Chapter 553: The Grandson of an Old Friend

Wang Lin shook his head; he naturally wasn't a person from this town, but it wouldn't do to reveal his identity to Le Zhuang. His family had come here to take refuge, and they couldn't let outsiders know, so he changed the subject:

"Young man, who are you, and why did you come running here at dawn to sweep?"

He had some knowledge of Daozhang Xuanqing's situation, and yesterday when he rushed to this Daoist temple, he had mentioned a few things, making it clear that since Daozhang Xuanqing settled in Hu Tou Shan, he had never come here once, and he had no relatives here.

It was because Daozhang Xuanqing had been a wandering orphan since childhood; his master happened upon him, saw his talent for cultivation, and thus took him as a disciple, keeping him close and teaching him personally.

Many years ago.

Daozhang Xuanqing's master had already passed away!

He was very curious; this boy before him seemed to have no relation to Daozhang Xuanqing, so why would he come running to the temple at dawn to clean?

Could it be someone who had previously received favors from this temple?

"Hello, elder, I am Le Zhuang, a commoner living near Kumu Guan..."

Le Zhuang instinctively explained his identity, but before he could finish speaking, he heard a questioning voice; an old Daoist walked out from the main hall and said:

"Young man, your surname is Le; do you know how Le Wenmao is related to you?"

"Le Wenmao?"

Le Zhuang thought for a moment, but couldn't recall knowing anyone named Le Wenmao among his acquaintances, and said, "Master, I don't know the Le Wenmao you're talking about!"

"You don't know him?"

Daozhang Xuanqing furrowed his brows slightly, looking at Le Zhuang's appearance, which seemed somewhat familiar, bearing the shadow of an old acquaintance, and said:

"Then do you know an old person named Zuo Wenjun?"

"'Zuo Wenjun?'"

Before Le Zhuang could speak, Wang Ping'an immediately widened his eyes; he noticed that when his master shouted that name, his master's face showed a complex emotion, and the name 'Zuo Wenjun' was clearly a woman's name at a glance.

It is very likely that she is another main character of this peach tree in the temple courtyard!

She is the person his master loved but could not obtain!

"Zuo Wenjun?"

Le Zhuang stared, finding the name very familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere, or even seen it; a flash of insight crossed his mind and then vanished, and he instinctively replied:

"Master, the person you're talking about is my grandmother; my grandmother is called Zuo Wenjun. Could it be that you know my grandmother?"

"So you are Wenjun's grandson!"

Daozhang Xuanqing's gaze toward Le Zhuang softened considerably, but upon noticing Le Zhuang's obvious limp, he frowned slightly and said:

"What happened to your leg?"

Le Zhuang seemed to recall something; a flash of resentment crossed his eyes, and he self-mockingly said, "Master, my leg has been like this since birth!"

"Congenital?"

Daozhang Xuanqing muttered to himself, used his Dharma Eye to take a look, and his face instantly showed a flash of anger; he could see at a glance that Le Zhuang's limp was acquired later, obviously from a vicious dog bite, and due to improper treatment it had become this way; but since Le Zhuang said so, he didn't press further and changed his tone:

"Are your grandparents at home?"

"Master, my grandmother passed away long ago; I've never even seen her. Do you know my grandmother? Could you tell me what kind of person she was? Every time I ask my grandfather, he refuses to speak. Also, Master, why did your eyes just flash?" Le Zhuang went on and on, as if he had endless things to say, but halfway through he feared his words would annoy Daozhang Xuanqing and make him unwilling to speak about his grandmother, so he swallowed what was on his tongue and changed his tone:

"My grandfather is at home!"

Upon hearing the news that Zuo Wenjun had passed away, Daozhang Xuanqing's face was filled with sorrow he could barely conceal; but hearing that Le Zhuang's grandfather was at home, his sorrow was completely replaced by anger, and he said:

"Call Le Wenmao over—that's your grandfather—and when he comes, I'll tell you about your grandmother!"

By now he had confirmed that this scoundrel Le Wenmao was very likely the grandfather of the boy before him.

"Master, my grandfather probably can't come to see you..."

Before Le Zhuang could finish, Daozhang Xuanqing angrily interrupted: "What, does he have no face to come see me?"

Le Zhuang gave Daozhang Xuanqing a strange look, not understanding why mentioning his grandfather made the Daozang so angry, or why he would say his grandfather had no face to see him, and replied:

"Master, you don't know; these past few years my grandfather has lain in bed, unable to get up, so naturally he can't come to see you!"

"How could that be?"

Daozhang Xuanqing instinctively retorted: "That old coot Le Wenmao is in fine shape; even if he were just a few decades old, or even a hundred, he could be as light as a swallow—how could he possibly be unable to get out of bed?"

"Master..."

Le Zhuang's face was full of anger as he glared at Daozhang Xuanqing; he didn't know what his grandfather had done to offend this old Daoist, but he would not allow his beloved, respected grandfather to be insulted like this, and before he could finish speaking, Daozhang Xuanqing cut him off:

You have arrived at this novel.

"But perhaps this old coot got into a competitive fight with someone and was injured?"

Le Zhuang opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but for some reason, when the words reached his lips he couldn't utter them.

Seeing Le Zhuang's expression, it was clear he had something hard to say, so Daozhang Xuanqing stopped pressing and said: "Stop sweeping; take me to see your grandfather, and let's see how this old coot ended up bedridden!"

Le Zhuang very much wanted to refuse, given Daozhang Xuanqing's disrespectful attitude toward his grandfather, but when the words of refusal reached his lips and he saw Daozhang Xuanqing's grim face, like confronting a flood or ferocious beast, he couldn't get them out; he instinctively complied, picking up his broom and preparing to bring Daozhang Xuanqing to see his grandfather.

Wang Lin shouted: "Young man, leave the broom; take the Daoist to see your grandfather, and we'll clean the temple. When the food is ready, remember to come eat together with the Daoist!"

Le Zhuang instinctively handed the broom in his hand to Wang Lin, took Daozhang Xuanqing and prepared to leave the temple, but had taken only a few steps when a figure followed behind; looking closely, it was the child he had first seen upon entering the temple, who reminded him:

"Elder, you must watch your grandson well; don't let him run around, for there are child traffickers in our town!"

Zhang Guihua was about to pick up Wang Ping'an, but before she could act, she saw Zhang Guilian 'vigorous'ly stride past her.

"Ping'an, do you want to go outside to have a look?"

Daozhang Xuanqing's eyes lit up at once; he stopped Zhang Guihua and laughed: "Sister Zhang, just let Ping'an go out with me; I'll look after him, and he'll be fine!"

(End of chapter)