I became an immortal in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 88 Suijun (Seeking first subscription)

Sima Chengzhen stroked his white beard and uttered two words.

"Free and easy".

He smiled and explained to the princess, "The roc needs the wind to fly south. A boat needs the depth of the water to sail on a river. Ordinary people pursue fame, fortune, and wealth by relying on external conditions."

"The mind is bound, and there is no freedom."

“A truly virtuous person abandons worldly concerns and communes with the spirit of heaven and earth.”

The princess listened in bewilderment. Born into a royal family and naturally wealthy, she had no desires and had entered the Daoist path even in her infancy.

But I've never felt any spiritual energy or spirit of heaven and earth.

"Do such people really exist?"

Sima Chengzhen recalled the faint blue marks on the paper donkey.

"some."

Princess Wan'an asked, "Could such a virtuous person restore the illusion?"

He muttered something and said:
"Why did it have to rain at that exact moment!"

Sima Chengzhen shook his head and said softly.

"That depends on the circumstances."

Princess Wan'an asked again, and the child kept pestering her. Sima Chengzhen still gave her some directions, saying that the predecessor who once made all the flowers bloom in winter was still alive.

However, the current sage dislikes auspicious omens related to one's grandmother, so perhaps...

Princess Wan'an immediately said, "I will search quietly."

……

……

Jiang She closed the letter.

The gossiping women at the table were chatting animatedly, and the listener was completely engrossed.

The story has already recounted how the widow's ox was used by the man to plow the fields. Interspersed among these are a few words of concern for the groom—Lin Erlang, who is getting married today, is almost of age, and it is unknown whether he will be able to pass the county school entrance exam.

The fortune teller ate two more lamb chops.

The cat ate its fill and fell asleep; it sleeps a lot like that.

Li Bai looked at Jiang She's closed letter, put down his wine cup, and asked, "What are you looking at, sir?"

Jiang She: "Do you remember the Zhao family we met at the manor when we first left Xiangyang?"

Li Bai nodded.

Jiang She said, "Back then, we gave the Zhao family's children a small gift, but someone bought it."

"Who?"

"Their village is..."

Li Bai asked in surprise, "What does the village head need this for?"

"Giving it away."

"Who did you give it to?"

"It was previously delivered to Prince Qi."

Li Bai paused for a few moments before realizing that the paper donkey used to coax the child had been passed up through the ranks. It had actually reached the hands of the Prince of Qi.

Jiang She calmly replied, "I received ten taels of gold."

Li Bai's gaze fell on the master's hands. He hadn't seen the master calculate anything, so how did he know about the paper donkey?

Could it be another Taoist technique he doesn't understand?

They spoke in hushed tones, which were almost inaudible amidst the noisy, alcohol-filled atmosphere of the courtyard. The food and drink in the courtyard had just finished, and everyone finally stopped eating.

Looking from afar.

All that could be seen was the old woman in plain clothes, her back faltering as she walked away step by step.

The Lin family breathed a sigh of relief, and the voices in the courtyard suddenly became louder; they had been quite reserved before. Now that the misfortune had passed, they felt much more at ease.

The gossipy women at the table spoke with great confidence: "They're finally gone. They gave me quite a fright."

"That's really strange."

"How could such bad luck be involved in such a perfectly good wedding?"

"That's terrifying..."

A man at the table, seeing that Jiang She and Li Bai were dressed in loose-fitting robes and didn't look like laborers, cautiously asked, "..."
"My lord, what is this thing?"

Jiang She could see their worries. If they didn't answer properly, the bad luck associated with the Lin family's wedding banquet would likely become a topic of conversation throughout the county.

He smiled and said:
"It wasn't anything scary, I just bumped into it on the road."

"If you are worried, you can carry a small bronze mirror with you next time, which can also ward off evil spirits."

The men and women all nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

Some people noticed that Jiang She and Li Bai were young, handsome, and well-dressed. They had already observed them for a while, and perhaps because they were unmarried, they wanted to ask them more questions.
"Is your husband also from Weixian County? I don't think I've seen him before." "Are you married?"

"Oh dear, it's hard to say about such an old man getting married..."

……

The Lin family saw him off all the way to the edge of the alley, showing great hospitality, and even wanted to see him further, but Jiang She refused.

He only breathed a sigh of relief after the person left.

Nowadays, people in rural areas and county towns marry young, often as early as sixteen or seventeen, and some even marry around twenty to start having children. Marriage is much later, except among scholars and wealthy families. It's common for men to be unmarried at thirty and women at twenty-four or twenty-five.

The geomancer, leaning on his cane, walked out of the alley step by step.

He was hunched over and had a stooped posture.

The questioner asked, "Why didn't you mention the bronze mirror when you were talking to us earlier, sir?"

Jiang She turned around.

Facing the old man, he thought for a moment and said frankly:
"People in the county town ask for comfort. Bronze mirrors are valuable; even a small one costs several bushels of rice, so no one would buy it."

"But if you tell the old man that this is his skill, he will most likely buy it."

"It's pointless anyway, why bother telling you?"

The geomancer, leaning on his cane, listened to these words and pondered for a long time. Finally, he placed his cane against the wall and raised his wrinkled old hands.

He bowed tremblingly.

Jiang She avoided it.

Why would you do this?

"My lord is a capable man, and he has a kind heart."

Jiang helped the other person up.

"You're too kind."

The fortune teller watched the two figures leave, both looking so young, their clothes fluttering slightly in the wind, and felt a pang of envy and longing in his heart.

When he was young, he also dreamed of traveling the world and going to many places.

Jiang She and Li Bai walked for a while, and the cat also wandered onto the streets, refusing to be held. The reason was simple: the Lin family had been overly hospitable, and the two of them and the cat had all eaten too much.

Walking more can aid digestion.

The streets of Weixian County are straight, and like those in Luoyang, they are divided into square wards.

There were donkeys and horses from caravans, and villagers pulling carts and hawking their wares on the streets. There were also many worshippers in front of the Buddhist temple, making it a noisy and bustling place.

The section of road leading to the governor's mansion and the county government office was much quieter. There was also an academy nearby where several students in traditional Chinese robes were chatting and laughing, carrying their books.

Boats come and go on the Yongji Canal, and boatmen's chants rise and fall.

It doesn't look like the ancient place it was when it was called Chaoge.

Full of life.

After wandering around for a while, Jiang She and his companion decided to explore that small section of the ancient city.

Behind them, a small cloud gradually drifted in from the sky, and following the blue mist between heaven and earth, they found the Lin family's courtyard.

On the wedding day, amidst the bustling crowds, no one noticed the extra person.

The man walked into the courtyard and listened to the gossip of the neighbors for a while. He learned that the second son of this family was getting married today and had encountered a harbinger of good fortune by the roadside. Fortunately, a passing young man helped him out, and the harbinger of good fortune left.

Sensing the azure energy, these people are quite lucky...

He grabbed someone and asked.

"What does that person look like?"

Lin's mother looked at the young man in front of her. His white robe was seamless and embroidered with light-colored rain patterns. The silver threads shimmered in the light, making him look very valuable.

"you are……"

"I would like to pay a visit."

Lin's mother breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That man was handsome and only said he was passing by, without mentioning where he lived. He was dressed in a blue robe, and had a man in white accompanying him."

"Oh, and you brought a cat with you. It's good to treat the cat well."

"How about you look for him on the street, sir?"

The young man nodded: "Thank you."

He casually handed over a purse as a token of his gratitude for informing me.

Lin's mother thought to herself that this person was really strange. He had only said one sentence, but he had already given her a gift. Were all rich kids so polite?
In the evening, after the wedding banquet ended and the guests had left, Lin's mother whispered to her husband, thinking of the purse. Touching the embroidery on it, she almost couldn't bear to untie it.

The two opened the purse inside the house.

"ah."

The couple were filled with anxiety.

"This is... a pearl?" she exclaimed in surprise.

(End of this chapter)