Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 203 Neither Human nor Ghost
Isn't the purpose of traveling around to broaden your horizons and increase your knowledge?
Lu Zheng was very curious about the real condition of the man in front of him.

Is there anything special about the zombies transformed from Confucian and Taoist scholars?
The man felt a little strange when he saw Lu Zheng looking at him curiously.

The man said, "If Zheng had never done anything evil, could you have just pretended nothing happened?"

"Is it not possible?" Lu Zheng asked.

The man was silent for a moment, then said, "Zheng has become neither human nor ghost."

Lu Zheng smiled slightly and said, "You may not believe this, but I have seen many demons and ghosts, killed many, and let some go... They are just demons and ghosts. People are afraid of them, but I don't mind them."

The man's expression changed, and he said, "If Mr. Lu promises not to tell anyone about what happened today, I can tell you a story first."

Lu Zheng nodded and said, "I agree. A gentleman's word is his bond..."

The man then poured Lu Zheng a cup of hot tea. "I was born weak and ill. I was destined to die young. Famous doctors said I wouldn't live more than a few months... Luckily, I have a good family background and my parents love me. They asked a master to use natural treasures to prolong my life, so I'm barely alive... After that, I studied Confucianism and became a Confucian scholar and a cultivator. But I can't avoid my physical defects, so my life span is limited."

"I wanted to live, so I went around seeking the Tao, the Taoist health preservation methods, the cultivation methods of the immortals, and various other methods."

"Unfortunately, my life is short and time is running out. I can only try to become a ghost after death, and then I used a method..."

"These past few years, I've barely managed to survive, neither human nor ghost. My family has long thought I was dead..."

"For so many years, I have lived in seclusion, never doing evil, always doing good deeds and accumulating virtue. I have also exterminated some harmful demons in the mountains... I also couldn't stand the loneliness and communicated with some people."

The man told his story slowly and calmly.

Perhaps because he had told his secret to others and found someone to confide in, the man felt inexplicably relieved.

The man looked at Lu Zheng, his expression calm again. "That's roughly what I want to say. Believe it or not, you can decide for yourself."

Lu Zheng couldn't help but ask, "What's your name?"

"Zheng Qian," the man sighed, "Mr. Qian, I've disappointed my parents."

"Are you from Hongzhou City?" Lu Zheng asked.

"Hmm?" The man's expression changed slightly.

Lu Zheng continued, "Your father is Zheng Yu, the Zheng family of Hongzhou?"

The man's expression changed again, and he asked in surprise, "You, how do you know about me? Who are you?"

He has been dead for many years in this world, and his family will not spread his story.

Ordinary people should not know his deeds.

Lu Zhengdao said, "I have an elder who has some connections to the Zheng family. I went to the state capital to ask for a painting... I've heard some of the Zheng family's family affairs before, and now that I compare them, it seems that someone in the two stories is the same person."

The man sat there with a dejected look on his face.

Unexpectedly, the listener seemed to be related to him, and he inexplicably felt a sense of shame.

Lu Zheng said calmly, "Don't worry, sir. If you don't let me say anything, I won't gossip about you."

The man looked at Lu Zheng blankly, speechless for a moment.

After a while, the man slowly said, "I'm here."

Lu Zheng's expression changed when he heard this, and he immediately stood up and walked out of the room.

Outside the bamboo house, a young man in white clothes walked slowly towards them.

The man's face was abnormally pale, his eyes were extremely bloodshot, and he exuded an aura of chaos.

Zheng Qian came to the door and looked at the still warm deer corpse on the ground. He reached out and tore a hole in it, lifted up the prey, tilted his head back and drank the deer's blood. The blood stained his white clothes, but he was unaware of it.

Lu Zheng looked at the poultry raised in the bamboo house next to him, and now he understood what was going on.

After a while, Zheng Qian finally dropped the body and grinned, "You've seen me in this state, right? What do you think?"

Seeing is believing, and Lu Zheng found it novel.

He couldn't help but say, "Not bad. By the way, how much blood do you drink on a daily basis? Can't you just not drink blood?"

Zheng Qian was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Lu Zheng to focus on this kind of thing.

It seemed that in Lu Zheng's eyes, there was nothing unusual about his grotesque appearance.

Zheng Qian had no choice but to say, "It depends on the situation. You don't have to drink it every day. If you don't drink blood, your body will become stiff and eventually turn into a mummy. Then you can only turn into a ghost. Now I should be considered a corpse ghost..."

"It's really just as the book says." Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "The zombie I saw before wasn't as agile as you. I think that's the reason. Are your five senses still there?"

"Yes, but not as sharp as when he was alive." Zheng Qian replied.

"Is there still literary spirit?" Lu Zheng asked.

Zheng Qian said, "Yes. I tried to retain some of my literary energy, so that it could be preserved and used for painting. The me in that room can actually be considered a clone of me, with a part of my thoughts in it... All the cultivators I met before couldn't see my flaws. You are the first one."

Zheng Qian is good at painting, and his talent is also inherited from Zheng Yu.

The paper figures he drew were closer to reality than the people in the paintings, so realistic that it was difficult to tell the difference.

"I cultivate righteousness." Lu Zheng explained.

Zheng Qian suddenly understood, "So that's how it is. A noble and upright spirit is not just an ordinary literary aura. Mr. Lu can sense it, so it seems my disguise isn't bad enough."

After Lu Zheng said this, he felt better.

After all, it is not easy to meet a scholar who cultivates a righteous spirit.

Lu Zheng asked, "After you became like this, have you ever gone back to see your family?"

Zheng Qian shook his head and said, "Before I died, I wrote a letter to my family saying I was dead, and I never went back. How could I dare to go back and see anyone in my current state? My parents would only be even more heartbroken if they saw me. If outsiders knew about this, the entire Zheng family would be disgraced."

"So many years have passed, it would be better for them to think I'm dead." Zheng Qian said quietly.

Zheng Qian's expression was somewhat stiff, and there was no trace of sadness in his scarlet eyes. However, Lu Zheng could still sense a slight emotional fluctuation in his expression.

Lu Zheng asked, "Is it really okay for you to live like this? And how long can you live?"

Zheng Qian smiled bitterly and said, "It's really better to be a human being like this... Maybe I can still live for a few decades, or maybe after a while, I'll get tired of living. Who knows?"

This is the path he chose, and it is the only path. There is no turning back, he can only move forward.

It is better to live a miserable life than to die. Although Zheng Qian felt that his current horrible appearance was indeed embarrassing, at least he was still alive.

Perhaps one day, he will let go of his obsession with life and stop being a ghost.

Seeing this, Lu Zheng turned and said, "Thank you for the tea, Master Zheng. I have to hurry on my way. Do you need me to pass on a message?"

Zheng Qian heard this and shook his head, "No need."

He paused, then added, "Zheng has an unwelcome request."

"Please speak." Lu Zheng said seriously.

Zheng Qian whispered, "If Mr. Lu drops by later, tell me about the family situation. I'll wait for you here."

"Okay." Lu Zheng responded without hesitation, "But I might be a little busy, and I don't know if your parents are in the state capital yet, so you might have to wait a little longer."

Zheng Qian said: "It's okay, I can wait."

"Then I'll take my leave." Lu Zheng bowed.

Zheng Qian bowed and said, "Take care on your journey, Mr. Lu."

Lu Zheng nodded slightly and walked quickly down the mountain.

Zheng Qian stared at Lu Zheng until Lu Zheng disappeared from his sight, then he slowly withdrew his gaze.

Then, Zheng Qian sat down on the ground stiffly, staring blankly at the location of Hongzhou City.

After a long while, he said in a hoarse voice: "I've been a ghost for so long that my feelings are almost gone. I can't go back."

……

Qing Wan didn't sneak out until they were far away from the mountains.

"that person……"

Qing Wan spoke softly, but didn't know what to say.

"What's wrong?" Lu Zheng asked with a smile.

Qing Wan thought for a moment and said, "He doesn't look like a bad guy, but he's also very strange!"

Qing Wan shook her little head and stared at Lu Zheng with shining eyes.

"Lu Zheng, if you died, would you live like that?"

Lu Zheng said, "Well, that shouldn't be the case. After all, I don't know how I became like that, and not everyone can do that casually."

He hasn't had enough of being a human being, so why would he want to be a ghost?
"Really? I can't do it either?" Qing Wan asked curiously.

Lu Zheng smiled helplessly, "You're even worse off... Stop thinking about these things and work hard on your cultivation and be a better person."

Qing Wan then said, "That paper figurine is quite interesting. It's more powerful than the bean soldiers. We can learn from it!"

Lu Zheng deeply agreed with this, but with his current painting skills, he was still far from reaching that level.

After arriving at an open space, Lu Zheng released the white crane in the painting, then rode on the crane and headed towards the direction the man had pointed out.

After flying for a while, a magnificent city really appeared in the distance.

From a distance, the city seems to be quite large, probably as big as nearly a hundred Kaiyang counties.

Like a giant beast, it occupies an area.

Just then, a bird flapped its wings and slowly approached.

"Mr. Lu?" The bird spoke in human language.

Lu Zheng glanced sideways upon hearing this, and found this spirit bird somewhat familiar.

The spirit bird said, "We have been keeping watch here for many days, and Master Lu has finally arrived."

Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "Thank you for your hard work."

"It's not hard." The spirit bird said crisply, "We have made some friends here. Mr. Lu, do you want to meet them?"

"Hmm? Please lead the way!"

Lu Zheng was curious. More birds means more power, so it would definitely be good to get to know more spiritual birds.

"Master Lu, please follow me. I'll go call them!"

The spirit bird excitedly led the way, chirping all the way and calling its companions.

The sound of birdsong is very penetrating and spreads quickly.

After a while, there were many responses.

When Lu Zheng arrived at a forest, he was surrounded by many unfamiliar birds.

After some communication, Lu Zheng was quite surprised.

Because some of the spirit birds were raised by other people, and I don’t know how these birds got connected...

(End of this chapter)