Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 361 The Lü Family Affairs Settled
Several months later, in the territory of the Tang Dynasty, in Puzhou, Hedong, and Hezhong Prefecture.

At this moment, in the Lü Mansion built in the countryside, a dialogue concerning the future of the Lü family is underway.

"Lord Lü Qing, Lord Fang has now overturned your case. As long as you return, the officials will speak to the Emperor on your behalf, and you will surely be reinstated."

Lu Qing stared expressionlessly at the middle-aged man in black fine clothes before him, unmoved by the man's words.

Several months later, he appeared to have aged considerably, and his complexion and appearance were not good.

Looking at the man before him, Lü Qing felt a little amused.

They pushed me out like a pawn, watching those people smear me. Even though they had their own plans, if those plans failed, I would truly become a pawn, and a pawn that would implicate my family.
Now, he actually wants to go back by himself? That's ridiculous!
The events that occurred in Chang'an made Lü Qing see many things clearly, and he lost all desire to become an official.

Putting aside everything else, although His Majesty has personally rescinded the previous decree, even if he is reinstated, it is not certain that His Majesty will look upon him favorably.

If anything goes wrong in the future, no official with such a tainted record would be more suitable to be the scapegoat than him.

He himself may not be without longing for the glory of passing the imperial examinations years ago, for the officialdom that belongs to scholars. However, he is not afraid of losing his own life, but rather of almost implicating his family, just like he did a few months ago.
And he himself is no longer a young man in his twenties or thirties.
"Please go back and tell Lord Fang that Lü Qing is no longer a member of the court and is now just a commoner. I am grateful for Lord Fang's care over the years, but I have long lost that ambition and am afraid that I can no longer serve the court."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man in fine clothes stiffened, and the smile on his face as he looked at Lü Qing faded considerably.

"Is Lord Lü still angry? Please rest assured, sir, this matter is over."

As the man was speaking, he noticed that Lü Qing, who was across from him in Xi'an, was still looking at him expressionlessly, causing him to slowly stop talking.

He was silent for a moment, then sighed and slowly said:

"It seems that Lord Lü is determined not to return to Chang'an."

"That's all."

As he spoke, the man slowly rose and took out a delicate, small white jade cup with cloud patterns from his sleeve, placing it on the table beside the two of them.

"Lord Fang only sent me to deliver a message. He anticipated that you might no longer wish to return to Chang'an, so he asked me to bring you this wine cup and also to pass on a message to you."

At this moment, Lü Qing's pupils contracted as he looked at the white jade wine cup on the table, and waves of memories quickly surged up from his mind.

"Lord Fang said that you two are, after all, fellow disciples, and this matter was by no means his wish. He has done everything he could to protect you."

"But since he has already done it, I don't expect you to listen to his explanation. However, if any descendants of the Lü family are in trouble in the future, just take this white jade cup to him, and he will remember this friendship and provide assistance."

After the middle-aged man finished speaking, he stood up, came to Lü Qing, and bowed.

"Lord Lü, since you are unwilling to go back, I must return to Chang'an as soon as possible to report back."

Upon hearing this, Lü Qing's gaze, which had been fixed on the wine glass on the table, slowly turned to the middle-aged man, and he nodded slightly.

"I'm sorry to trouble you to make the trip yourself."

"Lord Lü, you are too kind. I will take my leave now."

After the middle-aged man left the Lü residence, Lü Qing stared silently at the white jade wine cup on the table for a long time, his eyes flashing with memories of his youth. "Senior brother," he said, "when we secretly drank from these wine cups we stole from our fathers' homes, we didn't have such complicated thoughts, did we?"

"Although you entrusted this to me, I can no longer trust you as completely as I did back then."

On the other side, Daojun had already parted ways with the West Sea Dragon King. Before leaving, Daojun also promised that if Ao Wang encountered any trouble in the Tang Dynasty, he, as his uncle, would help him.

At this moment, Daojun was standing in the clouds above the still-under-repair Lü Mansion, looking down at Lü Yan who was practicing swordsmanship.

"It seems this turn of events has dealt a significant blow to Lü Yan, causing him to lose much of his hope for a successful official career and passing the imperial examinations."

Hearing the sigh from the person beside him, Daojun nodded and said:
"There's nothing we can do about it. After all, Lü Qing has told his family everything about his situation and has faced the dark side of the court. He's probably quite at a loss right now."

“What Daojun said is true.”

Zhongli Quan nodded, standing behind Daojun in agreement:
"However, this matter is both a blessing and a curse for the Lü family. I'm sure Lü Yan will think about it carefully in the future, as it will be of great benefit to his growth."

Although Lü Yan's true spirit is still Lü Dongbin in this reincarnation, it is a new life in which he has no memory of anything.

Only if Lü Dongbin survives the tribulations in this life and returns to Heaven can he awaken the memories within his true spirit once more.

Therefore, at this time, Lü Yan cannot actually be regarded as Lü Dongbin.

"It's truly a great favor that Daoist Lord has been looking after Lü Yan. When Lü Yan turns twenty-two, I will definitely take him away and guide him in his cultivation."

Daojun turned to look at Zhongli Quan, whose expression was serious, and nodded with a smile:

"Fellow Daoist, please rest assured. This matter was agreed upon by me and my fellow Daoist Lü hundreds of years ago, so naturally I will not let anything happen to him."

After paying his respects to Daojun, Zhongli Quan stayed there for less than a month before leaving.

It's not the right time for him to step in yet, and he also has some things to prepare in advance.

When Niu Yi heard that Lü Dongbin was going to descend to the mortal realm to undergo tribulation, he thought that all eight immortals would descend together. However, he was surprised to learn that only Lü Dongbin was going to descend to the mortal realm this time, and that he was still led into the Taoist sect by Zhongli Quan.

Moreover, this so-called tribulation was actually for the purpose of spreading the Tao, and the famous Lü Zu in the future came from this.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. According to a certain version of the story from the previous life, this Lü Dongbin was actually the reincarnation of the Eastern Emperor.

However, in the Three Realms, the Eastern Emperor was still living peacefully on Fangzhang Immortal Mountain, while the Eight Immortals were merely juniors who had a deep connection with the Eastern Emperor.

Returning to the story of the Lü family, Lü Qing led his family into Hezhong Prefecture, which was also the place where the enemy's forces were weakest.

After confirming that the place was safe, the Lü family re-established themselves there. The family lived there and began to gather a lot of intelligence. Until today, that person sent a letter saying that he had been exonerated.

Lü Qing himself had a second daughter who was married into a wealthy and powerful family, but Lü Qing was afraid of causing trouble for his daughter, so he did not go to look for her.

(End of this chapter)