The first gathering of Yin and Yang, where Buddhism and Daoism both strive for harmony

That summer when I was eight years old, one day the children in the village went to the pond to bathe, which meant swimming and playing in the water. The water in the pond at the village entrance was shallow, and there were many people, so I had never heard of any dangers occurring. When we went together, I saw the village chief's son, Shidong. His appearance startled me: he looked swollen and pale, with mud and blood smeared under his nose. I screamed in fright, and the people around me were also startled by my scream, asking what was wrong. I rubbed my eyes and looked at Shidong again; the frightening image had vanished, and standing before me was still a lively young boy.

The first special place in my childhood was that I could often see things that others could not. There is a saying that when a person is young, their heart is pure and their eyes are particularly bright, allowing them to see many things that adults cannot. However, as people grow up, they tend to lose this memory. I am different; this memory has remained very clear.

... ...

One particularly special aspect of my childhood was my frequent ability to sense impending events. I remember when I was five years old, one day a person was playing with mud outside the village chief's courtyard. While playing, I suddenly felt something was amiss behind me, an instinct that something was about to happen, and that it would only be safe to leave. I stood up and quickly ran away, and just as I had moved a short distance, a one-foot-thick, over one-person-high earthen wall collapsed silently, landing precisely where I had been squatting moments before.

In our class, apart from Yunfei, the other "Wuren" is named Feng Junzi. Feng Junzi is three years younger than me and will not turn fifteen until December. The name Feng Junzi seems quite peculiar, and it is said that he chose it himself when he was in school. Indeed, there are all kinds of people, and some parents even allow their children to name themselves. I know a bit about Shang Yunfei's background, but I am not quite clear on why Feng Junzi is also referred to as "Wuren." Just as I was thinking about Feng Junzi, I happened to glance out of the second-floor window and saw him walking in from the west gate. Feng Junzi was holding a black synthetic leather briefcase in his right hand, resembling a rural cadre; in his left hand, he carried a purple clay teapot, akin to an old man strolling in the park with birds; he walked with an unsteady gait, like a housewife shopping at the market; perched on his nose were gold-rimmed color-changing glasses, reminiscent of a third-rate tabloid journalist. In short, no matter how you look at it, he does not resemble a high school student at all. Our school requires boarding students from surrounding counties to attend evening study sessions, while day students living in the urban area of Wucheng can choose to study at home or come to school. However, most day students do not come, with Feng Junzi being the exception.

Grandfather Jin, after listening, still furrowed his brows and thoughtfully said: "This child possesses extraordinary talent; the future is unpredictable in terms of fortune and misfortune. However, if things continue like this, it will be difficult for him to grow up safely." My mother, crying, asked: "Uncle Jin, is there really no way? Please, save this child." Grandfather Jin replied: "There is indeed a method, which can be tried. However, it will only have a temporary effect." My father also said: "Let’s not worry about anything else; as long as he can grow up safely and steadily, that is enough." Grandfather Jin sighed: "It is destined this way; I do not know if human effort can change it. This child must stay as far away as possible from temples and Taoist monasteries; you must remember this."

After returning home, I told my parents about what happened with Bai and the library that day, and that night I fell ill. I was seriously ill, suffering from a high fever for several consecutive days, constantly talking nonsense. After being taken to the village clinic and receiving intravenous saline for two days with no improvement, my parents had no choice but to carry me back home and invite Grandpa Jin. Grandpa Jin took my pulse and, frowning, asked my parents what had happened before I fell ill. My parents recounted everything that had occurred that day.

Shang Yunfei is a notable figure at our school, one of the "Two Great Dreamers" in our Class 4 of the first year of high school. The term "Dreamer" refers to someone who "aims high and far." Shang Yunfei is two years younger than I am, but he has a very special background; he is a disciple of the Tibetan Buddhist master Ge Juji Zang. This master was originally revered in the western Sichuan region, but after his temple was destroyed, he somehow wandered to Wucheng City and settled at the Guangjiao Temple in Huangmiao, twenty miles east of Wucheng City. During the temple's most desolate times, he was the only monk left. Yunfei's family lives next to Guangjiao Temple, and his parents often provide assistance to this old monk, while Shang Yunfei has enjoyed visiting the temple to play with the old monk since he was a child.

I am the top student in our entire township, but I am far from being the top student at Wucheng Middle School. Wucheng City governs six counties: Xuande, Guangji, Zixi, Zuming, Maoling, and Langong, with a population of several million. However, there is only one provincial key high school, which has a planned enrollment of only four classes with over two hundred students, while the rest are students who have sponsorship or other means of being admitted. I am just an ordinary student in Class 4 of the first year of high school, and my age is noticeably older. The others are all students who have sponsorship or other means of being admitted. I am just an ordinary student in Class 4 of the first year of high school, and my age is noticeably older. High school starts in September, and that year I would turn eighteen in October.

I vaguely remember that Grandfather Jin inserted many golden needles into my temples, the center of my forehead, the base of my ears, the top of my head, and the back of my skull. I felt as if the golden needles were slowly rotating after being inserted, though I could not tell if it was an illusion or reality. Later, I fell asleep, and when I woke up, I was already lying in bed, and Grandfather Jin had also departed. My illness was cured. Since then, I felt as if I had become a different person; I no longer experienced the extraordinary events I once did, could no longer see things that others could not, and lost my unusual premonitions.

I glanced at the mirror again, and clearly saw a little boy sitting in the seat of the Wind Gentleman, his pale face displaying a look of confusion, as if he were completely out of place with everything around him. I could see him in the mirror, but when I turned to look with my own eyes, I could not see this person! I felt a chill run down my spine; this bizarre scene awakened memories that had been sealed for ten years, and this time it was because of this strange mirror! Just as I was filled with astonishment, the Wind Gentleman had already walked into the classroom.

Speaking of arthritis, I was frail and sickly throughout my childhood, and my health was never good; surviving was a miracle. This was largely thanks to Grandpa Jin from the village, who often came to treat me. In our Shizhu Village, almost all the men share the surname Shi, with Grandpa Jin being the only outsider. In such situations locally, outsiders are often met with rejection, but Grandpa Jin is an exception; he is respected by the entire village because he is the best doctor within a ten-mile radius. Grandpa Jin did not open a clinic; instead, he treated those who sought his help free of charge, primarily using acupuncture and herbal medicine he collected from the mountains. The unusual turning point in my childhood experiences is closely related to Grandpa Jin.

After the reform and opening-up, the country implemented religious policies, and Master Ge Jiji gained prominence. The government allocated funds to rebuild Guangjiao Temple, and the incense offerings flourished once again. The Master was revered as a spiritual teacher by countless followers and became the president of the Wucheng Buddhist Association as well as the vice chairman of the municipal CPPCC. At that time, the Master expressed to Shang Yunfei's parents his intention to take Yunfei as a disciple, believing that his aptitude and insight were commendable. Shang Yunfei's parents agreed, and thus, at a young age, Yunfei became a Buddhist, although he had not yet taken the precepts. Later, Yunfei was admitted to Wucheng Middle School. The director of the school's teaching office, Fang Zhouzi, learned that there was a student who practiced Buddhism, which challenged his ideological and political work, resulting in him summoning both Shang Yunfei and his parents for a reprimand. This reprimand did not go unnoticed and angered the old lama, who criticized the leadership of Wucheng Middle School through the municipal CPPCC. Ultimately, Director Fang apologized, stating that he would no longer interfere with Shang Yunfei's Buddhist practice. However, although Director Fang apologized, he privately warned other students not to follow Shang Yunfei's example. Consequently, Yunfei became well-known in school and was referred to as "the wild man".

I inexplicably felt a wave of tension, not daring to raise my eyes to meet Feng Junzi's gaze. I was wondering what would happen if he sat in that seat. However, the situation I feared did not occur. Feng Junzi walked over, passing by me, and reached his own seat. Then he turned around and sat down, but he did not sit in his own seat! Instead, he chose an empty seat on the other side of the aisle, avoiding his own seat. Feng Junzi was sitting in the seat of another student, Ji Xiaoyu, who usually does not attend evening study sessions. Her deskmate, Tian Wei, is a boarding student and is currently sitting in the seat reading a book.

In that moment, I understood what was happening. At that age, I did not know how to disguise my feelings, so I pointed at Dongdong and shouted, "Dongdong, you cannot go into the water, or you will drown!" The people around me laughed, and no one paid attention to my words. Children of all sizes jumped into the water, while I anxiously sat by the pond. They were having a great time playing in the water, but soon after, I heard Dongdong shouting for help, as he was slipping under the water and could not come up. At that moment, several older children who were good swimmers tried to go over to pull him out, but they could not reach him underwater. By the time the adults from the village arrived to rescue Dongdong, it was already too late.

I remember when I was seven years old, one evening while playing at the village entrance, I saw Uncle San leaning on a cane walking towards me from the east side of the village. As he passed by, I politely greeted him. However, Uncle San did not respond; he merely looked at me with a strange expression and sighed softly before walking alone towards Zhaoting Mountain outside the village. I found it quite odd at the time because Uncle San had difficulty walking and rarely went out, so how could he be going up the mountain alone? On my way home, I encountered Uncle San's grandson, Shi Xiaosan, and told him that his grandfather had gone up the mountain alone and that it was getting dark, which could be dangerous. However, Shi Xiaosan said that his grandfather was ill and had been lying at home for the past few days, so how could he possibly get out of bed? When Shi Xiaosan and I returned to the village, we heard crying coming from his house from a distance. After asking the elders, we learned that Uncle San had passed away that evening. "Passed away" in the dialect of Wucheng means to die, and in the local dialect, there is also a euphemistic expression for death, which is "going up the mountain." I did not tell anyone about this incident; only Shi Xiaosan and I knew.

Feng Junzi's unusual behavior immediately attracted the attention of the entire class, who all put down their books and looked over, whispering among themselves. Tian Wei felt a bit embarrassed; in order to dispel the 'suspicion' of being close to Feng Junzi, she deliberately coughed loudly, creating a significant noise with her desk, and then widened her eyes to glare fiercely at Feng Junzi. Feng Junzi put down his book, maintaining a calm demeanor as he smiled broadly, nodding at Tian Wei as if her glare was a friendly greeting. Then he gently said, "Tian Wei, I’m going to sit next to you and read for a while, is that alright?"

After Grandfather Jin finished speaking, he lifted me onto a chair and opened a small box he carried with him. From the box, he took out a yellow leather roll, which, when unwrapped, revealed a row of golden needles. I wonder how familiar everyone is with acupuncture. Nowadays, hospitals use disposable stainless steel needles for acupuncture, while in the past, more refined traditional Chinese medicine practitioners used silver needles. However, Grandfather Jin used golden needles at that time. The golden needles are as fine as a hair, and gold itself is very soft, requiring the practitioner to possess considerable skill to insert them into the acupoints; otherwise, it would be impossible to penetrate the points.

The blue stones at the edge of the pond are about 4 to 5 meters high, making it difficult for a person to descend. However, at a certain point on the stone wall, a camphor tree has grown, its branches and leaves exceedingly lush. Following this tree, one can climb down to a height of more than 1 meter above the bottom of the pond, and that is how I made my descent. Upon reaching the bottom of the Zhuangyuan Bridge, I picked up a rubber ball from the water, which was about a palm's depth, and just as I was about to head back, I noticed a circular corner protruding from the silt, something half-buried in the water plants. I casually pulled this object out, rinsed it in the water, and it appeared to be an ancient mirror. This mirror is only the size of a bowl, seemingly made of bronze, with many strange patterns engraved on its back, already showing considerable green corrosion. However, when I turned it over to examine the front, it was remarkably smooth and flat, without any corrosion or even a single scratch, resembling a freshly polished surface, capable of clearly reflecting everything across from it.

It was a day in October, just before dinner on a Sunday. At that time, I had become quite familiar with my classmates, and due to my age, I had taken on the role of the dormitory leader. The eight of us from the dormitory were playing football on the playground with the students from the neighboring dormitory. I was caught up in the game, charging towards the goal made of two bricks, and I took a powerful shot. The ball arced beautifully through the air, soaring far away and landing under the Zhuangyuan Bridge outside the south gate of the school. Everyone stopped to look at me; someone needed to retrieve the ball, and since I was the one who kicked it, it was naturally my responsibility to go get it.

... ...

The figure of Feng Junzi walked into the teaching building, and I continued to lower my head, playing with the ancient mirror. The mirror was very clear, reflecting everything in the classroom distinctly. As I looked, I suddenly noticed something was amiss—there was an unfamiliar person in the classroom! This person was sitting in the seat right behind me; he appeared to be a boy of about ten years old, dressed in a gray-blue khaki outfit, looking very simple, reminiscent of attire from several decades ago. I glanced back at the book, and the seat behind me was empty, with nothing there! This person was sitting in the seat right behind me; he appeared to be a boy of about ten years old, dressed in a gray-blue khaki outfit, looking very simple, reminiscent of attire from several decades ago. I glanced back at the book, and the seat behind me was empty, with nothing there! That was Feng Junzi's seat, and his deskmate, Zhou Song, was doing homework there, seemingly unaware of anything beside him.

Now I would like to introduce our classroom. Like the classrooms you are familiar with, there are a total of four rows of desks, which means four small groups. Feng Junzi and I are in the same group; I sit in the third row, and he sits in the fourth row. Currently, our group is seated on the right side by the window, but this position is not fixed; each week, all groups rotate their seating. Another characteristic of the classroom is that boys sit with boys and girls sit with girls. This arrangement is unique to our high school experience and is said to be in place to prevent early romantic relationships. Currently, our group is seated on the right side by the window, but this position is not fixed; each week, all groups rotate their seating. Another characteristic of the classroom is that boys sit with boys and girls sit with girls. This arrangement is unique to our high school experience and is said to be in place to prevent early romantic relationships.

... ...

Some people may envy my special talent, as it seems to be a very fortunate thing in the eyes of others. For instance, I could engage in stock trading and use my extraordinary intuition to earn a lot of money. Unfortunately, the reality is not as simple as people imagine. Although I often have premonitions about events that are about to occur, I cannot determine what I will foresee, nor can I predict the entire process surrounding the events that happen. Therefore, it is of little practical use to me.

Indeed, the person is truly bold, with a thick skin and strong psychological resilience! Tian Wei opened her mouth as if to say something, but her face suddenly turned red, betraying her emotions, and she lowered her head to focus on her book, ignoring Feng Junzi. I suspect that all the boys in the class are admiring Feng Junzi's courage to confess his feelings to Tian Wei while the teacher is absent—Tian Wei and her deskmate Ji Xiaoyu are the two most admired girls in our class, and many boys have long coveted them but have found no opportunity to approach. However, my feelings are different from others; I find it strange that Feng Junzi so conveniently avoided his own seat. Could it be that he also saw that little boy whom others could not see?

It is now commonplace for high school students to be in relationships, but in the late 1980s and early 1990s, early romantic involvement among middle school students was still viewed as a serious issue, a disaster that teachers at all levels were determined to guard against, striving to eradicate it in its infancy. High school is precisely the age when young people begin to experience romantic feelings, which is why boys and girls were not allowed to sit at the same table, to prevent feelings from developing over time. In such an environment, even normal conversations between boys and girls seemed strange. However, Feng Junzi boldly sat next to Tian Wei, as if he were sitting in his own seat, placing the teapot on the table and taking out a book from his briefcase.

Let me provide another example. When I was six years old, during the summer, Wucheng experienced a major flood, and the water level of the Qingyi River in front of the village nearly reached the edge of the small woods outside the village. The night before, I had a dream in which many large fish jumped out of the river and landed on the shore. I recognized this as yet another clear premonition, so the next day I took a fish basket and went to the edge of the woods to wait for the fish. Indeed, fish jumped from the river into the woods, and I caught several large fish and placed them in the basket. Just as I was feeling pleased, I accidentally bumped into a tree, startling a swarm of wasps. As a result, I was quite unfortunate and got stung on my forehead multiple times, and not only did I fail to catch any fish, but I also lost my fish basket. I could sense that fish were coming ashore, but I could not foresee the wasps in the tree, making it difficult to determine whether this premonition was good or bad. However, this incident was not entirely unfortunate; shortly after I returned home, I discovered that my long-standing arthritis, which had been resistant to treatment, had miraculously healed. I am unsure if this is related to the wasp stings. I could sense that fish were coming ashore, but I could not foresee the wasps in the tree, making it difficult to determine whether this premonition was good or bad. However, this incident was not entirely unfortunate; shortly after I returned home, I discovered that my long-standing arthritis, which had been resistant to treatment, had miraculously healed. I am unsure if this is related to the wasp stings.

That evening during the night study session, I was still sitting in my seat, playing with the ancient mirror that I had occasionally obtained. My classmate, Shang Yunfei, walked past me and saw the mirror in my hand. His expression was quite strange; he opened his mouth as if to say something but ultimately said nothing and walked straight past.

I clearly remember Dongdong lying by the pond—his face swollen and pale, with mud and blood stains beneath his nose, everything just as I had seen before. Later, Dongdong's father, who is also the village chief, arrived, and I always felt that his gaze towards me was quite unsettling, while the looks from the others around me were also strange.

Wucheng Middle School is a mysterious place for me; it has a history of over a hundred years, and surprisingly, there are ancient relics dating back a thousand years on campus. If I were to follow the usual path, I would likely, like everyone else, complete high school safely, then take the university entrance exam, graduate from university, find a job, and live a stable life. However, all of this changed one evening, as if Pandora's box had been opened, and the strange feelings that had been sealed for years returned, all because of a peculiar mirror.

My name is Shiye, and I have lived forty miles northeast of Wucheng, in Shizhu Village at the foot of Zhaoting Mountain since I was a child. The kids in the village often say that I am a wild child picked from the cracks of stones, and they tend to keep their distance from me. I asked my parents about this, and they both laughed and told me that it was certainly not true. Other children were unwilling to approach me, with the exception of my younger sister. However, at that time, I did not feel that I had any particularly unique qualities; it was only after I grew up and reflected on my childhood that I realized I was indeed quite special.

However, in every loss there is a gain. Later, I became very healthy and also became quite intelligent. I was the best student in our village and was admitted to the only junior high school in the township. That year, upon graduating from junior high, I achieved the top score in the entire township and was admitted to Wucheng Middle School, the only provincial key school in Wucheng City, becoming the first child in the history of the village to be admitted to Wucheng Middle School

Zhuangyuan Bridge is a millennium-old bridge, constructed from white stones, featuring three stone arches beneath it. Due to its long history, the stone railings on the bridge have long since disappeared. It is said that this bridge was built during the Northern Song Dynasty to commemorate a local scholar with the surname Mei. The peculiar aspect of this bridge is that it is not built over any river; instead, a deep pond was excavated in an open area, surrounded by blue stones forming the banks, with the pond taking on a semi-circular shape, and the stone bridge spanning the middle. This bridge faces the southern wall of our school, and the pond is part of the school's boundary. The bridge's uniqueness lies in the fact that it is not situated over any river; rather, a deep pond was dug in an open space, with blue stones forming the surrounding banks, and the pond shaped in a semi-circle, with the stone bridge positioned in the center. This bridge faces the southern wall of our school, and the pond constitutes a portion of the school's boundary. Perhaps the water beneath Zhuangyuan Bridge was deep hundreds of years ago, but it is now nearly dried up, with some areas revealing the damp pond bottom.

( Prologue: Do you yearn for a life of extraordinary talent? Almost everyone wishes to possess superhuman abilities. In many fantasy novels, the protagonists often encounter enviable adventures upon their appearance, gaining various magical powers, and gradually fulfilling the wishes that ordinary people can only dream of. However, in reality, if such things were to happen to you, you might find that the situation is not as wonderful as you imagined. This is because the laws of nature are fair and do not favor any particular individual )