The more you believe me, the more real it becomes.

Chapter 52 Shrinking the Earth to an Inch, Blessing Oneself

Du Yuan left the group from the temple and walked slowly through the mountains and fields.

Upon reaching a certain point, without needing further explanation, Du Yuan naturally understood and turned back to bow towards the temple, saying:
"The mountains are high and the roads are long, so I'll take my leave now. If I have a little free time in the future, I will definitely come back to visit!"

'Well, this is all I can do for you. After all, I'm not like you, trapped in a cage.'

Du Yuan bowed her head again and gave a deep bow:
"Farewell."

The mountain wind suddenly stopped, and all was silent, except for his clear voice echoing in the forest.

A moment later, a mountain breeze blew gently, and the trees swayed.

Please remember, no matter what, I'll always reserve a place for you in my humble abode.

Du Yuan bowed her head, smiled softly, and thanked him. Then she stood up and turned around, not lingering any longer.

Only the gentle breeze crosses the boundary, continuing to send guests to the host.

However, the moment one steps out of this blurred boundary, the world seems to quietly transform.

Du Yuan discovered that as long as she slightly moved her mind and thought "walk faster," her feet would naturally and extremely lightly take a step forward.

After taking this step, it wasn't that he crossed a great distance, but rather that the mountains and forests in front of him suddenly shrank, as if an invisible hand had rolled up a scroll, instantly reducing the distance of several dozen feet to his feet.

Once her feet had landed, Du Yuan turned around in surprise, only to find that the spot where she had just stood was now more than ten feet behind her.

This startled him for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. Then, a knowing smile spread across his lips; he had realized the reason—it was the supernatural power brought by that small seal.

It's said that this person possesses the ability to store objects, shrink the earth, and perhaps even other supernatural powers hidden within their reserved and gentle demeanor.

This person gave him a very generous gift!

There was no need to turn around and bow in gratitude; the profound kindness and tacit understanding were already clear in their hearts.

Du Yuan chuckled softly, with a touch of youthful carefree curiosity. He took out the warm, smooth seal from his pocket, casually raised it to his shoulder, and waved it lightly towards the temple behind him, as if bidding farewell to an old friend.

Finally, he laughed and left.
-
Along the official road, a teahouse stood by the roadside, even though we were already very close to Qingzhou.

But as the saying goes, "The last leg of a journey is the hardest." On this final stretch, even more people want to rest and have a cup of tea!
Shop owners who recognized this advantage naturally saw their businesses thrive.

For example, right now, business is so good that the shopkeeper has to personally serve tea to the many customers.

Two workers alone simply can't handle the workload.

"Thank you, shopkeeper. Here, this is for the tea."

Small shops and humble establishments do not offer credit, so when tea is served and fruit is laid out, customers will pay on their own initiative.

"Please enjoy your tea. A second bowl is free!"

New customers invariably bowed and expressed their gratitude, while regular customers greeted them with warm smiles.

In the past, tea stalls always charged half price for refills of tea.

Whether the shop owner is using this to attract customers or simply to build good karma, it's a good thing that everyone is happy to see.

The shopkeeper, after weighing the teapot in his hand and realizing there should still be enough for one bowl, instinctively looked back the way he had come.

There weren't many customers around, so it seems we can go back and fill up the tank.

Just as I turned around, a voice came from behind me:
"Shopkeeper, do you still have tea?"

"Yes, yes. There's just enough for one bowl. But there's not much room left, is that alright?"

The shopkeeper turned around without thinking much of it and saw a young monk. He must be a monk, right?

Thinking of this, the shopkeeper couldn't help but take another look at the other person's short hair.

"I can just drink a bowl while standing up."

"Okay, these are freshly picked Mao Feng tea leaves from this morning, I guarantee they'll be fresh, crisp, and sweet!"

"Thank you."

The guest took the teacup, filled it to the brim, and then tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

"Indeed excellent tea." Seeing the customer praise his carefully brewed tea, the shopkeeper smiled and asked:
"It's free for guests to have another bowl, so how about I wait for you to go back and get you a new pot?"

The guest waved his hand and laughed:
"No need, no need, one bowl is enough for me. But you are so kind-hearted, I'm sure you'll be blessed with good fortune in the future!"

The shopkeeper shook his head and smiled:

"You flatter me. It's half out of kindness and half out of business."

"Ah, this is indeed a rare sight. Here, take the money, I should take my leave now."

No need to ask the price; a sign next to the tea stall says it costs two coins a bowl.

The shopkeeper accepted the teacup and coins with a smile, only to find that the departing customer was not from Qingzhou, but was heading to Qingzhou.

This puzzled the shop owner. Wait a minute, wasn't there no one in that direction just now?

Am I really that old and blind just because I'm only in my early fifties?
With a wry smile, the shopkeeper carried the teacup to the back room to wash it and prepare it for later use. Subconsciously, he touched the rim of the bowl with his fingers, but then felt that something was wrong.

Confused, I looked down, but couldn't find the problem.

After staring at it for a moment, he was suddenly startled and ran his fingers along the bowl.

Dry?!
Once it hits rock bottom, it's still the same as when it was first taken out.

'What, what, what is this?!'

The shopkeeper, in a state of panic, hurriedly shook the teapot; it was empty, indicating that he had indeed poured out the last bowl of tea.

So what is this?
The shopkeeper turned around in a panic to look at the customer who had just left.

But in the short time it took to bend down, the guest had already walked more than ten feet away!

After the shopkeeper rubbed his eyes in disbelief, he looked again and was even more astonished to find that the customer had already walked dozens of feet away, if not for his conspicuous features such as short hair and light-colored clothes.

That figure, almost a tiny dot, was so small that even the shopkeeper probably wouldn't recognize it.

In this unprecedented and utterly astonished state, the shopkeeper first felt a chill run down his spine, but then he realized that the other person had been gentle and refined, spoke kindly, and acted magnanimously in broad daylight.

He then looked down at the many guests beside him who seemed completely unaware.

After a quick glance, he asked the guest next to him:
"Sir, did you just see a guest standing and drinking tea?"

"I saw him. His hair was quite short. I wonder if he's a monk who's left the monastic life or if he's out begging for alms. Wow, he walked so fast!"

The guest wanted to turn around and look at the person again, but he couldn't see the person anywhere.

But I didn't find it strange, I just chuckled and said, "That was pretty fast."

But when the shopkeeper saw this scene, he felt reassured.

"By the way, shopkeeper, why are you asking this?"

"It's nothing, nothing, I was just asking casually. By the way, everyone, we have a happy occasion to celebrate at our shop today, so the tea is free. Please enjoy it with us!"

"Okay, thank you so much!"

Everyone was overjoyed, and the shopkeeper, equally delighted, ran into the inner room.

After looking around, he hurriedly placed the teacup that the Living Buddha had drunk from in the most conspicuous and highest place in the inner room.

The shopkeeper glanced at the displayed teacup with a sense of satisfaction, but still felt it wasn't enough.

He slapped his forehead again and pulled out the two copper coins that the Living Buddha had handed him.

After carefully wiping it clean, he moved a stool over, stepped on it, and placed the two copper coins on the eaves.

Only after doing all this did the shopkeeper stand there contentedly admiring the scene.

However, he quickly took down the signboard outside the shop.

It was changed to: One bowl costs two coins, two bowls are free, and three bowls are half price for customers.

(End of this chapter)