I became an immortal in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 42 We Encountered Immortals

The four children stared wide-eyed.

Zhao Erlang looked at his hands, then at the braying donkey, and froze for a moment before finally reacting.

"donkey!"

"Where did this donkey come from?"

"Is this the magic trick Uncle was talking about? How did you do it?"

The eldest son of the Zhao family looked at the donkey, his eyes filled with undisguised surprise and astonishment. After staring at it for a long time, he finally mustered the courage to reach out and touch it, finally feeling the donkey's fur.

It's hot.

It looks a bit like the horses outside.

Just moments ago, he had watched as the donkey was cut out of paper.

The paper was Xuanzhou paper he used for practicing calligraphy, and the scissors were the ones his mother used for sewing. They were all his family's belongings, and he had seen them hundreds, even thousands of times.

"Could it be that a deity has arrived?"

The group looked back at the doorway, at the spot where the man had been standing.

All that could be seen was the carriage driving away.

Zhao Erlang immediately gave chase and ran away.

Zhao Erniang shouted, "Mother—Mother—"

"father--"

"Something's happened! Come quick, everyone! The paper has turned into a donkey—the paper my brother used for practicing calligraphy has turned into a live donkey!"

"We've encountered immortals—!"

When the Zhao family patriarch, his wife, and the old lady rushed over, they saw the donkey with its head down, nibbling on a tea leaf by the door. Zhao Erlang was brought back by the servants, grabbed by the collar, his chubby body wriggling, his face full of resentment.

Master Zhao examined it carefully and even touched it.

It was indeed a live donkey, grayish-brown, with a large head, long ears, and strong limbs. He had several others on his estate that looked exactly the same.

"...It really is a donkey."

Madam Zhao frowned; after seeing it with her own eyes, she found it even more astonishing.

She looked at the four children.

"Is it really made of paper?"

The four children chimed in, "That gentleman said he gave us this treasure because he saw that we liked horses."

"Yes, that's right. We saw with our own eyes that the gentleman borrowed paper and scissors, and the paper-cutting wasn't very good. My brother didn't say anything at the time, but I know he thought the paper-cutting was crude and not fun at all."

Zhao Dalang glared at his younger brother.

He said, "Erlang reached out and touched it, and saw the paper donkey float down."

"Once it lands, it becomes a living donkey."

"Son, he looks just like a real donkey... Father, who exactly is that gentleman?"

Master Zhao's eyes were filled with amazement. He looked down and met four pairs of bright, staring eyes. He was speechless. He was still marveling at such a wondrous person, while the younger ones were thinking about donkeys.

He stroked his beard and pondered for a moment.

"Do not call him 'sir' again."

Zhao Erlang was puzzled and looked down.

"They should be called immortals!"

Zhao Erlang raised his head again, his eyes shining brightly.

Master Zhao patted the children's heads and criticized them, "You all have no manners."

The younger son of the Zhao family felt more and more regretful as he thought about it:
“Then Dad, you still had people stop me… If it weren’t for them, I might have met that immortal, become his apprentice, and learned immortal magic. I could have slaughtered a few cows, so you wouldn’t have to feel so heartbroken every time you buy them… Once I’ve learned it, maybe I can even turn grain into gold. Then our family will be rich.”

Master Zhao was both amused and exasperated.

The child's wish was simple and pure, and it was also for the sake of the family.

He felt a little uncomfortable, coughed, and scolded:
"You can't even understand a book, yet you want to learn how to become an immortal?"

"I haven't said anything to you since we have guests here today. You were stammering when you were reciting the Classic of Filial Piety. Your older brother was already studying the Great Learning when he was your age."

"Tomorrow you must make a proper copy of it, and you are not allowed to touch this paper donkey until it is finished..."

As they were talking, the donkey disappeared with a "bang".

Master Zhao immediately stopped talking and craned his neck to look.

A piece of paper lay on the ground, still freshly cut, with the texture of Xuan paper still visible, and a faint bluish tint.

Zhao Erlang was startled, tears welling in his eyes, and carefully touched the donkey. Seeing that the donkey had turned back to its living form, he breathed a sigh of relief, wiped away his tears, and turned to glare angrily at his father.

Master Zhao seemed to be deep in thought.

Called again.

"Paper donkey".

Seeing that the donkey had turned back, he tried it twice more. Everyone watched in astonishment, from the old lady to the children to the servants, all with horrified expressions, not daring to utter a sound.

the end.

Master Zhao carefully picked up the paper donkey and glanced back at the crowd.

He remarked with a sigh, "I even warned that the inn was haunted, but now it seems we're all wondering who's afraid of whom, haha..."

"You must not tell anyone about this. Otherwise, although donkeys are not rare and will not bring disaster to the Zhao family, you will not be able to play with them in the future."

"Do you remember?"

All four sons nodded, their eyes fixed on the paper donkey in their father's hand.

Zhao Erniang looked up at the light paper donkey and recalled the words spoken by the immortal as they watched the cat sleep together.

"Master Zhao murmured."

"This is the magic of the immortals..."

……

……

on the official road.

The group naturally saw the strange donkey. Although they didn't see in detail how it was made, they heard Mr. Jiang borrowing scissors and paper from the Zhao family.

Yuan Danqiu's eyes shone brightly.

He respectfully inquired, "Sir, what method is this?"

"It was something I came up with on the spur of the moment," Jiang She said. "There's no specific method involved."

Yuan Danqiu was itching with desire. The more he thought about the connection between the paper and the live donkey, the more his heart ached. He was also thinking about the children's dumbfounded expressions and how the Zhao family would react...

This is truly a rare and exquisite item, a profound and wondrous Daoist practice.

The gods are so powerful...

It can imbue inanimate objects with life, making them instantly come to life.

But no matter how shameless Yuan Danqiu was, he couldn't bring himself to express his thoughts to Mr. Jiang, so he had to suppress them again.

Jiang She could see what he was thinking.

"It's fine for children to play with, but it's definitely not suitable for traveling with these paper donkeys and horses."

He pointed out the flaw in the paper donkey, saying:
"This item must not come into contact with water or fire."

"Paper soaks when wet and burns when exposed to fire."

"Secondly, the transformation is flawed. It is originally a bit of spirituality of heaven and earth, which is transformed into spirit through paper cutting. If its original name is called out, it will transform back to its original form."

Yuan Danqiu and Li Bai listened with shining eyes.

The two servants also heard this and were filled with awe and envy.

Jiang She sat casually in the carriage, one leg slightly bent and the other hanging down naturally, looking relaxed and carefree.

This is a true immortal.

The carriages traveled all afternoon and arrived at the post station in the evening. A messenger there verified the documents, which served as the travel permit for the Tang Dynasty.

The Old Deer Mountain God didn't have this thing; when he was young, the world was still Han territory, so he reached out.

Slightly in the air.

The courier swayed slightly, glanced casually at the documents of the group, saw that they were together, and didn't pay any attention, continuing to chat with his companion.

What happened to that man afterward?

"Who knows what happened? Ever since his wife died and he lost his child, he's gone crazy. He talks nonsense all day long and is afraid of people. It's a pity. Wang San used to be a good man. Every year during the Spring Festival, everyone would line up at his house to slaughter pigs. The threshold would be worn down by the crowd."

"How could a perfectly healthy person suddenly go crazy?"

"Who knows? Maybe we've attracted some unclean spirits," the middle-aged courier said, thinking about his duty at the post station.

He cursed and shrank back.

He muttered to himself, "Sooner or later I'll have to transfer the money elsewhere. What bad luck."

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(End of this chapter)