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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Twenty-Three: A Lesson for You
"I am very curious, how did you know that we would be going home for lunch without any notice?"
This question had weighed on Zhang Qiu's mind for a long time. From the moment Zhao Pingchuan mentioned it in the morning, to personally verifying it at noon, and finally having the opportunity to ask the old man that evening before going to bed.
The old man smiled lightly and said, "Everything in the world follows its own rules, and humans are no exception. Everything a person does is connected to a 'hexagram.' This hexagram represents the laws of the world, or it could also be the mysteries of the universe."
The old man continued, "You don't believe me, do you? Sometimes people just think too highly of themselves. How can humans be the masters of all things? People are merely a part of everything in this world. Everything has its own rules; this wisdom has been passed down from our ancestors, but not many understand it nowadays."
Listening to the old man's mystical words, Zhang Qiu felt somewhat deceived, realizing he had been seen through directly. Reflecting on the strange occurrences surrounding the old man, he temporarily accepted these seemingly absurd statements.
"Is there any secret regarding astrology? Does Zhuge Liang's use of Qi Men Dun Jia in 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' really exist?"
Zhang Qiu asked a series of questions. The old man smiled without answering and after a while slowly said, "In matters like this, if you understand, it exists; if you don’t understand, it doesn’t. Tomorrow, I will give you a book. This book I won’t give to Zhao Pingchuan; I will only give it to you. If you can understand it, that's great; if not, it's fine too. Everything is destined. Still, remember this: everything in time has its own rules. Ha ha, it's late now; let's rest."
After finishing his words, the old man fell silent and soon began to snore. Zhang Qiu found it increasingly difficult to sleep; listening to the silence outside felt like a tangled mess in his heart.
Zhao Pingchuan was also sleepless, lying quietly on his pillow and thinking about his grandfather's words: "This book I won’t give to Zhao Pingchuan; I will only give it to you." What kind of book could it be? And what did his grandfather mean when he called him aside?
"Zhao Pingchuan," his grandfather asked him, "which life do you aspire to: a stable life or an exciting life?"
"Grandpa, what do you mean?"
"I just want to ask how you want your future to be."
"Well, I haven't thought about it yet."
"Then remember my words: if you aspire to a stable life, go find a town in the West and settle down. If you yearn for excitement, follow your friend named Zhang Qiu; that would be correct. But ultimately, how things turn out depends on your fate."
"Grandpa, I don't understand what you mean."
"You don't need to understand, just remember."
Zhao Pingchuan repeatedly recalled his conversation with his grandfather. It was clear that his grandfather wanted to tell him something, but he didn't make it explicit. Did his grandfather notice that he was hanging out with Zhang Qiu? That wasn't surprising. But did his grandfather have any other intentions? Was there a connection between him and Brother Qiu? Zhao Pingchuan turned over in bed, tossing and turning.
The next morning, the rooster crowed incessantly outside the window as Zhang Qiu slowly opened his eyes. It was already bright outside, and a refreshing morning breeze blew in through the window, dissipating the heat of the night. Zhao Pingchuan's grandfather had long been up. By the time Zhang Qiu stepped into the yard, the old man was practicing martial arts in the center of the yard. Dressed in a coarse cloth long gown, every move he made exuded power. Having practiced martial arts since childhood, Zhang Qiu could tell that the old man had profound skills. This level of skill must have taken decades to develop.
Three girls were still asleep, so Zhang Qiu didn't disturb them. Breakfast was simple—soy milk and fried dough sticks bought from the village entrance, and he left their portion untouched. After breakfast, the old man went inside and closed the door. After a long while, he emerged holding a cloth wrap in both hands, waved at Zhang Qiu, and called out, "Child, come here."
Zhang Qiu walked over to the old man and guessed what was inside the cloth wrap based on its shape. Sure enough, as soon as he got closer, the old man handed him the cloth wrap and smiled, "Young man, this is for you. I hope it brings you good fortune."
Zhang Qiu respectfully accepted the cloth wrap with both hands and said earnestly, "Thank you, Grandpa."
The old man smiled and gestured for Zhang Qiu to open it. As Zhang Qiu carefully unfolded the layers of the cloth wrap, he finally revealed a book with a blue cover and white thread binding. The title was inscribed in four seal script characters that left Zhang Qiu momentarily stunned. Did this mean he had to learn another script just to read it? It seemed he had no connection to it after all.
Zhang Qiu casually flipped open a page and immediately felt relieved; he recognized all the characters inside. Although they were traditional Chinese characters, Zhang Qiu had seen many books from Taiwan and Hong Kong that used similar text, so it felt familiar enough. Flipping through a few more pages revealed some mind methods or similar concepts that Zhang Qiu couldn't grasp at that moment. He closed the book and thanked the old man once again.
At noon, the old man prepared a chicken using traditional methods for everyone. Before they could touch any other dishes, they had already devoured all that remained of the chicken down to its bones. After finishing their meal, Zhang Qiu and the others packed their belongings in preparation to leave. Zhao Pingchuan also returned with them since school was starting soon. The old man personally saw them off at the door.
A black modern sedan slowly came to a stop by the roadside. The driver got out and opened the car door for a young man dressed in a suit and tie despite the heat. The young man walked toward the open trunk where the driver quickly grabbed a bag of rice from inside. The young man murmured something quietly before taking the rice from the driver’s hands and setting it down on the ground to rest for a moment. The driver then pulled out two barrels of peanut oil and followed closely behind him.
Zhang Qiu watched this scene with great interest and didn't rush to wait for his ride anymore. The young man knocked on a large iron gate that was tightly shut. After about five minutes, voices could be heard from inside as an elderly lady opened the door slowly. The warm-hearted young man lifted up the bag of rice with a smile and said, "Auntie, we brought you some food."
"Oh dear, that's wonderful!" The elderly lady's face lit up with joy as her wrinkles crinkled at her eyes while she smiled at the young man and driver carrying food into her home.
Zhang Qiu looked at the license plate starting with hb·la and remarked, "See? Our Lin County civil servants really care about people; they're even delivering rice and oil to families in need."
Jiang Xue, Liu Fangfei, and Rui Rui all echoed Zhang Qiu's sentiments, unanimously agreeing with the act of caring for vulnerable groups. However, the old man casually remarked, "Her son works at the Municipal Disciplinary Committee."
Zhang Qiu was instantly speechless, feeling as uncomfortable as seeing a fly fall into food, and quickly sought a ride to leave. At Nanlan County Bus Station, Liu Fangfei waved goodbye to everyone and finally said to Zhang Qiu, "Little brother, study hard. After the college entrance exam, come to D City to visit your sister."
"Okay." Zhang Qiu replied with a smile, helping Liu Fangfei load her luggage into the bus. He turned to call out to the others, "Let's go, it's time for us to head home."
Upon returning to Beilan County, the back seat had already been taken by others. Zhang Qiu sat with Jiang Xue while Zhao Pingchuan and Liu Fangfei occupied the row behind them. They spoke little during the journey; Zhang Qiu gazed at the rapidly passing shadows of trees by the roadside, lamenting how quickly the holiday always seemed to pass.
Once they arrived in Beilan County, Rui Rui exclaimed, "Finally back!"
Zhang Qiu chuckled, "What’s up? You were looking forward to coming back so much; didn’t you have fun?"
"Of course I had fun, it’s just..." Rui Rui fixed her gaze on Zhang Qiu, "there are some regrets."
"What regrets?"
As soon as Zhang Qiu asked, he regretted it because Rui Rui's answer was that she regretted not sleeping together with him.
Just as Zhang Qiu and the others exited the station, a few people surrounded them. Rui Rui pointed at one of them in surprise and said, "You! Aren't you that thief?"
Blocking their path was Uncle Thief, whom Zhang Qiu and his friends had encountered on their way to Nanlan County. Uncle Thief was furious that his money had vanished and harbored resentment towards these meddlesome kids. He knew they would return and had been watching passengers coming out of the station after each "job." Finally, today he spotted Zhang Qiu.
Uncle Thief glared at Zhang Qiu through gritted teeth: "You kids meddled in my business on the bus; today I'll teach you a lesson. Where's that other girl? Missing one person?"
"Zhao Pingchuan, take care of your sister-in-law."
After giving this instruction, Zhang Qiu walked towards Uncle Thief. Uncle Thief sneered dismissively: "Kid, I'll give you credit for having guts. There are many people here; do you dare to change places with me?"
"Brother Qiu, don't agree!" Zhao Pingchuan stepped forward to stop him. The situation was clearly unfavorable for their side. Although Brother Qiu could fight, it was better not to take risks.
"I won't agree. We won't be able to leave today," Zhang Qiu said, looking at Uncle Thief. "I'll go with you alone; let them three leave."
"Brother Qiu, I'm going with you too."
"No way! Zhao Pingchuan, you need to take care of them."
"You all can't leave!" Uncle Thief was displeased at being ignored. "You meddled in my business, and now you'll learn a lesson. I want you to understand what excitement really means." A lewd smile appeared on Uncle Thief's face, and the others excitedly rubbed their hands together.
"My woman, no one is allowed to touch her!"
Zhang Qiu spoke each word clearly, clenching his fists as he approached Uncle Thief. Before Uncle Thief could react, Zhang Qiu kicked him in the stomach. Uncle Thief doubled over in pain, clutching his belly and squatting on the ground. The surrounding passengers heard the scream and turned their attention to the commotion, curious about the fight.
Seeing their comrade being attacked by a young kid, Uncle Thief's accomplices quickly surrounded Zhang Qiu. At that moment, the onlookers realized this was not an ordinary fight and instinctively moved away. Those who had bought tickets hurried into the station, and even the taxi drivers outside stopped calling out for passengers.
Just then, a piercing whistle shattered the tense atmosphere as two uniformed police officers rushed over. Upon seeing the police, the thieves immediately scattered in all directions.
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