A Farm Girl: Three Acres of Fertile Land Can Be Exchanged for a Country

"My Buddhist name is Wenxin."

Ask your heart...

The thing people can least see themselves is themselves; they do need to examine their conscience from time to time.

The monk glanced at her cautiously and asked, "May I ask how you are addressed, female benefactor..."

"My name is Wutong."

"Wutong... what a good name. We have a wutong tree in our temple that's over a hundred years old. There's a poem that says, 'The phoenix cries out on that high hill, the wutong grows in the morning sun'..."

At his age, he sways his head and nods when reciting poems; he's such a blockhead.

But when Wutong saw his handsome profile, with his clear black and white eyes, she thought he was just a cute block of wood.

Unfortunately, the two were not on the same path; he had his own experiences to learn, and she had her own journey to walk.

As they walked deeper into the woods, Wenxin came across a clearing and said to Wutong, "Wutong, we're all wet. How about we build a fire to dry off before we go?"

"Okay." Wutong jumped off his back and said, "I'll go gather firewood."

"Okay, I'll start the fire."

Wenxin casually picked up some dry leaves and pine branches and started a fire.

The two stones were heated from the inside out, and when they were smashed together, sparks flew out.

He used a twig to push the sparks into the ignition source, adding dry twigs as he looked in the direction the sycamore tree had gone.

"Why haven't you come back yet..."

The flame went out and was relit, then went out again, repeating this several times until Wenxin could no longer sit still.

"Could it be that they were captured by the human traffickers who came after them?"

He stood up and, dragging his soaking wet monk's robe, chased after them.

But after chasing for three or four hours, and seeing that it was getting dark, they never saw that thin but clever figure again.

"Benefactor!" Wenxin grabbed a passerby entering the city and asked, "Have you seen a girl? About this tall, with short hair..."

The passerby looked completely bewildered: "What girl? You're a bald guy and you want to find a girl? Are you crazy? Never seen anything like it!"

Passersby pushed him aside and left, leaving Wenxin standing blankly by the roadside, his back view lonely and desolate.

Wutong... is she really gone like that?

A feeling I'd never experienced before enveloped me, as if I'd gained something and then lost something.

My heart felt empty.

Unwilling to part with her forever, he stood outside the city for three or four more days, without eating or drinking a drop of water or a grain of rice.

The flame of hope was gradually extinguished; the body was weakened, and the mind was lost.

Finally, he boarded a ship heading north and returned to the temple.

Wutong tree...

The phoenix dwells among the tall parasol trees, and the crane among the pine trees; they occasionally come to the riverbank to wander.

When do I miss you most? When the moon shines through the slanting window into the temple at dawn.

Zhongyuan Budongfeng, inside Hanshan Temple.

One temple, one monk, one incense burner, one meditation cushion—the same has remained unchanged for a hundred years.

Wenxin stepped onto the last step, knelt outside the temple gate, and kowtowed deeply.

"Master, I'm back..."

The old monk slowly turned his head, his face thin and his eyes wise.

"Why are you back so soon? Didn't you wait to come down the mountain for over ten years?"

Wenxin bowed his head and replied, "The world is noisy and disturbs the mind; it's better to stay deep in the mountains."

What did you see down the mountain?

"Mountains, water, flowers, and birds."

The old monk stroked his chin, a deep smile on his face: "Anything else?"

Wenxin was stunned, and after a long while, he said, "I don't understand what Master means."

“I watched you grow up, so your thoughts can’t be hidden from me.” The old monk stared at him intently for a moment, then asked, “Have you seen any women?”

His words struck a chord with Wenxin.

"Master..."

"Alright, alright, go down..."

The old monk waved his hand, closed his eyes, sat down to meditate, and said no more.

Wenxin stood up, took a few steps forward, then remembered something, took a few steps back, glanced at his master, and ultimately said nothing.

Actually, he really wanted to tell his master that women are not tigers, but foxes.

On his way down the mountain, he encountered a cunning fox who cast some kind of spell on him. Even after many days, the fox's voice and smile remained vividly in his mind.

I paused in the courtyard, looked up at the towering tree.

Wutong tree...

At the same time, Wutong was also thinking of Wenxin.

She leaned against the wall of a house on the street, her hair disheveled, her face covered in dust, looking utterly wretched.

After emerging from the woods, Wutong changed direction and squeezed into the crowd, joining them as they entered the city.

Nan'an City, this city is called Nan'an City.

But the name didn't live up to its name; the place was far from peaceful, and on the contrary, it was full of starving disaster victims.

She had been there for several days and hadn't seen a single decent shop. Everywhere was closed, and the streets were crowded with disaster victims who didn't bathe, defecated everywhere, and stank horribly.

The town seemed to be unmanaged; there were quite a few soldiers in armor, but no one seemed to care about them.

How can there be so many homeless disaster victims?

Wutong tried asking a young woman holding a child. Two lines of tears streamed down her sallow face as she said that it was all the fault of the emperor of the Central Plains and the war with the northern frontier.

She was originally from Qiuzhou, which is close to the border. When the war broke out, in order to survive, her whole family followed the main force south, trying to find refuge in the southern border region. However, before they even reached their destination, her family was scattered, leaving only her and her crying baby.

Wutong asked, "So... this isn't Southern Xinjiang yet?"

The young woman said, "Of course not. This place is under the jurisdiction of Quzhou, which is within the twelve prefectures of the Central Plains. If you want to enter the Southern Frontier, you have to go out of the city and travel another hundred miles."

Southern Xinjiang is a place everyone wants to go to, but is it really that good?

Wutong stayed in the city with the disaster victims for three or four days, but couldn't find any food and was about to collapse.

If I had known, I would have stayed with Wenxin. He's so skilled in kung fu; he could have easily caught a fish in the water or hunted a wild beast in the mountains. He could have lived a very carefree life.

I originally thought that I wouldn't starve to death after I got out, thanks to my hard work.

Looking back now, it was truly a pipe dream.

Another group of soldiers walked past, not looking to the side, and went straight through the crowd of disaster victims, sticking a piece of paper on the wall at the entrance of the market.

After the soldiers left, the crowd quickly gathered around, and Wutong joined in the fun.

The characters on the paper were written quite large, but in an ancient style, which made it a little difficult for her to decipher.

Fortunately, some of the disaster victims were literate and read it aloud for everyone.

"Imperial Edict: Emperor Xizong of the Western Zhou Dynasty proclaims to the world that a rebellion has broken out beyond the Great Wall, and their intentions are treacherous. He hereby summons heroes from across the land to join him in suppressing the rebellion. Those who are willing are welcome to go..."

Wutong understood everything perfectly. It turned out that the emperor was short of manpower for the war and was here to recruit soldiers.

What are the benefits of joining the army these days?

It is said that heroes emerge in times of chaos, but she knew she didn't have that ability, nor did she want to be a hero. She just wanted to make a living and survive.

Once the crowd had mostly dispersed, Wutong caught up with the old man who had been reading the imperial edict and called out, "Grandpa...Grandpa, please wait for me..."