If we say that in the previous encounters with Senior Qin, he had a deep sense of teasing others, now he looks so serious. Maybe it was because of his full beard that except for the part above the nose, it was difficult for me to detect his emotions. Judging from the look in his eyes at this moment, although he couldn't be said to be angry, he wasn't that happy either.
Maybe it was because I disrupted his rhythm with my initial grab for the spot, and I felt a little unhappy at the moment. So I reached out and took the red piece of paper from his hand, but instead of turning around and leaving, I opened the piece of paper in front of Senior Qin.
The address written on it only contained the road name and house number, which meant that Master had been renting a house during this period. So I asked Senior Qin, this place shouldn't be far from your location, right? He didn't answer, but silently put the long sword back into its scabbard. I continued to ask, since you know the address of my master, it means that you have been dealing with him for a period of time. Before I go to find him, can you tell me whether he has encountered any difficulties these days, so that You haven't contacted me in two years?
This was actually the biggest doubt in my mind before coming to Hubei. Master is a man who looks strong but is very sensitive on the inside. Perhaps it is due to the current situation, but I have never failed in my craft despite all the ups and downs in my life. These years have not been very peaceful, and my master only has a lot of skills, but he always gives me the feeling that there is no successor to his skill. Even in the few times we met before, he talked about his craft of "making talismans", but he had an ambiguous attitude. He said that a strong person should make a difference in the world, but I think the master is a strong person, and he is the same as the one in front of me. Like senior Qin, he can be considered an expert, but my master has spent his whole life, at least as far as I know, in these years, either avoiding wars or avoiding those who act according to the prevailing circumstances. He is very depressed, and I know that.
So after he and I went to the shelter that time, we encountered some setbacks, and Master couldn't bear it anymore, so he went out to enjoy the mountains and rivers to relax. In fact, as the old saying goes, if you often walk by the river, how can you not get your shoes wet? On this issue, I think I can be more open-minded than my master.
That's why I asked Senior Qin like this, because Master didn't contact me. There are only two reasons. Either the matter was not completed, but it didn't take two years to complete the matter. Or maybe he felt that after contacting me, when I asked about what happened over the years, he would be unable to speak. Considering the weirdness and strength of the senior Qin in front of me, Master must have been as unhappy as me when he first dealt with him.
Senior Qin heard me ask this, so he snorted contemptuously, and then said to me, wouldn't you ask these questions after you find him yourself? He is your master, not my master. How do I know about him? Even if I knew, where did you get the confidence that I would tell you?
A good greeting was met with disappointment again. So I was dumbfounded, wondering whether to continue asking or just turn around and walk away. At this time, Senior Qin suddenly spoke. He said, the last time he saw my master was more than a month ago. He only saw me two or three times a year. Apart from that, there was no friendship. . Judging from what Senior Qin said, it seemed that he had not yet reached a stalemate with my master. Otherwise, given his personality, he would have hidden away and never interacted with me until death. Although I don’t know if he and my master are friends, but as soon as these words came out, I knew that at least they were not enemies.
So I bowed my hands and said goodbye to Senior Qin. I even saved the polite words of goodbye, because I really didn’t want to see this strange old bearded man again unless absolutely necessary.
After leaving, I walked to the entrance of the alley, and immediately found pedestrians on the roadside and started asking for directions. Soon someone told me that the address above was not far from where I was currently, and there was even a bus available. It's only two or three stops away, but the bus schedules are quite long. If you're in good spirits, walking there might be faster than waiting for the bus.
Of course, I had better energy. It had been almost a week since I arrived in Wuchang. I wanted to find Master. Naturally, I couldn’t waste time waiting for the bus at this moment, so I thanked the passerby who showed me the way and went back immediately. I packed my luggage at the guest house, checked out, and looked for that address.
Different from the bungalow by the alley where Senior Qin lived, the address was where the master lived. It was a three-story red brick house with a yard. It looks like a dormitory for employees of a company, because you can see clothes hanging to dry in the corridors on each floor. There was a big tree in the yard, which was surrounded by a flower bed. There were a few children squatting on the ground and playing with nails in the mud like darts.
I followed the house number on the address and found that it was a room in the corner of the ground floor. The door opened to the public toilet. Just by getting close, you can smell a very unpleasant smell of feces and urine. I thought to myself that it’s not like Master has no money. It’s not a good idea to rent somewhere, so why would he choose to rent such a corner house? As soon as I walked to the door and looked around, I immediately judged that this was where Master lived.
Because Master has a habit of placing three bricks at the entrance, and a small pattern like a plum blossom will be engraved on the bricks. Master said that this is a tradition that our sect started hundreds of years ago. To outsiders, this symbol is just an ordinary thing. But to insiders, when they see this symbol, they know who lives in this house. They are from our sect. It can be regarded as a set of black rules in the world.
I looked at my hands, but I didn't take anything except my luggage. I hadn't seen Master for a long time, and I didn't even buy any fruit when he came here rashly. I felt a little excited, wondering if Master would be surprised that I suddenly appeared in this city when he saw me. So I walked up and started knocking on the door.
I knocked on the door seven or eight times in a row, but no one came to open the door. When I was wondering if Master had gone out to do some errands, I calculated the time and found that there were about two hours left before dinner time. I was wondering whether I should wait for Master outside the door. But I didn't want to give up, so I put my head in front of the window. The curtains were closed inside the window. I covered my eyes with my hands to block the light outside, and then put my eyes against the glass, intending to take a look. Is there anyone in the house?
At this moment, a voice came from beside me. Just like when I went to look for Senior Qin a few days ago, an old woman who lived next door to Master was holding a basin and washing vegetables. She leaned out half of her body and asked me a little doubtfully, Who are you looking for? Why are you sticking your butt up so high?
Only then did I realize that when I was watching against the window, I couldn't help but raise my butt very high. So I was a little flustered and a little embarrassed. So I quickly smiled and said to my aunt, "Hello, aunt, I'm here to find someone. My relative, the tenant, named Lin, lives here."
The aunt put down the basin in her hand, stretched out her hand on her apron to wipe the water on her hands, then walked up to me and said, is Mr. Lin your relative? There seems to be a big age difference between you. You are a bit younger to be a son, but a bit older to be a grandson. I quickly explained that he was my teacher and taught me... um... calligraphy.
I'm not lying. Although Master is not well-educated, his calligraphy is really beautiful. But because she had just said she was a relative and immediately said she was a teacher, the old lady seemed a little more suspicious, so I added in a panic that it was a family tradition and we were related.
After saying that, in order to cover up my panic, I grinned stupidly, trying to impress the old lady in front of me with my harmless and innocent smile. The old lady relaxed her vigilance, so she said to me, since you are a relative, how could you not know that Mr. Lin has been in poor health recently and is in hospital?
I was shocked, what does this mean? My master is the kind of person who will never go to the hospital. At most, he can drink some Chinese medicine to save face. Why was he suddenly hospitalized? So I quickly asked the old lady what was going on? I don't know about this at all. I just came from my hometown and didn't receive these notifications.
My tone became a little anxious, because for a person with Master's physical condition to be hospitalized, it means that his illness is really serious. The old aunt said that Mr. Lin is a very nice person. He has lived here for more than a year and often helps people in the yard. So when he suddenly fell to the ground this time, the neighbors helped him to the hospital. In recent days, , all taking turns taking care of them. When I heard that Master "suddenly fell to the ground," I became even more anxious. So I asked why he suddenly fell to the ground and what was wrong with him. The old aunt said that this person is like this when he reaches his age. He has no children around him and no one to take care of him. Fortunately, a neighbor came to your door that day to play chess with your master. Only then did he see him lying next to his bed. He sent him to the hospital for a check-up and said It's a cerebral hemorrhage and requires surgery. The date for the surgery is probably very recently.
Then the old aunt started to criticize me and said, we all thought Mr. Lin was just an old bachelor with no relatives around to take care of him. Who knew he had a nephew like you? You children, you should pay more attention to your elders. That's right, you will all have that day sooner or later. Mr. Lin has never been in good health. Don't you, the juniors, know that?
Frankly, I was a little freaked out. Master's body has always been very healthy. Even if he doesn't show it off deliberately, he will never give anyone the impression of being in bad health. The old aunt told me that the master moved here more than a year ago, which means that since that time, he has been in poor health.
I was so confused that I had no idea for a moment.
