Chapter 160: Subduing the Monkey of the Mind, Severing the Thief of Consciousness

Waiting for the Niu Dafu family to leave, Xiaopangdun was still sleeping; the longer he slept, the better his complexion became, so Xu Jia concluded that he had succeeded on the first try.

Although long sleep can damage the spirit, that is only if one does not grasp the essentials of nourishing life; in Xiaopangdun's case, he should be allowed to sleep as long as he can. In his dreams, the Qi of the universe moves, and without dreams, the spirit does not leak. It is estimated that this fat can be consumed through his breathing, and he might just succeed in losing weight.

"Is he practicing?"

Standing by the bedside, a group of people gathered, and Niu Dafu asked.

"That's right, this is called the Turtle Breath Hibernation Technique, a method that allows one to practice while sleeping. In Buddhism, there is a Sleeping Arhat, but his focus is mainly on dreams; mine is pure sleep without dreams."

"This technique is good. Reaching middle age, one is always plagued by insomnia. Can I learn it?" Niu Dafu still could not escape the law of True Fragrance.

"You can, but if you cannot wake up in time and your vital energy is insufficient, you might easily sleep yourself to death. At first, you might sleep for three to five hours, but later you could sleep for a whole day, or even three days and three nights; ten days or half a month is also possible."

Upon hearing this, Niu Dafu felt even more comfortable: "This is a truly good technique. It is much more believable than the talk of returning to youth or lightness and immortality you mentioned before. Sleeping well leads to a good complexion and a long life; this I believe."

Xu Jia laughed and said, "Then Uncle, go back. Once Hui Zhuo wakes up, I will have him go back to pass the technique on to you. If you cannot learn it, I will send a Turtle Immortal to teach you the essentials."

Father Xu asked, "Can I not learn it?"

"You can, of course you can," Xu Jia said. "But haven't I already taught you the Six Qi Exchange Technique? Just practicing it with the morning sun every day is enough for maintenance. This Hibernation Technique has some entry requirements. Just practice as you are for now, and I will teach you two elders new things later."

Hearing this, Niu Dafu was a bit unhappy: "Virtuous Nephew, what you teach your parents is surely better. I don't want to learn this anymore; I want to learn that!"

Xu Jia laughed: "There is no good or bad in techniques, only what suits the person. I teach according to one's aptitude. If Uncle wants both, I fear you will not succeed in either."

"Then that must be because my fortune is insufficient." Niu Dafu immediately asked Father Xu and Xu Mu about the method. It was just a simple breathing technique, very straightforward, and he began to mutter: "Is this useful?"

"Naturally, it is useful." Father Xu could not bear his questioning: "I have practiced for a few days, and every day my spirit is full and my mind is clear. Even when writing essays, I have flashes of inspiration. How could it not be useful?"

Xu Mu also said, "After learning this, my eyes don't blur when I sew shoe soles, and there are no double images."

"Is it really that magical?"

"It is just that magical."

Xu Jia laughed: "How it feels, you will only know after practicing. Other things aside, this is definitely not a problem. Perhaps after practicing for ten days or half a month, your sleep will naturally improve. The five viscera also govern the emotions and the Soul; once nourished, one naturally has no worries."

"Good, then I will go back and practice!" Niu Dafu thought that practicing wouldn't hurt, and he left the Xu household.

Father Xu and Xu Mu were already counting what to pack.

Money was first, clothing second; they also had to bring an umbrella and some homemade sauce to avoid not being used to the food outside. Xu Mu also sewed a "Fright-Suppressing Bag," using incense ash from the Buddha hall, copper coins, beans, and rice... fearing that Father Xu might encounter evil things while traveling by water, along with other small, miscellaneous items.

Father Xu didn't feel much about these, only instructing Xu Jia: "After I leave, your mother will be the head of the household. But she has always been devoted to Buddha and is compassionate; I fear she won't be able to keep these maids and servants in line, nor the tenants on the farm. We have now taken in Xiao Hong as a goddaughter, but she hasn't grown up yet."

"You must take responsibility and help your mother more. It is not easy for her to manage the family business. Don't always run here and there, disappearing for days at a time. These days she has been worried sick, and I fear it will be even worse after I leave."

"Another thing, when you are at home, your mother is willing to eat more. When you are not home, she just makes do with simple meals, which is bad for her health. Even if she has taken some pills, they cannot replace meals."

Father Xu rambled on; it was truly the way of someone going on a long journey.

"There is no longer much need for me to go out and do things. Not to mention the area around Yushan, at least in Qingtian Zhen, I no longer have any worries in the rear," Xu Jia said. "These days, I will focus on cultivating at home and preparing for the County Examination."

"Hearing you say that, I am much more at ease." Father Xu pondered for a while and said, "It's not that I won't let you manage the house, it's just that you don't have any money on you now, and I'm afraid you'll squander it all."

Xu Jia laughed upon hearing this: "That is nothing to fear. I don't need money right now, and as for the matter of hands, it doesn't count for much."

"When I open the Altar tomorrow, I will draw some Talismans—for protection, for warding off evil, and for aiding Literary Luck. Father, just carry these with you. Don't let them touch water, and they will last for a year. But within a year, you will have long since returned."

"Haha. With these Talismans of yours to protect my body, I will eat well and sleep well on this journey." He then secretly added: "Those two little ghosts of yours, can I summon them to do things for me while I'm away?"

Xu Jia laughed: "Father, don't worry about that. Those two little ghosts have already been bribed by Mother; they call her 'Grandmother,' so you won't be able to order them around."

"Then is there nothing else? Something useful and easy to handle?"

"Nothing left. Shanju Guan knows how to make Thunder God Seeds, but the ones left by the Ancestor have already been used up. The ones I make myself don't have such good safety; I might not blow up the villains or evil spirits, but blow myself up first."

"Then forget it," Father Xu said. "Don't tell your mother; I was just asking."

"Father, rest assured. Although those two little ghosts usually slack off, they will step up when there is trouble. I have already enhanced their strength according to secret methods. If there are truly water bandits, they can save your life. Besides, it's only a two-day journey and you aren't going through Poyang Lake, so there isn't that much danger. I have calculated a travel divination for you, and it is a lucky one. As for this time taking the exam for the Provincial Graduate, I have also calculated it, so Father, just be at ease."

"This can be calculated too? What rank? Can you tell me in advance?"

Xu Jia smiled: "Heavenly secrets must not be leaked. By the way, Father, didn't you say you wanted to use that essay 'On the Horse' to become famous in one stroke? Do you want to copy a few more essays to keep in reserve?"

"Sigh, this one is enough. To copy more would be shameless," Father Xu said. "Perhaps I am in the Small Nine Continents now and don't know the situation, but if one day the Great Nine Continents connects, wouldn't that Han Yu, Master Han, curse me to death?"

Xu Jia laughed: "Good integrity!"

"However, that 'Ode to the Lotus' you sent for the salamander the other day was quite good. Was that also written by someone from the Great Nine Continents?" Father Xu asked, stroking his beard.

"Haha!" Xu Jia laughed loudly: "What's this? You've taken a liking to this one too? You have a sharp eye!"

"It's just that the line 'Tao Yuanming of the Jin Dynasty loved only the chrysanthemum; since the Li Tang Dynasty, the world has loved the peony' needs to be changed. This is a figure from your Great Nine Continents..."

Xu Jia laughed: "Change it, change it. Father, I fear you won't be able to cultivate this Way of the Virtuous."

"How can a scholar's affairs be called copying?"

But this did give Father Xu a warning: "Not a single one can be copied!"

"Why not copy anymore?"

Father Xu said: "I suddenly realized how this is any different from taking money. You were stripped of your wealth by the Wealth God; if I were to copy, wouldn't I be overturned by the Wenchang Emperor?"

"Your mother is right. How can one deceive one's own heart just because one thinks others don't know? Even if one deceives the heart, can one deceive the Ghost Gods?"

Xu Jia was surprised to hear this: "Eh? This is an attitude! Father has become the master of his heart again. This is subduing the Monkey of the Mind! You must know that the Monkey of the Mind is accustomed to laziness and theft, always looking for the easy way out."

"Haha, your way of putting it is quite interesting. Are you pointing at me?"

Father Xu said: "Fame for a moment, whether fragrant or foul; favor or humiliation for a moment, whether fear or dread—I must learn to let go."

"Then don't copy," Xu Jia said. "Father, your ambitions are great; there may not be a chance in the future where you won't surpass those two."

"Haha, I like hearing you say that," Father Xu said. "Actually, if I ponder it more, or perhaps gain a flash of inspiration, I don't have to write a masterpiece for the ages. As long as the principles and the essay can enter people's hearts, that is top-tier."

Father Xu was also a conflicted and twisted person; one moment his mind was thinking about copying to become famous and enjoying the pleasure of the moment—since others wouldn't know anyway—and the next moment he thought of how a great man has things he does and things he doesn't do, and how a gentleman does not deceive his heart in a dark room...

Yet Xu Jia wouldn't help him make a choice. If you want to copy, I'll give you copies; if you don't want to copy, I support your idea, which made him even more conflicted.

Moreover, those essays were like beauties, like gold, making one unable to resist wanting to claim them as one's own.

There were even murder cases in ancient times caused by a single poem.

Once fame is obtained, beauties and gold follow.

How could it not make him feel distressed?

Therefore, it is now clearly stated: no more copying. Aside from Xu Jia teasing that this sagehood would likely be impossible to achieve, he also had his own inner conscience.

Within the Heart-Mind Philosophy of Wang Yangming, there is "Extending Innate Knowledge." This innate knowledge does not mean merely having a clear conscience, but rather, on the foundation of "Zhixing Heiyi" (Unity of Knowledge and Action), it is the acceptance of the result—whether it succeeded or failed, I have done my best, without self-depletion or entanglement.

It is to advance or retreat with ease, to remain unperturbed by favor or humiliation, and only by practicing what one knows and what one does can one live up to what one has learned.

When successful, one establishes the heart for Heaven and Earth, establishes destiny for the people, continues the lost teachings of past sages, and creates peace for ten thousand generations; when unsuccessful, one cultivates one's own character and nature, for aside from life and death, there are no great matters, and even regarding life and death, can they truly be called great?

Of course, Father Xu still cannot reach the realm of Wang Yangming; he has neither reached the peak nor fallen to the bottom, nor has he been in critical condition to trigger reflections on his heart, the universe, or society.

But the education in classics and history he received still allowed him to steady his "heart-monkey."

At the moment of departure, he made a decision from his true heart.

"Much more relaxed!" Father Xu let out a long sigh: "Stop using these eternal essays to confuse me; I cannot bear it. Let it be, I want to have a good rest now."

Xu Jia suddenly said: "Father, you are also my teacher."

"If a son is not taught, it is the father's fault; how could I not be your teacher! You're just making unnecessary trouble!"

(End of this chapter)