Chapter 206: Old Man

"Not bad."

Li Tongya answered in a low voice. The old man immediately looked happy, his bamboo pole tapped lightly, and he approached the small island.

The old man wore a wet coir raincoat, full of morning dew. His face was well-proportioned, his white beard hung down, and his eyes under the bamboo hat were bright and powerful. Seeing Li Tongya board the small boat, he laughed, the smooth oar pole propped up, and it drifted lightly toward the river bank, opening his mouth to say:

"This little one has been rowing a boat here for more than ten years. Master, don't worry. Once out of the lake, follow this Big Fish Creek south, and Li Chuan Kou will be in sight!"

Li Tongya probed with his spiritual sense and knew that the person in front of him was just a mortal. He stood at the stern of the boat watching the lake scenery. The old man couldn't hold back. He raised his hands high, propped hard, and the small boat sailed steadily and quickly. The old man looked at Li Tongya's expression and said with a smile:

"Master's face is upright, his bearing is majestic, at first glance he is a great kind person!"

"Kind person?"

Li Tongya paused and almost laughed out loud. For a moment, he became interested, touched the sword at his waist, and said softly:

"It is the boatman who sees wrong. My family are all born evil seeds, not good people."

Although he had been in seclusion for many years, he had killed quite a few people since he began cultivating, and the number of people he indirectly caused to die was countless. How could he be considered a kind person?

The old man was stunned. He didn't expect Li Tongya to answer like this. He laughed hoarsely, propped the boat and shouted:

"The guest is joking!"

"Hmm."

Li Tongya withdrew his gaze, always feeling that the face was somewhat familiar, and asked:

"I see the boatman's face is kind... have you and I met before?"

The old man put down the boat prop, sized Li Tongya up and down, turned his head to prop the boat again, and smiled:

"Perhaps I have seen the master once. This little one was also born in a great family, not worrying about food and clothing. When I was young, I wandered along the Ancient Li Road and saw many figures."

"Great family?"

Li Tongya narrowed his eyes slightly. His expression didn't change, but suddenly he had an indescribable feeling. The originally majestic and steady temperament faded away, making people feel trembling in their hearts.

Fortunately, the old man was wearing a bamboo hat and propping the boat, and did not turn back to look. He still laughed:

"This little one's surname is Lu, a clansman of the Lu family in the west. Later, the Lu family ancestor passed away, and the incense in the immortal sect was broken... so it was divided by the An and Li families. This little one had to change his surname to Liu and beg for a meal himself."

"So that's how it is."

Li Tongya answered and said in a low voice:

"Sigh!"

The old man shook his head, propped the boat and smiled:

"Master... there are three hardships in this world: rowing a boat, blacksmithing, and grinding tofu. It's also tiring!"

He raised his head and took a sip, exhaled comfortably, and continued:

"Every business in this world is bitter. Everyone has their own pain. It's good to know this truth."

He narrowed his eyes nostalgically, and said somewhat floatingly:

"This little one, when I was young, had great ambitions and was a wanderer. In middle age, I returned home to enjoy happiness, leading yellow dogs and embracing beautiful concubines, being a father. When I was old, the clan was destroyed overnight, and I knelt down to be a grandson. This is the most wonderful thing about world affairs!"

"Master, don't look at those immortals being free, they also have painful things. Have you heard that the sons of the immortal clan went away some time ago? Sigh..."

Li Tongya remained silent for a while, looked at the old man's appearance, and said in a low voice:

"The Li family is also not a good thing... have you ever hated them?"

"Hate?"

The old man was stunned, put down the boat prop, picked up the fire stove, revealed the charcoal fire below, and showed the rice wine to Li Tongya, answering:

The old man picked up the boat prop again, stirred up a series of water splashes, pointed to the East Shanyue in the west, and shouted:

"Cruel monarch, killing people like hemp, using the power of the entire Shanyue clan to supply his own luxury!"

The withered and thin fingers full of wrinkles pointed to the Li Xia County area again, and the old man said:

"The whole clan was destroyed, the whole county was wiped out, the immortal clan remained silent and watched from the sidelines!"

Finally pointing to the direction of the Yu family's Milin County, his voice and color were severe, and he shouted:

"The common people were displaced, exchanging children to eat. The great families drank wine and threw pots, singing happily. The lower people cried. The butcher hung out dog heads, but human meat was placed below. The price of human meat this year is getting cheaper. Last year it was three coins a catty, now it's only two coins..."

The old man shed two lines of tears and said in a low voice:

"Seeing such suffering of the people, this little one can still drink wine and burn charcoal. The old clan being disbanded is just removing a harm. Where is there any hate?"

Li Tongya was greatly moved. He sat down beside him. The two let the small boat drift. The old man drank wine again, his cheeks full of tears, and said in a deep voice:

"Master said the Li family is also not a good thing, but it has to be divided into good and evil. This little one doesn't have many years to live, so I will say a few words that will lead to beheading!"

He picked up the boat prop, his beard and hair all stretched out, and dew drops rolled down one by one. The old man gritted his teeth and said:

"The demonic paths, immortals, sects, great families, powerful nobles, and even the common people in the world, count them one by one. If you judge good and evil by morality, all of them can be killed!"

A sentence from a mortal's mouth made Li Tongya feel a slight chill. The birds, beasts, and insects on the river all disappeared. The old man sighed in a low voice and continued:

"But this little one has seen so many things and looked at so many people. I have long since not regarded despicable and sinister as evil, and not regarded upright people as good. In this lawless world, the despicable live, and the upright die. If you really want to judge good and evil, just look at one thing."

"What thing?"

Li Tongya asked in a low voice. The old man drank wine and answered:

"If the common people under his rule are happy and their cheeks are round, it is good. If the people under his rule are displaced and exchange children to eat, it is evil."

As the voice fell, Li Tongya pondered. The two sat opposite each other. The old man sat blankly for more than ten breaths, then picked up the boat prop again, wiped away his tears, and smiled:

"This little one has lost his composure."

"I have been taught."

Li Tongya bowed solemnly, and a kind of calmness rose in his heart. He said in a low voice:

"Before my father passed away, he insisted on establishing a clan head. The old man thought deeply. My family has benefited for generations and has infinite benefits."

The old man heard it confusedly, turned his body to look, but saw the stern of the boat was empty, and the water was flowing calmly on the river surface. Where was the shadow of the guest? It made his heart feel empty. When he looked back at the small table, a small piece of bright silver was reflecting light slightly.

The wind was urgent on the river, and the silver shone with dazzling light. The old man drank the remaining wine, sat down slowly, and broke into a cold sweat.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 207 =====