In the mid to late Ming Dynasty, in Taihe County, Ji’an City, Jiangxi Province, there was a scholar named Zhen. Let’s call him Zhen Shusheng. The true scholar is already twenty years old. He is born handsome and delicate, and is a handsome young master. If his family background is still good, then he can definitely marry a beautiful wife and have children. However, due to the early death of their parents and the lack of wealth at home, the true scholar had to sell their belongings one after another in order to study and make a living. Later on, when there was nothing to sell at home, he simply sold the house. Without a place to go, the true scholar resided on the east side of Zhaoti Temple.
Perhaps it’s because they’ve had enough of poverty, or maybe it’s because they often suffer from hunger and cold. The only wish of a true scholar is to become wealthy and become a wealthy person. However, his mind was not sharp enough to do business, and he couldn’t even pass the imperial examination for success, so he never became wealthy. The poorer he is, the more he wants to be rich, and the true scholar is no exception. Therefore, he thinks about getting rich suddenly every day, preferably to become as rich as an enemy country, so that he can live a good life. In the end, he didn’t even have the mind to read and only thought about how to become rich every day.
After a while, the true scholar remained poor and ate without stopping. At this moment, an old monk came to the west courtyard of Zhaoti Temple. The old monk is over sixty years old, with two long white eyebrows that are exceptionally conspicuous. The old monk not only knows how to calculate, but also looks at people’s faces and has many magical skills. For example, there was once a beggar who, for some reason, had all his skin ulcerated and a few days later had a foul odor all over his body. Everyone covered their nose and left. After seeing this, the old monk immediately cured the beggar’s illness and said that the beggar had saved people before, and was blessed with longevity. There was also a watchman who the old monk said was disobedient, but that night, the watchman was chased and bitten by wild dogs, almost losing his life.
After learning that the old monk had a miraculous technique, the true scholar secretly approached him and expressed that it was unfair for him to live a tragic life due to poverty despite his excellence. Finally, the true scholar said that he hoped the old monk would make him rich, live a wealthy life, marry and have children. The old monk refused, saying that a true scholar should be poor, which is quite good. The true scholar was very unhappy and said, ‘I have such a handsome appearance and have read many books. I am still a scholar, surpassing many vulgar people in the world.’. Furthermore, I have never done anything wrong in my life. Isn’t it true that even if I want to pursue wealth and prosperity, it’s not possible? Why do I have to live such a poor life?
The old monk patiently said, ‘You were born into poverty. To achieve wealth and prosperity, you must be down-to-earth and take each step step step by step.’. You can achieve fame and become an official with a high salary, which is enough to change your current situation and enable you to live a wealthy life; You can also do something, slowly earn some money, and improve your life. If you become rich directly, it will only harm you and even make you short-lived. The true scholar was puzzled and asked, ‘I only seek sudden wealth. After becoming wealthy, I will not harm others, let alone rebel. How could I have a short life?’? Master, don’t criticize me, let me become a wealthy person. The old monk continued, ‘As a scholar with no family background, poverty is considered normal. Why do you have to be a filthy rich person?’? Don’t think about getting rich overnight. The true scholar still refuses to give up, pestering the old monk and insisting on getting rich.
The old monk seemed angry and said, ‘If you want to become rich suddenly, you will have a short life. Stop dreaming and study hard.’. If you demand wealth and prosperity again, you will have only one dead end. The true scholar was also angry and loudly said, ‘I have been struggling to survive these years. Now that I have learned that the master is capable and compassionate, and only seeks wealth and prosperity, how could my life be short?’? How could it be a dead end? If the master doesn’t want to bestow wealth and honor, why bother to be so intimidating?
The old monk suddenly smiled and waved at the real scholar, indicating that he should approach. The true scholar approached the old monk and knelt down at his knees. Seeing the genuine scholar so angry and frustrated, the old monk said, ‘You should love yourself more, cherish your current impoverished life, and be content with contentment.’. If you want to become rich suddenly, then you are not cherishing your own life. As the old monk spoke, he rubbed the top of the real scholar’s head with his hand. After rubbing three times, he suddenly let out a loud shout and asked the true scholar to leave quickly.
The true scholar seemed to have changed and left immediately. After returning to his residence, the true scholar fell ill in less than a day. He was very ill and in a daze, he felt like he was about to die. He wanted to seek medical treatment, but due to financial constraints, he had no choice but to continue looking for the old monk. At the western courtyard, the old monk said to the true scholar, ‘Your desire for sudden wealth is too strong.’. It is this desire for sudden wealth that has made you seriously ill. Anyway, since you are stubborn, the old monk will help you. Let me show you what it’s like after getting rich suddenly. After the old monk finished speaking, he raised his left hand and waved his sleeve, and the true scholar was put into his sleeve.
There is a local tycoon, let’s call him Zhang San for now. Zhang San is a big businessman who has been traveling north and south in recent years, earning a lot of money. His family has contiguous houses and a hundred hectares of land. Several warehouses are filled with money, and many of the ropes on top of the money are broken. It is said that his family has several million yuan, making him the richest person in the area. Due to his wealth, Zhang San not only married a beautiful wife, but also had eight beautiful concubines.
Since marrying his wife and concubines, Zhang San has never calmed down. Soon, he fell seriously ill due to alcohol and lust, and lost most of his life. In this way, Zhang San did not restrain himself and continued to take medicine and enjoy himself, so he became even weaker.
At this moment, Zhang San was already so angry that his wife and concubines had searched for many doctors, but they couldn’t cure his illness, so they all knelt in front of Zhang San’s bed, crying insincerely. In fact, they knew that Zhang San was already going to die and were just waiting for him to burp and split the family property. It was just that everyone knew it and no one was willing to say it. The old monk found Zhang San’s house and knocked on the door. Wives and concubines are crying, and servants have already opened the door for the old monk. Before entering the door, the old monk said, ‘Don’t cry. The old monk can save him. You guys, get out of here quickly.’. Upon hearing this, the wives and concubines were displeased, but they still stepped aside and knelt on the ground, thanking the old monk. The old monk raised his left hand again and waved it at Zhang San’s sleeve. The true scholar felt like he had suddenly come back to life. When he woke up, he realized that he had become Zhang San, but his memory was of the true scholar.
At this moment, the old monk had quietly left, and the true scholar understood that his soul was attached to Zhang San’s body. So, in other words, he can become Zhang San and enjoy everything in Zhang San’s family, including his wealth, house, and beautiful wives and concubines. It seems that the old monk indeed has extraordinary skills, and the true scholar has indeed become extremely wealthy. At first, the true scholar was unaware of the situation in Zhang San’s family and always spoke the wrong words. His wives, concubines, and servants did not suspect him, thinking that he was just recovering from a serious illness and his brain was not functioning properly. Later, the true scholar found out about the situation in Zhang San’s family, and his wives and concubines no longer doubted him. Slowly, Zhang San’s appearance changed and he became a true scholar. The wives and concubines didn’t understand, and even praised the old monk for his ability, turning the ugly and old Zhang San into a young and handsome young master. A true scholar naturally knows the situation, he doesn’t reveal it, he just laughs behind the scenes.
Since then, Zhenshu became the owner of Zhang San’s family, and he began to enjoy a life of sudden wealth. At first, he just ate delicious food and drank some good wine that he couldn’t even imagine before. Due to too much money, no matter how much he eats and drinks, he will not decrease (business is still managed by someone, and the family keeps coming in), and he gradually becomes extravagant. The true scholar began to wear silk and satin. He would spend ten thousand taels of silver to buy a good horse, and even go to the brothel, spending extravagantly, hugging each other, soft and fragrant, and spending thousands of taels of silver on a meal of flower wine. Of course, he is not polite to his beautiful wife and concubines at home. Due to having one beautiful wife and eight beautiful concubines, he couldn’t rest every day and favored beautiful women every night. Sometimes, he doesn’t even have to think about it. Being able to entertain several beauties at the same time in one night is incredibly happy. Soon, his body collapsed.
One day, a true scholar looked in the mirror and found himself very old, with a haggard face and dull eyes, as if he had aged twenty years in an instant. He knew that he had been hurt by alcohol and lust. In just a few months, the once handsome young man had become a haggard old man, which was simply astonishing. The true scholar was scared, and when he woke up in the morning, he hurriedly got up to go find the old monk. After getting up, his eyes sparkled with stars, and it took him a long time to regain some consciousness and physical strength. He stumbled and found the old monk. The old monk smiled and said, ‘You want to become rich suddenly. Now that you have money, why are you here again, bothering the old monk?’? The true scholar knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face, begging the old monk for help.
The old monk sighed and said, ‘Many poor people in the world, due to long-term poverty, want to become rich and live a luxurious life.’. But does the human heart know satisfaction or moderation? You have never tasted delicacies before, and do not know the beauty of wives and concubines. Once you have them, you will go crazy and plunder them, just like a thirsty elephant encountering water or a hungry tiger seeing meat. If you don’t eat and drink until your belly swells, it is impossible to stop. Is that so? The true scholar wiped away his tears and nodded.
The old monk continued, ‘So, after you have tasted the delicious food, you still want to eat more.’; After drinking fine wine, one should also drink other fine wines; After having fun with his beautiful wife, he also wants to have fun with her. One is not enough, two or three are needed… Think about it, what do you think when you are poor? You just want to eat enough, drink a little wine, and marry a wife. Why not be satisfied after eating and drinking enough to get married? It’s all about your sudden wealth, it’s about people not being satisfied. What you couldn’t get before, after getting rich suddenly, you will get twice as much, but you don’t know that this will harm you.
Looking at the silent scholar, the old monk said again, ‘Now, do you know why I said that sudden wealth will harm you?’? The true scholar nodded and remained silent. The old monk laughed heartily and raised his left hand. With a wave of his sleeve, the true scholar suddenly returned and turned into Zhang San, dying on the bed. The true scholar, on the other hand, restores their essence and consciousness.
After looking at himself, the true scholar suddenly realized. Originally, everything was a dream, and the old monk allowed his thoughts to attach to Zhang San’s body, experiencing a life of sudden wealth. The old monk clapped his hands, and the true scholar burst out laughing. He had an epiphany and immediately followed the old monk to become a monk. Later, he followed the old monk to Mount Wuzu and disappeared without a trace.
