Chapter 6: The visit to Biwulangjun was not satisfactory "Will we meet again?" ...
Outside Jiangyang Prefecture, there is Houchun Mountain.
The morning mist was thick, and the mountainous mists in the forests lingered for a long time in the layers of mountain streams, punctuated by the sound of birdsong. Tourists flocked in, some wearing brocade clothes and some wearing coarse linen shirts. The bluestone-paved path treated everyone equally, guiding visitors up the mountain.
The chirping of orioles and the quiet atmosphere of the forest were broken by the laughter of tourists. In the mist, one could vaguely hear them discussing issues related to the mountain.
This mountain is called Houchun, and legend has it that it is the cave abode of Jumang, the god of spring. For thousands of years, it has been worshipped by the people of Jiangyang Prefecture. Every time spring comes, people go to the Wutong Ancestral Temple on Houchun Mountain to worship the god of spring.
The God of Spring is the deity of vegetation. Legend has it that he oversees the germination of plants and trees on earth, and is the deity that protects production and sowing. A year's plans begin in spring, and worshiping the God of Spring can ensure a good start to the year.
There are many wonderful stories about the God of Spring circulating among the people. Some say that the God of Spring is a woman with a beautiful face, while others say that he is a young and cute shepherd boy. He has great magical powers and a wide range of duties, including spring ploughing, spring planting, and even spring dreams.
All the requests made by the people to him were answered. Therefore, for thousands of years, the incense at Wutong Ancestral Temple was extremely prosperous, unmatched by other temples dedicated to gods.
The Wutong Ancestral Hall is renovated in a very grand style. From a distance, you can see the six red-painted sandalwood doors, which are carved with patterns of spring such as a pair of swallows circling the beams and willows at Chendu. It is quite elegant and does not seem like something from this world.
Entering the temple, one is greeted by a courtyard. At the end of the courtyard, ascending a flight of steps, one reaches the main hall of the Wutong Ancestral Temple, where the golden statue of the God of Spring is enshrined. Incense is lingering in the hall, a practice that has persisted for thousands of years.
After the people finished their worship in the temple, they could go to the courtyard to sow seeds. It was said that after sowing seeds here, farmers would have a good harvest, while businessmen would have good fortune and wealth. Tourists came in groups of three or four. As they gathered to sow seeds, they suddenly heard a somewhat childish male voice with a polite and negotiating tone:
"Excuse me, sir. I've heard that there's a thousand-year-old green wutong tree at the Wutong Ancestral Temple on Houchun Mountain. My son and I have just arrived in Jiangyang Prefecture, so we've come here to look for it. Why haven't we seen any trace of it today?"
The courtyard was empty. Clusters of forsythia were blooming in the fence in the middle. The leaves were green and the buds were yellow, which was very pleasing to the eye. The rumored sycamore tree was nowhere to be seen.
A man in a gray gauze robe was sowing seeds with his wife. When he heard the sound, he turned around and saw a young man dressed as a book boy. He was wearing a blue shirt and a paper umbrella slung across his back. He looked young and childish.
Just as the young man was about to speak, the lady beside him said with a smile:
"Little scholar, you're from another place, right? You don't know that the thousand-year-old green phoenix tree in this courtyard has disappeared for over a month!"
"Oh? Why?" The blue-shirted servant boy also replied in surprise. He did not expect this situation.
This is not good. The thousand-year-old green phoenix tree disappeared for no reason. Wouldn’t that... disappoint the young master?
Seeing that the servant boy was indeed unaware, the young man raised his hand to take the seed from his wife's hand and nodded for her to continue. The wife covered her face with her hands and smiled. She gently tapped the young man's arm and spoke again: "Why? I don't know what the reason is."
"Could it be that the thousand-year-old tree aroused the jealousy of others, and someone hid it away secretly?" The blue-shirted servant asked subconsciously.
The young man waved his hand and said with a smile, "How is that possible? The Spring Goddess of the Wutong Ancestral Temple is the most revered by the people. Even if someone has the guts to swallow the sky, they wouldn't dare to act rashly here. Besides, this thousand-year-old green wutong tree is so tall and has such tangled roots. It's probably impossible to move it out of the mountain overnight."
That's why
The eyes of the blue-shirted servant boy were filled with doubt.
"But there's another theory," the woman explained. "It's said that this Wutong tree absorbed the incense from the Wutong Ancestral Temple, and after its merits were fulfilled, it ascended to become an immortal!"
Wen Yu hid her body and lay on her back on the tree trunk. New buds were sprouting on the branches. Although it was slow, Wen Yu seemed to be able to perceive every moment of the buds' growth and hear the tiny sounds of them bursting out of the buds.
Since her transformation, all her senses have become ten thousand times sharper than before. At this moment, the words of the tourists under the tree fell into Wen Yu's ears with every detail.
Wen Yu had heard countless versions of the story about Bi Wu's disappearance these days, but she was not annoyed and just treated it as a daily joke.
There were wealthy businessmen who spent millions of dollars to rebuild the golden body of the God of Spring just to take away the thousand-year-old tree. There were thieves who took risks to steal wood from the temple for the reward. There were carpenters who asked the ancient trees to be used as beams for building a new house. Even worse, there were tree spirits who stole tribute fruits and were caught by the God of Spring on the spot and taken back to his cave to clean the courtyard.
As expected, when it comes to the ability to daydream, the old saying still applies: the masters are among the common people! The imagination of mortals is no less than that of spirits. Those idiotic storybooks and strange stories are indeed quite interesting. This is what she heard from the little girl who passed by the tree earlier. When she enters the world, she will definitely find some of them to appreciate.
The morning sun rose higher and higher, shining through the forest to dispel the lingering smoke. Wisps of golden light leaked through her fingers, and the dazzling golden sun fell on her body. Wen Yu opened her eyes and saw a round, white hand with a slender wrist. When she raised her hand, half of her arm, like a lotus root, was exposed.
The wrists are as white as spring buds, and the skin is as transparent as jade bamboo shoots. They are truly a pair of beautiful hands.
Wen Yu simply raised her arms to admire the slender fingers, and she really couldn't get enough of looking at them.
She received incense and offerings at the Wutong Ancestral Temple, awakening her spiritual wisdom and receiving guidance from the God of Spring, giving her a human form. Now, she only needed to diligently cultivate and accumulate merit, and her ascension to immortality was just around the corner.
"Ascend to become an immortal?" A male voice came from behind the blue-shirted servant boy. The light voice was like an arrow feather, breaking Wen Yu's thoughts.
The blue-shirted servant took a step to the right and stepped aside, revealing the figure of the man behind him.
"Now that you've ascended to become an immortal, I'm afraid we won't be able to meet again..."
The young man and his wife, who had replied earlier, smiled and said, "Young man, why don't you pray to the Goddess of Spring and ask her to bless you to see the immortal tree again."
When praying to the gods, one should not be too greedy. He had made requests before, but this time, it was nothing... If one hopes too much, the disappointment will be even more heartbreaking.
He looked down and saw that the fence was now planted with forsythia, and there was no trace of the green wutong tree. Without the obstruction of the green wutong tree, he could see the statue of the Goddess of Spring in the main hall at a glance. The Goddess of Spring was gentle and graceful, with kind eyes and brows, as if she was also looking at him.
He took a few steps forward and ran his hand over the fence. There were some mottled marks on it, like the sad frost left after many years of separation.
Will we meet again?
He still couldn't help but ask the Goddess of Spring in his heart, but he couldn't help but keep a little hope in his heart.
"My surname is Chen, and my given name is Mian. May I know your name, sir?" After several rounds of conversation, the young man stepped forward and showed interest in making friends with him, being very polite in his words and deeds.
The blue-shirted servant stepped forward and bowed, his tone somewhat awkward, but the refusal was obvious: "My young master..."
The man raised his hand to stop the servant from talking, clasped his hands together in a slight bow, and said to Chen Mian in a gentle voice, "My name is Song Linsheng."
Song Linsheng?
Hearing these three words, Wen Yu turned over and poked her little head out from between the branches and leaves. The beads in her hair swayed. She looked down at the tree eagerly, searching for the source of the sound.
"Young Master Song," Chen Mian was delighted to meet such a dignified young master, and he couldn't help but chat with him in a cheerful tone: "I wonder where Young Master Song lives? You could ask us to visit him someday?"
The man opposite smiled slightly and gave his address, seeming to be happy to have a friend visiting his residence.
It was early spring now, and there were many pilgrims at the Wutong Ancestral Temple. People were sowing seeds and enjoying the scenery everywhere in the courtyard, but Wen Yu still caught sight of the man standing by the fence in the middle.
He stood tall in a white robe with dark patterns on it, reflecting the flowing light. The belt of his outer robe was tied into a small knot on his right shoulder, hidden by his black hair, making it barely visible. The narrow round collar revealed the overlapping sparrow-colored inner garment, which wrapped half of his slender jade-like neck. There was a gentle smile on his face.
It is ethereal and elegant, with a natural polish, like a jade that has been nurtured for thousands of years, white and translucent yet warm and elegant.
Wen Yu looked at the man, the scholarly air between his brows was so thick that it could not be erased. The scenery around him was like an ink painting because of his presence. He walked slowly out of the painting, the stones piled up like jade and the pines like emerald green. He was truly worthy of the word "exiled immortal".
He is Song Linsheng... It's really like searching for a needle in a haystack, but it turns out to be something you have found without any effort!
After a brief conversation, he bowed and thanked the couple, seemingly ending the topic.
As expected, the blue-shirted servant took the black cloak handed by the attendant and put it on Song Linsheng. The group turned around and walked towards the gate of the Wutong Ancestral Temple, probably going down the mountain.
Going down the mountain... Going down the mountain!? No! We can't let him go down the mountain like this!
Thinking of this, Wen Yu stood up straight, determined to stop Song Linsheng from going down the mountain, but in a panic, the back of his head hit the tree trunk, making a dull sound.
"Hiss..." She gasped in pain, tears welling up in her eyes. "Brother Tree, oh brother Tree, we are from the same root, why are you so anxious to hurt me?"
Wen Yu put her hands behind her head, feeling a little annoyed that she was being stupid again. Before she could move, she suddenly saw Song Linsheng pause, turn around and look over here with a thoughtful expression. She quickly lowered her voice, crouched down among the leaves, and held her breath.
She just lay there on the tree trunk, like a little quail that had made a mistake.
But don’t notice me first, Wen Yu pouted.
Admittedly, it would be a bit embarrassing to meet under such circumstances.
"Sir? Is there anything wrong?"
The blue-shirted servant boy saw his master turn around halfway and looked in his direction. He didn't see anything wrong and scratched his eyebrows in confusion.
That is... Song Linsheng looked at the couple. The branches beside them shook, and two new buds fell, which were pinned in the young woman's hair. The young man named Chen Mian gently fiddled with them and removed the leaves for her.
Looking up, the sound seemed to come from among the leaves. It was so thin that it was almost inaudible, and the branches were even slightly shaking.
"Xiyan, did you hear any sound?" He looked at the tree and asked thoughtfully.
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