☯Encounter with the Old Couple
Once, Zhang Sanfeng was wandering and arrived at Yongle Fort in Guiyang. As he was walking along the mountain path, he suddenly saw an old couple not far away, leaning on crutches and carrying two buckets, struggling to walk. It seemed they were going to fetch water from the Sacred Spring on the other side of the mountain. Upon seeing this, Zhang Sanfeng couldn't help but feel compassion, so he quickly walked over and said to them, "You two are already at this age. Why are you still doing such heavy work?"
The old couple looked up and saw it was an unkempt Taoist. They replied, "Daoist, you don't know. We rely on that sacred spring water to make wine to make a living! Even though the journey is long and the mountains are steep, we have to go. Otherwise, what else can we do to earn money and make ends meet?" After hearing this, Zhang Sanfeng nodded thoughtfully: "So that's it! But you're so old, and your legs and feet are not convenient. Let me help you with this heavy work!"
💧The Gift of the Wine Spring
Seeing that the old couple didn't speak, Zhang Sanfeng continued, "Old folks, let me tell you a good way. Isn't there an open space where stone mills are piled in front of your house? You just dig down along that stone mill. It won't take long, and the sacred spring water will naturally flow here. You won't need to climb over mountains and ridges to carry water anymore." After saying that, Zhang Sanfeng went on his way.
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The old couple were a bit skeptical, but when they got home, they did as the Taoist said. Sure enough, when they dug three feet deep, a clear spring suddenly gushed out of the ground. The old man tremblingly scooped up a ladle and drank it, then suddenly laughed loudly. It turned out that this clear spring was not water, but sweet and delicious rice wine.
✨Prosperity and Greed
Since having this wine spring, the old couple's life gradually became prosperous. They had ample food and clothing, and their original dilapidated thatched hut was renovated into several mud-tiled houses. In their free time, they also raised pigs and chickens, living a happy life.
One day, the old couple were leisurely drinking rice wine, looking at the pigs in the pen and counting the eggs laid by the chickens, when they suddenly felt that their life should be better! Since the Taoist said there was sacred spring water under their open space, but what was dug out was sweet and refreshing rice wine, maybe there were better treasures hidden underground!
⚖️The Consequence of Greed
Without further ado, the old couple immediately picked up their hoes and shovels and started digging. In the yard, the clucking of chickens, the oinking of pigs, and the "clanging" of shovels and hoes made quite a lively scene! But after a long time, not to mention treasures, not even an ant was seen. The old couple were exhausted. They sat 瘫 on the ground, wiping the sweat from their foreheads. Suddenly, the old man was shocked to see that the wine in the wine spring was slowly falling, and finally gradually emptied and dried up. The old couple were so sad that they couldn't say a word, hugged their heads and cried bitterly, filled with remorse. Helplessly, they had to, as before, lean on crutches, carry buckets, and go to the sacred spring on the opposite mountain to fetch water every day.
☯The Taoist's Lesson
One day, when the old couple returned home, exhausted and out of breath, they found two lines of words written on the stone mill at their door:
Heaven is high, but not as high as human greed;
Human desires are insatiable, and the sacred spring water flows backward.
The Unkempt Taoist Zhang Sanfeng
