Chapter Seven: Li泉 Cave, Old Snake Monster Presents a Gun

  Yue Fei was reading Mr. Zong Ze's article with great interest, when suddenly Wang Gui, Zhang Xian and Tang Huai rushed in to say that Mr. Zong Ze had returned.

  Yue Fei quickly put Mr. Zhan's article back in its original place, then calmly returned to his own seat and said to his brothers: "Everyone should be in their own position, do their homework, don't panic."

  Wang Gui, Zhang Zhangxian and Tang Huai listened, calmed down, sat back in their original seats, opened their books, and began to read seriously.

  Zhou Tong returned to the academy and saw several disciples concentrating on reading books, feeling very relieved in his heart.

  "Disciples, hand over your broken topics for me to check on your recent studies." Zhou Tong said with a warm and kind tone. Zhang Xian, Tang Huai, and Wang Gui immediately handed over their broken topics upon hearing this.

  Zhou Tong looked at the three of them, one by one, and found that their compositions were all well-written, with good logic and fluent language. Compared to their previous writings, they had made great progress. "It seems that these four brothers will definitely achieve something great in the future. Maybe it's because I, Zhou Tong, have been blessed with good fortune, and this life won't be lived in vain." Thinking of this, Zhou Tong was overjoyed.

  From then on, Zhou Tong instructed Yue Fei and three others with all his might.

  But time is like flowing water, and before you know it, thirteen years have passed since Yue Fei was born.

  One day in March, the spring breeze was warm and the sunshine was bright. Zhou Tong said to Yue Fei and others: "You brothers are studying hard in the academy, I have a friend who is practicing on Li泉 Mountain, he is a high-ranking monk, it has been a long time since he went out, today the spring is warm and the flowers are blooming, the scenery on Li泉 Mountain is beautiful, I want to take the opportunity to meet old friends.

  Yue Fei heard that his father was going to Li泉 Mountain, and he felt itchy in his heart. He also wanted to go sightseeing, so he said to Zhou Tong: "Father, such a good scenery we also want to take a look, we have been staying in the academy, burying our heads in reading books and practicing martial arts, and it's time for us to go out and relax. In this way, father will not be lonely on the road with us as company, and it's also good for us to meet that high monk, what do you think?"

  Zhou Tong listened and said after a moment of contemplation, "Since you are determined to go, then go! Just be sure to have good manners when you get there, don't make me lose face."

  "The four disciples obeyed the order in unison."

  Zhou Tong then locked up the study door and set off with his four apprentices towards Lishan Mountain.

  All along the way, the spring scenery is pleasant and charming, with orioles singing and swallows dancing, birds chirping and flowers fragrant, intoxicating everywhere.

  The master and his disciples chatted and laughed all the way, and before they knew it, they had arrived at Lishan Mountain. After climbing the mountain for less than half a mile, a wide area surrounded by green trees appeared, revealing two wooden gates.

  Zhou Tong ordered Yue Fei to go and knock on the door. Yue Fei arrived at the柴门, lightly knocked three times, and saw a small monk open the door and curiously asked: "What are you doing? Why are you knocking on the door here?"

  Zhou Tong walked over and replied: "Young Shi, would you mind going in to announce me? Just say that Zhou Tong from Shaanxi has come to visit an old friend."

  The little monk responded with a "yes" and went in. Not long after, an old monk came out with a cane, smiling and welcoming.

  The two of them exchanged pleasantries as they walked into the living room, and after the formalities, they sat down, with Yue Fei and others standing on both sides.

  "Zhou Xian's fortune is smooth and he has taken in several good apprentices. I think they will definitely make a name for themselves and achieve great things in the future," said the old monk.

  "The elder has overpraised me, I am just a humble man who has ended up here, doing my duty and following the will of heaven. This is Yue Fei, he is my son." Zhou Tong said to the elder, pointing at Yue Fei.

  The old man carefully looked at Yue Fei and praised him without stopping: "Younger brother, you are really lucky to have such a son. I think your son has an extraordinary bone structure, not common in ordinary people, and he will definitely achieve great things in the future."

  "Thanks for your love and care, I'm deeply grateful." Zhou Dong's heart was filled with joy.

  The elder instructed the young monk to prepare a vegetarian meal and entertain them warmly. Seeing that it was already late, he invited them to stay overnight.

  The next morning, Zhou Tong bid farewell to the elder and was about to leave. The elder repeatedly persuaded him: "Brother, it's rare for you to come up the mountain, why not finish your meal before leaving? It won't be late." Zhou Tong had no choice but to agree. After a while, he saw a young monk bring tea over, Zhou Tong took a sip and said: "I've heard that there is a spring water here called Li Quan, which is very good for brewing tea, is this true?"

  "Alas——” The elder listened and let out a long sigh, saying: “This mountain was originally called Leshui Mountain, and behind the mountain there is a cave called Leshui Cave. In Leshui Cave, there is a spring with extremely good water quality, sweet in taste. If used to wash one's eyes, it can restore vision to the elderly; if used to brew tea, its color, fragrance, and flavor are all rich. Unfortunately, recently a strange thing has happened - a mist of smoke has been spewing out from within the cave, causing anyone who comes into contact with it to fall unconscious. Therefore, no one dares to go there to fetch water.”

  Zhou Tong listened and felt deeply regretful: "My younger brother was not destined for it, so this strange thing happened."

  The old man and Zhou Cong said that the matter of Li Spring Cave, Yue Fei listened to it next to him, thinking in his heart: "This Li Spring has such a wonderful place, what's the fear of fog? Eight out of ten is this old monk who is stingy and intentionally says this to scare people. I, Yue Fei, am not afraid, wait for me to go get some spring water for Father to wash his eyes, also to show my filial piety."

  Yue Fei quietly summoned Little Monk and asked in a low voice: "Little Master, where is the Liangquan Cave? Take me to have a look."

  The little monk listened and shook his head repeatedly.

  "Little Master, if you don't dare go, just tell me the way and I'll go alone." Yue Fei begged. The little monk had no choice but to tell him where to go.

  Yue Fei took a large tea bowl and went out of the hermitage gate, turning to the back, where he saw that halfway up the mountain there was indeed a clear spring. Next to it was a large stone with four big characters "Lingquan Qipin" (Miraculous Spring) carved on it, which turned out to be Su Dongpo's handwriting. A snake head as big as a bowl stuck out of the cave, its eyes shining like pillars, and saliva dripping from its mouth into the spring water.

  Yue Fei saw this situation and felt a surge of anger in his heart. He cursed, "You wicked beast, what good is the thing in your mouth? It's useless even if you drip it into water! Wait for me to capture you." After speaking, he put down his bowl, picked up a large stone, aimed carefully, and smashed it heavily onto the snake's head with great force. The snake suffered severe injuries and let out a loud hiss. In an instant, a misty aura appeared, and the snake's eyes shone brightly like golden bells as it opened its bloody mouth wide and pounced towards Yue Fei. Yue Fei remained calm and composed, dodged to one side, avoided the snake's attack, seized the opportunity to grab the snake's tail, and pulled with great force. Suddenly, a loud "clang" was heard, and when he looked closely, what he held in his hand was not the snake's tail but a spear that was eight feet long with a golden tip. The spear had four characters written on it: "Lingquan Divine Spear". When he turned back to look at Lingquan, it had already dried up, without a single drop of water flowing from it.

  Yue Fei was very pleased, holding the tea bowl in one hand and the gun in the other, returned to the hut, walked in front of Zhou Tong, and carefully told him what had happened. Zhou Tong listened with great joy.

  The elder said: "Younger brother, this spring is originally a divine object, and in the future, you will have the honor of ascending to the platform and worshiping as a general. However, the feng shui here has been broken by you, and it is difficult for me to continue living here, so I can only return to Mount Wutai. This divine spear is not an ordinary worldly weapon, and I have a book on military strategy to give to you, which includes the method of passing on the spear and the clever use of deploying troops and arranging battle formations. I hope you will study it carefully. As I am old and our next meeting is uncertain, in the future when my disciple meets you, please follow these words."

  Zhou Tong listened and said with a guilty face: "Master, I have wronged you, I hope Master will forgive me."

  "It's all fate. With that said, he entered the study, took out the military books and handed them over to Zhou Tong, instructing Yue Fei to carefully keep them."