Chapter 6

Zhou Da sighed deeply and said, "Well, I just had an argument with my wife about this, but... I don't know if it will help. You should go find someone; he might have some real skills. A few years ago, when my wife was doing well, he came to my house out of the blue, glanced at my wife, and said, 'A breath of yang energy can neither be exhaled nor swallowed; I thought there was someone here who could perform the茅之术 (máo zhī shù, a form of sorcery). Forget it, I'm leaving. You two shouldn't be together; in the end, you'll just drag each other down.' Then, he left. No one except our family knows the details of what happened between my wife and me. He must be a great master."

"Who is he? Where is he?" my mother asked urgently.

"He... you definitely know him, it's Old Man Jiang." Zhou Da said hesitantly, fearing my mother wouldn't believe him.

"Old Man Jiang, you mean the one who came to our village out of the blue a few years ago?" My mother was indeed a bit skeptical and asked again.

That old man, could he be a great master? But that old man, he is the master I respect the most in my life, a teacher and a father to me!

"It's him. Go find him. If you find the right person, we also need your help. I can't say more, my wife can't take it anymore." Zhou Da said hurriedly, his body trembling, and then he became weak, clearly giving his body back to Zhou Guifu.

Zhou Guifu looked even weaker than before, lying motionless on the table. How could my mother just leave her there after asking about her own affairs? She quickly went over to support Zhou Guifu, and when she touched her, she felt even more cold and her breath was very weak.

Rural women are strong, and my mother quickly helped Zhou Guifu out of the west room, then carried her to the main hall and placed her on a chair in front of the stove. My father was in the main hall with me, chatting with Zhou Er, probably because it was warmer there with the stove.

Zhou Er saw the situation and exclaimed, "Oh!" He quickly went into the house to get a blanket to wrap around Zhou Guifu, while my mother hurried to the kitchen to cook ginger soup.

Seeing them busy, my father, who knew nothing, couldn't help but say, "Xiu Yun, what should I do?" Although my father knew nothing, he vaguely understood that Zhou Guifu was in this state because of our family's affairs.

"Oh, you don't need to do anything, just help watch over Yuehong here." My mother didn't have the mood to argue with my father.

After a while of busying around, Zhou Guifu's condition improved a bit, and she regained consciousness. She looked at my mother, as if she had something to say.

My mother could guess what she wanted to say and asked, "Do you want Old Chen and Zhou Er to step aside?"

Zhou Guifu shook her head, probably because she and Zhou Da had a big problem and couldn't afford to hide anything: "The great master said we are dragging each other down, but I really don't want to harm him. If I harm him, he will be in a dead end, but I can still become a ghost. I've always thought this way. And I'm afraid for Zhou Qiang, the child. Although the Zhou family will definitely take care of him, a child with a mother is always better. A child without a father or mother can't bear it. If you can invite the great master, please help us."

"Brother, what are you saying? What about becoming a ghost? What about not having a father or mother?" Zhou Er, concerned for his sister-in-law, immediately shouted loudly. Zhou Guifu just waved her hand, signaling him not to ask.

As an outsider, my father, even with a head full of questions, couldn't speak, let alone ask about my affairs at this time.

As for my mother, she looked at Zhou Guifu sincerely and, without minding the cold, held her hand and said, "I will do my best, you can rest assured. Actually, there's something I want to say too. What should be let go should be let go. Doing what benefits the other person is also a sign of deep affection, especially when there's a child involved."

Zhou Guifu nodded gratefully at my mother, too tired to speak anymore.

Thus, my father, suppressing a belly full of questions, and my mother, with a heart full of worries, returned home together.

On a cold winter night, many people had already gone to bed early, even entering their dreams, but my parents, who had just returned from Zhou Guifu's, had no sleep at all, and even lit two bright oil lamps in the room.

At this moment, my father had already heard the whole story from my mother. His hand holding the cigarette was trembling. After a while, he said, "Is Old Man Jiang reliable?"

"Chairman Mao said, practice is the only criterion for testing truth. Let's go and see," my mother said, leaning closely against my father, her eyes refusing to close, thinking about the situation at home, she couldn't sleep.

"Alright, let our son suffer a bit more. I'll go up the mountain to find Old Man Jiang tomorrow. Tonight, we'll sleep with the lights on." My father was also very afraid, otherwise, why would he sleep with the lights on?

Light can provide strong comfort in certain situations.

The night passed without incident.

The next day, my parents got up early. My mother quickly made a simple breakfast for my father. After eating, my father put on his thick coat, tucked two steamed buns in his chest, and was ready to go up the mountain.

Why two steamed buns? It's simple. Our village is next to a mountain that isn't very high but stretches for dozens of kilometers, which is quite large. My father knew that Old Man Jiang lived alone on the mountain, but he didn't know exactly where, and neither did the villagers. They just knew he would occasionally show up in the village.

So, it would be extremely difficult to find him all at once. How could he not bring some food?

The morning mountain path was very damp. After walking for a while, my father's pant legs were soaked. Seeing the sky turning light, he turned off his flashlight, sat on a large rock, and prepared to smoke a cigarette and rest for a few minutes.

"Is Old Man Jiang a great master?" As the smoke rose, my father's mind calmed down, and he started to mutter.

If he wasn't a great master, why would he live alone in the mountains? Not to mention the supernatural, the insects in the mountains are also very numerous, especially the snakes. Even locals don't know how many kinds there are in this mountain range.

An ordinary person would never dare to live alone in the mountains.

My father seemed to have found a strong reason for Old Man Jiang being a great master, and his furrowed brows relaxed. But after a while, his brows furrowed again as the image and behavior of Old Man Jiang resurfaced in his mind.

What does Old Man Jiang look like? His hair is gray, his beard is long, his complexion is actually very good, white and rosy, but he is dirty. Often, you can see the dirt on his face from not washing, in rows, on his neck, and even on his beard, with residues of unknown things.

He often wears clothes that are almost unrecognizable, and in the summer, it's still okay, but in other seasons, his sleeves are always oily and stiff, how long has it been since he last washed them, and how many times has he wiped his mouth?

As for his behavior, it's even more laughable. First, he is lecherous. When he sees a pretty young woman in the village, his eyes don't blink, and sometimes he even follows her. People aren't afraid of him, knowing he doesn't have the courage to do anything, just to look.

If you chase him or scold him, he doesn't get angry. He just mutters, "A gentleman expresses his feelings but stops at propriety. The love of beauty is universal..."

The mountain people don't understand what he's muttering and often scold him even more. He just laughs and, after looking enough, walks away, sometimes singing a tuneless mountain song and shouting, "The young woman is beautiful..."

Additionally, Old Man Jiang is a glutton. When he wanders around the village and finds something fresh, he always asks for it with a thick face. If people don't give it to him, he lingers. When he sees people working, he quickly comes to help, even if they don't want his help, he can't be chased away.

If the thing he asks for is valuable, he helps for a longer time. If it's something ordinary, he helps for a shorter time.

Usually, many people just give it to him. After all, the things in the fields aren't rare, and the mountain people are simple and can't bear to see an old man like this.

But this strange old man doesn't even say thank you, just saying, "I help you work, you give me food, we are even, no cause and effect, and we form a good bond. Great, very good." This sounds completely crazy to ordinary people.