Chapter 389 I Have the Key

They sat on the ground, and Song Chunxue didn't say anything rashly.

Because she knew that in the eyes of many self-disciplined people, it was unreliable to talk to a woman they didn't know.

In the past, Song Chunxue would feel inferior and sad, but now she doesn't feel that being a woman makes her inferior to others.

She wouldn't dislike these kinds of people; at least they're a hundred times better than those sleazy men who're always trying to take advantage of others.

She hoped she would be mindful of her actions and not wallow in self-pity.

After living for so many years, she finally understood that belittling oneself, feeling ashamed and guilty are the most harmful things.

It's not that women are worthless, but that they believed their suppression and belittling, and genuinely felt worthless.

I think, therefore I am.

Who you are depends on how you think.

I don't know how the teachers in the school taught, but that's what Song Chunxue thinks now.

"Mei Yang said you're studying medicine. I wonder what you should eat if you can't sleep?"

The old man ate several bites of the egg fried noodles and then casually spoke up.

Song Chunxue noticed a slight bluish tinge under his eyes. "If you find it troublesome to stew medicine, just find some walnuts, soak the septum inside in water, and drink more before bed. You'll be better in less than ten days."

The old man hummed in agreement.

Few people grow walnuts here, "I'll go to the clinic and get you some later."

"No need. Someone gave me a bag of walnuts. I haven't had a chance to eat them for over a year. I'll crack some open tonight and see what happens."

The old man's gaze fell on the sandalwood bracelet on Song Chunxue's wrist. "The key to spiritual practice is perseverance. Never give up."

Song Chunxue was flattered and said, "Okay, thank you. Are you also cultivating Taoism?"

The old man smiled and said, “There are many ways to cultivate the Tao. You don’t necessarily have to burn incense and chant scriptures, nor do you necessarily have to stay away from the world. Some people travel the world with their swords and kill countless people, but they never kill the innocent indiscriminately. They stick to their original intentions and walk to the end, and they can also achieve perfect merit.”

"I have been studying jade artifacts here day after day. As all things return to one, I have also come to understand the Dao."

Song Chunxue nodded respectfully, "I've learned a lot."

A short while later, Mei Yang came in from outside.

He sat down casually. "Uncle, tell me quickly, how much is this stone worth? Is it jade?"

"It's a medium to high-quality yellow jade. Do you want to sell it?"

The old man loved potato starch noodles, and as he spoke, he picked up a few long strands. "It's rare to come across such good material, so I'll try not to waste a single bit. I'll just wear the bracelets, jade pendants, and other jade pieces myself. Jade is good for your health."

Mei Yang looked at Song Chunxue and said, "It's Sister Song's stuff, so Sister Song can decide what to do with it."

"I have plenty of money, I can make them and give them away as gifts."

The old man smiled, picked up the wine jug, tilted his head back and took two gulps. "That's good. If you trust me, leave these two pieces of material to me. I'll decide what to do with them."

"I won't charge you for your work. Just keep two of the smaller jade pieces you make."

Mei Yang looked at Song Chunxue, who smiled and nodded, "That would be great, but you still have to pay him his wages. Uncle needs to eat and drink too..."

"Uncle is not short of money. He has saved enough in the first half of his life to squander for most of his life. It's just that the old man is stubborn and insists on staying here, being a conscientious craftsman. He never indulges in pleasure and eats very simply. He eats meat and wine at most twice a month."

As she spoke, Mei Yang sighed, "I don't know what's the point of Uncle living like this. You can't take anything with you when you die. It would be so much better to live a carefree life."

Song Chunxue understood that Mei Yang and her uncle were not the same kind of people at all.

At least not now.

"What you're doing is indulging in pleasure. When you wake up, you have nothing to show for it. Besides wasting your time and making your body age faster, you get no benefit at all."

“The real difference between people lies not in power or wealth, but in their ability to control themselves from doing certain things,” Song Chunxue said earnestly. “Uncle is cultivating in this courtyard; who knows, all the stones and plants in this courtyard might be divine treasures.”

Mei Yang waved his hand, "Alright, alright, I'm just an ordinary person, I don't understand these grand principles. Right now, I just want to earn more money, have more children, let them live a good life, watch them get married and start their own families, and enjoy the joys of family life."

“I don’t envy enlightened people like you at all. I don’t want to cultivate myself or take things lightly.”

Fueled by alcohol, Mei Yang looked up at the gradually darkening sky and murmured to herself, staring at the twinkling stars, "I ask for nothing else but peace and health, that my child may live to be a hundred years old, and that he may have a smooth and joyful life."

At this point, he sighed deeply, "I'm terrified of dying. I still haven't gotten over my father's death. I have a mental illness."

He smiled bitterly, “Now when I see my own child, I always feel that he is a fragile porcelain doll. I am afraid when I see his thin neck, and I am also afraid when I see his thin arms and legs.”

Song Chunxue and her uncle listened quietly.

I never expected him to be so open about his feelings; his previous unruly behavior was all a facade.

No wonder Yao Man once said that although Mei Yang often flirted with other people's girls, he never did anything inappropriate; he probably couldn't do that.

In retrospect, he was filled with fear.

“I never dared to tell anyone that I hesitated to get married because I was afraid that if the Mei family suffered misfortune, my wife and children would suffer with me. In recent years, I even consulted many Taoist priests to look at my family’s ancestral graves and the feng shui of my courtyard to see if there was a problem.”

He said in a hoarse voice, "But I think they just say the nice things and don't dare to tell me the truth."

“I wish I could rip my heart out for my son. I’ve hidden all the scissors and iron bars in the house. If I saw my wife take out a needle and thread in front of the child, I would yell at her until she cried. There can’t be a single pebble in the yard. When the child is awake, the stone steps are covered with old mattresses…”

He laughed heartily, looking up at the sky, "My wife scolded me for being crazy. The Taoist priest gave me a lot of talismans, but I'm still scared."

The old man spoke gently, “Don’t be afraid. Excessive worry is a burden on the child. If all else fails, learn meditation from the Taoist priest. It’s not easy to have a guilty conscience. You’re making life too difficult.”

Song Chunxue didn't know how to comfort him. She had treated her child this way in her past life, but she had forgotten how she had managed to be better later on, probably because she was too busy.

She was busy farming and digging for food in the soil, sometimes so tired she felt like she was going to die, and she didn't have time to think about anything else.

Now, she hopes her children will get married and settle down as soon as possible, and not cause her any trouble.

"When your wife gives birth to four or five more, your wallet will be almost empty, and you'll be so busy making money that you'll naturally feel better." Song Chunxue picked up the wine pot. "You and your uncle can drink slowly. I have to go home."

Mei Yang waved his hand, "Then be careful. If you run into someone who doesn't know what's good for them, watch your step. Don't actually get kicked to death."

"Don't worry, I find it too much trouble. At most, I'll beat him until he's crawling on the ground with his teeth knocked out."

Upon arriving on the street, Song Chunxue spotted several people acting suspiciously, trying to break into her family's clinic.

"There seems to be someone over there. Hurry up, you're dawdling, you can't pry me open."

"What's the rush? You can steal the herbs and smash things later, and I'll take off my pants, pee a few times, and then we'll leave. The Liu family instructed us that we absolutely cannot let anyone guess that they hired someone to do it..."

Suddenly, a voice came from above, "I have a key here, do you want it?"