Chapter 19

Song Shuhang was taken aback at first, but when he saw the man on the motorcycle, he immediately became delighted: "Bazi? Why is it you? How did you end up here too?"

This handsome boy was none other than Bazi, one of his three roommates. Bazi had a name that was completely at odds with his handsome appearance; his surname was Lin, and his full name was Lin Tubo.

This name had made Bazi feel regretful for over a decade. He felt that the name was so earthy and tacky. For this name, he had struggled with his father for many years. Once, he even took his household registration book and ID card to the relevant department to change his name, but his father found out and dragged him back home, giving him a severe beating.

Therefore, Bazi would always ask people to call him Abo, Xiaobo, or Bazi.

Actually, in Shuhang's view, Tubo was a decent name. Compared to names like Wang Erdan, Liu Goushan, and the like, it was much better. Don't think that names like Goudan are just for laughs; in Shuhang's hometown, there was someone named Wang Goudan.

Wang Goudan always believed that he wasn't his father's biological child and even thought that his father had a grudge against him, otherwise, how could he have given him such a name?

Anyway, Shuhang never expected to run into Bazi here.

"My grandfather lives in City J. This week, my whole family came to visit my grandfather. As for you, why are you here in City J?" As Bazi spoke, he suddenly noticed the long-legged girl next to Shuhang. He immediately punched his left hand with his right—now he understood, Shuhang must have brought a girl along!

"Tsk tsk, Shuhang, you're really something. You managed to get a girlfriend without making a fuss. You must treat us to a meal sometime," Bazi said with a mischievous grin.

In response to Bazi's teasing, Song Shuhang remained unperturbed: "Don't be ridiculous. If she were really my girlfriend, I'd be over the moon. This is my sister, Yuru. She's here in City J to find a place called Gu Deng Temple. She doesn't know the way, so she asked me to come along."

"Really?" Tubo stared at Shuhang seriously.

Shuhang shrugged, and Yuru smiled sweetly from the side.

"Alright, if you say she's your sister, then she's your sister," Tubo said, not being a gossip: "You mentioned looking for a temple, did you find it?"

Shuhang shook his head: "I searched online for a long time but couldn't find it. So I came to Luoxin Street to ask if anyone knows about it. The hotel staff didn't know about Gu Deng Temple, and they weren't sure if it had been renamed or demolished. I was planning to ask some of the local elders, hoping to get some information."

"Is that so... Why don't you come to my place? Ask my grandfather. He's a native of Luoxin Street in City J, and he might know about your Gu Deng Temple. Tsk, what a terrible name. With a name like that, it probably didn't get many visitors and must have closed down!" Bazi said, feeling regretful about names.

Song Shuhang was delighted but asked first: "Would it disturb your family?"

"Don't worry, my grandfather is very hospitable. As for my father, he wishes I could spend more time with my classmates instead of always fiddling with various things. I'm already in college, and he still makes me study all the time, which is driving me crazy," Bazi said with a grin.

Despite his complaints, their relationship was still quite good, except that his father liked to beat him. His father firmly believed in the saying: "A good son is beaten into shape." He often said, "On a rainy day, beating the child is a good way to pass the time." This made Tubo feel a bit frustrated.

Finally, Bazi asked: "Can Shuhang ride a motorcycle?"

"I can, but I don't have a license," Shuhang replied.

"No problem, in this remote area, who has the time to check motorcycle licenses?" Bazi laughed, turning his head and calling out: "A Yong, lend me your bike. You can ride with the others!"

"Sure thing," a tall and burly guy got off the bike and parked it in front of Song Shuhang.

"Thanks," Shuhang said with a smile.

A Yong waved his hand casually and joined the others.

In a moment, a group of people rode off on their motorcycles.

Song Shuhang got on the black motorcycle and tested the feel of it. With a light twist of the throttle, the bike surged forward.

"Wow, modified?" Shuhang stopped and laughed.

"These guys' bikes are all modified by me, with great power," Bazi said with a grin.

Shuhang had almost forgotten that Bazi was a tech-savvy person, skilled with his hands. Although he couldn't build a Gundam by hand, he often made all sorts of interesting mechanical items.

"Yuru, get on," Shuhang turned and called to Yuru.

Fortunately, her large suitcase was left at the hotel; otherwise, it would have been difficult to fit on this small motorcycle.

Yuru swung her long legs and sat behind Shuhang. Her soft chest accidentally bumped into Shuhang's back, making her legs feel weak.

In front, Bazi laughed heartily: "Follow me!"

With the roar of the motorcycles, the two bikes sped off into the distance...

***

Bazi's grandfather was a very fashionable old man who liked to tinker with mechanical gadgets. It seemed that Bazi's interest in mechanics was inherited from his grandfather.

Because he was so fashionable, he easily got along with young people.

"Gu Deng Temple? It's surprising that young people still know about this place," Bazi's grandfather laughed heartily.

From his words, Shuhang knew there was hope!

Shuhang immediately asked: "Grandpa, do you know where Gu Deng Temple is?"

"Grandpa" is a term used in the Jiangnan area and nearby districts to refer to grandfathers.

"Few people know about that place now. It's a story from sixty years ago. Most of the people who knew about it are already in their graves, so most of the younger generation hasn't heard of it," Bazi's grandfather led them to the courtyard entrance and pointed to the east: "Go straight east, and after about seven hundred meters, you'll see a forest. Inside, there's a large old grave, which is the original site of Gu Deng Temple."

"An old grave? Is Gu Deng Temple a grave?" Shuhang asked a silly question without thinking.

"Gu Deng Temple was demolished?" Yuru's eyes widened as she realized the truth.

"Yes, sixty years ago, it was leveled by a man to build his own grave," Bazi's grandfather said.

It was a matter from sixty years ago, a time when even television wasn't widespread, unlike today when the internet can make even the smallest news known to everyone.

So there was no information about Gu Deng Temple, and few young people in the area knew about it; only some of the older people remembered what happened.

"But, as far as I know, Gu Deng Temple was private property, right? Many years ago, someone had already bought it?" Yuru asked, puzzled.

"Young lady, you know quite a bit," Bazi's grandfather recalled: "In fact... the land of Gu Deng Temple originally belonged to Huang Dagun, the owner of the grave. Sixty years ago, he sold it to an outsider. However, before selling it, he had already planned to demolish Gu Deng Temple to build a grave. An outsider came along and wanted to buy Gu Deng Temple. Huang Dagun took the opportunity to sell it. A few years later, when he saw that the outsider never returned, he demolished Gu Deng Temple and built a large grave for himself."

"How shameless!" Song Shuhang said.

Bazi's grandfather sighed: "Huang Dagun was indeed shameless. He tricked many wealthy outsiders during those years. There was nothing he could do; the outsiders were all naive and had plenty of money."

Song Shuhang secretly glanced at Yuru— he guessed that the person who bought Gu Deng Temple might be one of Yuru's elders.

However, Yuru's face showed no anger. She sighed and said: "Then, the Huang family must be mostly dead by now, right?"

This statement was somewhat chilling.