Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Inside the south gate of the ancient city, Cheng Mo and Xia He walked side by side.

Xia He's eyes suddenly lit up, and she pointed to a small shop by the roadside with a sign that read "Old Times": "Little Taoist priest, look! You can rent clothes and take photos there!"

She excitedly pulled Cheng Mo inside: "Boss, rent two apartments! We want them in the style of the Republic of China era!"

Xia He rummaged through the clothes racks and quickly picked out a moon-white short-sleeved cheongsam embroidered with light purple wisteria flowers, and then picked out an indigo Zhongshan suit for Cheng Mo.

Cheng Mo looked at the stiff Zhongshan suit and felt a little resistant: "In the middle of summer..."

"Oh, let's try it on!" Xia He had already taken the cheongsam into the dressing room.

A moment later, the two changed their clothes and came out.

Xia He has a slender figure, her cheongsam fits her perfectly, and her long pink hair is styled into a loose side braid that hangs over one shoulder.

Cheng Mo put on the Zhongshan suit, and it fit him surprisingly well, showing his youthful spirit.

"Beautiful!" Xia He was very satisfied, and then took out money to rent a digital camera. "Let's go take some pictures!"

Thus, a striking young couple from the Republican era appeared on the cobblestone streets of the ancient city.

When Xia He saw the carved windows, old gate towers, and stone guardians that interested her, she pulled Cheng Mo over and handed her camera to a passerby to take pictures.

"Uncle/Auntie, could you please take a picture for us? Yes, just like that, thank you!"

After the photos are taken, passersby smile and hand the camera back, often casually remarking, "You two are such a perfect match, a handsome man and a beautiful woman!"

Xia He's eyes crinkled with delight upon hearing this. She nudged Cheng Mo with her elbow and tilted her chin slightly, saying, "Did you hear that, little Taoist priest? Everyone says we're a perfect match!"

Cheng Mo's heart skipped a beat. Could this girl really have some kind of idea?

No, I need to wake her up.

He glanced at Xia He, who was smiling radiantly beside him, then at the two people standing side by side in the camera screen, nodded, and objectively commented: "In terms of looks alone, they are indeed quite a good match."

Xia He's smile vanished, and she turned to glare at him: "What do you mean by 'judging solely by looks'? Am I not good-looking?"

Cheng Mo said calmly, "Don't misunderstand. I mean, you're not smart enough."

Xia He was stunned for two seconds, then realized what he meant and flew into a rage: "You stinky Taoist! How dare you say I'm stupid!" She reached out to hit him.

Cheng Mo had anticipated this, easily dodging to the side, and said cheekily, "Hey, I can't hit you~"

"Ah! I'm going to teach you a lesson today! You brat!" Xia He's cheeks flushed red with anger as she chased after Cheng Mo through the alley.

The two chased each other as they passed a corner of a wall. Several old men who were playing chess looked up, watched the two playful young people, shook their heads and chuckled, and sighed, "Youth is truly wonderful."

……

In a small hotel, Wang Zhenqiu waved his tour guide flag, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, his eyes fixed on the ancient city outside the window. He thought to himself: That old man is stubborn and won't listen to reason. It looks like I'll have to keep trying for a while.

……

The next day, Cheng Mo and Xia He still went to the banquet.

Xia He was full of energy for cooking, while Cheng Mo mainly watched the Nuo opera and waited for Xia Liuqing to appear.

Cheng Mo naturally couldn't wait for Xia Liuqing.

Because Old Man Xia was being driven to the brink of despair by Wang Zhenqiu—

-

Early in the morning, as Xia Liuqing pushed open the wooden door of his old house at the foot of the mountain, he saw a bamboo basket on the stone steps containing steaming hot soy milk and fried dough sticks, with a note next to it: "Good morning, old man! Eat it while it's hot! — Your future apprentice, Qiu'er."

Xia Liuqing kicked the basket away expressionlessly.

At noon, he was sitting in the yard basking in the sun when Wang Zhenqiu suddenly appeared out of nowhere, holding a large broom. He began sweeping the fallen leaves in the corner of the yard, humming a nonsensical tune as he swept.

Xia Liuqing closed her eyes to rest, pretending that he didn't exist.

After sweeping, Wang Zhenqiu came over and said, "Grandpa, don't you think this yard is much brighter now? I also neatly stacked the firewood in your woodshed, so it won't get damp on rainy days!"

Xia Liuqing lifted her eyelids, her pure black eyes staring at him: "Kid, if you don't get lost, I'll really make a move."

"No!" Wang Zhenqiu took two steps back, his smile unchanged.

"Fighting will only damage our relationship! I genuinely want to learn something from you! Your divine mask is a masterpiece! I'm not greedy; I just want to learn a little bit, enough for self-defense!"

Xia Liuqing closed her eyes again.

In the afternoon, Wang Zhenqiu came again. This time, he didn't do any work. Instead, he squatted down by the wall in the yard and started telling all sorts of gossip he had heard about.

"Grandpa, do you know what happened in the Northeast? Just last month, I heard that a group of fools tried to harm Miss Gao, but that ferocious beast almost broke their bones..."

"And another thing, it seems Huadong Nadutong has hired a new temporary worker. He has a terrible temper and likes to bury people in the ground at the slightest provocation..."

"Oh, by the way, lately a lot of people in the circle have been saying that the old Celestial Master from Longhu Mountain seems to have privately mentioned wanting to find a successor, not the Celestial Master's ordination, just someone to give some pointers, and a lot of young people are heading to Jiangxi..."

Xia Liuqing remained unmoved, like a stone sculpture.

Undeterred, Wang Zhenqiu changed his strategy the next day.

He somehow acquired a worn-out Nuo opera costume, put on a crude Sun Wukong mask, and stood outside Xia Liuqing's courtyard gesturing wildly and comically, chanting, "Hey! Monster! Take this from your old Sun!"

Xia Liuqing was inside the house when a vein throbbed on her forehead.

After performing for a while without any response, Wang Zhenqiu took off his mask, peered over the courtyard wall, and asked in a particularly sincere tone, "Grandpa, could you give me some pointers? Is my monkey act just right? I feel a special connection with this mask; is it calling to me?"

Xia Liuqing finally lost her temper and grabbed a broom from the corner of the wall, throwing it at him.

Wang Zhenqiu cried out "Ouch!" and pulled his head back. The broom hit the wall and fell to the ground.

"Don't be angry! I'm just studying art!" Wang Zhenqiu's voice drifted in from outside the wall.

"Old man, we can be considered fellow travelers, so please teach me. Isn't this just helping a lost sheep out of its way...?"

Xia Liuqing took a deep breath and decided to find a quiet place tomorrow.

……

The banquet eventually came to an end, and all the guests and hosts had enjoyed themselves.

The Nuo opera troupe began packing up their props and costumes.

Cheng Mo seized the opportunity, stepped forward, and cupped his hands in greeting to the middle-aged man who appeared to be the troupe leader: "Troup leader, I apologize for disturbing you. I have watched your troupe's performance these past two days and am very impressed. I would like to ask you a few questions."

The troupe leader, An Baoqing, was about fifty years old, with dark skin and a simple, honest smile. Seeing Cheng Mo's sincere attitude, he stopped what he was doing, wiped his hands, and said, "Young man, you're too kind. What would you like to ask?"

The two started chatting.

An Baoqing is quite talkative, and he spoke with great pride about his troupe: "Our troupe consists of thirteen apprentices and my three sons, making a total of sixteen people. When everyone is together and their hearts are united, we become a team and can go out and perform."

"I'm not bragging, but I teach this class very well," An Baoqing patted his chest.

"Basically, once an apprentice has reached 80% proficiency, they can graduate and lead their own teams. If they fall below that level, it becomes much more difficult. If those who go out and then come back to ask me questions, I'll tell them. I'm never one to keep secrets."

As he finished speaking, An Bao lit a cigarette, his voice tinged with melancholy through the smoke: "However, these days, fewer and fewer young people are willing to learn our Nuo opera. No matter how good the old things are, they need young people to carry on the tradition for this profession to survive."

Cheng Mo nodded in understanding and followed up, saying, "Master An is right. Fewer people listen to Peking Opera these days, let alone Nuo Opera. Perhaps we could try exploring some new methods? We need to find a way to pass on these traditions and ensure their survival before we have a chance to see a brighter future."

An Baoqing sighed, "I know we need to update it, but how easy is it to move an ancient relic that has been passed down for thousands of years? If we do it wrong, we'll lose the soul of its heritage, and that would be a real sin."

Cheng Mo steered the conversation towards the performance itself: "I noticed that the troupe leader and the other masters had completely different auras before and after putting on the masks; they were practically different people. The secret to that must be quite something, right?"

Mentioning this, An Baoqing perked up: "That's right! There's a lot to it about Nuo masks. Long-term training, studying their essence, and trying to become one with the person the mask represents. There are some special techniques involved..."

His voice suddenly lowered, with a hint of shame: "My master also left behind some deeper methods, saying they could enhance one's spirit and connect with the ancient wisdom, but unfortunately, I'm too dull-witted to learn them. I have heard that some troupes that have mastered the true methods can perform absolutely amazing shows... but they are not very willing to share these things with us."

Cheng Mo understood. No wonder he always felt that Master An was a bit awkward during their previous conversation.

His statement that he "never holds back" may not truly mean he holds nothing back; rather, he hopes that this openness will encourage those groups that have mastered the methods of spiritual practice to also be open to exchanging ideas with him.

Of course, this was just Cheng Mo's guess.

He still hoped that Master An was genuinely willing to remain open, embrace new things, and pass on the ancient traditions of intangible cultural heritage.