Notes on Longevity

Chapter 160 No one is in the woods, but the sea of ​​flowers holds its own beauty.

"For my own good?"

Dao Yisheng silently repeated these words in his heart. Finally, he turned to face the sea of ​​flowers in front of him and, under the gentle caress of the spring sun, recited the words that he and Taihua had said to each other for the first time in front of this exquisite and spacious wooden house: "Without experiencing poverty, one cannot know hardship; without experiencing human affairs, one remains naive."

"Perhaps," he murmured to himself, now somewhat understanding the meaning of those words. He just didn't understand why one had to experience things in the human world to understand certain things. This puzzled him greatly; what was so peculiar about the human world?

He remembered Taihua saying that the most interesting thing about Yu'an City was its people. He didn't understand it before, and he still doesn't understand it now.

There's also wandering. Taihua once said, "Wandering is entering the world. Since it's entering the world, you should go to places with many people."

But he didn't understand why going to places inhabited by people meant being involved in the world.

Dao Yisheng sighed heavily through his nose, frowning helplessly, unable to understand it at all.

The woman in green standing nearby was also thinking something when she heard those words, but she understood much better than Dao Yisheng.

Since she descended the mountain, she encountered many people and many things on her journey to find that phoenix tree. The most profound impression in her memory was meeting a wandering Taoist priest on the road. The priest once told her, "The tranquility in the mountains is a necessity, while the bustling city is where true scriptures are found. We Taoists wander the world, which may seem like we are engaged in the world, but it is not. And hiding in the mountains to cultivate our minds is not the same as being detached from the world. The so-called detachment from the world and engagement with the world are actually non-existent."

The words spoken by Dao Yisheng, which Taihua had once said, were strikingly similar to those of a wandering Daoist she had met. However, she did not understand what the Daoist meant by "leaving the world" and "entering the world."
The sun sets low in the sky, and the waning moon quietly rises above the branches.

The exquisite wooden house was brightly lit. Dao Yisheng sat on the threshold, leaning against the door with a troubled expression. During the day, he and Luyi had been lost in their own thoughts, barely speaking. Only when Luyi finished cooking dinner in the evening did she briefly mention that she had to go to Yu'an City the next day to deliver clothes to someone. Dao Yisheng was quite surprised to hear this, so he asked her, "You can make clothes?"

The woman in green chuckled and replied, "Of course! If I didn't know how to order, what would I use to buy groceries? Would I just rob them?"

Dao Yisheng thought it made sense, so he sat down and waited for Luyi to finish cleaning up the dishes and start preparing to make clothes before sitting on the threshold. He watched her busy figure coming and going with his blurry eyes while thinking about the questions that had no answers during the day.

However, he couldn't calm down as he watched the green-clad figure's retreating figure. He didn't know what was wrong with him, so he simply stopped thinking about it. After all, he was destined to live a long and healthy life, and it wouldn't be worth making himself unhappy over such trivial matters. Besides, Taihua wasn't going to stay away; he could just ask him then.

So he got up and went to the woman in green's side, watching her use magic to manipulate the various colored needles and threads beside her, embroidering patterns on the bright red silk.

That was a spotted deer.

After the pattern was embroidered in the desired position, she continued to use her magic to cut the garment.

Dao Yisheng, who was standing to the side, initially found it quite novel, but after watching Green Robe make several pieces in a row, he became really sleepy and had no choice but to sit on the wooden plank next to the cabin. Then, looking up at the blurry waning moon, he muttered, "Looks like my eyes will take some time to recover."

Before dawn the next day, Green Robe began preparing the meal. As the porridge in the iron pot on the stove neared completion, she began packing the clothes she had hastily made the night before. By the time everything was ready, the thin mist on the horizon had dissipated, and a ray of golden sunlight pierced through the gaps in the clouds, illuminating the wooden house surrounded by a sea of ​​flowers. Carrying her bundle of clothes and her basket for grocery shopping, she set off for Yu'an City under the bright spring sun.

"You woke up so early?" Green Robe had only taken two steps when she heard Dao Yisheng's lazy voice.

Upon hearing this, the woman in green turned around and smiled at him. Then, carrying the bundle in her hand, she smiled at Dao Yisheng and said, "I need to deliver clothes to some wealthy people in Yu'an City. If I go early, I can catch up with them and avoid waiting foolishly for a while."

Dao Yisheng thought what Green Robe said made sense and nodded. Suddenly, he seemed to remember something, and then he quickly came to her side. With his blurry eyes, he looked at Green Robe's indistinct face and said with some worry, "I'll go with you. Otherwise, if you run into those two Wei brothers again, it will be difficult for you to get away."

"So what? I'm a spirit, he's a human. I know magic. How could a mere mortal like him possibly hurt me?" the woman in green said nonchalantly. Despite her serious injuries and limited time, she could still use some low-cost, mischievous spells.

"However, there is still a group of Taoists from the Wei family. They failed last time, and they might all be together now. Although I can't see clearly now, my magical power has recovered quite a bit, and I should be more than capable of dealing with those little Taoists."

Dao Yisheng's tone was no longer as sorrowful as yesterday. Although he was worried about Green Robe, his words were much more cheerful. It was as if yesterday's events and what Yun Gong had done had never happened.

Green Robe thought it made sense, but she still remembered Taihua's instructions to her before he left: "He is not able to move around easily now, so I hope you will take good care of him and teach him."

So she had no choice but to refuse, "No need, besides, your eyes haven't recovered yet, and having you come with me might delay things. The porridge is ready, just eat some, and once I get to Yu'an, I'll deliver the clothes, collect the money, and then buy some vegetables and fruits to bring back."

Dao Yisheng, as stubborn as ever, immediately retorted, "That won't do. Taihua told me that a gentleman doesn't accept charity. Besides, we don't know when Taihua will return. I can't just freeload off you every day. And if he finds out, he'll laugh at me to death."

Seeing that Dao Yisheng was stubborn, Green Robe wanted to persuade him again, but before she could speak, Dao Yisheng walked over and took the bundle from her hands.

Seeing this, Green Robe was startled and wanted to snatch it back from him, but Dao Yisheng had cultivated for a thousand years and, although he was seriously injured, he still had strength. In the end, even the basket on her back was taken by Dao Yisheng.

Helpless, Green Robe could only sigh and watch Dao Yisheng walk away with his things. She followed him as the sun rose higher. She prayed in her heart that Taihua wouldn't blame her, since she really couldn't stop Dao Yisheng now.

The figures fade into the distance, the sea of ​​flowers sways in the breeze; the sun rises high, and people are found in the wooden house.

Taihua stood by the window of the second-floor room, watching the two figures walk further and further away with mixed feelings. He sighed helplessly, then gave a bitter smile before disappearing from the room.

An exquisite yet empty wooden cabin, flowers swaying in the breeze, warm sunlight streaming down from the high sky, no one in the woods, only a sea of ​​flowers in full bloom. Everything that has happened seems as if it never happened at this moment.

(End of this chapter)