The sky was dark and the flickering light of the lanterns illuminated a few pairs of cloth shoes walking quickly across the rugged road.
"My three brothers, I really don't understand why you are walking at night again."
"… The sun was too strong during the day. I'm afraid that before we even reached Chang'an, the four of us, including Brother Ning, would all die on the road."
"But... I'm not afraid of encountering something unclean again."
"It's not the first or second time, why should we be afraid? We can always turn danger into safety if we just study the teachings of sages. Brother Ning, don't you agree?"
Among the four people walking in front carrying paper lanterns, one of them turned around and looked at a scholar behind him. The scholar was weak and had a handsome face. He heard Zhang Ti's voice and came over to ask.
Ning Caichen looked at the dark sky around him and the occasional wolf howls, forced a smile, and nodded reluctantly.
"Brother Zhang is right, that's right."
"But speaking of it, Brother Ning has read a lot of books in the past half month. Why does he live on collecting rent? Why don't you come with us to Chang'an? When the four of us get some official positions, we can help Brother Ning."
"No, I am only collecting rent on behalf of others. When I return, I will study hard and take the imperial examination next year..."
There was more to it: "... If it fails, I will go to the four brothers for help..." Before he could finish his words, the four people in front paused, holding lanterns, looked at each other, turned around, and nodded in unison.
"Good, ambitious!"
The four scholars looked at him with admiration, then continued on their way with their lanterns in hand.
"… "
Ning Caichen opened his mouth slightly and looked at them. Then he came to his senses and quickly stepped forward and said, "I... I haven't said anything yet... Hey, hey..."
While chasing after him, he tripped over a stone in his hurried steps and nearly fell down the short Zhao Tang. Ning Caichen covered his toes and jumped twice on the spot. An expression of pain froze on his slightly tilted face. He looked in one direction beside the road and quickly called out to the four people in front of him.
"Four brothers, there seems to be something over there."
The four people who were on their way with lanterns in their hands trembled when they heard the words "it seems like there is something". Zhang Ti lowered his voice and said, "What... is that thing? But it's a woman?"
"No, it looks like a bead dropped in the grass."
When the four people heard this, they breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the sky in the east was turning pale at this time. They stopped and looked over there. Ning Caichen had already walked to the side of the road and was pointing at the weeds outside the road. In the dim light, there were jasper mixed with red dots.
"Scholar? Never mind. Just lean forward and head west to Wujiang Mountain..."
Shenghuo Mingzun's consciousness was flowing, and he was aware of footsteps approaching. Four scholars were approaching him with bookshelves on their backs and lanterns in their hands.
"Four more... I am here with the scholar... Never mind, let the scholar be the scholar. One of them will be enough anyway."
However, after waiting for a while, he did not see the other party reach down to pick him up.
Instead, they gathered in a circle and looked around curiously. Wang Feng, the oldest of the four scholars, rubbed his chin and looked at the other three and Ning Caichen.
"This item looks very valuable. Why don't the five of us take it..."
"No." Ning Caichen squatted down and looked at the beads in the bushes, shaking his head: "How can scholars like me covet such a bargain? If we set a precedent, we will continue to think about such small bargains in the future."
The four people over there gathered together, nodded in agreement, and started talking in whispers.
"What Caichen said is right." "Yes, scholars like me will become officials in the future. If we take advantage of this opportunity, we will have a precedent and will continue to take advantage of it in the future."
"Well, that makes sense, but what about the beads?"
The five people's eyes fell on the round jade bead in Kusanagi again. This kind of jade bead, which is completely green and mixed with red spots, is indeed rare. It can be exchanged for a lot of silver if it is pawned in the city. If it meets a rich man who likes to collect, it can be sold at a good price.
"You bunch of sour Confucian scholars, what do you want? Stretch out your hands! ! "
Seeing five people squatting in a circle and just staring at him, Shenghuo Mingzun was so angry that his soul almost flew away. As he walked through the soil, his magic power was getting weaker and weaker. He couldn't move the bead to go further, otherwise he would not be waiting here.
"If you five people don't want to pick up the things, then hurry up and leave. Can I wait for the next group of passersby? ! "
The five scholars standing by the roadside could not hear his shouting. Ma Liu thought for a moment and said, "Since we don't want it, we should just hurry on."
"Right, right, right... We should hurry to Chang'an and get a job. We've been wasting too much time on the road, and the only thing missing is a vacancy. Isn't that a loss?"
"Well... I've been away for too long, and my wife at home has been ill for a long time. Caichen is a little worried about her."
"Then hurry up and go!"
The five of them talked to each other in whispers, and then made up their minds to get up and leave. The oldest one, Wang Feng, did not move, which made the Holy Fire Master in the bead happy.
"It seems that you can't resist the temptation to take advantage of others after all."
The scholar who was staring at Kusama from above frowned, and suddenly called out to the other four people who were about to leave.
"Since you don't want it, it's not a good thing to let passers-by get it. Greed for small profits and corrupt morals, who knows, they will do other things in the future. Today, you picked up a pearl, but you can't help but want other people's property. If you are not careful, someone will die and you will be sued, which means you will harm two or even more people."
"We study the teachings of the saints, isn't it to educate those who are still ignorant? It is also to contribute to the new dynasty, the Great Sui. We should start with you and me, and make the Great Sui a prosperous dynasty where no one picks up things on the street!"
The words were passionate, like words that could cut through iron.
The Holy Fire Master in the pearl was speechless. After reacting, even though he had practiced Taoism for many years and had a well-trained temperament, he couldn't help but curse in anger:
"You don't pick up things on your mother's road. If you don't pick it up, can you please leave quickly! ! "
The four scholars who had left came back. After listening to Wang Feng's passionate words, Ning Caichen pondered for a moment and nodded.
"Brother Wang, what you said is very true. Then, why not bury it to prevent others from picking up this harmful thing?"
"Haha, I always tell others that my brother is a hero with quick wit. I just happen to have a spatula in my bookshelf!"
"Let's go dig a hole!"
Zhao Tang and Zhang Ti pushed Ma Liu, who had taken out the medicine shovel, to a nearby tree, took off the bookshelf on his back, and skillfully dug a small hole half a arm deep.
"You bunch of sour Confucians, when I recover my soul and body, I will kill you one by one... Ah ha."
Without waiting for Shenghuo Mingzun to shout in his heart, Wang Feng kicked it out: "We should start with not picking up lost items on the road, and we will not bother to pick them up."
The fist-sized soul-carrying bead rolled out half a foot and fell into the small cave with a thud. Although Shenghuo Mingzun's consciousness was confused, he could still see a big round face outside the deep cave, peeking inside, and it even smiled.
'You... you...'
Outside the cave, Ma Liu stuck his head out to take a look, then retracted it and filled the cave with the soil piled around it, and the soil fell onto the soul-sending bead.
A trace of soul remained on it, looking at everything outside the cave in despair, "You are back! !" Then the soil covered it tightly.
The three people who were filling the soil walked up and stepped on it hard, then moved a stone to press it down, and brushed the dust off their hands.
"Did you hear any noise?"
Zhao Tang and Zhang Ti looked at each other and shook their heads: "No, maybe it's almost dawn and the birds are chirping."
After saying that, he walked back to the side of the road and carried the bookshelf with Wang Feng and Ning Caichen who were waiting there. With the ideal of achieving great things in the future, he set out on the road to Chang'an. They talked and laughed all the way. When they arrived in Qingzhou, Ning Caichen said goodbye to the four of them.
"It's a pleasure to meet four young talents. If they can pass the imperial examinations in the future, they will not be alone in their career as officials."
Thinking in his mind, Ning Caichen smiled, turned around to look at the four figures under the bright sunshine on the official road leading to Chang'an, and bowed.
He walked to the country road outside the city with a smile on his face. The cicadas' chirping rose and fell with the sunshine, and white clouds moved in the blue sky. At this time, the north was covered with dark clouds and the sky was leaden blue. The sound of rain fell on Ziling Mountain, washing the brick and stone debris on the ground.
In an attic, Lu Liangsheng was lying on a soft couch. His eyelids trembled slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes. When he regained consciousness, the sound of the rain became clearer.
call-
Lu Liangsheng let out a long breath and was about to stand up, his body felt heavy. Then he saw black hair spread out on his body like a waterfall, and a tree demon in a black skirt was lying on his stomach, drooling and sleeping soundly.
"Old demon, old demon... slurp..."
Occasionally he would mutter in his sleep and inhale the saliva from the corner of his lips.