Qin Shi: I went astray in the Heavenly Sect

Chapter 27 My Path, Footsteps in the Night

"You don't seem to have a good impression of those people?"

Xiaomeng suddenly spoke up, her gaze turning to the boy beside her who wasn't much older than her.

"Because I was originally just one of these ordinary people."

Chen Xiuyuan spoke very softly; if Xiaomeng hadn't been standing right beside him, she might not have heard him.

Xiaomeng was stunned. Looking at Chen Xiuyuan, she suddenly remembered that before he joined the Heavenly Sect, he was just an unknown child in Sanyang Village, one of the masses.

He was never that special person.

Weren't you like that before?

Xiaomeng's heart skipped a beat.

The little girl, standing still, felt a chill rush straight to her head, a spark of inspiration ignited in her heart, and her heart seemed to have escaped its cage, finding a long-lost peace.

The Daoist text "Autumn Floods" records that, from the perspective of the Dao, things have no inherent value.

“I once dreamt for a hundred years, and someone told me that, from the perspective of the Tao, things have no value and people have no value.”

"I think that person is absolutely right."

Xiaomeng stood still, her eyes flashing. "No things are inherently noble or lowly, no people are inherently noble or lowly?" Such unorthodox ideas are probably only acceptable to Taoists in this day and age.

"So, those people."

"Yes, in the eyes of the Tao, he is an ordinary person, in my eyes he is an ordinary person, and even I myself am an ordinary person."

"Ordinary people who seek the Tao are just ordinary people among the masses. The Taoist scriptures say, 'Water is good; it benefits all things without striving, and dwells in places that others disdain. Therefore, it is close to the Tao.'"

"On our journey to seek the Tao, we are all ordinary people. It is best to regard ourselves as ordinary people, so that we can go far like water. Perhaps, wherever our thoughts lead us, we will achieve the Great Tao."

"But as individuals, we are different because each of us has to walk a different path, and different paths will lead to different outcomes."

Chen Xiuyuan heard no movement beside him for a while, so he turned to look over and saw that the little girl had her brows furrowed, as if she was thinking about what he had just said and had forgotten about it.

He sighed softly.

Perhaps I've said too much today. As I said, everyone has their own path. What he said is just his own view of the path, his own path, and not Xiaomeng's path. If Xiaomeng is affected by this, then that would be bad.

But then he chuckled softly, wondering if what he had said today was outside the Dao. Xiaomeng had encountered him, but was she outside her own Dao?

If meeting is fate, is the way, then what is there to worry about? Isn't that just needless worry?
After a long while, Xiaomeng came back to her senses. She felt her heart was surprisingly calm. Looking at the young man beside her, the girl suddenly felt that he was probably stronger than she had imagined, much stronger than the elders she had met in the Heavenly Sect.

The cultivation methods of the Heavenly Sect emphasize comprehension and talent. Qingxu's understanding of the Dao has clearly reached a level that is difficult for ordinary people to reach. With such comprehension, his progress in cultivation is probably beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

"Just listen to those words; they are my own insights into the Tao. One day, you will also find your own Tao."

Seeing that Xiaomeng was staring at him, Chen Xiuyuan smiled.

Xiaomeng didn't speak, but nodded thoughtfully.

The two then found an inn, had a meal, and then booked a room.

As night deepened and gradually enveloped the city on the border between the Qin and Zhao states, Xiaomeng suddenly laughed as she looked at the boy in the room who was deliberately keeping a certain distance from her.

But she didn't seem to like this deliberate act; she preferred the natural, unpretentious boy. So she jumped off the bed, walked slowly to the window, and came to Chen Xiuyuan's side.

"Hey, why are you hiding so far away? I'm not going to eat you."

Looking at the expressionless boy, Xiaomeng suddenly felt a strange sensation. He wasn't like this before. Back in the dilapidated temple, he had allowed her to sleep on his lap.

"Senior brother."

Xiaomeng curled her lips into a smile, leaned close to the other person's ear, and her eyes were full of mischievous laughter.

"Senior Brother Qingxu"

After calling out twice and seeing no response, Xiaomeng's eyes lit up, so she called out again, "Xiuyuan."

Chen Xiuyuan's brows twitched slightly, but he still opened his eyes.

He inadvertently caught a glimpse of the mischievous glint in the other person's eyes, and felt a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

At his age, he might not understand, but he couldn't deceive himself. Sleeping in the wilderness is often unavoidable, but now he was in an inn.

"I shouldn't have told you my secular name."

Xiaomeng put her hands on her hips, clearly unconvinced.

"It's just a name, why are you making it sound like some kind of secret?"

A strange look flashed across Chen Xiuyuan's eyes; this name still held a certain significance for him.

Xiuyuan—that is a memory hidden in another time and space, carrying one's longing for family.

"You were saying before that, from the perspective of Tao, things have no inherent value, and people have no inherent value. Since all people are the same, what difference is there between men and women?"

Chen Xiuyuan was somewhat surprised to hear this. It seemed that Xiaomeng had guessed his intention, but she didn't seem to like his deliberate actions.

"come here!"

The little girl reached out and grabbed Chen Xiuyuan's hand, then walked towards the bedside.
Hearing the faint whispers in his ear, Chen Xiuyuan smiled gently.

No wonder she's Master Xiaomeng, who dared to summon Zhang Han while taking a bath; she's not only stubborn, but also heartless.

He then stopped paying attention to the girl, calmed his mind, and entered a meditative state again. The Myriad Autumn Waters and Still Hearts within his body began to circulate simultaneously. When he left, these two techniques showed a tendency to merge, and he would not slack off now.

Sensing that faint, elusive presence, the girl, who had been pretending to be asleep, smiled slightly. She had previously discovered that whenever she was with Chen Xiuyuan, her heart felt exceptionally at peace. At this moment, she couldn't hold back any longer and fell into a deep sleep.

Just after the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), Chen Xiuyuan suddenly opened his eyes. He subconsciously looked out the window and heard two very light footsteps flash past the roof.

At this moment, still walking on the rooftop, he didn't even need to think much to guess what was going on. There were probably two groups of people chasing him, one in front and one behind. People only become desperate and run away when they have nowhere else to escape.

If the two people are in the same group, then the roof is definitely not the best choice at this time.

Then he narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he had thought of something. Ji Dong had said before that Li Mu had left Daicheng, and this news probably wouldn't be kept secret for long.

The Qin state may be about to take action again.
"It seems we need to speed things up."

(End of this chapter)