Mang Shusheng's Ink Painting Practice

Chapter 114 What is Benevolence

To be honest, when Master Yan asked Zhao Yifu about his "bottom line", his tone was reprimanding, or even lecturing.

His tone was so serious that Liang Zhongzhi even frowned and wanted to say a few words on behalf of his disciple.

But without Liang Zhongzhi saying anything, Master Yan had already realized the problem and suddenly stopped talking. Then he changed his tone and said, "Of course, your problem is not that serious. I just said it because I was upset."

Qiu Yuzi shook her head and said, "Old Yan, this isn't your fault, it's mine. If I hadn't insisted on taking that kid as my apprentice and insisted on you all teaching him together, I wouldn't have caused such anger."

"I can only say that there must be a reason why the mighty Dragon King was ambushed by a mere side sect cultivator."

Wow, there is a lot of information in this sentence.

If it were any other time, Zhao Yifu would have first gloated over the misfortune, and then would have worried about whether his brother was unteachable...

But at this time his mind was full of worries, and his thoughts had drifted away to who knows where.

While the others sighed and groaned, Liang Zhongzhi's thoughts were all on his beloved disciple. Seeing Zhao Yifu's expression of joy and contemplation, he couldn't help but ask, "Jun Xin, is there anything you still don't understand?"

"You might as well speak up. I believe the elders present are willing to help you solve your doubts."

Master Yan was the first to agree: "Yes."

He actually has a compensatory mentality.

Because he knew that his previous behavior was completely out of anger.

Although Zhao Yifu acted rather rashly, why did he need to get so angry?

He was already prepared. No matter what question Zhao Yifu asked next, he would give a serious and unreserved answer.

however……

Zhao Yifu looked at Liang Zhongzhi with some doubts and thoughts.

"Master, what does the 'Shou Ren Fa' mean to you? Or, in other words, what have you realized from the 'Shou Ren Fa'?"

Good guy.

Everyone else present was in a trance.

Because they were used to the stupid questions from the little guy who looked like the Dragon King on Mo Mountain, they suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.

Liang Zhongzhi fell into deep thought.

He thought about his journey, especially his early years of practicing the "Shou Ren Method" where he failed to achieve success in three or five years, but he gritted his teeth and persisted for twelve years before finally achieving success.

It was also from that moment that he realized that his talent for cultivation was actually not that great, but so what?
When the "Shou Ren Fa" was finally accomplished, the joy and satisfaction he gained in his heart was no less than that of others.

He recognized himself and also achieved success.

Therefore, after a brief reflection, Liang Zhongzhi said, "If I were to say what the greatest understanding that the 'Shouren Law' has brought me is, it would be the word 'hold'."

“If there is no holding, then benevolence will perish.”

He said this with a sense of vicissitudes of life.

Zhao Yifu thought of the difficulties he had encountered at the beginning of his spiritual practice, and realized that the same principle would apply if one replaced "benevolence" with "success" or "results". Therefore, he nodded in sympathy to what Liang Zhongzhi said about "holding".

At this time, some ideas in his mind had already begun to take shape, but something was still missing.

As the name suggests, Yuwei Jushi is a person who is good at "seeing the big picture from the small details".

Seeing this, he nodded and said, "It seems that this kid is getting some enlightenment. I'd like to throw in some ideas as well."

"I practiced the Way of Benevolence, but initially achieved little. At that time, I was serving as a governor in a local prefecture, and with deep sympathy for the hardships faced by the people, I devoted myself to guiding them and implementing benevolent policies to help them recover and prosper."

"When the three years are up and I see the newborn babies all over the city playing and laughing, my path will naturally be complete."

“So, for me, a benevolent person is a human being!”

Zhao Yifu immediately clasped his fists and said, "Senior, you are truly a kind person."

Qiu Yuzi smiled and said, "What about you? How do you feel?"

Zhao Yifu said, "I was already moved by Master Yan's talk about 'bottom line,' and now, after listening to Master's talk about 'holding on' and Senior Yuewei's talk about 'benevolent people,' I have gained some enlightenment."

He thought of the poor woman he met while selling calligraphy on the street, and how her shattered family finally had hope thanks to his help. A smile filled with warmth and determination appeared on his face. He said, "My disciple believes that a benevolent person should do something meaningful."

"Ha ha ha ha."

Qiu Yuzi suddenly burst into laughter.

Master Yan also showed a hint of relief, but then felt a little embarrassed.

Qiu Yuzi pointed at Master Yan and said, "Well, this kid doesn't need our concern, right?"

Master Yan nodded and said, "Those who can understand the heart of benevolence naturally need no further words from me."

Then he smiled and said, "In that case, your understanding and mine can be a perfect match."

"You have your own way, but I have my own way."

Zhao Yifu asked curiously, "What about the Sect Leader? What is his understanding?"

Qiu Yuzi was slightly taken aback, and after a moment's hesitation, he pointed at Zhao Yifu and said, "A benevolent person should do something."

Then he pointed to Master Yan and said, "A benevolent person will not do anything."

Referring to Liang Zhongzhi: "Persistence is the key."

Then he pointed to Yuwei Jushi: "People are the foundation."

Then he pointed to his chest and said, "Benevolence is the Tao!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint ethereal sound came out from his Yang Shen body, and his body itself seemed light and floating as if it was about to fly away on the wind at any time.

Zhao Yifu was stunned and an idea immediately popped up in his mind: This is going to ascend!

But the next moment, Qiu Yuzi suddenly waved his hand, cutting off all the heavenly sounds and stopping himself from leaving.

Afterwards, Zhao Yifu felt that the house was filled with a rich and pure spiritual energy, which made the cats in the yard look intoxicated.

Master Yan was shocked and asked, "Master, why do you want to cut off your own cultivation?"

Qiu Yuzi sighed, "I cultivate the Dao, not the immortality. How can I achieve immortality if I haven't achieved the Dao yet? Therefore, I can only cut off 10% of my cultivation in exchange for some time to stay in this world."

Zhao Yifu was stunned when he heard this. He was shocked by his master's actions.

"What we cultivate is the Tao, not the immortality."

This sentence brought a huge shock to Zhao Yifu, and he kept it firmly in mind.

Practice Taoism and cultivate immortality.

These two seem to be talking about the same thing, but if you think about it carefully, they are actually different...

According to Zhao Yifu's understanding, cultivating immortals is about achieving an illusory result, while cultivating Taoism is about achieving what you can actually see and feel right in front of you, and then persisting in.

The Taoist is the way.

This is the direction for cultivators to move forward.

Obviously, for Qiu Yuzi, if the result of becoming an immortal is not along this road, but a fork in the road... then he would rather give up!
He chose to complete his own path and then focus on savoring the most delicious fruits. Zhao Yifu bowed deeply, but was speechless.

Because he really didn't know what to say, he could only express his respect for the master through actions.

The others also followed suit and bowed.

But Liang Zhongzhi straightened up and asked, "But what if it's still the same as it was a hundred years ago? What the former leader pursued... is too difficult, almost impossible to achieve."

Qiu Yuzi smiled and said, "Master wants to see the world of great harmony. He tried but failed. It is indeed very difficult."

"So, I only want to see the hope of universal peace and harmony, and the possibility of realizing such a world. I will be content. It can also be regarded as a way to end the century-long shame of my Danqing Sect."

Everyone gained something from hearing this.

Zhao Yifu finally understood why his master was reluctant to talk about what happened between the Dragon King of Dongting Lake and the Bixu Narcissus.

Because such people and such dirty things are really not worth mentioning to the masters of our sect.

At this time, Yuwei Jushi said cheerfully, "I originally thought I was just here to learn about the situation, but I didn't expect it to turn into a discussion."

"This time, it's not just Jun Xin who has gained something, I have also gained something."

"The five of us here discussing benevolence could be called the 'Five Sages of Benevolence'... Indeed, when I return, I will write a good article to publicize this matter and make us five sages famous!"

Zhao Yifu: “!!!”

He quickly said, "Senior, this disciple doesn't need to do that, right? I'm young and my cultivation is still very shallow. How can I be compared with four elders?"

He had to stop it because it made him feel socially dead.

However, Master Yan smiled and said, "Let him go. He won't write his real name anyway. These are just our Taoist names."

"He wrote this article and publicized it, which would be a good opportunity to earn him some Yang and spiritual energy... If you don't allow it, you'll be blocking his path."

Zhao Yifu nodded in agreement upon hearing this, but dared not say anything.

Qiu Yuzi smiled and said, "Don't scare the child."

Liang Zhongzhi then said, "Junxin, didn't you write to me earlier saying that you had some confusion?"

"Why don't you tell me what exactly is confusing you? I believe that the Sect Master and Teacher Yan are here and will definitely be able to give you the answers you need."

Zhao Yifu suddenly understood after hearing this.

To be honest, he was a little stunned because a group of bigwigs suddenly rushed out, especially since he had taken in a lot of information today. In comparison, his confusions seemed insignificant.

He actually thought for a moment before saying, "Master, seniors, I was just surprised that the process went so smoothly today that it was beyond my imagination."

"I don't understand. How could such a coincidence happen in this world? It's as if there's some mysterious force behind all this."

Liang Zhongzhi burst out laughing after hearing this.

He tapped Zhao Yifu's head affectionately and said, "Silly disciple, have you forgotten whose favor you have received?"

Zhao Yifu was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Does this have such an effect?"

Qiu Yuzi also laughed and said, "I almost forgot, the ancestor once accepted your invitation to reveal the divine map. Perhaps it was because of this that you received a certain amount of righteousness blessing."

He obviously didn't know that both the Patriarch and Emperor Wenheng were still in the painting.

Qiu Yuzi continued, "You should know that everyone has luck, and under normal circumstances, this luck is not obvious and therefore difficult to detect."

"But if you become an official, you will also have the blessing of official luck, which will make you different from ordinary people."

"And this luck in becoming an official is precisely the reason why many disciples in the sect are willing to enter the officialdom and practice cultivation."

"Of course, under normal circumstances, you won't be able to feel this official luck until you reach a certain level."

"But you have also won the favor of the Grandmaster, so that's different."

"The founder is a Pure Yang Immortal, and Pure Yang represents the righteousness of heaven and earth, the righteousness of the universe."

"If you can uphold a righteous heart and do what is right... yes, you have always been like this. Otherwise, how could you have the feeling of 'doing something meaningful'?"

"If you do something, your luck will manifest, and everything will go smoothly for you, as if you were blessed by God."

Zhao Yifu was stunned after hearing this and couldn't help but mutter, "Is it so mysterious?"

Qiu Yuzi laughed and said, "Of course it's not that mysterious."

"It's just that the deficit in this county is indeed related to the Qian family. The Qian family did send someone to assassinate the former county magistrate, and the murderer is indeed hiding in the Qian family."

"It's just that all this happened because of your early arrival, or because the news from Yuzhou didn't reach them in time, so they were unable to respond."

"So, this good fortune actually just made you arrive earlier, and they weren't alert to your arrival. Can you think of why that is?"

Zhao Yifu immediately thought of the five carrier pigeons.

"They only released five carrier pigeons, and my cat happened to catch them all!"

Qiu Yuzi smiled and nodded. "See, this is your luck. It actually only took effect for a very brief moment, but in that moment, all the established facts began to tilt in your favor."

Zhao Yifu took a deep breath and nodded.

He said, "In this way, we can actually use wisdom to achieve the same goal."

"I can have my old servant pretend that I'm still waiting at the inn, while I go to Fenglin County first to investigate everything, and then kill him with one strike!"

"In this case, you don't even need to rely on luck."

Qiu Yuzi said, "See, you've already understood how to fight against fate. Wisdom and strength, remember, never pin your hopes on fate."

Zhao Yifu nodded seriously. He felt that the sect leader was worthy of being the sect leader. He was truly an elder full of wisdom.

At this time, the lay Buddhist Yuewei asked, "Now that the Qian family case has been solved, can you make up for your losses?"

Zhao Yifu said, "The county's farmland tax deficit is 100,000 taels, and the government treasury deficit is equivalent to 50,000 taels. We haven't checked the exact amount of money seized yet... But it doesn't matter. There are several other families. I believe they will be willing to make up the tax silver after this incident."

Qiu Yuzi said, "Deficits are inevitable. The previous County Magistrate Huang wasn't a very talented person either. This is to be expected."

Yuwei Jushi said, "In that case, all the proceeds from this raid will be handed over to the Fenglin County government for disposal. I'll issue you a written document later."

Master Yan then said with a stern face, "According to the laws of Daxu, the Qian family's assassination of the county magistrate is unforgivable. However, considering that the Qian family has produced successful candidates in the imperial examinations within three generations, apart from the principal offender, who will be executed immediately, the rest of the family will be forced to do corvée labor, and the women will be stripped of their titles and enslaved."

"This also requires waiting for official documents to come down. Before that, you must not handle it privately."

Zhao Yifu quickly responded.

He has already gained benefits, so of course he doesn't care about the life or death of these people.

Qiu Yuzi added, "Do a good job of surveying the land; this is the most important thing."

"If you can achieve it in one year, I will promote you to full-fledged county magistrate in one year. If you can achieve it in six months, I will make you a county magistrate in six months."

"In short, don't let us down."

Liang Zhongzhi said in surprise: "Master, why put so much pressure on this kid?"

Qiu Yuzi said, "It's not about putting pressure on him, but our Majesty urgently needs to see some hope of success, otherwise he would be under too much pressure."

　Chapter 2, I'm so tired, I worked till 1am to finish this
　　
　
(End of this chapter)