The wind picked up, and the grass all over the ground swayed weakly, sighing for the singing of the clouds.
"The soul is here, the soul is here! Leave the king's happy place, don't return, don't go back, the joy of the world will not last long, the joy of heaven and earth will last forever..."
After the elegy was finished, a long shallow pit had been dug in the sky.
He dragged Yankong to the pit and asked him to lie on his back in the pit, but only the back half of his body entered the pit, while the front half was exposed to the ground. The wild wind made Yankong's beard flutter leisurely.
While Yun Kong pushed the soil onto Yan Kong's body, he sang again: "The soul is full of soul. The birds and kites are eating above, and the ants are eating below. Isn't it a joy to sacrifice one's body and all things, to give blood to vegetation?"
Tired of singing and tiring of pulling the soil, Yun Kong sat aside to rest and watched Yan Kong's face exposed outside the soil for the last time.
He estimated that in twenty days, only a pile of dead bones would be left in front of Zhao's tomb.
After staying with Yankong for a while longer, Yunkong returned to the hut, packed his bags, and hit the road again.
After seeing river boats, especially those used for canal purposes, Yun Kong already found it very incredible.
Yunkong was even more surprised when he saw the ship.
How could anyone build something as big as a temple on the water?
The structure of sea-going ships is larger and more complex, and they can travel longer distances in larger waters. Unlike river ships, which can still reach the shore, the vast ocean is more desolate. Once swallowed by the ocean, there will be no bones left.
What kind of world are these ships going to?
Yun Kong strolled along the edge of the port, watching the crowds of people rushing here and there like flowing water. Workers were loading goods onto the ships. There were also many people on the ships, and it was unclear what they were busy with.
The workers looked skinny and skinny, with complexions like oiled mud. From their sunken bellies and protruding ribs, it was also apparent that their hard work resulted in a meager amount of food and clothing.
There are also many foreigners on the pier, some with long curly reddish-brown beards, wearing turbans, and colorful robes, and they speak foreign languages that are completely incomprehensible.
The various foreigners made Guangzhou completely different from other cities. Yunkong felt that he was in a foreign land outside the Song Dynasty.
After staying here for a long time, he gradually learned that the imperial court had a special "Shifang Division" here to manage the incoming and outgoing ships and trade, as well as a residential area specifically for foreigners. There were even foreigners working in the Municipal Boat Division.
Yunkong shuttled among the crowd, and the conversations of businessmen, workers, hawkers, and prostitutes slipped past his ears. He found an open space, rested his feet, sat on the ground, and put up a white cloth banner. The dim yellow strips of cloth were swaying with ink. The eight characters "Divination and fortune-telling, strange and complicated diseases" have faded.
He sat quietly, waiting for someone to ask him for answers, and watched people coming and going. He did not think about the philosophy of life as before, and he had no intention of sitting quietly, meditating, and cultivating the way to immortality.
There is a person in his heart. As soon as he closes his eyes, Hongye's face will immediately appear in front of his eyes. This situation has been going on for three years and has never been interrupted since Hongye left.
In this situation, he had no intention of practicing at all, because the image of Hongye was clearer when he closed his eyes than when he opened them, and when he was awake than when he fell asleep. She was always and everywhere, and sometimes he suddenly fell into a daze and was shocked. I am missing the red leaves.
But today for some unknown reason, he suddenly had a thought in his mind, and felt that the cause and conditions were sufficient, so he put away the white cloth and found a place under the shade to cross his legs, half-closed his eyes, and began to meditate for a long time.
Sure enough, he entered the situation smoothly today, but after a while, he felt as if he had fallen into a deep hole and immediately entered a meditative state, as if this moment had been waiting for him for a long time.
Once he enters the meditative state, various pictures suddenly jump out in front of his eyes like a revolving lantern. Countless pictures pass by in just one minute, taking all his experiences in this life, whether they are remembered or forgotten, and even the past. Hundreds, hundreds, and thousands of memories flashed by at lightning speed.
In an instant, Yun Kong saw all the ins and outs, and remembered countless things that he had deliberately wanted to forget. He couldn't help but burst into tears. Even in meditation, he still shed two tears.
He suddenly understood that coming to this port today was not accidental or fate, but subconsciously, he had wanted to do this for a long time.
Not long after, the scorching sun rose in the sky, and the shadows on the ground shrank and hid under their master's feet.
A man walked up to Yun Kong, blocking the sunlight: "Taoist priest, how much does it cost to take the road ahead?"
Yun Kong suddenly opened his eyes in meditation, his figure blurred by tears. He wiped his tears and replied: "It only takes ten pieces of gold for hexagrams, and a hundred golds for fortune."
The man pondered for a while: "I want to go to a very far place, not in the middle-earth. Is this accurate?"
"It's the same wherever you go with your mobile phone."
Yun Kong raised his head to look at the man, and saw that he had a rough, dark complexion with a weathered appearance, a strong body, but a delicate face, and the sad eyes of a scholar, "Are you going to sea?"
The man chuckled: "I want to go to the South China Sea to do business."
"The South China Sea?" Yun Kong couldn't help but ask himself, "What kind of world will it be?"
He couldn't help but wonder, what kind of world would those foreign businessmen live in?
The man looked around for a moment, then sat down: "Taoist priests are cultivators and seek immortality. Haven't you ever heard that there are immortal mountains overseas?"
Yunkong said: "Sir, don't you have to go to work?"
"I am the owner of the ship, and it is also rest time now."
Yun Kong took a look and saw that no one was working around. The workers were looking for a shady place to eat and drink, some were napping, and some were staring eagerly at others eating.
Only then did Yun Kong realize that although the young man in front of him was not amazing in appearance, he had a great background: "Have you ever seen the fairy mountain when you went to sea?"
"There are indeed beautiful mountains. I don't know if they are considered fairy mountains. The local people respect the mountain as their ancestral mountain and are not allowed to go up the mountain for free."
The person said, "Although there are many strange people and foreign countries, compared with the "Book of Mountains and Seas", they are much inferior."
"The Classic of Mountains and Seas"? Yun Kong's eyes lit up, "Have you read this book, sir?"
The man nodded and said, "My father has a rich collection of books. I left some on the boat. The trip to the South China Sea is long, so I will read in my spare time."
It was rare for someone to talk to him about the collection of books, and he seemed very happy: "Because we were traveling through the South China Sea, I even read the Great Wilderness Southern Classics and Overseas Southern Classics a few more times."
"The Classic of Mountains and Seas" is divided into "The Classic of Mountains" and "The Classic of Seas". The so-called "Classic" describes the names of mountains, countries, strange people, gods, animals and plants that pass by in different directions, with a total of eighteen volumes.
It is believed to have been compiled by different authors in different eras, but at that time it was believed to have been compiled by Liu Xiu of the Western Han Dynasty.
"The "Overseas Southern Classic" contains the Kingdom of Jiexiong, the Kingdom of Yumin, and the Kingdom of Xiantou with bird wings and beaks. The paintings are all kinds of strange and strange, and I have never seen any of them." The man was mocking the ancient book. , still regretting not being able to see the characters in the ancient books in person, "Most of the scrolls have faded or are broken, and I can't see some of the pictures clearly..."
Yun Kong asked in surprise: "Wait a minute, your "Book of Mountains and Seas" has pictures?"
The man was startled after hearing this: "The Classic of Mountains and Seas is just a picture scroll."
Yunkong felt his mouth was dry and he couldn't breathe for a while, because the "Book of Mountains and Seas" he had ever seen had only text but no pictures. It was not until the Ming and Qing dynasties hundreds of years later that anyone illustrated it.
But it is said that "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" originally had pictures, and pictures and texts coexisted.
Another theory is that "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" was originally a scroll of pictures, and the texts in the legend are actually annotations of the pictures.
The original pictures of "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" have been lost for a long time. Yunkong couldn't help but feel excited: "May I ask your Excellency, where did the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" collected by your Majesty come from?"
Seeing how cautious Yun Kong was, the man couldn't help but look serious: "Have you had your meal, Taoist priest?"
"What? Uh... not yet."
"In that case, please move to the boat. Let's look at the pictures and have a meal at the same time. Do you want to show your appreciation?"
"Don't talk about eating," Yun Kong said, "seeing this picture will make me full for three days."
"By the way," the man stood up and bowed, "I am the captain of the ship. My surname is Liang and my name is Daoqing."
Yun Kong also returned the greeting: "I am a poor man, Yun Kong."
He followed Liang Daoqing on board the ship. The smell of new paint came from the ship. Thick ropes that he had never seen before were thicker than arms. They were crouching lazily on the ground like giant snakes. Sailors with skin like fine iron were on the deck. Busy on the road.
Looking down from the ship, the port looks like a busy ant nest, with various characters shuttling between the goods, as if trapped in a maze, helpless and hesitant.
