Volume 1 Chapter 41: So worried about each other, we are separated again, the horse is tired and lost on the road
Lin Longqing realized at this moment that Lin Jianlan had been worried about Wang Po's safety since that day, but because he was healing here, he did not show any anxiety or worry on his face. He felt emotional and said to Duanmu Er: "In this case, I have to trouble the Taoist priest to tell him some things that need to be paid attention to. If the Taoist priest has been practicing in the temple, he can go up the mountain to ask for advice if he has any questions."
Duanmu'er sighed, "It can only be like this. Doctor Cheng is a vicious person. If he attacks Lin's grandmother..." But Mo Dan kicked him and rolled his eyes at him, saying, "Old fool, what are you talking about? My brother is so worried and sad here, it would be fine if you didn't say anything to comfort him, but you are so clumsy and talk nonsense!"
Seeing that Lin Jianlan's face was more worried, Duanmu'er touched his head and said, "This... what my disciple said is right this time. Since this is the case, you can't delay too much with me. In fact, there is no trick to this. You are all not outsiders. I will simply explain it. Brother Lin, the most important thing for practicing the Yin and Yang techniques at the same time is the circulation of internal force in the Yin and Yang Wei meridians and the Yin and Yang Qiao meridians. When practicing the internal breath, remember to follow the properties of the internal force to walk the meridians. Only after the Yin and Yang meet and are completely integrated and regulated can you walk the Qi again. The two techniques need to be practiced in a balanced manner, and never one should be practiced more than the other. This is what my master taught me, but I have never practiced like this myself. The rest is up to you to understand. If you have any difficulties, you can always come to the mountain to find me."
Lin Jianlan nodded and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Taoist Priest!"
Duanmu'er walked into the inner room, flipped through the pages for a while, then came out, handed a book to Lin Jianlan and said, "This is the Chen Yuan Heart Method. It is not the Kung Fu of Baiyun Temple. Your adoptive father will naturally teach you Qian Yuan Jin. If you find it difficult, you can practice only one of them. With your current meridians, your progress will be very fast. It's all up to you. Alas, if you want to leave, leave quickly. Otherwise, I will not be able to bear to let you go and must keep you as my second disciple." After saying that, he waved his hand, turned around and walked in.
Mo Dan said: "Brother, actually Master likes you very much after spending the past few days with you. He is just like that. Don't mind it. You all have things to do now, so leave quickly."
The two of them looked inside, knowing that Duanmu'er might not come out to see them off, so Fang bowed inside. Lin Jianlan waved to Mo Dan again, and Fang reluctantly went down the mountain with Lin Longqing.
When they went down the mountain again, the mountain wind still swept the old road, but the two people's moods were very different. When they went up the mountain that day, Lin Longqing was determined to cure Lan'er, and now that his wish was fulfilled, this joy was immediately overshadowed by Doctor Cheng's rebellion. Puzzlement, confusion, resentment and thoughts about Lin Hongfeng continued to surge in his heart.
Lin Jianlan was also worried about his grandmother. He frowned and followed him silently without saying a word. When they reached the foot of the mountain, he realized that Lin Longqing was going back to Hangzhou to take charge of the affairs of the Kuangyi Gang, while he wanted to go back to Liaodong to visit his grandmother. They were about to part. The two horses were still tied to the tree next to the entrance, with some hay piled up next to them. Mo Dan must have come to take care of the horses every day.
Lin Longqing slowly untied the reins, handed one to Lin Jianlan, sighed, and said earnestly: "Lan'er, I explained to you in detail the inner breath circulation of Qianyuan Jin on the way, so I don't need to say more. Uncle Qing knows that you are eager to go back to visit your relatives, so you don't have to go back to the Hangzhou headquarters with me. Besides, you have grown up a lot. I have seen you act very calmly these days. I won't worry too much about you walking alone in the world. It's just that you are just starting to practice internal skills, so remember to do everything within your ability and don't try to be the best, so as not to bring trouble to yourself."
Lin Jianlan raised his head and said, "Uncle Qing, won't you come back to Sanyuan County with me to rest for a while before leaving?"
Lin Longqing shook his head and said, "It's still early now. I'm very worried about the gang, so we have to leave immediately and not stay in Sanyuan any longer." After that, he took out some loose silver and banknotes from his arms and handed them to Lin Jianlan, "Go back to the inn where we originally stayed. I still have the room reserved. There are some books left by your father in it. If you want to go back to the north, you must hire a horse or a carriage. Don't make yourself suffer..." Seeing his earnest instructions and meticulous care, Lin Jianlan wiped the tears from his eyes and said, "Don't worry, Uncle Qing, Lan'er will take care of herself. If grandma is fine, I will go back to Hangzhou to find Uncle Qing."
Lin Longqing patted Lin Jianlan on the shoulder and said, "Lan'er, let's go. It will probably be evening before we get to Sanyuan City from here. Let's go."
Lin Jianlan nodded, silently climbed onto the horse, and looked back. Lin Longqing still had a worried look on his face and said, "Lan'er, remember not to be impatient when practicing martial arts, and don't seek quick success. You are alone, Uncle Qing and the Taoist priest are not with you. If you go astray and make a big mistake, no one will save you ."
Lin Jianlan said: "Well, Lan'er will keep it in mind. Uncle Qing, I will leave now."
Lin Longqing waved his hand and saw Lin Jianlan squeeze his legs together, and the horse slowly moved forward. Suddenly he remembered something and shouted, "Lan'er, if your grandmother is not in your hometown, please come back to Hangzhou to find me. I will go with you to find out!" Lin Longqing saw Lin Jianlan nodded from a distance, and then rode away again, gradually disappearing from his sight. Then he jumped onto the horse, gave a "go", and galloped towards the southeast.
Lin Jianlan had walked the road from Sanyuan to Baiyun Temple only once, so he could not remember it clearly at the moment. He looked around, but there was no one to ask. He only knew that Sanyuan City should be headed north. He rode slowly for a while, but still could not see any trace of the city wall. It was sunset when he saw a small village in the distance. He knew he might have taken the wrong road, but it was getting dark, and he was afraid that if he went any further he would end up in a place where he could not get to. The horse under him was very tired after walking for so long, so he thought about it and galloped towards the village.
After getting off the horse, he looked around and saw that every house in the village was closed, only at the end of a dirt road there seemed to be a light flickering. He led the horse slowly to the light and saw the word "inn" written on the small lantern hanging high in front of the door. It was called an inn, but it was just a small courtyard, with a door hastily tied with a few bamboo tubes, and the house inside was pitch black.
Lin Jianlan knocked on the door and shouted, "Is anyone there?" Through the bamboo door, the light in the room came on, and someone inside said, "I'm coming!" The sound of footsteps "tapping" was getting closer and closer. The door creaked, and a person flashed out, trotting to open the bamboo door and said, "Sir, please come in!"
Lin Jianlan led the horse in and asked, "Are there any upper rooms available?" The waiter said, "We are a small village here, and we are the only inn. We are a small business, so what's the point of having upper rooms or not? There are three rooms, two for business, and one for us. You came at an unlucky time today, and the other two rooms are occupied!"
Seeing that he had ten more questions to answer for every one question asked, Lin Jianlan couldn't help laughing in his heart and pretended to be angry, "You welcomed me in, but then said there was no room. If there was no room, you should have told me earlier so that I could stay somewhere else!" After that, he was about to go out with his horse, but the waiter stopped him hurriedly and said, "Don't be anxious, sir. There is no other village within ten miles around this village. Where are you going to stay? Besides, I'm just a quick talker. Business is delivered to our door, so why don't we take it? I'll ask my family to pack up right away. How about you stay in our house for one night?" After that, he led Lin Jianlan's horse away.
Lin Jianlan was amused by his long-winded words and laughed. He said politely, "In that case, I will stay here for one night. The price will not be bad for you." The waiter bowed and walked into the room. He shouted for a while, and there was some "strange" cleaning inside. A young wife came out with sleepy eyes. The waiter followed behind and said , "Sir, please come in!"
Seeing this, Lin Jianlan said, "I have occupied your house. Where will you two sleep tonight?" The waiter said, "My wife's parents' home is nearby. You can just go back and stay there for one night. I'll sleep on the floor in the kitchen. I'll be there to take care of you if you have any instructions, right?" After that, he whispered a few words in the young wife's ear, and the wife walked out of the yard shyly.
Lin Jianlan stepped into the house and saw that it was furnished in a common way in a farmhouse. The wedding characters on the red wooden cabinets had not been removed yet, which showed that they had just gotten married. The floor was cleaned quite neatly, and you could vaguely see the scratches of the broom. The waiter brought a basin of hot water from outside and put it on the water basin rack, saying, "Sir, please wash your face first to relieve your fatigue." Lin Jianlan wiped his face slightly and said, "Brother, where is this place? How far is it from Sanyuan County?" The waiter said, "This is Nandawa, in the south of Sanyuan County, not very far from Sanyuan County."
Lin Jianlan was puzzled and said, "Listening to what the second brother said, the road I took was not bad. It must be because it was my first time walking by myself, I was restless and my horse speed was not very fast, so I wandered around for several hours and still haven't reached Sanyuan County. But I don't remember seeing such a small village when I came here. I guess Uncle Qing and I were in a hurry to move forward and didn't care to look around." After thinking for a while, he asked again, "Second brother, did an old man pass by here a few days ago?" The second brother smiled and said, "Young master you asked this, I don't know. You must tell me what he looks like!" Lin Jianlan gave a general description of Doctor Cheng's appearance and dress. The second brother shook his head and said resolutely, "I have never seen him! Our village is very small. If there is a passerby, to put it bluntly, everyone in the village will know that this person has never been here!"
Lin Jianlan looked surprised and thought, "Normally, this is the only way to Sanyuan City. It was already evening when Doctor Cheng hurried down the mountain that day. He even missed his place to stay and traveled all night. I wonder where he was going?" The waiter saw the doubt in his eyes and said, "To be honest, sir, my eyes are one of the best in our village. There is no reason for me to be wrong. The old man you are talking about has never been here."
Lin Jianlan nodded without comment and looked outside. It was almost dark, with only a half-day glow over the west mountain. He turned around and said, "Little Second Brother, how long will it take to get to the city if we walk north from here?"
The waiter said, "It's not far. If we ride fast, we'll be there in two hours. Hey? Why are you packing up?"
Lin Jianlan missed his grandmother very much since Doctor Cheng turned against him. He was eager to go home. When he heard the waiter say that the county town was not too far away, he wanted to get on the road again. He rushed to the inn in the city to pack up for a night. The next day, he could hire a horse and carriage to go back to Liaodong. It was better than staying here for a night. As soon as he stepped out of the door, he heard a muffled thunder in the sky and heavy rain came suddenly. The waiter said, "Sir, look at the weather. Even if you have something urgent, you can't travel tonight. You can rest. I will make sure everything is packed for you to set off tomorrow morning!"
Lin Jianlan sighed in his heart: "It's God's fault. I have to stay here for one night before making plans." Then he lowered his head and went into the house. The waiter saw him enter the house in a depressed mood and didn't dare to say more. He quietly closed the door and walked away.
Lin Jianlan couldn't fall asleep, he kept worrying about his grandmother's safety, afraid that his worries would become a reality. He tossed and turned for a while before he fell asleep. In a daze, he heard a light knock on the door outside the yard. Someone walked a few steps quietly and opened the door. They started talking. A man said, "Why are you here now?" A woman said, "We have to wait until those people inside are asleep. I think it's almost time. If we want to do it, we should do it now!" Another person said, "The boy who moved in later doesn't know anything, but he looks rich. Let's be quiet and charm these guests. Then we can become the boy and the gigolo. The girl is very beautiful and we can buy her for a fortune."
The female voice said angrily, "Hmph! I knew you were thinking about it! You'd better explain it to me!" The male voice smiled and said, "My dear, he is nothing compared to you..." Then there was a burst of teasing, which became lower and lower. From the sound, it turned out that the male voice was the waiter from before. It was the first time that Lin Jianlan encountered such a thing when he was traveling around the world on his own. He was furious and said, "So this is a black shop. It's your bad luck to run into me. I can use you to practice my Liuyun sword technique!" Although he was angry, he was afraid that he would really hurt their lives. Therefore, he did not pick up the sword left to him by Lin Longqing. He searched around and found a wooden stick in the corner of the room. He took it in his hand without saying a word, held his breath, and walked quietly to the door.
The couple discussed it in a low voice again, and walked towards another house together, apparently deciding to attack the two people there first.
Lin Jianlan quietly pushed the door open a crack and looked out. He saw two people walking to the door of the opposite house under the moonlight, poking a hole in the window paper, and blowing inside with a thin bamboo tube for a long time. Then the waiter took out a small knife from his arms, slowly inserted it into the door along the crack, lifted up the bolt inside, pushed the door open, and the two people tiptoed in.
