Chapter 131: Daoist Lu, Your Two Wives Are Living Bodhisattvas Descended from Heaven!

The biting cold wind, like countless invisible knives, desperately wormed its way into the collar of Lu Yuan's coat.

He was completely oblivious.

The coachman had long since wrapped himself tightly in a cotton quilt in the rear compartment, snoring thunderously.

Yet Lu Yuan, eyes wide open, utterly sleepless, stared fixedly ahead at the snow-covered road faintly illuminated by starlight.

His mind was occupied solely by the coachman's few infuriating words.

The rules of the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony, Lu Yuan understood better than anyone.

Over the years, voting for the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony beyond the Great Wall had always been conducted by setting up polling stations in several major cities within each province.

For city folk, it was just a few steps out the door to cast a vote, join the excitement, perfectly straightforward.

But what about the villagers in the countryside?

And that was for the nearby ones.

Some journeys took three days and two nights.

For what?

Just to cast that one tiny jade bean?

If not for an immense debt of gratitude, who would go to such trouble!

Previously, the Taoist temples participating in the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony were basically all large temples.

The villagers in the countryside couldn't be bothered to vote and weren't the least bit concerned about this Celestial Master Grand Ceremony.

Why?

Because those temples participating in the ceremony were all large temples located around major cities.

No major temple would be situated in remote, mountainous forests.

So, the daily work of these large temples was all directed at the city folk.

The villagers in the rural market towns couldn't benefit from it.

Therefore, in previous Celestial Master Grand Ceremonies, the villagers from rural market towns wouldn't go to vote, and wouldn't even pay attention to this so-called ceremony.

But this time was different.

Out in the mountains and wilderness, Zhenlong Temple on Qixia Mountain was also participating in the selection.

Zhenlong Temple's roots were planted in these villages, planted in the hearts of these simple, honest farmers.

So they all went.

Hundreds and thousands of them went, carrying the most sincere gratitude in their hearts.

And the result?

Because they hadn't paid attention to the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony before and didn't understand the so-called "public opinion period" and such,

they were barred by a cold, rigid rule, making a wasted trip!

This matter was a huge problem.

The hearts of the people were the most precious things, yet also the most easily discouraged.

If this fervent enthusiasm was extinguished by cold, inflexible rules, who would be willing to come again next time?

The coachman said thousands had already gone.

And this was just the beginning!

Who knew how many more were on the way, having heard the news!

If this trip turned out to be a waste for them, how many would actually come when voting truly opened on the sixth day of the next month?

Moreover, this wasn't just about the jade beans.

The coachman had also said earlier that it wasn't easy for villagers to make a trip to the city.

In this bitter cold, with so many people going to the city together, they certainly couldn't hire many carriages; the vast majority had to walk.

Putting aside everything else, just consider that Qingniu Village was two hundred li from Fengtian City!

At this point, some might sneer inwardly, thinking it's just two hundred li, not even two hundred kilometers!

But the problem was, this was beyond the Great Wall.

And beyond the Great Wall in the dead of winter!

The roads here were mountain paths, not the good roads of modern times!

For these people to walk from Qingniu Village to Fengtian City would take at least two days and two nights!

They must have learned the news right when the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony started, or even before it officially began, and immediately set out from Qingniu Village!

Braving wind and snow all the way from Qingniu Village to Fengtian City, driven solely by fervent gratitude towards Zhenlong Temple.

And after arriving, being unable to vote, then slinking back dejectedly... wouldn't their hearts turn utterly cold?

And Lu Yuan now rushing to Fengtian City wasn't because going there would let these people vote.

To be honest, Lu Yuan didn't know how this matter would ultimately be resolved.

Whether the villagers could vote early in the end.

But at the very least, Lu Yuan needed to be present. At the very least, he needed to treat the villagers to a bowl of hot noodle soup.

Especially since, according to the coachman, everyone had already caused a commotion in Fengtian City.

If this matter escalated and the authorities labeled these people as troublemakers...

Forget about voting or not, they'd be driven away directly...

Then Lu Yuan would truly feel unbearably guilty!!

So, he had to hurry!!

To be honest, Lu Yuan hadn't expected so many people to suddenly go.

Never mind how many more might come later.

Just the current several thousand people were completely beyond Lu Yuan's expectations.

Had Lu Yuan really helped so many people in this past year and a half?

Definitely not.

Even if Lu Yuan didn't eat or drink and solved problems for one household every day,

and that household called all their distant relatives to go to Fengtian City together to vote for Lu Yuan.

Three hundred sixty-five days times ten people, that might be possible.

But Lu Yuan certainly hadn't taken on that many jobs.

However...

Zhenlong Temple wasn't just Lu Yuan taking on jobs; there were many others too.

Moreover, villagers were much more united than city folk.

City folk, at most, the people in one alley or one courtyard would band together to do something.

But for villages in the countryside, at the village chief's call, they'd come swarming in!

Take Qingniu Village, for example.

Qingniu Village could be called Zhenlong Temple's "long-term strategic partner."

Located at the exit of the Taiyin Mountains, the village had frequent troubles over the past year.

But even with frequent troubles, Zhenlong Temple had helped at most a dozen or so households this year.

Yet Qingniu Village had over a hundred households.

Did those households not directly helped by Zhenlong Temple feel no gratitude?

Impossible.

Calculating it this way explained why so many people came...

Honestly, even though it now seemed logical upon calculation, when Lu Yuan truly heard that so many people braved wind and snow just to cast one jade bean for Zhenlong Temple,

his heart was deeply moved.

This was the most sincere support from the villagers.

He absolutely must not betray the people's genuine, heartfelt sincerity!

....

......

When the sky faded from ink-black to deep blue, then gradually turned to the blue-green of a crab shell, Lu Yuan had already been jolting along in the carriage through wind and snow for an entire night.

The coachman in the rear compartment slept like the dead, his snores like a broken bellows, each louder than the last.

Lu Yuan hadn't woken him all night.

The old man had said earlier that he first made a round trip to Fengtian City, then came to Zhenlong Temple.

Meaning he'd been driving for several days; once he fell asleep, it was naturally hard to wake, and Lu Yuan couldn't bear to disturb him, so he drove the carriage himself all the way.

The man was exhausted, and the horse couldn't run anymore either.

The drab, gray old horse snorted increasingly shorter puffs of white air from its nostrils, its hooves beginning to stumble on the frozen, snow-covered road.

Lu Yuan couldn't bear to urge it further. He put away the whip, letting it take mincing, sluggish steps forward.

The wind before dawn was the most cutting.

Lu Yuan tugged his cotton coat collar higher, but the wind still felt like countless ice needles, seeping through every gap.

He wondered how the villagers had endured this night...

The plains beyond the Great Wall after snow were as desolate as an endless white desert.

The elm trees lining the official road were bare, their branches bent under the weight of icicles.

Occasionally, one or two early-rising crows perched on them, necks tucked in, emitting short, hoarse caws.

On the horizon, the outline of Fengtian City was still just a blurry blue-gray silhouette, like a giant beast lying dormant deep within the snowy plains.

Almost there.

Lu Yuan took a deep breath of the knife-like cold air, forcing himself to perk up.

Then, he rubbed his eyes.

He rubbed them again.

He thought it was a hallucination from staying up all night.

But that patch of white didn't disappear.

In the shadow of that blue-gray city wall, on the originally empty, barren snowy plain outside the city—

A vast field of mushrooms had sprouted.

No.

Not mushrooms.

Tents.

Lu Yuan sharply reined in the horse.

The old horse, startled, snorted and stopped.

In the rear compartment, the coachman jolted from the inertia, his snoring interrupted as he mumbled something sleepily, turned over, and fell back asleep.

Lu Yuan ignored him.

He stared straight into the distance, his pupils gradually dilating in the morning light.

Those were tents.

Hundreds upon hundreds of tents.

They were arranged neatly in the snow, as if measured with a ruler by an invisible giant hand, perfectly aligned in rows and columns.

The tent canvases were a thick, grayish-white, almost blending with the snowy plain.

Smoke.

Countless thin, bluish-white columns of smoke were rising from the gaps between the tents.

In the windless dawn, they solidified into straight lines stretching towards the gray, overcast sky.

Someone was lighting fires.

Someone was cooking.

Someone... had spent the night here.

Lu Yuan drove the carriage, slowly approaching.

Closer now, he could see the tents clearly.

They weren't the crooked, makeshift shelters travelers might put up temporarily.

Nor were they the crude, heavy canvas tents of military camps.

These tents were brand new, their canvases thick and tightly woven, the stitching fine—clearly quality goods hastily produced by proper workshops.

Each tent's four corners were firmly anchored into the frozen ground with wooden stakes, the wind ropes pulled taut.

Even last night's howling north wind hadn't budged them an inch.

The tent tops were weighted with reed mats for snow protection, the entrances hung with thick cotton curtains, the corners of the curtains weighed down with half-bricks to prevent the wind from lifting them.

The pathways between tents were swept clean, no snow in sight, only damp water marks.

At the edge of the tent area, large vats were neatly lined up, covered with thick straw mats.

These were water vats, the kind you'd have when settling in to live.

This...

What was going on?

Lu Yuan dismounted from the carriage, his feet crunching softly on the snow.

He walked along the pathways between the tents, his pace slowing, his steps lightening, as if afraid to disturb this sudden dreamscape on the snowy plain.

At that moment, the cotton curtain of one tent suddenly lifted.

An old man bundled in a worn cotton coat poked his head out, holding an enamel mug, about to toss out wash water.

The old man emerged, bumping right into Lu Yuan. He froze for a moment, then his face lit up with delight as he grinned, revealing teeth yellowed by pipe tobacco.

"Aiyo, Daoist Master Lu!"

"When did you get here?!"

Lu Yuan recognized him.

This was Chen Fushun, the village chief of Qingniu Village!

Lu Yuan looked bewilderedly at Chen Fushun, then raised his head to gaze at the endless sea of tents, utterly confused. He asked,

"Village Chief, this... who arranged for you all to be here?"

Chen Fushun was taken aback, then waved a hand, the laugh lines on his face deepening.

"You don't know?"

"Of course, it's thanks to the Madam's kindness!"

Madam?

Lu Yuan couldn't help but be puzzled.

Then Chen Fushun grinned and said,

"Chairwoman Zhao! Your wife!"

He gestured with his chin towards the depths of the tent area, his tone full of emotion and pride.

"The day before yesterday, a big crowd of us were blocking the city hall entrance, arguing with those clerks, when Chairwoman Zhao arrived."

"Chairwoman Zhao said, the voting rules are rigid, but people are flexible. Can't let everyone make a wasted trip."

"She said, if we can't vote now, we should stay here first, eat well, drink well, rest up, and when the voting day comes, she'll personally take us to vote!"

Chen Fushun patted the thick canvas beside him, his eyes shining.

"All set up by people Chairwoman Zhao sent!"

"We came with nothing, but inside these tents, bedding, hot water, charcoal braziers—everything's provided!"

"Yesterday evening, they even handed out two brand new cotton quilts to each tent!"

He pointed towards the row of tents emitting cooking smoke in the distance.

"That's the kitchen area. Last night we had pork stew with vermicelli, a big bowl each, as much as you want!"

"This morning, Chairwoman Zhao even sent people to ask, saying they'd prepare copper pot hotpot for lunch, asking if anyone had dietary restrictions!"

Chen Fushun spoke animatedly, completely unaware that Lu Yuan had fallen silent for a long time.

He rubbed his hands together, sighing with feeling.

"Daoist Master Lu, you truly are blessed!"

"Chairwoman Zhao, not only is she wealthy and beautiful, her heart is kind, and she handles things thoroughly. Our hearts... they're so warm!"

Lu Yuan didn't speak.

He stood in the central pathway of the tent area, looking at the hundreds upon hundreds of neatly arranged tents before him,

watching the cooking smoke rise lazily, watching the early risers busily moving between tents, some scrubbing vats, others lighting fires.

A few sharp-eyed villagers recognized him, poking their heads out of tents one after another, greeting him warmly.

"Daoist Master Lu! You're here!"

"Daoist Master Lu, that pork stew with vermicelli last night was really delicious!"

"Daoist Master Lu, when can we vote? We can't wait!"

The morning light finally broke through the horizon.

The first rays of sunlight slanted across the snowy plain, illuminating this vast expanse of gray-white tents.

The frost condensed on the canvas began to melt, turning into countless tiny droplets of water,

glittering with fragmented light under the sun, like a whole expanse of silent, wordless gratitude.

Lu Yuan took a deep breath and asked Chen Fushun one final question.

"By the way, when you were blocking the city hall earlier, you didn't suffer any losses, did you?"

The authorities here were much better than during the Qing demon times, but they could still be quite ruthless towards these country folk.

Often swinging big clubs to beat or shove people.

Lu Yuan was afraid the authorities had used force against these villagers.

Chen Fushun was momentarily stunned, then immediately laughed and shook his head repeatedly.

"No, no."

"Speaking of that, we have to thank your wife again~"

Huh?

Lu Yuan blinked in confusion, looking at Chen Fushun, not understanding what he meant.

Chen Fushun grinned and said,

"At first, they didn't give us a good look, even called the Fengtian Police Department to chase us away with rubber batons."

"Later, your wife Song Meiqin arrived with the Fengtian Security Regiment, and that's when nothing happened; she led us out."

For a moment, a surge of emotion welled up in Lu Yuan's heart.

The emotion was a bit complex, a bit hard to describe.

But... if it had to be condensed into one sentence...

It was...

He missed his wives a little.

Missed his two beautiful aunties...

Finally, Lu Yuan nodded and quickly said to Chen Fushun,

"Alright, Village Chief, you go wash up. I'm heading back now."

Chen Fushun nodded repeatedly, then casually asked with a smile,

"Daoist Master Lu, you just came from outside... from a Nurturing Malevolence Site?"

Hearing this, Lu Yuan couldn't help but be startled.

Hey.

Even Chen Fushun knew he'd been to a Nurturing Malevolence Site?

But upon second thought, it made sense. This was already the fourth day since the Celestial Master Grand Ceremony began.

The pamphlets and such he'd asked Aunt Qiao'er to prepare had probably been distributed long ago, so naturally, the common people knew.

Lu Yuan smiled and nodded.

"Yes, just got back, exhausted. Now I'm going home to see my wives~"

"I'll catch up with you later~"

With that, Lu Yuan turned to leave.

However, Chen Fushun quickly called out.

"Daoist Master Lu, Daoist Master Lu~"

Huh?

Lu Yuan turned back to look at Chen Fushun.

Right now, Lu Yuan really wanted to go find his two beautiful aunties immediately; he didn't want to delay here for a moment.

Chen Fushun grabbed Lu Yuan's arm with one hand, turned sideways, and pointed urgently at a tent not far away in the center.

"The two Madams stayed here last night, that big tent right in the middle!"