CHAPTER 75: CHAPTER 75: FOR TWO LOVED ONES

Seeing He Fang’s aggrieved expression, Qin Guanglin eventually couldn’t resist sharing some of his ice cream with her. She licked it so it probably wouldn’t be a problem, it melted before it even hit her stomach.

"From here up, circle around, and then back to this spot..." He Fang explained her plan while holding the map, drawing a big circle on it.

"Do we have to go such a long way?"

"Yes, this route covers all the places."

"Why can’t we take this road?" Qin Guanglin drew another line on the map.

"No."

Qin Guanglin wanted a quiet, secluded place, while He Fang aimed to visit every place possible to burn incense and pray, leading to their disagreement.

Actually, it couldn’t really be called a disagreement, since Fool Qin had no say whatsoever. After getting his suggestions rejected, he obediently followed He Fang everywhere looking for places to worship.

By the afternoon, the three tubes of bamboo incense they had initially bought boiled down to only one unopened tube left. Qin Guanglin, holding an umbrella, followed reluctantly behind.

"My back is all sore from kneeling so much, what’s the use of praying this much..." he muttered his complaints, no matter if it was a temple or an altar, wherever there was an incense burner, He Fang would rush him there to light an incense stick.

"We’ve already got so many, this little won’t make a difference." He Fang touched Qin Guanglin’s face, leaned over, and pecked him on the lips, "An obedient boyfriend is the cutest."

"At your age, you should be shopping, not burning incense here."

Qin Guanglin felt that even accompanying his mother to street vendors wasn’t as tiring, at least no kneeling was involved. If those divine statues wouldn’t bless her after all this sincerity, it wouldn’t be fair.

"We’ll have time for shopping, let’s just finish this first." He Fang pulled him forward, "It’s only tiring for one day, and if it really works, it’ll be a huge gain, extremely profitable."

"Alright, let’s profit then."

Zhongnan Peak was not as fun as Cuihua Mountain, which mainly boasted beautiful scenery, while Zhongnan was all about various buildings and relics left from dynasties past.

Qin Guanglin didn’t care much for these; man-made structures couldn’t compare to natural landscapes.

"I’ll carry you." He was already tired, and without thinking, he knew He Fang must be even more exhausted.

"No, who goes to burn incense while being carried?" He Fang shook her head refusing. Seeing another small temple ahead, she turned and straightened Qin Guanglin’s collar, "Keep a proper attitude, don’t look so lifeless, be happy."

"I’ll be happy with a kiss."

"You and your morals." She sighed, pecked Qin Guanglin again, "There, happy now?"

"Yeah, let’s go." Qin Guanglin perked up, continuing the incense-burning expedition with He Fang.

It’s fun to worship casually while playing, but when it becomes a task, it only leaves you tired.

He couldn’t understand why He Fang was so keen on this, eventually attributing it to her belief in mysticism—like how she initially talked about visiting Le Mountain and also mentioned Wudang Mountain when she said she wanted to travel.

"Do you have something troubling you?" Qin Guanglin suddenly noticed something amiss; such devotion to worshiping regardless of Buddhist or Taoist, likely hid something.

"What could possibly be troubling me." He Fang casually glanced at him, "Stop overthinking, once we finish today, tomorrow I’ll accompany you to have fun."

He looked at He Fang, who didn’t seem troubled, and was slightly relieved, "If you encounter any issues, you must tell me."

"I definitely will."

As they spoke, they walked into the temple. It was somewhat secluded here, and there were no other tourists around. Qin Guanglin, as usual, took out incense from his backpack and handed a bundle to He Fang while holding one himself. After lighting them, they bowed to the Divine Statue above and inserted the incense into the censer, then stepped back and knelt down to kowtow.

It felt as though he had kowtowed enough for a lifetime in just one day... After all, he hadn’t kowtowed as much in the past twenty-some years combined as he had today. If He Fang hadn’t insisted on dragging him along, he would have found somewhere to rest long ago.

Standing up, he looked at He Fang, noticing sweat beads on her forehead and strands of hair sticking to it; she had lost the spirited look she had at the start of the day.

"Wipe your sweat." Qin Guanglin handed her a tissue, but noticing she was still gazing up at the Divine Statue, seemingly not hearing him, he simply reached out and wiped it for her.

He Fang came back to her senses and smiled at him, reaching out her hand, "I can do it myself."

"I’ll help!" said Qin Guanglin, wiping her forehead when suddenly he realized that the redness was not from the heat. Feeling a surge of sympathy, he blurted out, "Why did you kowtow so hard? It’s all red."

"It’s just heat."

"Let’s rest a bit." Qin Guanglin ignored her stoic response, forcibly pulling her to sit on the cushion at the side. He took out a bottle of water, opened it, and handed it to her, then started fanning her with a map guide he folded.

He Fang gulped down most of the bottle, then set it down to catch her breath. She turned her head to see him earnestly fanning her, her eyes filled with tenderness.

"Do you know?"

"What?"

"I was praying for two people." He Fang looked into Qin Guanglin’s eyes, her voice very serious, "They are the most important two people, more than anything else."

"Family members?" Qin Guanglin paused, the impatience in his heart dissolving immediately, "I’ll join you."

"Mm, the closest two people," replied He Fang, nodding.

"Let’s rest a bit, then we can go to the main hall and pay respects there."

Along the way, he kept recalling the matters of those two people. If He Fang had mentioned it earlier, he could have prayed for her relatives too.

The closest two... probably her father and brother? Qin Guanglin silently speculated. It made sense for family; even kowtowing twice wouldn’t be too much. He just didn’t know what exactly was going on with her family.

"Don’t kowtow so recklessly." Qin Guanglin cautioned her. What if she hurt her brain?

He Fang smiled and rubbed her forehead, "I didn’t use much force, it’s just the heat."

"So why am I not hot?"

"Because you’re Fool Qin." He Fang stood up, pulling him along, "Let’s go; the longer we rest, the more tiring it gets. We need to push through in one go."

"That’s true; the sooner we finish, the sooner we can rest."

Qin Guanglin muttered as he rose, "Just speak up if you feel tired, don’t try to be tough. I can carry you easily with your tiny frame."

"Just hold the umbrella properly," He Fang said, taking another sip of water. It was unclear who was really being tough, insisting on carrying another when already exhausted.

Men.

The two left the temple, one after the other, continuing towards their next destination.

As they departed, the temple regained its tranquility. Incense slowly burned in front of the Divine Statue, with threads of smoke rising, adding a touch of ethereal mystery to the compassionate face of the statue.

An expression of benevolence that had been maintained for who knows how many years, it’s unknown whether it truly embodied such compassion.