Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

"Grandpa Zhuang and Grandma Wan?"

The girl's title puzzled Zhuang Sheng. He didn't remember having any familiar descendants, nor did he believe that Wan Shu would choose to leave offspring after his death.

Even if Wan Shu adopted a child, hundreds of years have passed, and they would have long since become inscriptions on a plaque. They shouldn't be remembered by such a young child.

Looking at the bewildered young man, the girl's mother seemed unsurprised. She smiled at Zhuang Sheng and asked softly.

"Young master, you're not from Changzhou Prefecture, are you?"

Zhuang Sheng nodded slightly. Although he had lived in Changzhou Prefecture for a long time, the last time he came to Changzhou Prefecture was several hundred years ago. So it wouldn't be a problem to say that he wasn't a local of Changzhou Prefecture.

Perhaps because of Zhuang Sheng's youthful appearance, the girl's mother was very kind and told Zhuang Sheng in detail about the ginkgo tree, the Great Harmony Road, and the story of Zhuang Sheng and Wan Shu.

"A long, long time ago, a schoolteacher and his wife came to Changzhou City."

The teacher's surname was Zhuang, and people at the time called him Master Zhuang. His wife's surname was Wan, and she was virtuous and gentle, and was known as Master Wan.

The two masters established an academy in Changzhou City, teaching people knowledge, principles, and how to fight for their rights, and wrote a chapter called "The Book of Great Harmony"...

Zhuang Sheng listened attentively, while the girl's mother spoke enthusiastically, recounting the story that had been passed down from generation to generation.

"Young master, you may not have heard the story of Master Zhuang and Master Wan, but you must have heard of the name of Datong Academy."

In our Great Spirit Empire, the Great Harmony Academy, along with the Five Spirits Academy and the Formless Academy, is one of the three great academies of the empire, and has cultivated countless outstanding talents for the empire over the years.

From south to north, and from west to east, every major city has a branch of the Datong Academy.

The Changzhou Prefecture beneath our feet is the birthplace of the Datong Dao and one of the few autonomous prefectures within the empire. Throughout history, the governors of the prefecture have all been students of the Datong Dao.

Hundreds of years ago, Master Zhuang and Master Wan founded the Way of Great Harmony here, spreading the idea of ​​universal harmony and bringing about earth-shaking changes to Changzhou Prefecture…

As they were talking, the girl's mother raised her hand, gesturing for Zhuang Sheng to look at the tall ginkgo tree at the end of their line of sight.

"Young man, the ginkgo tree you see now was planted by Master Zhuang and Master Wan together back then, and it has a history of five hundred years."

Following Master Wan's last will, after Master Wan's passing, the ancestors of Datongdao buried the two masters together under the ginkgo tree.

Furthermore, because the two teachers were close to the people and advocated the ideal of universal harmony, Su Xiaoyu, a student of Master Wan, overcame all objections and made the decision to open the Datong Academy.

Although there were many twists and turns later, and Datong Academy was closed for a time, the descendants of the Su family have always protected the academy, allowing this sacred academy to be spared from the ravages of war.

After Changzhou Prefecture regained peace, the descendants of the Su family immediately repaired the academy, allowing it to reopen to the world for visitors.

For centuries afterward, the site of Datong Academy became the most famous place in Changzhou City. Scholars passing through Changzhou would visit the site to pay their respects at the tombs of the two masters, learn about their deeds, and understand the ideals of the Datong Way.

The girl's mother gently rubbed her daughter's cheeks, her eyes filled with affection, and her voice grew softer.

"Every child who grew up in Changzhou Prefecture has heard the stories of Master Zhuang and Master Wan. In the stories we tell children, we refer to the two masters as Grandpa Zhuang and Grandma Wan."

Over time, Grandpa Zhuang and Grandma Wan became symbols of protection for children in folk legends.

Initially, it was just a wild temple in the mountains, popular only in rural areas and small towns, and not many people believed in it.

But as time went by, the people of Changzhou Prefecture gradually learned about the story of the two masters, and temples were erected in the city.

Centuries have passed, and the beliefs of the two Confucian masters have long been integrated into our daily lives.

Every day, people go to the temple in the city to pray to the two masters, asking them to protect their children and ensure their safety and healthy growth.

Oh, I see...

Listening to such stories, looking at the innocent little girl, and seeing the happy family, Zhuang Sheng smiled especially brightly.

The gloom in my heart vanished at that moment, replaced by a faint sense of satisfaction.

He and Wanshu worked hard their whole lives, wasn't this the happy scene they were looking forward to?

As for the misplaced identity, the flawed story, and the twists and turns in between...

Everything else seems insignificant in comparison to this happiness.

……

Having spent more than ten years in the Yin Yin Domain and witnessed countless filthy things, Zhuang Sheng originally thought that the Great Harmony Path had gone astray.

The ideals and beliefs of the past have been abandoned, replaced by a tool serving the imperial power and the court.

If this continues for too long, the Great Harmony Path will become like other forces, only knowing how to fight for power and profit, and will no longer speak up for the people or fight for the interests of all people under heaven.

Now it seems that this is not the case.

At least within Changzhou City, the Datong Dao still retains a trace of its original purity.

Even a small amount is still precious.

……

A 50-meter-tall ginkgo tree sits in the center of the courtyard. Because it is summer, it is not a golden yellow, but instead a lush green that blocks out the sky.

The ancient tree in the courtyard has a circumference of nearly twenty meters, which is too large for more than ten people to encircle.

A warm breeze blows, the leaves rustle, and countless green leaves sway in the wind, casting dappled shadows.

In front of the ancient tree, shrouded in shadow, is a circular mound no more than two meters in diameter, and directly in front of the mound is a faded tombstone.

In the very center of the tombstone are engraved several large, somewhat blurry characters.

The Tomb of Zhuangzi and Wanshu

Not far away, there is also information about the two people's deeds.

Standing under the tree, in front of the tombstone, in the interlacing shadows, Zhuang Sheng felt somewhat dazed.

Memory and reality become confused at this moment, death and rebirth intersect, and scenes from the past flash through Zhuang Sheng's mind one after another.

"Sir, can ginkgo trees really outlive us?"

"Sir, I've made up my mind. I want to name this ginkgo tree."

"Little Silver! Yes, let's call it Little Silver!"

"From today onwards, Xiao Yin is our family. We will take good care of it and help it grow strong, taller and bigger."

……

"The master always said that the Great Harmony and Prosperity would eventually come, but in this vast world, there are only selfish and self-serving people; in the highest heavens, there are only indifferent gods; and all living beings have their eyes blinded..."

"We cannot win the hearts of ordinary people, nor can we win against the schemers in the imperial court, much less those gods high in the heavens... We are so weak, we can't win anything, so how can a prosperous and harmonious world possibly appear?"

"As long as people's hearts are still greedy, and as long as the gods regard all living beings as ants, the utopian world you described to me will never come to pass."

"Sir, Wanshu thinks you are really wrong. Even if we travel all over the world and do good deeds all our lives, there is absolutely no possibility of a prosperous and harmonious world appearing."

"Rather than lofty ideals, what you should be doing now is to take a good look at the world and see the reality before you."

"If we have only kindness and goodness but lack the determination to take responsibility for evil and sweep away darkness, we will never be able to realize our dreams."

……