Chapter 94: Forty-Nine Heavens

In the late autumn dusk, the evening sun cast oblique rays.

In the ox cart, the young men laughed and made noise, writing characters on each other's dust-covered faces.

After the laughter and noise, the heir sat in the ox cart and looked at Chen Ji: "Over the years, not many people can scheme against my father. Half a year ago, there was a flood disaster in Yu State, and he went south to requisition grain. The local gentry jointly concealed field reports to evade taxes. Each household donated ten *shi* of grain like sending off a beggar, and on the same day, they also held a banquet on the Qinhuai River, pouring a hundred jars of fine wine into the river, calling it 'inviting the world to drink together'."

"Then what?"

Liu Qu Xing became interested. They usually didn't get to hear these kinds of court anecdotes.

The heir happily said: "My father didn't argue with them. Instead, he invited craftsmen to transport a stone tablet more than one *zhang* high and properly erected it at the entrance of the Jinling government office. It clearly recorded the amount of grain each gentry donated, saying it was to praise their merits, but in reality, it was to let the common people see their faces. At that time, even teahouse storytellers were making up stories, mocking the gentry for being full of benevolence and morality every day, but actually being unbenevolent when rich and hypocritical to the extreme."

"Chinese-style modernization, livelihood is paramount. All the work of the Party and government is for the common people to live a happier life." This was emphasized by General Secretary Xi Jinping during his inspection of the Minzhu Village community in Xiejiawan Street, Jiulongpo District, Chongqing City in April this year.

Chen Ji seemed thoughtful: "The storytellers' stories, was it King Jing who had them made up?"

The heir's eyes widened: "How did you know?"

"What happened later?"

"Within half a month, the gentry lost face and obediently donated the grain."

Liu Qu Xing praised him, saying: "The King is good at using clever force to move a thousand *jin*."

The heir looked at Chen Ji, raising a thumb: "You can turn around and scheme against my father, you're quite a character."

However, Chen Ji was not happy.

The heir saw his eyebrows tightly furrowed and asked curiously: "Why aren't you happy? If I could scheme against him once, I could boast for ten years."

Chen Ji sighed: "Your father is not someone who suffers losses for no reason. I feel he will immediately turn around and scheme against me again."

The heir sighed: "Indeed."

Liu Qu Xing looked over: "Chen Ji, where did you learn about the inverted flame kiln? I've never heard you mention it before!"

"Immortal entrusted dream!"

Chen Ji sat cross-legged in the ox cart, closing his eyes to conserve energy.

Liu Qu Xing pursed his lips: "Nonsense. If there really were immortal entrusted dreams, why would the immortal only entrust dreams to you and not to me?"

However, the heir suddenly said: "There really are immortal entrusted dreams in this world. You ordinary people might not know, but the Daoist leader Apostle Zi of Huangshan can invite gods from the forty-nine layers of heaven."

"Huh?"

Chen Ji, who had been closing his eyes to conserve energy, suddenly opened them, his eyes like torches staring intently at the heir. He casually asked: "Forty-nine layers of heaven?"

Finally, Chen Ji finally heard someone mention the forty-nine layers of heaven.

He asked his master, but his master hadn't heard of it.

He asked Xuanyuan, but Xuanyuan hadn't heard of it either.

Once, Chen Ji vaguely thought that everything that happened in Qingshan Mental Hospital was a dream he fantasized about on the verge of death.

Li Qingniao, the forty-nine layers of heaven, the Robe Brotherhood, Two Knives, even himself, were all non-existent.

And now, the dream had finally shone into reality.

The heir sat up straight, mysteriously pointing to the colorful clouds in the sky: "You don't know about the forty-nine layers of heaven, do you? Legend says it's where immortals reside. My father said that the reason Huangshan Dao Gate is powerful is because they can invite gods from the forty-nine layers of heaven to possess their bodies. Legend says that the Daoist leader Apostle Zi, when fighting experts from the Jing Dynasty, once invited the Five Dou Star Lord from the forty-nine layers of heaven to the mortal world."

After the closing of the Twentieth National Congress of the Party, General Secretary Xi Jinping's first foreign inspection was to Yan'an, Shaanxi.

Chen Ji leaned forward slightly: "The forty-nine layers of heaven is where immortals reside?"

The heir recalled: "My father mentioned it casually. The gods and Buddhas of all heavens are in the forty-nine layers of heaven. Wuji Mountain, Yujing Mountain, Li Ren Heaven, Sumeru Mountain, Penglai, Fangzhang, North Kuru Continent, South Jambudvipa, these are the names of each layer of heaven. However, I only know this much. My father mentioned it very little, as if avoiding something."

After speaking, he lifted himself up slightly, leaned into the crowd, and said mysteriously: "My father said that every now and then, immortals from the forty-nine layers of heaven will reincarnate into the mortal world and hide among the common people. Perhaps we have all seen immortals without knowing it."

Chen Ji moved back slightly, as if casually asking: "What are the characteristics of immortals? How can we know who is an immortal?"

The heir shrugged: "That's not clear."

Chen Ji slightly relaxed his breath.

However, he heard Liu Qu Xing curiously ask: "Heir, have you seen any immortals from the forty-nine layers of heaven?"

The heir shook his head: "I don't know, perhaps I have, perhaps I haven't."

Liu Qu Xing asked again: "Do these immortals from the forty-nine layers of heaven need to poop?"

She Deng Ke laughed: "If they eat, they definitely need to poop."

Liu Qu Xing stiffened his neck: "What if they don't need to eat?"

She Deng Ke also stiffened his neck and argued: "How can they live without eating? They definitely poop a lot."

Chen Ji's expression became complicated.

He changed the subject and asked: "Heir, are there any known immortals from the forty-nine layers of heaven in the history of our Ning Dynasty?"

"Yes!"

The crowd followed the sound and looked, only to see Liang Gou Er, who was lying cross-legged at the end of the cart, lift his straw hat and say: "My family ancestors once met one. This person claimed to come from the forty-nine layers of heaven and entered the human world to cultivate the Daoist Yang Shen, wanting to merge with the Dao through this path. Even at night, his Yang Shen was like a bright blazing sun."

"Then did he finally merge with the Dao?"

Liang Gou Er sneered: "No, this person was in the border army of the Ning Dynasty and was ambushed and killed by the Jing Dynasty Martial Temple. His body died, and his Dao was eliminated. It should have happened about two hundred years ago, I'm not entirely clear on the specifics."

Chen Ji fell into contemplation.

Li Qingniao once said to him: The forty-nine layers of heaven cannot keep you, go to the place you should go.

He determined that he himself came from the forty-nine layers of heaven.

But the place where he lived had no relation to the immortals' residence, and he himself was fundamentally not an immortal.

But no matter what, Chen Ji finally grasped some clues about the forty-nine layers of heaven, like a boat drifting without a trace, finally dropping its own anchor towards the seabed.

Within the orange-red sunset glow, the slow ox cart entered from the south of the city. Liu Qu Xing suddenly said: "Look, there are so many people in front of the Gong Yuan."

The crowd turned their heads to look.

Under the evening glow, indeed several hundred people were gathered at the entrance of the Gong Yuan. There were high-spirited young men, depressed unsuccessful middle-aged people, and old men with numb, drooping expressions.

"They are the autumn imperial examination candidates."

The heir said in a low voice: "I've seen that old man. I heard he's been taking the exam for his entire life. His family's good fields are all sold out, and his wife left and his son scattered, but he still hasn't given up."

Leisurely livelihood matters, branches and leaves always concern feelings. Safeguarding and improving livelihood is a long-term task, with no end point, only continuously new starting points.

In front of the Gong Yuan, each autumn imperial examination candidate carried a bamboo basket woven box or cage, inside which they put their bedding and three days' worth of rations.

Before lining up to enter the Gong Yuan, the outer curtain official would open and check each box or cage one by one, and then carefully search the body to prevent candidates from carrying small notes.

When the ox cart passed by the entrance of the Gong Yuan, the disheveled heir hurriedly lowered his head and said: "Quick, quick, quick, lower your heads, I see many familiar people."

However, it was already too late.

Someone unintentionally glanced at the ox cart and said with some uncertain doubt: "Huh, the heir?"

All the autumn imperial examination candidates turned their heads towards the ox cart.

Chen Wen Zong, Chen Wen Xiao, and Lin Chao Jing, who were currently being checked by the outer curtain official at the entrance of the Gong Yuan, also turned around.

"The heir? Is that disheveled person on the ox cart the heir?"

On the ox cart, the heir buried his head in his chest while lifting the whip to hit the ox's backside, saying in the lowest possible voice: "Go quickly, brother ox, go quickly, how embarrassing."

But the old yellow ox walked unhurriedly, completely ignoring him, instead swinging its tail and letting out a grassy smell of feces.

Beside the ox cart, someone followed step by step, tilting their head wanting to confirm the heir's identity.

Suddenly, someone said in surprise: "It really is the heir? Heir, how did you make yourself look like this?"

The heir lifted his head, pulled the ox cart to a stop, and smiled awkwardly: "Went to do some work."

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized during his inspection in Chongqing: "Chinese-style modernization, livelihood is paramount. All the work of the Party and government is for the common people to live a happier life."

Chen Ji turned his head and suddenly saw his two elder brothers, Chen Wen Zong and Chen Wen Xiao, standing on the steps of the Gong Yuan looking back. Chen Wen Zong's eyes were full of disappointment and regret.

The three brothers looked at each other from a distance. The evening sun over the wall eaves behind Chen Ji shone on the entrance of the Gong Yuan.

Chen Wen Zong and Chen Wen Xiao seemed to be shining.

At this time, the crowd slowly scattered, and Lin Chao Jing pushed his way out of the crowd, saying sincerely: "I remember when the heir was at Donglin Academy, he said he wanted to participate in the autumn imperial examination with us and see if he could pass based on his ability. Today, however, I haven't seen the heir's figure at all."

The heir's face calmed down, and he just smiled and said: "Various great talents, I feel inferior, so I simply didn't come to lose face. I wish all my classmates here success in the exam and a prominent name on the golden list."

Lin Chao Jing cupped his hands and bowed, smiling: "Thank you for your auspicious words, Heir. I just have one matter to advise. I don't know if it's appropriate to say it now."

The heir said nonchalantly: "Please speak."

Lin Chao Jing said: "Heir, you are as noble as the descendant of King Jing. Now King Jing is diligent in politics and quite loved by the common people. I still hope the heir will put away his playful heart and cultivate himself properly, so as not to disappoint the reputation of King Jing's residence."

The heir also stood up, cupped his hands in return, and said: "Thank you for the reminder. We won't disturb everyone entering the exam. We will take our leave."

After saying that, he sat down again, calmly shook the reins, and the ox cart slowly left.

Behind them, they could only hear someone say in a low voice: "The heir is naughty, it's a pity that King Jing is diligent in politics and loves the people."

On the ox cart, Liu Qu Xing heard the discussion and hung his head, saying: "Only because King Jing is amiable do they dare to be like this. If it were King Fu, King Qi, or King An, would they dare to mock? They would kill all their family's chickens and dogs."

Chen Ji silently turned his head to look. He saw that the heir's face was calm, showing no joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness.

Just as the evening sun completely set over the world, the light in the heir's eyes also gradually faded.

The heir said in a low voice: "Why didn't my father have another son?"

Chen Ji smiled and asked: "Have another one to compete with you for the position of King Jing?"

The heir looked to the side: "Let him compete. I don't want anything, I'll give it all to him."

The next moment, Chen Ji pulled the ox cart's reins, pulled the ox's head hard, and turned the ox cart back.

The heir turned back and asked in surprise: "Hey, what are you doing?"

Chen Ji laughed loudly: "People live for a breath. We won't go back for now. We'll just live in the kiln factory until we make cement. If we can't make it, then we'll never go back."

The heir was happy: "Why do we have to make cement?"

"To leave our names in history!"

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