Start practicing from Mr. Fox

Chapter 119 The Records of the Four Rivers

The crowd was in an uproar, clearly never expecting that someone would give the sage an old pen.

The town guard was also stunned and stood there.

In previous years, there was a tradition of offering sacrifices to saints, but it was mostly a routine matter before the imperial examinations. There was a sacrifice, but no one ever mentioned giving gifts.

If so, it would be because the emperor bestowed upon it a title and issued an edict throughout the country before it was presented to the emperor.

But that doesn't really count as giving a gift; at most, it's a reward from the emperor.

Although the sage is a sage, he was once a subject, and now he has descendants who are also important officials in the court. Such a reward is not a problem.

Moreover, no matter how much they rewarded him, they always used brand-new, excellent writing implements and fine silks and satins.

Even if the emperor were to give him a pen he had used, he would still say that his talent was insufficient and ask the sage to nourish it for a while.

The town officials watched with disdain.

The academy's original teacher froze, almost fainting.

He was able to become a teacher at the academy, which meant he was not an ordinary scholar, but someone who had studied under a renowned academy teacher.

The townspeople and residents of Bijian Town knew the rules for worshipping the saint better than anyone else.

Previously, I had only heard that the chief officiant was this famous Taoist priest Chen from the town, who had previously captured demons at the academy and gained the favor of the sage, so I did not ask any further questions.

Little did they expect that this Taoist priest would give an old writing brush as a gift to the sage.

It is customary for elders to give old pens as gifts to younger generations.

Which great Confucian scholar in the world would dare to claim that he is the elder of a sage?

Now Chen Ji is actually a mortal—well, not quite a mortal, since he is a cultivator after all.

But to send a sage an old pen used by a great scholar... wouldn't such behavior incur the sage's wrath?

What else is there to say?

Suddenly, a voice came out from the statue of the saint in the courtyard.

"good!"

Then a surge of green mist emerged, resembling a scroll of bamboo slips. When unfolded, it revealed a hand, as if waiting for Chen Ji to place it on it.

"A sage has manifested!"

The academy teacher was stunned for a few moments before suddenly coming to his senses. He exclaimed in surprise and knelt down on the ground.

The students and civilians who had come to watch were all stunned and stood there dumbfounded.

After a while, a few people hurriedly knelt down and shouted, "Long live the Emperor!"

Chen Ji was also somewhat surprised.

I never expected that a sage would manifest himself in order to receive the gifts I sent.

With this relationship, even if you give a used pen or a piece of scrap paper as a gift, people will likely say that it's a small gift but carries great meaning.

Chen Ji looked at the bamboo section in his hand, unsure how to hand it over to the Sage.

I promised Baojie that I would plant it in the academy.

If a sage were to take this and return to that space, it's uncertain whether Baojie Jun would still be Baojie Jun.

After a pause, I realized I was overthinking things.

With such high level of cultivation, how could a sage not see through the true nature of the Lord of Embracing Integrity?

If he feels that he can take it with him, it means that taking it with him is worse than leaving it in the academy. If he leaves it, it will fulfill what he said to Baojie. Instead of worrying about these things, it is better to just give it to him.

So he gave away the essence of the bamboo joint that was the essence of the Embracing Joint Lord.

The roots are neatly gathered into the shape of a pen tip, the bamboo stalk is shaped like a pen shaft, with traces of a dragon coiling, it is warm and smooth like jade, and its luster flows, it is obviously not an ordinary product.

The talented hand took the jade pendant, examined it in his palm for a few breaths, and then murmured a sigh of admiration for its kindness.

However, this time only Chen Ji could hear it.

"Indeed, it's a pen used by a Confucian scholar. It still has a lot of talent. It's quite interesting that it can be transformed into a demon again."

"I really like the gift you brought, kid."

"Very well, since you are a Confucian scholar and also my student, I will assist you with this task."

The sage laughed and tossed the bamboo into the air, then began to recite.

"Is it not pleasant to learn and practice what you have learned?"

This sentence was not only spoken to Chen Ji and his companion; everyone outside the academy heard it.

A gentle, green mist emanated from the statue of the saint, spreading equally to everyone, like a spring breeze and gentle rain.

The academy teacher was the first to realize what was going on.

Tears streamed down the old man's face as he repeatedly kowtowed.

"Thank you, Sage, for bestowing upon me the cleansing of my talents!"

A scholar nearby asked him what "talent radiance" meant.

"It is as if a sage has bestowed upon you talent, making it easier for you to understand principles and remember things better in the future!"

"When I was studying at the prefectural academy, I also witnessed a surge of talent, but unfortunately I wasn't among the first to succeed... and I still have a bit of talent now!"

The academy teacher was extremely excited and spoke in a trembling voice.

"I'm afraid that next year's imperial examinations will produce several more successful candidates from our town!"

The scholars behind him looked delighted.

They came here to study in order to participate in the imperial examinations and obtain fame and fortune. Now that a sage has bestowed upon them talent, even without studying, they have a certain inexplicable confidence.

Some of the ordinary people who came to join in the fun were filled with regret.

"If I had known that the sage would bestow talent, I should have brought my son along. Maybe he could have passed the imperial examination and become a scholar someday!"

"What a pity, what a pity! What use is this talent to an old man like me?"

"My sage, could you wait a moment? I'll go and call my grandson over to absorb the talent; he's the one who needs it!"

"..."

"Noisy!"

Li Pingyun turned around and looked at him, his eyes filled with anger.

Even he had never heard of anyone being granted talent by a saint when offering sacrifices to a saint.

Listen to what these people are saying now! Is there no law left?
If one angers the emperor, the emperor may take back one's talent or impose punishment; even beheading him would not be enough to provoke the court's wrath.

However, there was no need for him to do anything at this moment.

Some people in the crowd glared angrily and said something that frightened them into silence, causing them to kowtow and beg for mercy.

Li Pingyun breathed a sigh of relief and looked back towards the academy.

The statue of the saint still exudes brilliance.

This time, however, was different from the previous demon-catching; instead of using the town's talent, it was the sage's own talent.

He could even vaguely sense that the town's talent was more abundant than ever before.

Let alone the number of successful candidates in the provincial examinations next year, there's a good chance they might even become successful candidates in the metropolitan examinations.

Li Pingyun also showed a happy expression.

Although governing a town is about economic development and stability, cultural governance is also part of it. If a town can produce more successful candidates in the imperial examinations during its term, that can be considered an achievement.

Looking at Chen Ji's back again, one felt even more that this Taoist priest was unfathomable.

Besides exorcising demons and catching ghosts, he even managed to attract the attention of a sage who bestowed upon him his talent. He immediately decided to personally visit and befriend Chen Ji after today's sacrificial ceremony, and to properly maintain their relationship.

If we don't befriend such an extraordinary person now, it will be difficult to deal with them in the future.

Chen Ji, who was at the forefront, didn't feel it very deeply.

Firstly, he had already received talent from a sage once, so his feelings about it were not as profound as theirs.

Secondly, the sage's focus this time was on the man who embraced integrity.

The 'Baojie Jun' swayed in the wind in the air, then transformed back into its original form as it had been planted in the small courtyard, vaguely revealing a human shape.

It landed perfectly on the flower bed that the academy had set up.

A burst of green mist emanated from the statue of the sage and landed on Baojiejun. In an instant, it took root and sprouted leaves, growing into several green bamboo shoots, as if they were made of jade.

On its growing body, the dragon shape became more and more obvious and clear, and one could even faintly see traces of dragon scales and claws.

The sage's voice slowly faded, and then only echoed within the courtyard, just enough for Baojie Jun to hear clearly.

"You are destined to be here at the academy, so you may stay and continue your cultivation."

"You still possess some dragon energy. I look forward to your future performance. Cultivate diligently and don't disappoint me."

"Thank you saint!"

Baojie Jun transformed into human form and bowed deeply, his voice trembling.

Previously, I only thought that I could be planted in the academy and have no shortage of places to acquire talent in the future. Who would have thought that I would become a bamboo planted by the sage himself? This is completely different from the bamboo demon in the mountains.

Even if the City God and the Taoist priest were to appear later, they wouldn't dare to do anything to him because of that relationship.

The sage nodded slightly, as if he had heard what Baojie Jun had said.

After saying this, he glanced back at Chen Ji. The giant hand formed from his talent disappeared, leaving behind a bamboo scroll in Chen Ji's palm.

The kneeling crowd stared blankly at the scene before them.

They did not know that this was the previous form of Baojie Jun; they only thought that the sage had accepted the pen given to him by Chen Ji and then transformed it into human form.

So they all shouted, "Long live the sage! The bamboo fairy has appeared!"

Chen Ji, however, paid no attention to these things and instead focused his attention on the bamboo slip in his hand.

The characters on the bamboo slips were not the usual characters we see, but rather wavy characters that twisted and turned like tadpoles.

The name on the bamboo slip was immediately recognizable.

The Records of the Four Rivers.

But after opening it, I couldn't understand a single word. Even though it was the same text, I was completely baffled.

I decided to roll it up and take it back to show Miss Bai.

I don't know how the sage knew that I wanted to take another scroll back with me.

I just don't know if this is meant to be used as a container for the Five Sacred Mountains Emperors' dirty things, or if it's meant to be given to the Dragon Lord of Hutuo in exchange for something.

Although this bamboo slip is not one of the books that Lord Hutuo likes, it should be able to satisfy him.

But this thing looks complicated, and it seems like a waste to just replace the contents of the Five Sacred Mountains Emperor statue with something else.

"Master Chen, Master Chen!"

Chen Ji was still pondering when he heard the academy teacher calling him.

Coming to her senses, she saw him standing in front of her, looking both respectful and excited, and she cupped her hands in greeting to ask what was the matter.

“It was the sage who told me to give this book to the Taoist priest.”

The academy teacher picked up a book.

At a glance, Chen Ji saw a copy of "The Records of Sacrificing to the Mountain" bound with dragon scales, and even a Confucian scholar like himself could feel the surging talent within it.

Knowing that this item had been kept in the academy for a long time, they realized that the sage already knew about his arrangements.

He looked at the statue of the saint and bowed slowly.

"Thank you saint!"

Then, seeing that the academy teacher still refused to leave, they looked over in confusion.

Before he could ask, the academy teacher quickly cupped his hands and offered his explanation.

"I was initially worried that the Taoist priest would anger the Sage by giving him an old pen, but I never expected this..."

"Alas, the Daoist Master has done so much for the academy that I am at a loss for words."

"I've never seen this clump of green bamboo before. I wonder if the master knows its origin? If any students ask about it in the future, I can explain it to them."

"That's it..."

Chen Ji thought for a moment and omitted the story of Baojie Jun discussing cultivation with the demons on Sendai Mountain.

The story is about Baojie Jun absorbing the essence of the sun and moon from his brush and transforming into bamboo. Later, he gained wisdom and began to cultivate Confucianism and Taoism. Now, he has attained the wisdom of a sage and entered the Tao.

"So that's how it is! No wonder the sage enlightened him to stay here!"

The academy teacher remarked with emotion.

"It's a demon?"

After listening to the story, Li Pingyun's eyes flickered as he looked at Baojiejun with a mixture of curiosity and fear.

Chen Ji was about to explain when the academy teacher just looked at him coldly.

"The garrison commander must not speak recklessly!"

"The Bamboo Master who Embraces Integrity is a bamboo bestowed upon the academy by the sage! He symbolizes the sage's requirement of students to uphold the virtues of bamboo. How can this be considered a demon?"

"..."

The governor was taken aback and didn't know how to refute it.

After a while, he decided not to argue with the academy teacher and bowed respectfully.

"I still have official business to attend to today. I will come to learn from you and Mr. Zhu another day."

Then he looked at Chen Ji.

"If Master Chen has nothing else, I'll head back now?"

Their demeanor became even more respectful.

Chen Ji was also at a loss for words, and bowed in return, telling Li Pingyun to make himself at home.

He then took his leave and returned to the pharmacy, where he took out the books again and asked Miss Bai to study them together.

"This was actually a gift from a sage?"

"Exactly."

"strangeness……"

Miss Bai frowned slightly, somewhat surprised.

How did the sage know this?

"Ok?"

Chen Ji looked at it in confusion.

Miss Bai then slowly explained.

"The Four Rivers are ancient water systems, and each of them has its own unique characteristics in the east, west, south, and north of the river system."

"Among them, the Yangtze River in the east and the Yellow River in the west are the most powerful. In terms of power and the influence of the aquatic creatures, the dragon gods of these two rivers are no different from the dragon gods of the four seas."

"However, the North and South Rivers are somewhat declining."

"However, back then, Nandu was very powerful. The water god there didn't even give face to the human emperor, which eventually angered the human emperor, who suppressed him under Turtle Mountain but didn't take his life."

"Now the Yellow River Dragon God wants to take revenge and encroach on some of the Huai River system, but he also has to be careful that person comes out to cause him trouble, so he doesn't dare to be too presumptuous."

"As for the Beidu Jishui River, I'm afraid it will lose its own water system in a few years."

"The sage gave us this book as if he knew what we were going to do and wanted us to remind him that the Yellow River Dragon God and the Four Rivers are indispensable."

"Sure?"

Chen Ji felt a headache coming on.

This saint's demands are perhaps a bit too much of an overestimation of himself.

If what Miss Bai said is true, the power of the Four Rivers Dragon Gods can be traced back to the era of the Human Emperor...

and many more!

Chen Ji suddenly thought of something.

Since the reign of King Zhou of Shang, there has been no talk of a human emperor in the mortal realm. So who exactly is this water god of the Huai River? And which human emperor has he offended?

"You do not know?"

Miss Bai was somewhat surprised, and explained to him with a smile.

"Naturally, it is Wuzhiqi, the water god of the Huai River. Of course, he prefers to be called the Water Lord, because it is not he who regards the Huai River as a god, but the Huai River that regards him as its ruler."

"As for the human emperor he offended, it was Emperor Yu, who divided the land into nine provinces to control the floods."

"boom!"

Chen Ji felt as if a thunderbolt had struck his mind.

He had only been practicing for two months.

Even if someone has some cultivation, surely they wouldn't need to use the "Records of the Four Rivers" to argue with someone from the same era as Emperor Yu about whether it's right or wrong?
Let alone whether the Yellow River Dragon God would even see him, his subordinates in the Water Palace alone would probably be enough to make him die a thousand times over.

Miss Bai saw through Chen Ji's thoughts and shook her head with a smile.

"Sir, you're overthinking it again."

"I'm just saying that the sage hopes we will handle this matter well, but that doesn't mean we should handle it ourselves."

"You mean..."

Chen Ji's eyes flickered, and he suddenly looked into the distance.

"Yes."

The young woman in white also looked towards the Hutuo River.

"The matter of the Four Rivers should be handled properly, and it should be done by the Four Rivers Dragon Gods themselves."

"Although I don't know why this little dragon lord came to the Hutuo River, since it is between the Yellow River and the Ji River system, the Northern River Dragon God must have his own arrangements."

"Why not take this opportunity to ask?"

"Alright."

Chen Ji thought for a moment and then slowly nodded.

"Since I've accepted the Sage's gift, I might as well make this trip. It just so happens that I also need to see Lord Hutuo, so this is perfect!"

(End of this chapter)