Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

The owner came over with a teapot to refill tea for the tables. Hearing their conversation, he smiled and said, "Road repair is a good thing. Once the road is finished, more people will come and go, and business will be even better."

Cheng Mo asked, "Shouldn't there be compensation for land expropriation?"

The shop owner sighed, "The compensation has been given, but those whose land was expropriated will have no land to farm and will have to rely on small businesses. But it's still better than before. Before, you couldn't save much money farming all year round, but now at least you can see cash."

She pointed to the stalls down the slope: "Look at those, they all had their land requisitioned, and now they sell food on the highway every day, earning a hundred or two hundred yuan a day."

Cheng Mo looked in the direction the boss pointed.

Along both sides of the main road leading to the village, there are many temporary stalls selling boxed lunches, water, and fruit. Although they are simple, there are still quite a few people coming and going.

But on the hillside behind the village, a large opening had been dug out, revealing yellowish-brown rocks and soil. Several excavators were parked there, with piles of rubble and pipes next to them.

Further away, the faint sound of machinery could be heard.

The environment has deteriorated, but the smiles on the faces of those who set up stalls have indeed increased.

"Many people in the village had their land expropriated and used the compensation money to buy houses in the county town. Their children can now attend good schools. Those of us who weren't expropriated are still stuck here, and we're quite envious of them," the boss said, sounding rather envious.

The truck driver at the next table chimed in, "Ma'am, your shop is pretty good too, at least you don't have to be exposed to the sun and rain."

The boss waved his hand and laughed again: "Life is indeed better than before."

Cheng Mo didn't reply and continued eating with his head down.

After finishing their meal, Cheng Mo and the other two walked back.

When we got to the cordon, a man wearing a reflective vest was standing on the roadside smoking.

Cheng Mo walked over, took out a pack of cigarettes he had just bought from his bag, opened it, and handed one over.

The older brother paused for a moment, then took it and put it in his mouth.

Cheng Mo then took out a lighter and lit it for him.

The older brother took a drag, squinted, and said, "Thanks, brother. What's up?"

Cheng Mo pointed to the road ahead: "Master, how much longer will we have to wait?"

The older brother exhaled a smoke ring and glanced at the construction site: "It's not certain yet, it depends on the progress. Based on past experience, it probably won't work tonight."

Cheng Mo nodded: "Okay, thanks, Master." He led Xia He and Duo Duo back to the bread truck, moved it to a more spacious spot on the side of the road, parked it, turned off the engine, and locked the doors.

"We'll stay in the village tonight," he said.

Xia He and Duo Duo naturally had no objections.

The three of them walked towards the village again.

There are no hotels in the village, but many people are seeking lodging these days, and several places have signs that say "Accommodation".

Cheng Mo picked a restaurant that looked cleaner and went in to ask about the prices.

The proprietress, a woman in her fifties, said: "One room, two beds, thirty yuan."

Cheng Mo asked, "Can I see the room?"

The older sister waved and led him upstairs to see the apartment.

The room wasn't big, but it was quite clean. There was a bedside table between the two beds, and you could see the mountains from the window.

Cheng Mo nodded, paid the money, and went downstairs to call Xia He and Duo Duo.

Put the things away... It's nothing really, just some instant noodles I just bought and most of a pack of cigarettes.

Cheng Mo glanced at the still-bright sky outside the window: "Let's go for a walk."

"Where to?" Xia He asked.

Cheng Mo pointed upwards: "Let's go up the mountain and take a look."

Xia He looked down at Duo Duo, whose eyes held a hint of anticipation.

Xia He smiled and said, "Let's go."

There is a winding path behind the village that climbs up the mountain.

The three of them walked up the road, and as they went higher and higher, the village became smaller and smaller, and the highway looked like a gray ribbon winding around the foot of the mountain.

Once you reach the halfway point up the mountain, the view opens up.

In the distance are rolling mountains, and nearby is a construction site that has been mostly dug up, with the reddish-brown soil standing out conspicuously in the setting sun.

Cheng Mo stood on a protruding rock and pointed to the distant mountains: "Duoduo, you should look at nature more often. Our Liangyi Temple's kung fu is closely related to nature. If you understand nature, your kung fu will naturally improve."

Duoduo nodded, her eyes gazing at the layers of mountains, trying hard to understand something.

Xia He chuckled, "Duoduo, don't listen to your senior brother. He doesn't even have Qi perception himself, yet he's teaching you. Our Duoduo is a genius; in such a short time, her Qi has been soaring."

Duo Duo blushed slightly: "I'm not that good. Yue Yue and the others are very good too."

Xia He patted her head: "Of course Yueyue and the others are amazing, and our Duoduo is amazing too."

She suddenly remembered something and looked up at Cheng Mo: "By the way, little Taoist priest, have you contacted Yueyue's parents?"

Cheng Mo shook his head: "Not yet, no rush, we'll talk about it when we get back to the temple."

Xia He nodded: "That works too."

Duo Duo tugged at Cheng Mo's sleeve: "Senior brother, what kind of person is Master?"

Xia He immediately perked up her ears.

She was even more curious than Duoduo, but she was too embarrassed to ask.

Cheng Mo stomped on the rocks under his feet and pointed to the distant, rolling mountains: "Master is just like these mountains."

Duo Duo and Xia He both thought: "???"

Cheng Mo smiled and said, "It looks majestic and magnificent, but it's actually very down-to-earth... No matter how much I say, you won't understand. You'll know when you see it for yourself."

Duoduo nodded expectantly.

Xia He stopped worrying about it; she believed the young Taoist's master would like her...

After all, she was so beautiful and kind.

Cheng Mo looked around and suddenly suggested, "The scenery here is quite nice, but who knows when it will be gone? How about we practice our martial arts?"

Xia He and Duo Duo exclaimed in unison, "Yes, yes!"

The three of them found a relatively flat spot.

Duoduo stood in the middle, with Cheng Mo and Xia He standing on either side of her.

Cheng Mo began, slowly rising to his feet.

The three moved in perfect unison, their breathing gradually synchronizing.

Pink mist began to rise, enveloping the three of them.

On the neighboring hilltop, several local villagers were carrying hoes and walking downhill.

One of them suddenly stopped and pointed to the opposite hillside: "Look over there, a family of three is practicing Tai Chi over there."

Another person squinted and laughed, "Practicing Tai Chi in these mountains? Aren't they afraid of falling?"

"City people love doing these things, it's for health and wellness."

"What's the point of taking care of your health? I think it's just because you're bored. Let's go back and have dinner."

The group laughed for a while, then went home.

……

After finishing their practice and dispelling the mist, the three of them leisurely descended the mountain.

As soon as we entered the village, we heard a series of firecrackers crackling and exploding loudly.

Xia He's eyes lit up: "Wow, there's a feast!"

Cheng Mo glanced at her: "How can you be so lucky as to be able to eat at banquets everywhere? It's normal to set off firecrackers during the New Year."

Duoduo tugged at Xia He's sleeve: "Sister, what is a feast?"

Xia He pulled her towards the sound of firecrackers: "There's lots of delicious food there, let's go check it out~"

Cheng Mo had no choice but to follow.

When we arrived at the venue, we found that a banquet was indeed being held.

There were over thirty tables, which couldn't fit in one open space. The tables were placed all the way to the roadside, taking up more than half of the road.

A sprightly old man stood at the door, dressed in a bright red Zhongshan suit, his face beaming with smiles, greeting each guest one by one.

Cheng Mo overheard the conversation of the people next to him and learned that this person was celebrating their 60th birthday today.

Xia He's eyes lit up even more, and she started taking out her wallet to prepare to give a gift.

Cheng Mo grabbed her and gestured in that direction.

A makeshift stage had been set up in the open space over there, and several people dressed in festive clothes were adjusting the sound equipment. One of them, an old man in a traditional Chinese jacket, looked somewhat familiar.

Xia He squinted for a few seconds, then exclaimed in surprise, "Huh, isn't that Master Wang? Are we in Shaanxi now?"

Old Master Wang was the one who handled the funeral when Cheng Mo and Xia He first met.

Xia He cried exceptionally well at the funeral that time, and the host family was very satisfied.

Cheng Mo shook his head: "No, I'm still in Chongqing."

"Is Master Wang doing business out of town?" Xia He scratched her head, then realized something was off. "This is a birthday celebration, not some kind of... what's a Taoist priest doing here?"

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