The letter is only two lines and four characters long.
It's safe.
Keep the Tao.
Is this an answer to his question?
Is it safe? ——It’s safe.
What do you want to do, where do you want to go? ——Keep the Tao.
Keep the Tao...!
In the deepest part of Chu Taifu's heart, these two familiar words suddenly stirred up a storm.
He still has another question...the most important one...why?
At first glance, there was no third line of answer on the letter, but the signature was formally written.
It's a five-character signature...
"Safe"
"Keep the Way"
"Student, Chang Sui Ning"
"..."
student?
student!
The old man's vision suddenly became hazy.
As the old man trembled and blinked, the handwriting on the letter also trembled, as if it were a letter from outside, extremely unreal.
Looking at the trembling nine characters, Mrs. Chu whispered hoarsely, "...Teacher has nine characters, and the student can't write one more? I'm asking for a beating, I really beg for a beating..."
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He looked at her steadily and said to her word by word: "Death is a thousand times more terrifying than death..."
"Every time you go to the battlefield, you may die." She said, "For students, they are all just adhering to the Tao, there is no difference."
He finally fell silent in anger.
I vaguely remember that he gradually became unwilling to look at her anymore, and slowly turned around, facing the window spirit behind the bookcase, facing her only with his back.
"Since you are so stubborn and stupid...then let's go." After a long time, he said: "I just pretend that I have never taught you as a student."
He didn't see her expression and didn't know what her expression was at that time.
Will you feel lost or sad?
I don't think she would!
After an unknown amount of time, he heard the sound of her gently putting down the tea cup.
Her tone was still very offensive, and it seemed that she was really not sad. She even said shamelessly, "Teacher, don't be so angry. The student will come back alive to support you in your old age."
He said nothing, his expression still tense and angry.
Then, she was probably giving a salute, and finally said: "Teacher, the students have gone."
Go for it!
Go and keep your way!
Until she left and closed the door of the study, he never looked back.
Did he say angry words that night?
of course.
So, he quickly regretted it.
Later, he thought, if he had not been angry with her as a little brat at that time, if he had said to her, "Take care and come back alive to support me in my old age," would she have thought about her a little more, right? ...won’t he die in a foreign land?
This thought was like a cone, it would pierce his heart whenever he thought of it, so he didn't dare to think about it easily and shut it up tightly.
So, he would just call her a liar over and over again.
This liar student...is back now.
Before she could get to know him, she went to keep her ways again.
Looking at those two words, Master Chu let out a complicated laugh and sigh.
He is also a liar.
In fact, he never blamed her, never felt that she was at fault, never felt that she was not living up to expectations, and never felt that her teaching was "in vain."
On the contrary, as a teacher, he is very proud to have such a student.
He was really just too distressed, too distressed.
This simple word of "keeping the Tao" cost her blood, life and self-esteem. As a teacher, she was better than a father. How could he not feel distressed?
This heartbreaking pain led to regret and unwillingness to reconcile with the world in this life, making him wish he could be the enemy of all principles in the world.
But his stupid student, whose ambition to keep the Tao could coexist with heaven and earth, jumped to death, and came back. This ambition was still alive, and she still told him as a matter of course that she wanted to keep the Tao, and she was keeping the Tao.
Master Chu took a deep breath and shed tears on the letter.
"It would be nice to come back..." He looked at the letter, smiled with tears in his eyes and whispered slowly, "It would be nice to come back."
Just keep it if you want, and just come back.
Mrs. Chu looked at the closed study door and seemed to see the scene when the girl exited and closed the door thirteen years ago.
This door has been closed for thirteen years.
Now, he finally saw the girl push the door open again, and after thirteen years, she returned to him again.
He slowly stood up from the chair, put the letter away, and took out a painting.
The old man moved slowly and carefully, and hung the painting that he had taken back from Dayun Temple in the twelfth lunar month in a place where he could see it when he looked up from his seat.
He didn't dare to hang up before because he was afraid of failure, but now he's not afraid anymore.
Outside the study, the night sky was rising, spreading between heaven and earth.
A boy of twelve or thirteen years old ran over and was stopped outside the study by an old servant.
"...I want to invite my grandfather to watch the lanterns together!" the young man said with bright eyes.
The old servant was startled and stopped the young man, trembling with fear.
He was frightened and said: "Junior Shiba, please don't mess around..."
If you dare to invite Mr. Lang to see the lanterns, you will risk your life!
How could the old man join in such fun, let alone a family going out together.
Just as the young boy was about to open his mouth to speak, the door to the study room opened from the inside and his grandfather came out.
"Grandpa!" The young man saluted hurriedly: "Father asked his grandson to invite you out to see the lanterns!"
The old servant sighed in his heart that people's hearts are sinister. This father really doesn't care about his son's life or death.
"Lanterns?" Mr. Chu glanced at the full moon of the Lantern Festival and said with a smile, "Okay, let's go and see it!"
The old servant was stunned.
what happened?
Recently, have you been talking about Buddhism and the path to enlightenment?
The young man was also overjoyed and hurriedly stepped forward to help his grandfather's arm.
Taifu Chu had a smile on his face and no longer disliked his grandson's clinginess.
He only has two sons, and neither of them entered the official position at his request. They spend their days with calligraphy and painting, and are quite famous in the literary world.
But the bad thing is that he is too busy, and he often gives birth to children, turning his family into a cicada nest. He has almost twenty grandchildren, and this is the youngest one. My grandson is the naughtiest and loves to poke his nose and face.
Now, Taifu Chu suddenly realized the cuteness of his little grandson. He was a scoundrel and had a bright nature, so there was nothing wrong with him.
But as soon as he walked out of the courtyard, Master Chu suddenly stopped and changed his mind and didn't want to go.
At the Shangyuan Lantern Festival, the crowds were mixed. At his age, what would happen if he bumped into each other?
And with spring approaching, the nobles' overt and covert counterattacks became more and more dangerous. How many people were staring at him, hoping that something unexpected would happen to him.
The little grandson looked at the old man who suddenly changed his mind in confusion: "Grandpa..."
"Grandpa is afraid of death." Taifu Chu smiled and touched his grandson's head: "Grandpa wants to live longer than a hundred years."
The little grandson blinked.
Is this still his grandfather who always talks about "death is clean", "that's all there is to life", and "it's better to go to the grave as soon as possible"?
"Okay, you can go on your own." Taifu Chu said with a smile, "When you come back, just bring a lantern to your grandfather."
He wanted to hang a lantern in the yard to honor the well-meaning gods, Buddhas and demons.
He also needed to hang a lamp until his student returned, just like she always did when she went to war.
Now, he finally has students to wait for and a return date to look forward to.
"This is the greatest blessing in life..."
Taifu Chu looked at the full moon with his hands behind his hands, smiled and sighed, then suddenly raised his hand and paused in front of him, assuming the posture of a martial artist on the stage.
He sang in a Qin tune: "The general's orders are passed in the treasure tent, and the three armies, big and small, listen. Hundreds of thousands of troops are surging like a tide. Don't stop chasing Liu Bei!"
Old servant: "...?"
Why are you still singing!
And it was Wu Sheng who sang... Why did it suddenly become so exciting?
Seeing the old master pretending to leave, staring at him with a pair of opera faces, the old servant weighed his sleeves, and could only pretend to be on the stage, and sang: "Liu Bei immediately burst into tears and cried, Brother Liu Zong, King of Jingxiang ..."
"..."
On the good night of the Shangyuan Dynasty, there was a lot of drama in the old lady's courtyard, and the performance was very lively.
…
Tonight, the capital was extremely lively. There was no curfew in the city, and the lanterns illuminated the entire capital as brightly as day.
Thousands of lantern festivals are held in both the east and west cities. As far as the eye can see, everything is gorgeous. This prosperous night seems to be real and illusory, making people temporarily forget the turmoil and war outside the capital.
Today happened to be the day when Qiao Yumian came to Changfu to see Dr. Sun for a follow-up eye examination. When she left Xingningfang, she met Yao Xia, Wei Miaoqing and others, and was dragged to the lantern festival with them.
Although they were going to a lantern festival, a group of girls gathered together, and they couldn't stop talking about Chang Suining.
Qiao Yumian will also
The information she knew about Ning Ning was shared with other ladies, but she was reserved and mostly just listened.
Her eyes were still covered with light blue silk cloth, and there was a faint interplay of light and shadow in front of her eyes, which made her want to reach out and touch it.
The lights and shadows were mottled in color and were still a bit dazzling through the silk cloth. After taking a few more steps, Qiao Yumian faintly saw a group of shadows walking towards her quickly in the haze.
She couldn't see clearly what it was, until she heard the screams and scoldings of the girls who were traveling with her.
"How can you be so reckless!"
"Which husband is this?"
"..."
"Cui Liulang?" Qiao Yumian asked tentatively.
"It's me!" Cui Lang grinned and said breathlessly: "...I thought you were just teasing me! It turns out that Miss Qiao really came to the lantern festival!"
Qiao Yumian curled up her lips: "Why is Cui Liulang running so fast?"
Just as Cui Lang was about to speak, the voices of Qiao Yubai, Hu Huan and others came from behind him.
Qiao Yubai came over and looked at Cui Lang strangely. When he heard that Mianmian was coming to the lantern festival, how could Cui Liulang run faster than his brother!
Although she had met her brother, Qiao Yumian still preferred to go to the lantern festival with the girls such as Yao Xia, Wu Chunbai, etc. Qiao Yubai had to give her maid some advice.
Soon, Qiao Yubai was dragged by several classmates to guess lantern riddles.
Since the news of Chang Suining's deeds spread in the capital, Qiao Yubai became "Mrs. Chang's only brother in the capital now". His worth has increased even more and he is extremely popular.
Yao Xia held Qiao Yumian's arm and walked around for a long time, and finally couldn't help but whispered: "Sister Qiao...Why is Cui Liulang following us all the time?"
Qiao Yumian was surprised and subconsciously looked back.
Seeing her "looking", Cui Lang knew she was looking but not seeing him, but he turned away guiltily and ordered a pot randomly: "Go and buy me that butterfly lantern!"
A pot: "...what does the husband want with the butterfly lantern?"
Cui Lang's face turned pale when he heard this, and he raised his foot and kicked a pot: "I'm the one who cares about you!"
A pot can only cover your butt and buy a lamp.
Qiao Yumian pursed her lips and smiled, then turned her head.
Yao Xia's round eyes moved, and after a moment, he whispered in Qiao Yumian's ear: "Sister Qiao, why do I feel that Cui Liulang seems..."
Before she finished speaking, she suddenly heard a shout: "Axia!"
It was the voice of her brother Yao Gui.
Yao Xia stopped and followed the sound.
Yao Gui squeezed through the crowd and came quickly, looking very anxious.
Yao Xia handed Qiao Yumian's hand to Wei Miaoqing, and then went to the side to talk with his brother: "Brother, what happened?"
Yao Gui was out of breath: "It's Ran Mei..."
"Cousin?" Yao Xia immediately became nervous: "What's wrong with cousin?"
There was so much noise everywhere that Yao Gui couldn't speak clearly, so he said, "Follow me back quickly. We'll tell you more on the way!"
Yao Xia did not dare to be careless, so she nodded quickly, explained to her companions that "there is something urgent at home," and hurriedly left the lantern festival with her brother.
When the brother and sister rushed back to Yao's house, they went directly to Mrs. Yao.
The whole family was there, and Yao Yi stood beside the old lady, looking at his daughter who could not kneel down with a complicated expression.
Yao Xia was sweating from running, and after hurriedly saluting the elders, she rushed to the kneeling Yao Ran, grabbed one of Yao Ran's hands, and said urgently: "...Why must my cousin become a monk?" "
My cousin has been worshiping Buddha in her small Buddhist hall for nearly a year. These days, she seems to be thinking too much, but why is she suddenly leaving home to become a nun?
"When did I say I wanted to become a monk?" Yao Ran explained to her with a smile: "I'm afraid you may have misunderstood. I want to leave home."
Yao Xia looked at his brother subconsciously.
Yao Gui scratched his head. His mother was anxious to ask him to find his sister and come back to persuade Ran Ran. Maybe he didn't understand.
But... what does it mean to leave home without becoming a monk?
Yao Xia still felt uneasy: "Where is my cousin going to leave home?"
"Go to Ningyuan General Chang Niangzi." Yao Ran said with clear eyes, "Submit yourself to the army."
Yao Xia's eyes widened in surprise: "Cousin...want to join the army?!"
Yao Gui was also shocked: "Mei Ran, why did you suddenly think of joining the army today..."
Yao Ran interrupted him softly: "I didn't suddenly think of it today. I have been thinking about it for a long time. I just received a reply from Mrs. Chang yesterday."
She said, looking at the reply letter held in her father Yao Yi's hand.
Yao Yi's expression changed.
Years ago, his daughter asked him to send a letter to the girl, but today he found out that the letter was actually his daughter's "self-recommendation letter"!
One of them dared to mention it, and the other dared to respond. There were only a few lines in the girl's reply, which meant that there were no restrictions on people regardless of their origins in the military, but the hardships were extremely difficult and their lives could be in danger at any time. As long as they thought carefully about it, , and then discuss it with your family.
There was no encouragement, no encouragement, no rejection, no persuasion, just the right to choose was given to Ran Er and the Yao family.
Yao Yi's mood was indescribably confusing.
The one in front ran away to the army without saying a word, and now she has become the first fifth-grade female general in Da Sheng. I heard that she even became the chief instructor in the army... She is quite majestic, but he has become a leader in Beijing. I was frightened day and night. I burned incense three times a day and was more diligent than eating!
This time is good, here comes another one!
He seemed to see the lambs jumping out in front of him one after another. He was in a hurry and couldn't control any of them!
"...Rather than being in a state of confusion all day long, trapped in a small Buddhist hall and a few pages of Buddhist scriptures, repeatedly begging for a way to atone for my sins, I want to go to a broader place, do something truly meaningful, and find the real way to salvation. .”
Yao Ran kowtowed again: "Ran'er has made up his mind. I beg my grandmother and father to make it happen!"
That night, the Yao family had no sleep.
Three days later, a carriage left the back door of Yao's house, drove out of the capital city gate, and headed towards the war-torn south.
At this moment, Jiangnan is becoming more noisy and restless because of a message that suddenly spreads.