After saying goodbye to the Wei family, Yingbao was followed by two servants, each holding a gift box in their arms.
There were two hundred taels of silver in total for medical fees and medicines given by Wang, and six pieces of silk satin of different patterns were also given.
After returning to the Wen family, Yingbao wanted to give the silk cloth to Mrs. Wen and Wen Shu, but they refused to accept it.
Xiao Zhenniang: "These are gifts from Madam Wang as a token of thanks. How can we accept them? You don't have to worry about carrying them. I will have someone send them back to Qinchuan County and give them to your family in a few days."
Seeing Mrs. Wen like this, Yingbao had no choice but to agree.
Afterwards, Xiao Zhenniang took Yingbao and Wenshu to visit the market in the provincial capital and eat local delicacies.
Yingbao bought a few fire starters, two small iron pots with lids, and a kitchen knife at the market.
These things are not big and easy to carry, so they can be used when you go out.
For the next few days, Yingbao stayed at Mrs. Wen's house until her second senior brother asked her to return to the Taoist temple.
Because the next day is the first day of the seventh month of the Ghost Month, the Taoist temple will hold rituals to commemorate the ancestors, gods and ghosts.
As the saying goes, the Heavenly Official bestows blessings during the Shangyuan Festival, the Earthly Official pardons sins during the Zhongyuan Festival, and the Water Official relieves disasters during the Xiayuan Festival.
The "Zhongyuan Festival" when "the God of the Earth pardons sins" happens to be on the 15th day of July.
Therefore, the ritual at Jinding Temple starts on the first day of July and ends on the fifteenth day of July.
Yingbao and two fellow practitioners followed the master, sitting cross-legged on the cushion, chanting mantras for salvation.
At this time, the Taoist temple was filled with colorful flags fluttering, sandalwood incense curling, and various musical instruments playing.
The magicians performed a blessing dance on the top of the mountain, their colorful robes fluttering and the ribbons behind their feather crowns dancing, just like immortals.
Yingbao estimated that there were more than a thousand people in the temple, most of them were Taoists and lay Buddhists.
After performing a ritual and having a vegetarian meal in the evening, the master and disciple returned to their guest rooms to rest.
Most Taoists and lay Buddhists went to the houses and inns at the foot of the mountain to rest, while some stayed in the main hall to watch over the incense.
Yingbao lay in the small bed and quietly took out the grapes.
The food in the Taoist temple was too bad. They only gave her one steamed bun and a bowl of porridge for each meal. She could only eat until she was half full. She didn't know how her master and fellow brothers could endure it. After all, they had to live like this for more than ten days.
A few days later, Zhang Min quietly came to find Junior Sister. "Yingbao, let's go down the mountain."
Yingbao: "Did the master let you go?"
"Master won't care." Zhang Min whispered, "Are you going or not? If not, I'll leave on my own."
"Go!" Yingbao quickly put on her cloth bag, tied her shoelaces, and followed her senior brother out of the guest house.
It was just dawn and there were not many people in the Taoist temple. The two of them left the temple and headed straight down the mountain.
There are many stalls selling breakfast at the foot of the mountain, most of which sell vegetarian food.
But there are also a few small stalls selling three-fresh steamed buns and mixed vegetable soup.
This mixed vegetable soup contains shredded chicken and is very delicious.
Zhang Min ordered two bowls of mixed vegetable soup and ten large steamed buns with three fresh delicacies.
He ate six in one go and drank a large bowl of vegetable soup.
After finishing the meal, he saw that the junior sister was still eating, so he said, "I want to give Master some buns. Please stay here and wait for me to come back."
Yingbao nodded: "Yeah."
So Zhang Min bought six more buns and asked the vendor to wrap them in lotus leaves. He put them in his arms and ran up the mountain.
When Yingbao saw her senior brother leave, she turned to the vendor and said, "Give me two more baskets of buns."
There are nine big buns in a basket, and two baskets make eighteen. She wants to save some in her cave and eat them slowly later.
The vendor happily brought two baskets of three-fresh buns and asked considerately, "Would you like to wrap them up, young husband?"
"Give me two lotus leaves and I'll do it myself." Yingbao said as she took a bite of the three-fresh bun.
"Okay." The vendor handed Yingbao two lotus leaves and went to get buns and vegetable porridge for other customers.
After he finished his work, he looked back and found that the steamer in front of the young man was empty.
After Yingbao had eaten and drunk her fill, she paid for the buns, stood up and waited for her second brother at the entrance.
Because Zhang Min said he would take her to the city for a walk and visit Sister Wen Shu.
Just then, a group of people came over.
The one in the middle was a middle-aged scholar with three strands of beard and wearing a patchwork Taoist robe. He was 80% similar to Xiao Mo in his previous life.
There were several people in green robes following him, all of whom looked to be of distinguished status.
One of them was an old man in a black Taoist robe with white hair and beard. He glanced at Ying Bao and then looked at her a few more times.
Yingbao also looked over and their eyes met.
The old man glanced at the bamboo sign hanging around her waist and understood.
Then he said something in the ear of the middle-aged man in the Baita Taoist robe, and the middle-aged man also looked at her.
Finally, a few people stood in front of Yingbao, and the middle-aged man asked with a smile: "Are you Zhou Wuchang's disciple?"
Yingbao nodded: "Yes."
"I didn't expect Zhou Wuchang to accept a female disciple." The middle-aged man and the people around him laughed and said, "It's really rare."
The white-haired old man stroked his beard and said, "I think this girl is quite extraordinary. I guess that's why Zhou Wuchang accepted her as his disciple."
"Oh? Mr. Pei, tell me, what's so special about her?" a man in green robe was curious.
Pei Shixian said: "I see that she has beautiful eyebrows and clear eyes. She is a precocious person. Moreover, her figure is ethereal and she has a fairy bone. She must be blessed."
Yingbao took a step back and frowned at the white-haired old man.
The old man’s surname is Pei, and he is with Xiao Mo’s biological father Xiao Wei Zhong, so he must be Chen Tiantian’s stepfather Pei Shixian.
It is said that this old man is a sorcerer, that is, a Yin-Yang master who specializes in fortune-telling, physiognomy and feng shui.
"Little girl, what's your name?" Old Man Pei suddenly asked.
Yingbao pretended to be mute, took a few steps back, and stood in front of the bun stall.
She didn't want to talk to these people, nor did she want to introduce herself.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, they thought she was shy and went up the mountain on their own.
Halfway through the journey, Old Man Pei looked back again with an inexplicable look in his eyes.
Yingbao narrowed her eyes and looked at him fearlessly.
This person must have recognized her, but didn't say it out loud, which clearly showed that he had bad intentions.
I didn't expect to meet Chen Tiantian's stepfather here.
The one who gave Chen Tiantian advice on how to seize other people's luck must be this old man.
Humph! If her fortune could be taken away so easily by others, she would never try again.
Yingbao watched the group of people go farther and farther away, and finally disappear on the mountain path of Jinding Mountain.
Zhang Min hurried down and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "You must be impatient waiting. Let's go! I'll take you to the most prosperous place in the city to see the excitement."
The Taoist temple in Jinding Mountain is too solemn and dignified, and is not at all as beautiful as the folk sacrificial dances. Zhang Min plans to take his junior sister to see it for herself.
Yingbao was pulled away quickly by her senior brother, still thinking about the look that old man Pei had just given her.
If that person's plan fails, he will definitely have another trick up his sleeve, so it's better to be careful.
Wizards have many evil spells to harm people, and it is hard to guard against them. The most common one is the witchcraft of exorcism.
It is to make a few puppets or straw men, write the name of the person being cursed on them, and some people even use needles to poke the puppets' temples, eyes, chests and other vital parts, place them in a dark place, and curse them day and night.
Yingbao is not afraid that they will stab her with vampires, but she is afraid that they will be desperate and kill people to silence them.
However, if I really died, could Chen Tiantian still borrow my luck
Probably not.