I served as Li Bai's page.

"I won't tell you if you want to know." I turned my head away angrily.

Li Bai walked over and said, "Tell us, let us all hear whether this trip was worthwhile?"

I jumped out of bed, walked to the center of the room, and said, "Have you heard of the thirteen monks who saved the Tang Dynasty? Today I saw their staff techniques, but I didn't see the thirteen monks."

"If you see those thirteen monks with sticks, you're finished," Cen Xun said.

I glanced at him, then sat back down on the edge of the bed: "I'm not going to say anything more."

Li Bai said, "Shaolin martial arts are profound and extensive; they are not limited to just the thirteen staff techniques. Yuehua, you have only scratched the surface."

"I know that Master Hongyi was an extraordinary monk. He has been at Shaolin Temple for more than ten years, and he is still..." I suddenly realized that I had let something slip and quickly shut my mouth.

"What are you still doing?" Cen Xun pressed on.

I turned my face away and looked at the trees swaying in the wind outside the guest room.

Actually, I really wanted to tell them that Hongyi might become a grandmaster of Shaolin Temple in the future.

"If he doesn't want to talk, then so be it. Don't force him," Li Bai said.

And so, we stayed at Shaolin Temple for almost half a month. Master Tongling liked Li Bai very much and always hinted to him, intentionally or unintentionally, whether he would like to become a lay disciple of Shaolin.

Li Bai remained noncommittal, because his Daoist heart had already been entrusted to Sima Chengzhen, the twelfth patriarch of the Shangqing School of Daoism.

That day, Yuan Danqiu said to Li Bai, "We've seen all the cultural and natural landscapes of Mount Song. Let's go back to Ziyun Cave."

"Alright, let's go down the mountain immediately, find a tavern, and have a drink," Li Bai said, then instructed me, "Yuehua, pack your things and go down the mountain."

As Li Bai instructed, I packed my luggage, placed it on the bed, and followed Li Bai and the others to bid farewell to the spiritual master.

When we met Master Tongling in the Thousand Buddha Hall, Hongyi was right beside him. Li Bai and the others said goodbye to the master, and I called Hongyi aside and said, "Master Hongyi, you must persevere in your ideals. You will be a remarkable person in the future."

"Thank you for your encouragement, Yuehua. I will definitely persevere and create my own martial arts. Perhaps next time you come, I will already be writing a martial arts manual at the Songshan Zen Temple."

"It's settled then. I'll go to Shaolin again, and first I'll find you at Songshan Zen Temple," I said.

After bidding farewell to Master Tongling, we returned to our room, collected our luggage, and headed towards the gate of Shaolin Temple. Master Hongyi accompanied us all the way to the gate before returning to the temple.

Upon arriving at the foot of Shaolin Temple, Yang Shanren bid us farewell as he prepared to travel elsewhere. Li Bai, who had taken a deep liking to him, saw him off for quite a distance with great reluctance.

When only the four of us were left, Li Bai's craving for alcohol kicked in.

"Let's go find a tavern and have a drink. I'm going to drink two jars of that and make up for the losses of the past two weeks," Li Bai said.

We found a tavern in a small town at the foot of Mount Song. It was nearly noon, and the tavern was packed. The four of us found a table by the window and sat down. After waiting for quite a while, no one came to greet us. I stood up and approached the owner, who was serving food, and said:

"Bring a plate of peanuts and a jar of wine to our table by the window first."

"Young man, please take a plate and put some peanuts in that big basin on the counter. I'll bring you the wine right away. Please also get the bowls, chopsticks, and glasses yourself; I'm really too busy."

"Okay, boss, with business so good, why not hire one more person?"

"It's hard to find people these days. The young ones have gone to Shaolin to learn martial arts, and the older ones are not so agile," the shopkeeper said.

The shopkeeper brought us two jars of wine with both hands, saying, "I took an extra jar; take more if you need more."

"Bring us three more hot dishes and a soup, the best ones from the tavern," Yuan Danqiu said.

"Okay." The shopkeeper agreed and walked towards the kitchen. A little while later, he was seen busy serving dishes and clearing away bowls.

I took a wine jug and filled the cups for Li Bai, Yuan Danqiu, and Cen Xun. Before I could even put the wine jug down, their cups were already empty, so I had to refill them.

"Let's eat something first. Drinking on an empty stomach makes you get drunk more easily," I advised.

"What we're drinking today isn't wine, it's the finest nectar," Li Bai said, taking a sip. Seeing his blissful expression, one immediately felt it would be an injustice not to let him drink.

After a satisfying meal at the tavern, the four of us set off for Ziyun Cave. We didn't take the same route we came by; instead, we took a detour and climbed two more mountain peaks. We walked and stopped along the way, and it was half a month later when we finally arrived at Ziyun Cave.

Yuan Danqiu opened the cave door, and a refreshing coolness rushed in. Outside, the heat was oppressive, but inside the cave it was as cool as spring.

We went inside the cave, put down our luggage, and each of us found a chair to sit down, and then we didn't want to move anymore.

After returning to Ziyun Cave, Yuan Fanqiu spent his time with Li Bai and Cen Xun either practicing swordsmanship or meditating and discussing scriptures, while I had ample time to read and take notes diligently in the study.

I stayed in Ziyun Cave for two months. Summer passed and autumn came.

"Young Master, the weather's not hot anymore, shouldn't we head to Anlu?" I reminded Li Bai.

"No rush, isn't it good here? I'm free and can do whatever I want." Li Bai simply didn't want to go to Anlu.

"So, when will you fulfill your promise to Prefect Meng?"

"I want to wait until Master Hu returns so I can see him before I leave," Li Bai always avoided my question.

Yuan Danqiu walked in and said, "I was just about to tell you all. Make some preparations; we're going to Suizhou in a couple of days. My master has already returned to Xiancheng Mountain, and he sent word to invite me over."

"Is Xiancheng Mountain far from Anlu?" I asked.

"It's not far, we'll be there in a few hours, it won't delay your young master," Yuan Danqiu said.

I can finally relax.

Upon hearing that Yuan Danqiu's master had returned to Xiancheng Mountain, Li Bai became impatient and urged to leave.

Cen Xun teased Li Bai, "Missing your wife, huh?"

Li Bai glared at him twice.

Li Bai couldn't wait even a day longer. That afternoon, he urged me to pack my things, and pulled Yuan Danqiu and Cen Xun along, insisting on going down the mountain immediately.

Yuan Danqiu had no choice but to comply with his wishes. After tidying up briefly and closing the cave door, we headed down Ziyun Mountain.

It was already dark when we arrived at the Yinghe ferry.

Yuan Danqiu said, "Let's find an inn to stay in first, and then we'll look for a boat tomorrow." He led us to the inn where he often stayed.

"Master Yuan, would you like to stay at the inn? We're fully booked for today," the waiter said.

Just as we were in a dilemma, the store manager walked in from outside.

"Master Yuan, it's been a long time! Do you need a place to stay tonight?"

"Nice to meet you, innkeeper. We have no rooms available."

"Since the beginning of autumn, the number of tourists visiting Songshan has surged, and the inns at the ferry crossing are basically full. How about this, I'll ask the waiter to set up a makeshift bed next to the counter, and you can make do with the waiter's room for now," the innkeeper said.

"That's great, but I'm afraid I'll have to trouble the waiter," Li Bai said with a forced smile.