After Meixi fetched the sand, Taigong stood in front of the hall and waved his hand and said, "Go to the kitchen and pour the sand into the rice jar." ”

"What, pouring sand into the rice jar?" Meixi couldn't believe her ears.

Mrs. Mei's goatee curled up when she spoke: "If you want to pour it, you will fall, don't ask so much." ”

Meixi had no choice but to walk into the kitchen, pour a bowl of wet river sand into the rice bowl, and just cover the rice bowl lid, a hand stretched out behind him to open the lid again. When I turned sideways, I saw that Taigong was standing beside me for some time, and in the other hand he was holding a net bag with a handle—the kind that catches shrimp in the shallows. Mei Taigong smiled and didn't speak, reached out and inserted the net pocket into the rice bowl, and then lifted it up, the rice grains and sand leaked out of the mesh, but he lifted the big river shrimp that was two inches in the small half pocket and jumped around!

Meixi has seen all kinds of tricks since she was a child, but she has never seen such a magical one! In fact, it is not difficult for people who play tricks and magic tricks to perform such skills, but with the help of various props, only ingenuity is not magical in the eyes of insiders. But his own rice jar is not a prop for tricks, Meixi knows it very well in her heart. He had just finished scooping rice in the rice bowl to cook, and the net pocket was what he usually used to catch shrimp, and there was nothing special about it.

It's very hot, the master is naked, his lean skin is slightly dark and healthy, he doesn't even have a spot for the elderly, it is impossible to hide so many live shrimp on his body, and his movements are very slow, Meixi can see clearly, and he was stunned for a moment and couldn't believe his eyes. Taigong looked at Meixi with a bag of live shrimp and said with a smile: "Why are you stunned, wash the shrimp quickly, so that you can cook and drink." ”

Mei Xi let out a long breath, widened her eyes and asked, "Master, what kind of trick is this? How did you play it? Teach me?"

Mei Taigong smiled: "This is not a trick, this is a spell, a real spell!" The tone of his voice deliberately emphasized the word "real".

"Spells?" Mei Xi was a little blindsided, he had seen a lot of tricks since he was a child, and of course he didn't believe that there would be any real spells.

Mrs. Mei stretched out her hand and patted the back of his head, sighed slightly and said, "I acted in front of you today, and I want to ask you a question, if you let your third uncle perform such a trick, can you do it?"

Mei Xi thought for a while and replied: "The third uncle's trick has become very good, copy a bag of shrimp in the rice tank, if there is a design in advance, there are at least five or six methods, but I don't understand how you did it, master?"

Mrs. Mei: "Your third uncle is just a trick, and I am really casting a spell at this time, but in the eyes of laymen, it looks average, boy, have you figured out something?"

Mei Xi blinked and didn't answer, Taigong looked at him and smiled faintly: "You are still too young, and you still know little about things in the world, so it's too difficult for you to ask this question." ...... Let's go cook two dishes and drink with my grandfather, I have something to say to you. ”

With the home-made soybean paste, put spicy seeds, fried a large plate of fragrant river shrimp, and pulled a few garlic sprouts in the yard to make a vegetarian dish, put it on the table of the eight immortals in the hall, poured a glass of wine for Mrs. Mei, and Mei Xi sat aside to respectfully accompany Mrs. Mei to eat.

Mrs. Mei asked him to add a cup and pour himself a glass of wine, Mei Xi shook his head and said, "Master, I don't drink." ”

Mrs. Mei carried the chopsticks and said, "Child, you will go to high school in the city in a few days, and you are an adult, so let's have a drink." ...... You must be very strange about what happened just now, let me ask you another question, in your eyes, who are these relatives of Mei Jiayuan?"

Mei Xi lowered her head: "I also know my life experience, of course I understand that everyone is a good person." ”

Mrs. Mei looked at him meaningfully: "Good people are indeed good people, but you are not children anymore, and you also know that they are all charlatans, right?...... Don't stop talking, in fact, I understand what you are thinking, and today I want to tell you about the allusions about the eight gates of the rivers and lakes. ”

Meixi raised her head: "What are the eight gates of the rivers and lakes?"

Mei Taigong: "In the past, the Jianghu technique was divided into eight gates: shock, fatigue, floating, book, wind, fire, jue, and wanting, and the villagers of Meijiayuan could be regarded as eating in the rivers and lakes among the eight gates. But the real eight gates of the rivers and lakes are not only these, but the way of everything in this world. Sit down and listen to me......"

Three mountains and five mountains, five lakes and four seas, up to the temple, down to the market, all called rivers and lakes. As the saying goes, where there are people, there are rivers and lakes, and all the techniques of doing things in the world can be called rivers and lakes. However, since the end of the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the so-called Jianghu art has been reduced to a small means for wandering artists to cheat their mouths, which is a narrow sense of the rivers and lakes, and the eight gates of the rivers and lakes that people talk about in the world have been completely narrow.

Shocking door is the first of the eight gates of the rivers and lakes, mainly to study good fortune and evil, and to guide people. So nowadays, those who look at fortune tellers are all people in the rivers and lakes in the shocking door. The ancestor of the door is Fuxi and King Wen of Zhou, the legend is that Fuxi painted gossip and King Wen played Zhou Yi, and the warlocks of the rivers and lakes often worshiped another ancestor is Dongfang Shuo of the Han Dynasty, it is said that Dongfang Shuo once set up a stall in Chang'an City for divination. If there is a classic in the door of shock, it is the Book of Changes.

It is not unreasonable for the Eight Gates of the Jianghu to be led by the Shocking Gate, because it studies the changes in the Heavenly Dao. Once you are proficient in the shocking door, the remaining seven Jianghu techniques can be touched, and the deduction of auspicious and evil fortunes and changes in the world is the core of the world. Modern fortune tellers may not have this ability, but it is still a basic skill to see people's eyesight, and the world's Jianghu art is to watch people put down dishes.

Tired, pay attention to the way of practicing medicine to help the world. The practice of medicine here not only includes the traveling doctors of the rivers and lakes, but also includes the sitting doctors, and even the ancient witch blessings, etc., as long as they use various methods to treat people, they are all exhausted. There are two ancestors worshiped by people in the tired door, the medical saint Zhang Zhongjing and the medicine king Sun Simiao. But now when it comes to tired rivers and lakes, most of the people who refer to you Fanglangzhong.

The tired gate is second only to the startling door and is located in the second of the eight gates of the rivers and lakes, and its status is also very important, because it studies people's own knowledge. Strictly speaking, the ancestors of the tired door are the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan and the Yan Emperor Shennong, they are also the ancestors of the legendary Chinese nation, and the classics of the tired door are of course the "Yellow Emperor's Neijing" and "Shennong's Materia Medica".

The floating door pays attention to the way of wandering and learning. The ancestor of Piaomen is a Confucian sage, which is probably unthinkable to many people. And to this day, the jugglers, stage-performers, and even fireworks prostitutes all claim to be people in the floating door.

The book is about researching the ancient and modern learning. The ancestor of the book is Sima Qian. To this day, those who trade in real and fake antiques, those who sell Chun Palace, and those who deal in calligraphy and painting all claim to be people in the book, and even those who rob tombs.

Fengmen is the study of the geography of the world. The ancestor of the wind gate is said to be Guo Pu, so today's Mr. Feng Shui and Yin and Yang Mansion Master are all from the wind gate.

Huomen pays attention to all kinds of health preservation techniques. The ancestor of Huomen is Ge Hong Ge Tianshi, and the classics include "Hug Puzi", "Participate in the same deed" and so on. Then alchemy, alchemy, and the art in the room are all tricks of the people of Huomen Jianghu.

Juemen, pay attention to the way of officials. Legend has it that the ancestor of Juemen is Mr. Guigu, the classics are "Guiguzi" and "Warring States Policy", Mr. Guigu has two very famous disciples Su Qin and Zhang Yi, and the traditional Juemen is actually talking about vertical and horizontal techniques. Since modern times, the tricks of buying and selling officials, including fraud in the name of official institutions, etc., can also be regarded as the charlatans of the Juemen.

The key door is the way of despair. The knowledge of this subject is profound, how should we deal with ourselves when the times are bad, and how should we overcome misfortune? The ancestor of this sect is said to be Zhu Yuanzhang, and there is also a saying that it is Yanagishita Tuo, which is no longer examinable. In modern times, those who fight lotus flowers and ask for food, those who eat big families and fight the autumn wind, those who pretend to be monks and nuns to deceive people, and even those who take sweat medicine can be regarded as important people.

From this point of view, the eight gates of the rivers and lakes are all-encompassing, and they talk about the means and principles of doing things in the world. There is nothing good or bad in the Jianghu technique itself, it is a variety of means, but the good and bad people in the rivers and lakes are uneven. In modern times, almost all of the eight gates of rivers and lakes are tricks of the rivers and lakes, which are classified in the narrow sense of "going to the rivers and lakes".

In ancient times, there were two kinds of people in the rivers and lakes: "li" and "jian", also known as "art" and "dao". It refers to the means, similar to the business scriptures, to figure out what kind of methods can be used by people's psychology to achieve the goal, and the tip refers to the true skill, the real kung fu and the avenue of pursuit. For example, when it comes to practicing medicine, "li" refers to how to fool people by playing tricks, while "jian" refers to the real medical Tao cultivation.

Acting in the world, the words "inside" and "sharp" cannot be abandoned, otherwise even if you have real skills, no one may be willing to buy it. As the saying goes, "the tip of the middle, the great, the tip of the middle, the race of immortals", is talking about this truth. However, in modern times, the warlocks and artists who have been walking the rivers and lakes have studied more methods of deception, and most of them have been reduced to the bottom nine. In fact, Jianghu itself is a university question, and if you make good use of this way, it is enough to walk the world.

Speaking of this, Mrs. Mei took a sip of wine, put down his chopsticks and asked, "Can you answer the question of copying shrimp in the rice jar now?"

Mei Xi blinked her eyes and thought for a long time: "I understand a little." ”

Mei Taigong nodded: "Just understand a little, and slowly think about the rest of the truth." In fact, the charlatan technique is not useless, it depends on how you use it, for good and evil in your own thoughts, but also self-retribution. The size of the rivers and lakes does not only refer to the street performances, the world is the rivers and lakes, and there is no need to subdivide the eight gates. ”

Mei Xi frowned and asked again: "Since the master understands so many truths, why do they ...... uncle?"

After only half of his words, Mei Taigong glanced at him and said with a wry smile: "They are just villagers in poor villages, but they have just learned some means to eat with their mouths, do you still expect them to govern the country and the country? ...... Jianghu art can not be abused, the Mei family's atomic brother has its own rules, for example, your fourth aunt's family is making antiques, you will never allow tomb robbery to disturb the yin house, and the fakes made must also leave flaws for real experts as a unique mark. ...... But whether other people in the world have these rules or not, I can't control it. ”

Meixi asked again: "Then do they have real kung fu?"

laughed too publicly: "Of course there is, how can you mess with the rivers and lakes without any real things?" But most of them still rely on the rivers and lakes to cover people's eyes. Not to mention anything else, the monkey whip you and your third uncle learned is a unique skill, and I'm afraid that even your third uncle himself doesn't fully understand the mystery. ”

Meixi became interested: "I have learned the unique skill of beating the monkey whip, but the son of the third uncle can't learn it until now?"

Mei Taigong: "Some things depend on temperament, qualifications, and understanding, and those who can't learn it can't learn it in their lifetime, he doesn't have that root instrument, and sometimes we can only remember the method and pay attention to it, and hope to teach it to future generations not to break the inheritance." In fact, your monkey whipping method is far from complete, and there are so many tricks handed down by your ancestors, and there is no way to do it. ”

Meixi's eyes rolled and she thought of something serious: "Master, what spell did you use to catch shrimp today?"

Mei Taigong twisted his goatee with his hand, and said with a slight color: "The name of this spell is very loud, it is called - Shenxiao Heavenly Thunder! It is a secret technique that has been passed down by the original patriarch of the Mei family for generations. ”

As soon as he heard that it was the secret technique of the original patriarch of the Mei family, Mei Xi's eyes were a little dim, and he lowered his head and did not answer. He originally wanted to learn, but he was just an abandoned baby selected from the village, and he was afraid that he was not qualified to learn the stunts of the patriarch from generation to generation. Of course, Mei Taigong saw his expression in his eyes, and said with a questioning look: "Meixi, do you seem to be disappointed? Actually, I cast a spell in front of you today, just to teach you." ”

Meixi's eyes lit up, and then she said weakly: "But I ......"

Mei Taigong interrupted him: "Although I don't know where you were born, you grew up in Meijiayuan, and your surname is Mei, and you are a family with us. I have been observing you for a long time, you have a pure temperament and good qualifications, and you are the only one among the children of the Mei family who is the most suitable to learn the spells of the Mei family. I don't expect you to do anything, I just want you to pass it on, and when I'm old, it's time to find a suitable successor. ”

Mei Xi felt a trace of joy and a little nervousness in her heart, and only asked after a while, "Why me?"

Mei Taigong asked rhetorically: "Why can't it be you?" You have already learned the monkey whip, this whip method has not even your third uncle practiced the last hand, if you talk about qualifications and understanding, you are the best." It's a pity that apart from you, there are no great talents among the younger generation of Mei Jiayuan, and I have observed it for many years. ”

Mei Xi didn't dare to answer, like this, Mrs. Mei praised him in private, but if he intervened himself, he would offend the young people of a village if it was spread outside. Does Mei Xi want to learn the master's spells? Of course, he is only a fifteen-year-old boy at this time, and anyone would think about it. Mei Xi changed her tone and asked, "Master, when are you going to teach me?"

Mrs. Mei laughed twice: "Although your qualifications and understanding are good, but what is the nature of a person, you still need to inspect the experience, the Mei family is a small dye vat, the world is the real big dye vat, wait for you to see the outside world, I will teach you after you reach the age of twenty, many things you must experience to make people feel at ease." ”

Meixi: "Don't worry, how can I reassure the master?"

Mei Taigong: "There is a lot of attention to learning the Fa, just having qualifications and understanding is not enough, if you don't have a good temperament, you will bring disaster to yourself, let me tell you a story......

In the era of the Republic of China, Mei Taigong had a cousin named Mei Tai Neng, who had good qualifications and was liked by the elders, and was selected as the successor by the Mei patriarch of the previous generation, but after teaching for a period of time, he found that Mei Tai Neng's character was not pure, so he did not continue to teach, but chose Mei Tai Gong with slightly worse qualifications. But Mei Taineng is a child of his own family after all, and the elders can't bear to abolish his cultivation.

Mei Tai can learn the Fa halfway, but he can also order real things, and he has a "stunt", that is, if he falls in love with a little widow from a family in ten miles and eight towns, he has a way to make people take the initiative to go to his residence in the mountains at night*. This kind of life is very nourishing, and the people around him hate and fear him, knowing that he has spells but dare not provoke him. Later, after liberation, Mei Tai was able to be pulled by the People's Liberation Army to shoot targets.

"Shooting, what target, joining the army to practice marksmanship?"

Mei Taigong sighed: "What kind of marksmanship is practiced, it was used as a target and shot by the people's government." When he spoke, his expression was a little bitter, and his eyes were narrowed with a hint of desolation.

"That spell that the master named Mei Taineng knows, will you, master?" Mei Xi couldn't help it after all, and asked in a low voice.