The bamboo house was small and drafty, with only a bamboo mat. There were notes with the Thousand Character Classic in the room, which Xiao Tuanzi had thrown away. Shi Tou, however, regarded them as treasures and pasted them all in the bamboo house. Some of the characters were already blurred and illegible.
Qin Luo took off his seamless white robe and draped it over Shi Tou. He walked alone in the snow, a gust of cold wind hitting him. He rubbed his eyes. "It's definitely a bit cold!"
Longhu Temple.
The bright moonlight shone into the courtyard.
Zi Yue was meditating in the backyard of the Taoist temple, her skin glowing with a silvery light. When Qin Luo returned, she opened her eyes and asked with some confusion, "Senior brother, where did your white robe go?"
Qin Luo said with a smile, "I saw that the bamboo house where Shi Tou was sleeping was drafty, so I built one for him."
"Senior brother, really!"
Zi Yue shook her head helplessly.
Qin Luo chuckled and said, "Get some rest."
"Okay!"
Zi Yue was waiting for Qin Luo to return.
Qin Luo lay in bed, perhaps because of the alcohol, he fell asleep as soon as he lay down. The aura rising from his body condensed into a blurry figure. That figure walked to the window, stood with his hands behind his back, and looked up at the starry sky.
...
The next day, early morning.
When Qin Luo woke up, he still felt a bit cold. He went to the backyard of the Taoist temple to practice his boxing. After finishing a set of health-preserving boxing, his body felt much warmer.
Jin Yan was sweeping up the snow in the yard.
Qin Luo looked at Jin Yan, who was working every day, and asked, "Junior brother, aren't you tired of this kind of life?"
Jin Yan chuckled and said, "Senior brother, if I were all alone in Longhu Temple, I might get bored. But with Master, senior brothers, senior sisters, junior sisters, and the Great Protector, as long as I see everyone, I feel that this kind of life is very interesting."
"Me too!"
Caixia smiled brightly.
She picked some peach blossoms and took them to the kitchen to make ginger soup.
Black Mountain, bamboo house.
When Shi Tou woke up, the sun shone into the bamboo house, and he felt especially warm. He hadn't had a proper rest like this in a long time, and he slept until he naturally woke up.
"This is?"
Looking at the white robe he was wearing, Shi Tou was deeply moved. Scenes from the past flashed through his mind. Although Qin Luo had told him that he didn't want him to become like him, Shi Tou wanted to become like Qin Luo.
...
Longhu Temple, main hall.
Stone carried the folded white robe into the hall. Afraid of disturbing the Dao Ancestor, he bent down and said softly, "Brother Qin, these are your clothes."
Qin Luo put on a white robe, smiled, and said softly, "The clothes are still warm. Come sit next to me. Little Tuanzi and the others will be back soon."
"Before the Dao Ancestor, there are no taboos!"
"Uh-huh."
Shi Tou sat down next to Qin Luo.
Qin Luo was preparing his lesson, a smile in his eyes. "I saw the book you copied at the academy; it was very well written."
"It's all thanks to the good teaching of the Mountain God."
Stone's eyes were filled with gratitude.
Jin Yan brought Shi Tou a bowl of ginger soup.
"Thank you, Immortal Master."
"You're welcome."
Stone held the ginger soup with both hands.
Qin Luo said seriously, "Have you thought about choosing a more formal name?"
Stone shook his head and said while holding the ginger soup, "After I went to the farm, an old man told me about this. He named me Di Yan, but I felt that I couldn't bear the name. I always felt that Stone was more suitable for me, even though it's not a good name."
"Then follow your heart."
Qin Luo smiled and encouraged him.
"Uh-huh."
Shi Tou nodded with a smile. He had just finished drinking the ginger soup when he heard laughter coming from outside the Taoist temple. Then, Xiao Tuanzi and Lin Jia'er ran into the temple, followed closely by Xiao Die.
"Great Protector!"
Stone smiled with joy.
"Stone!"
The little dumpling's eyes lit up.
Stone was two heads taller than Little Dumpling, and they looked to be quite different in age. He said earnestly, "I'm going far away, and I came here specifically to say goodbye to you."
The little dumpling frowned slightly. "Are you leaving so soon after you get back? Can't you stay a couple more days?"
Shi Tou shook his head. "I have to go back to participate in the Farmer's Trial, so I'm a bit pressed for time. I'll give you this stone; I found it in Mirror Lake."
The little girl looked at the stone, which was the most ordinary stone. She smiled and accepted the gift, saying, "Stone, thank you for the gift. I didn't even prepare a gift for you."
"Great Protector, I received your gift a long time ago."
"What gift?"
"Priceless treasure".
The little dumpling was completely baffled.
Shi Tou bowed to Qin Luo, then bowed to the little dumpling, "Brother Qin, Great Protector, thank you for taking care of me. I hope we'll meet again someday!"
Qin Luo nodded with a smile.
Stone turned and left.
The little dumpling looked at Lin Jia'er and said, "Jia'er, you do your homework first, I'll go deliver the stone."
"knew."
Lin Jia'er nodded obediently.
The little dumpling followed the stone away from Longhu Temple.
Stone said earnestly, "Great Protector, you don't need to see me off."
"It's okay, I'm very relaxed all day, I'll accompany you for a walk." The little dumpling grinned.
Stone wanted to go back to Black Mountain to say goodbye to Chen Chang'an. He said with a smile, "Great Protector, I'm sorry."
The little dumpling tilted its head, "What did you do to wrong me?"
"I let it slip when I was chatting with Brother Qin that you took me out for drinks."
"Hey, it's nothing, Boss won't blame me. At worst, I'll just eat some chestnuts. I'm used to it. I blame Boss for not growing taller, and I blame Boss for not being smart." The little dumpling said with his arms crossed and his head held high.
Shi Tou couldn't help but chuckle, his eyes shining as he exclaimed, "After meeting Brother Qin and having a drink with him, I suddenly felt like the world had expanded, and I wanted to go out and explore!"
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
