Chapter 48

Wukong, Bajie, Sha Wengong, and the White Dragon are all here!

But where is Brother Nizi? And where is Puti?

Young Niang was suddenly alarmed and quickly got off the meditation bed, put on her shoes, and ran out.

The four puppies were also startled awake and ran out of the meditation room behind Young Niang. Outside the meditation room, the sun was slowly rising.

Puti was lying outside the meditation room, and Yang Shouwen, bare-chested, was on the roof, facing the rising sun, practicing breathing exercises.

This was the Golden Toad Guiding Technique that Yang Dafang had taught Yang Shouwen.

He occasionally made a "gu-gu" sound, his throat and cheeks puffing up, but his lips were tightly closed, the sound seeming to come from his belly. This was a unique aspect of the Golden Toad Guiding Technique, using sound to vibrate the internal organs and strengthen the blood and qi.

Young Niang had seen Yang Shouwen practice this technique when she was little, so she didn't find it strange.

She quietly and gently sat down on the porch, her two small hands cupping her chin, sitting there quietly watching.

The sunlight bathed Yang Shouwen, as if enveloping him in a golden glow.

In that sunlight, Young Niang seemed to see a faint mist. It was an illusion created by the boiling of Yang Shouwen's blood and qi. She sat there quietly, Puti lying beside her, and the four puppies crouching at her feet.

In the early morning, the wind blew, adding a sense of tranquility and peace to the secluded meditation temple.

When the red sun rose above the horizon, Yang Shouwen completed his nine cycles of qi, feeling refreshed.

He leaped down from the roof, saw Young Niang, and smiled slightly, saying, "Good morning, Young Niang!"

"Good morning, Brother Nizi!"

Young Niang blushed and softly said, "Brother Nizi, it's cool here, put your clothes on quickly."

Yang Shouwen didn't think much of it, agreed, and walked into another meditation room.

So Brother Nizi is staying in...

Young Niang felt a mix of disappointment and relief. Which young girl doesn't dream of love? Although Young Niang was only eleven, in this era, girls could marry at fourteen, so she wasn't that young.

"Brother Nizi, it's so quiet here."

By the time Yang Shouwen came out dressed, Young Niang had composed herself.

She looked at Yang Shouwen with a puzzled expression and asked, "It's already this late, why haven't the monks appeared?"

Yang Shouwen couldn't help but laugh bitterly and rubbed Young Niang's head.

In fact, the situation at the Little Maitreya Temple was completely unexpected.

Last night, he carried Young Niang and traveled a long distance to the Little Maitreya Temple, arriving just before midnight.

But when he got to the temple, he found it completely empty. The dust in the Great Hall indicated that it hadn't been cleaned for a long time. He walked around the temple but didn't find a single monk.

It seemed that after the murder, the monks, including Master Huiren, were afraid and left.

This wasn't surprising!

After all, one of the victims was their companion.

Moreover, the assassins hadn't been caught, and the two who escaped had instilled deep fear in them.

Monks are human too; in such a remote place, anyone would feel afraid...

Fortunately, although the monks had left, they left behind many tools.

Yang Shouwen found some bedding and spent the whole night in the temple.

Although he didn't sleep, he didn't feel tired. He found a broom and started sweeping the courtyard. Young Niang ran to the well, drew a bucket of water, and followed Yang Shouwen, sprinkling water as they walked.

The once desolate and dilapidated temple echoed with Young Niang's silver laughter.

Yang Shouwen couldn't help but smile. After cleaning the temple, they sat panting at the entrance of the Great Hall.

"Brother Nizi, have some cakes."

The kitchen utensils were still in the kitchen, and there was firewood in the woodshed.

Yang Shouwen couldn't cook, but for the clever Young Niang, it wasn't a difficult task.

She heated the giant Hu cakes they had brought the day before, and the two of them had a happy meal.

Afterward, Yang Shouwen walked into the Great Hall, lit the incense and candles, and looked around the empty hall. His gaze finally fell on the Arhat painting on the wall. Yang Shouwen stood quietly in the hall, and an image appeared in his mind. He was panicked, filled with fear, wandering alone in the hall, and finally sitting down by the wall.

Worshiping the Long Eyebrowed Arhat?

Why do I find that so hard to believe!

Yang Shouwen slowly walked over and stood by the wall.

Outside the Great Hall, the three Liáozi were watching. And I was alone, making it very difficult to escape.

At that moment, I was standing here.

Right, the reason I came to this remote and desolate temple...

Yang Shouwen had a sudden realization, as if he had figured something out.

I paid for several days of lodging here, not for the scenery, but to... wait for someone?

Yes, it must be to wait for someone!

But before I could wait for the person I was waiting for, my enemies had already caught up.

Wait a moment...

Yang Shouwen scratched his head. Theoretically, everything he had just imagined was correct. So why was he standing here to worship?

Yang Shouwen's gaze lingered on the painting, his eyes involuntarily narrowing.

"Brother Nizi, someone is looking for you."

As Yang Shouwen was lost in thought, he suddenly heard Young Niang shouting from outside the hall.

Yang Shouwen was stunned and stepped out of the hall, but he was immediately taken aback!

He saw Yang Shi and Yang Molì on the square in front of the hall, and two people kneeling before them. One was older and robust, the other younger, around fifteen or sixteen, ragged and bruised.

"Ge Jiayun?"

Yang Shouwen immediately recognized the young man as Ge Jiayun, who had robbed under the banner of Yang Rui in Changping County the day before.

And the burly man was clearly the one who had escaped with Ge Jiayun the day before.

Yang Shouwen suddenly remembered that he had asked Ma Shiliu to tell Ge Jiayun to come see him. But after the unpleasant events at home yesterday, he had forgotten about it and came to the mountain with Young Niang that night.

"Aunt, what's going on?"

Yang Shi was holding a large bundle at her feet.

Hearing Yang Shouwen's question, she said with lingering fear, "I was just about to tell you... These two people broke into our house at dawn. Fortunately, Molì was alert and caught them. They said you asked them to come. I and Lady didn't know what to do, so we had Molì bring them up the mountain to see you."

"It's Yang Molì."

Yang Molì corrected Yang Shi's mistake very seriously.

"Yang Molì, take the gag out of their mouths."

Yang Shouwen walked forward, saying as he went.

Without a word, Yang Molì stepped forward, pressed down on their shoulders, and removed the cloth from their mouths.

"Phew, phew, phew... Yang Dalang, what do you want?"

The cloth, who knows where it came from, made the burly man gag, while Ge Jiayun looked furious.

"You asked me to come, but you treat me like this?"

Yang Shouwen walked up and squatted in front of Ge Jiayun.

He extended his hand, flipped his wrist, and a dagger appeared in his palm.

"What are you going to do?"

Ge Jiayun's eyes showed fear as he struggled to stand up. But Yang Molì's hand on his shoulder was like a mountain, and no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't move.

Yang Shouwen raised his hand, and a cold light flashed.

Ge Jiayun quickly closed his eyes, but after a long while...

The ropes on his body were cut. Ge Jiayun, seeing no movement, opened his eyes and saw Yang Shouwen sitting cross-legged in front of him.

Young Niang obediently fetched a cushion from the Great Hall and placed it under Yang Shouwen.

Yang Shouwen sat there, cupping his chin, looking at Ge Jiayun with interest.

"You..."

Ge Jiayun was about to stand up when he heard Yang Molì say behind him, "Stay kneeling. Don't even think about standing up without Master's permission."

Her hand was like an iron clamp.

Ge Jiayun's face showed despair, but he still looked at Yang Shouwen, his head held high.

"I didn't ask you to come here uninvited at dawn.

Do you know what it means to come with a rod to beg for forgiveness? I doubt you do. And I know for sure that you don't realize the trouble you've caused. You tried to sneak into my house like those assassins tried to sneak into the county office, but do you realize that not only will this not solve your problems, it might bring disaster to your father, your brother, and the entire Ge family?"

Ge Jiayun's face turned especially ugly...