Chapter 216: The Ashes Box

“What, what key points?”

Huo Xiang was somewhat impatient, staring intently at Shui Miao.

Shui Miao frowned slightly, “Nature, go with the flow of nature.”

“How exactly do you ‘go with the flow of nature’? This phrase left Huo Xiang confused.”

Everyone had been listening intently to the previous explanation; even the driver had slowed the car to pay attention.

This question touched upon the Dao of nature.

Based on his understanding of Feng Shui, Shui Miao had gained some insights into the principles of nature.

“The universe and the heavens have their own natural laws of operation; the sun, moon, and stars are all included within these laws. How much more so for a mere mortal? Not just humans—even the entire Milky Way galaxy is but a speck of dust within the vast, boundless universe. Therefore, we have no choice but to go with the natural flow. The Dao of nature is the Dao of the universe itself,” Shui Miao felt as though he had entered a vacuum-like state, speaking these words as his thoughts flowed. Pausing briefly, he looked at Huo Xiang and asked in return, “If a knife were to come down toward your head, would you dodge?”

“Of course I would dodge,” Huo Xiang blinked.

Shui Miao nodded, “I’m deliberately exaggerating the issue. In our daily lives, we rarely encounter such major problems. We rise with the sun and rest when it sets, eat, sleep, and work busily, everything seemingly chaotic, yet still in harmony with nature. However, with the advancement of the times and changes in the environment, our lives have undergone tremendous changes. A multitude of mixed and confused thoughts have clouded our innate nature, causing us to indulge in materialism and lose our way in the pursuit of truth. At such times, we no longer understand what the Dao of nature is. We only know that to survive, we must earn money, seek shortcuts, and use any means necessary to achieve our goals, without time or willingness to reflect on whether what we are doing still follows the natural way. At this point, problems arise, troubles come, and all sorts of calamities and negative energies follow.”

“Then what?”

Huo Xiang, sensing Shui Miao was getting to the key point, couldn’t help but grow tense, clenching her palms until they were sweaty.

“Therefore, by human nature, we once again think of Feng Shui. Yet those in this world who know even a little about Feng Shui treat this knowledge as a money-making tool, making it even harder for ordinary people to learn the truth,” Shui Miao sighed lightly, “Take for example a Yang dwelling—wanting to apply Feng Shui knowledge without seeking others’ help, first you must clarify your own thoughts. Meditate daily, breathe fresh air, and bring your spirit into the most natural state. Then open your eyes and look at everything around you. What feels natural is natural; what feels unnatural should be adjusted until, finally, everything feels integrated and natural with you. At that point, you will have a residence that aligns with your personal destiny and attributes. Of course, the prerequisite for this method is entering the most natural state, where the mind is at peace and all things flow naturally.”

“Boom!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Shui Miao suddenly felt a tremor in his inner vision. He quickly closed his eyes to observe and noticed many cracks forming on the surface of the stone tablet representing the Dao of nature. In some of the larger cracks, faint characters were visible—information about the Dao of nature.

“What does this mean!?”

“Could it be that my understanding of the Dao of nature has caused the content on the tablet to appear ahead of time?”

Shui Miao acknowledged that he had indeed gained some insight into the Dao of nature, but he couldn’t quite believe it. The stone tablet, which was supposed to reveal its secrets only after ten years, was it really about to unveil its mystery now?

However, the stone tablet in his inner vision did not change any further; it became still again.

“Obviously, my understanding of nature is still insufficient. Still, I guess I must be getting pretty close.”

Shui Miao comforted himself inwardly.

“I still don’t fully understand. Just what level of inner peace must one achieve to be considered in harmony with nature? Also, when I sense something wrong and try to fix it, could that cause even more problems? How should I resolve that?” Huo Xiang didn’t realize that she was asking too much. After all, what right did she have to expect so much from someone she had just met?

Shui Miao nodded, “This is something that can’t be explained clearly in a short time. It requires practice, and more importantly, deeper understanding.”

※※※

Everyone exchanged a few more casual words, and then the car fell silent.

Shui Miao looked outside the window. The van had turned onto a cement road, clearly smoother than before, and everyone felt relieved.

Suddenly, Huo Xiang asked, “Shui Miao Ge, are you planning to live in the county town permanently?”

“No, I plan to return to Zhonghai City for a while to handle some personal matters.” Shui Miao glanced back at Huo Xiang. In her eyes, he noticed a subtle intensity that was hard to detect. A thought stirred in his heart—could this be another romantic entanglement?

He quickly turned his head to look out the window.

Unaware of the subtle change in Shui Miao’s expression, Huo Xiang continued with a smile, “Going back to Zhonghai City means you’ll come back, right? So are you planning to rent a shop or something when you return?”

“Not necessarily. Maybe I won’t come back at all, or maybe I’ll go somewhere else.”

Shui Miao didn’t turn around, and his tone was clearly cooler now.

Huo Xiang wasn’t ready to give up, “Then where will you go? I… I want to become your disciple…”

“Your disciple!?”

Shui Miao was slightly taken aback, then shook his head with a faint smile, “I myself don’t even know who to take as my master. I only know some theory, not much real skill. I advise you to study hard, stop daydreaming, and in the future, find a good job, support your parents, and raise a family.”

“Hehe, yes, yes, young man, you’re absolutely right!”

Huo Yuanliang quickly jumped into the conversation.

Huo Xiang’s mother tugged at her daughter. She had noticed—her daughter seemed to have developed feelings for this young man.

Huo Xiang lowered her head, her mood becoming conflicted.

Shui Miao remained silent, continuing to gaze out the window…

About ten minutes later, the van arrived near the county town station, when suddenly Shui Miao spotted a shop with its roller shutter half-open, emitting a faint purple glow. He quickly asked the driver to stop. After getting out, Shui Miao noticed that three adjacent shops were up for rent. These shops faced north with their backs to the sun, making them a rather unfavorable location. Yet one of the shops emitted a purple glow, which surprised Shui Miao greatly. He walked around the shop and noticed that behind it was a large, vacant machinery repair shop with a rusty gate and overgrown weeds inside. Shui Miao squatted down, grabbed a handful of soil, and smelled it—it didn’t seem particularly special.

“Young man, are you interested in this shop?”

Huo Yuanliang was eager to find a place to settle down and thought this place might work. It looked quite remote, with little foot traffic, but it was probably cheap. Originally, Shui Miao had wanted Huo Yuanliang to develop his business in the city where his daughter studied, but Huo Yuanliang knew well that housing prices in big cities were extremely high. With the limited money he had, going to a big city would only bring hardship.

“…”

Shui Miao didn’t respond. He stood up and walked to the front of the shop for a closer look. Each shop was small, about thirty square meters, and the three together totaled only ninety square meters. However, inside one of the shops was a flatbed cart full of fine sand and dozens of broken bricks. What made it even worse was that there were two piles of fresh feces on the sand.

“Oh my! How filthy…”

Seeing the feces, Huo Xiang immediately stepped back.

Huo Xiang’s mother worked in the garment industry and naturally didn’t want to stay in such a desolate place where not even a bird would leave droppings. Fearing that Huo Yuanliang might impulsively rent the place, she hurriedly said, “Yuanliang! This place is too remote, there’s hardly any neighborhood around, and it’s impossible to run a clothing store here. We can’t take it!”

“I know, can’t I at least come in and take a look? Women, always nagging, go back, go wait in the car.”

Huo Yuanliang waved his hand, somewhat annoyed.

After Huo Xiang and her mother left, Shui Miao leaned close to Huo Yuanliang’s ear and whispered softly, “There might be something valuable under the sand. Clear away the feces and dig through the sand to take a look.”

“This… you can’t be serious…”

Huo Yuanliang was taken aback, looking at Shui Miao with deep skepticism. He couldn’t believe there could be any treasure hidden under the sand.

Shui Miao frowned, “Forget it, I’ll do it myself…”

Shui Miao turned around, went outside to find a stick, came back, and cleared away the feces. Then, he pulled out a bone urn from beneath the sand…