Qingyin also learned about Baotai and his group from Zeng Li. Just as Master Yu said, someone would probably come to pick her up tomorrow. Once she left, the group would naturally leave because they couldn't find her.

Seeing Zeng Li's worried expression, Qingyin comforted him for a few words. Parting is the easiest thing to do. She couldn't say that she had a premonition that she would leave tomorrow. She sat in the room and pondered for a while, planning to write a few letters to the Taoist temple in advance, since it would be difficult to see each other again in the future.

Under the cover of night in Anqing County, the cold buildings of the Lin Mansion seemed to be coated with a layer of gauze under the moonlight, losing some of their austerity and gaining some of their gentleness.

"Master, with the imperial concubine selection just around the corner, shouldn't we call Rou'er back early so she can learn some manners and not embarrass you?" A woman with a cool and aloof appearance nestled in the middle-aged man's arms and asked cautiously.

"Hmm." Lin Shengxi paused for a second. Who? But looking at the beautiful concubine He Yiniang whom he currently favored, he still gave a simple reply.

Aunt He couldn't help but show a hint of genuine joy on her face. In recent years, she had also had a four-year-old son, which gave her some support. Although she didn't care as much about her eldest daughter, she still missed that poor eldest daughter.

"Thank you, sir, but what about the time?"

"Come back first thing tomorrow morning, okay?" Lin Shengxi raised an eyebrow. After exchanging a few words with Aunt He, he remembered the second daughter she had abandoned at the Taoist temple. He couldn't quite remember what she looked like, but she was dark-skinned and ugly, and not very bright. He figured she wouldn't pass the imperial concubine selection. It would be good to bring her back early to teach her manners so she wouldn't embarrass him. He thought about it for a while, but he didn't show any emotion in front of Aunt He.

Aunt He was both excited and guilty. She had been looking forward to seeing her eldest daughter for a long time, but she had also neglected her more and more over the years. She hoped that her daughter would not hold a grudge against her. With these worries in her heart, Aunt He closed her eyes.

The next morning, the Taoist temple, fresh from the spring rain, exuded a natural fragrance, and new buds sprouted in the woods, everything brimming with the vitality of the new spring.

Qingyin's courtyard, however, was already filled with the atmosphere of parting, quiet and sorrowful.

"Arou, I'll go with you." Zeng Li looked at Qingyin, who had grown from a teenage girl into a stunning beauty, with unwavering determination in her eyes.

"Ah Li, is that Uncle Zeng?"

“My father agrees too. He has Master Yu to take care of him. All I need to do is let me come back once before he dies.” Zeng Li stared intently at Qingyin, his eyes burning with anticipation.

Seeing that Zeng Li had thought everything through, Qingyin didn't want to persuade her anymore. She nodded and hugged her sister, who was both her friend and her protector.

Because of Zeng Li, the sadness of parting had lessened somewhat, and the other young girls all turned their gazes to Abbot Yu Xuanzi. Why didn't they think of this idea? If Arou left, they could follow!

Yu Xuanzi's lips twitched. Meeting the expectant gazes of the crowd, he said irritably, "Impossible. You all stay here in the Taoist temple. Besides, are any of your skills as good as Zeng Li's?"

When martial arts were mentioned, the group lowered their heads dejectedly. The people in the Taoist temple practiced martial arts, and they didn't know where Yu Xuanzi had gotten these techniques from. (Qingyin, who kept her skills hidden, smiled without saying a word.) But the most diligent and hardworking one must be Zeng Li. Who could compare to her?

The group was disheartened, and in the end, only Master Yu, who hadn't said goodbye, remained.

"Master Yu." Qingyin hugged her master, who treated her like a daughter, her voice filled with affection.

"What are you hugging me for? I'm already so old." Yu Xuanzi's voice was calm, but if it weren't for the upturned corners of her mouth, her secret joy would have been hard to detect.

“Arou, your mother has a new son. Don’t worry about it. If you have any troubles, write to us. Take good care of yourself.”

"Okay, I understand."

"Alright, hurry up and go. If you don't leave now, everyone in our Taoist temple will run away with you." Master Yu gently straightened Qingyin's disheveled clothes before stopping.

Qingyin chuckled and left the Taoist temple where she had lived for five years, accompanied by Zeng Li and Xiaoyue.

The guards on the carriage parked at the gate were drowsy and grumbling. Five years was too long. They were all newcomers and didn't know the second young lady they were picking up at all.

"Hey, what do you think of this second young lady's looks?"

"It's probably not that great, otherwise why would the master have left the second young lady in a Taoist temple for five years?"

"Indeed, this second young lady is really pitiful, caught between the eldest and third young ladies."

"Tsk tsk, didn't I have a cousin who worked in the manor before? I heard that this second young lady looks like a man, and she's incredibly ugly!"

...

Early in the morning, the guards, who had been traveling all night, were more alert because of the gossip, and they looked down on the second young lady they had never met before.

The sound of the Taoist temple gate echoed through the air, and the group stopped their conversation, becoming serious again, completely unaware that their earlier chatter had reached the ears of several martial arts practitioners inside the temple.

Xiaoyue had learned kung fu at the Taoist temple and had achieved some success. She was so angry that she wanted to go out and beat up that talkative guard and nanny. Her young lady was as beautiful as a fairy, how could they, ordinary mortals, possibly insult her! However, Qingyin stopped her and she had to endure it.

Footsteps drew closer, one step at a time. Perhaps it was the time or anticipation, but Qingyin's guards and nannies also looked towards the main gate with a sense of expectation.

The door was pushed open.

The sunlight and the beautiful woman stung them, leaving them speechless.

Her eyebrows were like emerald feathers, her skin like white snow, her cheeks like fresh lychees, and her nose like goose fat. Dressed in a plain blue robe, she seemed like a celestial being, her otherworldly appearance like a cloud in the sky, seemingly both near and far, unfathomable, like a human yet a demon, the lines blurred. It was as if the group had just experienced a false dream, truly ethereal.

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