CHAPTER 407: CHAPTER 403 CHANGWEI AND XUANQING

When he walked out of the room, the sky had darkened considerably, and even the luster of the ginkgo leaves seemed to have dimmed. Zhou Li found Huai Xu standing in the courtyard, brushing fallen leaves from the surface of the ancient bell with his hand.

He stepped forward.

Huai Xu immediately turned his head, looking at him warily. "I’m not going to sleep next to you!"

Zhou Li was bewildered.

He hadn’t said anything yet!

Still vigilant, Huai Xu stared at him and said seriously, "I said I would sleep next to you before, and you weren’t willing. Now, even if you want to sleep next to me, I won’t do it. Forget about it!"

Zhou Li was left speechless.

Pursing his lips, he asked, "What are you looking at?"

"This bell."

"What’s so interesting about it? If you like it, I’ll give you one."

"You see this pattern..." Huai Xu pointed to a spot for him to look at.

Indeed, there were some patterns on the bell, but that was hardly out of the ordinary. Bells and cauldrons hold a special place in traditional culture; many bells are designed with patterns upon casting for decoration, and some are inscribed with text to give them meaning. However, the area Huai Xu indicated didn’t much resemble typical decorations or script. Decorations on bells and cauldrons are mostly symmetrical, whereas this pattern was isolated, more like some special mark.

"Is something wrong with it?"

"See what happens when you don’t study seriously? All you do every day is pet cats, play with your phone, and date." Huai Xu momentarily forgot he had encouraged Zhou Li to date. "If you had read a few more of those books by that Jiang fellow, you would know this is something from a Heavenly Master."

"Is that so?"

"This bell has Spiritual Power; it’s just hidden very deeply." Huai Xu finished, then glanced at him sideways. "You can’t feel it, can you? It’s normal for you not to feel it. If it weren’t for the Great Devil King here, no one else could sense it!"

"What about Master Ming?"

"...I’m trying to have a serious conversation with you. Don’t keep arguing with me!"

"Sorry."

"HMPH!"

"So, this Taoist temple has produced a Heavenly Master before? And a rather powerful one at that?" Zhou Li asked humbly.

"That’s right."

"I see..."

That didn’t explain much anyway.

In ancient times, it was not uncommon for a Heavenly Master to join a religious order. This was mainly Taoism, particularly the Orthodox Unity School, as Heavenly Masters often had the need to meditate and practice in tranquility. Of course, many served the state or sought power and profit, but for the small number who wished to meditate and practice quietly, joining a religious order was an excellent choice. In some dynasties, those outside secular society could be exempt from taxes and labor, and during certain periods, they could even live above the law.

The Spring Mountain Taoist chose to retire into Taoism in his later years; in his era, this was likely considered a fashionable trend.

Zhou Li began to wander around the Taoist temple.

Two dogs chased and frolicked under the cover of night, a common sight in the countryside. Besides them, Zhou Li also noticed traces of many small animals in the courtyard, all coexisting harmoniously.

The Taoist temple was surprisingly large.

Compared to Zhihong Guan, this was a more purely traditional Taoist temple. Not only was it larger, but its layout also followed the common arrangement for small Taoist temples, with several halls housing different Taoist deities. Although many were in disrepair, they were still kept clean and tidy.

As he roamed, he found himself outside the kitchen.

It was a small house in the rear courtyard. A slight chill had set in with the night, making the firelight from within seem particularly warm.

Brother Nan and Master Xuanqing were busy inside. Through the dark window, Zhou Li could see their moving silhouettes and hear their voices. At times like these, he couldn’t help but marvel at Brother Nan’s ability to make friends—it seemed that no matter whom he met, he could hit it off with them in a very short time, just like now.

"How old is this Taoist Temple?"

"Supposedly over a thousand years," Master Xuanqing said. "But that’s just what my master told me; I don’t know if he was exaggerating."

"So big! TSK. It must have been glorious back then."

"I heard that there used to be many people around here; there was a town not far away, so the temple enjoyed quite a bit of incense offering. But then wars broke out, the town was burned to the ground, people fled, and it gradually declined," Master Xuanqing said. "Because it’s remote, it was fortunate to escape destruction during the wars. Later, also because of its remoteness, no one came here, so it nearly fell into ruin... Apparently, there were quite a few Taoists here several decades ago. During the war of national resistance, many of them joined the army and never returned."

"It looks like it has been renovated recently."

"My master did it a few years ago," Master Xuanqing said. "He was worried about not having a successor, so he thought renovating the temple might attract one. He spent all his life savings to buy materials and, while his health was a bit better than it is now, he painstakingly repaired it bit by bit himself. It took him nearly a year."

"Did he find one?"

"I don’t know if you could say he did."

"Oh, so it’s you!" Brother Nan realized, wiping vegetables off his knife. "Does this place usually get many visitors?"

"Very, very few."

"Then your daily life..."

"We grow our own vegetables and raise our own poultry and livestock; we can just about sustain ourselves. Every autumn, a group of photography enthusiasts comes to take pictures. They stay overnight and offer incense; they tend to be quite generous. Then there’s this ginkgo tree. It’s so ancient that, according to local custom, many people bring their newborns here to pray to it as a ’protector,’ believing it can help avert misfortune. Usually, they also give a small red envelope to the temple." Master Xuanqing seemed unaccustomed to speaking with peers; initially, she maintained a calm, even somewhat cool tone, but she couldn’t resist Brother Nan’s warm nature and had already softened. "I also occasionally do live streams online, with a beauty filter on, and can earn a little money to help with the temple’s expenses."

"You really have it tough."

"It’s alright."

"When did you start thinking about practicing Taoism?" Brother Nan asked. "I think I saw a girl online who also chose a reclusive life."

"The one from Zhongnan Mountain?" Master Xuanqing asked with a smile.

"You know about her too?"

"I saw it online." Master Xuanqing smiled, lowered her head, and said, "It was due to family reasons when I was young. After my parents passed away, I didn’t understand much back then and felt like living didn’t have much meaning. But I didn’t dare to die, so I just thought of renouncing worldly life. However, I didn’t have any academic qualifications, so no other temples or monasteries would accept me. By a twist of fate, I ended up here."

"A twist of fate..."

Brother Nan recalled that when Zhou Li had been explaining things to the elder of the observatory earlier, he had also used the phrase "a twist of fate," and he couldn’t help but smile.

Master Xuanqing also smiled and continued, "At first, I actually regretted it many times. But as I stayed longer, I gradually got used to it. Eventually, I even grew to like this kind of life. I thought it would be quite good if I could continue living like this..."

"Then why didn’t you leave at the beginning?"

"If I had left, only Master would have been here, and this Taoist temple would have collapsed."

"I see."

Master Xuanqing spoke in a straightforward, matter-of-fact way, not hiding anything. Hearing her true circumstances, Brother Nan didn’t think any less of her sincerity towards Taoism. Instead, he found her directness refreshing, sensing an air of someone who had come to terms with things and wasn’t bothered by much.

"How old is the elder of the observatory?"

"Eighty-two."

"You answered so quickly. I have to think for a moment to remember my own mom’s age."

"He just went to the hospital a few days ago; it was written on his records."

"HAHAHAHA..."

Just then, Brother Nan suddenly noticed Zhou Li standing outside. He was startled, turned his head, and asked, "What are you doing standing there? Eavesdropping on our conversation?"

Zhou Li immediately walked forward, flustered. "I came to see if there was anything I could help with."

"No need... You can help with the fire. Have a seat."

"Okay."

So Zhou Li sat down in front of the stove. Although only the small inner hearth was lit, the familiar feeling came rushing back instantly.

Brother Nan continued to ask, "So, will you take over the Taoist temple in the future?"

Master Xuanqing, however, remained silent and didn’t answer immediately.

Zhou Li quietly observed Master Xuanqing’s expression. He already knew her answer and understood it—if the elder of the observatory passed away and Master Xuanqing were to take over the temple, she would be all alone here. This was clearly a difficult prospect for a young woman.

The place was just too remote.

She was not Zheng Zhilan.

Seeing this, Brother Nan immediately planned to change the subject, but before he could speak, Master Xuanqing began.

"Master has asked me this many times, but I don’t want to stay here for the rest of my life," Master Xuanqing said. "I want to go out and explore someday. Maybe I’ll come back, maybe I won’t."

"Perfectly normal, perfectly normal. Everyone should have their own life," Brother Nan said quickly.

"Mm-hm."

"Do you study Taoist practices every day, besides doing chores?"

"Not entirely." Master Xuanqing smiled. "Taoism is quite laid-back. What Master has taught me most are the erhu and pipa; supposedly, these are our temple’s ancestral skills. I also play the erhu or pipa when I live stream online; Master plays very well. Then, he teaches some principles about how to conduct oneself in life, and only after that come the Taoist practices."

"Zhou Li, get the fire going."

He was telling Zhou Li to build the fire.

Since they had guests, Master Xuanqing brought out some cured meat to cook, which was the only meat dish; everything else was vegetarian.

It was all very simple, but the flavors were surprisingly good.

The winter melon tasted like winter melon.

The tomatoes tasted like tomatoes.

In this day and age, those were high compliments indeed.

Zhou Li’s favorite was a dish of ’roughage vegetable,’ which he had eaten before. Back then, Brother Nan had said it was what they fed pigs in his hometown, and people only ate it occasionally. But for some reason, this dish really suited his taste.

If he said that out loud, Brother Nan would laugh at him again.

There weren’t any recreational activities at night. Zhou Li chatted with the elder of the observatory for a while, listening to stories about the temple from the past and its bygone glory—tales the elder himself had only heard. The elder also spoke of the developing resort to the east and the road being built to the west. Since the elder’s situation was almost identical to that of the elder of Zhihong Guan, their conversation naturally turned to the increasingly dilapidated state of Taoist temples and the challenge of finding successors to carry on the tradition.

Brother Nan also chatted with Master Xuanqing about the bizarre flavors of mooncakes.

Tuanzi was busy chasing moths everywhere.

Only Huai Xu was bored by himself.

As they talked, the elder of the observatory actually fell asleep. Master Xuanqing said this was normal, woke him, helped him back to his room, and then returned.

Having lost his excuse to delay, Zhou Li stole glances at Brother Nan, who was still engaged in a lively conversation with Master Xuanqing. He hesitated several times, wanting to speak but holding back, and finally said softly, "I—I’m going to head back to my room."

Hearing this, Huai Xu, who had been bored before, instantly perked up, quietly pricking up his ears, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two.

Brother Nan just looked at him, completely baffled. "Go back if you want to! Can’t you find the way or something?"

Zhou Li felt so embarrassed.

Huai Xu, however, was snickering to himself.