Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 522 Picking up the bargains

The next morning, Chen Fan woke up on the daybed, stretched, and quickly got dressed.

Fortunately, the young people are energetic; otherwise, relying on the small amount of coal stove heating in the house would have made the northern winters very difficult to endure.

After getting dressed, I went to the bathroom to wash up, and then went to check out the various rooms.

Well, the three old men are all sleeping soundly, showing no signs of waking up. It seems they all slept a bit too much last night.

Without disturbing them, Chen Fan first went to the coal stove in the main room and replaced a half-burnt honeycomb briquette. He then put it into the coal stove in the kitchen, added another piece of coal, opened the stove door, placed the steamer with water on the stove, put in the dozen or so buns that he hadn't finished eating yesterday, and then went out with a basket and several lunch boxes.

On a cold and dry early spring morning in Beijing, Chen Fan, his breath steaming in the air, squeezed through the crowd of early risers and soon returned carrying a basket of breakfast.

Golden millet porridge, milky white soy milk, plain tofu pudding, two pounds of fried dough sticks, and four fried pancakes. ...Good heavens, in Yunhu, fried dough sticks are sold by the piece, but here they're sold by the pound.

Chen Fan happily hurried back, thinking to himself that he had finally verified the information about the North-South war online.

Douzhi (fermented mung bean juice) is for a few elderly people and laborers; normal people don't like to drink that stuff. The tofu pudding here refuses to be sweetened, showing no respect for customers, but they do add three spoonfuls of sugar to the soy milk.

Sweet.

The fried dough is so big it can cover your face, and it's sweet. Isn't the scallion flavor good?

The fried dough rings are as thin as bracelets, crispier than fried dough balls but not as fragrant as fried dough sticks; fried liver is boiled, not fried; they don't sell fried sauce noodles in the morning, saying it's a main meal; donkey rolls, aiwowo, and pea flour cakes have to be bought at a pastry shop; jianbing guozi is from Tianjin, they don't have it here...

I miss the breakfasts in Jiangnan. There are so many kinds of noodles and rice noodles, so many kinds of steamed buns and fried pancakes, as well as Fubo's guokui, hot dry noodles and lotus root soup, Fulan's mazi, bean curd sheets and scallion pancakes, Lao Biao's spring rolls with rice noodles and clay pot soup... In terms of variety and quantity, it wins, not to mention the taste.

Chen Fan held a fried dough stick rolled in one hand and a glass of soy milk in the other. He took a bite and his mouth was full of oil, and he drank a sip and it was sweet.

Before long, the aroma lured the three elderly men, who were still hungover, to get up.

After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I started devouring the food as soon as I sat down at the table.

Lin Yuanxiang took a bite of a large meat bun and said between bites, "Yesterday I was so focused on eating that I forgot to ask what you came to Beijing for."

Chen Fan finished the last bite of his food, picked up a rag to wipe his hands, and said, "The Writers' Association has something to discuss, so I'm here for a meeting."

Lin Yuanxiang nodded in realization, then hesitated for two seconds before asking, "So, does that mean we should move in there?"

Whether in the past or present, accommodation is always arranged for business trips and meetings, let alone when it is organized by an organization like the Writers' Association, in which case all aspects will definitely be properly arranged.

Chen Fan nodded. "I'll go buy some groceries later, have lunch, and then leave."

He was afraid that if he ate dinner, he wouldn't be able to leave again.

Lin Yuanxiang thought for a moment, "When will it start?"

Chen Fan: "The specifics haven't been decided yet. I'll go to the post office later and make a call to ask when the people from the Jiangnan Writers Association will be coming. Chairman He should know the details."

Lin Yuanxiang nodded in realization, "Then let's wait until they arrive. You can stay here for now."

Chen Fan quickly shook his head, "No, no, I can't sleep well here, and I didn't even take a shower last night. It's more convenient to go to the guesthouse; they have everything there. I'll come over again after I settle in and give you the guesthouse's phone number. If you need anything, just give them a call and I'll come over."

There was a shop with a public telephone at the entrance of the alley, but it was only for the local residents. You could only make and receive local calls; for long-distance calls, you had to go to the post office.

Before Lin Yuanxiang could speak, Zhang Xuansong said, "It's just a bath, no big deal. I'll take you to Qinghua Pool later, I guarantee you'll have a comfortable bath, plus a massage and pedicure."

Chen Fan shook his head even more vigorously, "I don't want someone to scrub my back."

Zhang Xuansong glanced at him and said, "Kids don't know how to enjoy life."

Chen Fan's face fell. "I'm already 20, okay?"

嗯，实际年龄29、虚岁30，档案年龄满17周岁、进18、虚19、望20，就主打一个严谨。

Zhang Xuansong glanced at him sideways, "Are you married yet?"

Before Chen Fan could speak, he added, "If you're not married, you're just a kid."

Chen Fan was speechless. This damned traditional thinking should be swept into the dustbin of history along with feudalism.

After they finished eating, Chen Fan quickly cleared the table. ...He was just lazy, not incapable of doing housework. After all, his housework skills were at least LV3, and serving these people was not shameful at all, but rather an honor.

Returning from the kitchen, he moved the octagonal table to the corner, put the chairs back in their original positions, brewed a large pot of tea, placed it on the bedside table, and poured a cup for each of the three old men.

Lin Yuanxiang, holding the enamel mug, belatedly asked, "You paid for the breakfast ration coupons, right? How many coupons did you use? I'll give them to you."

Chen Fan poured himself a cup of tea, sat down to the side, exhaled a long breath, and laughed, "No need, I don't have anything else, just plenty of food coupons. If I don't do anything else and just eat and drink, I can live here for a year."

Lin Yuanxiang was somewhat skeptical. "If we calculate based on one jin of grain per day, does that mean you have three or four hundred jin of grain coupons?"

Chen Fan took a sip of tea, looked up and smiled slightly, "I mean, the four of us can eat like this for a year."

Lin Yuanxiang's eyes widened immediately. "Over a thousand jin?"

Chen Fan shrugged innocently. He hadn't thought that much about it. But before the magazine resumed paying royalties, most of the "royalties" he received from Jiangnan Literature and Art Magazine were in the form of national grain coupons. Each time, they would give him dozens or hundreds of kilograms of grain coupons, as if they were afraid he wouldn't have enough to eat. But grain coupons were useless; he still had to spend money to buy food.

Everyone knew he would be away for a month or two, so Lujiawan gave him 100 jin of national grain coupons, the machinery factory gave him 200 jin, the cotton mill gave him 200 jin, the health department gave him 100 jin, and so on. Even if he had a huge appetite, he couldn't finish it all.

There are still several hundred kilograms of millet left at Lujiawan's house.

Oh, right, he also stored over a thousand catties of grain at the brigade headquarters, and I don't know when he'll finish it.

This thought troubled him.

You can’t spend it all, you can’t spend it all.

The three old men looked at each other, and after a brief silence, Lin Yuanxiang decisively changed the subject, "Then I'll give you the food tickets."

He went to his room, and came out a little while later, handing Chen Fan a stack of money and two tickets.

Chen Fan took it and looked at it, his eyes filled with surprise, "So there really are vegetable coupons?"

(Vegetable coupons)

Zhang Xuansong seemed to have finally found a sense of superiority. "That's right, you need coupons to buy things, and you can't buy anything without coupons."

Then he looked at Chen Fan and laughed, "What, do you not need coupons to buy vegetables where you live?"

Chen Fan looked up and nodded seriously. "That's right. Our commune's vegetable market is almost out of ration coupons. Only tofu still needs coupons; all other vegetables don't."

Li Shangde was very curious, "Where's the fish and meat?"

Chen Fan grinned and said, "Our commune has a fishing lake, and the entire Nanhu Dawan is surrounded by a big river. Who would want to buy fish that require tickets? It's better to go fishing yourself."

The three old men looked at each other in bewilderment. In this day and age, are there still places where you can buy vegetables without ration coupons?

Fortunately, they breathed a sigh of relief when they heard Chen Fan say that pork at the food station still required ration coupons.

Ultimately, you still need a ticket!

Chen Fan wasn't short of money, but he didn't refuse the money Old Man Lin offered. He put all the money and notes in his pocket and asked, "Do you have a fishing rod at home?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xuansong immediately nodded and said, "Going fishing is a good idea. The boiled fish you made yesterday was delicious. Let's go catch a couple more."

As he spoke, he placed his cane under his arm and walked outside. "Old Yan, are you home? Can I borrow your fishing rod?"

A voice came from the front yard, "I was just getting ready to go to work. Wait here, I'll get it for you."

In no time, Zhang Xuansong returned with a fishing rod and a small bucket.

It's not for holding fish; it contains bait.

Chen Fan stepped forward, took it, and looked at it. "Hmm, it's alright."

Then he walked outside.

Lin Yuanxiang called out from behind, "Bring the water buckets!"

Chen Fan waved his hand without turning his head, "No need, I won't bring back any extras."

Zhang Xuansong grabbed him and said, "Kid, I know you're good at fishing. You want to exchange the fish for meat coupons, right? Old Lin wants you to bring back more fish so you can salt them and eat them for a few more days."

Chen Fan shrank back, turned and went into the kitchen, carrying two buckets on a shoulder pole, and successfully left the yard.

Li Shangde leaned closer to Lin Yuanxiang, glanced at the doorway, then turned to look at him. "He went there to get supplies, didn't he?"

Zhang Xuansong turned and went back into the house, grinning from ear to ear, "Isn't it good to bring back more fish?!"

……

Chen Fan swaggered through the city carrying buckets of water and a fishing rod.

An elderly man riding a bicycle came over and asked, "Where are you going to fetch water, and maybe go fishing while you're at it?"

Chen Fan glanced at him, then at the back of his bicycle, and hesitated for two seconds before asking, "Are you going to Shichahai?"

The old man proudly raised his head, "That's right, that's the only place around here where you can fish."

Chen Fan said, "If you take me there, I'll give you a big fish later."

The old man chuckled, "Big fish? How big can it be? Young man, let me tell you, there are no big fish in Shichahai at this time of year." Chen Fan smiled slightly, "Yesterday afternoon I caught a three-and-a-half-pound carp."

The old man was immediately startled, "That person was you?"

He looked him up and down, decided to take a gamble, and tossed his head, "Get in the car."

Chen Fan sat sideways on the back seat, the carrying pole resting steadily on his shoulder, the fishing rod raised high, and soon they arrived at Shichahai.

It was still early, and only a few people were fishing by the lake. This old man was obviously a regular, greeting people familiarly while setting up his equipment.

Chen Fan jumped off the car, stood not far away, adjusted the float, baited it, and cast the line.

Half an hour later...

Chen Fan looked at the two buckets with a troubled expression, surrounded by a circle of old men, all of them with their mouths agape.

Why is it only half a circle?
The other half is water.

Until an old man timidly asked, "Young man, would you like to trade this fish?"

Chen Fan looked up. "Why did it take you so long to ask?!"

Grain coupons are not accepted; meat coupons are given priority; oil coupons, cloth coupons, and industrial coupons are also acceptable.

In no time, the two buckets were empty, and a large stack of tickets appeared in his pocket.

The consequence is that everyone now has a big fish.

Chen Fan caught a few more big ones before politely declining the offers from the older men who came later, and then ran away with his bucket.

First, return the fish, then give the fishing rod to Old Zhang to return to the person, and give him a fish as a token of gratitude.

Then, carrying a shopping basket, he rushed to the market and bought a large amount of meat and vegetables, as well as a large bottle of soybean oil.

City dwellers didn't need oil coupons to buy oil; they could simply take their grain and oil ration book to the grain station and the salesperson would record the purchase in the book.

However, rural residents without commodity grain quotas had to use oil coupons. When the sales clerk saw Chen Fan buy oil, she only marveled at how handsome this young man from the countryside was and wondered which family he was related to. She had no other questions.

After finishing all this, it was still before 9 a.m.

In fact, he had been working for 3 hours.

At this inconvenient time, Chen Fan picked up the martial arts he hadn't practiced that morning and slowly practiced his boxing in the courtyard.

Zhang Xuansong moved a chair out of the house and sat at the doorway, watching.

Lin Yuanxiang sat on the daybed, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, his eyes slightly narrowed, and he smiled smugly.

Li Shangde simply closed his eyes, his ears twitching, clearly listening intently to the sounds outside.

In his ears, Chen Fan's breathing was soft and long, his heartbeat was slow and powerful, and there was no noise when his muscles and bones moved, clearly indicating that he had reached the state of perfect unity.

Listening to the footsteps again... I couldn't hear them clearly at all?
Li Shangde gasped, turned to Lin Yuanxiang, and asked in a low voice, "Are you really sure he only trained for a year?"

Lin Yuanxiang looked at him, his mouth twitching all the way to his ears. "You can't believe it, can you? I couldn't believe it either, just like you. According to Lao Xiao, he only started practicing a few days before the Spring Festival last year, using Xingyi Five Elements Fist as his foundation. He mastered it in just 7 days and even understood the five types of power."

He then practiced his strength with the Five Elements Saber and mastered it in less than half a month. Later, he was taught the Xingyi Spear training method, which integrated various forces into one.

By this time, he had been practicing for less than two months. So Old Xiao panicked and quickly wrote to me. When I first saw the letter, I didn't believe it, thinking Old Xiao was exaggerating. But then I thought, even if there was some exaggeration, he must be a promising talent, so I dealt with some official business and rushed over.”

As he spoke, he turned to look at Chen Fan in the courtyard outside, paused for several seconds, and then said, "I tested him for half a month and found that he has a good character. I can teach him the family's secret skills."

At this point, he turned to look at Li Shangde and held up one finger. "In one week, he learned all the kung fu I taught him. On the last day, he only spent a little over two hours to comprehend and master several internal kung fu techniques, including the Great Toad Qi, Tiger and Leopard Thunder Sound, Swimming Dragon Strength, Heart-Mind Hand, and Hunyuan Strength."

Li Shangde clicked his tongue. Although he couldn't see the figures outside clearly, he still tried his best to look over and muttered, "Isn't that something you can learn in no time?"

Lin Yuanxiang nodded in deep agreement, "That's when I realized that what Lao Xiao said was not only not an exaggeration, but also a bit of a reservation."

Li Shangde closed his eyes again, his ears twitching slightly. "His Tai Chi is so skillful, it's not like a young person at all. Maybe it's not that Lao Xiao is holding back, but that the kid feels he hasn't practiced enough and is only telling him after he's mastered it."

Lin Yuanxiang was slightly taken aback, then nodded involuntarily, "That's quite possible."

At this moment, Chen Fan finished his move, stood still, and slowly exhaled a long breath.

The white vapor shot out like an arrow, only slowly dissipating two feet from the mouth.

Zhang Xuansong tapped his cane twice lightly, smiled and nodded, saying, "Impressive skill."

Chen Fan turned around and laughed, "I dare not compare myself to you. Your footwork yesterday, which was as firm as a pine tree rooted in the ground, truly broadened my horizons."

Zhang Xuansong laughed loudly, "How many years have I trained, and how many years have you trained? Isn't it normal that you can't compare to me?!"

He then slowly walked over, leaning on his cane, and said, "Do you know what kind of kung fu I practice?"

Chen Fan thought for a moment, "Yesterday, Old Man Lin said that you came from Quanzhen. Could it be a secret Quanzhen teaching?"

This Quanzhen School is not the one on Zhongnan Mountain, but refers to a Taoist school that is distributed throughout the country.

The Quanzhen School practices martial arts, while the Zhengyi School draws talismans. Among the dozens of schools on Wudang Mountain, the Quanzhen School accounts for more than half, including Zhang Sanfeng, who also came from the Quanzhen School.

Zhang Xuansong nodded, a hint of emotion in his eyes. "The Quanzhen School is widely distributed, divided into the Northern and Southern Schools. The seven founders of the Quanzhen School, Zhang Borui, Liu Yongnian, Shi Tai, Xue Daoguang, Chen Nan, Bai Yuchan, and Peng Si, established the Southern Seven Schools. These seven founders are collectively known as the 'Seven True Men of the South'."

Just as there are the Seven True Men of the South, there are also the Seven True Men of the North. The Seven True Men of the North are the seven direct disciples of Wang Chongyang, the founder of the Quanzhen School of Taoism: Danyangzi Ma Yu, Changchunzi Qiu Chuji, Changzhenzi Tan Chuduan, Yuyangzi Wang Chuyi, Taiguzi Hao Datong, Changshengzi Liu Chuxuan, and Qingjing Sanren Sun Bu'er.

Later, Ma Yu founded the Yuxian School, Qiu Chuji founded the Longmen School, Tan Chuduan founded the Nanwu School, Liu Chuxuan founded the Suishan School, Hao Datong founded the Huashan School, Wang Chuyi founded the Yushan School, and Sun Bu'er founded the Qingjing School.

Upon hearing this, Chen Fan roughly understood that Old Man Zhang must be a descendant of one of the Seven True Men of the North.

Otherwise, Nan Qizhen would have just mentioned it casually, while Bei Qizhen not only gave his Daoist name but also introduced his branch sect.

Zhang Xuansong turned to face him and said, "My lineage is the direct descendant of Yu Yangzi Wang Chuyi of the Yushan School."

Chen Fan nodded in realization, then a sudden thought flashed through his mind: "Iron-Legged Immortal King Chu Yi?"

Legend has it that Yu Yangzi lived in seclusion in Yunguang Cave, where he would often stand on a precipice with his feet raised, motionless for days on end. People called him "Iron-Footed Immortal".

No wonder Zhang Xuansong has such good lower body skills; it's a family tradition.

When Zhang Xuansong saw that Chen Fan still knew the nickname of the Patriarch Iron-Legged Immortal, he couldn't help but smile broadly, "That's right, it is indeed Iron-Legged Immortal Wang Chuyi."

He paced back and forth with his cane, and continued, "My skills are different from Lao Lin's. He learned his skills from his comrades in the army, so his foundation wasn't actually that good."

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuanxiang was indignant and immediately jumped out, shouting, "Explain to me what you mean by 'not having a very good foundation'?"

Zhang Xuansong turned around and glanced at him disdainfully. "Hmph, you're just a Guanzhong swordsman who learned a little bit of Red Fist, and later you even lost all your swordsmanship. Am I wrong?"

Lin Yuanxiang's face flushed red instantly, and he said something about how a swordsman is also a swordsman and a red fist is also a fist. Zhang Xuansong and Li Shangde inside the house burst into laughter, and the courtyard was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

Seeing that Old Man Lin was about to explode, Chen Fan quickly asked Old Man Zhang, "So what skills have you learned?"

Zhang Xuansong stopped laughing and said proudly, "Wang Chongyang founded the Quanzhen School, honoring Laozi as its Grand Ancestor and Donghua Emperor as its Founding Ancestor, and passing down the lineage to Qiu Chuji, the True Lord of Changchun, and Wang Changyue, the True Man who revived the school, who was deeply versed in the Taoist internal alchemy methods..."

Just then, Lin Yuanxiang said in a low voice from the side, "Don't engage in feudal superstitions; all those alchemical methods are scams..."

Zhang Xuansong was so angry he almost had a heart attack. He pulled Chen Fan into the house and said, "Ignore him, let's go inside and talk."

Li Shangde strolled out, watched the door slam shut, turned to look at Lin Yuanxiang, and smiled, "Satisfied now."

Lin Yuanxiang laughed and turned to walk into the house. "What do I have to be satisfied or dissatisfied with? It's not like I'm learning kung fu."

As he spoke, he sat down on the Luohan bed and chuckled, “Old Zhang keeps his Xuanmen skills to himself and won’t teach anyone. He also follows the rules and won’t learn the skills that we old guys have worked out. He said that if he can’t find any disciples, he will take them to his coffin. But in the end, didn’t he still have to take them out?”

Li Shangde also returned, and sighed softly, "Old Zhang has had a hard time too. His master is gone, and more than a dozen of his fellow disciples are gone. He's the only one left alive in the entire temple, and he's even lost a leg. How could he dare to hand over the temple's secret martial arts? He's also afraid that if he were to die one day, how would he explain it to his master?"

Lin Yuanxiang was silent for a few seconds before saying, "If you ask me, letting this lineage die out would be the greatest act of filial impiety."

Li Shangde chuckled and said, "Everyone has their own reasons. The things we've researched are all at a very high level, and ordinary people simply can't learn them. We finally found someone with the ability, so of course we'll pass them on to them as much as possible."

Old Zhang is different. First, he is bound by the rules of the sect. Second, if he finds an unworthy disciple, it will be even more difficult for him to explain. Sometimes, it is better to take these things to the grave than to pass them on to evil people.

Besides, as you know, he has already compiled all the secret martial arts. If he still can't find a successor when he gets old, he will send them to the Taoist Association. As long as there is a true lineage, the Taoist Association will definitely help rebuild the Taoist temple. In addition, there are other Taoist temples in the Yushan Sect. Giving them to them is fine too. The lineage will not be broken.

Of course, it's definitely not as good as him finding a successor himself.

Lin Yuanxiang nodded slowly, his gaze fixed on the small house. "So that's his reason for intercepting it?!"

Li Shangde rolled his eyes, moved his body back, and leaned against the bedside table to drink tea.

Hmph, you're so stubborn. If you hadn't always been showing off in front of Lao Zhang, would Lao Zhang have even considered this?
……

Inside the room, Chen Fan sat cross-legged on the hard bed, slowly circulating his qi according to the method taught by Old Zhang. Before long, he felt warm all over, which was very different from the six internal cultivation techniques taught by Old Lin before.

Sitting in his chair, Zhang Xuansong looked at Chen Fan's current state and couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

The Pure Yang Elixir Technique is so easy to learn that I've never even heard of it, let alone seen it.

I've been arguing with Lao Lin for half my life, but I never thought I could get such a good deal from him. What a steal!

Anyway, he's determined to take this apprentice in, and even Liu Shuai couldn't stop him, that's what he said!
(End of this chapter)