Chapter 175: The Dragon Crosses the River
175 Way of the Dragon
Because of his master's lecture, Xiang Jiannan went to bed about half an hour later. When he opened his eyes in bed the next day, he felt dizzy.
The old Taoist priest took advantage of the night to explain to me in detail the difference between gods and immortals. Somehow, when I thought about it again, I felt a sense of loneliness.
The feeling of being abandoned by the whole world.
As a veteran otaku in his previous life, Xiang Jiannan knew that he had slept too long, so he immediately went out of the house and started washing up.
When I opened the door and saw a set of tea sets on a stone table in the yard, the uncomfortable feeling in my heart disappeared completely.
This is the Great Zhou Dynasty, in a small Taoist temple. After Xiang Jiannan wakes up, he has someone to talk to.
"Little Taoist priest, you just got up."
When he arrived at the front yard, he happened to meet Pei Dafa. Seeing that he was leading a few laborers and seemed to have just finished their work, Xiang Jiannan nodded with a smile and walked over to him.
He saw that his master had some silver in his hand. After Mayor Pei greeted him, the two of them continued their previous fight.
One of them refused to accept it, while the other insisted on giving it to him. As they talked, their expressions became unhappy.
The new stone table in the backyard should have been sent by Pei Da. At this moment, he is going through the final transaction process with the master.
This kind of thing is rare in Ping'an Town. Except for a few wealthy families and masters in the town, no one can make Pei Dafa so polite when it comes to money.
There was anger in his tone, as if he was insulted and was determined to die rather than obey.
"Today I am doing this for the sake of the young Taoist priest. If there is a next time, I, Pei Dafa, will definitely not agree."
In the end, it was Xiang Jiannan who spoke up to smooth things over, and someone nearby helped Pei Dafa to receive his due reward.
He personally escorted them out of the temple. Looking at the backs of everyone leaving, the young Taoist priest was in a very good mood.
This is probably what life is all about. Although I have lost many things after traveling to the Great Zhou Dynasty, I can still feel the daily life in this remote corner. My emotions at this moment are complicated. Compared with the world I was in before, it is closer to the reality in my heart.
Of course, there are some drawbacks, namely, there are life-threatening "surprises" from time to time.
Standing under the eaves and looking out for a while, Xiang Jiannan waited until the old Taoist priest called him to eat. Only then did he control his unspeakable emotions. He came to the backyard and saw three sets of bowls and chopsticks on the table. He then realized that he had guests today.
The pilgrims in the temple had all left by now. Looking around, he and his master were the only ones left in Ping'an Temple.
"Anyone else coming?"
Seeing the chef bringing out more tempting plates one after another, Xiang Jiannan, who was standing by, offered to help. After working for a while, he started to ask questions.
Surprises are something that linger around. To be able to make such a sumptuous lunch prepared by the old Taoist priest, the person who will show up to ask for it must be no simple person.
The stone table was almost full. This was the first time that he had seen such extravagance and waste since he came to Ping'an Temple.
"Yes, an old friend."
When the dishes were served, Qi turned and went into the house. After a while, he came out holding a jar of wine. Gao Yuan was in a very good mood at this time.
He opened the seal and filled the three empty bowls on the table, then sat on the stone bench and waited patiently. During this time, he showed signs of uneasiness several times and would occasionally tidy up his Taoist robe.
Xiang Jiannan was confused by all the signs, and only two words echoed in his mind: female.
There have been strong women in every dynasty. Judging from my master's performance, my guess is almost right.
The old Taoist priest moved his hands frequently, as if he wanted to smooth out all the wrinkles on his face, which could only be explained by the opposite sex.
"I'm late. I kept you waiting!"
Soon a voice was heard outside the wall. Xiang Jiannan stood up and greeted him with Gao Yuan. He was instantly disappointed.
The voice that came into my ears was familiar, and most importantly, it was a man's.
He was the only one, that was certain.
He couldn't remember who it was for a moment, until the person stood in front of him, then he turned to look at the master with a puzzled look.
Li Si! When did the master get so close to him? "I asked you two Taoists to wait. I encountered some problems on the way here, so I was delayed for a while."
He came to the stone table and sat down loudly, as if he was familiar with it, and Li Si took out a crystal clear object from his sleeve while speaking:
"I hope you two will accept this small gift. I've wanted to give it to you for a long time, but never found the chance."
"Xiao Li, why are you so polite?"
He raised his hand to take the food from Li Si's hand, put it in his sleeve and signaled him to start eating first. Gao Yuan smiled and said, "It's been so long since the pig demon incident. It's rare that you can still remember it, Xiao Li."
"I, the Taoist priest, have already spent all the money awarded by the imperial court not long ago."
Li Si bit the chicken leg hard, turned his head to look at the old Taoist priest, and could only perfunctorily say: "The old Taoist priest has a good eye. When Li returns, I will discuss it with the people in the mansion."
Master, do you want to bring up the past? It's been so long and you still want to pick on me? Sitting aside for a long time without saying a word, Xiang Jiannan was restrained by Li Si's sudden arrival, so the frequency of picking up his chopsticks dropped to the lowest level in history.
Li Si was not an old friend of his, and he was a little confused by the master's move.
There has been no news of Li Si coming. How did this old Taoist priest do it?
We only met once that day in Shou County, and somehow we became so familiar with each other.
"Things in the city are already showing signs of improvement. The old Taoist priest has done something big this time."
He drank bowl after bowl of wine, and soon his cheeks turned red. Li Si began to speak in a hoarse voice: "The people from the Qian Mansion were so scared when they saw Zhang San that they couldn't stand up and couldn't speak clearly. In the end, they even thought that someone would come to save him."
"It's really ridiculous."
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"I, the old Taoist, didn't expect that there are so many powerful people involved behind the Qian Mansion."
Among the three, only Xiang Jiannan was confused. Seeing that the content of Li Si and the master's conversation was becoming more and more bloody, Xiang Jiannan just kept listening with his head down.
I just got the Qian family diary last night, and in just a few hours, the matter was over?
If Li Si's words were to be believed, it would be a serious case. Although he did not seem drunk, the words that came out of his mouth were extremely cruel.
Things like broken bones and lolling tongues make people feel creepy, and the more they listen, the more tasteless the food in their mouths becomes.
There is a sense of guilt for having harmed the entire Qian family.
“I wonder how to deal with it next?”
"Bringing people to the capital, our Demon Subduing Division is only responsible for taking the lead in this matter."
"As for how to mix things up later, that's something the officials in the court should worry about."
Li Si picked up the empty bowl that Gao Yuan had just filled and drank it all. He still looked unsatisfied. Thinking of Xiang Jiannan who seemed to have not spoken a word from the beginning, he immediately knocked on the table and asked, "Young Taoist priest, you look unhappy? Why? You don't welcome me, Li Si, to Ping An Temple?"
"Your Excellency has misunderstood."
Looking up, he saw Li Si's eyes slightly open. Xiang Jiannan didn't have such intention at all. He picked up the porcelain bowl in front of him and toasted him. After drinking it in one gulp, he felt mixed feelings in his stomach.
The alcohol content of the wine in the Great Zhou Dynasty is not low, and it tastes as spicy as the wine in the previous world.
"It's just that I was confused by Lord Li's sudden visit, so I was a little indifferent."
"A sudden visit?"
"Didn't the old Taoist priest tell his disciple?"
After being touched by Xiang Jiannan's words, Li Si turned his head and looked at Gao Yu'an. Seeing the old Taoist nod to him, Li Si smiled and said, "I sent a pigeon to Ping'an Temple early in the morning. Your master forgot to tell you."
"The carrier pigeons of our Demon Subduing Division are not ordinary. I will let the young Taoist priest see them again some other day."
“That’s true.”
Hearing Li Si praising their Demon-Subduing Division's carrier pigeons, Gao Yu'an's spirits immediately lifted. He pointed to a pot of meat on the table and asked Li Si to taste it, then poured him a few spoonfuls of soup:
"Xiao Li, I am best at cooking pigeons. Come and try it and see if it suits your taste."
"The carrier pigeon from your Demon Subduing Division is indeed extraordinary. For this, I, an old Taoist priest, even modified my knife skills when I was working on it."
"Is this the pigeon I released this morning?"
Holding the soup spoon, Xiang Jiannan wanted to say something good, but after Gao Yuan's enthusiastic introduction, he noticed that Li Si's eyes seemed to have a slight change.
As expected of a big shot in the Demon-Suppressing Division, he paused for only a moment before continuing to drink heartily until the pigeon soup in the bowl was almost empty. Then he raised his chopsticks and picked up a piece of pigeon meat from the bowl.
He remained calm and ate with his mouth full of oil.
(End of this chapter)