Sword from the Immortal Mountain

Chapter 46: Reasoning

When he arrived at the posthouse, Chen Jin got off the donkey, looked up, and saw two people confronting each other inside.

The one on the left is in his early twenties, not very tall, wearing a patched grey cotton gown, with a pale face and a frail appearance;

The man on the right is short and stocky, unkempt, with a fierce look, and holding an iron knife in his hand.

It was he who swung the knife just now to intimidate the other party.

However, it can be seen that the scholar is a stubborn person and was not frightened and retreated.

Thus a standoff situation arose.

Chen Jin's arrival broke this situation.

No matter if they were scholars or strong men, they all turned their heads to look, with scrutiny in their eyes.

When you are out and about and meet strangers, you will naturally be wary of them.

This is because strangers often represent the unknown and potential danger.

After seeing Chen Jin, the scholar showed a hint of joy. He probably thought that Chen Jin was just like him, a well-mannered scholar, belonging to the same type of people, with similar standpoints and ideas.
The sturdy man was obviously more interested in the donkey with shiny fur, and his eyes were wandering around.

Chen Jin walked in, took a quick look, and then his eyes fell on something in the middle.

This is a wooden statue.

The statue was quite worn out, about five feet tall, with a mottled exterior and even its features worn out to the point of being blurred.

Its right arm was chopped off.

The newly cut ones fell to the ground.

It seemed that it was the strong man who did it.

So, the dispute between the scholar and the strong man was because of this statue?
The scholar stepped forward and bowed to Chen Jin, "My dear brother, please come in. I am Zhang Tong, a student at the Sishan County School. May I ask for your advice?"

It turns out he is a scholar, and a "county school student", no wonder he is so confident.

In the Qianlong Dynasty, after scholars had received their first education in private schools, they would take the boy's examination. Those who passed the first two levels were called "tongsheng", and those who passed the third level were called "xiucai", thus obtaining the lowest level of imperial examination title.

After becoming a scholar, one can formally go to school and study at the government academy to prepare for the provincial examination, which is called the "juzi examination".

There are certain requirements for admission to school. One has to take annual examinations. Those with good grades and high rankings are listed as "stipend students". Not only do they not have to pay tuition, they also receive a monthly stipend rice subsidy. Those who are worse than stipend students are called "zengguang students", abbreviated as "zengsheng"; there is also a "attached student" at the end.

"Chen Jin, came here from Genshui County to study."

Chen Jin returned the greeting and gave a concise answer.

Zhang Tong didn't care and said loudly: "It turns out to be Brother Chen. Since Brother Chen is here, it's a good opportunity to judge the matter."

"What's the point?"

"This is what happened. Earlier, this hero said that the weather was cold and he wanted to light a fire to keep warm. That was nothing. But he went to the nearby mountain temple, brought this statue, and then chopped it up to use as firewood. Isn't this a great disrespect to the gods? The gods will blame him and punish him. So I tried to dissuade him from doing it."

The man sneered, "The mountain temple has collapsed a long time ago. You can't even hide from the rain there. There's only a shabby statue left. What kind of god is it? Besides, it's raining outside. You can't find dry branches or firewood. You can't light a fire, so you're standing here in the wind and freezing?"

As he said this, he shook the iron knife in his hand and stared at Chen Jin fiercely: "Your Excellency, please look carefully. Between me and that useless scholar, who is more right?"

Chen Jin said: "You have a knife in your hand, so you are right."

The man laughed when he heard this and said, "Well said. Scholar, now you have nothing to say."

Zhang Tong glared at Chen Jin and said, "I thought you were a man of integrity, but you are afraid of evil people's tricks and are timid. You have really read the books of sages in vain." Chen Jin said calmly, "This is what I think about this matter. If this god is alive, he will definitely not watch us suffer from the cold. He will definitely volunteer to sacrifice himself and turn into firewood to keep everyone warm."

The man listened, clapped his hands and praised, "You, a scholar, are right. That's exactly the point."

Zhang Tong's face flushed: "What nonsense, heresy and perverse logic."

Chen Jin looked at him and said, "What's wrong with that? We worship the gods and burn incense and offer sacrifices constantly, isn't it just to seek blessings and benefits from the gods? The current weather is windy and rainy, and the weather is freezing. I'm wearing thin clothes and need to light a fire to keep warm. I think if this god has a kind heart, he shouldn't mind."

Zhang Tong said loudly: "As the saying goes: The more you worship gods, the more gods will bless you. But not only do you not worship, but you want to chop the statues into pieces. If you do this, how can you expect to receive the blessings of the gods?"

Chen Jin nodded slightly: "You have some truth in what you said. But if a god can't protect himself, how can he protect others? As this hero said, the temple collapsed and the incense has long been gone. Maybe this is a god that is not popular among the people. Furthermore, this may be an evil god who committed some evil deeds that angered the gods and people, so he was despised by the people. If this is true, then cutting down the statue is actually getting rid of harm for the people."

Man: "..."

He was always bold when he traveled around the world. He used the statue as firewood just for convenience, but he never thought there were so many truths in it.

Zhang Tong was left speechless by these words and didn't know how to explain himself.

After all, what Chen Jin said was reasonable and well-founded.

But the scholar was a stubborn person, and he immediately said loudly: "What you said is just one-sided speculation, which cannot be taken as the truth. Anyway, no matter what, I am here, and I will not allow you to do anything reckless."

Hearing this, the man was so angry that his teeth itched. If Zhang Tong was protecting the statue, he really didn't dare to cut it, for fear of accidentally hurting it.

He could only say viciously: "If you believe in it so much, just carry the statue back and don't leave it here to get in the way."

"If you want to carry it, just carry it."

As Zhang Tong spoke, he placed the statue on his back and walked away.

The statue is made of wood and has seen many vicissitudes of life. The internal organs are hollow, so it is not that heavy and can be carried.

Seeing this, the man couldn't help but curse: "What a sour scholar."

He looked at Chen Jin and then at the donkey: "Your donkey is really fat."

Chen Jin laughed and said, "Not only is he fat, but he also has a bad temper and will kick people."

"Really? I don't believe it."

The man reached out to grab the donkey.

Crack!

Suddenly the donkey raised its hoof and kicked over.

The man dodged it narrowly, and broke out in a cold sweat: "Good fellow, he really knows how to kick people."

Seeing that he could not get what he wanted, the wind and rain outside subsided again. He muttered something, sheathed his sword, put on his hat, strode away, and hurried on his way.

Chen Jin ignored him and sat on a stone block placed in the pavilion.

After a while, footsteps were heard. It was Zhang Tong who was returning after delivering the statue.

This section of the journey made him shiver with cold after being exposed to the wind and rain. As soon as he entered the pavilion, he began to cough.

He coughed so hard that his waist bent.

Chen Jin raised his eyes and saw a creature sitting astride Zhang Tong's neck, with a green face and horns, and a ferocious look.

(End of this chapter)