Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

The old man cleared his throat, picked up his wine glass, looked at his children and grandchildren at the table, and said with a smile, "Today is our family reunion. Our whole family is together. We're doing well at home, and business is also going well. Let's keep things going smoothly next year."

He paused, then looked at Cheng Mo and the other person: "These two are guests who have come from afar. It's fate that they can join our family reunion for the New Year. I wish you both a smooth and safe journey, and that you can accomplish whatever you want to do."

Cheng Mo picked up his water glass, stood up, and nodded to the old man: "Thank you for your kind words. I also wish you good health, a good appetite, and that your family's life will become more and more prosperous."

Xia He also raised her glass, her eyes crinkling with a smile: "Wishing everyone good fortune, smooth sailing in all endeavors, and great wealth next year, making a fortune!"

The old man laughed heartily, tilted his head back, and drank the wine in one gulp.

Everyone at the table raised their glasses, and the atmosphere immediately warmed up.

The boss's daughter-in-law sat next to him, and next to her was a little girl of three or four years old, with two little pigtails, round eyes, and she was especially cute.

A small bowl and chopsticks were placed in front of the little girl. Her mother put the chopsticks in her hand and said with a smile, "Sweetie, shall we use chopsticks today?"

The little girl was quite happy, gripping her chopsticks and poking them into the bowl.

But the chopsticks wouldn't cooperate; after poking around a few times, they couldn't poke anything.

She was getting anxious, stirring the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks, her little face scrunched up, and she cried out in a tearful voice, "I can't pick up any rice!"

The woman didn't scold her. Instead, she picked up her own chopsticks and slowly demonstrated to her daughter, "Hold chopsticks like this. Look, your thumb is here, and your index finger is here..."

The little girl followed along, tried a couple of times, but still couldn't get it right. Tears welled up in her eyes: "I just can't pick it up!"

Her mother patted her head, her voice especially gentle: "Give it a try, let's try again."

The little girl pouted, looking aggrieved: "What should I do?"

Her mother held her hand, steadily picked up a piece of meat, and put it into her bowl: "We are Chinese, and Chinese people should use chopsticks. Look, this is how it's done."

The little girl stared at the piece of meat in the bowl, then paused for a moment.

"Wow!"

A cheer erupted from the crowd.

Xia He shouted the loudest, "Great! Great!"

The little girl looked at the smiling faces around her and grinned.

Her mother asked with a smile, "Aren't you happy? Using chopsticks is really easy, isn't it?"

The little girl nodded vigorously, her two little braids swaying along with her head.

She let go of her mother's hand, picked up her chopsticks herself, and ate a bite of meat and a bite of rice, stuffing her little mouth full, her face full of satisfaction.

Xia He's eyes lit up, and she whispered in Cheng Mo's ear, "So cute~"

Cheng Mo nodded, then suddenly remembered something: "Speaking of which, what was it like when Duo Duo and the others first used chopsticks?"

Xia He paused for a moment, then thought back.

I was taking care of those children in the hospital at the time, starting by teaching them how to eat.

Later, I gradually learned to use chopsticks; it seemed like... I just learned it without even realizing it.

"Maybe it's because everyone eats together, and you just learn by watching," Xia He said.

Cheng Mo thought about it and realized that those kids learned things quite quickly.

……

After several rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

It was completely dark by then.

The two thanked their host and went out for a walk to digest their food.

The lights in the ancient city came on, red and yellow, hanging in strings under the eaves.

The bluestone pavement gleamed under the lights, and creaked as you walked on it.

On both sides of the road, some houses were bustling with activity, laughter drifting out from under the doors; others were quiet, with doors closed, lights on, and the occasional shadowy figure moving about.

Cheng Mo and Xia He walked slowly, looking at the different scenes of the year, and found them all quite novel.

As she walked, Xia He suddenly slapped her forehead: "Oh dear, I haven't called Duoduo yet today."

She took out her phone and dialed the number.

Beep beep beep—the call has been connected.

"elder sister!!"

Duoduo's cheerful voice burst out from the receiver.

Xia He held the phone away a little, and only after the other end finished calling did she lean back in: "Duo Duo~ We're in Fenghuang Ancient Town today~ Hehe, we just had dinner at our hotel owner's house. There's a really interesting little girl there; she just learned how to eat with chopsticks today."

Duoduo immediately chimed in, "I already learned to eat with chopsticks!"

His tone was full of pride.

Xia He smiled and praised her, "Yes, Duoduo is the smartest."

Then the two girls started chatting.

Xia He talked about the scenery she saw in the ancient city today, the stilted houses along the Tuojiang River, the children running around on the stone slab road, and the Tujia people's custom of feeding fruit trees during the New Year.

Duoduo talked about what happened at the temple today, about feeding the chickens with her master in the morning, about Dahuang chasing its tail in circles, and about how Dali is now very attached to her.

"It follows me everywhere I go. Hehe, Master even called Big Fox an ungrateful wretch, hehe, he doesn't even fish for Big Fox to eat himself~"

Cheng Mo immediately added, "It's not that Master doesn't want to fish, it's that he can't catch any. Every time he catches one, it's the dumbest fish. Da Li is afraid that if he eats those fish, he'll become dumb too."

"Hey! You brat!" Cheng Shou's voice boomed from the receiver, "You're like a madman, always making fun of your master!"

Xia He laughed so hard she couldn't stand up straight, and shouted into her phone, "Master, don't worry, I'll beat him up for you and teach him to respect his teacher."

Cheng Shou's voice immediately became amiable: "Oh, by the way, Xiao He is so polite. That brat, he should learn from her."

Cheng Mo rolled his eyes.

The two walked and talked, crossing one stone bridge after another and walking through one alley after another.

The Tuojiang River shimmered in the night, flowing gurglingly, and the night breeze carried a dampness.

Red lanterns hung from the stilted houses on both sides of the river, their reflections swaying in the water with the ripples.

Before I knew it, it was late at night.

When the two returned to the guesthouse, the courtyard was quiet, and the owners were already asleep.

The two found an open space and practiced the Longevity Exercise.

After finishing their practice, everyone went back to their rooms to rest.

……

Meanwhile, somewhere in western Hunan, at the Liu family compound.

Liu Chengfeng sat in a grand chair, holding a teacup in his hand, but his eyes were fixed on the center of the courtyard.

There were quite a few things to do for the New Year's Eve dinner, but those were all done by the younger generation. He only focused on his eldest granddaughter in front of him.

A girl of about ten years old, wearing a thin coat in the dead of winter, was standing in a horse stance, with beads of sweat dripping from her forehead, and a small patch of ground around her feet was wet.

Liu Chengfeng wasn't really paying much attention to his granddaughter at the moment.

He's lost in thought.

As times change and public security improves in China, traditional burial practices are becoming less common, and the lineage of corpse-driving is gradually declining.

Actually, it's not just their family.

Even the powerful Tang Clan of Sichuan transformed themselves and opened a sports school.

Even Longhu Mountain has become a tourist attraction, but at least it has been preserved and passed down through generations.

What should become of my lineage?

This wasn't just him worrying unnecessarily. His eldest granddaughter, Liu Yanyan, was already outstanding among the younger generation, but with a lack of corpses available for testing, her skills were almost relegated to the bottom tier among casual practitioners in the industry.

Who knows? This corpse-driving technique, which has been passed down for thousands of years, might just end in this generation.

Just as I was thinking about random things, a junior member of the clan suddenly approached and placed a letter on the table.

"Master, there is someone outside who wants to pay you a visit and has brought a visiting card."

Liu Chengfeng snapped out of his thoughts, picked up the letter, and unfolded it to read.

The letter was written politely and was signed "Tu Junfang of the Three Demons Sect".