The yellow rice is not yet cooked?
This sentence seemed to wake Qi Wuhuo up. He slowly moved his eyes away and saw the baggage on the table on one side, several books spread out next to him, and the three slings of copper coins sent by Mr. Su.
I saw the green plants I raised on one side, the cabbage piled up in the corner, and the yard outside. I saw the unfinished firewood. I was lying on the wooden bed I made myself. There were still residues on the bed. Feeling the warmth, he closed his eyes, and the light returned to his eyes:
"Yes..., my yellow rice is not yet cooked."
Under the urging of the old man, the young man got up, put away the food, and put the rice in the pot. The yellow rice was served, and another plate of side dishes was cut and placed on the table. He sat there and took down his chopsticks to eat, but his movements stopped.
"Boy, the food is almost cold, what are you doing standing still?"
On the dining table, the old man took a bite of yellow rice, picked up a crispy side dish with chopsticks, pointed at Qi Wuhuo and said with a smile. : "What's wrong? You've woken up from your dream, are you still thinking?"
Qi Wuhuo raised his eyes but did not answer.
There was a trace of thoughtfulness in his eyes.
The heavy snow outside the window has stopped, and the birds are perched on the branches, preening their feathers. The branches are swaying, and snow is falling. It is full of mountain scenery. On the table, there are stoneware bowls filled with yellow rice, crispy side dishes, and cabbage. Decorated with spicy circles, it is cute to the eye.
It had been quite a while since Qi Wuzhuo woke up from his dream. The yellow rice was slowly getting cold. Qi Wuzhuo's food was tasteless. He put down his chopsticks and said calmly to the old man: "Old man...just now, I did it." A dream..."
The voice paused and looked at the bed on one side: "That jade pillow..."
The old man said with a smile: "Oh? That was given to me by
a wandering Taoist priest.
It's good for sleeping and calming the mind."
Qi Wuhuo nodded silently.
The old man asked with a smile: "It seems that, as the wandering Taoist said, you slept very soundly."
"However, no matter what kind of dream you have, don't pay too much attention to it. Life is just like a dream. Dreams are like life. You and I are living in this world. Do you know that you are not the body in the dream? "
"What did Wuhu gain from this dream?"
Qi Wuhuo lowered his eyes. Although it was a dream, it was still in the dream. Everything I experienced was so clear. Maybe small things can no longer be recalled, but many big things are so clear and can be grasped.
If only I could go this way again.
It can be smoother than before, and it can be easier to achieve the achievements that were achieved in the previous life, but so what? The young man suddenly felt bored.
Over the past seventy years, the clouds have gone away, and Taoists from eight hundred miles away have returned.
"Is it just a dream..."
Qi Wuhuo sighed for a long time and replied:
"The way of favoring and humiliating a husband, the luck of being poor, the reason for mourning, the love of life and death."
"I have seen it all..."
The old man stroked his beard, He laughed and said, "The best thing is good."
After finishing the meal, Qi Wuhu washed the bowls and dried his hands. He was about to pack up the things Mr. Su gave him and put away the two large slings of money. It is stored in the cabinet for easy access.
Chopping firewood, sweeping the yard, and doing laundry are the same as before.
Then when I was free, I picked up a few ancient books given by Mr. Su.
This is a classic book prepared for the spring examination next year. It contains knowledge about how to obtain a scholar through the imperial examination, and there may be some difficult parts in it. There are annotations written by Mr. Su in small regular letters with cinnabar red pen to explain the knowledge contained therein.
For Qi Wuhuo, these are all things that he has yet to learn.
Even some bureaucrats may not be able to explain it thoroughly. Mr. Su understands it deeply and penetrates it deeply. He is famous even among the entire state and county. It is because of this that he is like this. The noble family
sent their children to study in the academy in this small town.
Qi Wuhuo opened a few pages, but before he read them, there were many words in his heart, flowing like water. It was the contents of these volumes, as if he already knew these things in his mind, and had never stopped reading them. I have read it more than a dozen times, but before I even read it, it seemed like it was already welling up in my heart.
Qi Wuhuo's movements paused slightly.
He was sure he had never read the book.
Except in the dream...
a ridiculous thought rose in his heart.
"Could it be that..."
"That dream..."
He quickly recalled the contents of this book in his mind. Even if he had never read this book before, the words of this book were still very clear in his heart. Sheng emerged, then opened the book and quickly flipped through it. The content was exactly the same as what he had imagined in his mind!
I went to read the other books again, and they were all like this.
Not only is he extremely proficient in its content, but he also has a deep understanding of its subtle and profound meanings. Now let's look at the annotations left by Mr. Su. Mr. Su also has a great name among the prefectures and counties, and is called a famous scholar.
But now Qi Wuhuo could vaguely see Mr. Su's omissions in explaining and explaining the doubts in these classics. Although it was still subtle, it had shortcomings.
It was as if he was no longer a fourteen-year-old boy at this moment.
It was like Master Wuhuo, who was the master of the Qiu Sutra, who was the most famous person in the world. After a long time, Qi Wuhuo put all three books back, his expression was quiet and peaceful, and his guess gradually became clear.
In the dream, the things experienced and the strong personal emotions have dissipated, but the reading experience seems to be still there. It is not obvious at ordinary times, but once encountered, it can operate and think like instinct.
That's just a dream though.
But the books I have read and the things I have seen are not nothingness.
Qi Wuhuo stood up and looked at the jade pillow.
The pillow is made of white jade, with six tadpole cloud patterns on the top and bottom. The relief clouds are lingering, and it seems to be a Taoist thing. When I reach out and touch it, it seems to have touched something. The cloud pattern on it seems to light up for a moment. It seemed to be just a dream, but soon followed by the sound of cracking and breaking, and it was densely covered with cracks.
The regretful voice of the old man came from behind:
"Oh, what a pity, what a pity."
"It has been twenty-seven years since I got it from the wandering Taoist priest. I never thought that it would be so light and brittle that I used it. It broke once, that Taoist was just teasing me."
Qi Wuhuo turned around and saw the old man standing behind him, his purple robe half hidden in the light and half hidden in the dark. At first glance, he looked like a purple Taoist robe. As if, looking at himself with a smile.
Qi Wuhuo knew that this old man was definitely not a human being. He was silent for a moment and said,
"My father-in-law said... Taoist?"
The old man said with a smile, "That's right. That guy calls himself [Huolong Zhenren]."
"We met more than twenty years ago . I met Zuo and lost to me three times in a row, so he gave me this pillow to pay off my debt. It's just a sleeping utensil, not worth much. "
"Wuzhuo, you don't have to worry about it."
"Anyway, I remember that there should be more than one pillow, and there is probably another one. I can just ask for it back when I see him next time."
Qi Wuhuo suppressed his doubts, poured tea and water, and his attitude toward the old man was the same as before. There is no difference between them. He has not become more respectful because he knows his identity in his heart, nor has he become frivolous and arrogant because of his experience in the dream.
Holding a tea cup in hand, he recalled the past and said to himself:
"There are monsters and monsters in the world. Monsters are just beasts channeling spirits, and they also have life and death."
"Ghosts are just persistence of obsessions."
"But..."
Qi Wuhuo was silent, his eyes slightly dim. Close, the seemingly real and fake pictures in the dream are tumbling in my mind. Over the past seventy years, absurd dreams, studying, becoming an official, becoming a general and a prime minister, the prosperous world, emperors, generals, and famous beauties have all flowed around me. Suddenly he was sitting upright, with a straight face, and asked:
"May I ask my father-in-law, are there really gods in the world?"
The old man smiled and replied, "Yes."
The young man asked again,
"Can I live forever?"
The old man adjusted his clothes.
Sit upright, look calm, and answer -
"Yes."