Taoist Wu Ming Asked Two People for a Glass of Water II

Of course, Xie Lian was not qualified to speak against him. He himself had never seriously studied
arithmetic[1], such as Yin Yang, the Five Elements[2], Heavenly Stems, and Earthly Branches[3]. This was
because his shifu had told him that these were usually used to deceive people and take their money. As
a prince, you don’t need to learn this! It turns out this was useful later. He wanted to go out and set up a
fortune-telling booth to earn food but was afraid he might end up killing someone.

He had half a bucket of water[4], and Lang Qianqiu, his disciple, had just made a hole in the bottom of
the bucket. Xie Lian often felt embarrassed because he was committing such an act to deceive his
disciple, but he was enjoying a high official position and a generous salary, so he decided to fulfill his
responsibilities well. In terms of performance, the first was that Lang Qianqiu would receive the
punishment of copying the Tao Te Ching[5] or running around the Imperial City whenever he fell asleep
during the lecture. The second was to teach the basics of swordsmanship more carefully, including
smashing Lang Qianqiu to the ground for a wrong move and beating him until he cried like a ghost and
howled like a wolf and dared not do it again. It was also strange that the more he was beaten, the more
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince obeyed and respected him, clinging to him like candy.

One day, fourteen-year-old Lang Qianqiu came to him and said, “Guoshi, I discovered a secret of yours!”

Xie Lian was shocked at that moment. He thought he had been discovered. He couldn’t help but put his
hand on the demonic silver mask that he never took off and said, “What secret do I have?”

The prince climbed onto the table and said mysteriously, “I can see, Guoshi, you are just one person, but
you have two skills in martial arts! Am I right?”

Xie Lian secretly sighed in relief and said, “Oh? What are the two skills, tell me.”

The prince became very interested and eloquently spoke at the table: “It’s what you, Guoshi, teach me
every day—‘Tian Xia Gui Xin Liu.’ This path has a joyful demeanor, a sharp edge that shines in the world,
and is solemn and open, with the air of a king.”

These were Xie Lian’s original words. He recited them. Xie Lian was very pleased and said, “According to
legend, this Tao was created by Jun Wu, the great Celestial Martial Emperor. Its royal demeanor is
naturally more suitable for the children of the royal family.”

The prince stood up and changed the subject: “But when you and I met, you were not using that type of
martial art!”

The first meeting he mentioned was referring to his investigation in the eastern palace. He carried a
branch of flowers that exorcized demons and a sword[6]. He continued: “It’s a mess and it’s untamed.
With a lot of strength, you are invincible! Guoshi, I want to learn to be like that!”

Xie Lian said: “The prince is smart and what he said is true. However, let’s forget this journey.”

The prince asked: “Why?”

Xie Lian said: “That trick is not practical. At least, not for you.”

"I don’t understand.”

Xie Lian sat in front of him and said: “Your Highness, I want to ask you a question.”

“Ask!” the prince added: “Just don’t ask me questions like in which year my great-great-grandfather
made which laws.”

Xie Lian said: “Who wants to ask you that? I don’t even know the answer to that type of question. What
I want to ask, please listen carefully: Two people are walking in the desert today, dying of thirst, and
there is only one glass of water left. Whoever drinks will live, whoever doesn’t drink will die. For life, the
two are killing each other. At this moment, a third person came.”

The prince asked: “What is the third person here for?”

Xie Lian said: “This third person wants these two people to stop killing each other. Do you think
persuasion is useful at this moment?”

“It wouldn’t be.”

"Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Because these two people wanted water to survive. Just talking about great principles won’t help at
all.”

Xie Lian said: “Not bad. If you don’t understand the root cause, no one will listen to your reasoning.
Therefore, the third person only had one way to stop them from killing each other: give them his own
water.”

The prince frowned: “So, how does this matter relate to what we said before?”

Xie Lian said: “I’m telling you why it’s not suitable for you.

“The advantage of the martial arts you want to learn is, as you said, that it is ‘untamed’. As long as you
are alive and breathing, the sword bearer can stand up and fight.

“But you are wrong when you say it is ‘powerful enough to illuminate[7] a thousand enemies’. Its
essence does not lie in ‘illumination’, but in ‘resistance’.

“What do you mean by ‘resistance’?”

Xie Lian said: “Resisting everything.”

He said calmly: “There is no trick in the world that can remove energy from nothing. If a person has
desires, they must be satisfied; if a person unsheathes a sword, it must be used. If you don’t want them
to kill each other for water, give them your own water. This martial art can indeed transfer attacks and
damage, but it can only be transferred to oneself.

"It is a foolish attitude to stop a fight and then suffer the consequences. You wouldn’t use this unless
you had no other choice. As the crown prince, you don’t need to learn this.”

The prince seemed to understand but was still thoughtful. Xie Lian continued: “Your Highness wants to
learn now just because of the novelty. But before the time comes, you won’t be able to understand its
true meaning. And after all, it is a wild and confusing style, and the Tian Xia Gui Xin Liu style is the
martial art of a king.

"What is a king? When ten thousand people come in the morning, a king is made. Therefore, for the Tian
Xia Gui Xin Liu to reach its peak, one must first ascend and accept the faith of ordinary people, only then
can it reach its strongest level. Your Highness, do you have any questions?”

The prince crossed his arms, frowned even more, and said: “One thing.”

"Just ask if you didn’t understand.”

The prince said: “Guoshi, if the third person doesn’t have water, what should we do?”

“......”

The prince added: “If the two people took his water but were not satisfied, wanted more, and kept
asking for more from him, what should the third person do?”

“......”

"Is this really the right thing to do? Should he really intervene?”

After a long time, Xie Lian said: “Why do you have so many questions? Tao Te Ching fifty times!”

The prince was shocked: “Guoshi, you asked me to ask if I didn’t understand!”

Xie Lian said: “You asked deep questions, I can’t answer.”

The prince slapped the table and laughed: “It turns out there are questions that Guoshi doesn’t know
the answer to!”

Xie Lian said: “I am not a god, so what’s the problem?”

The prince laughed and stood up. Xie Lian was held by his hand and spun around a few times. It was
funny and inexplicable. Unexpectedly, the prince suddenly said: “However, although Guoshi said it is a
wild and confusing style, I still want to learn.”

Xie Lian was busy picking up the sword that had been stepped on several times by two people and
asked: “Why?”

The prince said naturally: “Because I am His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince. All the water in the world
is in my hand, if I am not the third person, who else can be?”

Xie Lian choked and wiped the dust from the sword. The prince added: “So, if you have the chance,
Guoshi should teach me. When I leave the army, the first thing I will do is go to Cang Cheng to kill the
resentful spirits. Didn’t you say I have many skills to overcome my burden? It will definitely be useful in
the future!”

Xie Lian was speechless and the prince said enthusiastically: “By the way! What is the name of this Tao?”

Xie Lian finally came back to himself, smiled slightly, and said: “This Tao is Wu Ming.”

Wu Ming Zhi Ren. Wu Ming Zhi Dao.

In the future, this trick was indeed used by Lang Qianqiu, but he did not expect it to be used to expose
him.

Now that things had come to this point, he did not regret blocking the knife for Lang Qianqiu, but felt
that he really should not have taught this trick in the first place.

Suddenly, Xie Lian remembered something and looked down at the threshold at his feet. The threshold
was dark and silent, and one could vaguely see that it had the shape of a little man lying on the ground.

Sure enough, he saw it right. Xie Lian was glad to have blocked Hua Cheng, otherwise, it would have
been very embarrassing if he had seen the threshold

. He walked into the house, opened the lid of the bottle, and put Hua Cheng’s soul in the water, gently
shaking it a few times, and soon, the wound on the arm of the silver chain was healed.

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References in the Text:

1. Arithmetic: Refers to the branch of mathematics dealing with numbers and the basic operations like
addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

2. Five Elements: In traditional Chinese philosophy, the five elements are wood, fire, earth, metal, and
water, believed to be the fundamental elements of everything in the universe.

3. Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches: Traditional Chinese cyclic numeral system used in the calendar
and for naming years, combining one of ten Heavenly Stems and one of twelve Earthly Branches.

4. Half a bucket of water: Idiomatic expression meaning having only superficial knowledge or skills.

5. Tao Te Ching: Classical Chinese text fundamental to Taoism, traditionally attributed to Laozi.

6. Sword and flower branch: Symbolizing martial skills and elegance.

7. Illuminate: To make something visible or bright by shining light on it.

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