Chapter 167 A Strange New Blessing (Happy May Day!)
Rain dripped from the eaves of the blue-tiled roof.
The elegant house was surrounded by what looked like a curtain made of rain.
Looking out from inside the house, the whole world seemed shrouded in a hazy mist.
A closed umbrella leaned against the wall next to the door.
Inside the open door, two young men with distinct personalities were sitting around a table.
One person is writing, while the other is grinding ink and handing over the brush.
"Brother Lianghan, did you hear it from Miss Xie? Actually, my sister might not be too... never mind, but Brother Lianghan's birthday gift is indeed elegant, and it's a token of his goodwill..."
Su Fu glanced at Ouyang Rong, who was silently writing with his head down, hesitated for a moment, and swallowed his words. After praising him, he asked curiously:
"Return, oh return! My fields are overgrown with weeds, why not return... 'Return, oh return'? Is that its name? It's quite interesting; the poem has the air of a recluse..."
Ouyang Rong lowered his eyes with a calm expression and did not reply.
However, his lips moved slightly, as if he were silently reading something.
The right hand holds the pen like a hook with its five fingers, while the other hand supports the wide sleeve of the right hand that is writing, blocking the ink that has not yet dried on the paper.
Ouyang Rong was silently reconstructing the "Return to Home" poem based on some distant and hazy memories in his mind.
Fortunately, the Chinese language course that died was different from the advanced mathematics course that died.
The former is a rhyme, easily recited from memory, so it's quite simple.
The latter is a death warrant; I only remember one name, like the Squeeze Theorem or something. LOL, it's definitely not what it means literally, but I have no idea what it's used for.
I've completely forgotten everything I learned before; just thinking about it gives me a headache.
However, having been in this world for so long, Ouyang Rong has made a profound discovery: the dynasties, people, and cultural customs of this world are indeed similar to, but not identical to, the prosperous Tang Dynasty of his previous life.
Some famous events and historical processes exist in both worlds.
Examples include the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families, and the Guanzhong aristocracy in historical records.
For example, Tao Yuanming, a famous scholar of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, did write a prose poem called "Returning Home" after resigning from his post as a county magistrate for eighty-one days, refusing to bow down for five pecks of rice.
But some are different.
For example, Emperor Qin Shi Huang, who lived a thousand years ago, did indeed seek immortality in his later years.
However, he once overheard his junior sister let slip that the First Emperor did indeed obtain the "elixir of immortality," but it was not some kind of magic pill or lingzhi mushroom; rather, it was the name of a sword that had been used to assassinate him.
It's a slightly cheesy joke.
However, it is clear that the discrepancy between this world and the previous one seems to stem from the extraordinary power of Qi cultivators from the pre-Qin period.
In some key historical moments, there has often been interference and meddling.
Ouyang Rong has had some experience with the capabilities of these extraordinary powers these days.
Besides the junior sister's outrageous skills, there's also the bronze mask worn by the Jade Cup Fairy, a mere substitute for someone else.
However, the fate of the Jade Cup Immortal is still unknown. She is being kept by her junior sister, who said she needed to study her carefully when asked about her last time.
Therefore, Ouyang Rong was not entirely sure whether the "Return to the Countryside" written by Tao Yuanming in his previous life and in this world was the same piece.
But hadn't he heard Master Shandao say before that the only remaining manuscript could no longer be found at Donglin Temple?
So, as someone who, by a twist of fate, memorized the original text and mistakenly entered this world, whatever Ouyang Rong wrote, that is what it is.
He has the final say, and even if he misspells a word or something, probably no one will correct him or mark it wrong.
As Ouyang Rong pondered, he had already written most of the poem in his hand. But then, he stopped writing, dipped his brush in ink, and his face suddenly froze. His hand stopped above the inkstone.
"Clouds drift aimlessly from the mountain peaks, birds, weary of flying, know to return home... Hmm, Brother Lianghan, what's wrong?"
Su Fu was reading silently with a curious expression when he noticed a change in his friend's expression. He turned to ask him a question.
"No...it's nothing."
Ouyang Rong shook his head, silently looked at the halls to his left and right, then glanced at the direction of the inner room, and finally frowned as he looked at the poem he was about to finish writing.
Immediately, he composed himself and offered an explanation:
"I just remembered something urgent... so I won't stay any longer and must take my leave."
Ouyang Rong temporarily suppressed the trembling ancient bell within the cloud-topped tower in his mind, which was vaguely stirring with restlessness once again.
He quickly finished reciting "The Return" from memory, without checking it, and casually blew the ink off the paper before handing it to Su Fu.
"Consider this a gift; please pass it on for me, Elder Brother..."
Su Fu gently put away the Xuan paper and nodded:
“Alright, although it looks a bit shabby, I'll frame it for you and add a landscape painting. That would make it look more elegant and classy. Actually, other guests have given me calligraphy and paintings, so Brother Lianghan, there's no need for that…”
Su Fu looked up and stopped speaking, but there was no one in front of him.
Outside the door, Ouyang Rong had already left without looking back, carrying his umbrella and waving goodbye.
"Something came up, I have to go now."
Su Fu was taken aback. He turned to look at the fruit basket containing grapes on the table, picked it up, and chased after Ouyang Rong outside. But Ouyang Rong had already disappeared from sight.
"Strange, Brother Lianghan, didn't you say you were going to deliver grapes to Miss Xie? How come you forgot everything..."
Su Fu muttered to himself, speechless.
He looked around for a while, shook his head, turned around and went back into the inner room to take care of the division commander.
Su Fu, carrying a basket of grapes, approached the bedside, where the air was thick with the smell of medicine, and smiled at Yuan Xiangshan:
"Teacher, this is a small token of Lianghan's appreciation."
Yuan Xiangshan did not open his eyes, but nodded slightly.
Su Fu breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Not long after, Yuan Xiangshan seemed a little tired after drinking the medicine. Su Fu rubbed his tired and stiff face, left the house temporarily, and went back to rest.
After Su Dalang left, Yuan Xiangshan lay silently for a while. At one point, he opened his eyes, tremblingly reached out his hand to the round-faced pageboy waiting beside him, and waved.
The round-faced pageboy stepped forward and asked, "What can I do for you, sir?"
Yuan Xiangshan pursed his pale lips, tilted his white-haired head on the pillow to the side of the bed to avoid the page's gaze, and whispered:
"Go to Dalang's desk and bring me that article called 'On Teachers'."
"Yes, sir."
The pageboy was taken aback, then turned and left the bedside.
Yuan Xiangshan opened his eyes, his gaze fixed on the bed curtains above him, and then let out a soft sigh.
I don't know what he's thinking.
...
Ouyang Rong changed his plans. Instead of going to his junior sister's place, he turned around and returned to Meilu Garden with his umbrella.
As soon as he entered the house, he bumped into Ye Weilai in the yard.
The latter initially intended to turn her back upon seeing him, but after turning halfway around, she turned back to face him.
"Master, what are you doing? Why are you walking so fast?"
Ye Weilai, her small hands tucked into her sleeves, curiously followed and asked the first question.
"Nothing, I'm going back to my study... wait a minute."
Ouyang Rong realized what was happening and said sternly:
"Didn't I tell you to practice calligraphy in the study when I left? What are you doing now? Did you think I wouldn't be back for a while and just wander around here? You've finished all the characters I made you do as punishment?"
"It'll be soon, it'll be soon, it'll really be soon."
Ye Wei's grey-blue eyes darted away slightly. She tightened her sleeves, which she had tucked into her hands, and looked down at the embroidered shoes drawing circles on the floor.
"I'm just having a headache from writing, so I'm going out for a walk. I'll go back and continue writing in a bit."
This is a follow-up to the incident where Ye Weilai disobeyed Ouyang Rong's arrangements and turned back to Meiluyuan halfway.
Apart from some form of punishment used by the master to discipline a disobedient maid.
Ye Weilai was also forced to sign many "unequal treaties".
One form of punishment was copying characters to practice calligraphy.
Ye Weilai could barely speak Da Zhou Ya Yan, let alone read.
To be honest, she didn't really need to be literate. As a personal maid, all she needed to do was be beautiful and have a lovely, fragrant body.
But what could she do when she was stuck with such a special master as Ouyang Rong, who had exceptionally high standards for his maids?
Ouyang Rong naturally had his own plans for teaching Ye Weilai these things.
But Ye Weilai was indeed intelligent and quick-witted, learning extremely fast, no less than some of the most promising students in the academy. Ouyang Rong felt even more sorry about this.
Ouyang Rong always felt that, regardless of his past or present life, the students he encountered who were good at studying were nothing more than two types of people.
One type is people who study diligently and have a habit of self-discipline.
One type is the intelligent and talented player.
Those with quick minds like Ye Weilai, who understand things immediately, naturally belong to the latter category.
Therefore, when Ouyang Rong saw Ye Weilai sneaking out of the study as if she were playing, he couldn't help but frown slightly.
Ye Weilai seemed to have excellent eyesight; noticing Ouyang Rong's expression, she quickly tugged at his sleeve and said:
"Master, I'll go back and write it down right away. The two characters '宴' and '晏' that you asked me about last morning, I've been studying the Shuowen Jiezi (a dictionary of Chinese characters) while I was being punished with writing these past two days, and I finally know what they mean. I'll go back to my room now and explain it to you in detail. Please check if it's correct, okay?"
When Ouyang Rong saw the ingratiating look on the white-haired maid's face and her soft tone, he immediately felt less angry. He sighed and patted the obedient little head that had snuggled up to him.
He nodded: "No need. My head hurts from reading. I'll just stroll around the garden and clear my head... I'm going back to my study now. Don't let anyone else come in and disturb me."
"Yes, Master."
Ye Wei nodded obediently, stood gracefully with her sleeves tucked in, and watched Ouyang Rong's figure disappear behind the low wall of the gallery.
She let out a long breath and silently pulled her hands out of her sleeves.
A thin, long black hair was wrapped around the index finger of his right hand.
Ye Weilai gently twisted her two fingers together, straightened her black hair, and examined it closely in the dim yellow light of the lanterns on the corridor.
This long hair was jet black with a hint of brown.
"I wasn't slacking off... But whose is this...? Who secretly got close to Master? Does Master know... or do they just not want to tell me..."
Ye Weilai muttered softly.
She wasn't just lazing around; she was searching for the owner of this strange, long hair.
Ye Weilai had been searching for the same thing for the past two days, looking among all the maids in the Deer Garden, but still to no avail. Now that Aqing and the others had been ruled out, the investigation seemed to have reached a dead end...
Moreover, finding the original owner based on just one long hair is indeed too difficult.
In fact, Ye Weilai was not quite sure why she cared so much about this long hair, since she clearly did not feel jealous or competitive about the closeness between Miss Xie and the other women and her master.
It's also possible that this unfamiliar long hair simply ended up on the owner by accident, and there's no complicated story behind it.
But Ye Weilai just couldn't put her mind at ease.
I don't know how many times I've silently wrapped this unfamiliar strand of black hair around my index finger inside my sleeve these past two days...
Perhaps it's a woman's sixth sense, similar to a lioness's subconscious alertness when she senses her territory might be invaded.
Ye Weilai always felt that the origin of this long hair was not simple.
The reasons behind this... may not be simple.
...
Ouyang Rong was unaware of his maid's keen sixth sense and wild thoughts.
As soon as he returned to his study, he turned his back and locked the door.
Ouyang Rong glanced at Ye Weilai's rather immature yet budding handwriting on the desk, then leaned back in his armchair.
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to immerse himself in the moment. Soon, he felt his consciousness sinking slowly into the lake of his heart, like a desert traveler whose leg was stuck in quicksand.
Ouyang Rong flew to the radiant clouds and stepped into the ancient pagoda with its doors opening automatically.
Same old three dishes.
A small, round, and smooth wooden fish.
A row of cyan-gold characters reads: [Merit: 14,288]
There is also an ancient bronze bell.
However, at this moment, the Blessing Bell, which was hanging in the center of the empty white mist space, was trembling violently, a sound it hadn't experienced in a long time.
Thick fog continuously billowed outwards.
This time, Ouyang Rong flew to the Blessing Bell, stretched out his right hand, and as soon as his fingertips touched the bell, a strange message burrowed into his heart like an eel.
"Another three thousand merit points... Is this new blessing meant to save my life?"
Ouyang Rong frowned slightly and murmured to himself.
He still hasn't fully confirmed where the blessings he exchanged for with 3,000 merit points at Yunshui Pavilion last time have ended. Based on his previous experiences, he vaguely guesses that it happened without his knowledge of the details.
Moreover, it is highly likely that it is related to the swordsman who did not make a move but was ambushed by the Liu family at the Beitian Aid Center of Donglin Temple on the day of the ribbon-cutting ceremony... It seems that good fortune saved his life.
"I don't know why the assassin didn't make a move in the end."
Ouyang Rong shook his head slightly, his gaze returning to the trembling bronze bell in front of him.
Right now, there is another blessing worth three thousand merit points.
"What is this now...wait, what is this thing?"
Upon getting closer, Ouyang Rong suddenly noticed that within the torrent of purple mist surging from the Blessing Bell, there were also some other things, or rather, colors, mixed in.
The surging purple mist had a faint hint of pinkish-red mist mixed in with it.
Upon seeing this, Ouyang Rong reached out and gently parted the torrent of purple mist.
This strange scene became even more obvious:
It's like a purple waterfall hanging upside down in the air, with peach petals flowing downstream with the water.
It seems that something different from before has been discovered.
Ouyang Rong looked on with curiosity, tilting his head to examine him.
"Is this a new phenomenon, or did something similar exist before, only to be covered up by the surging purple aura due to its similar color?"
Ouyang Rong nodded. The purple and light peach colors did indeed stand out distinctly together.
"But what's the use of this thing? Does it signify a difference, that it represents different types of blessings?"
Ouyang Rong lowered his head, propped himself up with his hands, rubbed his chin with the base of his thumb, and muttered to himself for a long time.
Unfortunately, we didn't notice these kinds of oddities in the previous attempts, so we didn't have any experience to draw upon for reference.
Not long after, Ouyang Rong gave up and let out a long sigh.
As for whether or not to exchange it...
He turned his head and glanced at the line of cyan-gold characters in the air.
He immediately closed his eyes.
It's as if my heartstrings are being plucked.
"My life is more important... Three thousand merit points is not bad, it hasn't fallen below ten thousand."
As Ouyang Rong murmured, a line of cyan-gold characters above the small wooden fish instantly transformed into a hazy, swimming carp, which crashed straight into the restless ancient bell that was faintly emitting two-colored mist.
clang--!
Accompanied by a familiar, resonant sound.
A faint pinkish-purple mist scattered and flew everywhere, filling the entire space inside the ancient tower for a fleeting moment.
Ouyang Rong closed his eyes and opened them again; all the strange phenomena from a second ago had vanished without a trace.
The ancient bronze bell remained completely still.
The cyan-gold light ball bounced back to its original position, returning to its original state.
[Merit: 11,288]
Ouyang Rong turned his gaze and glanced at him lightly.
He stood inside the now-silent tower for a moment, then turned and left, a thoughtful expression on his face before he departed.
"Also, how is this new blessing triggered again...?"
Happy Labor Day! *cough cough* It seems like it's double monthly passes at the beginning of the month now (whispering).
(End of this chapter)
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