Chapter 3: Bar Talk

Beijing is one of the most cutting-edge cities in China, and the bar culture here is also particularly developed. In 1993, when many cities in China still didn’t have so-called bars, bars were already blooming all over the place in Beijing.

Although I have lived in Beijing for several years, I am not a trend-chasing person, or I am simply a very provincial person at heart. This was the first time I had ever set foot in a bar.

Dim lighting, some ambiguous music, people I couldn’t see clearly, the unique smell of a bar, all of this was so unfamiliar to me that I even felt a little dizzy.

Standing at the entrance of the bar, I saw the man at a glance. He also saw me at a glance, holding a glass of red wine and making a toast gesture at me.

A person who has cultivated himself has a different aura from ordinary people, and it is normal for us to see each other at a glance.

Taking a deep breath, I walked over to the man. He was sitting in the corner, looking carefree. He pointed to the sofa next to him and said to me, “Sit down.”

I sat down without any hesitation, but I didn’t know what to say to him for a while. Just as I was about to take out my cigarette, he handed me a cigar and a strange pair of scissors and said, “Would you like one? Or do you need me to cut it for you?”

I pushed his hand away, took out my own cigarette, lit it, and said to him, “I’ve never smoked before, so I probably won’t be able to get used to it, and I certainly don’t know how to cut this thing.”

When I said this, I thought of my master, who liked to squat in the fields and fields, and liked to smoke a pipe… Maybe I like it better too.

When I think of this, a smile appears on my face.

But then, at this moment, the man poured me another glass of red wine. The bright red wine hanging in the crystal glass had a unique beauty. Unfortunately, I was used to drinking hot and spicy white wine with my master, and I was used to the unique aroma of wine. This red wine, at most, I thought it was beautiful, but I didn’t have any desire to drink it.

“This bottle of wine is mine. This bar doesn’t have such good stuff. 82 years, huh… you want to try it?” He smiled again, as usual, and said to me, “Do you know about red wine? Do you want me to tell you which winery it is from?”

I didn’t touch the wine, but I did take a puff of my cigarette and then said to him, “Sorry, I don’t know anything about wine either. But your cigars, in my eyes, may not be as smooth as a Red Tower Mountain cigarette. Your wine, in my eyes, may not be as good as a cup of Daqu. If you’re just going to introduce me to wine and cigars, then I’m going to leave.”

After I said that, I was really ready to leave, but the man stopped me. He said, “Do you see the difference? The difference between one generation and the next?”

What did he mean by that? I raised my eyebrows, but instead of leaving, I sat down again and waited to hear what he had to say.

Seeing that I was not leaving, the man smiled again, proudly, and said, “My name is Xiao Chengqian. You see, I am also in the Cheng generation. Isn’t that a coincidence? It’s also a coincidence that I am also in the Shan generation.”

My heart suddenly became uneasy. The surname Shan, the generation of characters, is the same as mine. Could it be that he has a connection with our family? But my face was very calm, and I asked him very calmly, “Then what?”

“Then? Haha… Then I also admit that Old Li, your ancestor, was a very capable person, but his descendants and I lead completely different lives. Do you know what kind of life I lead? You can almost call me a nobleman. I can wear the best clothes, eat the best food, drink the best wine, and have the most beautiful women. The important thing is that I don’t lack any resources for cultivation. But what about you? What do you have? You and your master are also living hand to mouth, right? And how long can you continue to cultivate? This is what ruins the Dao.” Xiao Chengqian said to me with some excitement.

But I looked at him calmly, without saying a word, and let him continue.

“Cultivators are different from others. What are the cultivators after they have cultivated? They are immortals! The predecessors of all the gods and Buddhas are also cultivators, right? Therefore, cultivators are originally a higher class of being, they are aristocrats! What is our goal? There is only one, that is, metaphysics, and ultimately becoming an immortal. The rest is not important, do you understand? It’s not important!” Xiao Chengqian’s eyes had a hint of madness.

I asked, “Nothing is important? Not even the means? The word ‘I’ is the most important.”

He took a sip of red wine, looked at me with a smug cigar in his mouth, and said, “As the grandson of that smelly, stubborn old man, have you ever had a moment of enlightenment? Do you understand the way of ‘I’? The heart is the self, and the will of the self is everything. There are three thousand great roads and countless small roads. The self is my way. No matter how the road is traveled, the destination is the same as the goal. Do you need to care about the means in the middle? Even the universe is an “I.” Its rules are the laws of heaven, isn’t that so?”

I put out my cigarette, smiled a little, and said, “Are you saying that if you become a fairy or a god, or, um, the most powerful fairy or god, or even reach the level of the universe, you will be the way of heaven?”

He said with a squint: “You can also understand it that way.”

“You seem to want to convince me and then recognize your way,” I said leaning back on the sofa.

“Convincing Old Li was something my master always wanted to do, but he never did it. I really want to convince his disciple. I just want to tell you that cultivators follow their hearts, and their hearts are not bound. Don’t be sour and rotten, that’s not Taoism, it’s Confucianism. As long as you nod, you can live like a nobleman, have the resources you want to cultivate, and you can live with a pure heart.” Xiao Chengqian’s face was full of arrogance.

I suddenly laughed, then drank the red wine on the table in one gulp, then snatched his cigar, took two deep breaths, and then put it back in his hand before saying, “I’ve drunk the wine and smoked the cigar. I’m sorry, but I don’t think this noble lifestyle is anything to envy. Even if you have all the cultivation resources in the world, so what? What you get is just a stinking body. Or, what you think of as metaphysics is like… well, let’s say, is that pile of flesh on your body flying up into the sky? Just as you foolishly think, the so-called true self is to live arrogantly?

Facing my words, Xiao Chengqian’s smile suddenly froze. He once again revealed that gloomy smile and looked at me and said, “Chen Chengyi, right? Do you want to prove to me that you are as hard and as smelly as your master? Do you know why people in this world don’t believe in immortals? It’s because they don’t see them, and the power of immortals is suppressed by other forces, like science. But what is science? It is only worthy of metaphysics to hold shoes. It is only an auxiliary tool! Only by proving the existence of immortals and pursuing the mysteries of metaphysics, can one be of great service to humanity. Is the means important? When was the road to Tao forbidden to be bloody? Don’t become a stone in the way of the road!

“You have said that there are thousands of paths, and countless small paths. What do you mean by denying science? What is the point of your judgment? I really don’t want to argue with you, because I don’t know if you are cultivating the Dao or have already become a demon. I just want to tell you simply that the people in this world, including me, have not seen the so-called immortals, but it is not yet at a level where they can be seen. This is not a shameful thing that hinders the Dao. It is just necessary training. You must also remember that what is important for a person is never the body, but the soul, the heart. And this heart, you who are already on the verge of becoming a madman, will never be able to understand. You are not a fish, so how can you know the joy of being a fish? I don’t understand your extremism, and you don’t need to understand my persistence. I can’t live your aristocratic life, and I can’t recognize your methods. I don’t care if you are a god or not. I just know that on this path, as long as I walk peacefully, I will eventually find the way I want.

After saying this, I no longer paid any attention to Xiao Chengqian, stood up and was about to leave the bar.

Xiao Chengqian shouted behind me, “Chen Chengyi, one day, you will be beaten to the ground by me and say that you are wrong.”

“That’s just in your dreams.” I didn’t turn around. In that moment, I finally knew what kind of crazy organization I was facing.