I pushed open the door, and Jile and I arrived on the street, which was desolate all around. It was just after noon, and a sense of drowsiness was spreading. As we walked around, we found that many people had anxious expressions. Jile said: "Has something big happened?"
I said: I won't.
We walked along a street and came to a teahouse, where we found many people gathered inside, so we also went in. On one table, a middle-aged man was vividly describing the scene outside:
Something's gone wrong outside, my older brother is in charge of the beauty expansion of Shaolin Temple, he brought people to take a look and study how to do it, I followed him and went together. When we arrived, we knocked on the door for half a day without any response, thinking that something was off, my older brother had learned martial arts and knew qinggong (light skill), so with two feet he jumped up high but didn't manage to fly over the wall of Shaolin Temple, then he used his "Number One Palm in the World" move and opened the door with one slap. When we looked inside, everyone was dead, not a single person left.
Xile said: Isn't the door blown open?
I said: You also believe it, we used to jump down from the wall when we were young.
Everyone heard that the whole family was dead and couldn't help but whisper among themselves: I think it's because of that martial arts competition a few months ago, they invited disaster upon their household.
Some say: I think there must be a traitor, taking advantage of midnight when people are asleep, killing one by one.
Someone next to him immediately objected: "Impossible, killing one by one until when? Have you been to the temple? It won't be finished even if we kill till dawn."
Everyone thinks it makes sense and echoes: It's impossible to kill one by one, what do you think is going on?
Opposite of him said: Must be one sword in hand, two people kill two.
There were also comments below: Two by two may not be able to finish killing before dawn.
Some people say: Nonsense, how can two-two kill without waking someone up, and there's no poisoning.
They immediately started discussing and said: What if it's poisoning, what if they all fainted?
Inside a harmonious voice. An old man slowly said: It's unlikely, Shaolin has a special place to study toxins and antidotes, even if poison is put in the food, not everyone can eat it.
Some people say: It must be due to long-term vegetarianism and lack of nutrition.
The person next to him immediately said: Nonsense, in my village of Xicun, there is an old man named Wang Han who lives a poor life, eats wild vegetables and grass every day, and the more he eats, the stronger he becomes. Heh, his body is getting better and better, and he can run faster than a rabbit.
Everyone burst out laughing and said: "Boastful, he can run faster than a wild rabbit. Why doesn't the old man catch a wild rabbit to eat?"
That man said: When he talks, he has to talk about the great disaster eight years ago. The old man survived without starving to death, but later became mentally ill, had convulsions and epilepsy, kowtowed every day, his life was saved, but his waist was no longer useful, so he ran very fast, couldn't bend down to catch rabbits, a vegetarian's fate.
Everyone says: It's also pitiful for that old man, running with rabbits every day, but he can't eat them.
He said: Yes, this year the wild rabbits are particularly numerous, like locusts after a plague of locusts, jumping all over the ground. They were caught and sold in the city, but no one wanted them.
Everyone says: How come no one wants it? Nanbian Wild Flavor Restaurant, specializing in wild goods, how can a rabbit always sell for more money than a melon?
Some people disagree and say: Not necessarily, that year of disaster, it was not allowed to sell melons on the street, all the melons were rotten. Later, those who grew melons were heartbroken. Guess what happened after the melon growers were heartbroken?
What's going on?
He said: The melon farmer was heartbroken and didn't plant melons anymore. That year, all the melons rotted in the ground. The next year, most people didn't plant melons either. As a result, city dwellers went without eating melons for a whole year. After another year passed, they especially wanted to eat melons, but there were few melons available, and they sold very well. When prices were high, one chicken and one melon cost the same price.
Everyone nodded and said: Yes, there was such a year. Later, everyone planted melons, but no one raised chickens. In the second year, one chicken could be exchanged for 100 melons.
Everyone sighed: The world has changed so fast, but which is more valuable, a wild rabbit or a melon?
Someone jumped out and said: I've eaten wild rabbit, the meat is sour, not tender, not delicious.
Another one jumped out and said: Nonsense, what you ate was an old wild rabbit, have you eaten a small one?
The storyteller became unhappy and shouted loudly: Are you going to listen or not? Later, a great hero appeared and killed all those who had killed the Shaolin monks. Will you listen or not?
Hilarious: Listen, listen.
That person continued: Later, when I arrived at the Sha River, I heard about something that was terrifying. It turned out that the ones who killed Shaolin were high-ranking experts from various rival factions, including Zhang Fuxiong, known as the number one leg of the desert; Niu Sanwa, the number one dark weapon expert of Wudang; and Tan Zhuangzhuang, the number one strongman of Jinniu. There were many others, too numerous to count. They were drinking and boasting in a wine house when a young man appeared with a sword. That person was not human, but a god. He destroyed Shaolin, which provoked the Buddha. The Buddha sent down a lantern-carrying attendant from his side, and heavenly soldiers descended upon them. They were drinking on the second floor when that person suddenly appeared on the second floor rooftop, having come directly from the sky. He dug a hole in the roof and came down through it.
Everyone was shocked and amazed.
He said: Those forty people certainly didn't know, they wanted to fight, but that person hadn't even made a move, and all forty of them were dead.
Everyone was skeptical: "Nonsense, how can you kill someone without lifting a hand?"
That man said, "Fool, draw your sword! Didn't that man bring a sword? That sword is used in heaven to cut down mountains and earth. Look at the Taihang Mountains, they were all carved out by that sword."
Everyone says: Which of those forty is going?
He said: Yes, that sword can cut through diamond as if it were cutting a melon.
Everyone was amazed: cutting a melon! Cutting a melon is so easy!
He said: Yes, just like cutting a melon, I didn't deceive you, I saw the broken mouth on the big pillar.
Some people say: Diamonds are so hard that nothing can be opened with them, but melons are easy to cut.
Some people opposed it and said: Nonsense, there are many varieties of melons. The melons grown in our village, Hu Gua Village, are not good for slicing, with hard skin and sweet flesh, a special variety that has been offered to the emperor as tribute.
Others say: That is the heavenly sword.
That person said: That gourd, everyone says is a heavenly gourd. It was eighteen years ago when the gods in heaven accidentally ate the gourd and spat out the seeds to the human world. They fell into the field of Hu Guazi Village's old man Hu Bosun, and this kind of gourd grew. It's different from the gourds you've seen before, they're all things from heaven, so they shouldn't be cut mutually.
Some people opposed it, saying: Nonsense, humans are all earthly things, and don't they all kill each other?
Someone asked: How's your melon harvest this year?
He said: Don't mention it, that melon is quiet and needs to grow slowly. This year, for some reason, there are a lot of wild rabbits, they often jump on the vines, which makes the melons not grow well.
Some people say: If the melon doesn't grow well, it won't sell for a good price.
An old man pinched his beard and said: You don't know this, the rarer the goods, the higher the price.
Some people say: Even if you are highly educated, your salary is still as low as nine years ago when it was comparable to that of a chicken.
Someone suggested: at least the same price as a wild rabbit.
Some people say: Farting is definitely more expensive than dying.
Some people say: What's the big deal? Wild rabbits are worthless. They're everywhere.
Some people say: Wild rabbits are hard to catch.
Some people say: it's hard to catch and also not delicious.
As they spoke, the representatives of Gua Gui and Tu Zi Gui began to quarrel with each other, refusing to concede, and started listing reasons why Tu Zi Gui was more valuable or why Gua Gui was more valuable. The argument became heated, with both sides turning red in the face. Suddenly, one person from the side that said wild rabbits were valuable stood up, pulled out a knife from who-knows-where, and shouted: "I told you it's Gua Gui! Who dares to sell wild rabbits for a high price? I'll chop whoever does!"
The crowd erupted into chaos, with some drawing knives and others pulling out daggers. Some even grabbed wooden stools to use as weapons, and they all clashed together in a frenzy of mutual slaughter. My friend and I, not wanting to get involved, quickly retreated outside to watch the commotion. The scene inside was one of unprecedented pandemonium, with dozens of people wielding over a dozen different types of weapons, fighting each other in a confused mess. Since no one had known anyone else beforehand, once the factions became mixed up, it was impossible to tell who was on whose side. Inevitably, some people ended up mistakenly attacking others who shared their own views. One such person, who believed that rabbits were more valuable than melons, beat someone for half a day before the victim finally managed to gasp out: "Even if you kill me, I'll still say that rabbits are more valuable!" In situations like this, there was no choice but to grit one's teeth and finish off the person. As the fight wore on, although everyone's eyes had turned red with rage, they still retained some semblance of rationality. Before attacking someone, they would ask: "Rabbits or melons?" If the other person didn't agree, then they would start fighting. One supporter of the "rabbits are more valuable" faction asked a stranger: "Rabbits or melons?" The stranger hesitated before answering, and just as he was about to say that melons couldn't be more valuable than rabbits, he was knocked unconscious by a wooden stool. The scene was too ghastly to behold, proving that in critical moments, it's best not to worry too much about being eloquent. In the end, some people were injured, others were dead, and still, others lay unconscious on the ground. Only one person who believed that melons were more valuable remained standing. He climbed onto a table, wanting to say something, but discovered that he had become dizzy from all the fighting and couldn't remember whether his original stance was that rabbits or melons were more valuable. Overcome with anguish, he suddenly spotted someone he had beaten half to death lying on the ground below him. Then he thought that if he asked this person what their stance was, he would naturally be able to figure out his own stance as well. So he took a step forward, grabbed hold of the person, and asked: "Rabbits or melons?" The person had originally believed that rabbits were more valuable, but seeing his enemy again and wanting to save his own life, he hastily changed his tune and said: "Melons! Melons are more valuable!" The other person let out a loud laugh, punched him unconscious, and then jumped onto the table. Facing the crowd of injured people, he shouted loudly: "Haha! Rabbits are still more valuable!"
At this time, there was a melon peddler with broken hands and feet below, who recognized the person on the table, knew that he had mistaken his position, and reminded him: Brother, brother, you are wrong, it's a melon peddler.
The consequence was that the man who spoke was killed with a knife. I and Xile watched in shock.
