ye Changshan took the initiative to ask for an increase in intensity, even though he did not know how many senior brothers he was. Why did he train himself like this? But he always practiced hard based on the principle of "senior brothers and sisters are for their own good".
As for Yingping, at first he was secretly happy when he saw that his training load was much lighter than that of Ye Changshan. However, as time went on, the gap became apparent. The two teenagers were originally about the same size and strength, but now Ye Changshan was stronger than him. Much stronger and more toned. Young people are always crazy, and their desire to win will always suppress laziness, so that Yingping also secretly expressed his wishes to the third uncle, but the third uncle refused without hesitation every time, which made Yingping Extremely depressing.
However, as the days went by, one thing improved, that is, the scope of activities of the two of them increased. This was also due to Ye Changshan's starting to take charge of the spoon.
Ever since Ye Changshan started taking charge of everyone's meals, he has been extremely attentive. When he was in the village, he would have helped his mother make home-cooked meals, but now that he was cooking for his senior brothers and sisters, he had to pay even more attention to it. In addition to practicing and studying in daily life, what he thinks about the most is how to cook. Ye Changshan is very talented in this area. In just a few days, he has been unanimously praised by everyone.
The more he was encouraged, the more energetic he became. In the days to come, Ye Changshan would often go to the mountains to hunt small animals and come back to satisfy everyone's appetite. Therefore, during this period, as long as the two of them don't go down the mountain, it doesn't matter if they just walk around in the mountain.
…
Winter is here as promised.
The winter on Qianniu Mountain seems to be stronger and colder than that in Chang'an City.
Every morning, Yingping longed to stay in the warm bed for a moment longer, but Uncle San would ruthlessly walk to the bed and lift off his quilt. The biting cold wind would always wake him up instantly. , because this feeling is too uncomfortable. Now as long as Ji Yang and Yingping knock on the door, they will consciously get up to avoid suffering the "biting cold".
But there was something unusual today. After the rooster crowed three times, Ji Yang and Qiu did not appear.
Yingping was still lying in bed dreaming about Duke Zhou. In fact, he had woken up just now, but he accidentally closed his eyes. As soon as he closed his eyes, he fell back to sleep, and actually had a dream about washing himself. , started practicing early in the morning - it was so comfortable, this dream was so real that Yingping didn't even realize he was in a dream.
Yingping suddenly dreamed that Yi Hongyan appeared behind him. He wanted to turn around and say hello to his adoptive father, but unexpectedly he also turned around on the bed. This turn pulled up the quilt and exposed his entire back - another burst of The biting coldness brought Yingping back to reality from his sleep. In a daze, Yingping thought that the third uncle came to lift his quilt again. He was so frightened that he sat up and shouted——
"No, no, no - I'm getting up right now!"
But when he sat up and took a closer look, there was no third master uncle there?
After all this trouble, Yingping felt no sleep at all and was actually more awake than after lifting the quilt. After all, this time in addition to the cold, he was also frightened.
When he left the door, Yingping found that it was already bright and Ye Changshan was already stretching his muscles in the courtyard, but his third uncle did not appear at the familiar position.
"Changshan, where is Uncle Ji?"
"I don't know. I just knocked on his door and there was no response."
"Oh, I wish I could sleep a little longer..."
"Hurry up and have something to eat. Third Senior Brother is not here, so let's take care of ourselves."
Yingping yawned, went to the kitchen to eat something, then came to the courtyard and consciously started practicing for half a day.
...
It was almost noon, and Ye Changshan and Yingping had completed today's practice, but Ji Yang and Ji Yang still hadn't shown up, and even Wen Junchen and Zichun hadn't seen anyone all morning.
Have you gone down the mountain?
Yingping looked up and saw that the door to Ji Yang's room was not closed. Yingping couldn't help being curious, so he pulled Ye Changshan up to the second floor and came to the door of Ji Yangyu's house.
"Uncle Ji? Are you inside?" Yingping tentatively called inside, but received no response.
Ying Ping plucked up the courage to poke his head inside and knocked on the door a few times to confirm that no one was inside, then he looked around and walked in.
Ye Changshan thought something was wrong, but when he saw that there was no one inside, he followed Yingping in.
Ji Yangyu's house is full of things, but it is very clean and tidy. Although there is not much space left, everything looks in order. Several pairs of cloth shoes were neatly placed under the bed, and the clothes were neatly folded and placed aside - especially since these clothes were all of the same color and style. It was no wonder that the two of them always felt that Ji Yang and Ji Yang only had one piece of clothing. , and wondered why he only wore this one but it wasn't dirty.
The most amazing thing is that the whole house is filled with books. From the bedside to the desk, from the window sill to the wardrobe, every corner where books can be placed is filled with books.
Yingping picked up a book called "Northern Barbarians' Strange Stories" from the bedside. The book was still creased, so it was estimated that Uncle Ji was reading it.
I gently opened the book and saw a line of small and elegant characters in the blank space on the first page: "Those who offend our Central Plains will be punished no matter how far away they are."
Although this line of small characters cannot be said to be beautiful like Wen Junchen's, there is a sense of domineering and arrogance hidden in it, and a strong "plot" of the Central Plains is faintly exuded from this line of small characters.
Browsing through this book, the content in the book is just a general overview of the Northern Barbarians for thousands of years. It covers a wide range of topics, including physical characteristics, humanities and customs, etc., including the inhumane events more than a hundred years ago. It is no wonder that Ji Yangyu left this sentence on the front of the book.
Yingping flipped through it again and found the book uninteresting, so he closed it and put it back to its original place. He couldn't help but wonder why this third uncle was so boring and could still read this kind of book.
Looking at the books in the room, Ye Changshan sighed: "How come Third Senior Brother reads all the books!"
Yingping turned around and saw Ye Changshan holding several books in his hand. He took a look at them and found that these books covered a wide range of fields, from agriculture to medicine, from humanities to anecdotes, from the history of various countries to princes. Secrets and unofficial histories of generals and ministers...it can be said that it has everything you need. It is truly a small library.
"Huh? This book is..."
Ye Changshan suddenly found a book on the window sill. It looked older than the other books, but the five big characters on the cover were still very clear - "The Biography of Mr. Wealthy Family".
Ye Changshan's eyes were attracted. He stepped forward and picked up the book and opened it gently. He saw that it read——
'Chen Laoba, a native of Yingdu, Southern Chu. In the 640th year of the Central Plains, the Northern Barbarians rebelled in the Central Plains. He led the heroes of all countries to resist and drive them away. He was the beacon of the Central Plains, the leader of the heroes, the king of all countries, and the people of the Central Plains. Everyone calls him sir...'
It turns out that the teacher’s name is so rustic, it’s Chen Laoba...
Ye Changshan thought to himself that although he had heard too many stories about the teacher he had never met before, he did not know his real name or ancestral home. Even if he met the teacher in the future, he would not ask directly, right? It’s just that I don’t know who wrote this book. What is expressed between the lines is not only naked admiration, but also a clear understanding of the teacher’s life experience.
Ye Changshan continued to flip through a few pages. Most of them introduced how the teacher led the Central Plains patriots to fight against the Northern Barbarians and how to create a poor family. However, exaggerated words such as "taking heaven and earth as teachers" and "feeding on the breath of heaven and earth" made him feel that this was not the case. The book is mediocre.
It was the thing mentioned in the last part of the book that interested him a little - the 'Midnight Troubles'.
The book introduces the story of a warrior with a very high level of cultivation who broke into the palace of the Northern Wei Dynasty at night. No one even knew the name of this warrior before this. Looking at the entire Central Plains at that time, there was only one strong man above Tianshu. There were only a handful of Ji experts, but a madman at the peak of Tianji appeared out of nowhere. He was murderous. After breaking into the Wei Palace, he slaughtered hundreds of people until the teacher arrived and subdued him.
A madman at the peak of Tianji? Dare you break into the Northern Wei Palace at night? He killed hundreds of people in a row and no one could stop him?
Ye Changshan couldn't help but wonder, could a practitioner reach such a state? Then... what else does the army do?
Seeing Ye Changshan's face full of questions, Yingping took the book in his hand and started browsing. Yingping's eyes widened as his eyes moved, obviously shocked by the contents of the book.
Who is this human being? Is there nothing the Wei Imperial Army can do against him? By the way, the master of thatched cottage should have been a strong man in the Tianji realm at that time. How could it be...
"Oh my god, what on earth is this madman trying to do?" Yingping was so shocked that he couldn't open his mouth from ear to ear.
"I don't know what he wants to do. It's not written in the book... I'm just surprised. The power of one practitioner is so huge? Can't it be resisted by thousands of people?"
Yingping was stunned for a moment. He had not thought about this aspect, but after hearing what Ye Changshan said, he picked up the book and looked at it carefully, and he couldn't help but be surprised.
In the past few decades, the Northern Wei Dynasty's national power was far stronger than that of the New Tang Dynasty, but why did they not dare to invade? Maybe it was Shi Chu Wuming, or maybe General Chang Zhishan guarded the border, but rather than saying these, it is better to say that Mr. guarded New Tang Dynasty and protected the peace of the Central Plains.
At this time, the two of them had a clearer understanding of the image of the "Guardian of the Central Plains" - the gentleman is not only able to protect against foreigners, he can also keep his family at bay!
Thinking of this, the two of them yearned for the strong even more. A lunatic at the peak of Tianji can attack the Wei Palace, which has one of the highest levels of martial law in the world, and almost massacre the entire imperial city. How capable is a practitioner as strong as Tianshu realm? No wonder all countries rely on these practitioners so much. Just their intimidation power can be regarded as a barrier against foreign enemies, right?
How capable is that gentleman? Against a thousand enemies? Against ten thousand people?
For a time, the glorious image of Mr. in the minds of the two of them became a little taller. Thinking of this master and ancestor they had never met before, it was like Mount Tai towering above them, making people look up.
"No wonder the status of practitioners has increased day by day in recent years, and all the countries in the Central Plains are willing to spend a lot of money to train them or treat them as honored guests."
"Yes, the lethality of practitioners... is really terrifying..."
"Then if practitioners are so powerful, wouldn't each country form an army of practitioners..."
"If cultivation is as simple as you say, then why are the countries and forces in the Central Plains so thirsty for 'virtuous people'?"
Just as the two were discussing selflessly, Ji Yang and his unhurried voice suddenly floated in from outside the door. This sound really startled the two of them, and Yingping quickly closed the book in his hand and threw it back to its original place.
Ji Yangyu walked in slowly, and first went to the bedside to straighten the book "The Strange Stories of the Northern Barbarians" so that it was flush with the edge of the bed, exactly the same. Then he placed the books that the two of them had touched one by one. Strangely enough, although Ji Yang and Yu were not in the room, he could tell at a glance which book had been touched.
"Three...Third senior brother (uncle)..."
Yingping and Ye Changshan greeted each other softly like children who had done something wrong.
Ji Yangyu walked up to the two of them and saw that they were worried about being scolded. He did not show any dissatisfaction or displeasure, but said lightly——
"A strong Tianji can defeat a hundred, a strong Tianshu can defeat ten thousand, and the Wei Dynasty boasts an army of 800,000. Even if you have ten or twenty strong Tianshu, and the army is approaching, Why should I be afraid of you?"
Ji Yangyu explained while casually picking up the biography that Yingping had just thrown aside. He rubbed his corners and continued -
"No matter how sharp the sword is, it will become blunt if you keep cutting it. Tianshu and Tianji are also human beings, and they cannot keep cutting it."
Seeing that Ji Yangyu seemed to be lifeless, Yingping became bolder and asked: "In that case...why is Wei so afraid of us?"
Ji Yanghe's expression became serious and he said, "Remember, the practitioner - he is there to do things."
"Doing something?"
"Yes, the higher your cultivation level, the bigger things you can do."
The two fell silent. This sentence may be a bit far away for the two teenagers.
"The words "Ten Thousand Arms Takes the General's Head" are not just casual remarks.
Upon hearing this, the two nodded thoughtfully, as if they gradually understood the meaning of this sentence.
"You're afraid, so you don't dare to act rashly?" Ye Changshan said slightly doubtfully.
Ji Yangyu nodded.
The so-called 'big responsibility from heaven' is just that, right? The higher the practitioner's cultivation level, the greater the 'responsibility'. Even if you have thousands of troops, there is only one general. Wei is a vast country with countless people, but there is only one emperor...and only one female prime minister...if With your reckless aggression, you have to consider your own safety, right? Perhaps the 'Midnight Difficulty' mentioned in the book is the best example.
After thinking about this, the two people's understanding of 'cultivation' has risen to a higher level, and their expectations for 'cultivation' have also increased a lot. Just as the two were about to ask more questions, they suddenly heard Ji Yang say calmly -
"I don't like people coming into my room."
There was a brief silence in the room, and the two of them were daydreaming about practice, but Ji Yang and Yu didn't give them much time to fantasize.
The two of them were pulled back by Ji Yangyu's voice, stunned for a moment, and then laughed at the same time.
"Hey... hehe... we... aren't we worried about you because you didn't show up this morning..."
"I don't like others touching my books either."
"Hey......"
The two stood there laughing awkwardly, unable to even think of words to defend themselves. Although the two of them are not particularly afraid of Ji Yangyu, because Ji Yangyu is not as serious as Wen Junchen, nor as cold as Qilang, nor as 'nagging' as Zichun, but facing this person who gets along day and night, The third senior brother from a humble family, the two of them have a natural sense of awe, maybe this is the aura of a strong person.
"If you like any books, I can give them to you. However, you can't read my books privately." Ji Yangyu said without mercy.
"Yes...yes...I won't dare next time..."
"There are all kinds of books in our library. You two can go there and borrow them."
"Yes Yes..."
"But remember, you are not allowed to borrow books on practicing the 'Breath of Heaven and Earth'. Violators will be punished by the sect rules."
The two of them nodded like chickens pecking at rice, for fear that Ji Yangyu might not see their statement.
"Choose a few of these books for you."
"ah?"
"No waiting after the due date."
"oh!"
Faced with Ji Yangyu's 'gift', the two of them had to accept it even if they didn't want to. So, the two of them carefully looked for books that they were 'interested in'.
"Uncle Master, why don't you go to the library to read books? Why do you have to buy so many books yourself?"
“I read all those books within a year of starting my studies.”
Less than a year? Read them all?
Yingping stuck out his tongue secretly. They had been to Hanmen Library. It was in a small building not far to the west of the courtyard. It was only a few hundred steps away. Although the small building is not big, there is nothing in it except books. There are tens of thousands or more at least. It is really full of variety and everything you need. It’s not easy to read them all, let alone within one year? I'm afraid it's really just one glance and ten lines.
The two of them selected a few books from the book collection and took them in their hands, then looked at Ji Yangyu as if asking for instructions.
Ji Yangyu nodded and motioned for the two of them to leave. As if they were pardoned, the two of them nodded and thanked them, then ran out quickly and returned to their respective rooms.
