Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 364 Twenty-year-old Lü Yan
The Three Realms.

Two more years passed, and Lü Yan had grown into a handsome young man dressed in flowing white robes. He was now twenty years old.

The Lü family has developed rapidly in Hezhong Prefecture in recent years, quickly establishing themselves there. They have also made contact with their second daughter, who married far away, and received help from her in-laws.

The faction of officials that Lü Qing sided with back then is now quite powerful in the court. Even though Lü Qing has left, his former classmate seems to be exerting influence in secret, ensuring that no one dares to hinder the Lü family's development, which has led to the current situation.

But Lü Yan himself remained sullen and unhappy.

That day, after he had finished tallying the accounts of the Lü Family Restaurant, he rode his horse alone to the mountains near the Lü Family to clear his mind.

Since that incident, young Lü Yan developed a resistance to studying. He once longed to achieve academic success like his father, but now he finds it incredibly complicated.

Lu Qing and his wife also discovered this matter, but they did not interfere too much. In any case, with the wealth of the Lu family, it would not be a problem to ensure that their youngest son, Lu Yan, would live a life of luxury and honor.

Furthermore, if one studies, a scholar's life is almost entirely devoted to taking the imperial examinations to become an official and serve the court; there is virtually no other path for him.

Unfortunately, eight years have passed, and the imperial court and the dream of passing the imperial examinations, which all scholars yearn for, no longer hold any appeal for Lü Qing.

However, he didn't like the idea of ​​spending his whole life like his elder brother, managing the family business at home.

But if all these paths are blocked, what will become of his life?
"Drive! Drive!"

At this moment, Lü Yan was riding a brown horse, galloping wildly along the dirt road in the mountains. Although the wind kept blowing against his face and whistling past his ears, Lü Yan still felt extremely annoyed and kept urging the horse to speed up.

The brown horse then galloped wildly up the mountain, carrying Lü Yan, who was dressed in white and had a sword at his waist, until it stopped in front of the stone pavilion halfway up the mountain.

"Xu~~"

Lu Yan stopped his horse, dismounted, and walked towards the stone pavilion not far away.

He discovered this place when he was traveling a couple of years ago. Although the stone pavilion is somewhat dilapidated and no one comes here on weekdays, it is a good place for him to think and relax by himself.

As soon as Lü Yan approached, he looked at the stone pavilion with some surprise and found a figure in a gray Taoist robe sitting quietly inside, looking at the distant forest and sky.

Lu Yan looked at the figure and felt inexplicably familiar with it. After a moment of thought, he was surprised and came to his senses.

Could this be...?
For some reason, Lü Yan walked quickly toward the stone pavilion with a sense of anticipation, and his footsteps clearly alerted the people inside.

The man slowly turned around, revealing a face that looked quite familiar to Lü Yan.

"Master Jin Lingzi, it really is you!"

Lu Yan looked at the familiar Taoist priest with some surprise, who hadn't changed at all even after eight years.

It was this person in front of them who reminded his mother, allowing their family to escape danger and changing their perilous situation.

Lü Yan quickly approached the Taoist priest, bowed respectfully, and said:
"Junior Lü Yan pays respects to Daoist Jin Lingzi. We are truly grateful to you for saving our family's lives."

Master Jin Lingzi smiled as he looked at Lü Yan and nodded slightly.

"Your family and I are old friends, so there's no need for such formalities."

"I passed through the city earlier and heard that you, the young master, are now in charge of the Lu family restaurant." "Not bad, not bad. It seems that the boy from back then has now grown into a capable young man."

Upon hearing this, Lü Yan shook his head with a wry smile and said:

"Master, you flatter me. I am far inferior to my elder brother. I am self-aware and know that I am not cut out for business."

"However, I wonder if your sudden visit here is for the sake of my Lü family? Since I am honored to meet you today, I would like to invite you to stay at the Lü family residence. My father and mother will be overjoyed to see you."

Master Jin Lingzi could tell that the child wasn't really interested, so he quickly changed the subject. Of course, his desire for the child to visit the Lü residence was genuine.

Master Jin Lingzi shook his head slightly and said to Lü Yan in front of him:

"This humble Taoist has been traveling far and wide, and I am merely passing through this place. Sensing the presence of karmic connections, I came to see you. Today, I must continue my journey and cannot linger any longer."

"But don't worry, your mother and I made an agreement back then that I would find an opportunity to visit your family at the Lü residence and ask for a cup of tea."

"As for now."

Master Jin Lingzi smiled and waved his whisk, sweeping away the weeds that had fallen on the stone table and his body. In their place appeared a jade wine bottle and two jade wine cups.

"You're twenty years old now. I wonder if you'd like to learn how to drink? If you have, why not have a few drinks with me? My wine is not something that ordinary people can get their hands on."

When Lü Yan saw the Taoist priest's amazing magic, his eyes lit up, and his previous annoyance was forgotten. He felt a strange joy in his heart.

He said confidently:

"Please rest assured, Daoist Master, although I often drink alcohol, I still have a certain tolerance for it."

Two years ago, his older brother called him to the city. Behind his parents' backs, he and his brother drank three jars of good wine. His older brother wanted to see him make a fool of himself, but after drinking the three jars, his older brother got so drunk that he was unconscious, while he himself was completely oblivious.

Since he awoke that day, his elder brother had been looking at him with a strange gaze and never mentioned drinking to him again, but secretly called him a born god of wine.
Lu Yan strode forward, sat down opposite Jin Lingzi without any ceremony, bowed to the Taoist priest opposite him, and then watched as Taoist priest Jin Lingzi picked up the wine pot and filled two wine cups.

Soon, the aroma of apricots wafted from the wine glass, making Lü Yan's eyes light up.

Jin Lingzi picked up her wine glass and raised it towards Lü Yan opposite her, saying:
"My disciples are spread all over the world. Each disciple plants an apricot tree in my mountain gate after completing their apprenticeship. This apricot wine is brewed from the apricots that grow on this tree. Not to mention ordinary people, even the gods in heaven cannot drink it whenever they want."

Upon hearing this, Lü Yan was initially skeptical, feeling that the Taoist priest Jin Lingzi was simply boasting. However, his gaze was still drawn to the apricot fragrance that kept wafting into his nostrils.

"Heh~ Stop just looking, try it, young friend Lü Yan, please~"

Lü Yan nodded quickly and replied:

"Yes, thank you, Daoist Master. Please, Daoist Master."

Seeing that Daoist Jin Lingzi had drunk the wine cup in one gulp, Lü Yan eagerly brought the apricot wine to his lips and took a small sip.

Soon, an indescribable, wonderful aroma of wine filled his taste buds, making his eyes light up.

(End of this chapter)