NOVEL NEXT Chapter 115: Disguised as a Woman
Chapter 115: Disguised as a Woman
Moments later, in the main hall, Li Zhuxuan finally let go of Lin Fengmian’s ear after forcing him to confess everything truthfully.
Lin Fengmian rubbed his reddened ear and grimaced in pain. “Ouch, it hurts so much… It’s going to fall off!”
Li Zhuxuan said with a cold expression, “If your father finds out about this, it will be a miracle if he doesn’t break your legs.”
Lin Fengmian shuddered at the thought. While Li Zhuxuan was sharp-tongued and didn’t care much about public opinion, Lin Wencheng was different. He could really give Lin Fengmian a beating.
Lin Fengmian made a miserable face. “Mother, you don’t want to lose your only son, do you?”
Li Zhuxuan sneered. “So you had the guts to do it, but not the guts to take responsibility?”
With a cheeky grin, Lin Fengmian tried to charm his way out of it. “Mother, if you leave her alone in there, I guarantee that those people who have been eyeing her for a while will swoop in with sweet lies and snatch her away.”
Li Zhuxuan’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “So Young Master Lin acted first, forcibly bringing home a widow who just lost her mother-in-law?”
“Do you have any idea what people will say?”
Unfazed, Lin Fengmian boldly replied, “I know-and I don’t care.”
Li Zhuxuan’s expression changed slightly. “Mian’er, what are you really thinking?”
Lin Fengmian’s mischievous demeanor faded away, replaced by seriousness. “I think… I like her. I don’t care about her past, and I don’t care that she’s a widow.”
“If Father wants to hit me or scold me, so be it. I’ll take it. He can’t really beat me to death.”
Looking at the son who had grown more mature than she expected, Li Zhuxuan sighed softly, a gentle smile appearing on her face.
“You have grown up. As long as you know what you want, that’s all that matters. I’ll say some good words to your father on your behalf.”
In truth, Li Zhuxuan didn’t have anything against Song Youwei. After all, Song Youwei hadn’t even set foot in her husband’s house before he died.
With Zhu Granny watching over her, and Song Youwei being disciplined and proper, she was really still an untouched maiden despite the title of widow.
As long as Lin Fengmian liked her – and didn’t insist on making her his first wife – Li Zhuxuan had no objections.
Overjoyed, Lin Fengmian rushed over to massage his mother’s shoulders, grinning from ear to ear. “Mother, you are the best!”
Li Zhuxuan rolled her eyes at him, her tone cold. “Only now do you realize how good your mother is?”
Lin Fengmian grinned and said, “I always knew that.”
He suddenly remembered something and asked, “By the way, Mother, how much do you know about Tai Xu Temple?”
Li Zhuxuan looked puzzled. “Why are you asking about it all of a sudden?”
Lin Fengmian slightly dodged the question and said, “I’m just curious. After all, I had never heard of Tai Xu Temple before, so why did Master Huanglong show up all of a sudden?”
Li Zhuxuan rolled her eyes at him. “Tai Xu Temple is located in the mountains ten miles outside of Ning City. It was relatively unknown until Master Huanglong arrived a year ago, and since then, it has gained quite a reputation.”
Lin Fengmian was taken aback. “So Master Huanglong wasn’t originally from Tai Xu Temple?”
Li Zhuxuan explained, “No, he only came to Tai Xu Temple a year ago. After arriving, he demonstrated remarkable abilities and began to cultivate there.”
“Prominent families in the city have asked him for help, and he often succeeds effortlessly, which has naturally led to his fame. As a result, the Tai Xu Temple has seen an increase in the number of followers.”
“When demons started appearing in the city, someone recommended him to your Uncle Zhao. He repeatedly invited Master Huanglong to come down from the mountain before he finally agreed.”
Lin Fengmian asked curiously, “Mother, have you had any dealings with him?”
Li Zhuxuan thought for a moment and replied, “I’ve crossed paths with him a few times, but it was just a nodding acquaintance; we don’t know each other.”
Seeing that Li Zhuxuan didn’t have much information, Lin Fengmian decided to look for Wen Qinlin to see if she had any updates.
It turned out that Wen Qinlin had already returned, accompanied by Xia Yunxi and another person.
Lin Fengmian rushed over. “Brother Wen, how come you all came back together? Did you find out anything?”
After exchanging information, they discovered that they all knew about the same things. It seemed that Tai Xu Temple was fortified like an iron fortress.
However, Wen Qinlin had received an unusual piece of information from Zhao Yazhi.
“Apart from the main entrance, there are formations set up all over the Tai Xu Temple. If you want to enter, you can only go through the front door.”
Lin Fengmian frowned. “What’s so strange about that? Maintaining formations is common practice, isn’t it?”
Wen Qinlin shook his head. “It’s normal for a sect, but not for a Daoist temple. Spirit Stones are needed to maintain a formation.”
“Zhao Yazhi learned from Lu Xun that Tai Xu Temple started activating the formations a month and a half before the demon incidents began.”
Lin Fengmian knitted his brows. “This all came from Zhao Yazhi?”
Wen Qinlin nodded. “She also mentioned that there are some places in Tai Xu Temple that Lu Xun never lets her go to, but he often takes female pilgrims there. No one knows what he’s hiding there.”
Zhou Xiaoping added, “I have also asked around. It’s said that the Tai Xu Temple is especially effective, especially in matters of childbirth.”
Lin Fengmian looked puzzled. “Effective in childbirth?”
Zhou Xiaoping nodded. “Yes. It’s said that those who have struggled with infertility for years will become pregnant after just a few visits. It’s quite miraculous.”
Lin Fengmian cursed under his breath; he could tell that this was not a miraculous pregnancy effect.
Clearly, someone was playing the role of a fertility goddess here.
His gaze fell on the little fox in Xia Yunxi’s arms, its eyes darting around, and he cursed himself for being so naive.
Isn’t there a ready-made victim here? We can just ask it!
He reached out and picked up the little fox from Xia Yunxi’s arms and asked, “Little one, do you think Master Huanglong did this to you?
The little fox was taken aback for a moment, then tilted its head in confusion and looked at him with wide, innocent eyes.
“Is it a stupid fox?”
Lin Fengmian was stunned, causing the little fox to puff out its chest and raise its paws, seemingly protesting that it wasn’t stupid at all.
Zhou Xiaoping shouted in annoyance, “You are so clueless! How should it know what Master Huanglong looks like? You have to describe him!”
As she spoke, she gestured wildly to imitate Huanglong’s appearance. The little fox nodded repeatedly, but then shook its head.
This left Zhou Xiaoping speechless, and she muttered under her breath, “Looks like it really is a stupid fox!”
The fox growled in anger and bared his teeth as if it disagreed with her.
Lin Fengmian helplessly shook his head. “Brother Wen, no matter what, there’s definitely something wrong with Tai Xu Temple. We need to investigate it.”
Wen Qinlin looked worried. “But we’ve all shown our faces to Lu Xun and the others. If we go back, they’ll be on high alert. It won’t be easy.”
Everyone fell silent, and suddenly, Lin Fengmian smacked his palm. “I have a plan!”
Wen Qinlin looked at him curiously. “What’s the plan?”
Lin Fengmian replied confidently, “We will disguise ourselves. They’ve only seen us once, so I don’t think they’ll recognize us.”
Wen Qinlin shook his head. “But none of us are good at disguise. A bad disguise won’t fool cultivators.”
At that moment, Zhou Xiaoping’s eyes brightened. “What if I disguise myself as a man?”
Lin Fengmian looked at her and suddenly laughed. “If you dress as a man, it would actually make things easier!”
“Lin Fengmian, what do you mean? I’m going to slap you!” Zhou Xiaoping quickly understood and glared at him.
Lin Fengmian couldn’t help but chuckle, then waved his hand thoughtfully.
“We can’t all go, someone has to stay in town. Brother Wen, you must go. Let’s sacrifice ourselves.”
“Let’s go together, and you all stay behind. If we don’t return, you must take my parents out of Ning City immediately.”
Wen Qinlin was taken aback. “How can the two of us go?”
Lin Fengmian helplessly replied, “Of course, we’ll disguise ourselves as women! I don’t think they will ever suspect that we would go to such lengths!”
“We’ll pretend to be female pilgrims going to offer incense, and use that as an excuse to explore Tai Xu Temple and see what’s really going on inside.”