Volume 2 Chapter 27: Overdoing the trick
Lin Jianlan said: "I am sorry for you, but fortunately, only half of it was burned, which can only relieve half of your boredom."
Wan Xiu chuckled and said, "How can the depression be solved halfway..." But Lin Jianlan hugged her tightly. She felt Lin Jianlan's head leaning heavily on her shoulder, rising and falling, and she let out a suppressed sob.
After a long while, Lin Jianlan finally calmed down. He raised his head with red eyes. Wan Xiu tilted her head and saw that there was a large wet spot on her shoulder. She knew that he was very sad and had been enduring it just now. But now he could not bear it anymore and had to vent this indescribable emotion to her. Thinking of this, tears welled up in her eyes.
Seeing that she was not standing very steadily, Lin Jianlan gently placed her next to the fire and said apologetically: "I... I am rude. I don't know if I hurt you?"
Wan Xiu gently shook her head and said, "Mr. Lin, it's all my fault that I caused you tonight..."
Lin Jianlan said, "It doesn't matter. I've figured it out. There are things that need to be known. If you know them, maybe you can try to make up for it." Seeing that she was trembling a little, knowing that the forest was cold at night, he fanned the fire a little, added some branches, wrapped the blanket around Wan Xiu, and said softly, "You are too tired. Lean on me and rest for a while."
Wan Xiu's face felt slightly hot, not sure if it was because of the heat or because she was shy. She lowered her head even more and carefully leaned on Lin Jianlan's shoulder. She had been frightened several times that night and was extremely tired. Now that her mood calmed down a little, she fell into a deep sleep immediately.
Yun Mengzhen had quietly left without knowing when, but Tang Zimu sat quietly beside Lin Jianlan. He took a quick look at Wan Xiu and thought that the woman looked quite ordinary. He was a little puzzled and said, "It seems that Master Lin cares a lot about this woman."
Lin Jianlan said: "I promised her mother to take her to see a master doctor, so I naturally have to take good care of her."
Tang Zimu said: "From what Master Lin said just now, her mother was the one who poisoned her. If she wanted to save her daughter, why did she do this? The poison was strange, and the solution was even stranger."
Lin Jianlan smiled softly. This matter had nothing to do with Tang Zimu, so there was no point in talking about it. He said without saying much, "Thank you, Brother Tang, for telling me about my father's past tonight."
Tang Zimu took a few branches and added them in. He fiddled with them casually, causing some sparks to fly out. He said, "I also heard what others said. It may be different. There are some things I can't say in front of those people."
Seeing that he had not gone back with Yun Mengzhen, Lin Jianlan felt that Tang Zimu must have something to say, so he looked at him and said with a smile: "Brother Tang, please feel free to speak. After the incident just now, I don't care to hear anything more."
Tang Zimu was startled, then he smiled and said, "Mr. Lin, you don't have to think so. I really want to make friends with you. After Sima Xu's defeat, people talked about it more than ten years later, but it was just a story. But I never thought that you were the son of Feng Zhu. I stayed until the end because I wanted to tell you some questions I had after hearing this story."
Seeing his sincere expression, Lin Jianlan felt a little embarrassed and said seriously, "Brother Tang, please speak."
Tang Zimu looked at the fire, and seemed to have no idea where to start. He pondered for a while before turning around and asking, "Mr. Lin, if Feng Zhu is not your father, how do you feel about him?"
Lin Jianlan smiled bitterly and said, "Brother Tang, why do you have to ask me this, whether he is my father or not, my opinion will only be the same."
Tang Zimu pondered and said, "Mr. Lin is indeed an upright person. Moreover, seeing how he is so kind to women, I am afraid that the most despicable thing is that Feng Zhu took advantage of a woman's infatuation to communicate with the enemy."
Lin Jianlan blushed, looked at Wan Xiu and said, "Her father and my adoptive father have been friends for many years, and she and I are like siblings."
Tang Zimu said: "I heard about this incident when I was young, and I have not forgotten it until today. On the contrary, it has become more and more profound. There is only one thing that keeps lingering in my mind. What would happen if Xu Jingye really led his troops to attack Luoyang?"
Lin Jianlan said: "Of course, he is the one who eliminated the chaos and returned the Tang Dynasty to the Li family..." At this point, he was speechless and asked: "Brother Tang, are you talking about this?"
Tang Zimu said: "Yes, when I was a child, I hated this 'Wind Bamboo' to the core. When I grew up, I thought more about it. I gradually felt that Xu Jingye might not be completely for the restoration of the Tang Dynasty, but just an excuse to start a rebellion. If he really captured Luoyang and Chang'an, who would be able to stop him then?"
Lin Jianlan said, "He may not necessarily do so..." He felt a little guilty when he said this, and said softly, "If the enemy really came to the city, no one can guarantee that he would not have other intentions."
Tang Zimu said: "Throughout the ages, how many people have fought for this yellow robe, the throne of the emperor. Even if he had no intention of rebelling at the time, after the success, he would probably be a high-ranking official, assisting the monarch and commanding a large army. Who can guarantee that he is a Duke of Zhou and not a king?"
Lin Jianlan sighed, "Brother Tang once said that the easiest thing to change in the world is human heart. If that's the case, the consequences are really hard to predict."
Tang Zimu sneered and said, "From the perspective of ordinary people, Jin Sheng is still the daughter-in-law of the Li family. If Xu Jingye were to become the emperor, the country would really be renamed."
Lin Jianlan was speechless for a moment, but saw Tang Zimu turned his head with a very solemn expression and said, "People are inherently suspicious, and so am I. Once this thought flashed through my mind, it could not be erased, and it became more and more deeply rooted. I just wanted to tell Mr. Lin that Feng Zhu might not be who we thought. There must be some hidden story, otherwise he would not have disappeared for so many years."
Lin Jianlan frowned and said, "No matter what, taking advantage of a girl and causing her family to be destroyed is something I really cannot agree with. Sigh, but what does it matter whether I agree with it or not? He probably doesn't know that he has a son like me in the world, and he doesn't need me to agree with him."
Seeing that he looked a little depressed, Tang Zimu stood up, patted his clothes and said, "No matter what, I am actually somewhat grateful to your father deep in my heart."
Lin Jianlan was silent for a long time before he said, "I left without saying goodbye that day, are you okay, little hero?"
Tang Zimu said, "I will take care of him, Mr. Lin, don't worry. The other disciples in the gang also take good care of him, but the leader of the Beggars' Sect has just been re-established, and the elders have too many things to do. Although he has tried to learn martial arts several times, no one has taught him. You are the only person in the world who treats him well besides the old leader. He often misses you, but he won't say it."
Lin Jianlan's nose was sore, and he said, "I was unable to avenge his grandfather. Lei Kan and Gang Leader Nian both died in front of him. I really don't have the face to see him."
Tang Zimu said, "Mr. Lin's chivalrous heart is really something I admire, but isn't this too tiring?" Seeing that Lin Jianlan didn't answer, he smiled and said, "You've been out for too long, and I'm afraid people will get suspicious. Today, Mr. Lin couldn't avenge the old leader, and I'm afraid you'll hate him even more. If you need any help, just come to me, and I'll do my best to help you, and atone for my sins."
Lin Jianlan looked up and saw that he looked sincere and apologetic. He thought to himself, "In fact, Elder Tang is handsome and well-mannered. He is the kind of person that people want to make friends with. Why can't I have a good impression of him? Alas, perhaps my opinion of him is really too biased." Thinking of this, he smiled and said, "Everyone has their own aspirations, but they just want to have a clear conscience. What crime has Brother Tang committed? Since we met, I owe Brother Tang a lot of favors. Now I have to trouble Brother Tang for something."
At this time, Doctor Cheng and Madam Wan were in the small courtyard where Lin Jianlan and Lu Man had lived, feeling extremely anxious. They had already arrived at Baiyun Mountain and had been waiting for several days, enduring hunger and thirst, but there was no sign of anyone. This made the two of them miserable. Finally, they found the place closest to Baiyun Mountain and took turns to wait there every day, but there was still no sign of Lin Jianlan and Wan Xiu.
A few days passed, and it was true that "a son is as close to his mother as his own flesh and blood." Mrs. Wan was worried as if she was being torn apart. She was afraid that something might happen to Wan Xiu on the road. Doctor Cheng was always secretive about the purpose of this trip, which made her even more resentful of him.
Doctor Cheng knew that Lin Jianlan was a kind person or death, but as they had not yet reached Baiyun Mountain for such a long time, he felt a little uneasy. However, it was not because he was worried about Wan Xiu, but because he was thinking about how to explain to that person if the mission failed again.
Although the two of them had their own thoughts, they still forced themselves to walk along the way. After a rest for the night, Madam Wan couldn't sleep all night. She woke up Doctor Cheng early at dawn. The young daughter-in-law had prepared some breakfast earlier. The two of them ate a little and then hurried towards Baiyun Mountain again. The forest next to them had become much denser since Lin Jianlan left, and the mountain road was mostly covered with grass, with occasional traces of mowing, but they were also scattered.
Madam Wan hid in the woods, secretly worrying in her heart: "If there is still no news about Ah Xiu's whereabouts today, what should I do? Oh, how should I explain to Jian Hong?" Thinking of this, she felt that it was really stupid to wait with this old man who was evasive in his words. Just as she was about to get up, she was suddenly held down by Doctor Cheng. Seeing that he was staring straight ahead without blinking, with an extremely serious expression, she was startled and looked forward as well.
Outside the forest, there were shadows of people, and their voices gradually became noisy. Someone shouted loudly, "What are you doing? You knew that the Madam was coming today, but you didn't pave a way in advance!"
In a moment, dozens of servants came up quickly, pulled out the grass, and stacked it neatly on the side of the road. After working for a while, a neat and tidy path appeared in the bushes.
Two servants came with a long carpet in their arms, spreading it along the road. Then a sedan chair with four people moved slowly along the carpet. A man was running behind it. He was not very old and was dressed quite elegantly. There was also a middle-aged man on a tall horse, dressed gorgeously, following behind. Then came dozens of young men and women, who stopped a few feet away from the entrance to the mountain.
The middle-aged man got off his horse and walked to the front of the sedan chair, bowing and saying, "I am sorry that I didn't prepare well today and made you wait for so long."
Doctor Cheng and the other man looked at the middle-aged man and saw that he had three long locks of hair and a calm face. He opened the curtain of the sedan chair and helped out an elderly and frail old lady. The young man next to her also hurried to support her. The old lady was wearing clothes embroidered with phoenixes and peonies. She seemed to be an imperial concubine. Her hair was full of silver hair and she wore a phoenix crown on her head. Every step she took was trembling and her beads swayed. In her right hand was a dragon-headed cane, and in her left hand was holding a child of six or seven years old.
Four strong and agile servants came up with a smaller but luxurious sedan chair, which was covered with thick silk and had light gauze hanging on the sides. The middle-aged man said, "The mountain road is narrow and difficult to walk on. We can only ask mother to condescend for a while." The old lady nodded and got on the sedan chair again. The child ran to the sedan chair and said, "I want to sit too!"
The middle-aged man scolded, "It's because your grandmother spoiled you to the point of lawlessness. Your grandmother is old, so she took the sedan chair up. Since you can walk by yourself, come with me up the mountain."
The child twisted and cried, "I want to sit, I can't walk!"
The middle-aged man's face darkened. He walked a few steps up alone and turned back to say, "If you can't walk anymore, I'll ask Manager Di to take you home."
The child glanced at the young man next to him, and ran over in a depressed mood, following the middle-aged man up the mountain road. Steward Tang gave a few instructions before following him. Then eight maids and servants filed in, and the rest stood respectfully at the entrance of the mountain.
Doctor Cheng had been here twice and knew that this place was very remote. Even in Baiyun Temple, there were no pilgrims all year round. It was really strange that these people came here in such a grand manner. However, he had already stared at those people for a long time, but he could not see any flaws. Their clothes were very luxurious and did not seem to be disguised casually. Moreover, the dozens of servants were well-trained. How could Lin Jianlan have such a big ability to make such a scene?
Doctor Cheng turned around and saw Madam Wan, who also looked anxious. In fact, he felt the same way. However, the mountain road was narrow, with steep cliffs on both sides. No matter how skilled he was in martial arts, he could not get past these idlers guarding the mountain pass to catch up and see what was going on. He also did not know the identities of these people, and it would be too reckless to resort to force.
Just as he was getting anxious, he heard Madam Wan sighing softly and saying, "A Xiu is still missing." Doctor Cheng was startled and was about to ask her to lower her voice, but he heard a stern voice from the other side, "Who is it?" A sound of footsteps was heard, and several people who looked like servants were coming over here to search.
Doctor Cheng frowned, pulled Madam Wan to stand up, and walked to the other side. When the two sides met, the servants were stunned. They didn't expect that two old men would come out of the forest. Seeing Doctor Cheng hunched over, they cleared their throats and said, "Excuse me, is this Baiyun Mountain? We have come from afar and lost our way in this forest."
One of them, who was a little older, said, "This is it."
Doctor Cheng straightened up and looked behind the servants, exclaiming, "What a grand ceremony! Thank you so much!" Then he led Madam Wan toward the mountain road, but was stopped by the servants, who said, "Today my old lady is going up the mountain to fulfill a vow. Please stay."
