Chapter 98: Exclusive Visit to Xingquan Temple
Du Yunzhang, traveling alone, had been traveling all the way since early morning, arriving at Xingquan Temple at nearly 10:30. He hadn't expected to find the temple, which he had imagined to be a grand, ancient Taoist temple, more like a deserted village inn on a remote mountain road. The temple's two courtyards, front and back, appeared to occupy only half an acre of land.
Du Yunzhang initially mistakenly believed that the "Xingquan Temple" plaque hanging in front of the door was pointing to the mountains in another direction, but when he walked over and looked around, he found no other courtyards.
"Knock, knock, knock," he went forward and knocked on the gate. Not long after, the door opened, and out walked a monk in a loose robe. Although his face had a few wrinkles, his features were delicate and he didn't look very old. Du Yunzhang couldn't tell his age for a moment.
"Sir, who are you looking for?" asked the Taoist priest.
Du Yunzhang heard the man's voice was quite thin and bowed quickly, "Master, is this the Xingquan Temple?"
The Taoist bowed and said, "It is Xingquan Temple. Look, there is a plaque here." Then he pointed to the plaque.
"You are a noble..."
"I am the abbot of this temple, and my Taoist name is Yanchen."
"So it's Taoist Master Yanchen! My apologies, I'm from the Cao Gang, my last name is Du." Du Yunzhang bowed, "I didn't expect you to be the abbot. Your temple..."
Yan Chen saw Du Yunzhang's confusion and smiled slightly, "Excuse me, Mr. Du, but I am the only monk in this temple, and there is an old woman who looks after the house."
Du Yunzhang couldn't help but feel puzzled. He never expected that there was only one monk in the Taoist temple where Lu Changhua was preparing to become a monk. What was he doing?
"What brings you here?" Yan Chen saw Du Yunzhang standing there in a daze, so he asked.
"Oh, that's right. I'd like to inquire if you will be accepting a lay disciple who is ready to convert to Taoism in a few days?"
As soon as these words came out, Yan Chen's expression suddenly changed. "Mr. Du, this is not the place to talk. Please come in and talk."
Du Yunzhang followed Yan Chen to the main hall of the Taoist temple. In the center, there was only a statue of Daode Tianzun, one of the Three Pure Ones. No other statues were enshrined. Yan Chen lit three incense sticks at the central shrine and invited Du Yunzhang to take a seat.
"Mr. Du, you'd like to ask about Mr. Lu from Linqing Prefecture, who is planning to become a monk at Xingquan Temple?"
Du Yunzhang nodded. "Indeed, I came here to ask why the head of the Lu family insisted on becoming a monk here. How did he negotiate this with you?"
Yan Chen was silent for a moment. "Well... excuse me for being so presumptuous, but I'd like to know first that the Cao Gang and the Lu family of tricks should have nothing to do with each other. Why did you get involved in the Lu family's private affairs?"
Du Yunzhang had long anticipated the abbot's question and had already thought of his answer on the way here. "I don't know if you've heard, but there's been a lot of trouble in Linqing Prefecture about a flying thief named Feng Shijiu. Lately, he's been frequenting the Lu family and even harassing the Cao Gang's territory. So the Cao Gang sent me to contact the Lu family, hoping to unite and deal with Feng Shijiu. Even if they can't catch him, they can at least find some clues that the police can use to solve the case. But I didn't expect the Lu family's patriarch to come to your abbot to become a monk and be so cold to the Cao Gang's inquiries. I suspect this may be related to the reason he decided to become a monk. So, I decided to intervene and ask you about the real reason why the Lu family's patriarch became a monk so that we can help him resolve this knot in his heart."
Yan Chen nodded. "So that's what happened. However, you also admitted that this was meddling in other people's affairs. I have a duty to keep this a secret for Master Lu, so... please forgive me for not being able to tell you anything."
This setback caught Du Yunzhang off guard. "Uh... this..." He was speechless for a moment and didn't know how to continue.
"Mr. Du, if you have nothing else to do, I will not accompany you any longer."
They're kicking me out without saying a word! Du Yunzhang couldn't help but feel anxious, "Master, I'm not being nosy, but the head of the Lu family, Lu Changhua, saw that the Lu family's unique skills could not be passed down, and he still insisted on coming here to become a monk. Aren't you afraid of the gossip of people outside?"
Yan Chen smiled faintly, "If Master Lu has made up his mind, he won't care about worldly gossip. As for my Xingquan Temple, I will pay even less attention to those worldly discussions." After saying that, Yan Chen called out, "Grandma Li, please invite the guests to the side room for tea. I still have homework to do."
A country woman in her fifties walked in from outside the yard and responded to Yan Chen: "Okay, Master Kun, I'll be right there."
Du Yunzhang's heart moved, and he couldn't help but look Yan Chen up and down again, as if he had made some new discoveries.
"Wait a minute! Taoist Master Yan Chen—or... can I call you Madam Yan?"
Yan Chen was stunned and stopped in his tracks as he was about to walk out.
"Master Du, what did you say?"
"You should be a Taoist nun, and your surname was Yan when you were a layman. Am I right?"
Yan Chen stared at Du Yunzhang for a long time without saying a word, and it seemed that he agreed.
"If I'm not mistaken, you should be Yan, the original wife of Lu Changhua, the head of the Lu family, right?"
"What do you want?"
Du Yunzhang waved his hand. "I don't want to do anything. I just want to know why Lü Changhua became a monk here—or, to put it another way, why he came to Xingquan Temple to reconcile with you. What's the hidden story behind this?"
"This has nothing to do with you!" Yan Chen said with a cold face.
"Haha, it really has nothing to do with me, but don't you want to know the truth about the tragedy that happened in the Lu family recently?"
"A tragedy? What happened to the Lu family?" Yan Chen changed his previous indifference and suddenly became nervous.
"You don't know? No wonder. This place is far away from Linqing and news is cut off. Then let me tell you, just in the past few days, the eldest daughter of the Lu family, Lu Shuixian, and the second daughter, Lu Shuiqing, were both poisoned and murdered. The murderer is still unknown. Judging from the situation, the third daughter, Lu Shuiling, might also be poisoned to death at any time..."
Before he could finish, Yan Chen's legs suddenly gave way, her body swaying, and she was about to collapse and faint. Du Yunzhang quickly stepped forward to support her, helping her to a nearby chair. He thought, this is now confirmed: she is Lu Changhua's original wife, Yan, and the mother of Lu Shuixian and Lu Shuiqing.
"Grandma Li! Grandma Li!" Du Yunzhang shouted outside. Not long after, the old woman who was in charge of the yard rushed into the room. Seeing Yan Chen's ashen face, she was immediately horrified. She pressed his philtrum and pounded his back, calling out repeatedly. It took a long time before she finally woke him up.
"My two poor children!" Yan Chen burst into tears as soon as she regained consciousness, and Du Yunzhang had no choice but to try to persuade her. After crying for a long time, she slowly stopped crying and said, "Mr. Du, who on earth killed my two children?"
"We're also investigating. Although we haven't found the real culprit yet, we believe it's very likely the same person who killed Lü Jiye. Furthermore, we suspect the recent string of murders may be directly related to Lü Changhua's decision to become a Taoist monk. That's why I came all the way to Xingquan Temple to visit you."
Yan Chen sighed deeply, "Okay, in that case, I'll tell you the whole story."
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