Qingyun Mountain.
In the study of Master Xie at Qingyun Temple, two people were playing chess on either side of the chess table.
A delicate, fair finger gently placed a black chess piece onto the chessboard.
"Master, if you're willing to make a purchase, you can name your price."
Hu Ling said slowly.
Old Master Xie stroked his white beard and smiled, then casually picked up a white piece and placed it down.
"Mr. Hu, I'm just an old Taoist priest, I'm afraid I can't help you."
Hu Ling squinted and took a yellow talisman from her bag, placing it on the table. "Taoist priest, do you recognize this?"
When Xie Laodao saw the yellow talisman, his gaze sharpened instantly, and he paused for a moment before dropping the white chess piece he was holding.
"Boss Hu, this is just an ordinary yellow talisman, there's nothing strange about it."
"Hehe, Daoist Master, I think we should speak frankly. Although I don't know your identity, I do know what you've done. Some time ago, an assassin chased us to Linxian Town to complete an assassination mission. During this process, Chen Zhe's family saw his face, so he planned to kill them to cover it up. But then he didn't. Given his personality, he couldn't possibly not do it. The reason he didn't do it, I've thought about it over and over, is this."
Hu Ling pointed to the yellow talisman on the table.
"Taoist priest, he's afraid of you, isn't he?"
Old Master Xie raised an eyebrow and chuckled; “Mr. Hu is overthinking it. I don’t have that kind of ability.”
Seeing that Master Xie wouldn't admit it, Hu Ling frowned slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she said again, "Master, are you really unwilling to help me?"
"Mr. Hu, I think I've made myself clear enough. I'm just an old man, and I'm grateful to some people who think highly of me and come to me for fortune telling, feng shui consultations, or just to have a chat. That's all."
Hu Ling shook her head helplessly.
"Since that's the case, I won't insist. Then, Taoist priest, please tell my fortune. I want to see if I will die?"
Master Xie looked at her face and then said, "Everyone dies, it's just a matter of dying sooner or later. Sometimes death doesn't mean the end for us, it may be another beginning."
Hu Ling's eyes lit up when she heard this.
"Thank you, Taoist Master, I understand."
She took a check out of her bag and placed it on the chessboard.
"Master, this is a small token of my respect."
Xie Laodao glanced at the number on the check—a full 10 million—and laughed. “Mr. Hu, chatting with me isn’t that expensive.”
"Master, these few words are enough to save my life. Thank you."
After Hu Ling finished speaking, she turned around, opened the door, and walked out.
At this moment, Xie Yuhan, who was standing outside the door, walked in. She saw her grandfather holding the check and smiling from ear to ear.
She snatched it and was startled; "Grandpa, what's going on? Why would she give you so much money? Do you have something on her?"
Old Xie rolled his eyes at her.
"What kind of talk is that? Do you think your grandpa is the kind of person who would threaten others with something he has on his hands?"
"Then why would she give you so much money?"
"She's rich."
"Even if you have money, you wouldn't spend it like that. You must have done something. Did you promise her something?"
"I didn't agree to anything."
"How could that be..."
Xie Yuhan couldn't understand the check no matter how hard she tried, but Xie Laodao snatched it away. "There are plenty of things you can't figure out. Alright, alright, go and tell your senior brother to cook some extra rice."
"Huh? What's wrong? Do you have a big appetite?"
"Hehe, it's not that I have a big appetite, but that we have guests coming."
...
Just as Hu Ling was about to leave the mountain gate, she saw the Chen Zhe and Zhang Xin'ai sisters coming over.
She raised an eyebrow and looked at Abao beside her.
"Why are they here? Did you notify him?"
Abao shook his head; "Sister Hu, I didn't inform Manager Chen, and I don't know either."
Chen Zhe and his two companions walked up to Hu Ling and were somewhat surprised to see that Hu Ling was indeed behind Qingyun Mountain.
"Sister Hu, are you here to worship the gods?" Chen Zhe really couldn't understand why Hu Ling would come to Qingyun Mountain. As far as he knew, Hu Ling had never been here before.
How did you know I was here?
Hu Ling asked.
"I……"
"It's me!"
Zhang Xin'ai came out; "Sister Hu, it was me who came to see you."
"You? What do you want with me?"
Hu Ling asked.
Zhang Xin'ai pulled her younger sister along, then glanced at Chen Zhe before saying, "Sister Hu, I feel that the two of them are getting too close. Manager Chen doesn't seem to realize this yet, so I think it would be better to tell you directly."
Hu Ling glanced at Chen Zhe.
"Are you dating her?"
Chen Zhe saw Xie Yuhan walking towards him in the distance and shook his head vigorously like a rattle drum; "I swear to God, absolutely not!!"
Zhang Xinrui felt a little angry when she heard his firm clarification.
"We've all held hands."
Xie Yuhan, who happened to be walking over, overheard this.
A fleeting, almost imperceptible sadness flashed in her eyes, and Chen Zhe's heart raced. "Nothing of the sort. It was just a normal handshake. We're completely innocent, as pure as tofu."
The words seemed to be addressed to Hu Ling, but were actually meant for Xie Yuhan. Upon hearing them, Xie Yuhan indeed seemed relieved.
Hu Ling crossed her arms and looked at Zhang Xin'ai with a smile.
"You heard that, right? They have nothing to do with each other."
"Sister Hu, we can't be so hasty. They may have only held hands briefly now, but they could go to a hotel together and elope later. I hope to nip this bad thing in the bud."
"Heh, what a brilliant stranglehold."
Hu Ling squinted at Zhang Xin'ai; "You're just like your parents, and now you want to raise your sister to be like you. Is that the right thing to do?"
"Sister Hu, I have my own principles when I do things with my parents. You may not agree with these principles, but I hope you won't speak ill of them."
"What if I slander it?"
Hu Ling's attitude was somewhat forceful.
Zhang Xin'ai felt embarrassed when she heard him say that. She originally thought that coming to Hu Ling to clarify things would be enough, so that Hu Ling could put pressure on Chen Zhe and stop him from contacting her sister. But she didn't expect this woman to be so disrespectful.
“Sister Hu, I respect you and call you Sister Hu. If you continue to tolerate Chen Zhe, don’t blame us for turning against you.”
"Then why don't you try flipping one?"
"you!!"
Zhang Xin'ai was furious. She had never seen Hu Ling so assertive before, and for a moment she didn't know how to respond.
"Heh, little brat, yelling at me like that, expecting me to give you face? Don't even mention you, even if your parents came, I would still say the same thing about arranged marriages and social standing. Are your so-called truths necessarily correct? How old-fashioned! It's understandable that your parents are old and old-fashioned, but for you to be so old-fashioned at such a young age is utterly ridiculous."
Hu Ling's words made Zhang Xinrui feel extremely comfortable.
She walked up to Hu Ling, looking at her with admiration; "Sister Hu, please stand up for me. I don't want to end up like my sister. I want freedom."
"Xinrui, come here right now!"
Zhang Xin'ai shouted angrily.
"I won't listen to you! I'm not your Linxi, nor am I your pet cat or dog. You were just born 10 minutes earlier than me. To put it bluntly, we're the same age. Why should I listen to you?"
"You!! You've gone too far! How dare you talk to me like that?"
Zhang Xin'ai couldn't accept that her younger sister used to be very obedient. However, she was becoming increasingly difficult to teach.
They argued for a long time, and only when the afterglow of the setting sun shone on them did they realize that it was getting dark.
Xie Yuhan walked over and said apologetically, "Um... it's not that I wanted to interrupt you, but that was the last cable car. It might be a bit inconvenient for you to go down the mountain now. We've already cooked dinner. If you don't mind, why don't you stay for the night?"
Chen Zhe nodded hurriedly.
"sure!!"
The other women hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
...
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