Cultivation Through The Ages... Chapter 101
As soon as he finished speaking, the other two younger brothers with lower status immediately spoke up: "Xu Liu and Xu Qi are willing to go serve the noble people in the east wing of the house, please trouble the manager to arrange it."
The young man with a yellow face secretly sighed in his heart, but his mouth replied: "It doesn't matter, I have a slip of paper here, which is written with the names of all the brothers who need to be servants. You can draw it yourself."
Those two brothers were overjoyed and hastily took a wooden tube handed over by the young man with a yellow face, and went to one side to carefully select the slips.
The young man with a yellow face looked at Xu Qing again: "This brother just didn't speak, I think he has other options."
Xu Qing lowered his head and said with a sincere and fearful tone: "Xu Qing is incompetent, willing to do some miscellaneous tasks, to share the worries of the clan..."
Alas, this is even more lacking in initiative. The young man with a yellow face could only hand over a yellow leather book and said, "What's recorded inside is exactly where my family needs someone to do chores, you can choose one yourself."
Xu Qing said thank you and took it to carefully look through.
Why is Huang Lian's youth so regretful? It's really because the clan leader gave the three options to the lower-ranking disciples, all of which have their own considerations.
One aspect is that the inner courtyard needs to be managed by reliable family members, and on the other hand, it's also about whether these people with lower qualifications can make up for their deficiencies from other aspects.
The first option is the most challenging, where one takes on tasks independently. Although it seems difficult, each task actually polishes and refines a person from many aspects. Once they persevere through this period with their own efforts, even if their innate talent is lacking, there are still many who break through to the third layer of Qi Refining before the age of 50 due to their unyielding determination. At that time, they will be directly sent to Fei Xue Mountain, where they will receive guidance from the elders and spiritual cleansing with sacred medicine. Afterwards, their path to immortality will likely become smooth and unobstructed.
The second task is to serve others, but serving others is not an easy job. What's more, if it falls into the hands of someone with a bad temper...it will be even harder to get by. The brothers who choose this task are half ambitious and half greedy. If they are the former, they can endure humiliation and hardship and may eventually succeed, but those who cannot endure will be eliminated quickly. The sect will not plead for fairness for those with poor qualifications towards those with good qualifications. As for the latter, most of them can get by without much difficulty, but these people put all their thoughts into how to curry favor, so how can they cultivate seriously?
Moreover, those who have succeeded in enduring humiliation and bearing heavy burdens cannot help but harbor resentment when thinking of the past, and their loyalty to their clan is also low. Those who are greedy for profit are themselves wallhead grass and will not be liked by others.
So those who made this second choice are actually the people that Zhong family dislikes the most.
The third type is the miscellaneous personnel. Those who choose this path are often timid and content with their current situation, lacking ambition, as described by the yellow-faced youth. Although people of this kind have very limited achievements, they are actually the most reliable ones in the clan because they dare not deviate from the status quo and are honest, able to make more contributions to the clan. Therefore, although the clan is disappointed that they wasted their originally meager spiritual connection, they cannot do without the existence of these people.
The young man with a yellow face didn't think for long, and the two people who were chosen first had already made their choice. The young man with a yellow face asked them about the person they chose, then told the two of them the route to the specific address where the brothers lived. The two thanked him and quickly left the place.
Xu Qing flipped through the yellow booklet on the other side, selecting very carefully.
Indeed, Xu Qing was a carefree person, but not a timid and weak one. He simply had no intention of getting involved in the affairs of the immortal sect from the beginning, and after arriving at the Zong family, he found it to be full of intrigue and complexity, so with his nature, he naturally did not want to get entangled in this muddy water.
When Xu Qing entered the inner hall, he had already seen that there were good fields and gardens with fruit trees, flowers, and medicinal herbs, and the scenery was very beautiful. If he chose a miscellaneous task, he would probably have something related to it, so he chose one of them and went far away to spend his days, which should not be much different from when he was in Xujiacun.
Sure, here is the translation:
As expected, after flipping through the yellow booklet, Xu Qing found what he was thinking of. There were three things that were quite to his liking.
One of them is to take care of the fruit trees in the orchard, which requires watering and fertilizing every day, weeding and pest control, pruning and cutting branches... However, there are dozens of people doing the same thing, all managed by a single person named Hong.
Secondly, in the spiritual field, we need to plow the land, sow seeds, transplant seedlings, and manage them. It's not much different from what Xu Qing saw in the countryside when he was young. There are many people working together, all under the management of a person named Zhao Guan Shi.
The third is to work in the Hundred Grass Garden, where flowers and grass need to be tended with care, and everything needs to be taken care of. Moreover, there is only one person doing miscellaneous tasks, who reports to a single manager named He.
Xu Qing carefully compared the three miscellaneous tasks and finally chose the third one. In his previous life, he was confined to his house, except for relatives taking turns to accompany him, there was only a small patch of grass that never left his side, which he could take care of from time to time. Now thinking about it, it feels quite intimate, and the location of Bai Cao Garden is remote, which is really suitable.
He then turned the book to page eighty-seven and handed it to the yellow-faced young man, saying: "Xu Qing is willing to go to Bai Cao Garden to do miscellaneous tasks."
The young man with a yellow face didn't say much after seeing him, and directly told the location of Bai Cao Garden. After Xu Qing thanked him and left, his face showed some complex expressions.
This Hundred Herb Garden seems like a good place, but it's actually Old Man He's territory. That old man is extremely eccentric, and previously many disciples who took on this seemingly decent task were driven out by him in just a few days. Who knows how long this one will last?
The young man with a yellow face didn't look good. Xu Qing was completely unaware of this. He simply followed the youth's directions and walked for about half an hour before finally arriving at a garden outside.
The door wasn't locked, but as Xu Qing walked forward, he was blocked by an invisible barrier outside. Then a person came out from inside, scolding and shouting, "Which idiot is moving my seal here? Can't you use a spirit tablet?"
Xu Qing felt a pang of guilt and realized he was the one who was wrong. He had grown accustomed to living in the mundane world and hadn't yet developed the self-awareness that came with being a cultivator, so he had forgotten that this seemingly unlocked gate was actually guarded extremely tightly.
He then took out the wooden sign that the yellow-faced youth had given him earlier and carefully sent it forward into the empty space. A white light flashed by, and he tried to walk in again, without any obstruction.
Just a few steps away, he saw an old man coming towards him. The old man was puffing on a dry tobacco pipe, wearing grass shoes on his feet, and the clothes on his body were also very tattered. Since Xu Qing entered the Zong family, he had never seen such a disheveled person. Was this Old Man He?
The old man saw Xu Qing and puffed on his cigarette, exhaling: "New errand boy?"
He is the new younger brother, doing miscellaneous chores, and this title is not wrong. Xu Qing saw that He Lao was older, so he was even more respectful and courteous, slightly bowing his head to greet him, saying: "Xu Qing has seen Manager."
He Lao's eyes flashed with a hint of unusual color as he scanned Xu Qing from head to toe and said, "It's not easy working for me. If you can't take the hardship, don't blame me for kicking you out."
He didn't deny the title, and it seemed that he was indeed the one in charge. Xu Qing followed closely behind him, and since he had to do this job, he should do his best. Moreover, if he could be with flowers and plants, even if it was hard work, it would still be a sweet experience.
The further she walked into the garden, the more she could feel the air becoming extremely clear. Xu Qing couldn't help but take a deep breath, and immediately felt a fragrance fill her nostrils, making her entire chest feel refreshed.
He certainly couldn't have known that in this world he was reborn into, the space between heaven and earth was filled with a thing called "spirit energy" that was even lighter than the oxygen he used to breathe, and could even cleanse his body and mind. The reason cultivators were able to cultivate was entirely because of it.
This Hundred Herb Garden is actually a medicine garden, specially for cultivating spiritual herbs for the Xu family. Therefore, the spiritual energy inside is exceptionally abundant. He suddenly came in from outside and was enjoying it immensely.
The arrangement in the garden is not as grand and delicate as outside, but rather appears very natural. Every flower, every blade of grass, every clod of earth, and every stone all show no signs of having been carved or cut.
Only to see a path of earth, and then see a clear stream leading directly to the distance. The two sides of the stream are surrounded by low stone railings, forming small pieces of spiritual fields like wedges, each with green shadows and slender grasses.
Along this road, you can see a row of thatched cottages. The front few rooms either hang with farm goods, or display tools, or have medicine racks with large bamboo sieves for drying medicines, all showing signs of being inhabited. Only one smaller room on the outermost side has nothing outside it.
He walked up to the row of thatched cottages, and old man He's pipe rose, pointing to the smallest one, saying: "You live in there, bed and bedding are all available."
Xu Qing nodded: "Yes."
He Lao saw that he was obedient and turned around: "The spiritual grass grown here is not something that a kid like you can move at will." He said, turning back into the house, and when he came out, his hands were already holding several thick books, which he threw to Xu Qing who was waiting honestly, "Take them down and memorize them first."
Xu Qing took over with some effort. He was now in better shape than his previous life and had considerable strength, but when he took over these books, he found them unexpectedly heavy. He still nodded: "I know, He Guan Shi."
Lowering his head slightly to take a glance at the pages, he saw that the top one was "Spirit Grass Identification", presumably to teach him how to identify spirit grass. In this Hundred Herb Garden, it's indeed something that can't be lacking. Although Old Man He's demands were a bit strict, ultimately it was all for his own good, and Xu Qing naturally felt grateful in his heart.
Seeing him so obedient, He Lao Tou looked at Xu Qing with a few more points. Although he is known for his eccentricity, he is not an unreasonable person. The previous disciples who came, in their respective branches, were also high above the top, seeing that he was wearing tattered clothes, and as soon as they met him, they showed disdain towards him. This is already a bad temperament. Later, when he ordered them to memorize the types of spiritual grass first, they were all unwilling, only wanting him to teach them the techniques, such lazy and unpractical people, how could he not be angry!
This new little one looks thin and weak, can't even hold a few medical books steadily, but is neither arrogant nor impatient, and is willing to do things seriously. In He Lao's eyes, as long as he is basically qualified. If in the future he observes that his actions are all sincere and genuine, he will naturally pass on the skills, at which time the new little one can truly become a long-term "杂役" of Baicao Garden.
As soon as he finished speaking, the other two younger brothers with lower status immediately spoke up: "Xu Liu and Xu Qi are willing to go serve the noble people in the east wing of the house, please trouble the manager to arrange it."
The young man with a yellow face secretly sighed in his heart, but his mouth replied: "It doesn't matter, I have a slip of paper here, which is written with the names of all the brothers who need to be servants. You can draw it yourself."
Those two brothers were overjoyed and hastily took a wooden tube handed over by the young man with a yellow face, and went to one side to carefully select the slips.
The young man with a yellow face looked at Xu Qing again: "This brother just didn't speak, I think he has other choices."
Xu Qing lowered his head and said with a sincere and fearful tone: "Xu Qing is incompetent, willing to do some miscellaneous tasks, to share the worries of the clan..."
Alas, this is even more lacking in initiative. The young man with a yellow face could only hand over a yellow leather book and said, "What's recorded here is exactly where my family needs someone to do chores, you can choose one yourself."
Xu Qing said thank you and took it to carefully look through.
Why is Huang Lian's youth so regretful? It's really because the clan leader gave the three options to the lower-ranking disciples, all of which have their own considerations.
One aspect is that the inner courtyard needs to be managed by reliable family members, and on the other hand, it's also about whether these people with lower qualifications can make up for their deficiencies from other aspects.
The first option is the most challenging, where one takes on tasks independently. Although it seems difficult, each task actually polishes and refines a person from many aspects. Once they persevere through this period with their own efforts, even if their innate talent is lacking, there are still many who break through to the third layer of Qi Refining before the age of 50 due to their unyielding determination. At that time, they will be directly sent to Fei Xue Mountain, where they will receive guidance from the elders and spiritual cleansing with sacred medicine. Afterwards, their path to immortality will likely become smooth sailing.
The second is to serve others, and the work of serving others is not easy. What's more, if it falls into the hands of someone with a bad temper...it's even harder to get by. The brothers who choose this task are half ambitious and half greedy. If they are the former, they can endure humiliation and hardship and may succeed in the end, but those who cannot endure will be eliminated quickly. The sect will not plead for justice for those with poor qualifications to those with good qualifications. The latter mostly get by easily, but these people put all their thoughts on how to curry favor, so how can they cultivate seriously?
Moreover, those who have succeeded in enduring humiliation and hardship cannot help but harbor resentment when thinking of the past, and their loyalty to the clan is also low. Those who are greedy for profit are themselves wallheads, and will not be liked by others.
So those who made this second choice are actually the people that Zhong family dislikes the most.
The third type is the miscellaneous personnel. Those who choose this path are mostly timid and content with their current situation, lacking ambition, as described by the yellow-faced youth. Although people of this kind have very limited achievements, they are often the most trustworthy within the clan because they dare not deviate from the status quo and are honest, able to make great contributions to the clan. Therefore, although the clan is disappointed that they wasted their originally meager spiritual connection, they cannot do without the existence of these people.
The young man with a yellow face didn't think for long, and the two people who were chosen first had already made their choice. The young man with a yellow face asked them about their choices, then told the two of them the route to the specific addresses where those brothers lived. The two thanked him and quickly left the place.
Xu Qing flipped through the yellow booklet on the other side, selecting with great caution.
Indeed, Xu Qing was a carefree person, but not a timid and weak one. He had never thought about the matter of immortal fate before, and after arriving at the sect, he felt that it was full of twists and turns inside, so with his nature, he naturally did not want to get involved in this muddy water.
When Xu Qing entered the inner hall, he had already seen that there were good fields and gardens with fruit trees, flowers, and medicinal herbs, and the scenery was very beautiful. If he chose a miscellaneous task, he would probably have something related to it, so he chose one of them and went far away to spend his days, which should not be much different from when he was in Xujiacun.
Sure, here is the translation:
As expected, after flipping through the yellow booklet, Xu Qing found what he was thinking of. There were three things that roughly met his expectations.
One of them is to take care of the fruit trees in the orchard, which requires watering and fertilizing every day, weeding and pest control, pruning and cutting branches... However, there are dozens of people doing the same thing, all managed by a single person named Hong.
Secondly, in the spiritual field, we need to plow the land, sow seeds, transplant seedlings, and manage them. It's not much different from what Xu Qing saw in the countryside when he was young. There are many people working together, all under the management of a person named Zhao Guan Shi.
The third is to work in the Hundred Grass Garden, where flowers and grass need to be tended with care, and everything needs to be taken care of. Moreover, there is only one person doing miscellaneous tasks, who reports to a single manager named He.
Xu Qing carefully compared the three miscellaneous tasks and finally chose the third one. In his previous life, he was confined to his house, except for relatives taking turns to accompany him, there was only a small patch of grass that never left his side, which he could take care of. Now thinking about it, it feels quite intimate, and the location of Bai Cao Garden is remote, which is really suitable.
He then turned the book to page eighty-seven and handed it to the yellow-faced young man, saying: "Xu Qing is willing to go to Bai Cao Garden to do miscellaneous tasks."
The young man with a yellow face didn't say much after seeing him, but directly told the location of Bai Cao Garden. After Xu Qing thanked and left, his face showed some complex expressions.
This Hundred Herb Garden seems like a good place, but it's actually Old Man He's territory. That old man is extremely eccentric, and previously many disciples had chosen this seemingly good task, only to be driven out by the old man one after another. Who knows how long this one will last?
The young man with a yellow face didn't look good. Xu Qing was completely unaware of this. He simply followed the youth's directions and walked for about half an hour before finally arriving at a garden outside.
The door wasn't locked, but as Xu Qing walked forward, he was blocked by an invisible barrier outside. Then a person came out from inside, scolding and shouting: "Which idiot is moving my seal here? Can't you use a spirit plate?"
Xu Qing felt a pang of guilt and realized he was the one who was wrong. He had grown accustomed to living in the mundane world and hadn't yet developed the self-awareness required for a cultivator's realm, so he had forgotten that this seemingly unlocked gate was actually guarded with extreme vigilance.
He then took out the wooden plaque that the yellow-faced youth had given him earlier and carefully sent it forward into the empty space in front of him. A white light flashed by, and he tried to walk forward again, without any obstruction.
Just a few steps away, he saw an old man coming towards him. The old man was puffing on a dry tobacco pipe, wearing grass shoes on his feet, and the clothes on his body were also very tattered. Since Xu Qing entered the Zong family, he had never seen such a disheveled person. Was this Old Man He?
The old man saw Xu Qing and puffed on his cigarette, exhaling: "New errand boy?"
He is the new younger brother, doing miscellaneous chores, and this title is not wrong. Xu Qing saw that He Lao was older, so he was even more respectful and courteous, slightly bowing his head to greet him, saying: "Xu Qing has seen Manager."
He Lao's eyes flashed with a hint of unusual color as he scanned Xu Qing from head to toe and said, "It's not easy working for me, if you can't take the hardship, don't blame me for kicking you out."
He didn't deny the title, and it seemed that he was indeed the one in charge. Xu Qing followed closely behind him, and since he had to do this job, he should do his best. Moreover, if he could be with flowers and plants, even if it was hard work, it would still be a sweet experience.
The further she walked into the garden, the more she could feel the air becoming extremely clear. Xu Qing couldn't help but take a deep breath, and immediately felt a fragrance fill her nostrils, making her entire chest feel refreshed.
He certainly couldn't have known that in this world he was reborn into, the space between heaven and earth was filled with a thing called "spirit energy" that was even lighter than the oxygen he used to breathe, and could even cleanse his body and mind. The reason cultivators were able to cultivate was entirely because of it.
This Hundred Herb Garden is actually a medicine garden, specially for cultivating spiritual herbs for the Xu family. Therefore, the spiritual energy inside is exceptionally abundant. He suddenly came in from outside and was enjoying it immensely.
The arrangement in the garden is not as grand and delicate as outside, but rather appears very natural. Every flower, every blade of grass, every clod of earth, and every stone all show no signs of having been carved or cut.
Only to see a path of earth, and then see a clear stream leading directly to the distance. The two sides of the stream are surrounded by low stone railings, forming small pieces of spiritual fields like wedges, each with vague green shadows and slender grasses.
Along this road, you can see a row of thatched cottages. The front few rooms either hang with farm goods or display tools or have medicine racks with large bamboo sieves for drying medicines, all showing signs of being inhabited. However, there is only one smaller room on the outermost side, and outside it, there's nothing.
He walked up to that row of huts and pointed with his pipe at the smallest one, saying, "You live in there, bed and bedding are all provided."
Xu Qing nodded: "Yes."
He Lao saw that he was obedient and turned around: "The spiritual grass grown here is not something that a kid like you can move at will." He said, turning back into the house, and when he came out, his hands were already holding several thick books, which he threw to Xu Qing who was waiting honestly, "Take them down and memorize them first."
Xu Qing took over with some effort. He was now in better physical condition than his previous life and had considerable strength, but when he took over these books, he found that they were unexpectedly heavy. He still nodded: "I know, He Guan Shi."
Lowering his head slightly to take a look at the pages, he saw that the one on top was "Spirit Grass Identification", it must be for teaching him how to identify spirit grass. In this Hundred Herb Garden, you really can't do without it. Old Man He's demands were strict, but ultimately it was all for his own good, Xu Qing naturally felt grateful in his heart.
Seeing him so obedient, He Lao Tou looked at Xiu Qing with a few more points. Although he is recognized as a strange character, he is not an unreasonable person. The younger brothers who came before, in their respective branches, were also high above the top, seeing that he was wearing tattered clothes, and as soon as they met, they showed him disdain. This is already a bad temperament
