The waiter in the teahouse looked at Lu Liangsheng, put the teapot aside, and settled the bill for the two tables of guests without saying a word. When he came back, Lu Liangsheng saw his expression and roughly understood that the waiter had a crush on the girl and his words had made him alert.
"Did you misunderstand, little brother?"
Lu Liangsheng didn't like to talk in secret. Since there was a misunderstanding, it was better to talk it out face to face. The girl who just came in was not only young and beautiful, but also had traces of Taoist practice, so he couldn't help but be curious.
Of course, it was impossible to tell the guy that the other party had magic. Unlike ordinary people, he made up an excuse to explain so that the guy, who was busy wiping the table, would feel better.
"Young Master Tan, I do have some admiration for her, but every time she comes, she never says anything extra. She just buys some tea and leaves. I don't even know her first name or last name, and I don't know much else about her either."
Once the conversation started, the waiter put aside his grudges and started talking again, leading from the girl to the beautiful scenery and scenic spots of Mount Li. Other customers joined in the conversation, making the place lively.
"Young man, forget about that girl. Listen to my elder brother's advice. You should find a woman who is suitable for you. Don't you agree?"
"Don't talk about it, brother and girl. When I came here, I heard that there was a very beautiful fairy living in Mount Li."
"Yes, but she is the Old Mother of Mount Li, not some kind of female fairy. Be careful if someone hears you talking nonsense, or you will fall flat on your face."
Lu Liangsheng took a sip of tea and listened to a group of men in the tea stall bragging. They were all well-travelled merchants or bold and unruly chivalrous knights. They spoke without restraint because they had never seen any ascetics or immortals.
Over there, the waiter came over to pour tea for the scholar and said with a smile:
"Sir, don't listen to them. There are no gods in the mountains. I have been at the foot of this mountain for several years and have never seen one."
There were often legends about holy spirits in the mountains, but unfortunately he had never seen one.
"hehe… "
Lu Liangsheng chuckled and went over to pay for the tea, then took the reins from the waiter who escorted him out, "Don't feel sorry, little brother. Who knows, you might have met your destiny."
Looking at the servant who was leading the donkey away with the black servant, he scratched his cheek, his eyes full of confusion.
"What do you mean? It's so confusing."
Know, know, know…
Know…
The sound of cicadas in the lush green woods was annoying, and the fluttering leaves floated towards the winding stone steps in the woods. Among the dense branches and leaves swaying on both sides, the old donkey was free from restraint and leisurely followed its master upwards, swinging its tail. It raised its front legs and used its long mouth to hook the low-hanging leaves, causing the Toad Taoist to hold its long ears and hit it on the forehead with its webbed feet.
"Stand still, you look like you're not going anywhere, you still want to be a human being!!"
He then looked at the disciple in front of him and called out, "Liangsheng, do you know how to find the Mother of Mount Li?"
"Hehe, of course I'm following that female Bodhisattva!"
This place is deep in the mountains and rarely visited by people. Zhu Ganglie returned to his original appearance, flipping through the yellowed books, slurping his saliva, and taking out the scroll of painting from his waist, laughing.
The Toad Taoist rolled his eyes at him. After he stood firm, the disciple in front of him turned around and said with a smile, "What Old Pig said is not wrong. The girl we met in the teahouse has magical powers and often goes there to buy tea. I think she lives in the mountains. I should be able to ask her something or two."
With his fingers in his sleeves, he kept pinching the magic spells and followed the magic power invisible to ordinary people. He walked on the deserted muddy road among the grass and deviated from the stone steps for tourists. Soon, Lu Liangsheng's pace slowed down. He was followed by Zhu Ganglie, who was panting and holding onto a tree, his round scalp heaving violently.
"I'm so tired, and you didn't even ask me to take a break."
Just as he finished speaking, the Toad Taoist threw a bean at the pig's nose, and then pointed forward. The latter looked in the direction and saw a woman in a yellow dress walking on the mountain path with a can of herbal tea in her hand. Her skirt was slightly lifted, and her lotus steps were slow and graceful, with not even a speck of dust on her embroidered shoes.
Zhu Ganglie looked at the slim figure and quickly closed his slightly open mouth. He patted his mouth and nose with his hands and pressed them back on his face. His ears on both sides, like cattail leaves, shrunk back, his belly contracted, revealing his eight-pack abs. The two heavy lumps on his chest stretched into a square and became firm. Even the rough black hair went back into his pores.
Suddenly he looked like a majestic, sturdy man with thick eyebrows and big eyes.
Before Lu Liangsheng could step forward, he passed the scholar like a gust of wind and shouted, "Female Bodhisattva, female Bodhisattva, please stay!"
The woman in front stopped, the jade beads on her bun swaying slightly as she turned around slowly. Puzzlement was on her pretty face, and when she saw the tall, dark man in front of her, she subconsciously took a half step back.
"What do you want to stop me, brave man?"
Slurp~~
Zhu Ganglie took a sip of saliva after seeing her appearance, and then he chuckled and bowed: "Female Bodhisattva, I, Old Zhu, am honored to meet you!"
The woman quickly hid aside, obviously frightened.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing? You come here and you bow to me."
"Girl, don't panic." Lu Liangsheng came over and tapped the pig demon lightly on the back, asking him to calm down and lower his voice.
"Don't make trouble. I'll draw it for you when I get back."
Immediately, he stepped forward, bowed slightly, and said to the woman: "He is my companion. He came to the mountain and there was no one else, so I had to stop the girl to ask for directions."
The woman was slender and graceful. She looked up and down at the scholar in front of her while holding a teapot. She was wearing a white robe with wide sleeves, a green belt around her waist, and a thumb-sized scabbard ornament hanging from it. Her beautiful eyes took one more look at the scabbard.
"Where is this young master going?"
"Looking for immortals in the mountains, seeking the fairyland of Mount Li." Lu Liangsheng bowed again and moved closer. He could feel the peace from the woman. It was not the kind of peace that Pu Du Ci Hang had in the past, but it was extremely comfortable, like a spring breeze blowing on the body.
Since it was not a ghost or monster in the mountains, it must be related to the Old Mother of Mount Li. The scholar did not hide anything and told the whole story directly.
"I hope you can help me, young lady. I, a junior, want to visit the old mother of Mount Li to save people."
The woman in yellow covered her mouth and chuckled, then turned around and walked forward with the teapot in her hand, her skirt flying in the air with her brisk steps.
"As long as you can catch up with me, I will take you there."
Suddenly a gust of wind blew, and the walking woman disappeared among the swaying branches and grass in the blink of an eye. Lu Liangsheng took out a yellow talisman given to him by the Taoist priest, and it burned in the air with a bang, emitting a circle of magic power.
"Trace!"
The word "imperial" on the talisman turned into a long thread and extended. Lu Liangsheng did not slow down and flew towards the direction where the woman disappeared. The surrounding flowers, plants and trees were blown away. Zhu Ganglie hurriedly caught up. The toad on the old donkey's head put down a piece of taro leaf to cover it, poked its head and shouted, "Come back, we are still here."
The pig demon, who had just taken two steps, ran back, took the reins, and pulled the old donkey to chase after the scholar. There was no trace of the scholar in front of him, only the grass and trees were still shaking.
In front, Lu Liangsheng chased along the foothills for several miles, and with a flying step, a nearby tree was shaking. He fell onto a higher rock. There was only a steep cliff in front of him, and there was no way to go up at all.
…The breath disappears here.
Looking back, the mountain was covered with lush green trees extending to the foot of the mountain, and clouds and mist filled the mountaintops. Amid the rustling sounds below, I could hear the grunting of pigs, the braying of donkeys, and the master's angry and urging voice.
Lu Liangsheng turned around, faced the cliff in front of him, and frowned slightly. Could it be the same as the time at Changyang Mountain
"Liangsheng, why did you stop?"
Below, among the trees and fields, Zhu Ganglie was pulling an old donkey out. Taoist Toad was holding the donkey's ears and looking at his disciple standing on the green rock. After a moment, he turned his gaze and looked at the towering cliff. He obviously understood what was going on.
"I think I found it."
Toad said something thoughtfully, Lu Liangsheng nodded, jumped down from the rock, walked closer to the cliff, and bowed slightly to the people around him.
"Thank you for leading the way, young lady."
The sunlight shone through the gaps between the trees from outside the mountain and fell on the scholar's profile. He shook his wide sleeves, folded his hands, and bowed deeply toward the mountain wall.
"Lu Liangsheng from Mount Qixia wants to see the old mother from Mount Li."