Chapter 108: White Lotus Temple

Chapter 108: White Lotus Temple

No wonder Ruyan had been giving him those strange looks earlier. In other people’s minds, they probably saw him as someone who secretly had a crush on Yue Hongling, even going as far as getting a stronghold mistress who looked like her. Because of that, when she left him, the rumors began spreading like wildfire.

Countless people were likely waiting to see the spectacle of his encounter with the “real” Yue Hongling!

Zhao Changhe had not expected Yue Hongling to be in Yangzhou, but the coincidence was quite remarkable. Although they were truthfully not involved in some romantic drama as others imagined, he did find it pleasantly surprising that an old friend, whom he had not seen for quite some time, was in the same place. He wondered how she was doing now.

She was known for carrying out heroic deeds all over the jianghu. It was likely that she had chosen to stay in Yangzhou because, just like him, she had noticed the problems in the area.

Yangzhou is such a large city. I wonder where I can find her...

Lost in thought, Zhao Changhe was oblivious to how Ruyan was interpreting his reactions. In her eyes, she had basically just confirmed that he harbored a crush on Yue Hongling. She could not help but want to tease him, completely forgetting how much she had feared for her life just moments back. With a mischievous smile, she suggested, “It looks like you really do like Yue Hongling. You know, if you want, I can dress up like her...”

Startled, Zhao Changhe quickly shook his head, realizing what could happen if he really let Ruyan do something like that. He hurriedly waved his hands and said, “No, no! I’ve already had enough of playing with such impersonators.”

If you really do that and she finds out, I’ll be dead before I even get a word in.

Ruyan covered her mouth as she giggled. We all know that you didn’t stop because you were bored, you stopped because she ran away. “So are you saying that you’re after the real deal? Well, we aren’t sure where she’s staying, but we do know that she’s been spotted in the vicinity.”

As expected, Zhao Changhe blurted out, “What did she do when she appeared?”

Ruyan replied, “She killed an official.”

Zhao Changhe: “?”

Ruyan sighed softly. “The official she killed was someone who was involved in forcing men to dredge the river, and they even conscripted women and children for more manpower...”

As she spoke, her voice became softer and softer, “If I could have met Lady Yue back then... I probably wouldn’t have ended up where I am now...”

Zhao Changhe pursed his lips and said nothing.

It’s just like when I first saw her.

Ever since he had first seen her, she had constantly served as a reminder of the kind of person he aspired to be.

Ruyan added, “In any case, after Lady Yue killed the official, she probably left the area. Even if she is still in the city, it would not make sense for her to make her whereabouts known. So, if you want to find her, maybe you could just walk through the streets and shout, ‘I, Zhao Changhe, have come. I request a meeting with Lady Yue Hongling.’ That might just work!”

“You just want to see some drama, don’t you?”

Ruyan covered her mouth and chuckled.

Zhao Changhe could not hide his curiosity about Yue Hongling’s current situation, but he still decided to steer the conversation back to the original topic, saying, “We’ve gone quite a bit off-topic, haven’t we? I wanted you to tell me a story, right?”

*

Early in the morning, ten li east of the city, White Lotus Temple.

Yue Hongling concealed herself up on a beam. Her gaze was cold as she observed the scene below her.

Villagers in ragged clothes who could not even afford to feed themselves were bringing their last scraps of food as offerings. They then left the temple afterward, feeling grateful.

Last night, she even saw some young girls performing certain rituals where they seemed to be brainwashing themselves. She knew what would happen next if she did not intervene. However, it appeared that the cult was waiting for something and did not conduct the expected “ritual” last night. As such, Yue Hongling decided to bid her time, planning to learn more about the Maitreya Cult’s practices before taking action.

Having spent most of her life in the northern regions, she had only recently come south. Similar to Zhao Changhe, she had never heard of the Maitreya Cult before. Thus, when she had first come down south and found out about them, she had initially thought that the Maitreya Cult was some kind of benevolent Buddhist sect that saved people from suffering. But after carefully investigating them for a while, she had realized that they were even more sinister than many bandit groups she had encountered in the past.

A few days ago, someone claiming to be a Buddha had even tried to trick her into joining the cult as a celestial maiden. That person’s head now rested separately from his body. It was from that moment on that Yue Hongling’s journey through the southern jianghu took a pause as she began focusing on uncovering the secrets of the Maitreya Cult.

Up to this point, Yue Hongling’s knowledge of the Maitreya Cult was limited, and she knew only a fraction of the whole picture. The White Lotus Temple was a recent discovery of hers, and she intended to observe it further.

Yue Hongling had a straightforward and bold demeanor, which often gave people the impression that she was rough and arrogant. But in fact, she was more meticulous and astute than most.

This was actually very similar to how Zhao Changhe was. This was also why both of them could see a reflection of themselves in the other.

As she continued observing the temple, someone hurriedly entered the temple and whispered to the abbot, “Zhao Changhe stayed at the Xiaoxiang Pavilion last night, accompanied by the top courtesan, Ruyan.”

Yue Hongling perked up her ears.

“Oh? Have you discovered something?”

“The servants below said that Zhao Changhe seemed to finish in just a few breaths.”

Yue Hongling: “...”

The abbot chuckled, “Well, isn’t that good? Many people who join our cult do it because they want to find a solution to that particular problem. We have our ways to ensure that he can maintain his prowess for as long as he wishes.”

“But later, Ruyan mentioned that Zhao Changhe and her engaged in all kinds of positions throughout the night, and she even said that he was still quite vigorous toward the end.”

“Oh? Why did his vigor rise again?”

“Ruyan said that she’s not sure, but he seemed to get really excited when she brought up Yue Hongling.”

Yue Hongling: “...”

After pondering for a while, the abbot chuckled again and said, “Have our flower-picking celestial maiden dress up as Yue Hongling and accompany him tonight instead of Ruyan. It seems that Zhao Changhe is even easier to win over than we initially thought.”