At seven forty in the evening, cold rain was falling. A plane from the south slowly landed at Geermu City Airport.
Wan Yunting, along with Chang Wude, Kang Nuolan, and the senior and junior disciples Xu Lingwei and Li Zihang, disembarked. Following everyone else, they arrived at the Geermu City Airport's departure hall. After everyone had collected their luggage, Wan Yunting said, "The nine o'clock flight to Huatugou Airport in Mang'an City departs soon. Let's go out and see if there's anywhere to eat. Let's grab a bite first."
"Okay."
Chang Wude nodded. Kang Nuolan and the Xu Lingwei and Li Zihang siblings naturally had no objections, so they followed Wan Yunting out of the airport. Spotting a local specialty restaurant next door, the five of them went in and ordered several characteristic dishes.
As the weather was cold here, Chang Wude also ordered two bottles of high-proof white spirit. Kang Nuolan then said, "Master, Mistress doesn't allow you to drink."
Chang Wude, who was pouring the spirit, immediately shot Kang Nuolan a glare upon hearing this and reprimanded, "Your Mistress isn't here, she can't control me."
Wan Yunting, sitting beside him, chuckled, took the bottle from Chang Wude's hand, and poured for him himself. He smiled and said, "By rights, Grandpa Chang, you are now my Master too."
"Ah, it's good that you're so considerate, you brat."
Chang Wude nodded, picked up the filled wine glass, and downed it in one gulp, letting out a satisfied exhale. "Comfortable."
"Junior Brother Wan, you think Uncle-Master is your Master?" Li Zihang asked, looking up at him while eating.
"Yes."
Wan Yunting smiled.
"Right."
Chang Wude took a bite of his food and then put down his chopsticks. He pointed at Xu Lingwei and Li Zihang and said, "When we return to the sect, you two are not to reveal that he is the personal disciple of our Grand-Uncle-Master Gongsun, understand?"
Hearing this, the siblings exchanged glances and asked with confusion, "Why, Uncle-Master?"
"Don't ask why, just listen to me. If anyone asks, you tell them he is my personal disciple, Chang Wude. Got it?" Chang Wude stared at them with his old eyes, speaking sternly.
"Oh, we understand," Li Zihang nodded, then asked, "Does our Master know about this?"
"Your Master knows."
Chang Wude picked up his chopsticks and continued eating. Although Li Zihang and Xu Lingwei didn't understand why Wan Yunting would return to the sect as Grand-Uncle-Master Gongsun Xiu Liang's personal disciple, they didn't press further.
"Nuolan, from now on, you can call me Senior Brother," Wan Yunting also turned to smile at Kang Nuolan beside him.
"Mhm."
Although Kang Nuolan understood what was happening, she always appeared indifferent, never showing much curiosity.
"Master, then I'll toast you," Wan Yunting raised his wine glass and smiled at Chang Wude.
"My pleasure."
Chang Wude was also happy. He raised his wine glass and clinked it with Wan Yunting's. Glancing at Wan Yunting, he chuckled, "Your Master sent you to find me because he actually wants you to become my disciple. After this matter is settled, when we return to Huadu City, you, my boy, must properly perform the ceremony of discipleship."
"Alright."
Wan Yunting smiled and nodded, then downed his wine. He was certainly willing to become Chang Wude's disciple.
As he had said, his Master Gongsun Xiu Liang had asked him to find Chang Wude precisely so he could become his disciple and learn the martial way.
"By the way, Master, is the Ancestor Worship Ceremony held by the sect very lively?" Wan Yunting asked curiously soon after.
"Yes, it's very lively," Li Zihang immediately said excitedly. "The Ancestor Worship Ceremony is only held once every ten years. I remember the ceremony ten years ago, many people from other sects came to participate, and our Daoist temple also held martial arts competitions. It was very lively."
"Is that so?"
Wan Yunting turned to Chang Wude and asked, "Does the Ancestor Worship Ceremony also invite other sects to participate?"
"Mhm," Chang Wude said, nodding while sipping his wine. "The Ancestor Worship Ceremony is the grand event of our Wuliang Daoist Temple held every ten years. It mainly invites sects that have good relationships with our Wuliang Daoist Temple to send representatives to participate. At the same time, it's to showcase our Wuliang Daoist Temple and enhance our reputation among the sects."
Wan Yunting listened and nodded, smiling, "It seems we've caught it at the right time."
"I heard from my senior brother that the scale of this Ancestor Worship Ceremony held by our sect is very grand. Uncle-Master Sima is overseeing the work and has invited people from many sects to participate!" Li Zihang said excitedly, widening his eyes.
This remark made Chang Wude and Wan Yunting's expressions falter. They exchanged glances, realizing that Sima Boyong's return to the sect this time was not without a significant purpose!
They chatted while eating. After eight-thirty in the evening, Wan Yunting led Chang Wude and the others back to the airport. He and Kang Nuolan went to collect their tickets for the flight to Huatugou Airport in Mang'an City, scheduled for boarding at nine o'clock.
"Let's go."
Wan Yunting, holding the tickets, called out to Chang Wude, Xu Lingwei, and Li Zihang, who were waiting in the departure hall, and they proceeded to go through security and board the plane, again sitting in first class.
The journey took over two hours. After the plane took off, Wan Yunting and the others sat in their first-class seats without speaking, closing their eyes to rest. It wasn't until eleven twenty minutes in the evening that the plane slowly landed at Huatugou Airport.
Wan Yunting carried two luggage bags, cloaked in a black down jacket. Chang Wude, who was accompanying him, was also wearing a black leather jacket, likely an old-fashioned cowhide jacket from over a decade ago. Though it looked thin, the physique of a martial artist was far beyond that of ordinary people.
The weather here was currently around 4-5 degrees Celsius, sometimes dropping to zero, but there was no snowfall yet. They heard it might snow tomorrow.
"Master, let's find a hotel to stay for the night first. Tomorrow at ten in the morning, we'll take the train directly to Buxida County," Wan Yunting said, turning to Chang Wude after exiting the airport.
"Mhm, you arrange it," Chang Wude nodded. He wouldn't bother with such matters.
Flagging down two taxis, Wan Yunting asked the drivers to take them to a nearby hotel.
Wan Yunting and Chang Wude shared a room with Li Zihang, while Kang Nuolan and Xu Lingwei shared another. After washing up, everyone went to rest.
By eight o'clock the next morning, everyone was awake.
Wan Yunting had booked the train tickets the night before for the ten o'clock train. After tidying up, they left the hotel at half-past eight. After breakfast at a breakfast shop next to the hotel, they took a taxi to the train station to catch their train.
The distance from Mang'an City to Buxida County was over six hundred kilometers. Although there were buses here, they were slower than trains. However, it would still take several hours to reach Buxida County.
As the train was still the old-fashioned green-skinned train and not very fast, Wan Yunting, sitting on the train, had a panoramic view of the northwestern scenery along the route from Mang'an City to Buxida County. Coupled with the falling snowflakes that day, he couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at the vastness of his country's territory.
The train moved slowly. Wan Yunting and Kang Nuolan, both from the south, were seeing snow falling outside for the first time. They didn't feel time passing slowly at all; on the contrary, like other tourists, they felt time was flying by too quickly.
At two fifty in the afternoon, the train slowly came to a halt at the train station in Buxida County.
The county's train station was quite rudimentary. Moreover, Buxida County is located at the junction of Qinghai Province and Xinjiang, at the foot of the Kunlun Mountains. The population here is not large, and the economy is also not very robust. The locals rely on raising livestock and developing tourism. Therefore, it naturally couldn't be compared to counties in other economically developed regions of China.
"It feels quite nice..."
Stepping out of the train station and looking at the simple streets of Buxida County with snow falling, most locals traveled by electric scooters or motorcycles. Although there were cars, they were few. Everyone was wearing padded jackets and overcoats, their faces reddened by the cold weather, giving them a simple and honest appearance.
"There's a mutton restaurant ahead. Let's go and have a bowl of mutton soup first."
Chang Wude spotted a local specialty mutton restaurant ahead and eagerly headed towards it. Wan Yunting, Kang Nuolan, Xu Lingwei, and Li Zihang quickly followed. They lifted the curtain at the entrance and went in. It was a very simple restaurant with just a few small dining tables and chairs. The owner, a bald man, spoke with a Xinjiang accent, "What would you like to eat, sirs?"
"One portion of lamb ribs, lamb trotters, and tripe soup, bring it all."
Chang Wude waved his hand grandly. The owner happily shouted, telling them to find their own seats, and went into the kitchen to prepare the dishes.
Soon, the owner's wife brought over five large bowls of tripe soup. Then, the owner brought a plate of roasted lamb trotters, a portion of boiled lamb ribs, and a mutton stew. The aroma of mutton filled the entire room, causing Kang Nuolan to raise her eyebrows; she clearly didn't like lamb.
"Ah, delicious."
Chang Wude took a few sips of the tripe soup and let out a satisfied sigh. "This taste hasn't changed in decades. Owner, bring me another bottle of Xifeng wine."
"Coming right up."
Saying this, the owner went to the shelf behind the counter and brought over a bottle of Xifeng wine, saying with a smile, "Old man, try this wine and see if it's authentic."
"Fill them up."
Chang Wude grabbed a roasted lamb trotter. The lamb trotters had been boiled until tender and then roasted. With cumin and other seasonings added, the taste was simply divine.
"Right."
The owner personally poured wine for him and Wan Yunting, smiling and saying, "You gentlemen are tourists from out of town, right?"
"Thank you."
Wan Yunting tapped the table and smiled at the owner, "Yes."
"We are disciples from a mountain Daoist temple," Li Zihang said, not forgetting to mention, while gnawing on a lamb trotter.
"Oh, so you are masters from Wuliang Daoist Temple. I heard your temple is holding an Ancestor Worship Ceremony event recently, which has attracted quite a few tourists. The streets are very lively," the owner said with a smile.
"Yes, yes, we saw," Li Zihang nodded and smiled.
"Please enjoy your meal, gentlemen," the owner said, not wanting to chat further. He turned and went back to sit at the counter.
Chang Wude took a sip of the Xifeng wine and nodded with satisfaction. It seemed to stir up memories of his past at the Wuliang Daoist Temple, of times he and Gongsun Xiu Liang would secretly sneak down the mountain to find a mutton restaurant and eat lamb and drink Xifeng wine with gusto.
Alas, now that they were separated by life and death, all that remained were memories.