Lu Liangsheng was very happy that the old mother of Mount Li could say these words to him, but he felt uneasy if he didn't tell her about the strange dream, so he picked up the basket and quickly caught up with the old woman.
"Is there really a way to keep the body alive for a long time in this world?"
The old woman ignored him, just slightly tilted her head to look at the scholar, and walked across the stone steps covered with fallen leaves: "You, you want to ask in a roundabout way again, you make Tianpeng stay in the kitchen every day, and you are still not satisfied... The doubts in your heart will be revealed soon, just follow your heart."
"Isn't it that the fate has already been arranged?"
"Even gods can't escape, let alone mortals. Every living being who comes to this world has things he needs to do."
"Liangsheng disagrees with this statement, and there are many people who eliminate all living beings."
"Well... those are just to make up the numbers."
Lu Liangsheng: “…”
The scholar was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that his usually serious mother could also joke humorously. However, if he really asked about the strange dream, the old mother of Mount Li would not tell him. She walked with him for a while, and chatted with him casually while looking at the autumn scenery in the mountains. Xiaodie came up from the bottom of the mountain carrying a teapot, bowed, and looked at Lu Liangsheng.
"Master Lu, someone is waiting for you at the foot of the mountain."
"Do you know who it is?" Lu Liangsheng originally wanted to find out, but with his old mother beside him, it was inconvenient for him to use magic. The woman in the yellow skirt named Xiaodie over there knew the scholar's embarrassment, smiled slightly, and moved aside to make way.
"It's an old man who came from the city. It looks like he has been waiting for some time. Master Lu, please go quickly."
Lu Liangsheng looked at his mother. The old woman smiled, nodded, and waved her hand: "Go."
"Then Liangsheng, goodbye!"
He bowed to the Old Mother of Mount Li, and when he stood up, the light smoke in front of him dissipated, and the front was empty. Lu Liangsheng gathered his thoughts and used magic to hurry on his way back to the foot of the mountain. From afar, he sensed a familiar aura coming from the teahouse. Yang Su, the Duke of Yue, was sitting in the teahouse sipping tea. He saw the scholar coming down the mountain and came out after paying for the tea.
An old man and a young boy walked to the official road outside the mountain.
As autumn deepened, farmers were rushing to harvest the fields and loading them onto carts to take them away. Two people were walking on the official road. The old man spoke first as he looked at the hustle and bustle around him.
"Daoyou Lu is so lucky to have met a fairy like the Old Mother of Mount Li. I really envy you for seeking the immortals and traveling around the mountains and rivers."
Lu Liangsheng, who was walking on the side, smiled and looked at the sighing old man: "Duke Yue is famous, I don't know how many people envy him."
“… incomparable.”
Yang Su chuckled twice, waved his hand, and turned his head to look at the family busy working in the farmland not far away.
"If you want these things, Fellow Daoist Lu, you can easily get them, but your good fortune is rare." After a pause, the old man retracted his gaze and continued, "By the way, Fellow Daoist Lu, do you know about the war in the northwest?"
The old man's sudden question was not abrupt, but running to the foot of Mount Li to wait for him to come down the mountain was a bit of an exaggeration. While walking, Lu Liangsheng nodded: "I know a little bit. I heard Yuwen Tuo talk about what happened over there."
"Looking at Daoist Lu's expression, I think His Majesty will return victorious soon. Your Majesty will lead the army in person to expand the territory. Great..."
He said several good things in a row, then changed the subject and talked about other ordinary things. After entering the east gate of Chang'an, when they parted ways, the old man never mentioned the war again. He shook his wide sleeves and bowed to Lu Liangsheng to say goodbye.
"Fellow Daoist Lu, goodbye."
Here, the scholar watched the old man walking towards the crowded street with his sleeves brushed casually, his face froze, but he later guessed why the Duke of Yue was like this.
After the Northwest War ended, the emperor grew up.
The sun slanted across the long street. Looking at the thin figure disappearing in the crowd, Lu Liangsheng pursed his lips, raised his hand and bowed, then turned and headed south back to Furong Pond.
It would take a long time for the emperor to return to the capital. In the following time, Lu Liangsheng put aside his dream of seeing the First Emperor for the time being. He sent people to inquire about the fragments of the demon star outside and taught the orphans in the temple. Sun Yingxian flipped through the Taoist books left by his master and found some simple formations to teach. After all, one must learn step by step from the shallow to the deep.
During this period, Lu Liangsheng took advantage of the Taoist's free time to teach these children how to read and write. After more than half a month, they could basically recognize dozens of words and could understand some of the books with simple language.
In half a month, news of the war in the northwest had been reported, causing the whole city to boil. Literati and elegant people often uttered heroic poems in brothels, and the streets and alleys were more lively than usual. Lu Liangsheng also took Hong Lian, Qi You, the Taoist, and more than 200 children from the temple to stroll on the streets to attract attention.
Zhu Ganglie's reputation spread far and wide in the West Market Restaurant, and there was an endless stream of guests coming to eat there. Most of them specifically requested the meals cooked by Lao Zhu. Fortunately, since he didn't come to this restaurant, he could still go back to Wanshou Temple to take care of the kitchen.
Lu Liangsheng advised him several times not to go there, but Zhu Ganglie shook his head every time he heard it, "Only when I am busy, I won't have too many worries."
The one who made the scholar laugh and cry the most was his master, the Toad Taoist.
I don't know if it was because I took too much Mengdan that time, but I was already dozing off before winter even started. Sometimes, while walking, I would close my eyes, fall straight to the ground and fall asleep, and my limbs would twitch in my dreams from time to time. When I woke up, Lu Liangsheng asked him about it, and the Toad Taoist still said that there were many pairs of eyes secretly looking at him in his dreams, and he felt embarrassed several times because of being stared at.
Of course, during this period, letters were sent from home. The letters were written by Xiaoxian. Her handwriting has improved a lot, and it is light and delicate, which makes people feel comfortable to read. The content is mostly greetings from the villagers. There are also some words from the wives of Lu Pan and the other eight people asked Xiaoxian to write, reminding them to take good care of themselves outside.
The last paragraph was written in bold, and it was Xiao Xian’s warning to Sun Yingxian: “… Taoist Sun, if you are out there being a playboy and a womanizer, I will learn from the aunties in the village how to castrate pigs and sheep…”
The Taoist priest who was standing nearby saw the last part, and quickly retracted his neck, chuckled twice, then moved a chair with a heavy heart and sat under the eaves, lost in thought.
"It's been almost a year since I left home, and I don't know what's going on at home, but looking at this letter, it should be the same as before..."
Lu Liangsheng folded the letter and put it into his sleeve. Looking at Hong Lian who was thinking about going back to Lujia Village, he smiled and comforted her, "I'll go back and see you after I'm done with my work."
The wind blew through the woods, and yellow leaves fluttered down.
November, the second day of the new year.
The army that went on the Western Expedition has returned to the capital. The advance team, led by the current emperor, entered the city at noon today. Lu Liangsheng, Hong Lian and others also came over and stood in a restaurant facing the street, looking at the large flag with the word Sui fluttering. Yang Guang was dressed in military uniform, riding on a war horse, and most of the soldiers and generals behind him had made contributions in this expedition.
The tattered flag of Tuyuhun was held high so that the people on the street could see with their own eyes that under the attack of the Sui army, the foreign barbarians had no chance of survival.
Soon, Lu Liangsheng returned to Wanshou Temple, and the emperor sent someone to invite him to a banquet in the palace.