Who accompanies you on your thousand-mile journey?

  The dormitory is not big and very simple, with a bed against the wall inside, covered with mosquito nets, as there are many mosquitoes in the south. A Miao knife hangs beside the bed; another table has tea cups, several wooden stools, two walls between which iron wire is strung, with clothes racks and towels hanging from it. Against the right-hand wall stands a small long table holding a washbasin, with two hot water bottles at its legs, as well as some other things. There's also a simple bookcase containing over ten books.

  There was something strange hanging on the iron wire, which was a python skin. This was what Liu Zhizhi and Cheng Zhenqian had cut down when they entered the mountain last time. Liu Zhizhi asked some local people who knew how to hunt to do some preliminary tanning, and this skin immediately caught Xu Dajournalist's attention, as well as that of others.

  "Is this python skin?" Xu Qian asked somewhat uncertainly.

  "Good eyesight, Xu journalist, it's python skin." Liu Zhi praised.

  "What a python skin! How did you get it?" Xu Qian thought that Liu Zhi knew was collected from the hands of local people.

  "It wasn't bought, it was when I went into the mountains with friends and encountered a python, after killing the python and peeling off its skin, there was also a gallbladder, which has been dried in the shade." Liu Zhi knew had some pride.

  "What's going on, Xiao Liu?" Old Sun saw that the skin was very long and couldn't help but feel curious.

  Liu Zhi Zhi briefly mentioned that during the National Day holiday, he and Cheng Zhen entered the mountain to explore and used a Miao knife to cut down this large python, obtaining this skin. After listening to Liu Zhi Zhi's words, Xu Qian touched the python skin with her hand several times, which was not dry and hard.

  "Are you selling this python skin?" Xu Qian asked.

  "Do you want to buy it?" Liu Zhi didn't ask.

  "This is genuine leather, I think it can be used to make several bags. With a piece of leather this long, six or seven bags are no problem. I know someone who is very skilled at making bags and with good leather, they can definitely make bags that are on par with world-famous brands, if not even better!" Xu Qian directly expressed her intention.

  "Alright, I'll make a deal with you. Give me this leather and you make a good handbag for me, a feminine one!" Liu Zhi's heart skipped a beat.

  "Alright, it's settled then! I'll give you two python bags!" Xu Qian said as she began to roll up the python skin.

  "Don't worry, I'll pack it up for you when you leave!" Liu Zhi knew smiled.

  Liu Zhi knew picked up the cup to pour tea, Du principal smiled and said: "Little Liu, don't bother pouring tea, why not let Old Sun and them sit on my side for a bit? Your side is too simple, even the cups aren't complete!"

  "Then let's go to Old Du's house and sit for a while, as Principal Du said!" Sun Lao chimed in, seeing that Liu Zhi's dormitory was not a place to entertain the crowd.

  Principal Du led the way, followed by everyone else. Liu Zhi Zhu fell back a step, just in time to be even with Jiang Yu, and asked in a low voice about You Jia Jia's situation. You Jia Jia had indeed come to school once, but only to take care of some formalities, and was now abroad. It was said that her parents had sent her to study in Canada. Liu Zhi Zhu felt a pang of melancholy in his heart, and couldn't help but think of his grandfather's words: "From your birth charts, you two are not destined..."

  Principal Du's dormitory is a bit larger than Liu Zhiyi's, with two rooms. The furniture and other things are more complete. Principal Du made tea for everyone, and they started talking. Most of the conversation was about school. After chatting for a while, the bell rang, signaling the end of class. Xu Qing went to interview Cao Yuying, while Old Sun and Principal Du continued to chat casually. From their conversation, Liu Zhiyi learned that several groups of people had come this time, and others had gone to nearby schools to deliver computers.

  Before long, it was time for lunch. Xu Qian and her team were busy interviewing students about their food situation. From the students' feedback, they learned that this semester was much better, at least there was meat in the lunch box every day, whereas before it was just steamed rice with soybeans. The students felt very happy. Seeing the students' situation, Xu Qian even had an urge to cry, as the students' living conditions were much tougher than she had imagined.

  After the students finished their meal, some played and others read books. The crowd also started eating. Today, there were nine people in total. Five of them were from the school: Principal Du and his wife, Liu Zhi Zhi, Cao Yu Ying, and another local male teacher Wang Ben Lin. Along with Old Sun's four family members, they lined up a table at Principal Du's home. Principal Du's wife was busy serving dishes. Although the soup wasn't ready yet, the table was still quite sumptuous.

  "As soon as he saw it, Sun Lao said with a tinge of reprimand in his tone, 'How much did this cost?'"

  Principal Du laughed and said, "Old Sun, this table is considered good luck for you, almost no money was spent!" He pointed to the large pot of braised pork in the middle and said, "This is wild boar meat. You're able to eat it today completely thanks to Little Liu's good fortune. Yesterday, Little Liu went into the mountains to pick wild mushrooms and ran into some Jingpo hunters who were surrounding a wild boar. Little Liu lent a hand, and since the Jingpo people share their spoils with whoever is present when they hunt, we got half of the wild boar, as well as several other types of game. This pot of rabbit meat and this pot of wild chicken are all part of it! So I said you have good luck in your mouth today. Even if you hadn't come, our school staff would still be having a banquet!"

  "Who would have thought we'd benefit from Xiao Liu's good fortune!" Old Sun laughed.

  "You are lucky, Xiao Liu used to go up the mountain too, but he didn't encounter such a good thing." Principal Du also smiled.

  "Du Shiniang has eaten! Don't be busy anymore!" shouted Liu Zhizhi.

  "You all go ahead and drink, I'll just take a look at the chicken soup over here!" Du Shi Niang replied from the kitchen.

  "Everyone, please take a seat!" Principal Du invited everyone to sit down. On the table, in addition to the few meat dishes from earlier, there were also several vegetarian dishes. Principal Du introduced each one: a plate of stir-fried zucchini and scallions; a plate of wild golden needles stir-fried with mushrooms; a plate of stir-fried bitter melon greens, which is a type of wild vegetable that resembles dandelion greens; a plate of quickly sautéed hot peppers, a specialty dish from this region, consisting entirely of small, pointed red hot peppers, seasoned only with oil and salt, very fragrant and spicy, not something just anyone would dare to try; a plate of roasted flat beans; a dish of peanuts; and two common farm vegetables.

  This dish is not expensive here, but in the city, especially in a big metropolis like Shanghai, the price is staggering. Sun Lao sighed: "Only here can you see these real mountain and wild flavors, without any pollution!"

  "Old Sun, don't be sentimental, I'll give you another surprise! Taste the real Osmanthus wine!" Principal Du said, holding out a wine jar of about 10-20 kilograms, removing the mud seal from the mouth of the jar, tearing off a layer of plastic wrap, and suddenly, a strong osmanthus fragrance filled the entire room.

  "Do you have osmanthus wine here too? I haven't seen this type of osmanthus wine in years!" Sun Lao said with a mix of surprise and nostalgia. Xu Qian, the journalist, immediately asked out of curiosity, also intoxicated by the strong osmanthus fragrance.

  Mr. Sun said that his hometown is in Changshu, Jiangsu Province, where the Osmanthus wine is very famous. The old generation of Osmanthus wine is to fill the white wine into a tank, when the Osmanthus flowers bloom, shake off the Osmanthus flowers, dry them, and call them Osmanthus seeds, then add them to the wine, seal it well, and bury it underground. When the Osmanthus flowers bloom again next year, dig it up, add more Osmanthus flowers, and replenish some new wine to make up for the loss. Good Osmanthus wine is often buried underground for over ten years, and some can last for decades.

  As they spoke, everyone looked at Principal Du's wine jug with a different expression. Principal Du nodded and said: "Old Sun is right, this jar of wine has been underground for ten years, the wine is brewed by local mountain people, every year adding osmanthus flowers, after ten years, the fire nature gradually retreated, the taste becomes more mellow."

  After pouring wine for everyone, he didn't use a wine glass, but instead used small white ceramic bowls, one bowl per person. The liquor was light yellow in color, like amber, and looked great. The aroma was intoxicating, and everyone was deeply enchanted by it. Even the few ladies who hadn't planned on drinking couldn't bring themselves to refuse.

  Principal Du raised his bowl: "I represent the students and the school to thank you for your help, come drink!" He took a sip from the bowl.

  Everyone also took their bowls, and indeed it was good wine. The entrance was mellow and thick, a warm line slid down the throat, and with one breath out, the mouth was full of fragrance.

  "Come and try the wild boar meat!" Principal Du raised his chopsticks, and everyone else followed suit. Liu Zhi knew smiled and introduced to the crowd: "Principal Du's wife is a master chef, you'll know I'm not bragging once you taste it!" The crowd became interested and took a bite, the meat was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a unique savory flavor that wasn't greasy at all.

  "Delicious!" Especially the three ladies quickly picked up their second chopsticks, which was beyond Liu Zhi's expectation. Just as everyone was praising, a student led someone to the door.

  "Teacher Liu, there's an uncle looking for you!" the student said.

  Liu Zhi knew turned his head and was overjoyed: "Cheng Ge, how did you come? You're so lucky! Come sit down quickly!" It turned out that the one who came was Cheng Zhenqian.

  Cheng Zhen walked into the room, took a sniff: "Smells great! Liu brother, Sun Lao is also here, I'm not invited but I'll just come in! After receiving the phone call notification, knowing that Sun Lao had arrived here, I made some arrangements and came over to visit Sun Lao. Didn't expect Sun Lao was having dinner here, my stomach's hungry too, so I won't be polite, how can it smell so great!"

  Liu Zhi introduced Cheng Zhenqian to everyone, who was also a representative of the foundation stationed here. He supervised the construction of a primary school and added a set of chopsticks. Cheng Zhenqian sat down as well.

  After taking a sip of wine, Cheng Zhenqian couldn't stop praising it. After eating a piece of meat, he again burst into praise and raised his head to say to Liu Zhizhi: "Liu younger brother, this is much better than the snake meat you roasted last time!"

  Liu Zhi knew couldn't help but laugh and cry: "Cheng Ge, Du Shifu Niang is a top-notch master chef, I'm just a person who opens my mouth when food comes, how can I compare to Du Shifu Niang!"

  The conversation between the two attracted attention from others. Xu Qian, a reporter, asked: "Cheng Ge, what's the story behind this?" Reporters are often sensitive to these things.

  Cheng Zhenqian had previously told the story of how he and Liu Zhizhi went on an adventure in the mountains, including the part about beheading the python. Although Liu Zhizhi had mentioned it before, he only glossed over it briefly. Cheng Zhenqian, however, added flavor to the story, making it sound like a legendary tale, causing everyone to look at Liu Zhizhi with a mixture of reverence and admiration.

  Finally, Liu Zhi couldn't help but say, "Don't look at me like that, Cheng Ge is exaggerating, I'm just practicing martial arts, and cutting the snake was just a coincidence. The main reason is that Master Xiang's knife is good. If you're interested, you can go to Linshan Town to take a look. Those knives are all handmade, cutting through gold and iron, they're not bad!"

  "Xiaoliang, Xiaocheng just said that you are brewing a kind of wine. Is it the Zhigan Yangshen Wan?" asked Old Sun.

  "Not bad, but that's just a medicinal wine, nourishing the body, the taste is far inferior to today's Osmanthus wine!" Liu Zhi didn't deny it. "Old Sun, you know I practice martial arts, and when necessary, I need medicine to regulate my blood, this is one of them. Fortunately, there are many wild herbs here, so it's relatively easy to prepare, unlike in Shencheng, where most herbs are cultivated artificially, and some are even fake, which can lead to problems."

  The conversation turned to local medicinal materials, and apart from Sun Lao and Liu Zhi-zhi, the others didn't know much about them, but that didn't hinder their curiosity, especially towards things like Lingzhi mushrooms, which had many folk legends surrounding them. Most people had heard some rumors and added their own imagination, so the atmosphere wasn't dull at all.

  Liu Zhi thought of something and asked Cheng Zhenqian in a low voice if he had time on Sunday to pick him up and go to the nearby town. He wanted to buy a mobile phone, but didn't say what for. He was actually planning to give it to Ali.

  Cheng Zhenqian agreed to pick him up on Sunday, and the two of them spoke in hushed tones. Seeing this, Old Sun remembered something and said to Principal Du: "Old Du, two weeks from now, Xiao Liu will return to Shencheng Foundation to report on his work and attend a charity gala. In addition to Xiao Liu, our school will also send a representative to go with him. I don't know if you have time? The expenses will be covered by the foundation."

  "I'm getting old, the school can't leave me, Wang teacher is a local, and there's something at home too. Little Cao, why don't you go with Little Liu to Shencheng? Do you have time?" Principal Du asked after thinking for a while.

  Cao Yu Ying was taken aback, thought for a moment, nodded in agreement. Sun Lao set the date and both parties agreed, handing over the invitation to Liu Zhi Zhi. Coincidentally, Cheng Zhen Qian also happened to be heading back to the company to report on his work, so he volunteered to drive them to Shencheng together.

  Liu Zhi and Cao Yu Ying have been working together for two or three months, and the school teachers are not many, all in an office, of course, they are very familiar with each other. However, between them, it is limited to colleagues' communication, although Cao Yu Ying is also very beautiful, and her family background is not bad, her parents have some power in the provincial city, coming here is obviously for gold-plating, making progress and accumulating capital.

  So, Liu Zhizhi and Cao Yuying are just colleagues, they are not from the same world. Cheng Zhenqian is not clear about the truth of the matter, and can't help but wink at Liu Zhizhi, the meaning is very obvious: you little guy came here, first there was a beautiful Miao family girl who treated you well, now there's another colleague, also a beauty, your good fortune is not shallow!

  Liu Zhi knew what Cheng Zhen meant, and smiled. Now was not the time for explanations. After lunch, everyone patted their bellies, feeling that they had eaten too much. Who could blame them? Today's dishes were so delicious, the wine so good to drink. Everyone felt a bit tipsy, and they sat around chatting idly.

  Liu Zhi knew that Cheng Zhen had also drunk a lot of wine today. The osmanthus wine was delicious, but it was actually a strong liquor infused with osmanthus flowers and brewed over time. When you drink it, the aroma is unparalleled, and it's not too spicy, but after all, it's still a strong liquor. Liu Zhi made up his mind to let Cheng Zhen stay tonight, otherwise driving under the influence would be very dangerous.

  In the afternoon, at more than three o'clock, Sun Lao and others bid farewell and set off. Liu Zhi Zhuo prepared a large package of mountain mushrooms and other dried goods, and also handed over the snake skin package to Xu Qian. Both parties left their mobile phone contact information. Cheng Zhenqian was also about to leave, but Liu Zhi Zhuo laughed and stopped him: "You're still drunk, you can't drive!"

  "But they also drank a lot! How did they manage to walk away?!" Cheng Zhenqian was somewhat unconvinced.

  "They don't drive themselves, the car is at the foot of the mountain, and the driver is also at the foot of the mountain. If you drive yourself, it won't work. Today, my brother and I haven't seen each other for a month, let's have a good chat. Tonight, we'll go to Director Du's house for dinner, anyway, there's still plenty of wine from noon!" Liu Zhi said this, Cheng Zhenqian didn't rush to leave, the Osmanthus wine was indeed tempting.

  Two people and Principal Du sent the crowd to Majiazai at the foot of the mountain, where Cheng Zhenfan's jeep was also parked. They saw off Sun Lao and others, leaving the car in a villager's home. However, Cheng Zhenfan took out a Miao knife from the car, which was the same one he had bought before.

  "How did you bring the knife?" asked Liu Zhi Zhi.

  "I've been practicing for a month according to your method, although I haven't reached the level you mentioned, I feel like a master myself. I'm here to ask for your guidance, Master Liu!" said Cheng Zhenqian jokingly.

  "First go back to school and let me see how good Brother Cheng's kung fu is, whether he can travel the world!" Liu Zhi also joked.

  Back to school, it just so happened that the last class was physical education class. Liu Zhi knew he had promised to teach students martial arts and had been teaching for a while, but it was all about long boxing. Liu Zhi wasn't cultivating martial artists or martial arts practitioners, but rather using martial arts routines as radio exercises for students to practice with. However, row after row of students lined up to do long boxing, which was quite spectacular, and the long boxing was expansive and elegant, originally very beautiful.

  After school, Liu Zhi brought Cheng Zhen to a nearby forest, where there was an open space in the middle. This was where Liu Zhi usually practiced martial arts. Cheng Zhen immediately drew his knife and demonstrated his skills. Liu Zhi nodded in approval, indicating that he had made progress with his practice. If Cheng Zhen's mental strength were a bit stronger, he could handle three or four men with one knife. But would he be able to land a hit?

  Liu Zhi knew guided a bit in the key place, and praised Cheng Zhenqian, who was very happy. After all, he could get Liu Zhi's recognition as an expert in this field, which meant that he had become a knife guest. Of course, this was what Cheng Zhenqian felt in his heart.

  Dinner was still eaten at Director Du's house, with a total of five people: Director Du and his wife, Liu Zhizhi, Cheng Zhenqian, and Cao Yuying. The dishes were basically leftovers from noon, but the quantity was still sufficient. At noon, just that one large bowl of braised pork was like a small basin, and there was still plenty of wine. Director Du didn't stint, pouring glasses for everyone. Liu Zhizhi knew that Director Du had at least three or four more jars buried underground. Although there were many people at noon, only less than half of the jar of wine was drunk, which was over 10 kilograms. The osmanthus wine was good to drink, but it was also a strong liquor. On average, everyone drank about 4 liang (200 grams) of wine.

  At night, there was nothing to do, so the three men started drinking slowly. As a result, they spent almost three hours on dinner, with each person drinking nearly a catty of wine. Liu Zhi knew that due to his cultivation, he had a stronger resistance to alcohol than ordinary people and felt a bit dizzy. He supported Cheng Zhenqian back to the dormitory, threw him onto the bed, and let him sleep. However, he found a wooden board, placed it on the ground, put some things under it, sat cross-legged on it, and started practicing his skills. Due to the influence of alcohol, he began to feel drowsy and didn't know whether he was asleep or awake. He woke up with a start at midnight, went to the toilet, moved around a bit, and found that the wine had sobered him up. He continued to practice his skills and unknowingly entered a state of stillness. Everything around him was in his consciousness, including Cheng Zhenqian's heartbeat, Cao Yuwen's murmurs and sleeping posture in the next room, but Liu Zhi knew remained detached and calm, with no ripples in his heart.

  Unconsciously, the east had already dawned, and Liu Zhi knew that he woke up from his quiet meditation. Seeing that Cheng Zhen was still not awake, he quietly went out of the door and arrived at the creek to simply wash up a bit. Feeling that his skills had increased somewhat, he was delighted in his heart and unconsciously headed into the forest to practice.

  About an hour later, Cheng Zhenqian also arrived at the forest, his wine was completely awake, and he saw Liu Zhizhi practicing boxing. He was a little resentful that Liu Zhizhi didn't call him, but Liu Zhizhi smiled and said he saw him sleeping soundly, thinking of letting him sleep for a while longer.

  After having breakfast, Cheng Zhenqian bid farewell.

  On Sunday, Cheng Zhenqian arrived as scheduled and drove to a nearby town. Liu Zhizhi bought a mobile phone, got a number, and stored 1,000 yuan in phone fees. Cheng Zhenqian then sent Liu Zhizhi back to school, made an appointment to go to Shencheng, and left.

  Liu Zhi gave the mobile phone to Ali, the mobile phone was exquisite, this is the best one in that store, but a mountain town originally didn't have as many good products as big cities.

  Ali was delighted, and Liu Zhi asked her why she didn't use a mobile phone before. Ali sold medicine and couldn't be considered poor; in fact, she was quite well-off in the neighborhood. Ali replied that she simply didn't need one, leaving Liu Zhi speechless with laughter.

  Liu Zhi told Ali that he would return to Shencheng for over ten days a week later to attend the charity annual meeting. Ali understood Liu Zhi's intention of sending her the mobile phone and was also touched in her heart, asking: "Are you going alone or with someone?"

  "The school asked Teacher Cao and me to go together." Liu Zhizhi said calmly.

  Aly said unhappily: "So there's a beauty accompanying you!" Aly had been to school several times, of course she knew Cao Yuanying, and her words were somewhat sour.

  "I've learned to eat vinegar, I have nothing to do with her!" Liu Zhi said jokingly.

  "Scare you!" Ah Li burst out laughing, and seeing her smile like a flower, Liu Zhi knew he was enchanted.

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