20 years of the Republic of China

Chapter 839: Mysterious words confuse the public
The old man smiled and gave a thumbs-up, nodding in agreement: "I've not only heard about it, I've seen it with my own eyes!"

After saying that, he nudged the young man next to him and said, "Don't worry, these are all famous heroes of Fengtian, they certainly won't make things difficult for the two of us."

The young man didn't speak, his right hand gripping the bundle on his shoulder tightly, still looking somewhat wary.

This is understandable. In the desolate outskirts of the city, when strangers meet on the road, who knows if the other party is a bandit who robs people on the road?
The Kao Shan Gang was quite happy, after all, they had become famous and felt that all these years had not been in vain, and they finally looked like seasoned veterans of the underworld.

Needless to say, Lai Zi was overjoyed, but he also took a closer look at the two of them.

The old man was quite thin, with a hooked nose, wearing round glasses, and a goatee on his chin. At first glance, he looked refined and scholarly, like a schoolteacher. But if you looked closely at his features, his eyebrows were deeply etched like knife cuts, and his slanted eyes had more white than black, yet he clearly had a cunning and fierce look.

The young man beside him was plain-looking and taciturn, with nothing much to say about him.

Seeing that the surrounding area was open and there didn't seem to be any ambush, Lai Zi felt relieved, smiled and said, "You're smart. Since you know who I am, then we can be considered half friends."

"How dare I! How dare I!" the old man quickly bowed. "I am but a commoner, how could I presume to claim the fame of a hero!"

Lai Zi waved his hand dismissively and said, "What's the big deal? In the martial world, regardless of status or wealth, we're all brothers! But you still haven't answered my question. It's almost dark now, why aren't you two staying in the city? What are you doing wandering around here?"

The old man remained calm and chuckled, saying, "Well, the war is over now. Guo the devil was defeated and killed, and Fengtian is at peace. I originally came to the provincial capital to seek refuge, but now that there's nothing to do and the New Year is approaching, I was thinking of hurrying back."

"Oh, I see!"

"Hehe, I'm sorry to have offended you. I didn't even know you heroes were here..."

Lai Zi was concerned about his image and always liked to exaggerate things. He felt that being a janitor here wasn't prestigious enough. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Uh... it's nothing. This place is spacious. Every winter and summer, I bring my brothers here to practice. In the world of martial arts, you can't slack off. You have to practice in the coldest winter and the hottest summer!"

The old man clicked his tongue in amazement and hurriedly said, "You gentlemen are all full of martial virtue and will surely become prominent figures in the future. But please forgive my impertinence, but sharpening your axe won't delay your work. You should hurry back!"

"Hmm?" Lai Zi and the others frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"So you gentlemen don't know?"

"Stop beating around the bush, just say what you want to say!"

The old man sighed, shook his head, and said, "Alas, the city is in such chaos now! Although the war is over, the Japanese are lingering and refusing to leave, and the local government is running rampant, making the city a mess. The officials turn a blind eye, so do you think the common people can have any peace?"

Upon hearing this, Lai Zi glared and cursed, "What's wrong? Is that bastard Lao Dou itching for a beating again? Daring to act like a big shot in the street?"

"I don't know who Lao Dou is, I only know that the people in the city are all looking forward to your return!"

"Is there still this matter?"

"Indeed!" the old man sighed. "The maintenance committee is incredibly arrogant. Besides you few, who else can handle them?"

Upon hearing this, everyone felt a heavy weight on their shoulders and couldn't help but think to themselves: If Fengtian City loses the Kaoshan Gang, it's probably doomed!
At this moment, the young man suddenly spoke up: "Second Uncle, stop harming people here. The puppet regime is backed by Japan. Who can afford to offend them? Saying these things is just pushing people into a fire pit!"

The old man scoffed, "Tsk, you little brat, what do you know! You didn't see what happened at Xiaoxiguan that day, you have no idea how capable those heroes are! Look at them, and then look at you, always saying you can't afford to mess with them, do you think everyone is as cowardly as you!"

Upon hearing this, the kidnapper snorted coldly twice and said, "Youngster, you've never practiced online, you're looking down on people!"

The old man quickly apologized, saying, "My lords, please don't be offended. This young man is inexperienced and has never seen the world before. Please be lenient with him!"

The young man ignored him, grabbed the old man, and whispered, "Second Uncle, let's go! Stop trying to instigate them!"

The dirt road on the outskirts of the city was full of potholes. The old man staggered a few steps and muttered to himself, "You don't understand, young man. This hero has a noble appearance. Why don't you try to get closer to him? Are you in such a hurry to leave? Are you stupid?"

"Stop fooling around! What kind of face does that have? Let's go, let's go!"

"Tsk, come on, come on, don't pull me!"

The old man wanted to say a few more words, but the young man refused to linger and dragged him toward the frozen river, turning his head as he walked to say "Goodbye."

"Stand there!"

Suddenly, Lai Zi stopped the two men, feeling that they were hiding something. Suspicion ran high, so he asked, "What did you two say about my face just now?"

"It's nothing, it's nothing!" the young man said with a wry smile. "My second uncle is mentally ill. He's always talking nonsense and rambling on. Don't listen to his rubbish!"

"Bullshit, did I fucking ask you?"

Lai Zi gestured with his lip, and his gang of fans immediately surrounded the two men.

Upon seeing this, the old man panicked and hurriedly bowed apologetically, saying, "Good sirs, I meant no harm. What... what are you doing?"

The leper raised his chin at him and commanded, "Explain yourself clearly. If you keep half of it to yourself, who are you trying to annoy?"

The old man hurriedly said, "Good sir, I really meant no harm. I was just saying that you have a noble appearance and wanted to get close to you so that when you become successful in the future, I can have a benefactor to help me and share in your good fortune!"

"Do I have a noble appearance?"

Lai Zi frowned. Even he himself didn't believe it. With a festering sore on his forehead that oozes pus in the summer and peels in the winter, what kind of wealthy and powerful person looks like that?

He used to set up a stall along the riverbank and had met many fortune tellers. He had asked for divination and fortune telling, and the fortune tellers always said nice things. But no one ever talked about his face. After all, he was a stall owner, and people were just doing the work. He was already at the mercy of others. Who would dare to speak ill of him like a cripple?

However, the old man insisted on talking about the festering sore on his head.

Unable to contain his curiosity, the leper pointed to his forehead and asked, "Can't you see what's on my forehead?"

The old man nodded and said, "I see it. That's what I was talking about. I wouldn't have said anything if it weren't for it!"

"Then you'd better give me some reasoning!"

"What other reason could there be? Those are dragon horns on your head!"

"what?"

"Dragon horns!"

"Bullshit, is that what your dragon horns look like?" The leper still had some self-awareness.

Unexpectedly, the old man said, "The dragon's horns are broken, so that's what it looks like. A dragon with broken horns is still a dragon!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the young man said, "Second Uncle, I'm telling you, stop talking nonsense. This isn't something you can just say casually. Let's go, let's go!"

He wanted to leave, but the fan gang wouldn't allow it; he had to finish what he was saying before he could leave.

Upon hearing this, the leper subconsciously touched the festering sore on his forehead and muttered to himself, "Hiss, what you said is interesting. You're quite perceptive?"

The old man humbly replied, "I only have a basic understanding, nothing more."

"what's your name?"

"My surname is Shou, and my courtesy name is Yunzhang." "Mr. Shou... please continue, I want to hear what's going on!"

"If you really want to hear it, I'll say a few more words."

As he spoke, Mr. Shou leaned closer, examined him carefully, and nodded, saying, "Northerners don't judge by their chin, and southerners don't judge by their forehead. I observe that this hero's face, though his skin is slightly inferior, has excellent bone structure. He has horns on his forehead, which is the appearance of a true dragon. It's a pity that the dragon horns are broken, so he must have had a difficult life in his youth!"

Dear readers, isn't this obvious? If he hadn't faced any hardships in his life, would he still be begging on the streets?

However, bystanders see things more clearly than those involved!

Upon hearing this, the leper, though not entirely convinced, couldn't help but sigh and say, "My life has been difficult for me."

"Fortunately, your brows are furrowed, and you have had many relatives and friends to help you throughout your life, so you won't suffer a complete collapse and become mediocre." Mr. Shou murmured and calculated. "Let me see, it was around the age of seventeen that you were helped by a benefactor, and from then on, your luck changed. Your life was smooth sailing, like a small boat traveling a thousand miles without waves or ripples. Am I right?"

The leper naturally thought of the west wind.

However, he wasn't very interested in the past. He was eager to make a name for himself right now and only wanted to know about his future fortune. So he waved his hand impatiently and said, "I don't need you to tell me these things. If you want to tell me anything, tell me something I don't know. What will happen in the future? When will I finally rise to prominence?"

Mr. Shou laughed and said, "If you want to ask more detailed questions, just looking at your face is probably not enough. Why don't you give me your birth date and time, and I'll do a proper analysis for you?"

Lai Zi was a little troubled and stammered, "My parents gave birth to me but didn't raise me. I've been an orphan since I was little. I don't know anything about birth date and time, I only know what year I was born. Can you calculate it?"

"Oh dear, this is a difficult matter!" Mr. Shou stroked his beard and pondered, "Could it be that the hero's destiny is too noble, predetermined in the dark, and cannot be shown to ordinary people?"

Upon hearing this, Lai Zi felt a strange mix of joy and regret: "So that means we can't figure it out?"

"That's not necessarily true!" Mr. Shou suddenly suggested. "How about this, would you please write down a character, and I'll interpret it for you?"

The old man blushed.

He never went to school as a child, so how could he possibly write?

However, having often wandered the streets and seen the plaques of various shops, he could barely recognize a few. So he borrowed a whistle from one of his brothers, walked to the nearby snow, and used the tip of the whistle to draw a line, which was considered to be the character "一" (one).

Mr. Shou walked over and took a look, then exclaimed, "Great! Excellent! This is incredible!"

Lai Zi frowned and couldn't help but ask, "It's just a 'one,' what's so great about it?"

"Oh dear! My lord, you are unaware of this. In the beginning, the Dao was established in one. If you see this character when interpreting a divination, it signifies that you will be a tree with deep roots and great wealth and power. I imagine you will be a successful entrepreneur with great abilities, a true pillar of strength and a beam of gold that spans the sea!"

"If it's that amazing, don't flatter me. You won't get paid for it."

“Hey, with your luck, do you even need me to flatter you?” Mr. Shou pointed to a horizontal line on the snow and said seriously, “Look at how you wrote the character ‘一’ (one). The strokes are sharp and the line runs east to west, just like a golden spear and iron horse, truly unstoppable! This imperial aura also corresponds to the dragon horn on your head!”

The leper was skeptical, scratched his head, and said, "Old man, don't try to fool me with those business talk!"

“You’ve already said you won’t pay, so why should I keep fooling you?” Mr. Shou said. “Back in the day, when Emperor Taizong of Tang was divining the character ‘一’ (one), Yuan Tiangang deduced that it meant ‘one character connects to heaven, and the world is unified.’ If I said you could become emperor, you’d slap me twice. But your fortune is indeed heaven-reaching. At least in this Fengtian City, you’re someone who can say what’s going on!”

"According to you, I would have been a big boss long ago, why would I still be navigating the underworld?"

"Yes, I also find it strange..."

Mr. Shou thought for a moment, then said, "Good man, why don't you write another character, and I'll take a look and see where the problem is?"

"Let me make this clear beforehand, I don't know much!"

Lai Zi picked up his whistle and added another horizontal stroke under the character "一". Unexpectedly, ice was hidden in the snow. He stopped halfway through the stroke, simply stopped, and said with a sneer, "That's fine. As long as you can understand it."

Mr. Shou fell silent, his brows furrowed deeply.

Seeing this, the leper hurriedly asked, "What's wrong? Is something wrong?"

Mr. Shou stroked his goatee and shook his head repeatedly, saying, "No, I don't think it's good."

"Why not?"

“Look! The character ‘二’ should be shorter at the top and longer at the bottom, but you wrote it with the top longer than the bottom, like dark clouds overhead or a canopy of misfortune. Even if you have lofty ambitions, they are all suppressed. The two characters go their separate ways and can never reach the same destination. Their shape is like two heavy doors, confining a hero to the present moment, like a dragon trapped in double locks, unable to take flight. What should we do?”

The leper looked displeased and quickly said, "Then I'll rewrite it."

“Alas, rewriting it won’t work!” Mr. Shou explained, “When Cangjie created characters, millet rained down from the sky, and ghosts and gods wept. Every stroke you make has its own omen. If you insist on forcibly rewriting it, then what are you?”

Lai Zi regretted it a bit, muttered a couple of times, and asked again, "Didn't you just say I had a benefactor helping me out? How come I'm stuck here now?"

Mr. Shou waved his hand and said, "You are destined to have a powerful backer, but you also have obstacles to overcome! Hero, your destiny is noble. Even if others help you, it depends on their own fate. Have you ever seen a poor person help an emperor? At most, they will give you a bowl of pearl, jade and white jade soup. If someone helps you, you will bring them good luck in return. This is called the merit of following the dragon!"

"Hiss, so you mean, this is all the help I, your benefactor, can offer you?"

"Didn't you hear what I just said? Dark clouds are gathering overhead, and even the Heavenly Palace is sealed off. How are you supposed to stand up for yourself?"

The leper pondered for a long time, then remained silent.

But someone else said, "Old Deng, what do you mean by that? Are you trying to persuade us to switch sides? Let me tell you, even though we're uneducated, we brothers know exactly what 'loyalty and righteousness' mean. Stop trying to stir up trouble!"

Mr. Shou looked aggrieved and hurriedly said, "Hey, gentlemen, we have to speak from the heart. When did I advise you to change your allegiance? I said from the beginning that this gentleman is the founder of a school of thought. Since it's about starting a business, changing allegiance is just changing the name without changing the substance. It's just moving from one cloud to another. What's the point?"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned their attention to the leper.

Lai Zi looked around, feeling a little uncomfortable. Suddenly, he snorted coldly and said, "You spout nonsense and spout off some江湖口口 (jianghu kou, a kind of江湖口口 is ...

Mr. Shou replied, “I have always been a man of absolute certainty in my predictions. Whether you believe me or not is entirely up to you. I don’t charge any money. I just happened to be passing by and have long admired your reputations, so I came to say hello. Besides… this is the one you wanted to have your fortune told!”

At this moment, the young man said again, "Second Uncle, it's getting dark, and it's still ten miles to go home. Are you going to walk or not?"

Mr. Shou nodded, pointed to the frozen surface of the Shen River, and asked the members of the Kao Shan Gang, "Gentlemen, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

The leper waved his hand and said, "Get lost, and don't come hanging around here again!"

Mr. Shou responded and then said, "Very well, then we shall part ways here. I have nothing more to say, but I hope that you heroes can return to the city soon, deflate the arrogance of the maintenance committee, and vent the anger of us common people!"

Before Old Deng could finish speaking, he was pulled away by the young man beside him.

Lai Zi looked up and saw the two figures gradually disappearing into the distance on the ice, and his expression grew serious.

The group huddled together, timidly asking, "Brother Lai, it's getting windy tonight, shouldn't we go back inside early?"

Lai Zi thought for a moment, then said, "You all go back first. I'm going to the city tonight. The puppet regime is running rampant now, and Lao Dou and his gang are not easy to deal with. I'll go ask the boss if there's anything I can help with."

(End of this chapter)