The Fourth Lady novel Chapter 62

When they arrived at Ganyun Temple it was already passed noon. The one that came out to welcome them was naturally Ganyun Temple's head monk, abbot Lingyang. Because the old madam was still listening to scriptures in the buddhist hall, they didn't disturb her for the moment.

Abbot Lingyang arranged for the younger monk to take them to the guest rooms of Ganyun Temple. Because the Su manor often came to burn incense and pray, Ganyun Temple already had their rooms prepared.

Qingyan's guest room was near a remote yard. It's said to be desolated, completely lacking any human presence. The former Su Qingyan, always never liked coming here, because there's simply no one that was willing to like that kind of small yard.

But this, to the Su Qingyan now, was an unconcerning matter. After the guest rooms were set, Qingyan directly let the silver python wrap around the pillar outside her door. If one wasn't paying attention, they simply wouldn't notice there was a python coiled around the pillar.

"Miss, you're not just going to live in this lousy place, right? Even though their guest rooms are clearly much nicer." Qingdai looked at the bed that was getting cleaned and couldn't help but to complain.

"No matter, we're not staying here for very long anyways." Qingyan sat down on a chair and looked to Qingdai smiling. "Who knows, maybe something happened here in the past?"

"I heard that in the past Ganyun Temple used to be a graveyard site. And it was for the purpose of preventing evil spirits from spreading that this buddhist temple was built, in order to hold down these vengeful spirits." Chishao looked to Qingyan and said in a serious tone.

But she couldn't see any hint of worry on Qingyan's face, but then again, this young miss of theirs was already an Asura from hell. Why would she fear those vengeful spirits and ghosts.

"If I were to say that I came from hell, what would you do?" Qingyan said, even meaningfully stretching out her hand. Under the dusky candle light, the Qingyan now, really looked a bit like a malicious spirit from hell.

"Miss, why bother scaring us like that, I never believed in those supernatural things in the first place." Qingdai looked to Qingyan's playful manner and reluctantly said, "My hands have already been dyed with blood; I'm simply not afraid of those vengeful spirits coming after me."

"That's right." Qingyan looked to them nodding.

They were all malicious spirits from hell, how could they be afraid of those vengeful spirits coming after their life?

"Miss, this is the food the young monk sent over. The young monk said that they don't eat after noon at the temple. He was afraid that we didn't eat anything on the way, so he sent these dishes over." Chishao said as she placed the dishes onto the table.

"Okay." Qingyan said as she tapped the table with rhythm.

Qingdai didn't know what Qingyan wanted to do, but not long after, she unexpectedly saw snakes, bugs, mouses, and ants appear in the room. There was also a large animal that she didn't know the name of.

Qingyan glanced at these animals and slowly said, "I heard that this temple used to be a graveyard, is that true?"

That animal listened to Qingyan's words and reached its paw out towards her, but Qingyan didn't have the slightest intention of dodging. It saw the smile on Qingyan's face and as if becoming sentient, it stopped its paw.

"You are master?" After shaking its body, it returned to its usual look. It was precisely a rare white tiger.

"Thank you for still remembering me Xiaobai*." Qingyan looked to the white tiger and sighed, "Although I no longer looked liked how I used to, you still were able to recognize me."

(*TN: 'Little White', Qingyan tends to name her pets by their features or by literally what they are.)

The white tiger looked to Qingyan and walked up next to her, rubbing against her arm, "Master is master, naturally I would recognize you."

Qingyan stroked the white tiger's fur, "But I never thought that you would appear here, why are you here at Ganyun Temple?"

"That Yunhen Priest saved me and raised me here at Ganyun Temple this whole time. Yet, I never thought that I would be able to meet master here." The white tiger said as it rubbed against Qingyan's arm, that appearance was like that of a gentle little beast.

"Yunhen Preist?" Qingyan mumbled the name to herself a couple of times. Seems like even if she came back as Su Qingyan, she still needed to meet with her former shifu* once.

(*TN: Shifu means master in teaching sense; because 'master' is used to much in different context to avoid confusion I've left this as is. It's because too many words end up translating as master, all in different meanings of the words. Although, when her animal servants call her 'master' it's more along the lines of 'owner'.)

But at that time, she'd never thought that Yunhen Priest was actually from Donghe. She only knew that Yunhen Priest was an immortal being*, and that she was fortunate enough to become his disciple. From him, she learned the language of all beasts, and afterwards she established the Thousand Beast Pavilion.

(*TN: In daoism, daoist priest try to achieve immortality through enlightenment and cultivation.)

But even until her death, she never saw her shifu again.

"Is Yunhen Priest still here at the temple?" Qingyan looked to the white tiger and asked with a smile, "After all, he was once my shifu."

"Yunhen Priest said, if fated, then naturally you can meet him again." The white tiger looked to Qingyan and patted her hand, "Master, from now on I'll be by master's side, I'll even be master's mount."

"Silly Xiaobai, when have I ever regarded you as a mount." Qingyan said as she patted the white tiger on the head. "But with you by my side, my days here in Ganyun Temple will unlikely be too boring."

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When the young monk prepared to go feed the white tiger, he discovered that it was already gone from its cage. He could only hastily report to abbot Lingyang. Abbot Lingyang knew that his shibo* had been raising a white tiger in a cage this whole time. Seems like now that the white tiger is out, the fated person that his shibo spoke of must have already appeared.

(*TN: His shifu's 'older brother' or senior in terms that both his shifu and his shibo were under the tutelage of the same shifu.)

"Abbot, what should we do now? That big of a tiger appearing at the temple would cause chaos." The young monk looked to the abbot with a worried look.

Lingyang looked to the young monk and patted him on the head, "Don't worry, since the white tiger is out, that means the fated person shibo was waiting for has already appeared. And once that fated person has appeared, then surely that fated person won't let the white tiger come out and harm anyone."

The young monk listened to Lingyang's words, unable to comprehend the reasoning, but he was still very worried that the appearance of the white tiger would cause trouble. Not understanding abbot Lingyang's words, the young monk could only search for where the white tiger was on his own.

Lingyang watched the retreating figure of the young monk in the distance. After pressing a mechanism, he was met with a cool and refreshing breeze. He saw sitting not far in the distance, a white haired elderly daoist priest wearing a gray daoist robe. "Shibo, the fated person you wanted to wait for has already appeared."

The immortal dressed in a gray daoist robe opened his eyes and glanced to Lingyang, replying with a smile, "Since they've come, we should welcome them."

Lingyang watched his shibo silently retreat to the side. And after observing for a brief period of time, confirming that there was no other matters, he disappeared back to where he appeared earlier.

Qingyan rode atop the white tiger, playing the jade flute Murong Jingxuan had gifted her. Under the guidance of the white tiger, passing through the thick forest at the back of the mountain, she finally arrive at the place where Yunhen Priest was.

Yunhen Priest was still the same as in her memories, but all that white hair still flashed before Qingyan's eyes. When did Yunhen Priest's delicate black hair turned white?

Was it 5 years ago or even longer ago?

Just when Qingyan was lost in thought, she heard that voice echo through, "Yan'er, since you're here, why not come greet your teacher?"