Chapter 2 A poor boy who can write and speak well ()
It would be fine if she was really your maid, but didn't you pick her out from the pile of dead bodies? Didn't you say that the two of you depended on each other? Even if you take a step back and say that she is your maid, don't you think that she is your maid?
You are still too young, shouldn't you be responsible for such heavy and hard work? Why is this young boy so lazy? Why can't he do it by himself?
Perhaps it triggered bad memories from childhood, or perhaps the imagination of some beautiful emotions in her heart was too completely destroyed by someone. The maid pushed the fence straight away and walked in. Her eyes fell on the bamboo lounge chair.
In the old book that the young man had been reading carefully, he said with a hint of ridicule: "I thought I was reading some sage's masterpiece that would make you forget everything happening around you, but I didn't expect that it was just a piece of Taishang Sensation that can be bought everywhere in the market. Could it be like this?
A person like you also expects to step into the path of spiritual practice?"
Ning Que sat up and glanced curiously at this elegantly dressed young lady who seemed like she should never appear in Weicheng. Then he glanced at the captain with an awkward expression. After a moment of pause, he explained: "I can only buy this book, so
I have no choice but to make do with it, that is, to be curious, and to have no extravagant hopes."
The maid obviously did not expect that the young man would answer so naturally and casually, so she couldn't help but feel suffocated. She immediately looked at the little maid who was pouring ashes from the stove by the door, and said displeasedly: "I am a great Tang Dynasty, how could there be someone like you?
man."
Ning Que frowned in confusion and followed the other person's gaze to Sang Sang, who was standing by the window holding a rag. He understood where the sharpness in the other person's words came from. A dimple appeared in his left cheek and he said with a smile:
"You should be older than me, otherwise... just think that I am not a man, but a boy."
The maidservant had probably never seen such a shameless person in her life. The fists in her sleeves were slowly clenched. Her expression was cold and she was about to get angry. However, her eyes fell on the muddy ground next to the bamboo lounge chair and on the pictures drawn by the branches.
On the handwriting, her mind couldn't help but move slightly, and a strange color appeared in her eyes, making her completely forget what she wanted to say.
In the barracks with the best conditions in Weicheng, the old man in tattered robes was closing his eyes and concentrating, while the general Ma Shixiang was half-bowed and talking to the nobles in the tent. There was an expression of surprise that could not be hidden in his humble attitude.
"Are you dissatisfied with that guide?" He asked doubtfully, "Why?"
The voice of the nobleman in the tent was extremely dissatisfied and reprimanded: "What I want is a smart and capable guide, not a lazy young man who is full of dreams of spiritual practice and can only lift roasted chickens without the strength of his hands."
Ma Shixiang coughed twice and explained in a low voice: "As far as the general knows, although Ning Que is still young, he has beheaded many barbarians on the grassland in the past two years. If... he just tied up a few chickens
, I think it shouldn’t be a big problem.”
The Tang Dynasty was founded by force, and military merit was the top priority. Although the man behind the tent had an extremely noble status, since it touched upon the honor that the army valued most, Ma Shixiang chose to fight back without hesitation. What seemed to be an explanation was actually a bit of a mocking rebuttal.
The cold voice behind the tent paused for a moment and said displeasedly: "Can you be a good guide if you can kill people?"
Ma Shixiang answered more humbly: "Among the three hundred subordinates in Weicheng, Ning Que is definitely not the one who has killed the most enemies, but at the end of the day, if the general dares to use his head as a guarantee, no matter how brutal the battlefield is, among those who survive in the end... I am sure...
There is this young man."
Then he raised his head and said with a smile: "Due to his accumulated military achievements, he received a letter of recommendation from the military department. This boy is really up to his standards. He passed the preliminary examination half a year ago. When he returns to the capital this time, he will report to the academy."
Hearing the word academy, there was a sudden silence behind the tent, and the noble man never spoke again.
After Ma Shixiang left, the old man in old robes slowly opened his eyes. His old and calm eyes rarely showed a trace of interest. He looked at the curtain and said with a gentle smile: "There are actually soldiers in this small border town.
It is really surprising to be admitted to the academy. In this case, that young man must be the best choice in terms of character and ability, so it would not be a bad idea to have him as a guide."
"I've only been away from the country for a year, but I didn't expect that a sacred place like the academy would actually start recruiting soldiers and ruffians like this."
His tone was still cold and disdainful, but his actual attitude had changed. At least the nobleman no longer objected to Ning Que being the guide of his team. It only took a name to make the big man change his mind. That place simply called the Academy, I think.
It must be extremely difficult.
When the old man talked about another thing, he looked a little confused: "I went to look at the words he wrote on the dirt before, and I copied the third section of the Taishang Induction Chapter. The font lines are concise, but extremely vivid. It is obviously just
Using a tree branch, it felt like a knife blade touching the mud when it fell on the wetland. This soldier named Ning Que had already entered the right path in calligraphy... I really don’t know how he practiced it and where he learned from it.
.”
"The soldiers are just empty strokes. When I looked at them by chance before, I was inevitably shocked by the novelty. Now when I think about it carefully, they are just some strange and sharp strokes. How can I talk about the right way? In the future, I will touch the capital.
A gentleman selling calligraphy outside Xiangfang."
The noble man responded coldly.
The old man shook his head and said: "The word "fresh" you mentioned is the key. I don't know calligraphy, but looking at the branches of the soldiers, you can actually faintly see the meaning of gold and stone. There are very few strokes in these words.
You see, it’s really similar to the methods used by those Taoist masters in the Taoist altar.”
"You mean the talisman?"
The nobleman behind the tent was startled, and then mocked: "There are hundreds of millions of people in the world, but there are only a dozen or so of the Fu Taoists. Those masters either hide in the palace, or sit quietly in the temple, meditating and practicing hard all their lives before they can consolidate the heaven and earth."
The breath is between the golden hook and the silver stroke. There is no breath fluctuation on the young man's body. He is just an ordinary mortal. Even if he reads the Fifty Years of Taishang Induction Chapter, he may not even be able to enter the first stage. How can he dare to discuss it side by side with those everyone?
"
The old man smiled and said nothing more. Although he was a practitioner and was highly respected by the other party along the way, the status difference between the two parties was too big. The so-called respect was actually just showing pity for the old and cherishing the talented. In this case, there are some things that should not be said.
It's better not to say anything.
Of course, he did not agree with the words of the noble man behind the tent. Regarding the soldier named Ning Que, the old man had his own judgment: All mortals in the world can really say that those who can understand the breath of heaven and earth and step into the initial state
There is no one in ten, and the initial level of induction is the most difficult, and it is by no means easy. However, if Ning Que can really enter the academy to study, by chance one day he will be able to reach the legendary second floor and embark on the path of cultivation.
, the weird and powerful calligraphy of his hand will definitely be of great help to him.
Even if the guy never gets it, his calligraphy alone can make the masters in the academies and Taoist circles look at him with admiration, or even shock the scribes and calligraphers.
Ning Que put down the book in his hand, shook his head and walked out the door, with a hint of disappointment and unwillingness on his face.
When he was a child, he went to Kaiping market with the grain transport team to buy this book. As the noble maid said, it is a commodity that can be seen everywhere. He knew this very well, but he still never forgot to read and study it, as if this book
These are the seven volumes of the Heavenly Book that are said to be enshrined in the unknown place of Haotian Dao.
The pages of the book that have been turned are curled up and look shabby. If Sangsang hadn't used cotton thread to sew the spine of the book tightly, I'm afraid that every time I flip through it, it will turn into a few piles of paper money and fly to the wind to pay tribute to the poor ancestors. It's a pity that after so many years
In the past, the pages of the book had been turned to pieces, and the words on it were deep in his mind and had been cooked for a long time, but he still couldn't get in. Not to mention the initial state of cultivation, he couldn't even achieve the simplest induction mentioned in the book.
He was once disappointed and even despaired. Later, when he learned that most normal people in this world could not understand the energy of heaven and earth, his mood became much calmer - yes, those legendary outsiders are not normal people.
, are all perverts, because only extremely rare perverts can perceive the breath of heaven and earth. Otherwise, there are so many chapters of Taishang's Induction circulating in the world, why haven't you heard of the flying swords flashing everywhere in the night sky of the capital Chang'an?
Go, the master is floating around?
And he, Ning Que, is normal, or very ordinary. However, you suddenly find that there is a wonderful treasure mountain in front of you, but you can only go back empty-handed. Suddenly, you find that the world is filled with that kind of wonderful invisible white cloud called vitality.
Things, but you can't catch a cloud, you will still be a little unwilling after all, right?
"Weicheng is so poor. His Majesty the Emperor has long been afraid of the barbarians on the grassland. He has not dared to come here for many years. Therefore, military achievements cannot be accumulated too quickly. Of course it is good to be able to return to the capital. How can I be unwilling to do so?
The place."
In the dimly lit military camp, Ning Que saluted respectfully to the general in front of him and explained sincerely: "It's just that there is still some time before the day to register for the academy, so I thought there was no need to leave so early. Although I have not been able to talk about it under the general's command these years,
I have made rapid progress in school, but you have always taught me like a human being, otherwise I would not have been so lucky to be admitted to the academy. I really want to stay with you in Weicheng for a few more days and listen to your teachings more...
...Even if you just do so much for a while, it is still good to talk more."
Ma Shixiang looked at the young man in front of him. The beard on his chin was twitching slightly. He didn't know whether it was blown by the night wind or because he was very angry. He said angrily: "Ning Que, Ning Que, when did you become such a shameless guy?"
Ning Que replied seriously: "As long as you need it, General, I can do without this face at any time."
"Tell the truth." Ma Shixiang's expression became cold and he asked seriously: "Why don't you want to be this guide?"
Ning Que was silent for a long time, and then whispered: "General, that noble man probably doesn't like me very much."
"The noble man doesn't like you?" Ma Shixiang reprimanded sternly: "You seem to have forgotten your identity. You must know that you are not a student of the academy yet. As an imperial soldier, you must obey the orders of your superiors and obey my orders! Do you like the noble man?
You are not something you should worry about! As for whether you like that noble person or not, no one cares about it! You just need to accept the order and then complete it!"
Ning Que didn't answer. He looked down at the stubborn piece of grass growing out of the mud between his military boots, silently expressing his objection.
Ma Shixiang was helpless with the young man and sighed: "What kind of trouble are you trying to make? Why don't you go back to the capital with them?"
Ning Que raised his head and said with a very serious expression: "I have seen their convoy outside. They were attacked on the grassland. There is a spring drought there recently, and the Shanyu of Zuojinzhang died last year. That noble man's
The maid's skin is a bit dark, so... I dare not go with them."
The convoy was attacked, there was a spring drought in the prairie, the Chanyu died, and the maidservant was black-faced. These seemingly unrelated words were combined by him trivially, and they became the reasons for his silence, stubbornness, and refusal to leave Weicheng.
Ma Shixiang looked at him, sighed and asked, "Have you guessed it a long time ago?"
"Is there anyone in Weicheng who hasn't guessed who they are?"
Ning Que helplessly spread his hands, looked at the other side of the military camp under the night, and said: "There is only that idiot who grew up in the Chang'an Palace, married to the grassland and became domineering and prosperous, and didn't even notice that his man was dead.
Your Highness, the princess, would be so stupid as to think that this is always a huge secret."