Chapter 53: The Labyrinth

“Put your pants on. Is it not humiliating enough?” My father yelled at me, probably wanting to beat me up, but not being able to do so because of my appearance.

I endured the pain and pulled up my pants. It was so hot that rubbing against the crotch hurt, but I had to stand there quietly because the old man was going to teach me a lesson.

“Look at this exam paper. It’s obvious that the red pen marks are different, the handwriting is different, and I don’t want to say anything else. Wait a minute, go get a brush, it’s on the table, write 200 of your names with the brush, do you hear me?” Old man Jiang said.

I was so upset. Not only did I have to write the answers, but I also had to write my name 200 times? How many characters would that be?

“If you don’t finish writing, you won’t be allowed to eat. I must tell you that if you bring me the exam paper with the bad grades today, you will be beaten ten times and then have to write your name 50 times. If you can sincerely tell me that you will work hard in the future and let me see your performance, then you may not be beaten, but you will have to write your name 50 times. But why did you get beaten like this? First, because of cheating. Second, because you are afraid to face your mistakes. What kind of behavior is cheating? It is a flaw in character. People with flaws in character will eventually pay the price, even if they are lucky enough to succeed for a while. As for not being able to face up to your mistakes, it means not being able to accept the consequences. You reap what you sow. If you don’t study hard, you have to accept the consequences of failing the exam. If you don’t accept it and try to avoid it, the consequences will only be worse. Just like if you get 50 strokes with a bamboo stick, you will have to write your name 200 times. Old Jiang said to me slowly, word by word.

His words were not profound, but he wanted me to understand the truth. He hit me because I had caused the ‘fruit’ myself, and because there was deception in the middle, the ‘evil’ was even more serious!

In the end, my father didn’t beat me after all, and I obediently wrote “Chen Chengyi” in my notebook on the stone table.

At this point, Su Rou’s parents came with Su Rou. It was simple. Su Rou had also been found to have changed his score.

Joking aside, Su Rou’s mother is a very shrewd person. She keeps a detailed account of the family’s expenses. After dinner, she would look at Su Rou’s exam papers, and the scores didn’t match up.

Upon closer inspection, the color of the score was wrong, so Su Rou was exposed. So, under the threat of not being able to eat, my brave “Red Army soldier” was betrayed by Su Rou, and so the family of three came to complain.

My father’s anger was aroused again, and he didn’t beat me, but he scolded me. My master was even more direct, and he said that I should be punished for misbehavior and write 50 times.

I, on the other hand, cursed the ancestors of the pastry chef in my stomach. You pastry chef, what did you have to do that for? 81 had to be changed to 87. You were looking for a fight, and you got beaten up even more, not to mention that you dragged me down with you.

Son of a bitch!

After that, my behavior was put under a “curse” by the old man Jiang. The first rule was not to lie, the second was to be open and honest, the third was not to do anything that would benefit oneself at the expense of others, and the fourth was to have principles in everything you do. I set the limits of my principles myself, but I must not do evil, and I must not be self-centered in everything. In other words, I must not be selfish in everything.

Old Master Jiang said, “You are a person who wants to cultivate the Way. I don’t care about others, but those who cultivate the Way with me must first cultivate virtue. Virtue is fundamental. A person without virtue is like a house without a foundation. Even if one day it is cultivated to the sky, it will fall down.”

I didn’t quite understand what he was saying, but I was afraid that he would punish me, so I had to listen to him. Whether it was to forcefully regulate my behavior or to prevent me from going astray in advance, he always grasped the key point of early education, which basically became a criterion for my future work.

In addition, there was another decision that made me “tearful.” From then on, my test scores would be compared to Liu Chunyan’s, and I couldn’t score less than 10 points lower than anyone else in any subject. Otherwise, hmm…

I think I can easily reach and exceed this standard in sports, but in other subjects…

I cursed in my heart and finally made Liu Chunyan my first “enemy” in life.

Three days later, I went to the mountain. I finally went to the mountain. Old Master Jiang had been back for so long. From the first day he said he would take me as his apprentice, to now, I, Chen Chengyi, am going to formally become his disciple.

This is not the fault of the old man Jiang, nor is it my fault. Who could have predicted that so many things would happen since the old man Jiang returned? And to this day, there is still a hungry ghost tomb in the village.

Entering the school of martial arts depends on the day of birth. Old Master Jiang is not someone who pays attention to these things. He believes that there is a fixed number in one’s destiny, and that one cannot escape or lose it. However, when it comes to entering the school, Old Master Jiang pays particular attention to it, and he is not exempt from the customs.

The day he finished his work, he came to tell my father the date, but he interrupted me while I was correcting my papers, which was a moral lesson for me before I entered the sect.

The initiation ceremony was to be held in the mountains. He said that there was a temporary retreat on the mountain that he had built many years ago, shortly after he arrived in this area, and that he had gradually improved it.

After this time, he probably tidied it up a bit, and it can now be used as a place for initiation ceremonies.

“This time I’ll just take Sanwa up there. I’ll bring him back in the evening, but after tonight, Sanwa will come to live with me every day after school, and on Saturdays and Sundays he’ll stay at home. On weekdays, you can also come up to the mountain to see him. I’ll tell you how to get to my place.” This is what the old man said to my family before I went up the mountain with him.

At that time, my mother’s tears fell, and my father and two sisters looked unhappy, reluctant to let him go.

Fortunately, my eldest sister’s straightforward personality came into play at this time, saying, “The mountain is right behind our village, so close, you can go see him every day if you want. We still have students living in the school dormitory, so just think of him as a boarding student.”

Hearing this, my parents immediately felt better, and they happily saw me and Mr. Jiang off to the foot of the mountain.

Then the old man took me up the mountain. There was a road up the mountain, but it couldn’t really be called a road. It was just a relatively clear path, but it was only used to climb the mountain, and it was definitely not a complete path.

As I said, the mountains are not high, but they are endless, typical of the hilly terrain of Sichuan.

After walking on the main road for a while, Jiang Laotou took me into a relatively remote path. The path was not easy to walk along, but Jiang Laotou walked very easily.

After walking on the path for ten minutes, at a turning point where the path turned downward, Jiang Laotou took me up the hill, and there was actually a faint path.

Ordinary people would never think that there is a road going up in this terrain.

After walking along that hidden path for less than 5 minutes, I saw a lush bamboo forest. Unlike the gloomy bamboo forest in the cemetery, this bamboo forest gave people a feeling of freshness and elegance, which made people feel very comfortable.

“Bamboo is a hollow plant, which is destined to cultivate its own energy field. It is the best place to cultivate a yin energy field. When placed in a quiet and peaceful environment, it can also form this kind of peaceful ‘energy’, which is the most calming for people.” Old man Jiang said casually.

I nodded and in my heart I had a new understanding of the plant bamboo. It turns out that the same thing can have completely different effects and results in different environments.

This shows that it is not the object itself that matters, but the heart of the person holding it.

A bamboo forest can be made into a place for nourishing the yin by someone with a heart for it, or it can be made into a place for quiet meditation by someone with a heart for it.

The mountain breeze carries the aroma of the trees and plants, and at this time, I also hear the sound of the babbling brook. My heart is suddenly filled with a sense of cool comfort and tranquility.

When I was about to enter the bamboo forest, the old man suddenly looked serious. “Sanwa, you have to be careful when you walk in this bamboo forest. I’m not responsible if you get lost. You can spend the night in this bamboo forest.”

I was a little dissatisfied and said loudly, “Master, I’m not a fool. Can’t I get out of a bamboo forest?”

Old man Jiang glanced at me and said, “I have set up some small formations in this bamboo forest. Unless you are lucky, you really can’t get in unless I tell you how to get in.”

“A formation?” I didn’t understand any of this stuff at all. I always thought that it was just a bamboo forest, so what kind of formation could really stop people?

“It’s not a very magical formation. It’s easy to break it. Just cut down all the bamboo here. It’s just that Taoism emphasizes spiritual cultivation, and a formation is only used to prevent disturbance or accidental intrusion. Since you want to be my disciple, you will also learn formations. Now follow me well. It’s just a trifle. Walk well. Remember it well.” After the old man Jiang finished speaking, he led the way into the bamboo forest.

Thanks to his reminder, I quickly followed him into the bamboo forest.