Chapter 407 Then Why Are You Crying?

After eating dinner at home, Song Chunxue went straight to sleep.

I was so sleepy I couldn't keep my eyes open.

Half an hour later, she woke up on time.

Taking a long nap is bad; it makes you feel exhausted and weak.

The fourth brother hasn't returned yet, but the second brother has sent a letter.

In the letter, he explained that he had taken the initiative to go to Lord Xie and ask him to give him a promotion, and asked Song Chunxue not to be angry because he had acted first and informed her later.

To Song Chunxue's surprise, the second son became aggrieved, saying that she didn't care about his situation at all, and even asked Song Chunxue if he was really her biological son, and why she hadn't seen him for three years and her mother had never said she would go to see him.

He said he was in a difficult situation, craving all the delicious food at home, and wanted to come back but couldn't get away.

Unexpectedly, in his letter he greeted his sister and brother, and said he regretted not being able to witness the third child's wedding, but that he had become more sensible than before.

What troubled Song Chunxue was that he even wrote a letter to Lao Si, asking Lao Si to go to Jincheng to find him. He said he knew someone who could help Lao Si find a good way out, and he also begged Song Chunxue to go with Lao Si to see him.

Speaking of which, in her past life, she missed her second son the most because he lived the farthest from home, and it took him more than half a month to travel back and forth.

When the mother learned that her second son wanted to stay in Jincheng for the rest of his life, she was happy, no matter what.

She really wanted to see what her second son, who had just left the army, looked like—darker and thinner, and whether he truly missed his mother.

But considering that the second son had found Lord Xie and gone to Jincheng, he would definitely go to thank him.

Let's put this matter aside for now; it's not too late to go after the fourth son's marriage is settled.

Her senior brother was going into seclusion the day after tomorrow, so she carried various melons she had picked from the field on her back, intending to send them to him.

Eating a melon can quench your thirst.

She carried a bag weighing twenty or thirty pounds to the Taoist temple; her hands ached from the tightness, but she didn't feel the weight.

She has experienced firsthand the many benefits of spiritual practice over the past two years.

Her once loose belly and bulging lower abdomen were gone. After reading a couple of medical books, she learned that it was due to the accumulation of damp heat.

After giving birth, the body is depleted, with cold in the upper body, heat in the lower body, and poor circulation in the middle jiao (middle burner). It is almost impossible to have no health problems.

However, by meditating and regulating her breathing, she used the energy of heaven and earth to open up her meridians. She didn't indulge in coolness in the summer, and her body felt much lighter and more relaxed.

The senior brother's door was tightly closed; it seemed he was either meditating or sleeping. Song Chunxue put the things in the kitchen.

She still needed to ask her senior brother about the name of the inn and the opening date, so she sat on the steps in the courtyard and closed her eyes to rest.

"Junior brother is here, why don't you go inside and sit down?"

The Taoist priest came in from outside, carrying a whisk. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, his face was flushed from the sun, and his long robe was somewhat dirty and covered with small, prickly bumps, clearly indicating that he had come from the wild.

"I thought Senior Brother was taking a nap or meditating," Song Chunxue stood up and asked curiously, "Where did Senior Brother go? Did he go dig in the dirt?"

“An old man insisted on having me find him a good burial site while his family was taking a nap. He took me for a walk around the mountain, saying that he wanted to bring blessings to his descendants.”

The senior apprentice walked into the kitchen, picked up a ladle, removed the white foam on top, and scooped out some raw juice to drink.

Song Chunxue quickly stopped him, "Senior brother, I brought you watermelon. Raw juice doesn't taste good."

"Let me take a sip first, I'm so thirsty."

Song Chunxue took out a melon, cut it in half, and gave him a spoon to scoop out the flesh.

"It smells delicious. Junior brother's melons are growing well. Mine all died, but my carrots are doing pretty well. Do you want some?"

“I’ll go pick it myself later,” Song Chunxue cut a piece for herself and sat on the steps outside like her senior brother. “I came to see you today because there’s something else I need to discuss with you.”

"The opening of the inn?" The Taoist priest seemed to have expected it. "The name is Zhaocai Inn. It's a bit tacky, but everyone likes to hear it."

"And the name of the cloth shop. Mei Yang came to see me yesterday afternoon, and I chose the name 'Colorful Cloth Shop' for him. He asked me to inform you." At this point, the Taoist priest nodded. "Junior brother has good taste. Both shops will make money."

"As long as my senior brother doesn't think I'm scheming."

Who doesn't scheme and plot?

The senior brother was eating half a watermelon with gusto, spitting the seeds onto the rind that Song Chunxue had left uneaten.

"What you say makes sense, Senior Brother. It rained quite heavily yesterday. Could it be that you prayed for rain?"

The Taoist priest stopped what he was doing. "How did you know, junior brother?"

Song Chunxue was stunned. "I just said it casually. Was it really rain that Senior Brother prayed for?"

She stood up and excitedly bowed deeply to the Taoist priest.

“I thank you on behalf of the people here, Senior Brother. The rain was very timely and heavy; otherwise, much of the grain would have been lost.” But she quickly realized something and her face showed worry. “Is it because praying for rain is detrimental to your cultivation that you have to go into seclusion?”

The Taoist priest remained calm as he swallowed a large mouthful of bright red watermelon. "Not entirely. I haven't gone into seclusion for three years; it's time."

"So you're going into seclusion starting tomorrow?"

"Yes, starting tomorrow." The Taoist priest glanced at Song Chunxue. "If I need to go out, have Wang Shouming bring me food."

"Hmm?" Song Chunxue smiled. "How did you know I was going out, Senior Brother?"

She's been quite busy this month, with two shops opening and things to do with her fourth child, so she doesn't plan to go out for the time being.

"Anyway, the fourth brother is fine this year, so you can take him with you to avoid trouble."

Since her senior brother had said so, Song Chunxue didn't ask any more questions. "I'll listen to my senior brother."

Before long, half of the melon was gone.

The Taoist priest got up, chopped up the melon rind, and threw it into the open space outside.

"Then I won't bother you any longer, senior brother. I'll bring you some delicious food tomorrow."

"It doesn't need to be fancy. I'll be eating vegetarian meals during my seclusion. Send me a small amount, just one bowl will do, so as not to waste food."

"I can't send you the soup noodles, but I'll make you some dry noodles and a bowl of noodle soup, okay?"

The Taoist priest nodded. "Very good."

Song Chunxue nodded, "No meat, I won't put any onions or garlic in it either. I'll make you vegetarian buns in the morning."

The Taoist priest smiled and said, "No need to see me off this morning. I thought you would ask about Lord Xie."

What about Lord Xie?

Song Chunxue seemed to have been silenced; as expected, nothing could escape her senior brother's eyes.

“Junior brother, don’t overthink it, don’t resist it, just let nature take its course. You don’t need to avoid anything that moves you just because you agreed to see Master. Life is short, and being like your senior brother isn’t any better. If you can find a good match, your senior brother will have one less thing to worry about.”

Song Chunxue remained calm and composed. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother. I didn't think too much about it."

She couldn't help but look at the Taoist priest, "Senior brother, you don't need to worry about me. You can go wherever you want. Even if I'm all alone, I can take care of myself."

She smiled confidently and calmly, "Things were okay before, but things will be even better in the future."

"It is my greatest honor to have received your protection over the past few years. You are a shrewd and insightful person, you should have foreseen this. Don't let me delay your schedule."

The Taoist priest stretched and got up to go to the main hall. "Then why are you crying?"

"..." Song Chunxue bit her lip. Where did she cry?

She couldn't possibly cry.

After a moment of confusion, she got up and walked outside.

"It's not because of you."