Chapter 433: Buying Flowers Requires Qian Cai

"Daoist, look at this pagoda. This is Mirage County. Not far ahead, it enters the sea. Listen, you can even hear the sound of the waves!"

Lin Jue listened carefully for a moment.

It was cool at night, with faint sobbing; it was difficult to distinguish whether it was the sound of the wind blowing through the treetops or the waves crashing on the shore from very far away.

"There is a ferry crossing here. It is too late, so it is not good to go forward. I heard that the wind and waves near the sea are also very big. This old man's small boat cannot enter the sea, and I am also afraid that I cannot see clearly in the dark and cannot find the ferry crossing, so I can only send you, Daoist, here." The boatman said to him, "Many people who come to Mirage County also get off the boat here. This temple is outside Mirage County. You can't see it now, but when the sky is bright, you can see the county town at a glance along the road by the shore."

"Thank you for your hard work, boatman."

"Not hard, not hard, you didn't not pay, Daoist." The boatman said, pointing to the pagoda with lights on the shore, "Any pagoda or temple by the river can provide accommodation. Daoist, you can go to the temple to stay. If you feel that you are a Daoist and it is not very convenient, you can also make do for one night on the boat with this old man."

"There is nothing inconvenient. Just treat me as a traveler and give some incense money." Lin Jue laughed, "Having stayed on the boat for so long, I really want to go ashore."

"That is also fine!"

The boatman laughed and agreed, then said to him: "Daoist, keep in mind that although I haven't heard of any war here, the world is chaotic right now, and the world is chaotic, so people's hearts are also chaotic. Usually, keep an eye on things."

"We just came here to see the seaside scenery."

"Heh!"

The boatman laughed.

We?

Did he count that fox in too?

In this day and age, traveling thousands of *li*, from Qinzhou to Luzhou, just to see the seaside scenery?

This Daoist is truly extraordinary.

Having been on the boat for so long, he was not at all irritable or bored like those guests in the past. On weekdays, he was either sitting in meditation at the bow of the boat, quietly watching the scenery, or carving wood alone, or else talking and chatting with the white fox he brought like a person.

And that white fox would also respond to him, as if both sides could understand each other's meaning.

And that wood was also very strange.

A small piece of wood, this Daoist didn't use a carving knife, but instead held a delicate small sword, scraping it bit by bit, scraping only some wood powder off at most each time. If one were to say this sword was dull, that would be one thing, but he had happened to see it once, and this small sword clearly had the sharpness to cut iron like mud.

The boatman shook his head and said to him: "Daoist, Immortal Fox, please walk slowly, be careful getting off the boat."

"Many thanks."

"I don't deserve thanks."

The boatman watched Lin Jue get off the boat. The small boat floated left and right on the water with the movement, shaking up ripples and shattering the moonlight, with a slight sound of water, and that white fox looked back at him, also jumping lightly toward the shore against the moonlight, as if it had no weight, floating onto the shore. He hesitated for a long time, and finally could not help but speak toward that side:

"This old man has always wanted to ask, but didn't dare to ask. Now that we have arrived at the place, I really can't help the itch in my heart... Daoist, you come from Qinzhou and also bring a white fox; are you that Lin *Zhenren* rumored in the capital?"

The fox stopped and turned its head, looking at him.

The Daoist also turned his head and looked at him with a smile, saying:

"I heard that in the capital in recent years, every Daoist, and even those *jianghu* swindlers dressed as Daoists, have been keen on bringing a white fox by their side, which once made white foxes in Qinzhou hard to find at a sky-high price. What is strange about me bringing a white fox? Moreover, the Daoist practice and cultivation of the person in the boatman's mouth is not enough; where can he be called a 'Zhenren'?"

The boatman listened and said "Oh," so it wasn't him.

He only saw that Daoist bow to him and then walk ashore, and the fox also withdrew its gaze, bouncing along the small path.

The small path by the river, with deep reeds and *bamao* grass, was pitch black at night, but the Daoist wore grey-white Daoist robes, which were becoming whiter due to the years, and reflected the moonlight, which was obvious.

And that fox was even whiter, reflecting the bright moon.

The night wind blew for a few bursts, and the boat swayed for a moment. The boatman suddenly frowned, and only then did he suddenly realize.

However, on the steps of the small path by the river, under the moonlight, the man and the fox had already walked higher and higher.

The boatman shook his head and still did not go to chase.

He just lay down in the swaying small boat, facing the bright moon, blowing the river wind, without any distracting thoughts, and this old man also became an Immortal for a moment.

Monks are indeed better at doing business than Daoists.

Monks build temples in the bustling city, leaving space for people to set up stalls; they build them beside the imperial road, giving away water for free; they build them on both sides of the canal, using pagodas to guide passing ships, which is convenient for others and convenient for themselves, and they can also earn incense and accommodation money.

Daoists don't have as much business acumen.

In this day and age, it is rare that the monks and Dharma masters of this temple still retain some kindness. Seeing that Lin Jue was also a practitioner and arrived here in the middle of the night, they actually didn't charge him money, gave him quiet accommodation, and provided him with breakfast the next morning.

After eating, a monk even sent him to the door, pointing to the small path ahead and saying to him:

"Daoist, walk forward along this road, about four *li*, and you will reach Mirage County. But don't go down the mountain; going down the mountain will return you to the riverside. If you want to enter the city first, just enter the city. If you want to go to the seaside to look around first, there is a fork in the road at the city gate; just walk to the right."

"I don't know where is most suitable for looking at the sea?"

"Most suitable for looking at the sea? That depends on whether you look from far or near," the monk replied. "If you look from near, Wenbi Village is the village closest to the sea, where you can stay. Matibei Bay has the finest and softest sand, but recently there are *yaoguai* making trouble at sea, so the people of Wenbi Village have all moved away, and few people dare to go to Matibei Bay. If you look from far, E'tou Mountain is the highest and sees the widest. This little monk suggests that you, Daoist, go there. Even if the sea *yaoguai* are rampant, they cannot climb the mountain to harm you, Daoist."

"Many thanks, Dharma Master."

Lin Jue even had a feeling like the temple he encountered by the roadside when he first left Shu Village.

I don't know how that temple is now.

If there is a chance in the future, I should go back and see.

"Amitabha."

Both sides bowed to each other and parted ways.

Lin Jue summoned the paper donkey and walked forward along the mountain road.

The fox followed him with small steps: "Are we going to the seaside to find the morning glow?"

"Yes. But we still have to enter the city first, buy some food, and then buy a bottle to hold the morning glow," Lin Jue said, "Then we will go to the seaside to wait for the most magnificent morning glow."

The fox smacked its lips and didn't speak, just shaking its head and wagging its tail as it followed by his side.

Inadvertently, it stopped and looked down the mountain.

The riverside was already empty, and the boatman had left at some unknown time. Just as the monk said, after walking along this road for a while, they saw an old small city.

Perhaps because the war did not spread here, although the city was old, the gate was lively.

Lin Jue saw many merchants and peddlers coming and going, and also saw many ragged or simply shirtless men gathered at the city gate. If someone entered the city and didn't look like a poor person, they would immediately surround them to ask if they needed a guide, a house to rent, or a porter, and many peddlers carrying baskets simply surrounded people at the city gate to push their sales.

"Making a living here is also not easy..."

Although Lin Jue wore old Daoist robes, the robes had no patches and were clean without dirt. Coupled with his fair complexion, he didn't look like a poor family, so some people surrounded him.

"Daoist, do you need a guide?"

"Daoist, where are you going? Do you need a porter?"

"Do you want to take a bamboo sedan chair?"

"Do you want to buy a pancake? Freshly made pancakes."

"Don't ask for help! Made by myself! Buy one?"

!

"Do you want to drink wine? Cheaper than in the city!"

Everyone surrounded him, and he could almost not move.

Lin Jue knew that if he spent money here, he would be more likely to be entangled by other people, so he would not be able to move even more. However, seeing these people ragged and sallow, and happening to have needs himself, he was also willing to spend money on them, so he pointed to a short, thin woman carrying a basket and asked:

"How do you sell the pancakes?"

"Four *wen* each, big and fluffy, with shrimp added inside, very delicious!"

"Give me ten."

Lin Jue took out two small strings of money and handed them to her.

Then he pointed to an idler and asked him to help guide the way.

This could help him save time and effort, and not be cheated or scammed by unscrupulous merchants.

As expected, everyone saw that he had spent money, knew he had money, and even knew he was kind-hearted, so they were even more unwilling to leave, and more people surrounded him.

But Lin Jue had no more needs, so he had to bow to them and persuade them not to waste time on him.

"Go, go, go! All go! Didn't you hear what the Daoist said? There is nothing left to buy! Why don't you go and greet other noble people?"

That idler, although thin, also had some momentum and fastidiousness. After receiving Lin Jue's money, while guiding the way, he also drove away the people surrounding him.

The people around him soon became fewer.

After walking a hundred steps, only one person was left entangling Lin Jue.

This person was also sallow and thin, carrying a basket full of back-scratchers, with the elegant nickname "Don't Ask for Help."

"Daoist, you are kind-hearted! Buy a back-scratcher? It was made by my old father, very easy to use! Daoist, just treat it as seeing me pitiful, and buy one?"

"Go, go, go! Is it made by your old father? Isn't it all from the shop in the south of the city?" The idler waved his hand repeatedly to drive him away. "Do you know the rules? The Daoist has me leading the way today, why are you still entangling him? Like you, how can we do business in the future?"

"Daoist, you are kind-hearted! Just buy one! My family hasn't opened the pot for a long time!"

"..."

Lin Jue shook his head helplessly.

This thing was useless to him, but it could be used to tease the fox.

"How much money?"

"Only ten *wen*!"

Before Lin Jue could speak, the idler widened his eyes first:

"Ten *wen*!? Just a piece of bamboo, it only costs a few *wen* in the shop in the south of the city? Why don't you go rob someone?"

"Don't I have to earn some food money?"

"Daoist, don't buy it! This person sees you are kind-hearted and easy to bully! If you want to buy, I will take you to the south of the city to buy!"

"Daoist!"

The peddler saw that Lin Jue really had no intention of buying, widened his eyes, and simply stuffed the back-scratcher into Lin Jue's arms, with a rogue look: "Daoist, you have already bought it. Since you bought it, you have to pay! There is no reason in the world to buy things without paying!"

"Where did I buy it?"

"It's in your hands, Daoist, how did you not buy it?"

"..."

Lin Jue actually understood the boatman's reminder last night.

However, he didn't care, just smiled, lowered his head, took out ten *wen* from his bosom, and handed them to this peddler.

The peddler received the money and was overjoyed, wanting to leave.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, he heard the Daoist in front of him call him to stop and ask him: "Then you bought my flowers, why didn't you pay?"

"Nonsense! Where did I buy your flowers?"

The peddler said so, but found that the idler beside the Daoist had already opened his eyes wide in surprise.

The peddler had a bad premonition in his heart.

"Look behind you."

"This..."

The peddler looked back and discovered that the bamboo back-scratchers in the basket behind him had actually all bloomed into flowers, colorful and bright, very beautiful, but it scared him quite a bit.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 434 =====