Chen Shi'an

Night fell.

The Pure Dust Temple, bustling during the day, returned once more to its usual quiet.

With his master gone, that quiet had grown deeper still.

The last wisp of smoke in the incense burner trembled and dispersed. The ever-burning lamp on the offering table flickered, casting light over the yellowed ledger in Chen Shi'an's hands and the letter his master had left him.

The young man sat cross-legged on a prayer cushion, turning the pages to the only sounds left in the temple: insects and the mountain wind.

[Liu Lin, east end of the village: delivered 5.4 kilograms of pork in the twelfth lunar month...]

[Pharmacy, west end of town: poria, codonopsis, white atractylodes, astragalus, licorice...]

A few pages farther on, the entries grew even more trivial.

[Carpenter Wang: repaired three window lattice bars in the east hall...]

[Mason Li: replaced twenty roof tiles on the west wing...]

These were all "creditors" Chen Shi'an knew, mostly villagers and townspeople from the foot of the mountain. Most of the ledger entries recorded debts in goods and services.

Farther on came the monetary debts.

[July 16, 2013: borrowed 6,000 yuan from Xiang Kun]

There was no mention of what the money had been used for, but Chen Shi'an could guess-a torrential downpour that July had brought down the temple's long-neglected western wall. Within a few days of the skies clearing, a new wall had gone up.

[...]

[March 6, 2018: borrowed 8,000 yuan from Lin Ming]

This one was more recent. Chen Shi'an remembered that March: nearly all the temple's battered books and worn-out stationery had been replaced.

Every monetary debt had been recorded, and not one stated its purpose, yet Chen Shi'an knew where every last sum had gone.

He recognized almost none of the names, but fortunately, each had an address and phone number, so he would know where to go when it was time to repay them.

He had spent eighteen years by his master's side, day in and day out, yet he had never imagined the old man had a circle of acquaintances he knew nothing about. They were probably old connections.

His master had always been an eccentric, stubborn old geezer in Chen Shi'an's eyes. Thinking it over now, though, perhaps that old geezer's life had been far less ordinary than he had assumed.

Farther on, the dates grew more recent.

[August 9, 2023]

Last week.

[Borrowed one school placement from Lin Ming, plus 8,000 yuan for two years of tuition and miscellaneous fees]

Chen Shi'an had never known Lin Ming, but after reading this, he could roughly guess what sort of position the man held.

He sat stunned for a long while, a tangle of emotions stirring inside him.

Master, oh, Master! You really did arrange everything, big and small, before setting out on this journey you wouldn't be coming back from!

Nearly everything in this thick ledger was for me and this ramshackle temple. With all those worries weighing on you, could the immortal crane under your backside even carry you...?

Chen Shi'an lit another stick of incense, then sat down and picked up his master's final letter.

For a moment, he could hardly bear to open it, as though once he finished reading it, the old man would truly be gone.

While he hesitated, a soft "meow" sounded outside the hall.

It was the temple's old black cat. Usually as lazy as his master, the cat often disappeared for three to five days at a time. Now, though, the cat climbed up his Daoist robe and nestled in his arms.

His master hadn't exactly been a proper master, and the cat wasn't exactly a proper cat either. Pitch-black, fat, and fond of food, the cat looked like a lump of coal that could run and jump.

His master had picked up Chen Shi'an, and he had picked up the cat too.

Like Chen Shi'an's name, the cat's name also contained the character for "pick up": Shi Mo.

Chen Shi'an wondered whether his master had been especially fond of that character. Perhaps the old man simply hadn't been educated enough to think of anything more impressive.

Going by the years, the cat was a little older than Chen Shi'an. He didn't know the exact age, only that his master had found them both in the same year-but back then, he had still been an unweaned baby, while the cat had already been fully grown.

Chen Shi'an scratched the black cat under the chin, drawing a rumbling purr as the cat's eyes narrowed contentedly.

He stroked the cat's back and found pine needles and grass seeds caught in the fur. Clearly, there had been another romp on the mountain behind the temple.

"You didn't sneak any of Master's offerings, did you?"

"Meow."

"Shi Mo, oh, Shi Mo, it's just the two of us now. In a few days, I'll have to go down the mountain to study. Are you coming?"

"..."

The black cat didn't answer, merely curling a tail around his wrist, large amber eyes fixed on the unopened letter in his hand.

Chen Shi'an opened the envelope.

The letter had been written with a brush, its ink bleeding at the edges. The wording was stiffly literary; clearly, the poorly educated old man had put considerable effort into it.

[Shi'an, my disciple, let these words be as my presence before you. Upon rising this morning, I observed the clouds drifting west and knew my allotted time was ending. Your master must now ride the crane westward, but there are still a few things I must make clear to you...]

The letter was long, yet short.

Chen Shi'an read it slowly. Before he knew it, he had read it three times.

His master's final instructions amounted to just a few things:

1. Don't let the temple's incense offerings cease, even if you are the only one making them;

2. If you have the means, you may repair the halls, but you must not rebuild them;

3. Go down the mountain and see the wider world. Preferably get an education. Daoists of this new era must understand science as well as mysticism;

4. Unless something is wrong, don't disturb your master's peaceful cultivation in heaven;

5. Remember to repay the money the temple has borrowed over the years;

[Shi'an, my disciple, you are the one I trust most, and the one I worry about most.]

[Before you lies the boundless mortal world. Do not lose sight of your true heart. Go forth, go forth!]

Suddenly, the sound of raindrops striking leaves reached the black cat's ears. The cat looked back, but there was no rain outside the hall.

Looking up again, the cat saw the young man's tear-filled eyes. Drop after drop slid down, landing on the letter in his hands.

"You old geezer. Barely educated, and you still tried to get all sentimental. I'm Chen Shi'an, your disciple who's learned ninety-nine percent of everything you knew! What's there to worry about, you old fussbudget? ...You win... you win!"

Chen Shi'an carefully put the letter away, tucking it beneath his pillow along with the ledger.

Now that his master was gone, everything from this point onward would be his own decision.

For a moment, he felt lost and ill at ease.

But soon, Chen Shi'an put his thoughts in order.

First came inheriting the temple.

That afternoon, the association's clerk had told him that he still lacked one academic qualification required to inherit the temple legally.

The old man had raised and taught him precisely so that he could carry on his legacy someday. However dilapidated the Pure Dust Temple might be, how could he let someone else take the place that belonged to the two of them?

Since he was going down the mountain to experience the mortal world anyway, he might as well get into a university along the way.

How hard could studying possibly be?

Just something to take care of during my travels.

Then there were the debts.

The way his master had categorized the ledger showed how clearly the ever-stubborn old man distinguished between them.

Debts in goods were debts in goods, and debts in money were debts in money. It wasn't that there were no debts of kindness-every single entry was one.

Chen Shi'an added them up. The debts accumulated over the years came to a little over 108,000 yuan. It didn't seem like much, but for someone who had no real notion of earning money yet, it was a substantial sum.

Though he had never seen his master repay anyone over the years...

Still, his master had been right. Repayment could be delayed, made slowly, or arranged in installments, but the debts had to be repaid! It was a matter of principle!

Then the debts... could wait a little.

There were still 24,000 yuan in the bank account his master had left him. Traveling down the mountain would cost money too. He couldn't foolishly use it all to repay debts and then live on thin air...

After all, he was still a million miles away from the so-called grain-breaking realm!

It was already August 16. There was less than half a month left before the September 1 start date given in his admission notice.

Once he went down the mountain to travel and study, there was no telling when he would return.

Tomorrow, he would go to the mountain behind the temple, gather pine needles, and make a new fly whisk;

The halls needed repairs. First, he would secure the threshold of the west wing;

After several days of rain, the weeds running wild in the courtyard needed clearing too...

Half a month passed in a flash.

While Chen Shi'an busied himself with these tasks, the annual autumn start of school quietly approached.

Early on August 31, dressed in a new Daoist robe, Chen Shi'an prepared to head down the mountain to travel and study.

As the young Daoist stood at the mountain path with his luggage on his back, the lingering morning mist still flowed down along the stone steps.

He turned back for one last look at the Pure Dust Temple.

The oil lamp before the newly erected memorial tablet flickered. Incense ash sifted down, like someone silently waving goodbye.

"Master, I'm leaving. If anything comes up, get in touch through a dream."

"..."

"I'm really going!"

Chen Shi'an bowed with clasped hands toward the empty halls, then finally headed down the mountain without looking back.

The mountain wind swept past the old pagoda tree, rustling its leaves.

Dew-covered weeds occasionally dampened his clothes.

The canvas bag on his shoulder swayed gently, a cat's purr drifting from within.

The young Daoist descended step by step through the morning light.

The mountain mist slowly cleared. In the distance lay a brand-new world...

(New book released~ Please add it to your collections, send recommendation votes and monthly tickets, and keep reading~! This new book's theme is a journey through the human world, starting with the protagonist leaving the mountain to study. The genre is still everyday urban life, with youth, romance, and growth all to come. I hope readers old and new will lend their support! My heartfelt thanks to everyone!)

(During the new-release period, there will be two updates daily, posted at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.!)