"Are you serious?" The chief allowed the villagers to trade with ordinary people living down the mountain, so naturally he did not reject Han civilization. When Norma came to him, he was still reading a book, and in his hand was the Thousand Character Classic used by children for enlightenment.
Aunt Norma's face was filled with worry. "I saw a piece of yellow paper under Ajing's book. He seemed a little flustered when I went in. I couldn't figure out what he was trying to do. Chief, Ajing won't do anything stupid, right?"
The patriarch put down the book in his hand. Ever since his grandson could not get the approval of the insect, did not have enough strength to hunt, and was unwilling to work hard to learn, he had been thinking about finding some other ways out for his grandson.
He had read the Thousand Character Classic and it was not difficult to recognize it. If his grandson really could not learn to use the poisonous insects and could not make a living by hunting, even if he forcefully pushed his grandson to the position of patriarch, he was afraid that some people would not accept it.
He wanted to make two plans first. On the one hand, he continued to cultivate his grandson's ability to be the clan leader, and on the other hand, he tried to find a way to let his grandson go to study in the Central Plains. There were many scholars in the Central Plains who were unable to do heavy work like his grandson. If his grandson became famous in his studies, he would be able to enjoy wealth and glory in the future.
But they are from the Miao village and have no household registration in the Central Plains. If they want their grandson to go to the Central Plains to study, they will have to work hard.
While thinking, the patriarch hurried to An Jingzhi's room.
An Jingzhi silently counted the patriarch's footsteps in his heart, and only started performing when the other party approached.
"What's wrong? That's what the book teaches, why doesn't it work? It's all my fault for being useless. I always hold Grandpa back. I can't learn witchcraft, I don't have the strength to hunt, and now I can't even draw talismans." After saying this, An Jingzhi lay on the table and sobbed.
The sound, neither loud nor soft, immediately reached the ears of the patriarch and Aunt Norma.
The original owner was a child who was raised and loved by the clan leader. Hearing him crying like this, the clan leader felt even more upset.
Ever since his grandson was unable to learn the art of poisoning insects and could not hunt, his face became more and more gloomy and his temper became worse and worse. He thought that his grandson was too young and had never experienced any setbacks since he was a child, so he couldn't bear it.
It turns out that this child is working hard behind the scenes.
The tribe leader sighed with red eyes. They should work hard, but they are Miao people. Where did this child learn to draw talismans?
The patriarch wanted to withdraw, and his grandson was under a lot of pressure. If he was caught crying again, it would probably be even more difficult for his grandson to hold his head up.
But he was worried that his grandson had been cheated, so he couldn't help but wait for a while, and only stepped into the room after the crying gradually subsided.
An Jingzhi, who was lying on the table and howling without any action, felt tired after a while. He wondered why the old man hadn't come in yet. If he didn't come in, his throat would be hoarse from howling.
His voice became smaller and smaller, and just when An Jingzhi was about to finish crying, the patriarch's footsteps approached.
An Jingzhi rubbed his eyes, making them a little red, and his throat became a little hoarse from howling.
"Grandpa. Aunt Norma." He called out embarrassedly.
He seemed to be ashamed of himself as a grown man hiding in the room and crying secretly.
The patriarch glanced at his grandson's fair face and red eyes, like a little rabbit.
None of the villagers in the mountain village could look like An Jingzhi.
Whether men or women, they all had healthy complexions. The only ones as fair-skinned as him were the scholars in Zhongyuan City.
In the past, the patriarch was very proud of himself for raising his grandson so well, but recent events have made him regret it.
If he hadn't been so partial to him, perhaps even if his grandson couldn't learn witchcraft now, he would still be able to go hunting with the tribe.
Aunt Norma pointed to the yellow paper on the table and said, "Chief, this is the paper I saw."
The patriarch looked up and saw traces of cinnabar painted on the paper.
He picked up the yellow paper on the table, held it in his hand and looked at it carefully.
An Jingzhi seemed a little flustered and stood there at a loss.
"Grandpa..."
The clan leader looked at it for a while, but couldn't make out what it was. "What is this? Where are you from?" After a pause, the clan leader said gently, "Grandpa doesn't mean to blame you. I'm just worried that you've been deceived."
An Jingzhi had no choice but to tell the story he had prepared in advance.
"Grandpa, Aunt Norma, I know I can't learn how to poison insects or hunt prey, and staying in the village will only cause trouble for everyone, but I don't want to leave you. I brought these talisman papers and cinnabar secretly when I went down the mountain. I met a wandering Taoist priest at the foot of the mountain and got a book from him that specifically teaches people how to draw talismans. I was thinking about whether I could learn it so that I wouldn't be eating for free."
An Jingzhi's words were so heartfelt that Aunt Norma's face was filled with tears and she couldn't help but hug him.
"No one dislikes you, Ajing, how could you be a freeloader?" She actually thought that Ajing was no longer kind to her, and she had wronged the child.
Aunt Norma is one of the clan leader's daughters-in-law. An Jingzhi lived with the clan leader when he was young, but the clan leader was not as meticulous as a woman, so most of the time it was Aunt Norma who helped take care of the original owner. She treated him better than her own children.
But the original owner actually didn't have much affection for the people in the village. He thought that these people were nice to him just to please his grandfather, because his grandfather loved him the most.
No matter how good others were to him, he took it for granted. He considered it a favor to these people that he was willing to condescend to accept it.
"Ajing, bring that book to grandpa to read." The clan leader was worried that his grandson had been cheated. It didn't matter if he was cheated of the things, but it would be troublesome if he became obsessed with practicing.
There is no such book. This was originally compiled by An Jingzhi.
"The book is gone. It's strange, I only read it once and I memorized it. Then I put it here." An Jingzhi pointed to a corner next to the table, "and then I couldn't find it anymore when I wanted to look for it."
The original owner's memory was not very good, so it was impossible for him to remember everything after just one look.
The patriarch was somewhat perplexed. Could it be that this child was really destined to be together? Was the book real?
He asked An Jingzhi to recite a short passage from the book to him, and An Jingzhi randomly picked out a part of the method of drawing talismans and recited it. The original owner had a bad memory, but his memory was not bad? He had experienced so many small worlds before and learned a lot of random knowledge.
It’s being used now.
Memorize some knowledge about drawing talismans and you will be able to do it easily.
It was so obscure and mysterious that the patriarch couldn't understand it at all, but he also knew very well that his grandson couldn't say such words either, so the answer was very simple. His grandson might have really met a god!
The patriarch was ecstatic and kept asking his grandson about the details of his encounter with the Taoist priest at the foot of the mountain.
With the idea that the more he spoke, the more mistakes he would make, An Jingzhi could only make excuses that he couldn't remember anything, and it seemed that he was forgetting more and more.
"Then what kind of talisman are you drawing?" The patriarch pointed to the yellow paper on the table.
"This is a talisman for curing diseases, but it can only treat simple illnesses such as headaches and fevers." An Jingzhi said truthfully.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com