You cultivate immortality, I cultivate merit

The mountain wind was very strong. Shi Xiaoliu and the other two saw the officials read out the imperial edict and saw the officers and soldiers kneeling down to receive it.

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two watched as the guards welcomed the prefect and his party into a shed. The three of them whispered to each other, "Shall we go back?"

"Back."

The three of them walked back to the top of the mountain. Xia Yu sighed, "They heard that the king was thinking about them, and everyone was very grateful."

"Your Majesty is virtuous. He appointed two successive prefects of Yangzhou Prefecture with good reputations. Only then can this place remain peaceful.

The prefect has a gold mine under his jurisdiction, and they have never been greedy, which is very rare."

Shi Xiaoliu replied with great emotion, and then looked at Shi Zelan: "Sister Lan, what do you think?"

"I only know that a king is the best king if his people can live and work in peace and contentment."

Shi Xiaoliu and Xia Yu laughed when they heard her words: "You said it better than us."

The three of them sat under the eaves for a while, then stood at the edge of the mountain.

When they turned around to leave, they saw a group of soldiers coming out from the direction of the gold mine.

They stood at the edge of the mountain and looked over, and saw the prefect and his entourage coming out shortly afterwards.

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two stood on the mountain, watching the team go down the mountain and their figures disappear at the foot of the mountain.

They returned to sit under the eaves for a while, sharing the stories told by the novelist, and then went back to their rooms to meditate and practice.

In winter, the days are very short and the nights seem longer.

At night, Shi Xiaoliu and the other two sat on the roof, listening to the noises around them. Sometimes they would hear loud noises coming from the distance.

The three of them looked at each other and sighed, "The avalanche tonight should not hurt anyone."

Occasionally they would go to the gold mine and stop for a while, but the weather was not very good and the guards would not come out and walk around at will.

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two turned around and went to the canyon. When they heard some noise at the bottom of the valley, they had no choice but to go back to the top of the mountain.

After the three of them sat down under the eaves, Shi Xiaoliu said to Shi Zelan and Xia Yu, "After the elders come out of confinement, we may move to another place. It probably won't be as lively as here."

Xia Yu listened to him. He looked back and forth at Shi Xiaoliu and Shi Zelan, and said, "My father shouldn't come out of confinement so soon."

“It’s hard to say.
Before my master went into seclusion, he also said that it wouldn’t last too long, but look, another year has passed in the blink of an eye.”

Shi Zelan took over Xia Yu's words, and Shi Xiaoliu agreed with her and said to Xia Yu: "Your father said that he would be in seclusion for three to five years. It is hard to say how many years it will take. Maybe he will come out in one or two years."

Xia Yu made a bitter face: "Will your master come out of seclusion next year?"

Shi Xiaoliu and Shi Zelan shook their heads at the same time. Shi Xiaoliu sighed and said, "The last time the Pavilion Master came, he told me that my master could practice in seclusion for a longer period of time. In fact, it is a very good thing for my master."

Shi Zelan nodded at the side: "My junior uncle said the same thing, and also said that he will come to see us next year when he is free."

Xia Yu felt relieved and said to the two of them, "I think it's good. I was worried that you would have to accompany your master to other places after he came out of retreat.

I am the only one left here to take care of my father, and at most my uncle will come out of the sect to accompany me."

Shi Xiaoliu and Shi Zelan listened to him, and Shi Xiaoliu said, "I speak based on my intuition. I don't think it's possible for us to be separated for a moment."

Shi Zelan laughed at the side: "The friendship between you is so deep, I admire it."

The three of them talked and laughed for a while, and suddenly, they thought of Kunlun Mountain, which they had not seen for a long time.

Shi Xiaoliu looked at Shi Zelan and Xia Yu: "Do you think it will appear in front of us again?" Shi Zelan smiled and said: "I think we will see it appear, and it will lead us to Kunlun Mountain."

Xia Yu said to Shi Xiaoliu: "Xiaoliu, maybe it did appear, but we were all busy at the time and missed it."

Shi Xiaoliu thought about what he had done in the past year and said to Xia Yu, "You are right. We may have missed its appearance."

The three of them therefore decided that when they had free time in the future, they would look more often in the direction where Kunlun Mountain might appear.

It's the New Year again, and the New Year in the secular world has less and less to do with Shi Xiaoliu and the other two.

It was just that the three of them were standing on the edge of the mountain and inadvertently heard people at the foot of the mountain talking about New Year's greetings, and then they remembered that another New Year had arrived.

They looked at each other and smiled again. To them, the New Year was just another ring on the tree.

On the Lantern Festival, Shi Xiaoliu and the other two finally went down the mountain. They decided to go to Yangzhou Prefecture.

They entered the city gate before the 3:00 p.m.

That night, the city gates of Yangzhou Prefecture were not closed, and the city was equally bustling inside and outside.

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two had heard about the excitement during the New Year in Yangzhou Prefecture, but they had never intended to participate in it before.

This time, the three of them were standing on the side of the mountain and talking, and then they mentioned the exciting event of watching the parade of the top scholar that year.

This made the three of them think that during the New Year, Yangzhou Prefecture might be particularly lively.

Then when they went down the mountain, they stopped at the official road and heard the guards mention that during the Lantern Festival, Yangzhou Prefecture was a city that never sleeps.

The three of them began to think, and they listened to the young man's introduction to his companions: "At night, there are lantern riddles in the city's lantern street and in front of each store.

Late at night, wealthy families would set off fireworks at their doorsteps, creating a very lively scene.

Engaged men and women in the city will go out of their homes to meet each other on this night."

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two immediately decided that they would go and join in the fun of the Lantern Festival.

At the 3 p.m. time, Shi Xiaoliu and the other two were already sitting in a teahouse in South City. They ordered a pot of tea and some dessert.

They also asked the waiter, "Brother Xiaoer, is there a storyteller telling stories today?"

The waiter laughed and said, "It's too busy in and around the city today, and no one has the patience to listen to the storytelling.

The three young masters were interested in listening to storytelling, so they came to the teahouse two days later. The stories told by the old gentleman in the morning were very vivid and interesting.

In the afternoon, the stories in the little gentleman's storybook were also very attractive. "

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two looked at each other and said, "Let's come back in a few days to listen to the old gentleman's storytelling."

"The old gentleman comes to the teahouse to tell stories on even days. The three gentlemen come to listen to the old gentleman's stories on the given day."

Shi Xiaoliu and the other two said they had made a note of it, and then asked the waiter, "Will your teahouse be open tonight?"

"Yes, our host has prepared a lantern riddle room. Would you three come and join in the fun tonight?"

"It's getting late, and we don't want to travel at night. Can we come to the teahouse for some tea?"

"Then you have to reserve a table. If you're late, we won't have any tables available." (End of this chapter)