Chapter 257 Seeking a Master
On the morning of the sixth day, Qiu Heng was invited to Qian Song Tang.
"Grandma is looking for me?"
The old lady patted the invitation from her subordinate: "Xue Han invited you to tour the city, and the invitation was delivered to me."
After welcoming the God of Wealth on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, most shops on the street will reopen on the sixth day, and many people will go out to stroll and shop.
Qiu Heng guessed that the old lady secretly suspected that they had made an appointment on the fourth day of the lunar new year, and looked puzzled: "You invited me to go to the market. Did you write the invitation to Grandmother? It would have been much more convenient to write it directly to me."
The old lady's lips twitched with anger: "You think it's all your fault, so unruly and disrespectful. Xue Han is an honest boy."
"Did your granddaughter go out?"
The old lady was somewhat conflicted.
If I agree, I'm worried about causing trouble again. If I stop him, this seems to be the first time Xue Han has officially asked Liu Yatou out.
If I refuse the first time, there might not be a second time...
Originally, the old lady valued her reputation, but after the trip to Xijiang, the whole capital believed that Qiu Heng and Xue Han were a couple. If they didn't get married in the end, it would be a loss of reputation.
"Was that guard sent by the Prince of Kang's heir your driver?"
Qiu Heng smiled and said, "Xue Han invited me to stroll around the market. I can walk there; there's no need to take a carriage."
It's good not to ride in a car, then the horse won't get startled.
The old lady was slightly relieved: "Then go ahead, and come back soon."
Qiu Heng, along with Fang Zhou and Wu Qingzhou, met Xue Han at the agreed-upon location.
Xue Han came alone, and as he walked toward Qiu Heng, he glanced at the two people following behind her.
"Are they going together?"
“My grandmother feels more at ease knowing they aren’t going and are taking people with them.”
Qiu Heng turned to Fang Zhou and said, "Xue Han and I are going to run some errands. You can wander around as you like. If we haven't returned by evening, go back and tell the old lady that Xue Han and I went to the night market before returning."
Xue Han, who was standing to the side, listened with a solemn expression.
The first time they went out, they strolled through the night market before going home. Won't the old lady hit him with her cane if they meet again?
Fangzhou had no doubts about Qiuheng's explanation and thoughtfully asked, "What if you haven't returned by the time the night market closes?"
"Go to the old lady's place again and tell the head maid of Qiansong Hall that I played too late and was tired, so I went straight back to Lengxiang Residence to rest. I will go to pay my respects to the old lady tomorrow morning."
Xue Han's expression was heavy, and his mood was also heavy.
I played too late and I'm tired...
Fangzhou continued, "What if you don't return home all night and can't pay your respects to the old lady?"
The young lady had climbed over the wall of the Earl's mansion countless times, and she had to think of all sorts of scenarios to avoid panicking.
Xue Han couldn't listen any longer and said to Fangzhou seriously, "I will definitely be back today."
Even if the sky falls, you can't stay out all night.
Qiu Heng wasn't so sure, and after a moment's thought, she said, "Then just say I'm sick."
Fangzhou readily agreed and smiled at Wu Qingzhou: "Brother Wu, let's go check out some restaurants."
Wu Qingzhou hesitated and looked at Qiu Heng.
His responsibility was to protect the Sixth Sister.
"Don't worry, Lord Xue is here."
Wu Qingzhou glanced at Xue Han and cupped his hands in greeting: "Yes."
After parting ways with Fangzhou and the other two, Qiuheng and Xuehan rented a carriage and left the city.
"Why don't you come into the carriage and sit with your wife, young master? It's cold outside." The coachman was quite talkative.
Xue Han didn't find it noisy at all and casually said, "Let's sit outside and get familiar with the way."
After leaving the city, the carriage traveled for more than an hour before stopping at the foot of the mountain.
Xue Han reached out to help Qiu Heng out of the car.
"Are you two sure you don't need me to wait here?" The driver asked, still unwilling to give up after receiving a tip that was much more than the rental fee.
"No need, we're going to visit relatives, and we don't know when we'll be back."
Looking around, there were houses scattered at the foot of the mountain. The driver had no doubt about this and drove off.
The mountain peaks were covered in snow, the trees were barren, and the path gradually became difficult to walk, but it was not difficult for the two who were good at light footwork.
"You actually managed to find this Taoist temple built deep in the mountains." Qiu Heng exclaimed as she caught sight of the temple's outline in the distance.
Such wild sights are not registered with the government.
“The Imperial City Guard often goes out of the city on business, and sometimes they make discoveries.”
As they were talking, they arrived at the gate of the Taoist temple.
Despite being called a Taoist temple, it looks small and dilapidated, with mottled wooden doors revealing the marks of time.
Xue Han knocked on the door.
The door opened after a while, and a thin young Taoist priest appeared inside: "Do you two have something to ask for?"
Xue Han bowed to the young Taoist priest: "We wish to visit Master Changqing. We hope you will inform him."
The young Taoist priest's expression changed slightly: "You want to see my master?"
"yes."
"May I ask what brings you two to visit my master?"
Qiu Heng began, "I used to live in the south, where I had the opportunity to be taught by Master Changqing. When he left, he said he would come to the capital. After I arrived in the capital, I kept an eye out for news about him and happened to hear that your temple has a Master Changqing—"
Before Qiu Heng could finish speaking, the young Taoist priest was about to close the door when Xue Han stopped him.
"Please leave, both of you. My master has never been to the south and is not the person you are looking for."
“It’s not easy for us to come to the mountain, so please do us a favor and let us meet with our master. We would also like to contribute some money to help build the temple.”
When the young Taoist priest heard Xue Han mention adding incense money, he hesitated for a moment and stepped aside, saying, "Please come in, both of you benefactors."
The temple appeared increasingly simple, with rust growing on the incense burner in front of the hall, and a faint scent of cypress wafting from inside.
Qiu Heng and Xue Han offered incense with respect.
The young Taoist priest, having received a generous donation, asked, "Is it enough to just see my master?"
Qiu Heng found the young Taoist's reaction somewhat strange and nodded: "Just one meeting is enough."
"Alright, please follow me, esteemed benefactors."
Passing through the backyard and exiting through the back door, you'll find a cultivated vegetable garden.
The young Taoist priest led the two through the vegetable garden and stopped in front of a mound of earth.
It was a solitary grave, with the inscription "Tomb of the Immortal Master Changqing, who has ascended to immortality" clearly written on the stone tablet.
Qiu Heng slowly looked at the young Taoist priest.
The young Taoist priest, his eyes slightly red, explained, "My master passed away last year."
Qiu Heng stood quietly for a while, then said softly, "Excuse me."
The young Taoist priest escorted the two to the temple gate. Whether it was because of the generous donation or because he saw them respectfully bowing before their master's grave, he added, "You two should hurry down the mountain. The roads are slippery in winter, and it's not safe if it gets late."
"Thank you, Daoist Master."
She heard the sound of a door closing behind her, and Qiu Heng walked forward with her head down.
A hand reached out and silently took her hand.
Qiu Heng turned her head to look at Xue Han walking beside her.
"Ah Heng, are you disappointed?"
"Not too disappointed." After walking in silence for a while, Qiu Heng looked back at the dilapidated Taoist temple. "If it were really Master, I might feel that everything went too smoothly, and I would feel a bit lost if I didn't find anyone."
It has been twenty-seven years since the Jingping era. Could it be that you have been living in seclusion all this time, only returning to the world when the Great Xia Dynasty was in turmoil?
“Aheng, they say that relationships are based on fate. I’ll help you search slowly, and maybe one day when fate brings you together.”
Qiu Heng squeezed Xue Han's hand tighter: "Well, let's just consider this a sightseeing trip."
Half an hour later, looking at the section of road damaged by falling rocks, Qiu Heng sighed and asked, "Xue Han, do you think we can go back today?"
(End of this chapter)
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