The smoke of smoke and fire floated out from the front of the hall where the statue of the god was enshrined. Dongfang Shiming smiled lightly and said, "None of them. Please tell me, Taoist Priest, what can be done here?"
The Taoist asked the young man in front of him abruptly, making him a little confused. So he thought for a while, led the two of them to sit down in front of a small wooden table covered with red cloth in the yard, and said:
"If you have any need, Xiangfeng Guan can do it. Prayers for blessings and disasters can only be prayed for for children. If you are a mother who comes to ask for blessings for your child, this Guan will not do it either."
Dongfang Shiming and Bai Hao both frowned after hearing this strange request.
"What do these latter two mean?" Dongfang Shiming noticed the clue and asked further.
But the man didn't answer him directly. He knocked on the table, raised his eyes and smiled at the two of them: "Look, you two are not here for this, right? This girl should not be old enough to give birth to a child."
This rhetorical question made Bai Hao's cheeks turn red immediately. She didn't like the Taoist priest's rudeness very much, and angrily slapped the corner of the table: "You, why are you talking nonsense!"
That Tao lived in an ordinary village and didn't find these words offensive. He just pursed his lips and looked outside the door to see if any villagers were coming to make offerings.
No one came outside again. Dongfang Shiming smiled gently: "That's it. The purpose of my visit, Taoist Master, is to clear up my doubts, and I want to ask the Taoist Master two things."
As he spoke, he took out a silver ingot weighing about three taels from his sleeve. The Taoist's eyes were a little straightened, so Dongfang Shiming immediately followed up and said: "The first thing is to ask the Taoist Master why he didn't do these two things."
When the Taoist heard this, he suddenly became unhappy. He muttered: "How can this be called clearing up doubts?..." But seeing Dongfang Shiming pretending to take the money back, he thought about it and sighed.
"Let me tell you." The Taoist said. In the cold wind, he wrapped himself in a faded shawl outside his Taoist robe, "This is the legacy left by my master. Master's orders cannot be violated, especially in our profession, we must consider karma and retribution."
"Master's order?" Dongfang Shiming paused after hearing this.
"Yes." The Taoist grinned, "It's really inconvenient for me to say more. Master, please don't ask anymore."
Dongfang Shiming then stopped forcing it. However, since the "master's order" does not allow disciples to pray for children, it seems that there is a connection between Xiangfeng and Guan.
A handful of snow fell from the eaves and fell on the table. The Taoist wiped it off casually and then looked up: "Since this is to clear up confusion, please write down your birth date and name."
As he spoke, the Taoist took out a large piece of paper from under the small table. There were many names written densely on it. The Taoist pointed to a small blank space and asked them to write there.
"How can I write it when it's so narrow?" Bai Hao took over the pen. Although she was a little resentful, she still wrote her name carefully.
After finishing writing, Dongfang Shiming took over the pen. He stole a glance at the Taoist's expression, and then slowly started writing.
Dongfang Shiming wrote the word "Eastern" very slowly. He keenly observed the subtle changes in the Taoist's expression, and suddenly saw that after writing the first two words, the Taoist's expression actually twitched.
Then he slowly wrote down his birthday.
Put down the pen after writing. He pretended not to know, looked at the Taoist's unusual face with great interest, and asked, "Taoist, are you feeling uncomfortable?"
At this moment, the Taoist's eyes kept blinking. It seemed that he was afraid of mistaking the names among those densely packed names, and even broke out in a cold sweat.
"It's so cold and you're still sweating." Bai Hao noticed a bright spot next to his cheek.
"Could this sweat be cold sweat?" Dongfang Shiming stood up and looked at the Taoist condescendingly, "Taoist Master, if you feel uncomfortable, go home and rest for a while. We will help you look after it at Xiangfeng Temple."
Listening to Dongfang's poetry, it is obvious that there is something behind the words. Even a fool should understand. Only then did the Taoist realize that the purpose of the two of them was very clear from the beginning!
The corner of his mouth trembled a little: "You, you, you... you are the young master of the Dongfang family? - You didn't lie to me?"
Dongfang Shiming smiled: "The Dongfang family may not be the only one with the surname Dongfang. Why is Taoist Master so excited?"
"No, you can't be wrong." The Taoist glanced at the birth date again, gritted his teeth, "I know. You can't be wrong."
When Dongfang Shiming saw this, he suppressed the unavoidable excitement in his heart. In this case, he stopped being secretive, pushed the money in front of the Taoist, and said: "It is indeed easy and pleasant to deal with the Taoist. Then..."
The Taoist took the silver, but interrupted Dongfang Shiming's words. He covered his head and kept shaking: "You guys, please come back in the afternoon. It's been too long, please give me some time..."
Dongfang Shiming and Bai Hao looked at each other. Neither of them had any objections.
"That's fine." Dongfang Shiming took Bai Hao and said goodbye to the Taoist. "We will come over in the afternoon. Thank you, Taoist Master."
The man was still sitting where he was and just waved to them dryly. It seems that there are many things in his mind that have been buried in the dust, and now he is trying his best to pick up the dusty memories.
When Dongfang Shiming stepped out of the threshold, he glanced sideways at the small courtyard. Except for the Taoist who was sitting in a daze, the tall but broken statue in the main hall was silent, as if he had seen through everything.
Dongfang Shiming pursed his lips. Let Bai Hao hold his hand and leave slowly.
On the eaves, the falling snow penetrated the misty smoke. Like pure white sand.
…………
In the afternoon, in order to understand the truth hidden in Xiangfeng Temple, Dongfang Shiming and Bai Hao came as scheduled.
There were more people in the Taoist temple in the afternoon. When the two of them went, the Taoist was busy performing rituals for the villagers. There were still several villagers waiting, so the two of them stood at the end and waited for him to finish.
Looking at the Taoist again, his expression has returned to normal. Dongfang Shiming quietly looked at the small patio, which was not spacious, with unpredictable thoughts.
Bai Hao felt a little sleepy, raised her little hands and yawned. I rub my eyes from time to time to see when the Taoist will finish it.
Fortunately, the Taoist saw the two of them. After completing the ritual, he dismissed the few villagers waiting behind him and walked directly towards the two of them.
"Oh, we can wait." Dongfang Shiming saw this and smiled.
"You can wait, but I can't wait." The man spoke very directly, "This matter has been like a burden for so many years, and I want to get rid of it as soon as possible. You just follow me."
Dongfang Shiming didn't say much. Bai Hao stretched, and Dongfang Shiming kept up with the Taoist's pace.
The Taoist led Dongfang Shiming and the two of them into a side room to the east of the main hall. After entering, he closed the door mysteriously.
Dongfang Shiming and Bai Hao saw this man's cautious look. It seemed that the secret here was indeed crucial. The two looked at each other and couldn't help but hold their breath.
