Flawless Jade (2)

I strolled up to Uncle Zhang and looked at him, at those eyes of his—eyes that could see through the true essence of all things in the world.

Uncle Zhang was named Zhang Kuang. He truly was wild, and he had every right to be. Only forty years old, he had already become the leading figure in the profession of jade carving, a trade that valued seniority above all else. Because he was wild, he had dared to loudly curse the Second Young Master of Baoyuxiang. Though he knew the Second Young Master was a thoroughgoing petty villain, and though it had landed him in his current predicament, he still had no regrets.

He looked at the child before him and, for the first time, felt that he could not see through someone. Though reading people was far harder than reading dead objects, one could usually discern something. Yet he could discern nothing at all from the child before him. Looking at the child, he saw that his appearance was that of a youngster, but his gait was steady and powerful, like that of a strong adult. In his eyes were the vigor of a child, the maturity of a middle-aged man, and the profound depth of an elder who had weathered countless storms. Who exactly was he? Was he truly a child? Could he be some reclusive master who had returned to his youth...

I smiled, because I saw that those eyes had fallen into confusion...

"Uncle Zhang, although I am Zhang Yu's master, I am only six this year. The New Year is almost here, and after it passes, I will be seven. I shall call you Uncle Zhang!" I said with a faint smile, cupping my hands in greeting.

Zhang Kuang looked at me. He knew that his son had inherited his own wildness. Zhang Yu normally ignored everyone, let alone acknowledged someone as his master. Yet this person before him had made his son take him as master merely while wearing the appearance of a child. He truly seemed to be an extraordinary master. Zhang Kuang still did not believe Zhang Xingfeng was a child and regarded him as a reclusive master beyond the mortal world.

Since such a master insisted on calling me uncle, I could not refuse. Who knew what he was thinking?

"Oh, since you put it that way, worthy nephew, please come into my little bamboo hut and rest awhile. Yu'er, go make tea for your master. Bring out my Holy Rain Guanyin. Worthy nephew, please follow me." Zhang Kuang and I entered his small bamboo hut.

What was going on? How could Father bear to bring out the Holy Rain Guanyin? It seemed Father had also seen the extraordinary side of my master. Zhang Yu thought as he headed toward the small room at the back.

"Uncle Zhang, Zhang Yu said you are an exceptionally skilled and accomplished jade carver." I sat on a bamboo chair facing into the room and spoke to Uncle Zhang.

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. I merely have a little humble fame, haha." Though Uncle Zhang spoke modestly, the pride on his face was obvious. When others praised you in the area you were most proud of, how could you not be pleased?

"Uncle Zhang, I happened to acquire two pieces of top-grade jade from Li Si. Please take a look." I took the two pieces of top-grade jade from my robe and placed them on the bluestone table.

Uncle Zhang's eyes lit up in an instant. He carefully examined the two pieces of jade, and only after a long while did he sigh and say:

"This jade is the king among jades, a rarely seen Jade Essence. It is the essence of an entire jade mine. It can calm the heart and focus the spirit, but it is simply too hard. Only Sword Light can cut through it. And what first-rate expert would come carve it? Besides, the carving blade must be utterly stable. The slightest tremor would ruin the entire work. So although this Jade Essence is precious, it is not especially useful. Still, merely because of its rarity, one piece of Jade Essence can sell for fifty thousand taels of silver."

"Then where can Jade Essence be bought?" I was growing impatient.

"Though it is rare, you can still buy some if you place an order in advance at a large auction house. In truth, high-grade jade will do as well. It can also calm the heart and focus the spirit, and it is cheaper too. I have a piece of high-grade jade here. If worthy nephew does not mind, take mine and use it." Uncle Zhang spoke generously. In truth, he was reluctant to part with it, but I was his son's master after all. Even if it pained him, he had to let it go.

I looked at Uncle Zhang and smiled. "How could I accept Uncle Zhang's things? Besides, I already have quite a number of high-grade jade pieces myself. What I need is top-grade jade to do something very important."

After hearing this, Uncle Zhang was still very happy. As a jade carver, he cherished the fine jade materials in his hands dearly. After all, a good work required not only excellent craftsmanship, but also excellent jade. After calming himself, Uncle Zhang remembered that I had said I needed top-grade jade for something very important. He could not help but feel deeply puzzled, so he asked.

"Worthy nephew, although it is the essence of a jade mine and should possess some important use, I have some standing in the jade-carving profession myself. Yet as far as I know, this top-grade jade has no important use. Could worthy nephew tell me what you intend to use this top-grade jade for? Oh, forgive my presumption. If worthy nephew has some important secret, then there is no need to say it. Your Uncle Zhang is not an unreasonable man." Uncle Zhang concealed his emotions and wore a smiling expression, as if he did not absolutely have to know this secret. Yet I could still see the anxious longing in his eyes.

Looking at Uncle Zhang's smiling face, I smiled as well. I reached out, lifted the cup of tea Zhang Yu had just brought over from the bluestone table, and took a light sip. I carefully savored its fresh, ethereal, floating-beyond-the-dust sensation. I found that I had begun to like this Holy Rain Guanyin a little.

Seeing how much I was enjoying it, Uncle Zhang felt not the slightest pride. His heart had already been filled with thoughts of the marvelous uses of top-grade jade. No important use for such jade had ever been discovered. Who knew how many jade carvers had exhausted their entire lives without finding the slightest clue? For someone like Uncle Zhang, who loved carving jade to the extreme, nothing was more alluring than learning the purpose of top-grade jade.

Seeing Uncle Zhang so anxious while still trying his best to put on a calm expression truly made things hard for him. I raised my head and glanced at him. The fire was about hot enough.

I set down the teacup in my hand, gently placing it on the bluestone. Then I raised my head and looked Uncle Zhang directly in the eye. Uncle Zhang immediately put on a smiling expression. I smiled and said to him:

"Uncle Zhang, it is actually nothing much, nor is it any secret. I simply have a method to turn top-grade jade into flawless green jade." I smiled faintly. I knew exactly what flawless green jade meant in this world.

"What? What did you say? Without the slightest flaw? How is that possible? How is that possible... Are you certain? Can you truly create jade without the slightest flaw? Are you really certain?" Uncle Zhang rose from his chair and shouted.

He no longer possessed even a trace of his usual steadiness. He was nearly mad. But how could anyone blame him? Any jade carver would have reacted this way. Flawless jade was the pursuit of a jade carver's entire life. Through all the ages, for countless years—and especially over these past several thousand years—carvers' techniques had advanced greatly. Yet even now, not a single piece of flawless jade had appeared. People had believed flawless jade was nothing more than a legend. Now that legend might become reality. How could he not go mad?

I looked at Uncle Zhang and said firmly, "I am certain that I can create a piece of Flawless Jade. Once we return to the capital, I will immediately make one. Uncle Zhang, we will soon be leaving for the capital, and Zhang Yu will come with us. Will you come too? Oh, I just remembered—Baoyuxiang has a major shop in the capital. For your own safety, you should live a few more peaceful days here. If you stay here, Zhang Yu will be at ease as well." I teased Uncle Zhang. I knew that just to see Flawless Jade, he would brave mountains of blades and seas of fire.

"How could that be? How could I leave my own flesh and blood? No hardship or danger can separate father and son!" The light of a loving father seemed to shine from Uncle Zhang's face. Yet I knew that while he might truly not want to be separated from his son, the greater part of his reason was still the Flawless Jade about to come into being.

While reading in the study, Zhang Yu heard his father's sincere declaration. His heart surged, and for a long time he could not calm himself...

Looking at Uncle Zhang, I could truly feel his feelings for his son, though Flawless Jade was his main motive. But what about my own father...

A sudden surge of emotion rose within me. I stood from my chair and said resolutely to Uncle Zhang, "Uncle Zhang, do not worry. Come with us. No one can hurt you, much less Baoyuxiang. Even if ten Baoyuxiangs came, I would not put them in my eyes!" At that moment, I seemed to look down upon the whole world. Indeed, looking across the world, whom did I, a cultivator, have to fear? My heroic spirit soared to the heavens, and my vast aura naturally spread outward.

As Uncle Zhang looked at me, his vision suddenly blurred. An emperor's aura rushed at him head-on. The child before him grew larger and larger, like a towering mountain that could not be looked up at... Suddenly, the urge to bow in worship to the child rose in his heart... Then, abruptly, his vision brightened, and everything before him became clear again. Others might have thought their eyes were playing tricks on them, but a jade carver who relied on his eyes for his livelihood trusted them immensely. Thus, he knew that everything just now had been real, and its instigator was the child before him.

I suddenly noticed that Uncle Zhang was staring blankly, already about to kneel before me. Only then did I realize that I had let the aura of my cultivation realm spill out. I immediately withdrew it and sat down again as before. I knew a person like Uncle Zhang would never believe that what had just happened was an illusion. I could not help feeling troubled, but then an idea struck me. Looking at Uncle Zhang, I said:

"Uncle Zhang, when I came here just now, I saw you splitting bamboo. You do not know martial arts, so why is your eyesight even better than that of martial artists? And that blade of yours was merely an ordinary bamboo-splitting knife, so how could you split bamboo in two with such ease?"

Upon hearing my question, Uncle Zhang immediately assumed the manner of an expert. He stroked his three short wisps of beard and said in a clear voice, "Eyesight is a jade carver's basic skill. When we carve, not the slightest mistake can occur, or else an entire piece will be ruined. Blade work is the standard by which a jade carver is judged. When a jade carver can lift heavy things as lightly as though they were weightless, using one part strength to achieve ten parts effect, he is already a very fine carver. But my blade work is to sense the grain of the material itself and use nature's strength to accomplish all this. That is what makes a truly peerless master carver."

I was greatly astonished. The Dao truly existed in all things. Even a profession like carving had developed to the point of harnessing nature's strength.

"Uncle Zhang, admirable, truly admirable." I stood and sincerely expressed my admiration. It came from the bottom of my heart. In my previous life, I had only comprehended how to use nature's strength after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm, when I was already more than twelve hundred years old!

"Master, are we setting out right away? Brother Wang has finished preparing everything. He sent me to ask you." Li Da's voice came from outside the room.