Chapter 242 — Two or Three Matters Along the Way

Heat steamed up from the winding official road. Beside the tea stall, cicadas sang long and drawn-out from the branches of the old tree. Travelers stopping for a rest called out for more tea, while the shop attendant, busy to the point of sweating profusely, took down his cloth and wiped the sweat from his forehead. From time to time, he raised his eyes, and at the end of the road, the jingling of a donkey’s neck bell came tinkling closer.

Dust and mud were kicked up beneath the donkey’s hooves, spreading through the air. A scholar dressed in blue robes with a white inner garment led the old donkey, occasionally laughing and chatting with the bearded, muscular man beside him, who carried a wooden case on his back, while pointing toward the outline of the city ahead.

“That over there is He Valley Prefecture. Fellow Daoist Yan, did you pass through here when you came?”

“Indeed I did not. On the way here, I was only concerned with hurrying along. Where would I have had the mood I have now?” Yan Chixia lowered his water bag and wiped the water from his beard. Under the blazing sun, he only felt his mouth dry and tongue parched, and even when speaking, his voice carried a sense of weakness.

Behind the two of them, Yuwen Tuo wore a pale-blue robe, clean and neat, seemingly unconcerned by the scorching sun overhead. A long sword with alternating red and blue colors and a golden dragon-head hilt hung at his waist, gently swaying as he walked. Beside him, after passing Fushui County, Li Sui’an’s spirits had waned, and he had been listless all the way.

Following behind the two was Qu Yuanfeng, carrying a large bundle of luggage on his back. His stature was tall and sturdy, with two or three bundles hanging from his arms, yet they did not affect his walking in the slightest. More than a hundred li of road was nothing to his strength of foot.

As they drew near the city, Lu Liangsheng invited Yan Chixia to enter with him. “There is an elder in the scholarly path within the city whom I have not paid a visit to for many years. Daoist Friend Yan, why not come along?”

When they arrived outside the city gate, seeing the merchants and travelers coming and going and the soldiers conducting inspections, Yan Chixia did not want to cause trouble. He waved his hand and walked over to the base of the wall.

“No, no. I, Yan, will wait outside the city. I hope Fellow Daoist Lu can be quick. I’m afraid Zuo Zhengyang won’t be able to hold on.”

“There is no need to worry about that.”

Lu Liangsheng reassured him with a word, then turned his head toward his three disciples behind him and gave them some copper coins.

“Your master will be inside for a moment. Go around and buy some snacks.”

“Yes, Master!”

The three took the several copper coins. Watching their master’s figure, leading the old donkey, gradually blur as he walked straight through the city gate, Li Sui’an tossed the dozen or so copper coins in his hand into the air, then with a swish, grabbed them all back into his palm.

“Come on, over there. When we came this way earlier, I saw a stall selling some good things.”

As he spoke, he urged Yuwen Tuo and Qu Yuanfeng toward the roadside stalls not far outside the city. Yan Chixia pressed down on his knees and sat heavily on the wooden case, occasionally raising his head to look at the sky, shaking his head and letting out a sigh.

Within the city, Lu Liangsheng led the old donkey along the bustling main street. Amid the tinkling of the copper bell, its sound rang out outside the courtyards of blue-brick walls. Several old pine trees had dense branches, casting mottled shadows onto the street. He walked toward the tall gates of a residence ahead, loosened the reins, and passed between the stone lions covered with moss on either side.

Standing at the entrance, he reached out and knocked on the copper knocker of the vermilion gate.

With a soft creak, the door opened a narrow crack. The elderly gatekeeper poked his head out and sized up the scholar outside several times, finding him somewhat familiar.

“Young Master, are you looking for my master?”

“I am Lu Liangsheng. Elder, do you still remember me?”

The old man inside opened his mouth slightly and drew out a long “Oh.” Once reminded, he immediately remembered this scholar who had once almost become the family’s son-in-law

He hurriedly pulled the door open and welcomed Lu Liangsheng inside. The latter clasped his hands and thanked him, then looked toward the potted plants and old trees filling the courtyard. They were just as lush and verdant as in the past, and many places still revealed an elegant charm.

“How has Master Zhou’s health been these past few years?” As he descended the stone steps beneath the eaves with the gatekeeper, Lu Liangsheng casually asked.

“Quite well, quite well, though recently the master has been feeling under the weather.”

Lu Liangsheng was familiar with the paths within the residence and did not need the gatekeeper to announce his arrival or lead the way. He made his own way there, encountering along the way some maids and servants who had been familiar faces in the residence before, each of them running over in surprise and delight.

“Hey, hey, come quickly and see who has come to the residence.” “Oh my, isn’t that Young Master Lu?!”

“I suppose we can’t call him Young Master anymore.”

“Then what should we call him?” “Don’t know. Stop talking, Young Master Lu is coming over.”

“Aren’t you still calling him Young Master?!”

Amid the fine, murmuring voices of the gathered maids and servants, they watched the graceful scholar walking beneath the distant corridor eaves. After asking someone a few questions, he changed direction and walked toward the study.

Lu Liangsheng knocked on the door. A familiar voice came from inside. “Come in.”

Creak.

The door opened, and an old man draped in a robe, coughing several times, lifted his face from the writing desk. His hair and beard had almost completely turned white over the past few years. Seeing the figure entering through the door, his somewhat clouded eyes brightened. He put down the wolf-hair brush in his hand, tugged at the single garment over his shoulders, and quickly walked out from behind the desk.

“How did Liangsheng come?! Quickly, sit, sit.”

This scholar had a teacher-student bond with him as well. He invited him to sit down, took the teapot, and poured the tea. “It has been so many years since I last saw Liangsheng. How have you been these days?”

“The words of inquiry should be spoken by this junior instead.”

Lu Liangsheng took the teapot from his hand, filled a cup, and respectfully presented it to the old man.

Zhou Zhen gestured lightly with his fingers in mock admonition, then smiled as he accepted the cup and took a sip.

“There’s no need to speak of such pedantic etiquette. Sit down quickly, there’s no need to stand while talking.”

The old and young man sat down together. Lu Liangsheng sat opposite the old man and carefully examined him. Since the death of his own teacher, the old man before him had aged considerably over these past few years, and his eyes no longer occasionally revealed the imposing dignity they once had.

He had come this time precisely to see him and chat about everyday matters. After the two talked for a while, Lu Liangsheng rose and crouched before Zhou Zhen, asking him to extend his arm, then placed his fingertip against his pulse.

“Master Zhou has likely been overworked these days. Your liver fire has risen, and with your age and frail constitution, staying up late has allowed you to catch a chill.”

Sitting in the brown-lacquered wooden chair, Zhou Zhen smiled and waved his hand. “The nation has perished, and the dynasty has fallen. I am also worried that the new dynasty will treat the people of the former dynasty without benevolence, so I often write articles, calling upon the scholars to travel about and seek justice for the people. Who would have thought this old body couldn’t withstand the strain.”

On his wrist, a warm and gentle current suddenly spread. The old man stopped speaking and widened his eyes as he looked at the scholar before him, feeling this warmth spread throughout his entire body along his arm. The sensation of dizziness and heaviness in his head immediately receded.

“Master Zhou should properly enjoy your remaining years from now on. The people of this land will come to no harm.”

Lu Liangsheng withdrew his hand, lowered the old man’s sleeve, and rose, returning to his seat. He picked up his tea and took a sip. “The unification of the realm will only benefit the common people. Master Zhou is also well respected. Why not encourage those great clans of Jiangnan to open their hearts and accept the new dynasty more readily?”

“This… is difficult.”

Zhou Zhen shook his head. “The matters here are deeply intertwined and difficult to explain. Besides, Emperor Chen has yet to die and is traveling everywhere persuading people, inevitably causing some of the great clans to waver.”

The old man’s words were not without reason. Matters of the mortal world were sometimes far more complicated and difficult than cultivating the Dao. Lu Liangsheng smiled and did not continue discussing the matter with Zhou Zhen.

After sitting in the study for half an hour, he brought up his farewell. After all, he still had important matters to attend to, so Lu Liangsheng did not linger. The old man saw him out of the residence gate, then returned to the study and sat quietly in his chair, watching the two cups of clear tea on the table still giving off lingering warmth, remembering that old friend who had passed away.

‘Mr. Shuhua, you have a good student.’

There was also a lonely murmur. Ever since his daughter had chosen a new husband and married, she rarely returned home, leaving only his old wife to accompany him. The residence always felt empty.

The lingering warmth of the clear tea remained, its steam drifting out the door. In the swaying treetops, a bird with a cicada in its beak flew to the crown of the tree. Within the city, the figure leading the old donkey walked through the bustling main street, passed out through the city gate, and snapped his fingers beside Yan Chixia’s ear, who was dozing off with his head bobbing up and down.

“Wake up, it’s time to go.”

Not far away, the three disciples, who had gone wandering about watching the sihts, also returned. Li Sui’an had even brought back some small snacks and put them in a little compartment of the bookcase. The Toad Daoist looked at the preserved fruits and candied treats, the corners of his mouth almost splitting to the back of his head.

“This grand-disciple really knows how to conduct himself.”

After tying the rope and pushing open the little compartment door, he simply sat on the edge, dangling his two short little legs and gently swinging them as he hummed a tune, ‘Leading the old donkey, with three disciples following behind, one is cold, one is foolish, and one is the cleverest.’

As he hummed, he swiftly picked out some snacks and stuffed them into his mouth.

There was food and drink along the way, along with that clever little fellow Li Sui’an who knew how to read the situation. How quite comfortable. It was far better than following his disciple.

Afterward, their pace quickened. Having passed Tianzhi, the former capital of Southern Chen, the road ahead became increasingly rugged and uneven, while the surrounding mountains also grew steeper.

Summer downpours sometimes came suddenly. After raining for an entire afternoon, the sky cleared. By this time, Lu Liangsheng and the others had arrived at Heliang Prefecture. Passing a certain place from back then, Yuwen Tuo, who had always been silent and aloof, suddenly stopped and rummaged through his bundle, taking out incense, candles, and paper money.

These had been bought with the copper coins Master had given them earlier. No wonder Li Sui’an had bought snacks, while Qu Yuanfeng had not spent a single coin and had saved them all. Only he had spent his money, yet had not let anyone see what he had bought. It was only now that everyone learned what it was.

“My father and mother brought me back here to visit relatives back then, and it was here that they met with disaster.”

Watching the incense and candles inserted into the ground burn, Yuwen Tuo pushed aside the thick stack of yellow paper and lit it, burning it toward an empty patch of ground. His voice was somewhat choked as he spoke, with tears glimmering at the corners of his eyes.

After throwing the final sheet of yellow paper into the fire, he raised his face and looked at Lu Liangsheng, who stood beside him.

“Master, do you know who exactly killed my father and mother?”

Lu Liangsheng shook his head and helped him up.

“This, your master does not know. The great monk who brought you here that day had seen those murderers, but they were all wearing masks.”

“But Tuo heard a Southern Chen accent that day.” Yuwen Tuo clenched his fists. Although three years of studying had enlightened his mind, the hatred for his parents’ deaths had added much more ferocity between his brows.

“Since they had planned the murder, how could they leave a handle for someone to seize?”

Lu Liangsheng had also had his own thoughts about this matter. There was no harm in telling his disciple now. Yuwen Tuo was no longer the twelve- or thirteen-year-old he had once been, and saying it aloud was better than allowing a rift to form between master and disciple.

“What your master is concerned about is a scheme to frame someone else. That is why there was a lapse in their conduct. As for speech, it can never be taken as solid evidence. He could imitate the way I speak, and I could imitate the way he speaks. Therefore, your master suspects that the true murderer was definitely not from Southern Chen.”

After hearing these words, Yuwen Tuo fell silent, sinking into thought. Beside him, Li Sui’an patted his shoulder.

“Master is right. Something like this was too fake from the very beginning. It could only deceive you when you were young.”

“Mm, I understand.”

He immediately clasped his hands and bowed toward Lu Liangsheng. “Tuo thanks Master for your guidance. After this, I want to make a trip to Great Sui and see the other relatives in my family.”

“Mm.”

Over there, Lu Liangsheng nodded, took hold of the reins, and pulled the old donkey onward.

“Bringing you out with me was precisely so you could gain some experience. After Lanruo Temple, go.”

Jing-jing-jing.

The setting sun shone over them, reflecting the shadows of the group as they stretched diagonally across the ground. Facing the crimson glow of the evening clouds, they headed toward the ferry crossing. Before long, the ferry would travel north, heading toward Jincheng and Shangyong. Yuwen Tuo gradually cast off his earlier sorrow, and only then did a little smile return to his face along the way. Five people and one toad, counting the old donkey as well, made for quite a lively group.