A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

Rumors always arrive faster and are more readily accepted than official news.

The story of a princess marrying a commoner is a favorite piece of gossip. It's somewhat like the story of a sparrow turning into a phoenix, or Cinderella, which is more readily accepted.

After all, even the widowed woman at the edge of the village hoped that one day, a blind young master from an official family would accidentally pass by her door, have a night of passion with her, and then she would become pregnant, give birth to a big, healthy boy, and eventually, through her son, she would successfully enter the official family and become a noblewoman.

"Aunt Gui—"

Lu Xiaohua, who came in from the backyard, glanced at Zhang Zhengdao and then spoke to Sister-in-law Gui with her head down.

"Don't tarnish the Taoist priest's reputation."

Sister-in-law Gui poked her forehead in an annoyed tone.

"I'm standing up for you."

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Xiaohua, give me a bowl of wine and a plate of orchid beans."

After Zhang Zhengdao sat down, the people around him greeted him with clasped hands.

Zhang Zhengdao is now a god of wealth. Because of the construction of this Taoist temple, many families in Linbin Town have made a lot of money. Moreover, the project is backed by the government. Everyone who sees it can't help but say "May the True Man be blessed with ten thousand fortunes!"

Even the wealthy merchants and bigwigs who sat and drank in the wine shops were no exception.

"Is it really him? Is it real?"

Hu Lie, the butcher's son, leaned over and asked in a low voice.

"You'll get what's coming to you with that mouth of yours."

"No, no, I won't ask anymore." Hu Lie quickly smiled apologetically. "But I heard that the Third Prince is coming too, so I have to go to the neighboring county to collect pigs now. I went there a couple of days ago and heard a strange story."

As soon as the word "strange thing" was mentioned, everyone around turned to look at Hu Lie, their ears perked up.

Hu Lie was immediately delighted.

Stand up, put one foot on the stool, and roll up both sleeves; this makes it easier to perform.

"There was an old man who insisted that he was an immortal and had an elixir of immortality. He was a fraud. He was accompanied by a monk who was very skilled and claimed to be his protector. If it weren't for the monk, the old man would have been beaten to death long ago."

The crowd couldn't help but scoff.

It's not some kind of scandalous rumor, I have absolutely no interest in it, not even in a combination of a fortune teller and a monk.

These days, where can you not encounter swindlers who claim to be all-knowing and all-powerful, skilled in fortune telling and feng shui?

It's nowhere near as appealing as the scandalous rumors.

Even Widow Tian's petty squabbles and those few regular customers frequently became enduring topics of conversation at the distillery, with some even sharing their own experiences and comparing their own.

The atmosphere was lively, and the emotions were intense.

"Let me finish... let me finish."

Seeing that no one was interested, Hu Lie quickly slapped his thigh and said...

"This old man can conjure a snake out of thin air."

Everyone:? ? ?

Liu Gui, a major soy sauce seller in town, couldn't help but say, "Isn't it just magic? Real people can do that too, right?"

The last question was addressed to Zhang Zhengdao.

That's a question that makes you want to hit someone!

Zhang Zhengdao nodded. "That...that's true!"

"Look, look, these are such petty tricks that even real people wouldn't stoop to doing. What's so strange about someone traveling the world knowing a few magic tricks? I've even seen people disappear into thin air in Lingzhou City..."

That rich bastard is right!

Zhang Zhengdao was speechless.

Hu Lie roared, "You son of a bitch! I'm only saying one thing, and you're already interrupting me. I haven't even finished speaking, and you're already cutting me off! Do you believe I'll stab you in the back with my bare hands?!"

"How dare you! How dare you spout such nonsense in front of a real person..." Even wealthy people are not willing to suffer losses.

If it were Butcher Hu in person, I would give him face, but you are his son, so why should you always have the upper hand?

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Calm down a bit, and continue."

Upon hearing this, the two immediately fell silent, glared at each other, and then, going along with the situation, sat down sideways. As they sat down, they each slammed their stools heavily on the ground.

Momentum cannot be lost.

"Speak up, speak up!"

Since the real person enjoyed listening, everyone showed great interest and pretended to look at Hu Lie with eager eyes.

Hu Lie then took a sip of wine, completely forgetting his earlier displeasure, and said, "That old fellow ran into me, glanced at me twice, and said, 'Young Master...'"

"Puch!"

It was that big spender again, who covered his mouth as if he couldn't help but burst out laughing.

It must have been that "Young Master" that made him laugh.

The son of a pig butcher, who is also a small-time pig butcher, is called "Young Master"? He's probably just trying to make himself look good.

"You son of a bitch..." Hu Lie jumped up and cursed.

"Why are you getting angry with him? He's drunk too much soy sauce and his mind is clouded. He's saying all sorts of malicious things, but you get angry just because you hear it. None of us are angry."

Some people offered advice.

Hu Lie then nodded: "For the sake of the real person..."

The wealthy man snorted and stopped responding, continuing to drink by himself.

"What did you say to him? Let's talk about it again, let's talk about it again..."

Then someone offered advice, saying it was all out of consideration for the person in question.

Hu Lie continued, "That old man told me, 'Young master, I see a dark aura around your face; you're likely to suffer some bloodshed in the next couple of days.' I didn't believe him at the time, thinking he was just trying to extort money from me. I ignored him, planning to stay for a couple of days and then come back to settle the score. Who knew…"

He stopped abruptly at this point.

Everyone was listening intently, and the interruption at that crucial moment naturally displeased them.

"You deserve to be scolded, so hurry up and speak!"

So Hu Lie said smugly, "Of course I didn't believe it, so I said, 'You old man, if you want to extort money, just say so. I'll give you a few copper coins to buy a steamed bun.' But the old man laughed and said, 'I don't want your money. Believe it or not.' Then he just left."

"and after?"

"Later? Didn't I come back later?" Hu Lie laughed heartily. "Nothing happened! There was no bloodshed at all. It was all that old man's extortion."

"Damn it, damn it, you deserve to be cursed to death!"

Disappointed, everyone couldn't help but grumble a few words.

Hu Lie laughed heartily, finished the wine in his bowl, then cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Zhang Zhengdao and said, "Master, I'll take my leave first; I still need to deliver some meat to the young lady of the Lu family."

This is an attempt to claim credit.

Zhang Zhengdao also cupped his hands in a perfunctory gesture. But a thought suddenly occurred to him.

Amidst the disdainful stares of the crowd, Hu Lie walked towards the door. However, being somewhat drunk, after taking a step over the threshold, his back foot didn't follow, and he crashed headfirst into the door frame. He then rolled on the ground, his forehead hitting the bluestone slab outside, causing him to bleed profusely.

"Ouch! There's bleeding!"

Sister-in-law Gui called for help.

"Everyone come out here, let a grown man lend a hand."

Before he could finish speaking, Hu Lie got up on his own, covered his forehead, and muttered to himself.

"This intrusion is truly... a bloody disaster!"

After speaking, he turned around and gave everyone an awkward smile, then stumbled home.

The crowd, who had been gloating, were suddenly startled by Hu Lie's final complaint. They exclaimed in surprise, "It really is true! That old man's prediction was incredibly accurate. He might be a true immortal. If not, he's at least a half-immortal..."

They all talked at once, completely ignoring Zhang Zhengdao, the real person.

Zhang Zhengdao: ...

This old man is contradicting himself!

But that's nothing, it's their skill to be able to predict accurately.

However, Hu Lie's fall was probably related to this old man.

The crowd argued endlessly, but Zhang Zhengdao didn't force his way in, nor did he boast about his abilities. It was just fortune-telling; many unsung heroes in the martial arts world, those familiar with some Taoist texts, could do a little bit. Even if they were accurate the first time, there was an element of chance involved.

When it came time to pay the bill, Sister-in-law Gui said with some concern, "Isn't that old man from the neighboring county going to steal your thunder?"

Zhang Zhengdao glanced at Lu Xiaohua behind the counter and saw her smile at him without the slightest worry.

So I wanted to tease her.

Aren't you worried that someone will steal my thunder?

Lu Xiaohua smiled and brushed a strand of hair from her forehead.

"The Daoist Master cultivates the Dao of the mortal world and attains the fruit of immortality. If you were to take over all the trivial matters and myriad aspects of life in this mortal realm, then the Dao would no longer be the Dao, and the fruit would no longer be the fruit. Why do you need to ask me, Daoist Master?"

This young lady!

Zhang Zhengdao couldn't help but smile and glanced at Sister-in-law Gui.

"See that? That's the difference. Let's go!"

He tossed down a handful of copper coins, being generous for once, and then left in a carefree manner.

Sister-in-law Gui exclaimed, "Oh ho! This Taoist priest gave us too much money today. Xiao Hua, put it on his tab, and we'll settle the bill next time he comes for drinks."

Xiao Hua readily agreed, and then the charcoal wrote on the wooden board: Zhang Zhenren - Yu Jiutongqian.

Luckily, Xiaohua could read; many people's bills were recorded on this wooden board.

Sister-in-law Gui can't recognize many characters, so I don't expect her to be a good boss.

When Zhang Zhengdao returned to the backyard, he suddenly remembered that he hadn't finished talking about his important business, so he hurriedly turned around and went to Sister Gui's wine shop.

As soon as I stepped out of the backyard gate, I saw the Imperial Advisor coming over.

"Where did the real person go?"

"I need to talk to Sister Gui at her wine shop. You sit and have some tea while I come back."

After finishing his sentence, Zhang Zhengdao left in a hurry.

Hu Yunying came out to greet the guests.

She was now considered Zhang Zhengdao's wife, so she brewed tea and sat down beside the Grand Preceptor to talk.

Zhang Zhengdao's return surprised Sister Gui, who was behind the counter.

Zhang Zhengdao said, "Wait a minute, let's talk in private. I have something good for you!"