Chapter 68 Chapter 68 Part 2

After Old Master Fang's side gradually got back on track, Lin Xinghuo began to think about carrying out his master's instructions to have the ashes of the family of three repatriated for burial.

During this time, Qingji traveled back and forth between the capital and Buxiantun once more. This time, Lin Xinghuo noticed at a glance that his hat had changed. The new yellow cap shone a crimson glow in the sunlight, clearly indicating that the caracal's weapon-refining skills had improved. Although Caracal Anian was the closest to Qingji among the spirits, Lin Xinghuo knew him well enough to know that he would never refine clothes for Qingji without a reason.

Sure enough, when Lin Xinghuo asked, he learned that Qingji's little hat "was broken when he was playing with A Nian". The yellow-robed little man obviously liked this new hat very much and didn't realize A Nian's sinister intentions at all... Lin Xinghuo dared to guarantee that it was definitely not a game. Uncle Mao was so lazy and claimed to be the head of the family, so he would not have the leisure to play with Qingji. It must be that Qingji, this stubborn little man, had offended him somehow, and he was bullying others again.

Qingji, who was being bullied but unaware of it, received comfort from another parent. Lin Xinghuo not only prepared delicious spiritual food for him, but also took him with her on her trip to Tangwangzhuang, hoping to give Qingji a couple of days to relax before returning...

According to the information He Qing had found out for her, the Lin family, from which her "father" came, was once a big capitalist. Their descendants had died out many years ago, and their close relatives could no longer be traced. The "mother" was born into a family of enlightened gentry. Although the Tang family was a big landlord, because Mr. Tang had devoted himself to the cause of democracy and had left behind evidence, the whole family was relatively stable and now moved to Tangwangzhuang, a suburb of Beijing.

It wasn't the Grandmaster herself who discovered the deceased family of three, but the Feathered People. After finding the Spirit Village and bringing them back to Nanshan, the Grandmaster on Lotus Peak sent Lin Xinghuo a long letter, explaining that while the family's death was primarily due to a fall into a snowy ravine due to unfamiliarity with the route, it was also partly due to the Feathered People who had descended from Lotus Peak.

Although Yu Min had a human head, his hair was white, his beak was birdlike, and his eyes were red. A direct encounter with him was instantly noticeable. That time, Yu Min was nearing the end of his life, and he had gone to Lotus Peak to entrust his master with the care of the Spirit Village. Because the mountain was already snow-bound, Yu Min, in his weakness, hadn't concealed himself well and accidentally revealed his whereabouts. A young couple carrying a child saw them from the foot of the mountain, thinking they were fellow villagers in distress, and eagerly climbed up to help. However, upon approaching, they caught sight of Yu Min's unprotected profile, and panicked, they fled down. While there was a mountain path leading to Lotus Peak from Jinjiayao, and while it wasn't as steep and dangerous as the one on Nanshan, it was still difficult for newcomers to the area. After they fell into the ravines on either side of the path, Yu Min tried to rescue them, but he was too weak. He plucked all the feathers from his wings, which couldn't fly far to begin with, and wove them into fire-proof cloth, which he left for the spirits. Yu Min also perished in the ravine.

That place was not far from the Buxian Temple formation. The master was trapped within the temple, able to see but unable to save. It wasn't until the spirits arrived that they took the three members of the Yumin family who had died there with them. As to why he believed the spirits had left their ashes, the master's letter explained, "The people of Yumin firmly believe they carry a trace of phoenix blood, and upon death, they burn their bodies." In the temple, the master saw the spirits digging Yumin out of the snow, protecting the three huddled together with his wings before his death. The spirits, who considered Yumin their mother and father, would certainly not leave the bodies of those they were trying to save exposed in the wilderness... Cause and effect intertwined, and precisely for this reason, the master gave Lin Xinghuo this identity.

There were indeed three people's urns among Yu Min's belongings. Qingji also found a letter from his master written to a strange monk and the future successor of Bushian Temple on Yu Min, but the monsters were illiterate, so Qingji hid the letter in his small robe for more than ten years.

As expected, the master had only come up with the idea of ​​having her go find the spirits after seeing Lin Xinghuo give her new clothes woven from stinking orchid leaves. The remains of the dead ancient wood spirit Taowu would not harm the demonic plants...

After the master gave Lin Xinghuo this identity, he received a letter from the old man of the Tang family. The letter included two months' salary, asking the master to take care of his granddaughter for a while, and then his family would come to pick her up. However, it was not known whether Buxian Temple was closed when the family came, or if some other unforeseen circumstances led to the decision not to pick her up. In short, there was no news after that, and the letter that the master had sent back was never replied.

No matter what, since she has taken over someone else's identity, Lin Xinghuo has the responsibility to send this family of three back home. She also wants to see how the Tang family is doing. If she can help, she will help, just as a way to complete the cause and effect.

But Lin Xinghuo never expected that the Tang family wanted her to help in this way!

The Tang family's maternal grandfather was nearly seventy years old, but he didn't look old at all. He had six sons and one daughter. Although the youngest daughter died young, the other six sons all grew up, married, and had children. After the Tang family had more than twenty grandchildren, they lived a prosperous life in the countryside. No one dared to mess with them, so they lived a good life.

Lin Xinghuo made a new box out of spirit wood, placed the ashes of the family of three inside, and wrapped it with yellow cloth that he had woven and dyed himself. Then he took it to Tangwangzhuang, hoping to bury it in the Tang family's ancestral tomb.

However, Mr. Tang did not immediately agree to the request of his "granddaughter" Lin Xinghuo. Instead, he asked her in detail about her situation over the years.

Lin Xinghuo initially thought that this was the old man's concern for his granddaughter, but the more he listened, the more he felt something was wrong, because he was emphatically asking, "Have the Lin family sent you any letters in these years?"

"Your father didn't leave you any relics? I remember Lin Qingyi had the habit of keeping a diary. Did you bring his diary with you?"

"You didn't bring it? You haven't seen it either!" Old Master Tang frowned. "Then we should ask around carefully. We can't forget our roots!"

The old man obviously didn't believe it completely. He stroked the cloth wrapped around the urn and sighed several times: "I haven't seen such fine material in years. Where did you get it from?"

Lin Xinghuo was not stupid. He had already understood the implication of Mr. Tang's words. The Lin family might have hidden a fortune. Mr. Tang believed that this fortune might have fallen into Lin Xinghuo's hands. In other words, even if it was not that huge amount of wealth, Lin Qingyi must have left some money for Lin Xinghuo to live on.

Lin Xinghuo found it a little funny. Putting aside the fact that she was not Lin Qingyi's biological daughter at all, she only thought about how old the child was when Lin Qingyi died. If the parents really left something behind, it would be strange that such a young child could be saved.

But Old Master Tang didn't think so. He was still sighing faintly, "Qingyi has always been popular since he was a child. He can make a few reliable friends wherever he goes. Snow Province is also a place with good people. So when he took you and your daughter to work there, I didn't stop him... Later, when the accident happened, I was so worried that I couldn't sleep for nights. I wanted to pick you up, but I ended up falling ill from the heartbreak. I had no choice but to send a letter and my salary... Qingyi really has made great friends in the local area. They even sent a letter. As soon as I saw the handwriting on the letter, as well as the paper and ink, I knew you were adopted by a good family!"

"At that time, our family had just handed over our inheritance, and I was seriously ill, so your uncle said we should just leave you in a good family to enjoy a good life. Bringing you back would not only have a bad background, but you would also have to suffer with us... You had no news for all those years, and I blamed your uncle for being cruel, but now you see, I was right not to bring you back."

The so-called uncle didn't show up, but the aunt came in hurriedly. When she saw Lin Xinghuo, her eyes lit up. She stepped forward, shook Lin Xinghuo's hand, and looked him up and down, saying, "I originally said that you should bring him back. Even if we have to eat coarse food, we are still a family together, and it makes my heart warm! But now look at how well they raised you. Your uncle was right to scold me. I have a lot of hair but little knowledge!"

This aunt-in-law was very quick-witted. She immediately asked Lin Xinghuo how he got back to Beijing after finding out the composition of the fire.

It was difficult not to answer this question, so Lin Xinghuo said, "Because I was adopted, my class background followed my family's, so I'm a middle peasant." She didn't mention the file on the educated youth from Beijing that He Qing had obtained for her. She only said, "After graduating from high school, I returned to the village to farm."

"This time I came to the capital with a distant relative from my village. Fallen leaves return to their roots, and I want to bury my parents' remains back here..."

Aunt Tang seemed to have missed the point of the last sentence and shook her head, "Such a tender face, such hands without even a callus, and such fine cotton clothes... Your parents love you so much!"

She calculated, "You are the same age as my fourth child, so you are eighteen this year, right? That's not young anymore. Your mother's family asked you to return to Beijing. Do you know what they are planning?"

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The angry Anian was about to explode: "!!!"

Note: "The hairy calf gave birth to Yinglong, Yinglong gave birth to Jianma, Jianma gave birth to Qilin, Qilin gave birth to common beasts, and all hairy creatures were born from common beasts." - Huainanzi, Han Dynasty

"It is possible to report back from a thousand miles away in one day" - Guanzi: Water and Land