213: Chapter 209 Taoist Wang 213: Chapter 209 Taoist Wang On the sofa, Ye Rongzhong and Song Ling looked at each other.
“Chen Hai, I have a good impression of him; he truly is a good kid.”
“But Qingqing, you are still a student and a bit too young to be dating him, isn’t it a bit early?”
Gently stroking her daughter’s hair, Song Ling spoke soothingly.
“Mom, I’m almost twenty, I’m not young anymore.”
“When I was your age, I was already married to your dad and your older brother was on the way!” Pouting, Ye Qingqing defended herself.
If it weren’t for her older brother forcing her on the plane, she really wouldn’t have wanted to come back.
After all, she knew very well that as soon as she returned, her parents would definitely give her a stern lecture.
If it weren’t for the fact that she was in college and already considered an adult, her parents double-teaming her wouldn’t have been out of the question!
Like her older brother Ye Cheng, when he was her age, their dad had chased him down several streets with a broom.
“What era are we in now?
And what era was it when your mom and I got married?
Stop comparing yourself to your mom.”
“A girl’s reputation is at stake, just dating is one thing, but to actually live together with that Chen Hai?”
“Is our Ye family’s daughter so cheap?”
“If only that damn kid wasn’t in front of me, or else I would break his legs!”
Compared to Song Ling, Ye Rongzhong was clearly the one playing the bad cop.
With a stern face, he glared fiercely at his daughter and scolded.
“Dad, don’t listen to brother; I really didn’t live with Chen Hai, at most I just rested at his place when I was tired.”
Glancing at her dad, Ye Qingqing weakly explained.
But her explanation only made Ye Rongzhong’s face turn even darker.
Seeing this, Ye Qingqing quickly added, “Dad, you always doted on me the most, you surely want your precious daughter to be happy, right?”
“I know you can’t bear to part with me, but I will eventually get married and can’t stay by your side forever!”
“I just like Chen Hai, I like being with him, and we will get married right after I graduate from college.”
“Then, not only will you have a daughter, but you’ll also have a son-in-law to respect you; isn’t that better…”
As she spoke, Ye Qingqing moved closer to Ye Rongzhong, grabbing his arm and began acting coquettishly.
When dealing with others, Ye Rongzhong was unyielding, and once he made a decision, ten oxen couldn’t pull him back.
However, he was susceptible to his daughter Ye Qingqing’s methods.
In the past, no matter what mistake Ye Qingqing made, as long as she clung to Ye Rongzhong’s arm, acted coy, and spoke sweetly to him, he would burst into laughter in an instant.
“A daughter is hard to retain once she grows up…”
He saw his own little cotton-padded jacket about to be worn by someone else.
At this moment, Ye Rongzhong, helpless and smiling wryly, slapped his thigh and even sighed deeply.
“Song Ling, you deal with your daughter.”
“I feel so stifled here; I’m going out for a smoke to get some air!” With a dark face, he stood up and walked outside.
“Mom, did I upset dad?”
“Why did he go outside; what does that mean?
Does it mean he isn’t against me being with Chen Hai?”
Tilting her head, Ye Qingqing looked innocently at her mother Song Ling, probing as she asked.
“Your dad just can’t bear to let you go,” chuckling behind her hand, Song Ling added, “Before you came back, your dad and I had already discussed you and Chen Hai’s situation for a long time.”
“Mom knows that Chen Hai really has true skills, and he is indeed very attractive to a young girl like you.”
“With his skills, becoming our Ye family’s son-in-law, he just about qualifies!”
“But, as the saying goes, ‘heroes often break the law with martial prowess,’ and the likes of Chen Hai, the more skillful they are, the more unruly they become.”
“Being with Chen Hai, your dad and I are worried you might be mistreated.”
“We are giving you two choices, either you go abroad for studies immediately—time can dilute everything, and after three or five years, when you come back to the country, these feelings will naturally fade.”
“Or if you insist on being together with Chen Hai, then fine, have Chen Hai’s family come meet us in Yang City.”
“You two are still students, getting married now isn’t quite realistic, but setting an engagement to establish the relationship is definitely necessary.”
“After all, having reached this stage with him, our Ye family’s daughter can’t just be with someone without any formal status.”
…
Before Song Ling could finish speaking, Ye Qingqing had already joyfully jumped up.
“Mom, I love you and dad to death!”
“If you send me abroad for studies, I definitely won’t go; of your two options, I will without hesitation choose the latter.”
“After returning to the Capital City, I’ll immediately discuss the engagement with Chen Hai…”
Hugging her mom, Ye Qingqing’s lips planted several firm kisses on Song Ling’s face.
“You mischievous girl, stop being naughty, let me finish speaking.”
“Before you’re engaged, you absolutely can’t go to live with Chen Hai again.”
“Even if you really get engaged, having a formal relationship, you should try to stay at his place as little as possible, after all, you are still young.”
“Additionally, when you’re sharing a room, you must remember to take protective measures and absolutely avoid creating a life…”
As she spoke, Song Ling, as someone experienced, began to explain to her daughter the precautions to be taken when together.
“Mom, I know,” Qingqing’s little cheeks flushed red, still a girl’s shyness embroiled by her mother’s few words.
At around five in the afternoon, in Capital City, Liuhua Alley.
Old Man Li was leading the way, pushing a bicycle, followed by an elder in a grey robe and cloth shoes.
The elder, his beard flowing, long hair over his shoulders, carried a peach wood sword on his back, and wore a bun atop his head secured with a hairpin.
At first glance, he appeared kind and benevolent, seemingly possessing an aura of a refined being full of profound wisdom.
“Taoist Wang, the courtyard I’m living in now is just inside the alley, just walk forward another seventy or eighty meters, and you’ll arrive!”
“These past few days, just as nighttime falls, and I merely doze off, I begin to feel all sorts of strange things flittering before my eyes.”
“If it were just me alone experiencing this, it could be dismissed as hallucinations.”
“But now, several households living in our courtyard are experiencing the same thing, there’s no doubt, some impure presence has entered our courtyard.”
“Taoist Wang, with your profound divine skills, I once witnessed with my own eyes a talisman you drew burst into flames with a single stir of your hand.”
“If you would honor us by helping to resolve the situation in our courtyard, it would greatly set my mind at ease!”
Pushing the bike, Old Man Li was all smiles, flattering the old man beside him with every sentence.
“Old Li, indeed, something about this place feels off.”
“Just entering this Liuhua Alley, I felt an instant chill.”
“Where yin qi gathers, evil spirits are bound to roam.”
“I hope the situation in the courtyard you mentioned isn’t too severe, otherwise…”
Putting on airs, Taoist Wang muttered under his breath while slowly walking and calculating carefully with his fingers.
Being a sage, real or not, playing a bit mysterious was, of course, necessary.
Halfway through his words, his face turned serious, and he sighed deeply, then gave a wry smile and shook his head.
His words came to an abrupt end, not continuing further.
“Taoist, if the situation is severe, what would happen?” Old Man Li, his expression changing, asked in perfect accompaniment.
Shoe Maker Wu, scared into moving first thing this morning, nearly chopped his own wife last night!
He, along with Aunt Liu and Butcher Zhang, although not yet to that severe extent, had already been troubled enough to lose several nights’ sleep.
Without needing to think, Old Man Li was at least eighty percent sure the situation in his courtyard was of the particularly severe kind.
“I am sixty-three this year, having practiced Taoist Skills for nearly fifty years!”
“If it’s just some trivial dirty stuff, a wave of my hand can turn them to ash.”
“But if, by any chance, it’s something particularly formidable, even with my abilities, handling it might greatly drain my vitality.”
“However, I still need to assess the situation in your courtyard first!”
Taoist Wang sighed again and slowly continued.
While they casually chatted, they had already reached the gate of the courtyard where Old Man Li lived.
“Old Li, you’ve finally returned!”
“This is… the greatly skilled Taoist Wang you spoke of!”
As soon as the two appeared, Aunt Liu, Butcher Zhang, and a few others who had been anxiously waiting inside rushed to greet them.
It must be said, whether Taoist Wang was truly capable or not is another matter, but his appearance was indeed extraordinary.
At first sight, both Aunt Liu and Butcher Zhang felt dazzled.
“Old Li, is this the courtyard you mentioned?”
“The entity occupying this place seems quite formidable!”
“Wait here on the side, while I investigate this courtyard thoroughly.”
Unfazed, Taoist Wang didn’t even regard those greeting him.
He opened the large cloth bag he was carrying, pulled out an apricot-yellow Taoist robe, and draped it over himself.
Then, he extracted a compass from the bag and, muttering to himself, began pacing the courtyard.
At this time, the sunset had not yet fallen, and the earthly vitality was still strong.
Even if there were any evil spirits, they normally wouldn’t manifest during this time.
The compass in Taoist Wang’s hand, likely a cheap item bought from a fair, made several rounds through the courtyard without any reaction.
As for the quality of his own items, no one but Taoist Wang himself would be sure.
No reaction from the compass?
No problem, for this was already within his expectations.
Seizing the moment while distanced from Old Man Li, Aunt Liu, and others, Taoist Wang, holding the compass in one hand, reached discreetly around his waist with the other.
The next moment, a magnet the size of a button appeared, unbeknownst to anyone, in his hand.