AWB Chapter 32 Warm Home
Chapter 32 Warm Home
The dog-skinned Taoist priest revealed a lewd smile and said, "Don't worry, Master. The young mistress has only been affected by evil spirits. I will teach her a lesson when I get back, and she will be able to recover completely."
The head of the Wu family, beaming, replied, "Very well, with Daoist Yunxiangzi's words, I am relieved."
The matriarch was also smiling at the Taoist priests, and the second young master, the second young mistress, and the third young lady were all very happy, seemingly believing from the bottom of their hearts that the evil spirits had been driven out of the house.
There was only one little boy, who kept calling for his mother, but he was blocked by the servants and could not break through the crowd.
His elders seemed oblivious to his howls, chatting happily with the Taoist priests.
Master Wanshou stroked his short beard and said, "This time, I have removed this calamity from your family, and your family will surely enjoy peace and prosperity in the future."
The head of the Wu family smiled and said, "Thank you, Daoist Master. Your merits are immeasurable, and you will live a long and healthy life. I appreciate your kind words."
The expressions on the faces of the Wu family members grew increasingly joyful; if they weren't still wearing their burial clothes, they probably would have burst into laughter.
After the pleasantries finally ended, the group from Linglong Temple reluctantly prepared to depart.
They had just stepped out the gate when they were met by Lin Fan, who was striding towards them. He was dragging the emaciated Zhao steward and a chest full of gold and silver. Upon seeing the Taoist priest, he shouted loudly:
“Master, I’ve caught the murderer who killed Wu Jia Dalang! This is his motive, and he’s been caught red-handed. We can hand him over to the authorities now.”
Everyone stared blankly at Lin Fan walking towards them from a distance. At this moment, his much taller figure was no longer the focus.
The crowd looked at Steward Zhao, who was being dragged along by Lin Fan, and then at Jin Shi, who was bound like a dumpling. For a moment, all the Taoists looked at each other, not knowing what to say.
Jin stared blankly at the tall, clean-smiling boy, as if she had seen a lifeline.
While everyone was stunned, the little boy broke free from the servant's restraints, hurriedly untied his mother's ropes, and rushed into her arms.
At this moment, Lin Fan suddenly collapsed, his body deflated like a punctured balloon, returning to its previous state.
Master Wanshou's eyes flickered, and with a sweep of his whisk, his disciples immediately understood and stepped forward to help their junior brother.
At this moment, the dog-skinned Taoist finally realized what was going on and said to his senior brother, "As expected of my senior brother, you are indeed a genius."
Master Wanshou nodded. Although they hadn't worked together for many years, their old tacit understanding remained. Wanshou, with his handsome appearance and being the senior disciple, was responsible for playing the profound one. Dogskin Taoist, quick-witted and eloquent, was responsible for smoothing things over; if he couldn't explain, he would take the blame.
After the Taoist priest with his silver tongue gave a long explanation, the Wu family members finally accepted the theory that Steward Zhao was the real culprit.
The head of the Wu family, after a moment of digestion, finally understood and said, "The Taoist priest is truly well-versed in military strategy! He actually performed a ritual in front to lower the guard of this scoundrel surnamed Zhao, while sending the young Taoist priest to capture him. If only the constables in the yamen had half the wisdom of the Taoist priests."
Afterwards, the head of the Wu family showered the Taoist priests with praise. However, the priests clearly showed little joy upon hearing such flattery.
"Especially this young Taoist priest, he is both brave and resourceful. I, Wu, will definitely prepare gifts to thank him in person in a few days!"
The reason for not expressing gratitude now is that Lin Fan has already fainted and been carried onto the carriage.
Jin felt as if she had been granted a pardon and led her son back to the backyard like the wind.
Inside the carriage, Daoist Wanshou looked at the sleeping Lin Fan with delight: "Good, good! Such a temperament is truly extraordinary."
At that moment, a figure darted onto the carriage.
"Qingxu, what is it?" Daoist Wanshou asked quietly.
The male disciple named Qingxu bowed and replied, "Master, in this way, the matter of the Wu family's destiny will be..."
"Enough, it's all fate. We are monks, we should follow the natural order and not go against the will of Heaven. Besides, this is a critical moment for me, and I have no time to concern myself with the Wu family."
"Disciple understands." Qingxu bowed and withdrew.
After Qingxu left, Daoist Wanshou looked guilty and murmured to Lin Fan, "Feng'er, it's my fault. I shouldn't have let you take such a risk."
When Lin Fan woke up, it was already evening. A new disciple's robe had already been prepared and hung on the wall in his room. He felt a little dizzy and couldn't remember what he had done earlier.
By the way, what happened to Steward Zhao and the Wu family afterward?
Lin Fan hurriedly put on the new clothes. This Taoist robe was exactly the same as the previous one. The fabric was good, the stitches were very fine, and it had been specially scented with incense, giving it a sweet fragrance.
According to my master, this was sewn by a fellow disciple herself.
Just putting on the clothes made Lin Fan feel refreshed by the fragrance.
Whether it was from hunger or a side effect of the stimulant, his steps were unsteady, and he felt like he was losing his balance.
Lin Fan pushed open the door and followed the aroma of the food to the main dining room.
He arrived too late yesterday and ate leftovers with the dog-skinned Taoist. Everyone ate lunch at the Wu family's house today, except for Lin Fan, who didn't get to eat.
This was, by all accounts, his first proper meal at Linglong Temple.
The main room was brightly lit with lamps in all four corners, even though it was night. Looking at the bright and beautiful room, Lin Fan thought of his dark little house in Bailin Village and felt as if he had been transported to another world.
"Lin... Junior Nephew Liu, come and sit down! Everyone's been waiting for you." The dog-skinned Taoist hurriedly reached out to Lin Fan. "I'm starving, but my senior brother insisted that we could only eat when you arrived."
Lin Fan bowed to Daoist Wanshou as a disciple and then walked to the only empty seat.
Yun Xiangzi sat to the right of Daoist Wanshou, while the empty seat for Lin Fan was to his left.
Lin Fan felt a little embarrassed sitting there. He glanced at his fellow students out of the corner of his eye and felt a little more at ease when he saw that they were all smiling at him.
Being favored by one's master can be a good thing sometimes, and a bad thing sometimes. Lin Fan hadn't been here long enough to want to keep a low profile, but unfortunately, he was the last to arrive and didn't have much of a chance.
Wan Shou raised his cup and said, "Today is a welcome banquet for your junior brother. From now on, Liu Feng and our Linglong Temple are one family." After saying that, he drank the contents of his cup in one gulp.
Master Dogskin raised his cup, and the others bowed and responded in unison.
Master Wanshou waved his hand, and everyone sprang into action, their chopsticks reaching for the sumptuous meal on the table.
A gentle-looking senior female student placed some food into Lin Fan's bowl.
"Junior brother really scared me to death today. You must not take such risks in the future. You should discuss things with us first."
"Junior Brother is incredibly quick-witted. In just half a day, he saw through the hidden secrets of the Wu family. I am truly ashamed of my inferiority." A senior brother said, putting some food on Lin Fan's plate.
"We owe a great debt to our junior brother today, otherwise that scoundrel surnamed Zhao would have gotten away with it," a senior brother chimed in.
"Clothes really do make the man. Junior brother looks very handsome in this outfit. Are you satisfied with the clothes your senior sister made for you?" A senior sister looked Lin Fan up and down.
"When Junior Brother came out today carrying that scoundrel, he was really majestic. I thought he was a heavenly soldier descending to earth."
……
Amidst the praises of the crowd, Lin Fan's bowl was already piled high with food.
"Feng'er, you have made a great contribution to Linglong Temple today. Starting tomorrow, I will teach you the mental cultivation method, and we will cultivate the Great Dao together from now on."
As he spoke, the Taoist Wanshou picked up a piece of braised pork from his bowl and gave it to Lin Fan.
Looking at his full bowl and everyone's sincere smiles, Lin Fan's eyes welled up with tears.
"Eat up, junior brother."
"Yes, junior brother, today is your welcome banquet, you can't not eat more."
Lin Fan felt enveloped in warmth, a feeling he had never experienced since coming to this world. Here, there was a large house to shelter him from the wind and rain, abundant meals, and fellow disciples who cared for him like family.
The hardships, deceit, and treachery along the way caused most of the defenses I had built up to crumble instantly.
Lin Fan held back his tears, picked up his chopsticks, and began to eat heartily.
The dog-skinned Taoist priest had already eaten a whole bowl of rice and was starting to realize that it wasn't appropriate for him to keep his head down and keep eating while others were being so enthusiastic towards Lin Fan.
He picked up a piece of radish and put it into Lin Fan's bowl. He racked his brains for something nice to say, because everything he could think of, and even things he couldn't think of, had already been said by others.
“Nephew, I didn’t expect you to be so decisive. That powerful pill would shorten your lifespan, yet you used it so readily. I greatly admire your courage in fighting demons and protecting the righteous path.”
Upon hearing this, the lively atmosphere at the dinner table instantly turned cold.