Time passed. Thirty years had passed since the end of Sun De's story of Luo and Gu's struggle for Immortality.
Thirty years was basically half of a mortal's life. Too many things could happen, and too many twists and turns could happen. In this small county town, there were batches of children being born, growing up, getting married, and having children.
However, there were also groups of people who fell into decline, were frustrated, grew old, and eventually died.
The only thing that didn't change was the county town itself, whether it was the buildings, the city walls, the courtyard of the Yamen, or … the teahouse.
It was still the same as it had been in the past. Although it was damaged, as a whole, there didn't seem to be many changes. However, some of the roof tiles were missing, some of the bricks on the city walls were missing, some of the signboards in the courtyard of the Yamen were missing, and … the storyteller in the teahouse was missing.
However, there were more people and things to do in the county town. There were more shops, more towers on the city walls, more drums in the yamen, more waiters in the teahouse, and … a beggar under the bridge in the east side of the city.
The beggar's hair was white, and his clothes were dirty. His hands seemed to be covered in dirt. He leaned against the wall behind him. In front of him was a broken wooden table, on top of which was a black plank. The old beggar was looking up into the sky, as if in a daze. His eyes were cloudy, as if he were about to go blind. His entire body was filthy, but his wrinkled face … was clean, very clean.
It was as if that was the only thing that made him look decent.
However, his clean face didn't fit in with the other beggars around him. It also didn't fit in with the hustle and bustle of the crowd.
He didn't seem to care. After a long moment, dark clouds began to gather in the sky, and the old beggar gurgled. It sounded like he was laughing, but also like he was crying. He lowered his head, picked up the black plank, and placed it on the table with the same crisp sound that had been heard all those years ago.
"Last time, I mentioned that ninety million Immeasurable Eons before the destruction of the Vast Expanse Dao Domain, beyond this Heaven and Earth, in the depths of the endless and strange starry sky, two almighty beings who had existed since the beginning of time fought for the position of Immortal!
"That mighty figure named Luo raised his right hand and grabbed the Heavenly Dao. He was about to crush it …"
"But the ancients were even better. They turned around and reversed time …" The old beggar's voice rose and fell. He shook his head, as if he was immersed in the story. It was as if what he saw in his dim eyes was not a crowd of people passing by in a hurry, but the intoxicated gazes in the teahouse back then.
Even though his words caused the surrounding beggars to be dissatisfied, he still used the black wooden board in his hand to knock on the table, shook his head, and continued to tell the story.
"Old man, you've been telling this story for 30 years. Can you change it?"
"You with the surname Sun, shut up. You're disturbing my beautiful dream. Are you asking for a beating again?!" The dissatisfied voices grew louder and louder. In the end, a fierce-looking middle-aged beggar stepped forward and grabbed the old beggar's clothes, glaring fiercely at him.
"Old Man Sun, do you still think you're the Mister Sun from back then? I'm warning you, if you disturb my beautiful dream again, you'll … move out of this place!"
Although the old beggar's eyes were dim, he glared at the middle-aged beggar who was grabbing his collar.
"What gall! I'm Mister Sun! I'm a High Scholar! I'm famous all over the world! I …."
"You lunatic!" The middle-aged beggar raised his right hand and was just about to slap the old beggar across the face when a shout rang out from off in the distance.
"Stay your hand!"
As the voice rang out, an old man slowly approached from the side of the bridge, holding a five or six-year-old child in his arms.
Seeing the old man, the middle-aged beggar quickly released his grip. The ferocious expression on his face turned into one of flattery and fawning.
"So, it's Steward Zhou. Allow me to greet you."
"Stand down," said Steward Zhou with a frown. Steward Zhou frowned, then pulled out some copper coins and tossed them over. The middle-aged beggar quickly picked them up, and with an even more flattering smile, he backed away.
Ignoring the beggar, Steward Zhou's eyes filled with mixed emotions. He looked at the old beggar, who had straightened out his clothes and was now sitting there, slamming the black board back onto the table.
"Mister Sun," said Steward Zhou softly, "if you have time, please speak. I'd like to hear about the final battle between Luo Hua and the Ancient."
The old beggar rolled his eyes and looked Steward Zhou up and down. Then he smiled faintly.
"So, it's the waiter. Is everyone here?"
Steward Zhou smiled and seemed to be lost in his memories. After a moment, he spoke again.
"Mister Sun, everyone is here. We're just waiting for you." With that, he put down the curious child and wiped the table with his sleeve.
The old beggar smiled proudly. He picked up the black board and slammed it on the table.
"Last time, we talked about …." The old beggar's voice echoed out in the bustling crowd. It was as if he had gone back in time. Across from him, Squire Zhou seemed to be doing the same thing. One of them talked, the other listened. When evening fell, and the old beggar fell asleep, Squire Zhou took a deep breath. Looking at the gloomy sky, he took off his coat and covered the old beggar with it. Then he bowed deeply, left behind some money, and left with the young apprentice.
In the distance, the child's curious voice could be heard.
"Grandpa, who is that old beggar?"
"He is Mister Sun. When I was still a waiter in the teahouse, I admired him the most."
"But why is he here? Isn't he going home?"
"Mister Sun's dream is to travel thousands of mountains and rivers and see the lives of ordinary people. Maybe he is tired, so he is resting here." The old man's voice mixed with the child's voice as they walked further and further away.
He could not see that the old beggar behind him, who seemed to be in a deep sleep, was trembling at this moment. His closed eyes could not hold back the tears, and they flowed down his face. As the tears fell, the dull thunder came from the gloomy sky, and drops of cold rain sprinkled down on the world.
The rain was very cold. It made the old beggar slowly open his dark eyes. He picked up the black board on the table and gently stroked it. This was the only thing that accompanied him from beginning to end.
Touching the black board, the old beggar looked up at the sky. He remembered the rain at the end of the story.
Thirty years ago, the rain was cold and devoid of warmth. It was like fate. After he finished telling the story of Gu and Luo, he had no more dreams. The stories he had created about Devils, Demons, Eternity, and Demigods and Immortals were not exciting enough. At first, everyone looked forward to them with anticipation. Then they grew impatient, and in the end, no one cared.
He tried many versions of the story, but all of them failed. The failure of his storytelling caused him to feel even more inferior in his family. His father-in-law was displeased, and his wife looked down on him with disdain and disgust. All he could do was place his hopes on the Imperial Examinations.
And yet … he still failed.
The repeated blows pushed Sun De to a dead end. Helpless, he could only start telling stories about Ancient and Immortal again. This allowed him to return to his original life in a short period of time. But as the days passed, seven years later, no matter how exciting the story was, it could not beat repetition. Gradually, when everyone had heard of it, and even more people imitated it in other places, Sun De's path was cut off.
He had no source of income, and he gradually lost his fame and dignity. At this time, his wife, after being disgusted with him countless times, got together with someone else right in front of him. In his rage, she ended their marriage and, with the support of his original father-in-law, remarried to someone else.
Sun De also suffered the pain of being deceived. He was beaten up, his legs were broken, and he was thrown out of the house. That day, it was also raining, and it was just as cold.
He lost his family, lost his career, lost his dignity, lost everything, lost his legs. He lay in the rain, howling. In the end, he could not bear the blow, and he went mad.
Or perhaps it would be better to say that he had no choice but to go mad. After all, the more famous he had been when he was at his peak, the more depressed he felt now that he had lost everything. The difference was not something that ordinary people could bear.
After going mad, he relied on the occasional sighs of storytellers to pass his days. Gradually, he became a beggar, a beggar who lived in his own world as a storyteller.
There were many times when he thought he was going to die. However, he seemed unwilling to accept it. He struggled to live on, even though … the only thing that accompanied him was the black wooden plank.
As he stroked the black wooden plank, Sun De looked at the rain. He felt colder than usual, as if he were the only person left in the world. His vision blurred, and he seemed to hear many voices, and see many people.
"Mr. Sun, why don't you tell us a bit?"
"Yeah, Mr. Sun, we're all itching to hear it. Don't keep us in suspense, old man."
"Mr. Sun, our Mr. Sun, you've made us wait for a long time. But it was worth it!"
As he listened to the voices, and looked at the passionate faces, Sun De smiled. However, as his body grew colder, his smile faded into eternity.
It was at this point that … he suddenly caught sight of two people in the crowd. They were particularly clear. One was a white-haired man, and his eyes were filled with grief. Next to him was a little girl in a red dress. Although her clothes were red, her face was pale, and her body seemed illusory, as if she might fade away at any moment.
The two of them sat there, looking at him.
"Senior, please save my daughter. I, Wang, am willing to pay any price!" As Sun De looked over, the white-haired man stood up and bowed deeply.
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