Han Changqing watched Niannian and her fellow disciples laughing and playing around. A hint of envy and longing welled up in his heart.
It was because of his family situation and his physical constitution.
He had always been alone.
After his parents died, he still had many relatives.
These relatives, in order to get his parents' property, all scrambled to be his guardian.
But each of them was almost scared out of their wits by his parents' ghosts and never dared to say a word to him again.
However, they still held on to the status of his guardian.
Because only in this way could they withdraw a portion of the money left by his parents.
Even though they never fulfilled their obligation to take care of him.
He had no friends around him. People said he was a strange child, and the parents around him even prohibited their children from playing with him.
He remembered that when he was in school, there was a very gentle female teacher.
She was the only one who wanted to help him and open his heart.
But later that teacher was so scared that she quit her job.
Since then, he had become an inauspicious person, a synonym for disaster.
He went to school alone, ate alone, went home alone, and slept alone every day.
There was nothing around him except two silent ghosts.
Sometimes he would even think morbidly that it would be okay if those kids came to bully him.
If only someone would talk to him.
Sadly, there wasn't even anyone to bully him.
He would rather be sent to an orphanage or a welfare home than be left alone at home, forever ignored.
Over the years, although he had gotten used to it, he had always hoped and longed for someone to be by his side, no matter what the relationship was.
Now he had his first bond since his parents passed away.
His master.
Although this master was only six years old.
But she wasn't afraid of his parents, and was willing to talk to him. If nothing unexpected happened, they would keep in touch for a long time in the future.
Maybe in the future, he could also become one of those who laughed and played around.
Join and integrate into this master - disciple family...
"Disciple, what are you thinking about?"
Xiaotuanzi's call interrupted Han Changqing's train of thought.
He snapped out of his daze. When he looked down at Xiaotuanzi again, his eyes were obviously much softer than before.
"Nothing. What's up, master?"
"Nothing. I'm your master, and I'm supposed to teach you things. Since we're free now, I'll teach you some basic stuff first."
Niannian had just taken on this brand - new disciple, and the novelty of being a master for the first time hadn't worn off yet. She did everything in a hurry.
She couldn't wait to pass on her knowledge.
Just then, Han Changqing was also eager to learn. After the Cucumber God nodded, he followed Xiaotuanzi to her room.
Once in the room, Niannian started rummaging through her small satchel little by little.
Yusheng was extremely curious about how many things were in the small satchel, but he never got to find out.
Instead, Han Changqing became the first witness.
The single - room of the guesthouse they were staying in was quite large.
Nearly half of the nearly fifty - square - meter space was filled with the things Niannian took out.
The small satchel seemed like a bottomless pit or Doraemon's magic pocket.
Anyway, there seemed to be no end to what she could take out.
Finally, Niannian stopped rummaging.
There were several books in her hand. The books looked a bit old. She flipped through a few pages casually, nodded to herself, and then put the books aside.
Then she lowered her head and started rummaging again.
After a while, she took out a few booklets. The booklets were full of crooked words, which were obviously written by Niannian herself.
No one knew what was wrong with this kid's handwriting. It was ugly in a unique way.
It was the kind of writing where you could tell what each character was when you looked at it, but when they were put together, you were not quite sure.
After arranging the booklets, Niannian started putting the things back.
She put the things back in a simple and crude way. She opened the pocket and threw the things in pile by pile, ending the task as quickly and messily as possible.
After tidying up, Niannian wiped the sweat off her brow like a pro and let out a long breath. "Phew, finally done. This book is about the most basic Five Elements, and this one is about the most basic Taoist theory. These were the two books I started learning with. You can read them first. If you don't understand anything, just ask me."
"This is my hand - copied notes. It records all my own insights. Master said my insights were correct. I think they'll be useful to you too. You can take them as a reference."
Niannian patted the two stacks of books beside her.
Hearing this, Han Changqing casually picked up a book and opened it, reading the contents carefully.
After just reading three lines, he was a bit speechless.
"What if I don't understand a single word? What does 'harmony between man and nature' mean? What about 'harmony between man and god'? I do know about the Five Elements, but what do the Yin and Yang Five Elements represent? Ah, and..."
Han Changqing bombarded her with the questions he didn't understand.
Niannian was completely confused.
Huh?
What?
What was he asking?
Wasn't this stuff supposed to be understood after just one read?
Why were these even considered questions!
Niannian had absolutely no idea what a talent gap meant.
She knew she had good talent.
But in her understanding, having good talent just meant learning more and faster.
She never thought that some people would need a long time just to understand those obscure words.
"Wait, wait!"
Niannian quickly stopped him. There were so many questions that she could hardly keep them all in mind.
Xiaotuanzi frowned and thought hard for a long time, but for most of the questions Han Changqing asked, she couldn't give an answer.
For example, the meanings of words like "harmony between man and nature" and "harmony between man and god".
The moment she saw them, she had an instinctive understanding.
It was as if she was born knowing these things.
A flash of inspiration, and then it was engraved in her soul. When she closed her eyes and meditated, she could feel herself merging with the natural world.
That was why she could mobilize the power of the Five Elements so smoothly, and why she was so outstanding in talismans and formations.
These questions, which seemed very basic to Xiaotuanzi, were the fundamental things that others spent their whole lives trying to understand.
Since she couldn't figure it out, Niannian decided to call in external help.
Hmm...
It seemed that this newly - taken disciple of hers had a bit poor talent.
She definitely couldn't find someone with good talent to teach him, or it would be the same as with herself.
Among the disciples in the master - disciple family, the one with the least talent was the fourth senior brother.
Yes!
She would just go find the fourth senior brother!