"Dad, what are you regretting? Zhuge Liang is not a good man," said a soft and sweet voice. "He said, 'He does not seek to be heard by the princes,' but he still likes to be in the limelight."
"What does a house of women know? Zhuge Wuhou has been famous for eternity and is a genius for all generations. How can he hide his sharpness?" The old man's voice did not sound like he was angry. "See how Liu Bei visited him three times before he was willing to see Liu Bei. This shows that he is cautious. He came out of the mountain only as a last resort.”
The girl chuckled and said, "Dad, if he didn't let Liu Bei go in vain three times on purpose, he wouldn't be able to show how precious he is."
"So I was reading the "Original Order"..." Yun Kong felt funny in his heart, and was determined not to let the father and daughter continue to quarrel, so he knocked on the door: "I'm sorry... I'm passing by your place, can I ask for directions?"
The conversation in the room immediately disappeared.
After waiting for a moment, there was still silence.
He pushed the door gently and found that it was unlocked.
He pushed the door open and went in. Behind the door was a large wasteland, with foxtail grass swaying in the cold wind and the needles of towering ancient pines rustling.
Yunkong was surprised. When he looked back, he saw that the door was gone.
He stood blankly in the wasteland, unable to find even a piece of wood or bamboo branch that could be used to build a house.
"It seems that we have met the real master." Yunkong sighed because he had no questions.
This wasteland is like an island in the sea, a rare flat land in this steep mountain.
Because the mountain road was too steep and narrow, after walking for an hour, Yun Kong felt his calves were very sore, so he decided to sit down and rest.
From this open space protruding from the mountain wall, you can overlook the small villages and meandering rivers at the foot of the mountain. Sparse clouds and mist are floating around like creatures swimming in the mountains.
Yunkong took a breath of fresh air and felt his whole lungs cool.
He closed his eyes, his heart was empty, and he almost forgot the purpose of going up the mountain.
Unconsciously, the sky turned yellow and turned into a bright orange-red.
Yun Kong lit a fire under the ancient pine, ate the dry food he had prepared, and planned to spend the night in a cave on the way.
He stared at the firelight and felt that the darkness outside the firelight was getting darker and darker. It was really dark. Even though he was surrounded by the light and warmth of the bonfire, he did not feel safe at all. Suddenly, he felt a chill, and he remembered that he was the only stranger here. Although he was used to walking in the wilderness, he couldn't help but feel a little scared here.
He missed his master and senior brother who had accompanied him for many years.
Thinking back to many years ago, Master Polu approved his fate for him. He knew his fate and knew that he would not die here and now, so he was not so afraid.
The few stars in the sky made him feel at ease. There was no need to go down to the cave and he could just sleep under this ancient pine tree.
He added some sticks to the bonfire, then lay down with his clothes on, half covering his face with a straw hat to protect him from the night dew.
Suddenly, the back of the straw hat lit up, and the surrounding became very warm.
Yun Kong opened his eyes in surprise and found that he was in a small hut.
The room was very warm. An earthen pot was burning briquettes, emitting steady heat and a light that filled the room but was not too bright.
There were no tables and chairs in the room. There were teapots and cups on the floor. An old man sat on the floor, accompanied by a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl.
The old man opened his mouth and said: "From what you said, you must be very clear about it."
The girl responded: "Yes."
Yun Kong was confused for a moment and didn't understand what was happening.
The old man pointed to the white cloth sign tied to the bamboo pole by Yun Kong, with the words "Divination and fortune telling. Strange and difficult diseases" written on it: "Can you help me take a look?"
The old man is short in stature, only reaching Yunkong's armpits. His face is flat and wrinkled, his nose is slender, his hair is like a lion's, and his limbs are uneven in length.
Looking at the girl again, she looks like an ordinary folk woman. She wears a kerchief on her upper body, which is longer than her knees, covering her lower body. The top is open to reveal a silk tube top. She also has a flat face, but is delicate and enchanting. She looks forward to it. Yun Kong smiled, a smile that seemed to take away his soul.
"No, no," Yun Kong thought to himself, "I can't look at them with ordinary people's eyes!" Because they are not human.
Yun Kong came back to his senses and asked hurriedly: "Old man, what did you just say clearly?"
"You're a fortune teller, Taoist Priest," the girl said, "What method do you have to tell your destiny?"
"Oh," Yun Kong smiled slightly: "You live in the mountains and avoid the world, why do you have to worry about it?"
"The peaceful days are just a fluke," the old man said without any expression on his face, "Sometimes there are hunters."
Yunkong felt that the other party did not intend to hide anything, so he went straight to the point: "Excuse me, father-in-law, are you..."
The old man's face darkened and he said sternly: "Taoist Master, it's just a matter of understanding, why do you need to be aggressive?" As he spoke, the surrounding walls suddenly became blurry.
Yun Kong was anxious and thought: "Rather than being cold outside, it would be better to live with the mountain spirits and ghosts." It was very warm here, but it was a cold day with gentle mountain breeze outside, so he hurriedly shouted: "Wait a minute! "
The hut remained again.
The old man and the girl looked at him sullenly.
"Please forgive me for being curious for a moment," Yun Kong bowed carefully: "I would like to apologize."
The expression on the old man's face became calmer: "It took us many years to cultivate our human form. I don't want to mention it."
"But," Yun Kong paused quickly, hesitating in his heart whether he should ask: "I... want to ask, why do you want to be a human being?"
"Isn't it good to be a good person?" the girl asked softly.
The old man didn't answer. Yun Kong's question aroused his deep thoughts.
"Although it has a human form, it is not a human being after all," Yun Kong said, "so I can't use human physiognomy to read your physiognomy for you."
"Can't you read your face?" The girl opened her big, spiritual eyes.
"It does not apply to palmistry or fortune telling of any part of the body."
"What if it's a birthday?" the girl asked again.
"Unless you have records." Yun Kong lowered his head and thought again: "It still doesn't work. The fortune-telling techniques are all based on the rules found by 'people'."
"Then how can we know the future?" The girl was a little impatient.
"Divination, only divination."
The old man then spoke: "Is it okay?"
"No problem," Yun Kong said, "There is no limit to divination. Everything from tangible 'things' to intangible 'things' can be divined."
"I don't understand." The girl pursed her lips and said.
"Okay," Yun Kong breathed out: "Faces and palmistry are invented based on the characteristics of a person, and fortune telling is based on the person's birth date, month, day, and time. Only divination does not require these conditions.
"Divination coincides with the movement of Qi in the heaven and earth. All things are born from the accumulation of Qi. Therefore, if the Qi of all things changes, or the Qi of heaven and earth changes, the two will react to each other. The method of divination is based on this to deduce the possibility of the correspondence between the two Qi. result."
"I understand," the girl raised her eyebrows and said, "Then do the math for me first."
Yun Kong put down the yellow cloth bag hanging on his shoulder, took out a palm-sized turtle shell from the bag, and then took out six copper coins wrapped in a red scarf, six very ancient copper coins.
Copper coins began in the Qin Dynasty, so the divination method after the Qin Dynasty added the "throwing money divination" using copper coins. Before that, most people used tortoise shells or ox blades to roast the fire to get images, or used yarrow to make calculations. Those who used the "weed method" were to obtain the six-yao hexagrams and divination based on the "Book of Changes" .
For the divination of copper coins, there are those who use six coins, with one coin representing one line; those who use five coins, such as the "Maqian Lesson" taught by Zhuge Wuhou.
What Yunkong used was the "Fire Pearl Forest" method using three copper coins. It is said to have been created by Taoist Mai Yi in the late Tang and early Song Dynasties, and was based on the I Ching theory of Jingfang in the Western Han Dynasty.
"Before I make any calculations, I want to know something first. I wonder if I would mind, sir?" Yun Kong said, glancing at the old man.
"ask."
"Are you mandrills?"
The old man's face quickly darkened again: "Why do you ask?"
“I want to know who I’m accounting for.”
"Okay," the old man looked directly at him, nodded and said, "We are mandrills."
"Thank you." Yun Kong avoided the old man's scorching eyes, and then the girl's seductive eyes, and returned his gaze to the six copper coins in his hand.
He took out only three of them and put them into the turtle shell.
Yunkong held the turtle shell with both hands, half-closed his eyes, and inhaled the Dantian in one breath. It circulated throughout his body for a week, and his mind completely calmed down.
"Concentration of mind," he thought.
A strange heat surged from his brain, flowed down his back, penetrated his arms, and reached his palms.
His hand began to vibrate.
The turtle shell was shaken, and the copper coins collided with each other and the turtle shell, making a crisp sound.
ring.
