Chapter 182: Homecoming
"Little Taoist, please sit here."
In the evening, in a teahouse, the waiter cordially welcomed a young Taoist priest in blue clothes and asked him to sit in a private seat on the second floor.
Looking down from the window of this elegant seat, you can just see the Slender West Lake, on which various flower boats are cruising.
Because it was already evening, some of the flower boats had already lit up lanterns of various shapes and colors, which were very eye-catching.
"Bring some more special snacks, both meat and vegetables and fruits."
The Taoist in green took out a small package wrapped in oil paper and placed it on the table. On the oil paper package was a piece of red paper with the word "Pu'er" written in neat letters.
Then he asked curiously, "Little Second Brother, although restaurants and teahouses are in the business of welcoming and seeing off guests, it is a good thing to be sweet-mouthed."
"But, I have not yet reached the number of double nine, so I cannot bear the title of little Taoist master."
Upon hearing this, the waiter tore open the tea bag and made tea while smiling and saying, "Is this your first time here, little Taoist?"
"It's the first time, what's the connection?"
"As the saying goes, people grow old in Yangzhou, and boats grow small in Guazhou."
The second brother smiled and said, "We Yangzhou people are very polite. People in their thirties or forties are called old masters. At your age, the word old is not appropriate. Isn't it better to call you young Taoist master?"
"I see. Thank you for clearing up my confusion, little brother."
The Taoist in green smiled and nodded.
"You are so polite, young Taoist priest. Please enjoy your meal. The fruit will be here soon."
The second brother said this and bowed and retreated.
The Taoist in green took a sip of hot tea and turned to look at the flower boat on the Slender West Lake outside the window.
"Hangzhou has West Lake and Yangzhou has Slender West Lake. I thought the scenery was similar, but I didn't expect them to have different flavors."
Jiang Lin murmured to himself with emotion.
That’s right, the Taoist in green was Jiang Lin who was on his journey back home.
On the way south, Jiang Lin flew on his sword, firstly to travel faster, and secondly, to familiarize himself with the Corpse Dog Flying Sword.
However, along the way, flying the sword and turning into a beam of light while comprehending the Heavenly Escape Sword Technique was really too exhausting.
After walking for more than half of the way, I felt really sleepy, so I finally settled in Yangzhou.
"We are not far from Hangzhou. Let's rest tonight and set off tomorrow morning."
Jiang Lin had a plan in mind.
At this moment, the waiter came up with a large tray and said kindly, "This is my first time in Yangzhou Prefecture, so I took the initiative to pick up some of the specialties."
"Those on the left are best eaten right after they're made, but those on the right can be kept for a while."
"If you can't finish it, just eat the left side first, and ask me to pack up the rest."
As he spoke, the waiter laid out a variety of meat, vegetable, snacks and fruits. Most of the table was filled with all kinds of food, and there was a little bit of everything.
"Thank you for your trouble."
Jiang Lin smiled and nodded, took out a silver coin, and said with a smile: "The rest is for Xiao Er Ge's hard work."
"Oh, thank you, little Taoist!"
The waiter immediately smiled happily, bowed and left.
Jiang Lin let out a sigh, feeling a little distressed.
Although before leaving, the current emperor, the former King of Qin, sent a lot of gold, silver and other items, enough for Jiang Lin to use for decades.
But Jiang Lin had developed a stingy character since childhood, and he would feel uncomfortable if the spending was a little bit too much.
But the money that should be paid still needs to be paid.
"Besides, we really need to save this money. When we return to the Taoist temple, we will need to expand it."
Jiang Lin silently calculated the cost of repairing and expanding the Taoist temple, and sincerely thanked His Royal Highness the King of Qin in his heart.
From then on, the name of the King of Qin was ranked first in the Ziwei Temple's merit book.
If Jiang Lin is going to do this.
While Jiang Lin was planning in his mind, he swept away the various snacks on the table.
Yangzhou’s tea snacks are exquisite. Although the quantity is small, they are very varied.
I drank a whole pot of tea and still had some snacks left.
Jiang Lin did not continue eating. He called the waiter, who packed two oil-paper bags as big as plates and left the teahouse with them.
If it were a restaurant, there would be rooms upstairs for accommodation, but this is a teahouse.
Jiang Lin had no choice but to find another place to spend the night.
It was already night and the curfew was supposed to be in effect soon, but the Slender West Lake was still bright.
When a new emperor ascends the throne, there will be a grand celebration as usual, and there will be no curfew.
Although the time is only three months, it is hard to say how many months it will take when it is really implemented.
What's more, the flower boats on the Suzhou West Lake and the financial sponsors behind these flower boats can always find reasons.
Yangzhou's flower boats, romantic women and skinny horses have been synonymous with the den of brothels since ancient times.
Jiang Lin strolled along the bank of Suzhou's West Lake, looking with some curiosity at the gorgeous flower boats and the even more gorgeous beauties on the boats.
It was already cold on an October night, let alone above the lake.
But these beauties seemed to be cultivators who were immune to cold and heat, and only wore a light gauze covering their bodies.
What's more, some people stood on the deck, facing the wind, and danced the Hu Xuan dance under the light.
The fluttering skirt is more seductive than the wind.
Jiang Lin didn't look at it for long. Holding the oil-paper bag, he glanced at the restaurants by the Slender West Lake. They were all decorated with carved beams and painted buildings and were extremely luxurious.
The Taoist in green touched his purse, shook his head slightly, and walked towards the direction leaving the Slender West Lake.
It's just a one-night stay. It's common for monks to use the sky as their quilt and the ground as their bed. It's really excessive to spend money just for a place to stay.
Jiang Lin was thinking so and was about to leave Slender West Lake, but suddenly he stopped.
I looked up and looked at a flower boat.
Jiang Lin narrowed his eyes, and a dark golden light flashed in his pupils. The light was fleeting. He thought about it and walked over.
The flower boat was parked right at the edge of the lake, with a wide board extended for the guests to board and disembark.
At the end of the board, there are several beauties soliciting customers.
In front of Jiang Lin, a man in silk clothes came on board with ease, stretched out his big hands, and walked into the flower boat with two beauties in his arms.
The remaining beauties still had bright smiles on their faces and continued to attract customers.
Jiang Lin walked onto the deck carrying two oil-paper bags.
"Ouch~"
A beautiful lady came up and took a look at Jiang Lin, her eyes lit up. On this flower boat that was used to welcome and see off people, besides those who were pretending to be cultured, there were also many talented and romantic men.
But she had never seen such a handsome boy before. She couldn't help but moan, covering her mouth with a handkerchief and giggling.
"Since this Taoist priest has come to our flower boat, I think he is not observing the precepts."
The beauty stood beside Jiang Lin with a smile and boldly threw her handkerchief over Jiang Lin's shoulder.
"Let the Taoist know that if I were on land, I would serve you willingly even if I had to pay you money."
"But the mother on our boat is greedy for money, Taoist priest..."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Lin shook his sleeves, and when he took his hand out again, there was a hint of golden light.
The beauty looked subconsciously and saw that the extremely handsome young Taoist priest had a thick stack of gold leaves in his hands.
Seeing this, the beauty's eyes lit up.
If the patron is handsome, it is naturally a good thing. If the patron is handsome and has a bit of "uniform" style, it is even better.
If there is still money, it would be such a great blessing that even smoke is coming out of your grave.
It is said that brothels love money and prostitutes love beauty. This may sound sarcastic, but it also means that you cannot have your cake and eat it too.
Now, she has both the fish and the bear's paw. How can the beauty not be excited?
She immediately used all her skills, and amid the envious looks of the other sisters, she walked into the flower boat towards Jiang Lin.
"Little Taoist priest, would you like to listen to the music first or drink the wine first?"
The beauty smiled and tried several times to get close to the Taoist priest beside her, but for some reason, she couldn't do it.
"Or... you can accompany me and drink while I listen?"
Listening to the beautiful woman's sweet voice, Jiang Lin just looked around and then walked towards an empty cubicle.
The beauty naturally followed.
Jiang Lin sat down, but the beauty in front of him did not sit down. Instead, she smiled and asked, "Master, why don't you find a few more sisters to come and help?"
She knew in her heart that the young Taoist priest probably didn't like her. Besides, even if he did, she couldn't earn all those gold leaves by herself.
"No, pour me a pot of tea."
Jiang Lin said without raising his head.
"Yes."
The beauty did not dare to be negligent and turned around and hurriedly went to pour tea.
When the beauty came back, she saw that the young Taoist priest had already opened the oil paper bag he had been carrying.
The beauty could tell at a glance that it was the snacks from Guanchun Teahouse.
It's just that we are not here to drink or listen to music, and we are definitely not here for the meat dishes.
But this is the first time I have seen someone just asking for a pot of tea and bringing their own snacks.
You know, as long as your own flower boat is up, you have to spend money even if you do nothing.
No matter how much money other guests spend, they would not waste it like this.
Not to mention that with the Taoist priest's figure and appearance, once he sat there, even the most beautiful woman would be unable to control herself and would want to offer herself to him.
"Come and eat together, or it will be wasted."
Jiang Lin ate while greeting the beauty.
The beauty nodded blankly, then sat down opposite Jiang Lin and carefully picked up a piece of cake.
After taking a small bite, I heard the Taoist priest speak.
"Who's in the east compartment?"
Hearing this, the beauty paused, then smiled and said, "Master, the rules on our ship..."
Before he could finish his words, a gold leaf appeared before his eyes.
Without seeing the beauty make any movement, the golden leaf disappeared.
Then, the beauty came closer with a smile and whispered, "If I'm not mistaken, the one in the east compartment is the son of our Yangzhou Prefecture Governor..."
"Not a guest, but one of yours."
Jiang Lin interrupted the beauty.
The beauty looked embarrassed and said, "Master, we cannot afford to offend the young master of the prefectural government."
Having said this, she paused and continued, "There is more than one oiran in my family, Sister Runyu. How about I go and call Sister Tianxiang over?"
She thought that the Taoist priest had just caught a glimpse of the courtesan in the other room, which was why he asked this question.
"No need, wait."
Jiang Lin wiped his mouth and closed his eyes.
The beauty blinked helplessly, but could only obey.
The young master of the prefectural government has strict family education and never spends the night outside, so it's just a matter of waiting a little longer.
Time passed little by little, and almost as soon as Sister Runyu sent away the young master of the prefectural government, the beauty went over and called Sister Runyu.
"Sister, there is an extremely good-looking young Taoist priest waiting for you here."
The beauty said, urging: "Sister, come here quickly. This young Taoist priest is not only handsome, but also very rich."
Runyu was wearing a snow-white gauze dress and had a bit of baby fat on her face. She looked no more than seventeen or eighteen years old.
But this year I am already twenty-three.
She wasn't actually that stunningly beautiful, but her skin was as smooth as white jade. As the saying goes, a white complexion can hide three flaws, especially when it comes to a beauty who is already quite good.
This is also the origin of her nickname "Runyu".
"What a handsome young Taoist priest, why you, my sister, are so interested in him?"
Runyu spoke with a smile, straightened her dress, took the pipa handed to her by her sister, and walked towards the room where Jiang Lin was.
As he stepped through the door, Runyu smelled a fragrance.
Guanchunlou has excellent tea and snacks, but it seems that their own flower boat does not have such food?
Runyu felt somewhat puzzled and looked up at the guest who was eating dried fruits.
The Taoist in green sits and eats casually, which is the opposite of those talented scholars with strict manners.
But this somewhat indecent behavior only makes people feel pleasing when seen on this Taoist priest.
In other words, no matter what this Taoist priest does, it is always pleasing to the eye.
It is said that men love beautiful women, but in fact women also love handsome men.
"My name is Runyu, nice to meet you, Taoist priest."
Runyu gathered his thoughts and bowed.
The Taoist priest in green pointed at the snacks in front of him without even looking up and said, "Come, have some."
"I can grow flesh even by drinking water, so I cannot eat these oily things. Please forgive me, Taoist priest."
Runyu blinked in embarrassment and said, "How about I play a song for you to cheer you up?"
"Can't eat it?"
Jiang Lin looked up with some doubt and said, "The one at the bottom of the lake must have given you jade fat to eat every day. The oiliness of that thing is much greater than this tea."
When Runyu heard this, his hand trembled and the pipa suddenly made a burst of noise.
"I don't understand what the Taoist priest is talking about..."
Runyu bowed in panic and said, "I feel unwell suddenly, so I'll take my leave now."
"All expenses for tonight will be charged to my account."
After saying that, Runyu turned around in a hurry and wanted to leave.
"You are eating his life."
Behind him, the calm voice of the Taoist priest in green was heard.
Runyu's body stiffened, but he still walked to the door, pushed it open but did not go out. Instead, he hung a sign on the door and locked it.
After doing all this, Runyu turned around and mustered up the courage to look at the Taoist in green.
"Master, what do you mean by this?"
Jiang Lin finished the dried fruit in his hand and wiped his hands with a towel.
Then, he looked at Runyu in front of him and sighed, "I don't know what happened to you, but judging from your fate, you should have been killed at the age of 26, but now you have lived two lives."
"Jade fat is the essence of jade. Normally, it may take a hundred years to produce a piece of jade, but he ate it with you every day for nearly twelve years."
“Even if it’s the Water God River Fairy, it would take some effort to force out a piece.”
"No matter how profound one's cultivation is, one cannot withstand such frequent occurrences."
"not to mention……"
Jiang Lin looked at Runyu, whose face was getting paler and paler, and sighed.
"The one at the bottom of the lake is neither a god nor an immortal, but a ghost."
(End of this chapter)
