Chapter 105 Contemplation But she heard the sound of countless seeds breaking through the soil…

After passing on her knowledge, Wan Qianzhong discovered several individuals with a talent for reading among the Tongqianyan people. Initially, she thought they were very expressive, and she secretly observed them, intending to have them become the next generation of teachers, so that they could continue to pass on the knowledge they had learned to other people in Bailongtan who had not inherited the Tongqianyan tradition.

One begets two, two begets three, and so on. In this way, Wan Qianzhong can lead these people, starting from Bailongtan, to spread the copper coin eye to all parts of the country.

Sitting in the secret chamber, thousands of people, using copper coins as a guide, monitored the movements of all the believers with copper coin eyes.

Recently, that group of enlightened coin-eyed believers have been gathering together, and I have many suspicions that they are plotting a rebellion in secret. So I have taken the time to monitor their meetings.

But the result was completely unexpected. The group of people gathered together not to cooperate in a rebellion, but to discuss and debate, debating heaven, earth, society, and people's hearts.

Unbeknownst to Wan Qianzhong, he had listened to the entire debate. In a daze, he felt as if he had returned to Kunlun, where he had lived as a child. However, this debate was even more childish. Many times, they were just arguing for the sake of arguing, without wanting to win or lose or for any result. They just wanted to express their views freely, using what they had learned in the past and drawing on their life experiences.

The debaters included men, women, young and old, but regardless of who was speaking, they listened attentively, identified problems in their viewpoints, asked questions, and refined their own arguments through this exchange. In Wan Qianzhong's view, each of them was constantly constructing their own unique path. Before this, Wan Qianzhong had never imagined they possessed such abilities.

Perhaps it was the classroom that gave them the desire to express themselves. In the past, they had many opinions about the world, but they were always worried about saying the wrong thing and being ridiculed. Learning gave them the courage to feel that they also had the right to express their views. Above knowledge, there is no distinction between high and low, noble and base.

Listening intently, she gleaned many interesting ideas from their perspectives. She suddenly realized that while she had brought them together through the "coin eye," making it their starting point, it might not necessarily be their end. Perhaps one day they would develop their own unique paths and leave the coin eye behind, just as she had resolutely left Kunlun years ago.

Although Wan Qianzhong created the Copper Coin Eye, this method carried too much of her resentment and contempt. She believed in the Copper Coin Eye, but despised it, and at the same time scorned herself for ultimately becoming part of it. She also felt that these believers she had taken into the Copper Coin Eye were essentially no different, all puppets controlled by greed.

But now it seems that the past thousands of layers were also blinded by prejudice, unable to see the true heart of those who are greedy for money.

Through the illusion, Wan Qianchong watched their animated expressions as they pondered, and sensed something different.

Shen Cangyu told Wan Qianzhong that she wanted to merge the Five Evils and also merge all the Daoist arts in the world. Wan Qianzhong thought, how could that be possible? Since ancient times, good and evil have been clearly separated.

But what is right and what is wrong? Wan Qianzhong knew very well before that what promotes good intentions in people and benefits all living beings is right, while what uses people's evil desires to seek personal gain is wrong.

But ambition and aspiration are separated by a single thought. Wan Qianzhong is greedy for money, but she is wholeheartedly good. She wants world peace, she wants to overthrow injustice, she wants more people to live better lives, and she wants more laws and principles to exist equally and prosperously in this world. Why can't she be "good"?

If the process is wrong but the result is right, does that count as wrong?

Wan Qianzhong realized that after they imparted their knowledge to the copper-eyed believers, it seemed to give them courage. Listening to Pei Wenjing's lessons, they began to imitate him and observe the world. The content Pei Wenjing taught was a summary by the three of them, based on the Kunlun textbook, and intended as an introductory text for ordinary people. Pei Wenjing deliberately omitted discussions of good and evil, focusing instead on guiding them on how to learn independently, how to reflect on themselves, and how to conduct themselves in society.

As a result, those people never considered themselves among the Five Evils. Initially, they received countless special instructions and inherited the Copper Coin Eye technique, always feeling different from others, that they were chosen ones favored by the gods. But after several months of study, they realized that everyone was just like them, possessing the ability to inherit Taoist methods, and even to generate their own Taoist methods, but this ability had remained hidden in their hearts and had not been discovered.

Pei Wenjing's classes were always filled with his observations and opinions, but Shen Cangyu was different. Rather than having them listen, Shen Cangyu preferred to let them do things on their own.

“Compared to being kept in pens, cattle and sheep will get much fatter when released to graze on the grasslands. You all know that, right?” Shen Cangyu said.

People looked at each other in bewilderment, and then Shen Cangyu slowly said, "I forgot, you have no opportunity to raise cattle and sheep in your coastal area."

Before they could even feel shy, they heard Shen Cangyu say, "Then let's go somewhere farther away, see a wider world, see cattle and sheep with our own eyes, experience it for ourselves. Maybe you'll realize that the grasslands are more suitable for you."

Before a rough stone is cut open, no one knows whether it is a stone or a beautiful jade. If you worry that you will not become a beautiful jade and are unwilling to carefully examine it, then you will forever remain an "uncut stone," deceiving yourself with beautiful imagination.

“But aren’t you all coin-eyed? I don’t believe you don’t have the courage to crack your own holes,” Shen Cangyu said. “People with coin-eyed eyes are always more ambitious and have more courage to be crushed to pieces than others.”

After hearing her words, the classroom fell silent; no one spoke, but she could hear the sound of countless seeds sprouting from the soil.

"but……"

At that moment, someone suddenly spoke up.

Shen Cangyu followed the figure and saw the child who had given flowers to Pei Wenjing. Unlike the others who were lost in thought and planning for their future, she asked, "What should I do if I carve myself open and find that I'm not a beautiful jade, but a stone?"

*

"You are very good at stirring people's hearts."

As Shen Cangyu played with the seashell in her hand, she heard a voice behind her. Pei Wenjing was standing not far away, speaking to her.

Shen Cangyu raised an eyebrow: "The word 'incite' is not used correctly. I'm just good at encouraging others." Back when she was at the Kunlun Mind Arts Hall, she wasn't as easy to talk to as she is now. Back then, when she taught, she was only concerned with arguing with those who questioned her. Shen Cangyu felt that she was very good at teaching according to aptitude, and since the copper-eyed disciples respected her greatly, she was generous with her praise.

"Whether you're trying to persuade Wan Qianzhong or teach those money-grubbing types... when did you become so concerned about others?" Pei Wenjing looked at her.

Shen Cangyu smiled and said, "You're not jealous, are you, Pei Wenjing?"

Upon hearing her words, Pei Wenjing's face suddenly tightened, and he turned and walked out.

"Hey!" Shen Cangyu quickly chased after him.

Pei Wenjing was very good at hiding from people. Whenever he felt that he and Shen Cangyu had a falling out and guessed that Shen Cangyu did not want to see him, he would suddenly disappear as if he had vanished into thin air, and no matter how hard Shen Cangyu searched, he could not find him.

Just like the Cold War, and seemingly imitating her, he knew that sudden disappearance was the hardest to accept, so he simply used this method to retaliate against her and express his dissatisfaction.

But clearly, this time their argument was only one-sided, with Pei Wenjing being angry. Shen Cangyu thought that she had even wanted to apologize to him several times, but couldn't find him.

Even when Shen Cangyu blocked his doorway, trying to catch him, Pei Wenjing could manage to stay away from home for half a month. Even after class, he could instantly disappear from the classroom using earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a technique that allows one to escape from a group of people) as soon as the bell rang, leaving a group of people looking at each other in bewilderment.

He just didn't want Shen Cangyu to find him.

Shen Cangyu was waiting. She knew that when Pei Wenjing came to his senses, he would take the initiative to find her and then act as if nothing had ever happened.

Shen Cangyu looked at the hair ribbon embroidered with green bamboo patterns that Pei Wenjing wore in his hair, and knew that Pei Wenjing had finally calmed down.

Since Shen Cangyu couldn't catch the person, she had to try a different approach. She put a new hairband in a brocade box and placed it in front of Pei Wenjing's door as an apology.

She secretly observed that the brocade box was always placed at the door and he never took it. Shen Cangyu had no choice but to take the brocade box back, but when she opened it, she found that only the brocade box was left at the door, and the hair ribbon she had put inside had been taken by him at some point.

Shen Cangyu then put the brocade box back at his door and changed the style of the hair ribbons in the box every day.

Each time she came, the brocade box remained unmoved, but the hair ribbon inside had vanished without a trace. She secretly found it amusing, wondering what method Pei Wenjing had used to steal the hair ribbon from the brocade box. Perhaps all the tricks he had learned in his past lives had been used for this.

It wasn't until everyone in the city knew that Shen Cangyu had recently taken a liking to buying all sorts of hairbands that people started showing off their treasures to her in class, trying to curry favor with her with their hairbands.

That time, Pei Wenjing probably heard about it and knew that the person who gave him the hairband was a man. Shen Cangyu didn't take the hairband, but Pei Wenjing took the brocade box back. The next day, Pei Wenjing no longer wore his old, gray hairband, but instead wore the new style that Shen Cangyu had given him.

Moreover, as if deliberately showing off, he changed his appearance every day, as if afraid that others would not know. Shen Cangyu collected hair ribbons all over the city, and these hair ribbons eventually ended up in his hands.

Pei Wenjing still avoided Shen Cangyu as usual, but he still wanted to show off the hairband she gave him.

Shen Cangyu thought to herself, "They really want it all." But she didn't dare say it to Pei Wenjing's face, afraid of upsetting him again, and then she wouldn't know what to give him next time.