Where the wind chimes sound, there is a god

Chapter 26: Worldly Air

The heavy rain poured down, sweeping away the scorching summer heat. Countless raindrops danced on the eaves and the bluestone brick roads. The rain on the long street gathered into a stream and flowed to the drain.

The ban has been lifted in Yunzhou City, which has returned to normal. From time to time, two or three pedestrians wearing straw raincoats hurried past in the city.

The heavy rain brought up gusts of rain and fog with the wind. From afar, mist and rain rose above the blue brick and tile buildings. The sound of rain falling in the alleys of Jiangnan was lulling people to sleep.

Under the corridor in the backyard of Tingyu Pavilion, Chen Beimo was holding a book and reading it carefully. A pot of tea was placed on the wooden table beside him. Under the purple clay cloud pot was a delicate small stove with smokeless charcoal in it, warming the essence of the pot of tea.

He sipped tea and read the historical biographies described in the classics, and felt it was magical, because although the trajectory of this world was different, most of the historical figures existed.

For example, during the Three Kingdoms period of the Later Zhou Dynasty, many famous people emerged, but after fighting for decades, they still failed to unify the world. As a result, this land has been in constant conflict.

To the north of the Western Jin Dynasty, there were nomadic tribes such as the Tuoba Kingdom, the Jin Kingdom, and the Liao Kingdom, all eyeing the Western Jin Dynasty covetously. To the northeast was the Goryeo Kingdom, and to the east was the increasingly powerful Qi Kingdom, which was the dominant force that destroyed the Eastern Jin Dynasty decades ago.

To the southwest is the Feng Kingdom, to the south are the Miao people behind the Yunzhu Mountain, and in the southwest is the Wu Kingdom, which is known as the country of Zhurong.

As for the west, it was much better. The vast desert blocked the progress of desert kingdoms such as the Arabs, and at most they could send caravans to trade for mutual benefit.

It can be said that the Western Jin Dynasty had the worst geographical location, but its territory also included the most fertile Jiangnan area and the vast Guangdong and Guangxi areas to the south.

It's just that the Guangdong and Guangxi areas were completely seized by Qi decades ago, and the current Guangnan Province is not on the coast. In fact, according to the most powerful map of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, this place is on the edge of the Bashu area, not the Guangnan Province on the coast.

However, Emperor Jingdi stubbornly retained the administrative boundaries of the Thirteen Provinces and designated the edge of Bashu as today's Guangnan. The emperor insisted that this place was called Guangnan, so who could say it was not?
However, it also serves as a warning to the people about the land of the Thirteen Provinces.

Chen Beimo read the Comprehensive Historical Records and understood the situation in the world, but he also knew that the Eastern Jin Dynasty was once the most powerful country in the world and it was inseparable from the support of extraordinary power.

This is even more true in the Western Jin Dynasty today. Everyone can see that the emperor relies heavily on the Six Divines Department, but there is nothing he can do about it, because the Six Divines Department is really needed to maintain the stability of the country.

Chen Beimo couldn't help but feel fortunate that he didn't think of threatening the prefect that night and didn't choose to kill him. Otherwise, how could he stay at home peacefully listening to the rain and sipping tea?

Beside him, Beichen saw him drinking tea with great relish and couldn't help but clamor for a drink as well.

Chen Beimo smiled and said, "You, a long insect, are also thinking of learning how to taste tea?"

"Hiss..."

What's wrong? Can't snakes drink tea?
Chen Beimo took the teacup and poured it a cup for him with a smile, "Be careful, it's hot."

Beichen climbed onto the table, stretched his head and put the teacup into his mouth, then leaned back and threw away the empty cup.

The next moment, it was scalded by the boiling water and rolled around on the ground, screaming and struggling for a long time before it calmed down.

When he looked at the teacup again, disgust appeared in his eyes.

Chen Beimo smiled as he watched the snake dance and said, "I told you to slow down. Sip the tea and calm your mind, slowly moisten your lungs and stomach, and you will get the taste."

"Hiss..."

You snake, you feed yourself bad water!

Chen Beimo smiled and shook his head, stood up, put down the book, and blew out the charcoal with a flick of his sleeves.

This is a characteristic extended from the fact that he gathered the Kan water true energy on the hand acupoints. Kan water has the nature of extinguishing fire and calming yang, so ordinary fires can be extinguished with a single wave of the hand.

"Let me teach you a lesson. Don't learn everything from others. Take your time."

Beichen Jun raised his tail when he heard that, then turned around and ignored him.

In the attic, Chen Beimo had nothing to do, so he started to tidy up and clean the house. According to the rules, the business should be open in half a month.

In the blink of an eye, three months have passed.

There is an abacus with shiny black beads on the old wooden table. I still remember that the master used to love holding the abacus and moving the beads with his fingers. When the beads collided, a crisp collision sound would be made. Sometimes it took the master a long time to calculate how much the copper coin was, how much the cost was, how much the favors were, and how much money he could earn to make a living without being complained by customers.

On that small abacus, there are calculations of how the master works alone to support his family.

It is said that you may not be too sad when a loved one passes away.

Until one day, when you see familiar objects, familiar things, familiar scenes, and realize that your loved one has truly and completely left you, tears will suddenly well up.

Chen Beimo doesn't think he is a cold-blooded person. When he opened his eyes and saw this world, the first thing he saw was his master's anxious and nervous face. When he saw Chen Beimo wake up, his face turned into surprise and relief.

Ten years of nurturing grace can be expressed in five words, but only by experiencing it personally can one understand the hardships and gratitude involved.

Chen Beimo's eyes were red. He wiped the desk clean, picked up the abacus, and gently moved the shiny abacus. From now on, he would be in charge of this place.

Outside the attic, there was the sound of thunder and rain. Light shone through the cracks in the wooden carved windows, into the somewhat dim room. Fine dust fell on him in the light and shadow.

……

On June 13, Chen Beimo carried a bamboo basket and left the city, heading into the mountains.

It rained heavily yesterday, and there are still water droplets left on the green grass and trees. The empty mountains are freshly rained, white clouds are floating in the sun, mountain birds are singing, insects and grasses are chirping, and the bamboo forest is filled with mottled shadows.

Chen Beimo carried a bamboo basket, took out a felling knife, and found a thick bamboo in the dense bamboo forest. The ribs and umbrella frame of the oil-paper umbrella both need to be made of solid bamboo.

There is no shortage of good bamboo in Yunzhu Mountain! When making umbrellas, the most suitable bamboo is selected from hundreds of species, among which moso bamboo or southern bamboo is the most suitable.

He picked up the machete and chopped down a thick bamboo in just two or three strokes. The bamboo leaves fell to the ground. Chen Beimo was now so strong that he could cut through wood with just one stroke, but he was more accustomed to the memory of having to chop many times to cut through wood in the past.

After laying a bamboo down, he took out tools such as the cleaver, lead scale, and planer from the basket. In just half an hour, he chopped a large bamboo into dozens of bamboo branches, sticks, and strips of varying thicknesses and put them into the basket.

Since he still had quite a few umbrellas at home, he was just making them in advance as a backup. After all, it takes more than a month to make an umbrella, so he couldn't wait until all the umbrellas in the store were sold out before starting, right?
He chopped down four large bamboos in one breath, and after splitting and picking them, he filled a bamboo basket with them. It was already noon, and there were other mountain folks who came to collect bamboo, most of whom were familiar faces but not very familiar.

Some even asked him why they hadn't seen the master come to pick bamboo in the past few months. Chen Beimo answered truthfully, and those people couldn't help but sigh.

On the way back to the city, Chen Beimo saw a group of people talking at a pier by the Ying River. He looked over curiously. With his extraordinary eyesight, he immediately spotted a young man lying on the ground surrounded by the crowd. This man was Xu Zhi, who had paid for an umbrella some time ago.

At this moment, his face was pale, his lips were black, he had fainted, and his body was wet. It was obvious that he had just been salvaged by the boatman.

Whether out of sympathy, or because he was a neighbor, he walked forward, separated the crowd, put down the bamboo basket, and reached out to feel Xu Zhi's breath and pulse.

"Alas, little brother, he is dead!" "I have tried, but the poor fellow cannot be woken up."

"Let's find someone we know and tell the family to come and claim the body... " One person spoke quickly, but felt it was a bit immoral, so he changed the word "claiming the body" to "claiming the person".

Chen Beimo also read a lot of medical books. Since the practice requires understanding the acupuncture points all over the body, he naturally remembered the functions of many acupuncture points. Coupled with his photographic memory, he can be considered a half-baked Chinese medicine practitioner.

Although there was no breath from the nose, there was still a pulse, proving that he was dying, but he was still alive.

Chen Beimo stretched out his hand and pressed a few acupoints on his body. Although he seemed powerless, his physical strength was not inferior to that of a second-rate master with internal force. After pressing a few times, Xu Zhi's throat bulged and he vomited a lot of water.

Then Chen Beimo mobilized the Kanshui Qi, let the Qi flow through his palms, and controlled Xu Zhi to spit out all the river water in his lungs and abdomen. His breathing was restored, and he pinched the Ren Zhong and Taiyang points again. Sure enough, he woke up with his eyelids drooping.

“Cough cough cough…where…am I?” Xu Zhi asked weakly.

"You're drowning. Don't move. Just lie down and rest for a while." Chen Beimo consoled her, "Someone should have gone to get Uncle Xu. Just wait a while."

"Oh my, I'm really alive!"

"It's amazing! They were able to save this!"

The crowd watching could not help but marvel at his skills, and some praised him, "Little brother, you have great medical skills!"

"Thank you for the compliment, but I just came at the right time. If I had been a step later, I would have been unable to save the situation." Chen Beimo stood up and bowed with a smile.

Seeing that the man was alive, everyone dispersed, and only Chen Beimo stayed there and looked at him.

"Brother Xu, why did you fall into the water for no reason?"

"Hey, Ermo, you don't understand me.

Qiao'er died, and my heart died too. I jumped into the river to seek relief." Xu Zhi looked heartbroken.

"What? Suicide for love?" Chen Beimo looked at him differently, "I knew that you were so affectionate, Brother Xu, but I didn't expect you to be so infatuated.

That day when you came to pay and left, Qiao'er was in another man's arms when she came to get the umbrella. It's okay to have sex with a woman like this for a while, but why give up your life? It's not worth it."

"Impossible. Qiao'er told me that she was just flirting with the young master of Hou Mansion and was afraid of offending the noble man." Xu Zhi had a look of firm disbelief.

Seeing this, Chen Beimo realized how infatuated this guy was and that he was truly lovesick.

They could only help him find a place to rest under a tree and wait for someone from the Xu family to come and pick him up.

Chen Beimo was listening to the love-hate story between him and Qiao'er. Xu Zhi kept talking about how they fell in love and how they decided to spend their lives together.

At the end, he stood up with the help of the tree, half crying and half saying: "It's a pity that Qiao'er and I have a deep love, but God has no mercy on us?

"

As he spoke, he looked at the willow branches with a certain obsession, murmuring, "The willow branches are soft and gentle, and the smoke is woven into hatred.

The crabapple blossoms are not yet blooming, the pear blossoms are already snowing, half of the spring is over!
Nowadays, it is difficult to recall the past, and return to dreams around Qin Tower.

Lovesickness is only on the clove branches and cardamom tips. "

The golden bell hanging on Chen Beimo's waist suddenly rang at this moment. The crisp and pleasant sound of the golden bell vibrated and froze Xu Zhi. A ray of neon was absorbed into the bell.

The golden bell stopped ringing, the fool fell asleep under the ancient willow tree.

Chen Beimo took off the golden bell and looked at it in surprise for a while, but he didn't see any magical powers coming out. It was just that the bell seemed a little heavy.

What was that rainbow light? Based on Jin Ling's previous performance, could it be the love, hate, and vengeance of the world?

He sniffed and found that Xu Zhi was just asleep, and he felt relieved. What if the golden bell sucked someone to death, he would be the murderer.

Half an hour later, Xu Zhi's father Xu Dagui came anxiously with a bullock cart and a servant. Hearing that his beloved son was fine, he felt relieved. He thanked him gratefully and took Xu Zhi to see a doctor.

Chen Beimo returned home and soaked the bamboo in a medicine jar to prevent moth and mildew. He was busy until dark before he rested.

He took out the golden bell and looked at it carefully. This ancient bell was an extremely valuable treasure. It could absorb the ancient aura of antiques and various worldly auras, as well as the power of faith respected by monsters. However, these auras were all events he had personally experienced.

It seems that this ancient bell needs to seek ancient energy in the mortal world in order to awaken its magical powers little by little. Then it is very necessary for him to open this Tingyu Pavilion.

Wherever there is a business, there must be thousands of people, but through the vastness of the world, there will definitely be the ancient spirit of the world that can be absorbed by the ancient bell. One can also refine one's mind in the world and gradually sharpen one's state of mind, so as not to only cultivate the mysterious qi without cultivating the heart and nature, and lose the essence.

However, running an umbrella shop requires a lot of things like doing business, making umbrellas, and collecting materials, and I cannot handle it all by myself.

Well, it's time to experience the fun of feudal society.

……

Early the next morning, Chen Beimo arrived in East City. After two months of construction, the new East City had gradually taken shape. Crowded and chaotic groups of people were crowded on the only two streets now.

One street is for shops selling food, clothing, housing and transportation, and the other street is for children.

There are many criminals, people selling their bodies, and foreigners here. The people here are different from the helpers in Xifang. They are slaves without personal freedom.

Once bought, they would become the private property of their master. They would have no freedom of life and belong to their master from cradle to grave. However, the government also expressly prohibited the private killing of slaves, servants, etc. If there was a serious crime, the owner could only deal with it after a judgment by the government.

Although the existence of such slaves was allowed, the court also set a price limit that could not be too low, prohibited the innocent abuse of private slaves, and other laws to appropriately improve the status of slaves.

Normally, a middle-aged male slave would cost at least five taels of silver. The better ones, or those who were hardworking and capable, and had a special skill would be very expensive.

Moreover, if you buy it back, you have to pay taxes to the government, and you have to cover the expenses of food, clothing, housing, transportation, etc. Ordinary people can afford to buy it but cannot afford to use it.

Chen Beimo came to this long street and saw many old women, maids, and servants of all kinds.

He picked for a long time, then stopped in front of a boy who was in tattered clothes and covered in black, and asked, "What's your name?"

The little boy raised his dirty little face, looked at the man in front of him and said in a daze: "Slave, my name is Gou'er."

(End of this chapter)