My Sword Has a Way

Chapter 25 Correct Answer

The boy ate the sweet potato in his hand, and somehow felt that the Taoist master today was very different from the past. After eating and washing his hands, the boy picked up the brazier and walked into the house.

The early winter mornings were exceptionally cold. In previous years, Xu Zhian would not get up so early. As a young boy from a poor family, he would hold on a little longer if he could sleep a little longer. Although the quilt was not thick enough to hold the heat he had accumulated all night, as long as he could hold on until noon, the brother and sister could save a meal.

Despite such careful calculations, in the past few years, everyone in the village believed that the brother and sister would not be able to survive the New Year. After all, many people died of starvation or freezing outside Yishui City, and how could two little kids who were always lacking food and clothing be no exception?

Maybe God is really merciful. When Xu Zhian was about to freeze to death, the boy next door came and huddled together with Xu Zhian. Maybe the boy was also afraid of freezing to death.

Xu Zhian added some firewood to the brazier, then picked up the bracket he had made and boiled a pot of hot water.

Seeing this, the old Taoist sat on a straw mat nearby. Looking at the bleak scene of the family with nothing but four walls, the old Taoist couldn't help but sigh: "It's really true that the rich are feasting and drinking, while the poor are freezing to death on the streets! This world should probably really change."

Xu Zhian didn't quite understand what he said, but he got the general meaning. This sentence was nothing more than lamenting his poverty and mocking the injustice of the world. The boy smiled calmly and said seriously:

"It's actually not that bad, except that we get hungry sometimes. However, my little sister and I are still very happy every day, except when we meet the Xiong brothers, which sometimes makes us scared."

The old Taoist smiled and said, "In fact, I wanted to help you many times, but I also wanted to see how you would deal with this dead end. Although your approach was extremely mediocre, you managed to get through it in the end. To be honest, you are really good."

The boy seemed to be praised for the first time. He didn't know how to be humble. He could only lower his voice and said, "Actually, I'm just stupid. If I were smarter, I might really be dead."

Seeing the innocent face and mirror-like eyes of the young man, the old Taoist threw the wine pot in his hand to him: "Take a sip, it can relieve the worries of the world."

Xu Zhian took the wine jug and took a sip. This time, there was no pain like before, and it also had a faint mellow fragrance, like a warm flow into the abdomen, and the coldness suddenly subsided.

No wonder the old Taoist holds the wine jug all day long. He doesn’t know how much wine is in the jug and it seems like he can never finish drinking it.

"Why is today's wine different from the previous ones? It seems to taste better." The young man asked the old Taoist.

The old Taoist smiled and said, "When one is worried, the drink tastes bland and tastes bland; when one is happy, the drink tastes sweet. Xu Zhian, what do you think?"

The young man took another sip, and then returned the wine pot to the Taoist priest: "A little drinking can make you happy, but drinking too much can harm your body. Just like white rice, the first mouthful is delicious, one bowl can save lives, two bowls can fill your stomach, and three or four bowls will kill you."

The old Taoist laughed out loud, "You know this, kid? It seems that you are not useless after all these years. I was worried that you have not been farming for many years and have become lazy and untrained. I didn't expect that a poor boy like you would know the jingle. However, these three or four bowls may not be enough to get you going."

Xu Zhian scratched his head and said awkwardly: "I made this up myself."

The boy seldom eats white rice. Only on New Year's Eve will he cook a bowl of white rice properly, and he will share most of it with his younger sister. Therefore, in the boy's cognition, being able to eat a bowl of white rice is a very happy thing. As for being able to eat two bowls in one meal, only rich families can do so. If he eats more than that, he will surely be stuffed to death.

The old Taoist restrained his smile and said, "Xu Zhian, what is your greatest wish in this life?"

The boy thought for a moment and said seriously, "I've always thought that I would make a lot of money in the future, so I can buy a house that doesn't leak in the winter and doesn't leak in the summer, and buy my little sister her favorite candied haws, and she can buy them whenever she wants."

The old Taoist took a sip of his drink and said, "What about you? Is there anything you want to do in particular?"

The young man blushed and said, "I can buy Fu Ji roast chicken from the south of the city. I only need to buy it once a month. If I still have money, it would be even better if I can find a wife."

The old Taoist asked again: "Why did you refuse Qi Wu's gold on the West Mountain? If you had accepted it at that time, all your dreams would have come true."

The young man was a little confused about how the Taoist knew this, but he figured it out quickly and said, "It's different! I can earn money to buy what I want. If I accepted his gold, my little sister and I would never see each other again. In order to get Meng Yao to go to the Qi family with him, he would tell Meng Yao that I chose to abandon her for the gold. Besides, I don't want this to become a transaction. Although I am poor, I still have a conscience."

The old Taoist curled his lips and said, "You're just trying to save face, but that's gold, enough to buy a lot of good wine."

Xu Zhian smiled slightly: "Although I haven't studied for many years, I heard Xia Shuyin next door say that a gentleman loves money but gets it in a proper way. This way is not my way, so I don't want it. If I really accepted the gold from that uncle that day, I would not be Jianlu's junior apprentice today."

The old Taoist took another sip of wine and asked again: "What do you wish for now?"

The young man thought about it carefully, and seemed to feel that the senior brother was testing him, so he frowned. Seeing this, the old Taoist smiled slightly: "Don't be too nervous, what you think in your heart is what I ask, just say it."

The young man said bluntly: "I want to see my little sister again. She is my only relative in this world. I don't want to come to this world without anyone caring about me. If that happens, what's the difference between me and weeds? I won't even leave a name after I die."

The old Taoist handed the drink to the young man again: "Life is like duckweed in the vast ocean, without roots or sources. We don't know where we come from, nor where we go. A hundred years on earth is just an absurd dream. Only by breaking through the chaos can we see the true meaning of the Tao! Only then can we know that I am myself."

The old Taoist put away his smile and said seriously: "If you want to live the life you dream of, you can only keep climbing up! Keep climbing! When you reach a certain height, you will find that this world is not the world you know. Only then will you realize it and know what you want to do. Now you are not suitable to know some of the secrets of this world, so you must practice sword diligently, ten or a hundred times more diligently than others. When one day you become the best in the world, all your dreams will be as you wish!"

The young man said seriously: "I will, I want to be the most powerful man in Jianlu!"