Chapter 33: Master’s Arrangement
Will I see Xiaoding again soon? Why? What is the opportunity? Is it because of the great era?
But the master didn’t say anything, but walked forward with one foot deep and one foot shallow. This place was also an unknown wild mountain, and there was no road at all. It was already a good thing to be able to walk like this.
I didn’t spend much time with Xiaoding, but the fact that we had crossed paths when we were young and now we were together again by some strange twist of fate left a very good impression on me. From a certain point of view, I had relied on him for life and death, so I was filled with reluctance.
From time to time, I turned around and waved to Xiaoding. In the moonlight, Xiaoding waved back to me again and again. When we passed a corner with a lot of trees, I could no longer see Xiaoding, so I gently lowered my hand, speechless.
This kind of thing that creates deep friendship in a short period of time has happened to me more than once.
The first time was obviously with Ru Yue and Yang Sheng. Now our feelings have deepened beyond friendship, similar to family affection.
As for the other one, it has become a permanent regret in my heart.
I often ask myself why I have such feelings for Yang Sheng. Obviously, we didn’t spend much time together, but the reason is that he appeared at the right time. After all, my childhood experiences made my classmates full of curiosity about me, and the only one who really got close to me was Su Rou.
As for Ru Yue and Yang Sheng, they were the first friends I made and I felt a sense of friendship.
The memory of that station in the drizzle made me feel the helplessness and sadness of parting for the first time in my life. It made me realize for the first time that life is not just about getting together, but that in many cases, parting is longer than getting together.
If you have someone by your side who is more important to you than anyone else, whether it be a lover or an old friend, then you should cherish that relationship, for it is a great blessing.
In short, the first time in my life, the coming and going of people, made Yang Sheng take root in my heart… But I never thought that the people who would hurt you would take root in your heart with thorns.
Sometimes exaggerated behavior is just because something is affecting the heart, and when something affects the heart, no matter how deep the pain, it is worth forgiving yourself.
When I came, there was a full moon, and when I left, there was still a full moon. I was so silent that my master, who was walking next to me, couldn’t help but ask, “What are you thinking about?”
“I was thinking about the coming and going of life,” I replied to my master in a low voice. In this wild mountain and wilderness, the sounds were mixed, but in fact it was a silent environment. I was inexplicably afraid to speak loudly, and I inexplicably experienced a certain kind of awe of being in nature.
This kind of awe cannot be experienced until one reaches a certain age, truly calms down, and truly experiences being in nature (not in a crowded tourist area).
This is the instinctive awe of man for the world, for the mountains and rivers, for nature!
“Yes, there are many comings and goings in life… but in essence, isn’t life also a coming and going? But it’s not simply that you come when you come and go when you go… it’s not about what you take away, but what you leave behind. After all, you can’t take anything away, so what can you leave behind? But for a long time, many people thought that as long as they left behind a pile of blood, that was the greatest thing they could leave behind. Where is the value of that person? Where does the value of their life shine?” The master’s voice was also very low, but it seemed to penetrate the layers of darkness and the barren mountains, speaking to the heavens.
“Master…” I couldn’t help but hold his arm and walk with him in the wild mountains, deep and shallow. I suddenly thought of a sentence that had left a deep impression on my life: “Master, do you remember my rock and roll style at that time?”
“Well, why did you suddenly bring that up?” Under the moonlight, Master’s face was full of confusion, but also full of warm memories.
“The point is not that time… It was later. Didn’t I become obsessed with a band called Beyond? You often scolded me, saying that I didn’t understand the lyrics, and that I should listen to Peking opera instead.” I smiled, remembering the distant past and a sentence that touched the depths of my heart.
It was as if these things were full of some kind of energy, warming my heart and giving me extra peace of mind in the wild mountains and dangerous pursuits and searches.
“Yes, there was such a thing. What’s the point?” At this moment, the master had stopped in a bright place. The moonlight was shining down, and I could see a little more clearly. The master took out a map, spread it on a rock, and took out a small flashlight. It looked like he was going to carefully study the map.
“The point is, later I accidentally watched TV and saw an interview with the lead singer of that band. He said something like, ‘When you need something from society, the first step is to ask yourself what you have given to society. I gave music.’ Master, this sentence has lingered in my heart for a long time, a long time…” I said softly, recalling the words that had lingered in my heart for a long time when I was young.
The Master looked up and glanced at me, then suddenly asked me, “Did a singer say that?”
“Yes,” I nodded.
His expression became solemn, and then he said to me seriously, “This is a very good thing to say. I really hope that when I, or you, have to leave, we can also ask ourselves this question: What have we given, even if it is just a small responsibility to society or the world? In short, what have we given? This is a very good thing to say… This is the coming and going of life. What is left behind?”
“Mm,” I nodded again.
The master didn’t say anything else, but started to carefully study the map with a flashlight.
The mountain ridge was quiet again at night, and I kept tossing a bamboo tube in my hand, which contained medicine to repel snakes and insects. When I was very young, Old Wu gave me one, and now Xiaoding has given me a few more, so I am not afraid of anything strange hiding at my feet or approaching me when I walk in the wild mountains and desolate valleys.
The master studied the map very carefully. After about 20 minutes, he called out to me in a low voice, and I pointed out a way.
From the sprawling mountains, this road is a bit circuitous, not the fastest way to get out of the mountains and to a populated area. I can’t measure the distance on the map, but if we really have to take this route, I roughly estimate that it will take at least three days for us to get out of the mountains.
“Master, why don’t we take this route? We can get out of the mountains quickly and reach a populated village,” I asked the master softly, pointing to another safe route marked by Ding.
I don’t know what’s in these vast mountains, and Xiaoding has to deliberately mark out safe routes, but I believe Xiaoding has his reasons. I even know that this map has revealed a great secret of Snake Gate, because many of these routes directly exist as secret passages.
Isn’t the secret passage the greatest secret of Snake Mountain in this sacred mountain? But the path chosen by Master has fewer secret passages and more places where you can walk in the open.
I don’t know how many forces Yang Sheng has sent out to search for the traces of me and Master, but I at least know that Yang Sheng, such a radical person, will never give up searching for me and Master easily when he doesn’t see them alive or dead.
Then isn’t it dangerous to walk in the open? Even if the preparations are done well, there is still a chance that we will meet!
There are two reasons for this choice. Let me start with the more obvious one. It’s because this village is almost the closest place to the mountain from here, and it’s very obvious that the village is close to this mountain range… The location where we entered the mountain is actually not too far from here. Judging from the markings on the map, it’s about 20 kilometers away. I don’t think this is a safe distance. Just imagine, what if Yang Sheng leads his men to ambush us here?” Master looked at me and said the first reason.
I thought about it carefully and agreed. According to the way people think, most people would choose this village to leave the mountain… Even if they didn’t, it would be normal for the enemy to set up some ambushes there if their search was fruitless.
Thinking about this, I nodded.
My master continued, “The exit I chose is a section of road. There are many such sections of road around this mountain range. A section of road that is unexpected can naturally break their pre-arranged ambush. But I also said long ago that man proposes, God disposes. If we encounter bad luck like this, there is nothing we can do about it. But at least we can observe the situation from a distance on the mountain, and retreat into the deep mountains. This is a small measure of prevention. The most important thing is that we are very close to this secret passage, and we still have a chance to get away.”
As he spoke, the master pointed to a certain point on the map, looking thoughtful.
“Oh, Master, is this the reason you chose the two?” I said, but I was actually wondering why this particular section of road was chosen when there were other similar sections. Maybe it was a coincidence?
But geographically, this route is not the fastest way to enter the Tibetan region.
“Of course not!” Master said simply. “I haven’t told you the second reason yet. The second reason is because I’m going to take you with me. Our next destination is Xiangxi… first go there!”
What? Didn’t we say we were going to the snow-capped mountains? Why are we going to Xiangxi?