After the bell of Hanshan Temple rang nine times, it became silent.
At the moment the bell rang, all the monks and pilgrims in the temple, no matter what they were doing at the time, stopped, clasped their hands together, and looked towards the back mountain with pious faces. They did not return to their original state until the bell stopped, with a smile of incomparable satisfaction on everyone's face.
But there are exceptions, like Xu Jianguo and his family. When they heard the bell, they didn't react at all. They just felt very peaceful inside.
After walking around the temple for a long time, the family did not leave immediately, but had a vegetarian meal in the temple.
For this purpose, Xu Jianguo also donated 100 yuan in incense money and received a small piece of merit pendant carved out of wood from the monk.
However, Xu Jianguo did not accept it. Instead, he asked the monks to help hang it on a sycamore tree in the temple, and then left Hanshan Temple with his family.
After walking out of the temple gate, the group headed towards the jeep parked not far away. Before getting in the car, Xu Jianguo suddenly felt something in his heart. He turned around and looked in the direction of the temple. He found that the old monk, whom he had met before, was standing in a pavilion in the back mountain looking at Xu Jianguo and his family.
With Xu Jianguo's omniscient eyes, he could clearly see the faint smile on the old monk's face. It was obvious that he also noticed that Xu Jianguo was looking at him.
The old monk put his hands together and bowed slightly in the direction of Xu Jianguo. Seeing this, Xu Jianguo returned the bow with his hands clasped together, then turned around, got into the jeep, and drove away.
After leaving Hanshan Temple, Xu Jianguo and his family took a jeep back to their old house on Pingjiang Road.
The afternoon sun shines on the courtyard of the old house, bringing a hint of laziness.
Because it was already past two o'clock in the afternoon when they got home, everyone simply packed up and went back to their rooms to take a nap. Xu Jianguo went to the yard and sat in the rocking chair, enjoying this moment of tranquility and leisure.
When Xu Jianguo calmed down, the words of the old monk and the melodious bells in Hanshan Temple appeared involuntarily in his mind, as if they were still echoing in his ears. However, at this time, he no longer had the previous entanglement in his heart, and the obsessions in his heart after rebirth were all left in the temple when he left Hanshan Temple. Now, he felt more of a sense of relief and peace in his heart.
As the breeze blew through the courtyard, Xu Jianguo gradually fell into a deep sleep.
Xu Jianguo's nap was interrupted by the pranks of two girls, Lele and Xiaohongdou.
However, he did not open his eyes immediately. Instead, when the two were getting too proud of themselves, he suddenly stood up and made moves to catch them.
The two girls screamed "Ah" and then ran away hand in hand. When they ran back to the house, Xiao Hongdou actually turned around and made a face at Xu Jianguo, causing the corners of his mouth to curl up slightly.
As it was already quite late, the family had no plans to go out and just gathered in the living room of the old house, enjoying the rare reunion time.
Erya, Funiu and Lele were playing with Xiao Hongdou. The little girl was holding a plush toy bear in her hand and was happily playing house games with her aunt and sister. Her childish laughter echoed in the room.
Wen Sitian and Daya sat aside, each holding a book in their hands, occasionally looking up at the children playing, with happy smiles on their faces.
As for Wenwen and Xiaoping'an, they followed Fu Bo to the yard and were tidying up the small garden beside the courtyard wall with small shovels.
Xu Jianguo looked at this heartwarming scene and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
The next morning, sunlight streamed into the old house through the windows, bringing energy to everyone for a new day.
After breakfast, the family, led by Uncle Fu, began their journey to visit century-old shops in Gusu City.
They first went to Du Sanzhen to buy some braised dishes to take away. As soon as they walked into the store, the aroma of various braised dishes hit their noses.
The counter was filled with bright red marinated duck, shiny pork head, firm and chewy beef, etc., which made people salivate. Even some foodies who had just had breakfast still had a big appetite after seeing these things.
Xu Jianguo bought a lot of signature braised dishes and planned to put them in the space. Whether for gifts or personal use, they are good choices.
Then, they walked into Wufangzhai, not far from Du Sanzhen, to buy some Su-style pastries.
The sweet and soft osmanthus cake exudes a rich osmanthus fragrance, the delicate red bean paste cake has a dense texture, and there are rice dumplings of various flavors, which make people feel dazzled.
Xiao Hongdou had no resistance to pastries. Just when Xu Jianguo paid and was about to leave, he suddenly felt someone hugging his thigh. He looked down and found that it was Xiao Hongdou.
At this moment, the little girl was hugging her thighs tightly, looking up at Xu Jianguo... holding a box of pastries in her hand, and licking her lips with her tongue from time to time. Anyway, she was being as cute as possible.
Xu Jianguo was originally a daughter slave, so he could not withstand Xiao Hongdou's series of attacks. He immediately paid for a few more pieces of red bean cakes, asked the salesperson to wrap them in oil paper, and stuffed a piece into everyone's hands.
It’s not that he was reluctant to take out the cakes from the box, but they had already been tied up with ropes. If he opened it and let the children eat it, he would have to pack it again after that, which would be troublesome.
Lu Gaojian’s meat in sauce is a must-try. The bright red meat pieces are soaked in rich sauce. When you take a bite, it is tender and juicy, and the sweet and salty taste spreads in your mouth, leaving you with an endless aftertaste.
The moment Xiao Hongdou got the red bean cake, a bright smile appeared on her face, and she said to Xu Jianguo: "Thank you, jiujiu!"
"uncle!"
“Chirp!”
"Let it be destroyed..." Xu Jianguo felt depressed.
When Funiu was a child, she kept quacking around him, and Xiaohongdou is now calling "chirp chirp chirp". A duck and a sparrow, they are both birds anyway, it's true that birds of the same family are alike.
This scene made everyone laugh, especially Wen Sitian, who instantly thought of the famous scene when Xu Jianguo corrected Funniu for calling him "Gaga".
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