The First Gate of Understanding
That day, the sky was overcast.Clouds rolled slowly above the village, and the wind carried with it something unspoken—like news that couldn't be put into words.
Li Yuan sat once more on the floor of the crumbling house, across from the old man who had been his teacher for some time.But this time, the atmosphere was different.The old man seemed calmer than usual—too calm, as if he were preparing to say something final.
He looked at Li Yuan gently, then pulled out a worn cloth bundle.Inside it, there was no book, no scroll—only an old brush and a stone of black ink.
"Li Yuan… I've taught you all that I am able to teach.The rest, you must find on your own."
Li Yuan lowered his head.
"Master, I still want to learn…"
The old man smiled.
"Learning doesn't end when there is no teacher.Learning truly begins when you walk the path alone."
He gazed out the window, as if seeing something far beyond the trees and mountain mist.
"I only want you to remember one thing…"
Then he spoke, slowly, with a trembling depth:
"I hope you will one day enter a libraryand read the books of those who came before.Because books also offer us opportunities…And I hope you will understand."
Li Yuan looked at him, his eyes glassy with emotion.The words were simple, yet they felt like an invisible gate opening in his mind.
Opportunity.Understanding.Meaning.
In that moment, the world around him felt wider.
He was no longer just sitting in a small wooden house.He was standing on the threshold of a new world—a world built from words, thought, and the understanding of those who came before.
The Book That Remained
The next day, the old man was gone.No footprints, no sound—as if he had been no more than a dream in Li Yuan's life.
But on the corner of the table, a single old book was left behind.
On its first page, handwritten:
"Whoever reads in search of understanding…has begun the journey to their true self."
And that was the moment.
The first gate of understanding had opened.
The Hidden Library
After the old man's departure, Li Yuan felt an emptiness that was difficult to describe.The wooden house where they used to study was now silent.No voices. No scent of aged tea.No wrinkled hand pointing at characters drawn on the ground.
Yet, the old master's final words lingered:
"I hope you will enter a library and read the books of those who came before… and I hope you will understand."
Since that day, Li Yuan often walked alone, wandering through parts of the village seldom visited.In his heart, he felt a calling—like a faint voice guiding him toward something long forgotten.
One afternoon, as the sunlight turned red and the shadows of trees grew long, Li Yuan passed a rocky area behind a small hill near the village.Behind bushes and dry branches, he found something unusual—a stone door, half-buried in earth and moss, as if swallowed by time.
His hand touched the surface of the door.Cold. Rough.Yet there was a strange resonance within him.
With effort, he pushed it open slowly.The sound of ancient stone grinding echoed heavily… and then, it opened.
Darkness. Silence.Thick dust danced in the air.
Inside, a vast space revealed itself, with towering wooden shelves.Dozens—no, hundreds—of ancient books lay there.Some covered in dust, some damaged, but many still intact.
The walls were engraved with old symbols, and in the center of the room stood a round stone table, carved with circular patterns—like rings of understanding.
"Is this… a library?"
Li Yuan stepped inside.Each step stirred dust untouched for decades—perhaps centuries.He picked up one book and opened its first page.
The script was ancient, yet he could read it. Somehow.
Within his heart, a voice arose—not from outside, but from within:
"Knowledge is never lost… only waiting for the right soul to find it."
The Second Gate
From that day on, every evening after working in the fields, Li Yuan quietly returned to the hidden library.He read. He reflected. He absorbed not just the written content, but the meaning behind it.
And the more he read, the more he changed.
Days passed.He read books on history, agriculture, the heavens, the earth, and things he didn't entirely understand.
But one night, as a gentle breeze slipped through the cracks in the stone wall and his small lantern began to dim, Li Yuan opened a book thicker and more worn than the others.
Its title had faded, but the symbol on its cover seemed to flow—as if alive.
He read it slowly.Word by word.
"Everything has its law...even silence has rhythm."
At that moment, he fell silent.His heartbeat slowed.The sounds around him vanished.Only those words echoed in his mind.
He closed his eyes.
And within him… something trembled.
Water
He thought of the river where he used to play.He remembered how water flowed without shape, yet always adapted.He recalled the faces of his friends, their laughter.And he remembered himself—always quiet, observing, trying to understand.
"Water… is not just a substance.It is the essence of adaptation and calm."
Suddenly, a warm sensation rose in his chest.As if something had opened.A door—but not a physical one.Something in his mind, his heart… his soul.
His eyes opened.
And he saw.
Before him, the pages that once held ordinary text began to change.New writings appeared slowly, as if written by an invisible hand:
"If you can feel the true nature of water,then you have touched one of the Laws of the World."
Li Yuan clutched his chest.
"This… is understanding?"
There was no loud sound.No blinding light.But from that night on, Li Yuan could sense the flow of water—even when invisible to the naked eye.
He could tell when the river would flood,when the earth would be wet,and even the direction of morning dew.
He had only touched a tiny sliver,yet the world now seemed deeper, more alive.
This was the beginning of something vast.Not a power.But a way of seeing.
A person who understands—not because they were taught,but because they felt.