Chapter 48: The Reachers Become Teachers

  Flowers bloom and fall, flowers fall and bloom.

  The wisteria on Mount Wudang has bloomed and withered, withered and rebloomed, year after year, and in the blink of an eye, it has already gone through six cycles.

  It has been six years since Zhang Cuishan went missing. For the past six years, whenever the Wudang Six Heroes came down from the mountain, they would pay extra attention to see if they could find any clues. However, after searching all over the country, there was no news of him at all. The crowd could only comfort themselves by saying that a good person will have a good fate and believing that Zhang Cuishan is still alive in this world.

  In the past, Yin Liting and Mo Shenggu were still young, spending most of their time on Wudang Mountain. Over the years, Mo Shenggu has also come of age and is no longer the youth who could only set foot in Jianghu by following his senior brother. He has gained some reputation in Jianghu, while Yin Liting has completely shed his youthful image, becoming mature, handsome, and elegant, looking every inch a refined gentleman. It seems that among Zhang Sanfeng's disciples, only Yao Guang has not yet formally entered Jianghu, still spending most of his time on Wudang Mountain, serving his master and teaching his juniors. That's why the name "Wudang Seven Heroes" hasn't changed to "Wudang Eight Heroes". However, only the Wudang Seven Heroes themselves know that their junior sister has reached such a high level. Zhang Songxi even joked that if she were to come down from the mountain, all the young talents would lose face today.

  At the beginning of this year, Zhang Sanfeng proposed to Han Yang Jin Bian Ji's family on behalf of Yin Litian. Old hero Ji had long known about the reputation of Wudang Liu Xia and was secretly praising what a good young man Yin Litian was when he met him in person. He was both surprised and delighted to agree to this marriage, and promised his daughter Xiao Fu to Yin Litian.

  Ji Xiaofu had already become a disciple of the Emei sect years ago and was one of the most favored disciples of the current leader, Mie Xing Shitai. Mie Xing Shitai even intended to pass on the position of leader to Ji Xiaofu. It was because of this that Zhang Sanfeng did not go to Emei first, but instead came to Hanyang. Since the time of Guo Xiang, there has been an unwritten rule in the Emei sect: disciples can be male or female and do not necessarily have to become monks, but those who inherit the position of leader must be unmarried women. If they do not become monks, they must remain unmarried for life. Zhang Sanfeng did not want to be rejected by Mie Xing Shitai and cause his disciple to be heartbroken, so he used Ji Xiaofu's parents as an excuse to go to Hanyang and propose a marriage. Ji Laohan had always admired the heroic name of Wudang and had no intention of letting his daughter live a lonely life of vegetarianism and Buddhist chanting. Therefore, he did not make things difficult for the two of them and agreed very readily. He even wrote two letters by hand and entrusted Zhang Sanfeng to take them to the Emei sect: one was addressed to Mie Xing Shitai, the leader of the Emei sect, and the other was addressed to his daughter Ji Xiaofu. The letters naturally spoke of the engagement.

  Yin Litian held the letter, feeling much more at ease, his anxiety having dissipated by half. He asked Master Zhang to take him up Mount Emei again. Although Zhang Sanfeng had never married, he understood the thoughts of his young disciple and smiled as he took him up Mount Emei once more.

  When the Extinction Sect Master first heard of their intentions, she indeed looked displeased, but as a sect leader, her temperament was not bad. She suppressed her anger and finished reading the letter from the Ji family. She knew that Ji Xiaofu was not like those young disciples who had lost their parents at a young age and had no one to rely on. Even though she was Ji Xiaofu's master, she couldn't override her father's decision and reject this already agreed-upon marriage. She could only secretly resent it and regret that Ji Xiaofu would have nothing to do with the position of sect leader. Her expression had already calmed down, and she called over Ji Xiaofu to give her a few instructions.

  Ji Xiaofu had met Yin Liting once in Jiangnan, and the two of them joined forces to capture a notorious outlaw. During that period, they spent their days together, and Yin Liting fell deeply in love with Ji Xiaofu at first sight. Ji Xiaofu was also moved by Yin Liting's affections, which led to Yin Liting asking his master to propose a marriage between them.

  Ji Xiaofu returned to Emei Sect, sometimes reflecting on herself, wondering if she was a bit frivolous, and fearing that Yin Liting was just a temporary infatuation, and would forget about her after returning to Wudang. She anxiously waited for two months, and now suddenly heard that Yin Liting had proposed marriage, and her father had agreed to the engagement. She couldn't believe it, holding the family letter and reading it repeatedly several times, before finally looking up at the young man behind Zhang Sanfeng, with a flushed face.

  Zhang Sanfeng was still exchanging pleasantries with Mie Jue, but Yin Litian's heart had already flown to Ji Xiaofu, and his eyes could only see her gentle and elegant smile. When their gazes met, both of them blushed.

  The Extinction Master saw such a situation and knew that this disciple was not suitable to be the master, so she called over Ji Xiaofu to hand over a few words, and also exchanged a few pleasantries with Zhang Sanfeng.

  Yin Liting and Ji Xiaofu are getting married, Wudang and Emei will also become in-laws, naturally more familiar than before. The two sect leaders bid farewell to each other with courtesy, this matter is considered thoroughly settled, only the wedding date needs to be fixed.

  Yin Litian's anxiety and longing over the past few months suddenly turned into sweet anticipation, Zhang Sanfeng saw that youthful appearance in his eyes, but didn't say a word, letting him follow behind with a distracted mind, and Yin Litian's "abnormality" was maintained until they returned to the mountain, several Taoist children saw his appearance and quietly laughed.

  Fortunately, Yin Litian had not completely fallen into the thoughts of a gentleman, and as soon as he returned to the mountain, he remembered to go see his senior brother, junior sister, and Qing Shu's nephew.

  All these years, Song Yuanqiao has been in charge of the Wudang Sect's internal affairs and rarely goes out into the Jianghu. Yao Guang is unwilling to come down from the mountain because his skills are not yet complete. Yu Lianzhuo and others think that having a senior brother and a junior sister on the mountain to accompany their master and teach their juniors is also good, but unfortunately they still have one thing that they didn't think of, as a result every time someone comes back to the mountain, they are all shocked.

  Three years ago, Song Qingchu began to learn the basics of martial arts. Song Yuqiao didn't dare to trouble his master Zhang Sanfeng and decided to teach his son himself. However, as the leader of the Wudang Sect, he had many responsibilities that took up a lot of his time. As a result, Song Qingchu's studies were gradually neglected. Later on, one morning when Yao Guang was reading the Taoist scriptures, she called out to Song Qingchu and told him to follow along and recite with her. Before long, everyone discovered that the three-year-old boy was already following behind the nine-year-old girl, asking her questions like "Little Shifu, how do you read this character?" and "Little Shifu, what does this sentence mean?"

  Several people originally thought it was funny, thinking that this situation was very funny. Even if one hears the Tao has a before and after, and those who attain it become teachers, how can a nine-year-old child become someone else's teacher? However, they thought for a moment and were all stunned. One by one, with various excuses, they followed Yao Guang and Song Qing Shu to listen for several days. After that, even the words of persuading Song Yuan Qiao to invite a tutor couldn't be spoken.

  Song Qing was born with a clever and intelligent mind, diligent and studious. Every day, he followed Yāo Guāng to recite books. Not only did he memorize the "Three Character Classic" and "Thousand Character Classic", but also many Taoist scriptures that Yāo Guāng often recited, even if he didn't fully understand their meaning. He could recite them fluently. After Yāo Guāng explained the more straightforward parts of the "Analects", "Mencius", and "Zhuangzi", Song Qing remembered them very well and was good at drawing inferences. He was also thoughtful and asked questions, making several adults sweat after being questioned for half a day. They thought that if they were in his shoes, they would have difficulty withstanding the child's unconventional thinking. What made them even more ashamed was that Yāo Guāng, who seemed to only practice calligraphy and never touched books, could answer each question one by one, citing extensively from classics, histories, and various schools of thought, with a demeanor as if he were a great Confucian scholar. If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, who would have believed it?

  Yu Lianzhou was silent for a moment, saying that he didn't know how well his little junior sister's handwriting had been practiced. Now he only worried that if Qing Shu followed his little junior sister to practice writing, the result would be a woman-like handwriting, fearing it would make people laugh.

  Zhang Songxi heard this and immediately looked at Yu Dayan, who coughed and took out a prescription from his sleeve, the ink still fresh.

  Several people passed it around, all fell silent, and then each found a reason to leave, either to see the master, or to see the eldest senior brother, or to see the younger junior brother, or to go look at the green pines on the mountain, one by one they all dispersed.

  The prescription was written in regular script, with bold and vigorous strokes, elegant and majestic, with a strong foundation and hidden sharpness. The style of writing is grand and atmospheric, and anyone who has studied calligraphy can see at a glance that this is the "Yan style" that has been practiced to some extent, and has grasped its essence. This handwriting, not to mention feminine charm, even men rarely have such bearing, except for Zhang Sanfeng and the now missing Zhang Cuishan, on Wudang Mountain, there may not be better than this.

  Calligraphy has "Yan's tendons and Liu's bones", "Yan" refers to Yan Zhenqing.

  Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy was initially learned from Yu Shinan, and later he also got the brush method from Zhang Xu. He changed his initial habit of writing in the early Tang Dynasty from thin and long to square, with thick and strong strokes, good at using middle-tip brushwork, rich in muscles and bones, and also having sharp edges. This style of calligraphy is majestic and powerful, with a strong and robust structure, a grand and elegant atmosphere, and a dignified and generous demeanor, possessing the spirit of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. His running script is vigorous and forceful, revealing his true emotions, with a calm structure, and flying dots and strokes, forming a unique style.

  Yan Zhenqing's literary and military talents were both outstanding, and his calligraphy was majestic and dignified, making him a model for later generations. Therefore, people in later times called Yan Zhenqing's calligraphy "Yan Style". Ouyang Xiu once praised: "Yan Gong's book is like a loyal minister and a martyr, a virtuous gentleman, with a stern and respectful demeanor, which makes people fear at first sight, but the more they see it, the more lovable it becomes. Although there are many treasures in the world, his calligraphy is not tiresome even if seen many times."

  Su Shi also praised him by saying: "Poetry stops at Du Fu, and calligraphy stops at Yan Lu Gong". Later generations of people who practiced calligraphy imitated "Yan Style" countless times.

  In the past, Wudang's Five Heroes, Zhang Cuishan, was nicknamed "Silver Hook Iron Painting". He feared that others would laugh at him, so he worked hard to practice calligraphy. His house had many famous works of art, and naturally, there were also Yan Gong's letter posts. So Yu Lianzhu and others thought that Yao Guang had copied the letter post from Zhang Cuishan, but no matter what, they couldn't think that Yao Guang's handwriting was not a copy of the letter post, but actually written by Yan Zhenqing himself!

  During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, Yan Zhenqing retreated to the Wanhua Valley and was revered by the valley's master, Dongfang Yuxuan, as the "Sage of Calligraphy". Many students in the valley learned from him, including Yao Guang who had also listened in on his teachings. Yan Zhenqing did not keep his skills private, instead he wholeheartedly guided everyone, telling them that to learn calligraphy one must practice diligently and understand thoroughly. He instructed everyone to study hard without ceasing. Yao Guang still vividly remembered the countless "yong" characters she had written at that time, which was also her first experience of how holding a brush could be as exhausting as wielding a sword, with her arm feeling like it weighed a thousand jun. It wasn't until then that Yao Guang began to work hard on her calligraphy skills, and when she was tired from practicing sword fighting, she would use branches to write and draw in the snow.

  After rebirth, Yao Guang had not forgotten what she learned in the past. However, due to her young age, she lacked strength in her arms and was somewhat clumsy with her hands. But after practicing for five or six years, her strength had mostly recovered, and her brushstrokes were no longer awkward. It's not an exaggeration to say that this handwriting has been honed for over twenty years. Judging by the standards of a normal nine-year-old child, the Seven Heroes of Wudang would have nothing to say. Instead, they intentionally or unintentionally went to Song Yuanqiao to congratulate him on finding a good teacher for Qing Shu. When Song Yuanqiao learned about this, he too fell silent for a long time before saying, "If Little Sister is willing to teach, then let her be Qing Shu's teacher."

  So this matter became a certainty, and the nine-year-old girl teaching the three-year-old boy appeared on Mount Wudang, and this strange scene continued for many years. The Seven Heroes of Wudang only felt that some memories of the past had been revived, so they each took out the Four Books and Five Classics to secretly study.

  Yin Litian returned with a pleased smile, and Song Yuqiao knew the result from his expression. After congratulating him a few times, he asked about the meaning of Emei Sect's Extinct Master's words, and finally said: "Little Shimei took Qing Shu to the back mountain."

  "Thank you, big brother!" Yin Litian bowed with a fist and hurried towards the back mountain.

  The author has something to say: Wu Dang Qi Xia: Being surpassed by a younger sister is one thing, but if I'm also surpassed by a younger brother, how can I live with myself?! Where would my old face go?!

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  Song Qing Shu: Young Master Uncle, I found out Father is also reading books at night.

  Yao Guang: En, Master Brother is diligent in his studies.

  Song Qing Shu: Little Shifu, I found Second Shifu secretly reading a book.

  Yao Guang: ... Second Master is also a quick learner.

  Song Qing Shu: Little Shifu, I found Third Shifu secretly reading a book.

  Yao Guang: ...Everyone is so eager to learn.

  Song Qing Shu: Young Master, Fourth Master asked me what book I am studying now.

  Yao Guang: Fourth Brother is worried about you.

  Song Qing Shu: Young Master, Sixth Master is looking for me to borrow a book.

  Yao Guang: Lend it to him.

  Song Qing Shu: Young Master, Seventh Master also asked me to borrow books.

  Yao Guang: ……

  Song Qing Shu: My masters are so formidable and yet they still study, I must work even harder!

  Yao Guang: Uh-huh.

  Then the Seven Heroes of Wudang worked even harder...