Chapter 300 The Last Night Watchman
The people in the troupe are all mortals, unlike the immortal cultivators who do not need sleep.
Therefore, this caravan stopped and started along the way, traveling during the day and resting at night. If they could find an inn during the rest period, they would stay there. If not, they could set up a tent to get through the night.
And at night when everyone was sleeping, Ji You would continue to breathe in spiritual energy to temper himself in a secluded place nearby.
This went on day after day, and after an extremely long journey, the troupe's carriage finally returned to Pingyang County.
Pingxi County is located in the southeast of Yunzhou, not in the mining area.
The people here still make a living by farming, working from sunrise to sunset.
When the troupe returned to the county town, it happened to encounter a spring rain, and from afar, the sky was hazy with mist and rain.
As soon as they entered the city, the four carriages that had been traveling for a long time began to slow down slowly, and finally stopped in front of a courtyard with a plaque with the words "Fengxian Opera Troupe" hanging on it.
The miscellaneous people jumped out of the car and started unloading their luggage.
They were busy until noon, when the spring rain subsided a little and one of the carriages headed east.
Two hours later, the troupe leader appeared on a sloping street carrying wine and meat, along with the young actresses and martial artists in the troupe.
There are houses with wooden frames and undergoing repairs everywhere along the street. Some of them have collapsed walls and have been mostly repaired, while others have collapsed roofs and have been completely abandoned.
Ji You followed behind them, his eyes sweeping over the houses.
“Repairs after the snowstorm are only starting now?”
"Master, do you also know about the snow disaster?"
Ji You nodded: "I've probably heard about it a little bit."
The team owner couldn't help but sigh softly: "We took a job at the time, but ended up being trapped in Qingzhou and unable to return home. We were anxious for the entire winter when we learned that our hometown was severely affected by the disaster. Fortunately, all our family members were rescued."
“Who paid for the repairs?”
"I don't know about that. We don't have an old house in the city. We have always lived in Xujiakou outside the city. It was only after the snowstorm that we realized that living in the city is safer than living outside the city. So we took out our savings over the years and bought some dilapidated houses in the city that the original owners didn't want to repair."
The class owner stepped through a patch of mud and stopped in front of a courtyard gate: "We're here."
Ji You looked up and saw a courtyard covered with blue lime tiles: "Although it is remote, the area is quite large."
"Our troupe pooled money to buy it. After we bought it, we immediately hired someone to renovate it and use it to provide for our family's elders. My uncles and aunts all live here, and my great master is here too."
As the class owner spoke, he pushed the door open and walked in with everyone.
There were two middle-aged men with gray hair in the yard, wiping some old jade-belt costumes.
Seeing the people from the troupe rushing in, the two of them raised their heads and smiled.
"You're back?"
"Uncle Master, Uncle Master, we are back, where is Master?"
"Your master has taken on another job. How is your trip going?"
"I sang for eight days, but for some reason, my employer didn't let me sing in the last show..."
The young actress looked at the troupe owner who responded, bit her lip lightly, and swallowed her speculation that the ancestor of the Lang family was faking his death.
The class leader handed the wine and meat in his hand to the older one: "Uncle, how is the great master now?"
"I'm in good spirits and I enjoy my meals. I've been wondering why you guys haven't come back these past few days. Now I'm happy that you guys have come back. Hey, who is that..."
"Oh, by the way, uncle and aunt, I brought a friend with me this time."
The master's uncle had already seen Ji You. He stared at him for a long time before coming back to his senses: "Your friend...?"
The troupe owner nodded and said, "I met this young man on the road. He was very interested in our play about the immortal saving the world and wanted to know what happened later. I didn't know about this, so he wanted to come and see the old master."
While they were talking, an old man with white hair and beard walked out of the main room opposite the main entrance.
Holding a bamboo stick in his hand, he stepped over the threshold tremblingly and looked outside the door.
It is rare for people to live to be seventy years old, but this old man does look quite energetic, except that his legs and feet are a little unsteady.
"Wencai is back..."
"Master, we are back."
Upon seeing this, the class leader immediately stepped forward, explained a few things that had happened on the trip, and then leaned over to the old man's ear and whispered a few words.
As the old man listened, he looked up at Ji You and said, "For a play?"
The troupe owner nodded after hearing the master's hoarse questioning voice: "I saw that he had no other purpose. He asked about the drama all the way. He seemed to be a fan of the drama, so I dared to call him over."
The Grand Master looked at Ji You for a long time, then coughed twice and said, "Please invite him into the front hall."
"Sir, my master invites you to the front hall."
The class owner turned back and shouted.
After hearing this, Ji You bowed and thanked him, then walked towards the master and followed him into the front hall.
At this time, the Hua Dan and Wu Sheng had already sat down in the courtyard. When they saw Ji You walking towards the front hall, they looked a little confused.
Along the way from Zhongzhou to Yunzhou, they became familiar with Ji You and knew that he came for the story of the play.
But in their opinion, the rules of their own troupe have always been strictly observed, and this person is likely to have made a wasted trip.
But what they didn't expect was that the young man was actually invited in.
The lighting in the front hall is pretty good, so even though the weather is a little gloomy today, the room is still bright.
The old and frail master extended his hand to invite Ji You to sit down, and tremblingly wanted to serve him tea, but Ji You waved his hand to stop him, and took the teapot to make a cup for himself.
"The old man is in good health."
"You are an old man, and there is nothing left for you to do. I just heard from Wensheng that the young master is very interested in our play."
Ji You nodded while holding the teacup: "I have been asking around for a long time. I have heard of shadow play and three-stringed storytelling, but all I heard were stories without a beginning or an end. It was only after I listened to a few plays of our troupe a few days ago that I gradually began to understand the clues."
The old man was silent for a while. "Sir, you have come all the way here. What in this play are you curious about?"
Ji You initially told the troupe leader that he wanted to know what the last play was about, but now it seems a bit clumsy to say so.
No one would travel thousands of miles from Zhongzhou to Yunzhou just for the content of the last play.
After thinking for a while, Ji You said, "I seem to have some connection with the people in the story. I wanted to ask them some questions, but no one knew anything. I happened to listen to a story in a teahouse and heard a few words. That's how I found out until now."
"So you want to find the person in the story, but I only know the person who wrote the story."
"May I ask the old man, who wrote the story, where did he hear this story from?"
The master of the troupe spoke in a hoarse voice: "My master was saved by an immortal when he was a child. This story was made up by him based on that immortal."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ji You couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
He had already had a mental assumption before coming here, thinking that the older generation of the troupe might not know the origin of the story, or might have only heard it from hearsay.
If that was the case, he didn't plan to investigate further.
Because no matter what, he has finally embarked on this path of body refining, and no matter how far he gets, he will have to keep going.
But he never expected that he actually found the source of the story.
When he thought of this, Ji You remembered the boy role in the opera.
That character had very few lines, and seemed to be of no use, and had never appeared in any other performances, but it was not deleted from their troupe's play.
Now it seems that my hunch was correct. That character might be one of the ancestors of this troupe.
Ji You thought for a long time before coming to his senses: "Besides the content of the play, did the old man's master tell you anything else about this immortal?"
The old man was silent for a while and said, "I can tell you about my great master's life."
"Okay."
"My master's name is Cui Rong."
In the drizzle, the old man spoke slowly in a hoarse and weak voice.
His great master was named Cui Rong, an orphan who begged for food everywhere. He lived with many children with the same background as him and mingled with all kinds of people.
After finally growing older, these kids followed a few older kids into the casino in order to fill their stomachs.
It is said that the older children are very smart and have a talent for gambling. At a young age, they have already mastered the art of gambling.
So some people were responsible for stealing and some were responsible for gambling, and life was still manageable.
But then one day, they failed to stop in time and won too much. They were targeted by the casino dealer and almost lost their lives.
At that critical moment, the children were rescued by an old man covered in fairy light.
Unlike the story of a wandering savior in the play, this old man was not just passing by. In fact, he was also a frequent visitor to the casino.
Cui Rong often ran into him at the card table. He only knew that he looked shabby, was a terrible gambler, and sometimes even refused to pay his debts, but he never thought that he was an immortal.
Ji You frowned slightly when he heard this: "As far as I know, immortal cultivators can use their divine thoughts to see through the dice cup."
The troupe's master paused for a moment and said, "I don't know much about this matter, but that's how the story is told. I just tried to pass it on as detailed as possible."
"Please continue, old man."
"good."
The old man picked up the teacup, took a sip, and continued speaking.
The rescued children were not grateful to the old immortal, but instead took advantage of the chaos to escape.
This is not because they are ungrateful at a young age, but because their parents were almost all beaten to death because of taxes.
Therefore, even if their lives were saved by immortals, they still had wariness and hatred towards immortal cultivators.
But who knew that the immortal was not a real immortal. He kept pestering several children including Cui Rong to learn how to gamble from him.
Hearing this, the corners of Ji You's mouth twitched, and a scene emerged in his mind of an old man with a sage-like appearance chasing a group of poor children to become his disciples.
If this story is true, then this night watchman is truly a bohemian person.
"And then?"
"Then they started taking advantage of each other."
"?"
"My great master and his friends were still young at the time. Although they were skilled in gambling, they were still worried that they would be beaten again if they went to the casino again, so they decided to use the immortal to their advantage."
Ji You nodded, thinking that a child living alone in troubled times might not be able to read or write, but he would have a great ability to judge the situation.
The rest of the story follows a logical progression. According to the master, the immortal got together with these children and met them in the casino every day.
The old immortal protected them and acted as their bodyguard, while the children received practical training while being under his protection.
After a few visits, everyone became familiar with each other.
These children gradually discovered that the immortal who went in and out of the gambling house with them every day seemed different from other immortals and not so high and mighty, and they gradually got used to his existence.
Then the children learned from him that the old man's name was Cui Lang.
Hearing this, Ji You raised his eyes slightly and asked, "Your grandmaster has the same surname?"
The master shook his head and said, "At that time, my master's name was Goulaba, not Cui Rong."
After hearing this, Ji You understood.
The playwright was an orphan, and had no proper name to begin with, only a cheap name that was easy to support himself.
The reason why he was later called Cui Rong was probably because he had grown up and started a family, so he wanted to give himself a name that he could talk about.
The order is reversed. It is not a coincidence that they have the same surname. It is because Cui Lang came before Cui Rong.
Ji You came back to his senses: "According to what you said, this person has always stayed nearby and has never moved. Where did the story about leaving the mountains and traveling in the play come from?"
"Of course he did. When my great master recalled this incident in his later years, he said that the man loved to brag."
The immortal named Cui Lang loved to brag. Every day when he had meals with the children, he would chatter about random things.
He said that he had a very high level of cultivation and was deeply envied by his fellow disciples. Everyone wanted to fight for what he deserved, and he would get furious if he didn't win.
He even boasted that he had slain demons and kept watch at night, which allowed people like them to survive.
The children naturally didn't believe it, but they knew in their hearts that he must be a good person.
In this way, year after year, day after day, they lived a stable and comfortable life. During this period, they also took in many other orphans and lived with them.
After hearing this, Ji You opened his mouth and asked, "Are your fellow disciples jealous?"
The master nodded: "Not bad."
“That’s not how it’s played out in the play.”
"When singing for immortals, we naturally have to write about the good things. How dare we mortals sing about things that immortals fight over."
"Did Cui Lang ever tell me what night is?"
The Grand Master shook his head. "At that time, my Grand Master and his friends were still very young, and they were not very knowledgeable. They thought he was talking about the night, and no one thought of anything else. It was not until they became adults that they considered that what he said might have a specific reference."
Ji You pondered for a while after hearing this, and finally asked softly: "What happened next?"
"Later, my great master and the children who depended on him grew up slowly..."
"?"
In the old man's mouth, the story later became indeed dull.
His master and the other children gradually grew up. The children who were responsible for gambling at the beginning got married, started families and moved out to live.
Gou Laba was also introduced to a marriage, so he named himself Cui Rong and left the courtyard where they lived together.
But now that you have a family, you have to support it.
He didn't have any good skills, but fortunately the girl he married was originally the daughter of a poor county official and could recognize some words, so he began to write storybooks.
His storybooks were basically stories told by Cui Lang, written by the two from the first-person perspective and gradually compiled into a book.
Later, they came up with the idea of setting up a drama troupe.
In the beginning, the troupe was very small and just worked its way around the folks. After operating for a long time, it gradually took over the business of burying immortals.
Perhaps it was because the immortal liked it that his lineage has been passed down for a hundred years without interruption. He also accepted many disciples, and the lineage has been slowly passed down to this day.
During this century, some sanxian books, shadow puppet shows, etc. have also borrowed from their stories.
Ji You was a little confused after hearing this: "Where is Cui Lang? Why is there suddenly no news about him?"
The master was silent for a long time: "Cui Lang is dead."
"Dead?"
"I don't remember exactly what day it was, but I remember my great master said it was a summer day with thunder. Cui Lang suddenly said he wanted to leave for a while, and then he disappeared. About half a year later, my great master and his friends saw a lot of blood in the yard, and his purse was soaked in the blood."
"The master said that there was a kid named Zhuhu in their group. He saw that the old immortal's money bag was beautifully sewn and made of good materials, so he wanted to ask him for it. The old immortal said that he would leave it to him when he was about to die. Later, he thought that he must have come back when he was about to die."
Hearing this, Ji You felt his head buzzing.
Since the Night Watchman has the ability to guard Qingyun, he must have a high level of cultivation.
If he really died, then a lot of big things must have happened in the six months that he was gone.
"Does he have any disciples?"
After hearing this, the Grand Master shook his head and said, "His lineage has already died out..."
Ji You opened his mouth and asked, "How do you know this?"
"Grandmaster said that the old immortal once told them that it was extremely difficult for his lineage to recruit disciples and that they needed to slowly search. He also said that if he couldn't find a suitable one, he would choose one from among them. Maybe even he himself didn't expect that he would suddenly pass away."
"He died in the night?"
After a long silence, the Grand Master spoke: "My Grand Master thinks he died at the hands of the Immortal Sect..."
Ji You was slightly stunned, revealing a hint of confusion.
"My great master recruited many disciples, but only our lineage survived. That's because several of my uncles sang a piece of immortality after going out to take on a job, but they were killed by people from the immortal sect before they finished singing. My great master then realized that someone didn't want him to die, and the news spread."
"So your master deleted the identities of the characters in the play and even kept the last play from being performed."
"Yes, after that incident, my great master changed the play beyond all recognition. Some matters regarding identity were never mentioned again, and it became a rule that it would only be passed down before death. I think my great master didn't know the meaning of passing it down, but he still hoped that someone would remember him."
Ji You came back to his senses: "This is such a risky thing, the old man didn't even teach it to his disciples, but he told me when I asked."
The old man, who was in his twilight years, spoke tremblingly: "I feel that you look kind..."
"Let's forget about what happened today. I have never been here, and you have never known Cui Lang."
"Follow the immortal's order..."
The opera troupe has its own motto: keep your ears out, cover your eyes, keep your mouth shut, and keep your mind calm.
So even though they recognized Ji You from the beginning, they never said anything.
But even though it was tacitly understood, neither the old man nor the uncles and aunts outside the door had ever forgotten the image of the immortal who led people to rescue disasters during the Xinyuan period.
At this time, Ji You strolled out the door and glanced at the gloomy sky with faint thunder.
The more he investigated along the way, the more confused he became. He had already had a lot of questions before coming here, and now he finally got the answers from the old man.
The Night's Watchman is truly alone.
He may not go to the gambling house to gamble for money, but just to relieve his loneliness, just like he seeks those children to be his disciples not to learn how to gamble, but to find someone to talk to.
The boy following the night watchman is Cui Rong, the playwright, or the group of orphans.
The last scene will only be passed down after the older generation dies, because some people do not want this matter to be passed down.
But the answer he didn't expect was that the Night's Watch lineage had long been extinct.
(End of this chapter)
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