Under One Person: Feng Shui Master, I Will Protect the Mountains and Rivers with My Own Body

"Anecdotes of Extraordinary People: Chen Duo's 'Cultivation' Part 1 - 'Exam'"

"In a school building in the South China region, a girl was chewing on a pencil, deep in thought. A gust of wind blew in through the window, and a small insect landed on her test paper. The girl's eyes lit up, and she secretly activated the Qi of the Liver Wood in her body, and an idea came to her mind."

Note: The anecdotes about extraordinary individuals do not follow the normal timeline of the main story!

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In the courtyard, the leaves rustled in the wind.

Guan Shihua was twirling the walnuts in her hands, her bright eyes partially hidden by her drooping eyelids, as she looked at the group of people sitting down with a smile.

Xu Si was nowhere near the air of a regional manager's son at this moment.

He stood ramrod straight, his hands neatly placed on his knees, his face plastered with that obsequious smile that resembled that of a primary school student meeting his homeroom teacher.

"Hi! Grandma, you still remember me? I'm so flattered. It's been so many years since we last met. You're still so healthy." Xu Si rubbed his hands together, his tone so sweet it was almost cloying.

"Hmph, how could I forget you?" Guan Shihua chuckled as she turned the walnuts in her hand, her voice loud and clear. "You were really naughty when you were little! I remember one year, Xu Xiang rushed over to bring you here, insisting that you didn't sleep all night and kept rolling your eyes, and that you had attracted some unclean 'guest,' begging me to take a look."

At this point, Guan Shihua couldn't help but laugh, her face crinkling into deep wrinkles: "So when I had a fortune teller check, good heavens, he was spotless, without a trace of evil spirits! Then I discovered you were a real troublemaker, sneaking a drink of your dad's tea during the day, keeping you up at night, and then playing pranks on me in the middle of the night! You deserved a good scolding! Hahahaha!"

"Pfft..."

Yan Sen stood to the side, watching Xu Si's face turn a deep purplish-red, as if he wanted to disappear into the ground. He couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Good heavens, so this Xu Laosi has been like this since he was a child. Even his own father suspects that he is possessed by a ghost. Just how mischievous is he?

Xu Si scratched his white hair awkwardly and said sheepishly, "Grandma, let's not talk about this old stuff anymore, let's not talk about it anymore, let's save the child some face..."

"Alright, I won't tease you anymore." Guan Shihua waved her hand, her characteristic straightforwardness typical of Northeastern old ladies easily controlled. She turned her head, her gaze falling on Yan Sen, her eyes filled with a mixture of scrutiny and nostalgia.

"Little Yan Sen, how's that brat Yan Que doing lately?" Guan Shihua's tone was still boisterous, but there was a clear hint of concern in it. "That little rascal, he hasn't come to see me in all these years, what an ingrate! Has he run off to some quiet corner to hide away again?"

Yan Sen was taken aback and put down the enamel mug in his hand.

"Do you know my father?"

Yan Sen was genuinely a little surprised by this.

Given his own father's personality, if he had this kind of relationship with Guan Shihua, one of the Ten Elders, even if it was just a nodding acquaintance, he would have already brought it up to brag to him.

There will definitely be plenty of things like "Back in the day, I was a big shot in Northeast China" or "Aunt Guan treated me to a meal."

But in all these years, Yan Que has never mentioned this matter.

"Know each other? Of course we know each other!" Guan Shihua took a sip of hot tea with a nostalgic look on her face. "If we're talking about fate, we have to go back to your grandfather's generation."

"My grandfather?" Yan Sen's ears perked up.

"Yes, your grandfather, Yan Qi, looked so listless back then, like a silent gourd. But what happened? That kid was full of mischief!"

Guan Shihua pointed to the courtyard wall, her gaze becoming distant, as if she could see the scene from years past with just a glance: "Right outside this courtyard, there weren't so many houses back then. Your grandfather would lie on our wall for half the night, sneaking around without saying a word or coming in. Later, my father caught him red-handed, and when he asked, he found out that the kid was using the 'pure energy' of our family's shrine to cultivate!"

"Borrow air?" Yan Sen's eyes widened.

"Of course!" Guan Shihua said, both amused and exasperated. "When we shamanic practitioners set up our altars, we value a flourishing incense offering and a lingering aura of pure energy. Your family's kung fu is special; it's said to require regulating the qi of the five internal organs. He just happened to be practicing at a crucial moment and was lacking a bit of pure fire energy, so he came to borrow some!"

Leaning over the wall? Borrowing air?

Isn't that stealing?!

Ah... Yan Sen was no longer in the mood to laugh at Xu Si. Moreover, he seemed to understand why Yan Que didn't tell him about Guan Shihua. This old lady was too good at digging up other people's secrets. Given Yan Que's personality, he probably wanted to see his eldest son's embarrassed expression on the spot. So why would he tell him?

That old man!

"Grandma, what happened next?" Yan Sen asked, forcing himself to speak.

"And then?" Guan Shihua chuckled. "Then we became friends after a fight. My dad saw that he was a bit simple-minded and someone who was willing to risk his life for cultivation, so he not only didn't blame him, but also treated him to a good meal with wine and meat. From then on, whenever your grandfather came to Northeast China, he would often bring your dad, who was still wearing open-crotch pants, to my house for a free meal."

At this point, Guan Shihua sighed, her tone somewhat wistful: "It's a pity that the world went into chaos in the following years. After your grandfather passed away, I couldn't even go to see him off. I had just taken over the sect then, and there were many hidden talents in Guanli. How could a mere healer like me dare to go? Later, I heard that he passed away peacefully and is now enjoying a life of luxury. I called you here today to let him know that this old woman still remembers him."

Yan Sen felt a mix of emotions upon hearing this.

He paused for two seconds, then took a deep breath, his clear smile returning to his face, and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Guan Shihua.

"Grandma, don't worry about it, it's nothing. My family believes in 'being born from the earth and returning to the earth when we die.' We never hold funerals or ask our descendants to pay their respects. We believe that God will not treat us unfairly, so we simply dig a hole and bury us, returning to the earth, which saves us trouble for our descendants."

Yan Sen paused, then said sincerely, "Besides, even if you went, you wouldn't get to eat at the banquet and would still have to give a gift, which isn't worth it. However, on behalf of my grandfather, I still thank you for your concern. It's his blessing to have a friend like you."

Although Yan Sen's words sounded somewhat cold-hearted, they were absolutely true.

This is the unique concept of life and death of the Lao Yan family.

They spent their entire lives interacting with the earth, tending to its veins, and harmonizing yin and yang. In their view, death was simply another form of return, a reintegration into the vast cycle of the earth's veins, requiring no elaborate rituals or formalities.

Guan Shihua nodded in agreement, and her gaze toward Yan Sen grew increasingly pleasing.

"Tsk tsk, your grandfather and father are so lucky, they have a worthy successor, a worthy successor indeed!" the old lady exclaimed. "Your character is much better than theirs, and your chatter is so pleasant. One of them is stubborn, and the other is as slippery as an eel. You're the one I like the most. Why aren't you my grandson?"

Yan Sen said he didn't deserve it, but in his heart he couldn't help but think that it was a good thing he wasn't, otherwise, if he were always exposed in front of others, who could stand it?

After praising Yan Sen, Guan Shihua didn't dwell on the past. She turned her head, her already slightly narrowed eyes now even narrower, staring at Feng Baobao, who was sitting on a small stool, munching on a peach shortbread until crumbs were falling out.

From the moment she entered, this disheveled girl didn't utter a single word, as if nothing in the courtyard concerned her, except for the peach shortbread in her hand.

"This little girl... is not simple either."

Guan Shihua's voice carried a hint of inquiry, her gaze like that of an old Chinese medicine doctor examining a prescription for a difficult and complicated disease that he had never seen before.

"At such a young age, to have cultivated such a light and agile form and qi is rare in itself. But this old woman still can't figure out what kind of martial art you're practicing." Guan Shihua rubbed the walnuts in her hands, her eyes full of curiosity. "Ya Dan'er, is there enough peach shortbread? If not, Grandma has more. Tell Grandma, what kind of kung fu are you practicing? It seems like I've never seen it before."

Yan Sen keenly sensed that Xu Si's body suddenly stiffened, and his hands on his knees clenched tightly.

He calmly put down the teacup in his hand, the lid making a soft "clang," as if to remind Xu Si to calm down and ease the awkward atmosphere.

The air seemed to freeze for a second.

Feng Baobao stuffed the last piece of peach shortbread into her mouth, then licked the crumbs off her fingers.

She raised her head, her eyes clear and without a trace of impurity, showing neither the tension of being watched by a powerful person nor the panic of trying to hide a secret.

"That's enough, that's enough."

Feng Baobao swallowed the pastry in her mouth, patted the crumbs off her hands, shook her head, and said in her standard Sichuan dialect, "I practice something... Master told me not to say."

Simple, direct, even a bit perfunctory.

This is the rhetoric Xu Xiang taught her—since the baby can't lie, just be straightforward and refuse the other person directly, let him guess if he wants to know.

Xu Si's heart was in his throat, fearing that the old lady would continue to press him for answers.

However, Guan Shihua suddenly laughed.

"Oh ho? Still keeping it a secret."

The old lady wasn't angry; instead, she seemed to have expected it. She was an old hand in the world and knew that everyone in this circle of supernatural beings had their secrets. As long as it wasn't some heinous evil magic, she didn't bother to dig into it.

"Fine, if you don't want to talk about it, then don't. I'm not that naive; I won't pry."

"Come on! Let's not just stand here! Let's go eat!"

Guan Shihua jumped off the armchair with such lightness that she didn't look like an eighty or ninety-year-old woman at all.

With her hands behind her back, she waved to the group, instantly losing her imposing aura and transforming back into the warm and friendly old lady from Northeast China.

"When you come to Northeast China, you have to have some hearty dishes! Today, let's try the local snow frog! It's a real delicacy, very nutritious!"

As Guan Shihua walked, she turned back to introduce the animals, spittle flying everywhere: "Although they're not wild, but farmed, every female leopard cub raised here has eggs. Add potatoes, and it's stewed—it's incredibly delicious! Give you young folks a good boost!"

Xu Si let out a long breath; he felt his back was completely soaked.

He turned his head and glanced at Yan Sen, only to find that the kid was winking at him, the meaning of which was probably: Look at your pathetic self.

Xu Si then mouthed to Yan Sen, "You scared me to death."

The group chatted and laughed as they walked through the corridor and into the back room, which was already filled with the aroma of food.

Behind them, the old tree in the courtyard still rustled, as if whispering the comings and goings, the old stories and the new people of this world.