So when Xu Fugui led a few old buddies in a grand procession of cars to Clear Breeze Temple, there wasn't a soul in the place.
Not a soul in the truest sense.
There were no tourists and no Daoists. The only living things were a school of fish fry in the pond. The place had been cleared out so thoroughly that they could take whatever photos they pleased.
Xu Fugui and his fellow photography enthusiasts set up their tripods and snapped away to their hearts' content.
When Yun Zhaozhao and Daoist Chang Kong finished selling at mealtime and returned to Clear Breeze Temple to eat, Xu Fugui and his group were still crouching beneath the ancient ginkgo tree outside the dining hall, lying in wait for a bird Yun Zhaozhao couldn't name.
Daoist Chang Kong wasn't fond of greeting people. He acted as if he hadn't seen Xu Fugui and the others, turned straight into the kitchen, and began washing and chopping ingredients for lunch. Yun Zhaozhao, on the other hand, went over curiously to look at the pictures they had taken.
To be honest, when Yun Zhaozhao first saw Xu Fugui's group, she thought her Clear Breeze Temple had become so popular that reporters were turning up uninvited! But after exchanging a few words, she realized she really had been getting ahead of herself.
Still, although Xu Fugui and the others weren't professional reporters or photographers, the one thing never to underestimate in any pursuit was passion. Over the years, their passion for photography had surpassed everything else, so they really had produced quite a few good photographs. Some had even appeared in the local newspaper.
Anyone who came was a guest, so Yun Zhaozhao was very welcoming to Xu Fugui and the others. She even treated them to a cup of tea.
At first, Xu Fugui thought the tea in his hands smelled quite lovely. Drinking it in such a tranquil setting, surrounded by ancient trees, he even felt that what he was drinking wasn't tea, but immortal nectar.
But once the aroma of cooking drifted out of the kitchen, Xu Fugui suddenly found the tea in his hands much less appealing.
That afternoon, Daoist Chang Kong was making farmhouse stir-fried pork. The dish used plenty of oil and chilies, along with savory fermented black beans. On top of that, Daoist Chang Kong was using the cured pork he had just finished smoking. Once that aroma wafted out, never mind Xu Fugui and the others in the courtyard-even the security guard at the entrance to Qingfeng Park was practically crying with longing.
Xu Fugui couldn't help asking Yun Zhaozhao, "What's cooking? It smells incredible."
Yun Zhaozhao said, "Cured pork we smoked here at the temple. Never mind how good it smells-it tastes even better!"
Xu Fugui: "..." You certainly know how to do business.
When Xu Fugui and the others went out taking photos, they often spent the whole day at it, so besides water, they also carried some food in their backpacks. Usually, though, it was just little bread rolls and the like.
Normally, they didn't find bread rolls particularly hard to swallow. But at that moment, under the assault of that smoked pork, Xu Fugui and the others suddenly found the food in their bags rather unappetizing.
Yun Zhaozhao seized the opportunity. "Would you gentlemen like some lunch? Our temple offers meals!"
Xu Fugui glanced at his old buddies and said hesitantly, "...Well...shall we give it a try?"
His buddies chimed in, "Let's try it, let's try it!"
Daoist Chang Kong's smoked pork had barely left the wok before Yun Zhaozhao sold it. Sold along with it were stir-fried seasonal vegetables, fried pumpkin with salted egg yolk, blistered green peppers with cumin, and oil-braised bamboo shoots.
Xu Fugui and the others ate to their hearts' content, while Daoist Chang Kong cooked with a stream of curses.
Yun Zhaozhao actually felt quite sorry, too, but the customer came first. How could they make customers wait while they ate first? So she could only put Daoist Chang Kong through the indignity of cooking a whole table of dishes for Xu Fugui's group on an empty stomach before letting him cook for the two of them.
Daoist Chang Kong was still indignant as he ate. There was no other reason for it: not a single fat person in the world could guarantee an even temper on an empty stomach, and the Daoist was no exception.
Luckily, Yun Zhaozhao understood how he felt, so she kept soothing him. "There, there, don't be angry. I know you worked hard today. Have some more."
Daoist Chang Kong grumbled and huffed, though his mouth never stopped eating.
Watching him, Yun Zhaozhao felt less like she was soothing a Daoist and more like she was coaxing a child.
As they ate, Yun Zhaozhao's phone suddenly beeped twice.
Yun Zhaozhao picked it up and took a look, discovering that the WeChat messages were actually from Xu Ping. Xu Ping had mainly messaged to thank her for the ginkgo cakes she had brought over, saying that she and her coworkers all loved them.
Yun Zhaozhao replied: [Glad you liked them.]
Then the two naturally fell into conversation.
Xu Ping asked on WeChat how Yun Zhaozhao had become the temple master of Clear Breeze Temple. It was a long story, and it involved Yun Zhaozhao's current debts. Unable to go into detail, Yun Zhaozhao simply said it belonged to a relative.
Xu Ping asked Yun Zhaozhao: [So are you not planning to look for another job? Are you just going to stay at Clear Breeze Temple?]
Yun Zhaozhao: [I haven't thought that far ahead. Jobs are hard to find right now anyway. I'll take it one step at a time!]
Xu Ping: [True. Make sure you stay safe over there!]
Yun Zhaozhao didn't quite understand: [Safe from what?]
Xu Ping: [Are you silly? You're a girl living somewhere as deserted as Clear Breeze Temple. Of course you need to be extra careful!]
If Xu Ping hadn't brought it up, Yun Zhaozhao really wouldn't have thought of that. She had to admit she was rather carefree-she had dared to live alone in Clear Breeze Temple right from the start. And when Daoist Chang Kong arrived later, she had put him in the room next to hers without thinking much of it. Fortunately, food was the only thing on his mind. If he had harbored even the slightest ill intentions, it really could have been quite dangerous.
Still, Xu Ping's reminder was right. These days, one must never harbor the intent to harm others, but one must never let one's guard down against them, either. Yun Zhaozhao thought she really should pay some attention to that. So she put down her phone and said to Daoist Chang Kong, "How about we buy a security camera and install it at the temple entrance?"
Daoist Chang Kong was only interested in food and didn't care about anything else. "You decide. I'm fine with anything."
Yun Zhaozhao said, "Then go buy one this afternoon. I can't be bothered to move."
Daoist Chang Kong said, "Why should I go?"
Yun Zhaozhao said, "Your smoked pork is ready. Without a camera, what if someone raids our home while we're both out?"
Daoist Chang Kong immediately said, "Good point. I'll go right after lunch. I'll buy a couple extra and put one outside the kitchen, too."
Daoist Chang Kong went into town after lunch. But when he returned that afternoon, he didn't bring back any cameras. He brought back a young Daoist.
The young Daoist looked like a minor, skinny and small, but he said he was already eighteen.
Of course, that wasn't the point. The point was, why had Daoist Chang Kong picked him up and brought him back?
Daoist Chang Kong said, "You said we should install surveillance cameras, so I went to a shop to look. They seemed pretty expensive-you could buy several jin of pork for that money. Besides, a camera's an inanimate thing. If someone really stole my cured pork, it couldn't say a word. By the time we called the police and tracked the thief down using the footage, my smoked pork would already be pretty much digested. So I figured finding someone to watch the place would be more reliable."
Yun Zhaozhao looked at the young Daoist's scrawny frame, deeply skeptical. "Can someone that small really guard the place?"
Daoist Chang Kong said, "That's what you don't understand. When I saw him, he was standing on the curb cursing someone out. His language was filthy."
Yun Zhaozhao: "...????" The world has finally gone completely off the rails in ways I couldn't even imagine!
Chapter 8
It wasn't that Yun Zhaozhao didn't trust Daoist Chang Kong. It was mainly that this young Daoist really didn't look like someone who could curse people out.
When he was filthy, he had looked like a pitiful little thing. Now that he had washed up, he looked even younger. Especially beside Daoist Chang Kong's hefty bulk, Yun Zhaozhao wondered whether he even weighed ninety jin.
Besides, the boy was quite polite to Yun Zhaozhao and answered every question she asked.
The young Daoist had a rather nice Daoist name: Jingting.
Yun Zhaozhao complimented the young Daoist's name, while Daoist Chang Kong was simply curious. "Who gave you that Daoist name?"
Jingting said, "My master."
Daoist Chang Kong said, "You can tell your master must have had high hopes for you. Did he hope you would quietly listen to flowers bloom and fall with each passing season, and sit watching clouds unfurl and gather year after year?"
Jingting said, "No, my master just wanted me to be quiet and obedient, and quit yapping so damn much."
Yun Zhaozhao: "..."
Yun Zhaozhao asked, "Then where is your master now?"
Jingting fell silent for a moment before saying quietly, "He shed his mortal form and ascended not long ago."
Yun Zhaozhao hadn't expected to touch a sore spot and couldn't help apologizing. "I'm sorry. My condolences."
Jingting said, "It's all right."
Daoist Chang Kong asked, "Then were you driven out of another temple, just like me?"
Jingting had still been a little sad at the mention of his master, but Daoist Chang Kong's question suddenly sent him into a frenzy. "Don't bring that up. Just mentioning it fills me with rage. I'm telling you, I only went down the mountain to carry out my master's last wishes, and when I got back, someone had torn down the whole temple. I used to laugh when I saw other people blocked outside their temples, unable to get in. Well, would you look at that-turns out the clown was me all along. I'd better not find out which bastard demolished my temple. If I do, I'll personally send him to meet my master and make him kowtow and beg the old man's forgiveness to his face."
Yun Zhaozhao: "..." Whether his language was filthy was still hard to tell, but his temper certainly wasn't good.
Although Yun Zhaozhao didn't really approve of Daoist Chang Kong casually picking people up and bringing them to the temple, he had already brought the boy back. She couldn't just kick him out again.
So Yun Zhaozhao let Jingting stay for the time being.
Although Clear Breeze Temple had three bedrooms, the remaining room didn't even have a bed yet, so Yun Zhaozhao temporarily arranged for Jingting to share with Daoist Chang Kong.
Yun Zhaozhao had thought that with another person around, perhaps Clear Breeze Temple could finally show off some genuine Daoist expertise. Even setting up a fortune-telling stall would have been nice. But unexpectedly, Daoist Priest Jingting was just like Daoist Chang Kong: whatever you needed, he couldn't do it; whatever you fed him, he couldn't get enough. When asked, he said his master had only taught him to calm his mind and meditate, and hadn't had time to teach him anything else.