The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 332: The Strange Old Man Dugu

However, Princess Dao Baifeng of Zhennan moved out of the palace since she had a falling out with the Prince of Zhennan. She practiced in seclusion in the Yuxu Temple outside the city, and took the Taoist name Yuxu Sanren. She also replaced her usual whip with a whisk. With her martial arts skills, she could travel freely throughout the Dali Kingdom, so she was naturally not afraid of being harassed. What's more, the Yuxu Temple was quite remote and few people knew about it.

On this day, Duan Yu came by carriage. The driver was Zhu Danchen, nicknamed "Bi Yan Sheng" among the four great ministers. The carriage was full of gifts, on the one hand to show his sincerity, and on the other hand, he was worried that he would have to stay for a longer time, and he did not want to let the Prince of Zhennan down.

He was very clear about the character of his master, Prince Zhennan. He had never hidden his many romantic debts from them. If it were just romantic debts, it would be fine, but now people have died. Those children are innocent, but none of them recognize their own father. It seems a bit too much.

Zhu Danchen's feelings towards the Princess of Zhennan are a bit complicated, but as a master he still has to respect her.

Zhu Danchen had never doubted her feelings for Prince Zhennan. They were a happy couple as newlyweds, but the prince was a fickle man. Once he became unfaithful, their relationship was ruined, which made the princess jealous. She had a huge quarrel with him and finally decided to turn away and live in seclusion in this desolate mountain forest.

The carriage was driving slowly, when suddenly a melodious sound of piano came from the front. Duan Yu, who was bored, shuddered all over and could not help but listen. The sound of the piano was quite pleasant, and the tune was a new one he had never heard before. The artistic conception was quite distant. He didn't know if it was his illusion, but he always felt that there was some depression and melancholy in it, as if he was flying in the sky with a heavy burden and felt a little restricted.

"Brother Zhu, please play faster." The more Duan Yu listened, the more he felt the player's artistic conception was lofty, and he couldn't help but feel anxious. Zhu Danchen chuckled and said, "Don't be anxious, my prince. This place is desolate and remote, and few people come here. The Yuxu Temple is not far ahead, and the sound of the zither must be coming from there. If so, it is possible that he is an old acquaintance of the princess. You can ask the princess to introduce him to you later. This person's zither skills are superb, and he is far superior to those of the zither masters in the palace."

Duan Yu thought it made sense, so he calmed down and listened attentively. The sound of the piano was in front of him. Zhu Danchen subconsciously quickened his pace and rode his horse to come over. They soon arrived at Yuxu Temple, but the sound of the piano was still in front of them, which made the two of them stunned.

"Sir, we've arrived at Yuxu Temple. Should we pay our respects to the princess first?" Zhu Danchen asked quietly. Duan Yu scratched his head. The music seemed to be coming to an end, so he hurriedly said, "Don't worry about Mother. Fourth Brother Zhu needs to hurry. It would be disastrous if that master got away. I still want him to play a piece for Mother."

Zhu Danchen: You clever little devil, if you wanted to listen to music, just say so directly, but you use the princess as an excuse, this way it doesn’t seem like you are being unfilial, but a great filial act.

Thinking of this, Zhu Danchen swung the whip again and walked straight forward. Soon he saw a gray figure sitting cross-legged on a huge rock by the roadside not far ahead. He was covered in the shade of a huge tree, and his slightly gray beard and long hair could be vaguely seen. Zhu Danchen subconsciously slowed down his pace.

When we got closer, we saw an old man with white hair and youthful face. He was sitting cross-legged with his eyes slightly closed on his knees with a guqin placed on his knees. His slightly dry hands were plucking the guqin repeatedly, and he seemed to be immersed in it.

His clothes were a little worn, with patches visible in a few places, but they were extremely clean and tidy. Beside him stood a four-foot cane with a wine gourd tied to it, and there was an exquisite old bookcase on the other side.

The sound of the piano soon stopped, the old man took a long breath, slowly opened his eyes, and his star-like eyes flashed with wisdom and fell on the carriage that stopped in front of him.

Duan Yu couldn't help but applaud and exclaimed, "This song can only be heard in heaven, how often can we hear it in the human world?"

The old man chuckled as if with disdain, put the guqin away and placed it in the bookcase, then took out the wine gourd and took a big gulp. His expression changed again, but it looked even more lonely, as if everything in the world had nothing to do with him, and he had no attachment to anything in the world anymore.

"The tune is melodious, like an eagle soaring to the sky, but the shackles remain, making it seem a little heavy. Is there anything on your mind, old man?" Duan Yu's words drew a curious glance from the old man. He nodded approvingly, shook his now dwindling wine gourd, and said, "You can hear a little bit of emotion in my music. You're not a bad boy. I have a story to tell. Do you have any wine?"

Duan Yu was overjoyed when he heard this, and hurriedly took out a jar of fine wine prepared by his father. However, he was small and the jar was big, so Zhu Danchen hurriedly helped him take it and handed it to the old man with a flick of his hand.

The five-jin wine jar flew towards the old man. Duan Yu was very anxious and didn't understand what Fourth Brother Zhu was going to do. He cried out, but saw the old man stretched out his left hand and pointed a finger at the bottom of the wine jar. Suddenly, the wine seal was broken by a water arrow, and the wine turned into an arc and fell into the wine gourd.

The old man did not take it too seriously. When the wine gourd was eight-tenths full, he used two fingers to lightly throw the wine jar back into the carriage. It slowly landed next to Duan Yu's hand, leaving him stunned and praising the old man's cleverness.

The old man slowly stood up and stretched his body, making a crackling sound. "Your wine is much better than my own. I guess you come from a wealthy family. It's almost noon now. You treat me to a glass of wine and I'll treat you to fish."

As the old man spoke, he picked up his bookcase and walked towards a path nearby with his walking stick. Duan Yu was familiar with that path. It led directly to a pond not far away and a stream. The water in the stream was so clear that you could see the bottom, and occasionally fish would jump out of the water. He often played here when he was a child.

Duan Yu hurriedly got off the carriage and chased after him together with Zhu Danchen. The old man didn't seem to be walking fast, his steps were quite light and his steps were a little strange. In a blink of an eye, they arrived at the stream deep in the forest.

The stream was only about ten feet wide, and there was a pool of water not far away. The old man put down his bookcase and walking stick, picked up a few small stones, walked to the stream, and slapped the air with his palm. The water surface suddenly shook with a bang, and three or five fish jumped out of the water and were knocked to the shore by the stones he shot out.

Catching fish like this? It's a bit too cool.

Zhu Danchen received instructions from the Prince of Zhennan before leaving and knew some inside information. Seeing this scene, he couldn't help but sigh at how powerful this person was. It was beyond his and others' imagination. He was probably three times more powerful than the prince and Emperor Baoding.

The old man caught the fish and placed it in a puddle one foot square beside the stream. He picked up some dry firewood and built a bonfire. He didn't seem to have a fire starter with him. His fingers were placed in the water and it froze into ice in an instant. He rubbed his hands lightly to make a strange piece of ice that was thick in the middle and thin on the four sides.

Dali is located in the south of the country. It is warm all year round but snow is rare. Duan Yu's eyes lit up when he saw this. The old man's next move made him even more jealous. Some flammable leaves and hay actually emitted green smoke under the ice.

"How strange!" Duan Yu exclaimed in amazement. The old man glanced at him and said, "Everything in the universe has its own principles. Only by studying things and gaining knowledge can one put them to good use. You will become accustomed to this and it won't be strange anymore."

"What a great way to gain knowledge through investigation of things. I saw an ice cube hanging above some dry grass and leaves, and sunlight penetrated through and gathered at one point. What ignited the grass and trees was not the ice cube, but the sunlight. Wonderful!" Duan Yu saw it clearly and could not help but dance with joy. Zhu Danchen, who was standing next to him, came to his senses after hearing Duan Yu's words and could not help but feel gratified by the intelligence of the Prince of Zhennan.

The old man lit a bonfire, picked up a sharp-edged stone from the ground, and made it into a stone knife with two bangs. He caught a fish, cut open its belly and scraped off its scales. His movements were natural and smooth, but the scene made Duan Yu feel quite uncomfortable.

"Amitabha, sins, sins." Duan Yu closed his eyes and chanted the Buddha's name, imitating the monk. The old man laughed and asked, "You believe in Buddhism, little kid?"

Duan Yu gave an affirmative answer. The old man asked him if he kept the precepts. Duan Yu said that he could eat any meat or fish. The old man laughed and said that he was spoiled.

"Doing no harm is the true art of benevolence, like seeing an ox but not a sheep. A gentleman, when seeing an animal alive, cannot bear to see it die; when hearing its cry, cannot bear to eat its flesh. That is why a gentleman stays away from the kitchen." Duan Yu said, "Always maintain good thoughts in your heart, carefully guarding them without transgressing them, and examining yourself three times a day—that is what it means to be a gentleman."

The old man laughed heartily and said, "You are a man who sees the living and cannot bear to see them die, and you are a man who hears the cries and cannot bear to eat their flesh. You are a scholar, but your realm is ordinary, still in the stage of seeking the truth. Although it may seem like trying to cover your ears and steal the bell, it is a process of continuous accumulation. But I have passed this stage and reached the state of natural selection and survival of the fittest. Everything in the world can be used by me. Even if I slaughter cattle and sheep with my own hands, I feel no ripples in my heart. What I see is not cattle and sheep, but the way of balance and reincarnation of all things."

Duan Yu was silent for a moment after hearing this, then he stood tall, bowed, and said respectfully, "I will accept your instruction!"

The old man smeared various seasonings on the fish and roasted it over the campfire. He then turned and carefully examined Duan Yu. He saw that he had a handsome face and a natural aura. Although he had no cultivation, he was full of vitality. He nodded slightly and said, "Your foundation is not bad, and your talent is above average. Most importantly, your understanding is extraordinary. If I were not so busy traveling the world and unwilling to stay in one place for long, I would really like to take you in as my disciple. However, I have already grasped three aspects of the spiritual beauty of this place, and I will soon be traveling to other places to collect folk customs. It's a pity that this fate will be wasted."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Danchen quickly glanced at him. Duan Yu said with a smile, "It's all like this, fate comes and goes. There's no need to worry about it, old man. Now I have some good wine in my hand, and the delicious food still needs some cooking. Shall we begin our story, old man?"

The old man laughed and said, "You are an impatient child. Well, I have traveled the world for decades and it is rare for me to meet a good child that I like, so I will talk to you."

"My surname is Dugu. My ancestors were a powerful family during the Sui and Tang dynasties. I haven't used my real name for a long time. Thirty years ago, I was almost unrivaled in the Heshuo region, so I named myself Qiubai..."

Duan Yu: Dugu Qiubai, old man, when it comes to bragging, I don’t admit defeat to anyone in the world except you!