Notes on Longevity

Chapter 200 Every flower and tree has its own path, and so does every step and movement.
She Li didn't sleep all night. He sat by Ping An and Xiao Changgong's beds and kept watch all night. Not for any other reason, but because he had thought for a long time about what Zhou Ziping had told him the night before.

Demons are not human, and humans are not demons; although they are essentially the same—both are life forms—their natures differ. A beast demon that transforms into a human retains its original nature. Take Xiao Changgong, for example. He helped Xiao Changgong subdue the snake demon because the demon was harming people, and he couldn't defeat it. However, what he didn't expect was that while Xiao Changgong wanted to eliminate the demon and restore peace to the people, he also had a selfish motive—the snake demon's inner core.

Xiao Changgong's cultivation method differed from other demons. Ordinary demons cultivated by harnessing the power of heaven and earth, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon to strengthen their power. Xiao Changgong did the same, but this wasn't his primary focus. His inner core was the most important element in his cultivation.

However, there are good demons in this world, such as Xiao Changgong, who travels with Taoists and befriends ordinary people; besides them, there are also evil demons who harm people's lives.

However, most of the demons Xiao Changgong encountered along his journey adhered to human nature and were often kind to people. Because he could not obtain an inner core, his cultivation speed was very slow. Although he had a five-hundred-year-old demon body, he was still no match for a snake demon who was only a hundred years old.

She Li had learned from Xiao Changgong that he had obtained several opportunities from the Divine Ape, including the Enchanting Palm technique and the ability to enter Ping An's mind for guidance. Perhaps even his unconventional cultivation method came from the Divine Ape.

He didn't know whether Xiao Changgong's method of cultivation was good or bad, after all, it was not easy for demon cultivators to cultivate their inner core.

As the sun gradually rose, he looked at the two sleeping people and worried about their safety.

Ever since the mountain god led Ping An out of the mist, he knew that Ping An had changed, though he only knew it was in appearance. But along the way, Yang Shouren rarely spoke, perhaps because of the difference between them, not knowing what to say, or perhaps for some other reason.

Although he hadn't heard what Yang Shouren said to Ping An last night, he knew Yang Shouren wouldn't be so reckless and foolish; he must have discovered something about Ping An that had changed. He had spoken it to Ping An, and he was right, which gave the inner demons an opportunity to take hold.

The addition of the thumb and extra fingers is perhaps a natural occurrence, but it also reflects a lack of virtue.

This made She Li truly realize that perhaps he was really wrong. He should have asked for the reason, but instead, he used the excuse of loving his junior brother to scold Yang Shouren without distinguishing right from wrong, which made him feel that he had wasted his twenty years of cultivation.

He hesitated and regretted saying those words to Yang Shouren. And Zhou Ziping was right: "If a lantern has a broken corner, even if it is repaired, the rift is inevitable."

"Senior brother."

She Li was deep in thought when Ping An's faint voice reached his ears.

"Awake?" He looked up and saw Ping An staring straight at him with her eyes misty over, which made him feel ashamed and confused at the same time.

He knew the mountain god meant well, but the peace he saw now was unclear and unpredictable. He didn't know if it was good or bad.
Ping An slowly sat up from the bed, the whisk right beside him.

He sat up, glanced at Xiao Changgong who was still asleep, then gently picked up his whisk and, with his senior brother's help, put on his boots.

Ping An, holding a whisk, stood opposite She Li. She Li was somewhat moved; Ping An was almost as tall as him.

This was the first time he had felt Ping An's changes so clearly. He had once caught a glimpse of Ping An during a brief visit, when he was still shorter than his chest.

The two looked at each other in silence. Then Zhou Yanliu's voice came from outside the door, "Grandpa, look, Black Face is causing trouble again."

Zhou Ziping brought out porridge and steamed buns from the kitchen. He watched as the black face, which had returned to its normal size, was poking at the lantern with its paws on the table.

Ping An and She Li walked out of the room upon hearing this, and they saw that Lantern had been knocked to the ground by the dark-faced man who ignored Zhou Yanliu's words.

Zhou Ziping didn't think anything was wrong. Instead, he slapped Zhou Yanliu on the head and said angrily, "Even if you're naughty, you're not as reckless as when you broke into the mountains as a child. If the mountain god had been angry back then, our village would have been in big trouble."

“But the Mountain God is very nice. He’s not as bad-tempered as you say.” Zhou Yanliu was inexplicably hit, and he glared angrily at the dark-faced man sitting obediently on the table, guarding the porridge.

Seeing Zhou Yanliu's aggrieved appearance, the dark-faced man suddenly yelled at him, as if to say, "Serves you right, you got scolded again."

Zhou Yanliu stared at it in disbelief, growing angrier the more he thought about it, and reached out to grab the black-faced creature. However, cats are naturally agile, and after receiving the blessing of rain from the mountain god's bounty on heaven and earth, their speed became indescribably fast.

Using Zhou Yanliu's outstretched hand, it jumped onto his shoulder and began scratching wildly at his face, infuriating Zhou Yanliu. He grabbed the black-faced creature on his shoulder, intending to teach it a lesson, but the creature suddenly grew larger, like a black tiger pressing down on him.

Seeing this, Zhou Ziping did not stop the man with the dark face, but chuckled and said, "You kid, now someone can handle you, right?"

Zhou Yanliu cried out to the dark-faced man, "Grandpa, why are you still taking his side? Am I not your grandson anymore?"

"What's going on?" Xiao Changgong, who was fast asleep, heard a commotion in the courtyard. He was startled awake and rushed out to check, thinking that something had happened.

However, as soon as he finished speaking, the dark-faced man lowered his head and looked at Xiao Changgong like a tiger. Still traumatized by yesterday's events, he was so frightened by the dark-faced man's gaze that he quickly hid behind She Li again.

Upon hearing the voice, Zhou Ziping turned to look at Ping An and the other two, clapped his dry hands, and then clasped his hands in a salute, saying, "Greetings to the two Daoist masters and the fox spirit."

At this moment, Black Face shrank its body and obediently sat on Zhou Yanliu's belly, which finally gave Zhou Yanliu the opportunity to lift Black Face up with both hands: "You little black cat, let's see how I deal with you."

Faced with Zhou Yanliu's mischief, Zhou Ziping slapped him on the back of the head again. Feeling his grandfather's love, Zhou Yanliu threw down the black face and quickly protected his head with a startled meow: "Grandpa, you hit me again."

Zhou Yanliu's aggrieved look amused Xiao Changgong, who was hiding behind She Li, but when he saw the black face, yellow eyes, and white pupils, he shrank back.

Seeing this, She Li smiled calmly: "Uncle Zhou, we should also say goodbye to you. The journey to Huangzhou is still long, and we have other matters to attend to, so we will not disturb you any longer."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ziping quickly urged him to stay, saying, "Daoist, there's no rush. Let's eat before you go. Besides, the nearest town is still two days and one night's journey away. I've steamed quite a few white flour buns, so you can take some with you on the road."

She Li immediately replied, but instead looked at Ping An. However, Xiao Changgong, who was hiding behind her, poked She Li in the back and whispered, "I'd rather eat wild fruit than stay here any longer."

Upon hearing this, She Li patted Xiao Changgong with her hands behind her back and quickly said with a smile, "Then I'll have to trouble Uncle Zhou."

Zhou Ziping also smiled and said, "No trouble at all, no trouble at all."

During the meal, Xiao Changgong squatted behind Ping An and She Li, refusing to eat no matter how Zhou Ziping tried to persuade him. It wasn't that Xiao Changgong was impolite, but rather that he was afraid of the dark face sitting on Zhou Yanliu's shoulder. The main reason was that the dark face had grown larger and resembled a tiger in the rain yesterday, which had truly frightened him, and he still felt lingering fear whenever he thought about it.

Xiao Changgong refused to eat, and She Li told Zhou Ziping not to worry about him. However, the dark expression on Zhou Yanliu's shoulder had disappeared.

"It's just a cat demon, what's there to be so smug about? If it weren't for some mountain god who gave you this opportunity, I would have beaten you to a pulp long ago." Xiao Changgong squatted on the ground, cursing under his breath, but little did he know that it had quietly slipped off Zhou Yanliu's shoulder and behind him.

When Blackface heard Xiao Changgong's mutterings, it suddenly lowered its body, lunged at Xiao Changgong's buttocks, and scratched it hard, accompanied by a sharp meow.

"You dare to talk back to me!" It chuckled as it watched Xiao Changgong, who was startled and scrambling to hide, secretly pleased with itself. "From now on, stay away from me, or you'll regret it."

Everyone was startled by the sudden meow. They couldn't help but laugh as they watched Xiao Changgong, who had hurriedly hidden in the kitchen, burst into laughter. Only Ping An merely raised the corners of his mouth slightly, looking at the arrogant black face crouching behind him.

Before leaving, at the enthusiastic invitation of Zhou Ziping and Zhou Yanliu, She Li packed the dozen or so white steamed buns that Zhou Ziping had prepared into a gourd, and also gave them a lot of pickled vegetables, saying that they could be stuffed into the buns so that they wouldn't be so dry.

After accepting the gift, She Li said to Zhou Ziping with gratitude, "Thank you, Uncle Zhou. I will definitely come to see you again after I return from Huangzhou. I will not accept anything from you then, but will take your pulse and give you medicine to repay your kindness in sending us the grain."

"You're too kind, Daoist Master." Zhou Ziping waved his hand and said, "We ordinary mortals can't accept such kindness. If you insist, Daoist Master, I might ask you to do me a favor?"

She Li asked, "What is it?"

“Our village has lost its mountain god. Although we have the Black Face here, we will be carefree for the next hundred years, but one day he will leave. So I wonder if the Taoist priest could pray for our village and ask for the protection of the gods and the Taoist masters?”

Zhou Ziping's words startled She Li slightly, and she then said, "I know what you want to do, but I don't have that ability."

At this point, he paused for a moment and looked up at Duqing Mountain. “However, although the mountain god is gone, the things he left behind when he returned to heaven and earth have remained in this land. Why don’t you build a temple to the mountain god? Although the mountain god is dead, what he left behind nourishes all things and may even have miraculous effects.”

Zhou Ziping nodded upon hearing this, agreeing with She Li's point: "Last night we also said the same thing at the place where the mountain god once lived, saying that we would erect a monument and build a temple for him."

“Since you have this intention, why not do it?” She Li said with a smile.

"I understand, I understand." Zhou Ziping nodded repeatedly and said, "Thank you, Daoist Master."

“Uncle Zhou, you’re too kind.” She Li bowed and said, “There will be plenty of time in the future, Uncle Zhou. We’ll meet again another day.”

"Take care, Taoist priest."

After speaking, She Li led Ping An and Xiao Changgong, who were carrying baskets on their backs, out of the courtyard gate, preparing to go up the mountain towards Huangzhou. However, what puzzled Ping An and Xiao Changgong was, where was Yang Shouren?

She Li did not tell the truth, but said, "Young Master Yang said he had something to do, so he left ahead of us. According to the route, he should be arriving in Qumu Town soon."

Ping An nodded and said, "I see."

However, Xiao Changgong said, "What's wrong with this guy? Can't we wait and go together? What if we encounter a monster? Can he handle it?"

"Oh," She Li asked, intrigued by Xiao Changgong's words, "Why are you worried about him?"

Xiao Changgong said, "When we left Yang Shouren's house, we promised his mother that we would help her out. Have you forgotten?"

Upon hearing this, She Li's expression suddenly turned somewhat awkward. He had indeed forgotten that in his heart at this moment, there seemed to be only the disturbance of the demons in Huangzhou and peace.

He quickly recovered and smiled calmly, saying, "How could that be? Don't worry, he'll be fine."

Even so, She Li quickened her pace.

Xiao Changgong stopped and grabbed Ping An, who was about to follow, pointing at She Li and saying, "Ping An, don't you think there's something wrong with She Li?"

Upon hearing She Li's words, Ping An seemed to realize that his senior brother might be acting strangely. He suddenly recalled that last night, when he leaned on She Li's shoulder, he heard She Li scolding Yang Shouren. He wondered: Could it be that his senior brother had driven Young Master Yang away with his scolding?
He watched his senior brother's hurried steps and thought that this must be how it should be.

"Let's go, Senior Brother Xiao. Maybe you're overthinking it."

Ping An smiled at Xiao Changgong, but did not tell him what had happened the night before, keeping it to himself.

Seeing that Ping An had said so, he began to doubt himself: "Could it be that I'm overthinking things?"

"Who cares, we'll see when the time comes."

Xiao Changgong stopped hesitating and quickened his pace to catch up with Ping An, asking, "Ping An, do you want me to carry it for you? It looks tiring to carry such a big thing."

"It's alright, Senior Brother Xiao. Just consider it a recovery." Ping An said with a smile, holding his whisk.

Xiao Changgong found it novel: "It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. Others rest and recuperate, but you're carrying something like this on your journey. That's really strange."

"Senior Brother Xiao, would you like to hear a story?" Ping An was somewhat helpless in the face of Xiao Chang Gong's words, so he quickly changed the subject.

Xiao Changgong looked at Ping An in surprise, scrutinizing him from head to toe, before asking, "It's one thing for She Li to be strange, but why are you acting so oddly too?"

However, he was still curious about what story Ping An, who didn't talk much, would tell him: "Tell me."

“There was once a scholar who wanted to go to the capital to take the imperial examination, but he needed to bring his books on Confucian classics and a change of clothes. So he prepared a chest, packed all the things he needed into it, and set off on his journey.”

After Ping An finished speaking, Xiao Changgong felt like he'd been tricked. This wasn't a story at all; it was clearly a charade. He stared at Ping An speechlessly, and to appease him for speaking so much for the first time, forced a smile and asked, "And then?"

"Senior brother, do you think the scholar is tired carrying all those things over mountains and rivers?" Ping An asked with a smile.

"Of course it's tiring," Xiao Changgong replied without hesitation.

"But if he doesn't bring it, even if he gets to the capital, won't he still need to do his homework and be prepared?"

Xiao Changgong hissed, which stumped him. He tentatively asked, "Want it?"

"If that's the case, then what's so strange about me carrying these?"

Xiao Changgong froze, standing still, watching Ping An walk away, and gave a bitter smile: "What's wrong with this child? Did he teach me a lesson?"

After thinking about it for a while, Xiao Changgong agreed.

He helplessly caught up with Ping An, and said with a wry smile, "Where did you hear this story from?"

Ping An's expression suddenly darkened upon hearing this. He said, "I once met a scholar in the capital who was just like that."

"You met him?" Xiao Changgong asked again, "And what happened after that? Since he was going to the capital for the imperial examination, he should have gotten a result, right?"

There seemed to be tears welling up in Ping An's eyes, which were flickering between light and shadow. He stopped and turned back to look at Fuyang City. "Later, he became the top scholar in the imperial examination and was about to marry the person he loved most. But he went mad. When people finally found him, he had already drowned in the moat of Fuyang City."

"Crazy? How could this be?" Xiao Changgong looked at Ping An in disbelief. Becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination was a matter of bringing glory to one's ancestors; how could he have gone mad?
Ping An said, "Because the woman he loved was constantly harassed by the prince, on the very day he became the top scholar in the imperial examination, the prince took advantage of the emperor's summons to kill the woman's entire family and humiliated her. In the end, the woman committed suicide by cutting her own throat, and he went mad as a result and drowned himself in the river."

"What?" Xiao Changgong stared at Ping An in shock. "Is what you said true?"

“It’s true.” Ping An’s voice was full of sadness and regret: “That scholar’s ​​name was Yang You’an.”

“His unmarried wife saved me, and her father took me in. If it weren’t for them and Grandpa Medicine, I might have died in the snow that winter.”

Xiao Changgong stood frozen in place, following Ping An's gaze to look at Fuyang City. It was as if he also saw the scholar named Yang You'an, standing by the moat in a near-mad state, before finally falling into the river and drowning.

He frowned and turned around, gently patting Ping An's shoulder, trying to comfort him, but She Li's voice came at that moment: "Ping An, what's wrong with you two?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Changgong looked at She Li. His sorrowful expression puzzled She Li. At this moment, Ping An turned around and walked towards She Li: "It's alright, Senior Brother."

"Senior Brother Xiao asked me if I was tired from carrying the chest."

She Li looked at Ping An in front of her and asked, "Let me carry it for you."

Ping An refused, saying, "Every flower and every tree has its own way, and so does every step and every movement."

She Li smiled indulgently: "Alright, I'll buy a carriage when we get to Qumu Town, so you won't have to work so hard."

Ping An nodded.

"Let's go, little fox."

She Li shouted.

Xiao Changgong was still lost in the story Ping An had just told. He looked down at Zhoujia Village and then at Fuyang City behind the mountain. In the end, he could only shake his head helplessly and follow their steps.

A sigh echoed through the autumn mountains.

"what happened to you?"

"It's nothing. I'm just a little sad and regretful."

"What do you mean?"

"It's alright, let's hurry on our way."

"Little fox, are you sick? You only say half of what you mean, or I'll beat you up."

The three of them resumed their usual routine, walking through the mountains and forests. She Li and Xiao Changgong playfully teased each other, while Ping An quietly followed behind them, as darkness was approaching.

(End of this chapter)