Taiping Dao

"No, why are you crying?"

Lu Yuan was puzzled. I just glanced at her a few times, and she couldn't even stand it?

Feng Xixi shook her head upon hearing this, sobbing, "It has nothing to do with you. I just thought about all the grievances I've suffered over the years..."

Lu Yuan shook his head. In this world, it was normal for girls to get married at fourteen or fifteen, and the aesthetic preference was for a youthful appearance. One could imagine how many disdainful glances Feng Xixi had endured over the years because of her physique.

He could only say she was born in the wrong world.

With her delicate and beautiful face, coupled with her excellent figure, she would have been a proper Goddess Big Sister in her previous life, and a top Campus Belle in school.

He didn't expect her to be so discriminated against in this world.

"Don't be sad, Miss Feng. Why do you care so much about what others think? Their gossip won't make you lose a piece of flesh. A person lives for themselves, not for others."

Feng Xixi stopped crying and was stunned, "But... but even though you say that, it's not that simple to ignore others' opinions, is it?"

Lu Yuan said, "Miss Feng, only mediocre people would think there's something wrong with your physique. Anyway, in my eyes, you're much prettier than your sister."

"Ah?"

Feng Xixi looked up at Lu Yuan, seeing his serious expression, and stammered, "You're not comforting me?"

"The truth, it can't be any truer."

Lu Yuan said solemnly.

"Only vulgar people and mediocre people would dislike you. It's just that too few people can appreciate your beauty."

Feng Xixi's face turned slightly red, she couldn't quite believe it, and looked a little shy.

She could feel the sincerity in Lu Yuan's words. She hadn't expected that there would really be a man in this world who thought she was beautiful.

And he wasn't comforting her.

"Thank you..."

Feng Xixi's head bowed so low it almost touched her full chest, her heart pounding like a deer.

With the air cleared, Lu Yuan saw that Lu Cheng and Feng Rongrong had disappeared into the distance. He decided to chat with Feng Xixi.

To be honest, Feng Xixi was only a High School Student. Gradually, she became more cheerful, and they chatted about everything under the sun:

"I read in a book about something called Stone Taisui. I heard it can live for tens of millions of years without dying. Your family is in the Medicinal Materials business, have you ever seen Stone Taisui?"

"Stone Taisui..."

Lu Yuan suddenly stood up, as if a bolt of lightning flashed through his mind.

Stone Taisui!

Taisui Stone!

Could these two have any connection?

"Miss Feng, I have some matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now!"

With that, Lu Yuan left directly, leaving Feng Xixi somewhat at a loss in the pavilion. Seeing Lu Yuan disappear from sight, her face couldn't help but dim.

Lu Yuan walked with his head down, but then he realized he was lost.

Just as he was about to find someone to ask for directions, he suddenly heard a faint sound. His heart stirred, and he cautiously approached the corner.

The voice was very familiar to him; it was Feng Yuan's voice, and he could faintly hear a tone of flattery in it.

In the study.

Feng Yuan said respectfully, "The envoy's arrival is truly an honor for me, Feng Yuan."

The envoy was a burly man in white. He heard this and said indifferently, "How is the task arranged by the higher-ups progressing?"

"There's no reason why the matters arranged by the envoy cannot be accomplished."

Feng Yuan chuckled obsequiously:

"It's just that Yi Zheng is too vigilant. I paid a great price to initially gain his trust and draw the map and layout of Iron Dragon Stockade."

"What? Are you dissatisfied?"

The white-clothed man swept his cold gaze over him: "What is this small price? When my Taiping Sect succeeds in its uprising in the future, will your Feng Family lack benefits?"

"Yes, yes..."

Feng Yuan nodded repeatedly, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. He then cautiously asked:

"Envoy, when do the higher-ups plan to make a move on Iron Dragon Stockade?"

"In ten days..."

Lu Yuan looked around and quietly retreated.

He was very surprised in his heart that this Feng Yuan was colluding with the Taiping Dao.

The Taiping Sect was a sect that had risen in recent years, enjoying extremely high prestige among the populace. It was rumored that they could save lives and heal the injured with Talisman Water.

As soon as Lu Yuan heard this, he felt that the Taiping Dao was not a legitimate sect. Saving people with Talisman Water, this kind of operation, looked exactly like the actions of that Great Teacher of Virtuousness Zhang Jiao.

It is said that Zhang Jiao initially taught magic and incantations, gathering many disciples and founding the Taiping Dao. He used talisman water and incantations to heal people. Many patients, after drinking the talisman water he had chanted over, and after kneeling and repenting, were cured, and they revered Zhang Jiao as a deity.

Later, he raised the banner of rebellion, shouting, "The heavens are dead, the yellow heavens shall rise, the year is Jiazi, and the world will be prosperous!"

Lu Yuan heard about the Taiping Sect and investigated them. The more he learned, the more he felt they were sinister. However, the poor masses believed the Taiping Sect to be a benevolent organization and flocked to join.

But no matter what, he couldn't believe that burning a few paper talismans and mixing them with water could save people.

From what this so-called envoy and Feng Yuan said, was the Taiping Sect also plotting a rebellion?

But why would the Taiping Dao target Iron Dragon Stockade?

"Ten days... I wonder if I can fish in troubled waters..."

Returning home, Lu Yuan immediately began to search for information related to 'Stone Taisui'.

According to records: "Stone Taisui, non-toxic, tonifies the middle, benefits essence and qi, increases wisdom, treats chest congestion, and prolonged consumption leads to a light body and eternal youth."

It turned out that Stone Taisui was the best variety among all Taisui, growing in rocks 1000 to 2000 meters underground in high-altitude deep mountains.

It had a fibrous cotton-like structure. Its flesh was inelastic. Some flesh was looser and contained more water, appearing like fatty pork or white fungus.

Some flesh was tighter and contained less water, appearing like beef fat or clustered granules.

Because Stone Taisui attached itself to rocks to grow, it could develop different colors. Some were as white as snow, some as vibrant as rosy clouds, and some had gradient colors like marbled meat, with red and white intermingled.

Stone Taisui had incredibly tenacious vitality. Legend had it that Stone Taisui could burrow into rocks without any cracks, slowly consuming the stone and transforming into Taisui flesh, taking tens of thousands of years to grow into a large mass of Taisui flesh.

However, no matter how Lu Yuan searched, he found no connection between Stone Taisui and Taisui Stone, and he couldn't help but feel a bit dejected.

"What are you looking for?"

Lu Longjing returned home and heard from a servant that his second young master was searching through books like a madman. He came over upon hearing the news.

"Father, do you know about Taisui Stone?"

"Stone Taisui? I know of it."

Lu Longjing nodded.

Lu Yuan corrected him, "Not Stone Taisui, but Taisui Stone."

"Taisui Stone?"

Lu Longjing was about to shake his head when he seemed to recall something. "I don't remember which book it was, but it mentioned that Stone Taisui over a hundred thousand years old would gradually petrify. But I'm not sure if petrified Stone Taisui is Taisui Stone."

Lu Yuan's heart eased. He finally had a clue and wasn't just blindly searching anymore. He quickly asked, "Father, do you know where there might be petrified Taisui Stone?"

Lu Longjing chuckled self-deprecatingly, "You're asking too much of your father. Taisui Stone is already a supreme grade among Taisui, let alone petrified Taisui Stone. By the way, why are you asking about Stone... Taisui Stone?"

If you can't find the book title, you can try searching for the author. Perhaps the name has just been changed!