The True Lord has arrived

Chapter 87 Black Hair and White Hair
Zhou Yan noticed the emptiness in Yin Zichuan's eyes. The aged Lian Niang was only a mortal and could not see Yin Zichuan in his current ghostly form. The expectation and joy on Yin Zichuan's face froze, turning into emptiness and numbness.

Lotus Maiden's voice was old and she asked in confusion:
"Young man, how do you know my name?"

Zhou Yan spoke, and Yin Zichuan placed his hand on his shoulder.

For the first time, Zhou Yan sensed the trembling in the hands of this talkative scholar, his companion who had shared life and death with him all along, and felt the fear and pain within them. Yin Zichuan's voice was hoarse: "My lord, I beg you..."

"Do not say!"

Zhou Yan said, "...I am a traveling merchant from Chang'an. I am traveling with my uncle, my father, and my niece. We stopped in Wugong Town to rest for a while, but we couldn't find a suitable place. I wonder if you have any empty houses?"

"We'll rent it for a while."

"Pay at the market price."

Lianniang looked everyone over, while Shen Cangming tried to cover up his severed arm.

Ao Xuantao used water to create mist, which transformed into a complete arm, enough to at least conceal the eyes of mortals. Lian Niang said in a gentle voice, "I live alone here. If you don't mind, please come in."

"Please don't bring up the money issue anymore."

Zhou Yan politely replied, "I'm sorry to bother you."

Lian Niang opened the courtyard gate, and Da Hei seemed to know how to read the atmosphere, so it carefully walked in. It was a small courtyard, but it was very cozy. Zhou Yan turned around and saw Lian Niang, with her white hair and cane, standing there, but she didn't turn around.

Zhou Yanfa noticed that the scholar was standing quietly outside the door.

The elderly Lianniang was separated from him only by a wooden fence, overgrown with ivy. The old woman leaned on her cane, gazing at the locust tree in the distance, and murmured softly, "It's true, I seem to smell the fragrance of locust blossoms again."

"Today is truly a good day, Zichuan."

Yin Zichuan stood there, the two of them so close that they were invisible to the naked eye and could not hear each other's breath. As Lian Niang turned around, she murmured, "If only you could come back to such a good life."

Yin Zichuan opened his mouth.

He was in so much pain that he couldn't speak.

Tears welled in her eyes. As the tears left her soul and fell into the air, they gradually disintegrated. Xiao Huiniang stood quietly to the side, reaching out to catch the tear. The tear dissipated, and what finally landed in Xiao Huiniang's palm looked like a cluster of completely burned incense ash.

The ghosts and spirits are devoid of blood and flesh.

Have you ever seen a ghost shed tears?

Zhou Yan didn't comfort Yin Zichuan. He just looked at the distraught scholar and waited quietly. Lian Niang wanted to cook some food for Zhou Yan and the others, but Zhou Yan smiled and said, "We are already very grateful that you have allowed us to stay here temporarily."

"Leave these small things to us."

Zhou Yan noticed that there wasn't much food or noodles left, so he planned to buy some more later. He saw Yin Zichuan approaching, but Yin Zichuan seemed distracted and unable to speak, so Zhou Yan took the initiative to ask:
"Grandma, do you live alone? Where are your children?"

Lianniang said, "I do have another son, who has already started his own family and career. He lives in Wugong Town and often brings me noodles and vegetables. He often says that he hopes I can move there and live with them."

Zhou Yan said, "If we move there, there will be someone to take care of us, and we can be with our families. Wouldn't that be more convenient?"

Lianniang said, "What you said is the same as what my child said, but I can't leave. I'm still waiting for my husband to come back. He went out to find medicinal herbs to cure my illness."

"It's been forty years since I left."

"Everyone says he's had an accident."

Zhou Yan said, "Grandma doesn't believe something happened to him?"

The white-haired Lianniang said, "Forty years have passed since I left. Even I can't hold out any hope anymore. Some people are gossiping, saying that he ran away because he felt that I, this consumptive, was a burden to him."

Yin Zichuan murmured, "I didn't..."

Lotus Maiden couldn't hear the whispers of the spirits; she simply looked out the door and murmured:

"If that's the case, then that would be great."

All I want is for you to live, even if you abandon me.

Yin Zichuan could barely control his expression.

Lianniang sat on that familiar wooden chair, basking in the sun and gazing into the distance. The sunlight fell on her face, revealing the same gentle appearance that Yin Zichuan remembered. She said softly, "But what if he really did meet with misfortune because of me?"

"The elderly often say that even if a person dies outside, their soul still wants to go home."

“I have to wait here, lest he come back and not recognize the way home.”

“I’m waiting for him to come and take me away.”

Zhou Yan looked at Yin Zichuan, who was in tears, and said:

"Grandma, you said you're not feeling well. I know a little about medicine, can I take a look?" Lian Niang showed her wrist. Her palms were not like what Yin Zichuan had described; although they had calluses from working, they were still soft.

The skin has turned yellowish-black, and the veins are protruding.

Zhou Yan thought to himself, "Zichuan!"

Yin Zichuan did not respond.

Zhou Yan used the decree of the Mountain Lord Jade Talisman to awaken the dazed Yin Zichuan. He staggered to Zhou Yan's side. On the surface, it was Zhou Yan who took his pulse, but in reality, it was Yin Zichuan who took it. His fingers trembled, and finally he felt Lian Niang's pulse.

In fact, even without Yin Zichuan saying anything, Zhou Yan could tell everything from Yin Zichuan's frozen expression and the faint pulse he felt.

Fate is coming soon.

When the oil is exhausted and the lamp is extinguished, one can only live on a sliver of hope, like a dying ember.

Lianniang said that after Yin Zichuan left, she was in poor health. However, a Taoist priest named Sun from Tongchuan, which was not far from here, passed by and treated her.

Master Sun said that Yin Zichuan had offered to help him gather herbs in exchange for his help in treating patients. He then gave Lian Niang a pill.

Lianniang smiled and said, "The Taoist priest said that this elixir might not be effective, but it was only a fifty-fifty chance, yet it has kept me going until now..."

Hui Niang went to keep Lian Niang company, her face expressionless. She gently tidied the old woman's hair, her gaze always following Yin Zichuan's position in the air.

Stare~~~
Zhou Yan said to go to the side room to rest, and pulled Yin Zichuan over there.

Yin Zichuan forced a smile and said, "My lord..."

"Haha, please forgive my rudeness, I'm just... just feeling a little unwell."

"She waited for me for forty years. I always thought that I would be the one waiting for her, but I never expected that it would be the other way around."

Yin Zichuan was at a loss for words. The thought of his childhood sweetheart, who had waited for him for forty years, until her black hair turned white and her face was covered with wrinkles, caused him excruciating pain.

Zhou Yan reached out and took the bronze Buddha lamp from the leather belt at his waist, then placed it on the kang (a heated brick bed) next to him.

A green lamp before the Buddha, its merits transformed into flames.

Once lit, it illuminates the hidden things of the netherworld, allowing mortals to see the mysterious objects. Yin Zichuan looked at the bronze Buddha lamp, and Zhou Yan said, "Light this lamp, and she will be able to see you again."

Lianniang was just a mortal, with a mortal body and no strong resentment or malevolence. No one knew what would happen to her after she died. Lighting the Buddhist lamp would at least allow Lianniang to see the person she was waiting for return in the last moments of her life.

Yin Zichuan murmured, "I..."

Zhou Yan said, "Don't you want to see her again?"

Yin Zichuan remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "I'm scared."

He said self-deprecatingly, "When I first read Song Zhiwen's line, 'The closer I get to my hometown, the more timid I become, and I dare not ask the people I meet,' I just thought, 'This can be considered a famous line.' But now, I can understand the pain that cuts to the bone."

What will she think when she sees me?

"She has grown old, but I have become this ghost."

Zhou Yan interrupted:
"Stop hesitating, here you go!"

Zhou Yan tossed the bronze Buddha lamp to Yin Zichuan, who hurriedly caught it. Zhou Yan said, "You know we'll be buying some things here on the east bank of the river and will be staying here a bit longer. Zichuan, it's up to you."

"Should we let her see you?"

"as well as……"

Zhou Yan looked at the helpless scholar: "Whether you want to travel with us or stay here with Lian Niang is your decision, but, scholar!"

He paused for a moment, then said, "Every wait must eventually come to an end."

Yin Zichuan remained silent, opened his mouth, and the scholar bowed deeply, not raising his head for a long time.

Zhou Yan said, "Get out, get out, don't get in my way."

Yin Zichuan maintained his sanity only because of his concern for Lian Niang, but after his death, he was transformed into a ghost and refined into a living soul, and far too long has passed.

Both were worried about each other, but in the end they were unable to meet.

Such an ending may be the norm in this world, but it doesn't suit my taste!
Zhou Yan sat cross-legged, thinking about the Hedong Beach meeting. This time, he needed to get a new knife.

He then went to inquire if there was any way to heal Uncle Shen's injuries. The wounds left on Shen Cangming by the Qingming Pavilion Master remained a thorn in Zhou Yan's heart.

Besides these two things, there's also the lotus wine that the older brother in my dream wanted to retrieve.

Zhou Yan slowly began to plan what he would do at the Hedongtan meeting.

He rummaged through the package again to find out what he could use to exchange for the money, and counted some of the money. The scholar had helped him a lot, and seeing this situation, Zhou Yan wanted to leave some money for the scholar, showing his chivalrous spirit. However, Zhou Yan quickly realized something.

We don't have enough money.

Almost all of their travel expenses came from the bounties they had previously received for hunting down mountain bandits. However, they were later wanted by the Tang government and could no longer take on such jobs, so they had been spending money without earning any.

In addition, there were two pot-bellied men, Zhou Yan and Shen Cangming.

As members of the Xuanguan lineage, known for their robust physiques, the two of them together could probably provide the equivalent of twenty strong men's meals in one sitting.

Zhou Yan occupied the bellies of fifteen strong men.

You need to be able to eat to fight!

The main reason is that the Hungry Ghost Jade Talisman can provide a large amount of vital energy by eating, allowing Zhou Yan's physical strength to steadily increase every day.

Zhou Yan calculated the money and realized that, let alone helping his friend, if they continued to live beyond their means, it would be difficult for him and Shen Cangming to even afford to eat.

Humans cannot survive on meat alone; salt and staple foods are also necessary.

Zhou Yan murmured, "I finally understand why those four who indulge in eating, drinking, gambling, whoring, and prostitution are considered spendthrifts. I need to get some money... Are there any bandits or robbers nearby?"

"Go ask the bandits for some money."

He thought of Li Zhiwei. The girl had mentioned saving some money for him, but they hadn't contacted each other since. Should he try to take the initiative to ask her about it? Zhou Yan was a little shy and reserved, but he still needed to solve the problem of finding a place to eat.

In addition, I also need to buy medicine for injuries, clothes, and daily necessities.

Just then, Zhou Yan felt ripples spreading out within his dream.

Li Zhiwei's divine will is attempting to enter the dream.

A girl's voice rang in Zhou Yan's ears:
"Zhou Yan, Zhou Yan, the Pei family has made a move!"

(End of this chapter)