Lu Zheng was flattering.
The old beggar also knew Lu Zheng was flattering.
Lu Zheng, of course, knew that the old beggar knew he was flattering.
However…
Among cultivators, could it be called flattering? This was merely a junior’s respect for a senior!
Moreover, the old beggar had been flattered before, but never so comfortably.
No other reason. He had long passed the stage of being swayed by verbal flattery, and the things others offered as tribute held no value in his eyes.
In other words, not just anyone had the qualification to flatter him.
What caught his eye now was only others’ sincere hearts.
So that day, Lu Zheng’s kindness had allowed him to make progress, and he had casually resolved the young man’s minor trouble.
Today too, because of Lu Zheng, along with a fox woman brimming with merit, and paired with astonishingly delicious food, the old beggar felt at ease and allowed them to express their respect for the senior.
Another cup of huadiao went down, and the old beggar let out a long breath. “Why did you not give this old beggar such wine back then? If I had known you had such fine liquor, this old beggar would not have stayed away from Yizhou for two years!”
Lu Zheng filled the old beggar’s cup with the last bit of wine. “That evening, this junior had just moved into the county and had not yet had time to brew it.”
“What a pity! What a pity!”
The old beggar took another light sip, then picked up a piece of pig liver with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
“I never imagined that your pork offal could taste even better than beef. Truly exceptional. If not for your cultivation achievements, I would suggest you open a shop in the capital.”
Lu Zheng chuckled. “This junior does not lack money. Making food is just a hobby, shared among relatives and friends.”
“I can see that.” The old beggar nodded. That day, when he begged at Lu Zheng’s home, the young man’s everyday cooking had been lavish enough to use spices, so he knew Lu Zheng was not short of funds.
“You are not staying in Tonglin County as your squire, strolling the streets and listening to tunes every day. Why come here to endure wind and rain on the road?” the old beggar asked.
“This junior and my wife are preparing to go to the southern border for a friend’s wedding banquet.” Lu Zheng said.
“You have friends in the southern border?” The old beggar was somewhat surprised, thinking that just two years ago, you were still an ordinary person, no?
Then he looked at Liu Qingyan, wondering if it was due to this fox woman.
“It is my disciple in the martial arts. The story is a long one.” Lu Zheng said.
As they were eating, he recounted the matter of Hu Zhou as if chatting idly, from the chance encounter in the peach blossom grove to his background, and then to this wedding.
“So it is that tiger’s son.” The old beggar nodded in understanding.
“You know Brother Hu?”
“I have heard of him, never met.” The old beggar shook his head, then turned to Liu Qingyan. “So Miss Liu is a physician. Of course, I should have realised. With such dense merit golden light, you must be that Azure Healer Lady.”
“The people’s praise, Qingyan dares not accept!”
“You deserve it! You deserve it! Heavenly merit cannot be faked.” The old beggar laughed. “Continue practising medicine and diagnosing, never lose your original heart. With merit filling your body and refining your bloodline, your future achievements may surpass that tiger’s.”
“I borrow Senior’s auspicious words!” Liu Qingyan curtsied in thanks. But receiving such a grandmaster’s assertion, she was also very pleased.
Taking advantage of the good mood, Lu Zheng produced a small jar of Wuliangye.
Then he set out a plate of pig’s head meat, a plate of small yellow croaker, a plate of five-spice broad beans.
Everyone: “…”
The old beggar blinked too, never expecting Lu Zheng to have these drinking accompaniments.
Clearly an outer layman of Baiyun Temple, but look at these little dishes before him, and recall Lu Zheng’s earlier noodle-mixing motions. How increasingly like a chef?
Did you enter Baiyun Temple relying on this skill?
Liu Qingyan also lowered her head involuntarily, her shoulders shaking lightly as she held back laughter.
The old beggar had just finished the wine and eaten the last peanut, about to set down his chopsticks, when he noticed the table’s plates full again. His halfway-lowered chopsticks curved back and picked up a small yellow croaker.
Crispy and tender, a mortal delicacy!
The wine was fine, the dishes fine, the service attentive, and the person knew how to talk.
“Sigh! This old beggar was truly blind that day. How did I not see you were a promising cultivation seedling?”
The old beggar crunched and swallowed the fried-crispy fish bones. “Yet you were picked up by Baiyun Temple and started on qi refinement methods. Does that not leave this old beggar’s golden core method without an heir?
Of course, Baiyun Temple’s qi refinement inherits from the Three Pure Ones Supreme. In the end, innate cloud qi is purest and unmatched in power, though the further you go, the harder it becomes.
Of course, there are benefits. Entry is simple, effects quick, and it allows for human desires. You can still live harmoniously with this young lady.
Additionally, Baiyun Temple’s worldly practice brings some merit golden light aid. It depends on whether you can hold to your original heart.
Martial cultivation, practise it for fitness. After all, I see your martial path does not focus on the divine soul, and Baiyun Temple’s qi refinement only enhances the divine soul at very deep realms.”
The old beggar ate while casually advising Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan a few words.
Both felt they gained much.
Though Lu Zheng had the light of fortune aiding him, the old beggar’s pointers allowed faster cultivation in shortening cooldowns and using incense merit to assist, solidifying his foundation.
For Liu Qingyan, it was even more so. The old beggar’s guidance let her view her path from another angle. Not a sudden enlightenment, but clear and transparent.
One had to admit, having lived several hundred years, the old beggar truly had substance.
…
This meal, the three ate for nearly an hour, until the second jar of wine was finished and the table’s plates clean.
Full and sated, the old beggar patted his belly and belched. “Well fed. This old beggar does not know how long it has been since I ate like this.”
Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan then bowed solemnly. “Many thanks for Senior’s guidance!”
The old beggar waved his hand. “Just some experiences. You will realise them in time. I merely told you ahead.”
The old beggar could say it so, but Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan could not hear it so.
Thanking the old beggar once more, Lu Zheng patted the gourd again. On the table appeared ten two-jin small jars of wine, and five oil-paper packages.
Five jars with yellow cloth seals were huadiao, five with red cloth seals were Wuliangye.
The five oil-paper packages were five kinds of different cured meats.
“Senior, what do you think…”
The old beggar swept his hand over these items, and the ten jars of wine and five packages of cured meat vanished.
In the next moment, Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan felt their eyes blur. In a blink, the old beggar had disappeared.
At the same time, Lu Zheng felt something extra in his hand: a folded yellow paper talisman.
“No need to see me off. I am off. When this old beggar’s cravings strike, I will go to Tonglin County for wine.”
“The southern border is not very stable, after all. This is a Thousand-Li Divine Travel Talisman, for life-saving. Use it after fixing the direction. It can take the person beside you a thousand li in an instant.”
