Chapter 584
The Journey of a Multitude of Worldly Affairs, Engraved on the Boat's Footprints
The martial arts stalls under the overpass were surrounded by layers of people.
Bai Li stood in the crowd, tiptoeing, trying to see the center of the field clearly. But she wasn't very tall, and there were tall men in front of her, so even on tiptoe she couldn't see clearly.
She turned to look at Chen Ji and said matter-of-factly, "Carry me on your back."
Chen Ji smiled and bent down to lift her onto his back, allowing her to see more clearly.
Bai Li stared intently at the scene, where a man in his thirties, dressed in shorts, had a rough, ruddy complexion from years of exposure to the wind and sun.
The man held a throwing knife in his hand; the blade was narrow and gleamed coldly in the setting sun.
At the other end of the field stood a huge wooden target, with a girl of about twelve or thirteen years old tied to it. Her hair was tied with a red rope, and her face was taut and she was completely still.
The man stepped back five paces, flicked his wrist, and the throwing knife flew from his hand. Bai Li's eyes followed the throwing knife with extreme tension. Her right hand was pointed towards the knife, ready to save the little girl if the man missed.
With a bang!
The throwing knife grazed the little girl's ear and landed on the target, its tip trembling incessantly.
A gasp of surprise rang out from the crowd.
The man took three steps back and pulled out a second knife.
The knife grazed the girl's other ear and landed three inches above her shoulder; the girl didn't even blink.
The third cut, the fourth cut, the fifth cut... the ninth cut.
Each knife grazed her body, yet failed to harm the little girl in the slightest. As if guided by eyes, the throwing knives circled her frail body, the nine knives neatly embedded around her, framing her entirely.
The crowd erupted.
"it is good!"
"Pretty!"
"One more!"
The man clasped his hands in greeting to everyone around him, grinned, revealing a set of white teeth: "Gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, please excuse my humble appearance. My surname is Zhou, and I am the second son. I have traveled all over the country since I was a child, and this is my first time visiting your esteemed place. I am new here and unfamiliar with the place, so I rely entirely on your gracious presence..."
As he spoke, he bowed deeply, his waist almost touching his knees.
After straightening up, he continued, "That move I just made is called 'Nine Stars Surrounding the Moon,' a unique skill passed down in my Zhou family. My father taught me it, saying that this skill has been passed down for four generations, over a hundred years, and I am the fifth generation."
The man pointed to the little girl with the red ribbon tied around her neck: "This is my daughter. She's been traveling with me all over the country for six years. Six years ago, she was only seven years old, and she dared to stand there and ask me to throw knives. You all have traveled all over the country and seen the world, so you know this job isn't easy. I, Zhou Lao Er, don't have any other skills, all I know is how to throw knives. I make my living by throwing knives.
He picked up the broken copper gong from the ground, with a few copper coins scattered inside: "I, Zhou Lao Er, don't want any rewards today. What I want is your praise. Your praise is worth more than a hundred copper coins. In the future, when I, Zhou Lao Er, travel all over the country and go to other places, if I talk to people about Tianqiao in the capital, I'll say, 'The old and young gentlemen of Tianqiao in the capital, that's this...'"
As he spoke, he gave a thumbs up.
The onlookers burst into laughter.
"However," the man's tone shifted, his voice slowing, "if you all really think my skills are passable and want to tip me a few coins, I can't stop you. Why? Because it's the rule. In the world of martial arts, the most important thing is 'support.' If you support me, I'll work hard for you, and we're even. If you don't support me, that's only right and proper, and I, Zhou Lao Er, won't say a word. But Zhou Lao Er has another special skill: blindfolded knife throwing. My daughter is tied up right there, and as long as you give me enough money, I'll perform this special skill for you!"
After saying that, he immediately gave his apprentice a wink, and the apprentice immediately took the gong and circled around. The onlookers threw coins into the gong, making a clinking sound.
The man pulled a throwing knife from the wooden tray, then pretended to pull out a black cloth and slowly covered his eyes. The onlookers became even more excited and started throwing money at him.
Bai Li then simply threw in a silver ingot, which clattered into the gong, startling the onlookers who all turned to look, wondering who this wealthy guest was.
Those who had been gathering outside the brothel yesterday immediately recognized Chen Ji and Bai Li, and whispered, "It's Viscount Wu Xiang and Princess Bai Li..."
"He's carrying the princess on his back! What nobleman would willingly carry a woman on his back..."
The white carp was a little embarrassed and was about to jump down, but Chen Ji stopped it and said softly, "It's okay."
He wasn't embarrassed by the crowd watching him; he just smiled and urged the man, "Are you done blindfolding yourself? Hurry up and show us your amazing skills."
But the man, blindfolded, couldn't get it right even after an incense stick had burned. After all the onlookers had left, he immediately took off the black cloth and resumed the Nine Stars Surrounding the Moon performance.
Bai Li stared in disbelief: "Why aren't you performing the blindfolded knife throwing act anymore?"
Chen Ji explained with a smile, "That's my own daughter, how could I bear to blindfold her and stab her? There are many charlatans on this overpass who only talk the talk but don't walk the walk, only fooling newcomers to the city who are going to the market or taking the exam."
Bai Li pouted, and seeing her little apprentice approaching with the gong again, she clenched her fist and retrieved the silver ingot she had given away from a distance: "Run!"
This time, Chen Ji was dumbfounded. Seeing that he didn't move, Bai Li quickly patted his shoulder: "Run!"
Before the man who threw the knife could react, Chen Ji, carrying Bai Li on his back, took off running, weaving and dodging through the bustling crowd, attracting the attention of passersby.
As the sun set, the two seemed to have found a way back to the past. As long as they silently chanted "year after year, year after year" and kept running, they could return to Anxi Street, full of life, and to that simple Taiping Medical Clinic.
All you have to do is stand in front of the clinic and shout "I'm back!" before stepping inside, and the person you want to see will still be there.
Chen Ji ran for two miles before gradually stopping.
He leaned against the wall in the narrow alley, panting slightly. Bai Li jumped down and stood beside him, and then they both burst into laughter.
The sun sank a little lower, and the light in the alley became lighter and thinner.
The laughter gradually subsided, and Bai Li stood in the shadows under the eaves, head bowed, and said, "I still remember the days when you were injured. Everyone carried you to Baiyi Lane, and they deliberately carried you in front of the singing girls to embarrass you; we all went to make cement together, getting ourselves covered in soot every day, only to get a good scolding from our master when we got home; we rode in an oxcart to Luhun Manor and bought some particularly sour oranges; when we were being chased by Liu's army, you carried me on your back as we fled for our lives..."
Chen Ji's panting gradually subsided.
Bai Li suddenly said, "Chen Ji, thank you." Chen Ji smiled and said, "No need to thank me."
Bai Li smiled and said, "It's nothing."
At this moment, a wisp of incense smoke drifted over from afar. Bai Li looked up and saw the Chongnanfang City God Temple sitting quietly in the distance, as if it were destiny that they would come here, reminding her not to forget certain things.
Bai Li looked at Chen Ji: "Chen Ji, I'm going to the City God Temple."
Chen Ji was a little doubtful, but he still agreed: "Okay."
Bai Li walked towards the City God Temple. Chen Ji was about to follow when Bai Li turned around and said, "Chen Ji, I want to go by myself."
Chen Ji hesitated for a moment, but still agreed: "Okay."
……
……
As the daylight completely disappeared behind the city walls, Bai Li walked alone into the City God Temple. Before entering the temple, she saw a wooden plaque in front of the door that read, "The place where the Patriarch Chao Yunzi transmitted the teachings to Li Changge."
She continued walking inside and saw a large blue ox lying beside a bronze incense burner, inhaling wisps of incense smoke. Before the smoke from the burning incense sticks could even rise, it poured into its nostrils like a waterfall.
By this time, the worshippers in the City God Temple had all gone home at sunset, leaving only a young Taoist priest sitting on the stone steps under the eaves, holding a book in his left hand and clutching his hair tightly with his right, muttering to himself:
"Who controls the smoke and clouds on paper? It's a heavenly book, but the heavenly book is full of confusion."
Foolish children, foolish children, they break one's heart.
It was clearly a scene of reunion, yet the words "separation" were written on it like pearls.
Is it fate, destiny, or calamity?
"Seeking guidance from the ancestor in the City God Temple, I learned that the path to enlightenment was etched in the marks of countless journeys through the mortal world, a path marked only by the marks left by boats."
The young Taoist priest said in distress, "Didn't we just get rescued from the brothel? How could the Heavenly Book give such a judgment... Hey, young lady, the City God Temple is closed. If you want to ask for a divination, come back tomorrow."
Bai Li smiled slightly: "How come the City God Temple has a closing time? Is Master Zhang Li treating the temple like a business?"
Using the dim light in the temple, Zhang Li examined the white carp: "Huh, I've seen you before, where...where was it again?"
Bai Li said softly, "At Luhun Manor."
Zhang Liteng suddenly stood up: "Princess Baili, where is Chen Ji? Why isn't he with you?"
Bai Li smiled and said, "He's waiting for me outside the City God Temple. I'll come in, ask a few questions, and then leave. You don't need to worry about me, Taoist priest."
Zhang Li stepped aside and said, "Alright, you can ask the divination, I'll go and have a word with Chen Ji."
Bai Li, lifting the hem of her Taoist robe, strode into the main hall, took divination blocks from the offering table, and knelt on the prayer mat facing the statues of the Three Pure Ones. She clasped the blocks in her hands and whispered, "Bai Li, a believer, inquires of the Three Pure Ones: does Chen Ji know the whereabouts of my mother, Wen Yunmo?"
Having said that, she tossed the divination blocks in front of her, one yin and one yang.
Chen Ji knew.
The white carp was thrown three times, each time yielding a result that was either yin or yang.
She whispered again, "Bai Li, a believer, asks the Three Pure Ones, is my mother still alive?"
Having said that, she placed the divination blocks in front of her, two of them facing in the dark.
He has passed away.
Bai Li tossed the toss nine times in a row, and each time it was two negative results.
Her fingers trembled slightly as she picked up the divination blocks from the ground and tossed them out again: "Is it related to Chen Ji?"
The divination blocks landed crisply on the ground, one representing yin and the other yang.
related.
Bai Li's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she asked in a dry voice, "Was it Chen Ji who killed him?"
Having said that, she tossed the divination blocks in front of her, one yin and one yang.
Yes.
Bai Li refused to believe it. This time, she tossed the toss ninety-nine times in a row, and each time it was a yin and a yang.
She looked up at the Three Pure Ones, and whether it was the light or an illusion, she saw that among the Three Pure Ones, two had indifferent expressions, and one had lowered his eyes in sorrow.
The white carp remained lying in the main hall, unwilling to get up for a long time.
At 9 PM, Zhang Li came in and urged, "Miss, this humble Taoist priest also needs to sleep..."
Bai Li stood up, apologized, and walked alone towards the exit of the City God Temple. Just before stepping out, she rubbed her cheeks and then crossed the threshold.
Chen Ji stepped forward and asked curiously, "Why did it take you so long?"
Bai Li smiled and said, "It's nothing, I just accidentally fell asleep."
Chen Ji observed her expression and then asked, "Where do you want to go tomorrow?"
Bai Li thought for a moment: "Let's walk through the places we went today again." (End of Chapter)