This humble Taoist priest wants to take the college entrance exam.

Chapter 155 Returning to the Mountain (Thanks to Wen Shanyu for being the Alliance Leader)
Have a good night's sleep.

Even at Wen Zhixia's house, Chen Shi'an still got up at five o'clock in the morning.

When I woke up, the room was quiet. Even the two elders wouldn't usually wake up so early.

Chen Shi'an maintained his usual routine. After waking up, he moved quietly and took the towel and toothbrush the girl had prepared for him to wash up.

After washing up, I returned to my room, changed into my martial arts uniform, and packed my belongings from my bag.

Then tidy up the bed after sleeping, folding the sheets, blankets, and pillows neatly.

Chen Shi'an didn't just sit idly in the room. Instead, he slowly walked up to the rooftop on the fourth floor to get some fresh air, practice his martial arts, or gaze at the morning scenery of the small county town from the railing.

I took out my phone, opened the map, and searched for the cycling route back.

If we were to take the long-distance bus back, it would take us two more stops from Wen Zhixia's house, and then we would have to transfer to another long-distance bus to get back to the town, which would take about an hour and twenty minutes.

Now that he has a bicycle, Chen Shi'an can simply navigate to the small village at the foot of the mountain. The map shows that it will take a total of three hours and twelve minutes.

Chen Shi'an changed the starting point again, setting it to his current residence, Jiahe Community. The map showed that the ride would take a total of five hours and twenty-one minutes.

Not far away.

Compared to taking the bus, it only takes twice as long.

The average cycling pace used on the map is 20 kilometers per hour, which is quite slow for Chen Shi'an, and he wouldn't actually need to ride for that long.

The real time-consuming part was the mountain path from the foot of the mountain to the Taoist temple at the top. That path was impossible to cycle on; one had to walk. Chen Shi'an pondered whether to leave the bicycle at the villager's house after reaching the foot of the mountain or push it back up the mountain...

At 6:30 in the morning, the sky was still dark and the sun had not yet risen above the horizon, but the sky and the ground were already bright.

Chen Shi'an, who had studied physics, knew that this was a phenomenon of light scattering, and the light from a certain point in time was called dawn.

Chen Shi'an looked up at the eastern sky, and the cat jumped onto the rooftop railing to wait with him for the first rays of dawn.

To Chen Shi'an's surprise, Wen Zhixia's WeChat call arrived before Chen Guang.

The girl's voice sounded somewhat flustered on the phone—

"Hey? Taoist priest, where are you? Did you sneak off?"

At that moment, Wen Zhixia, still in her pajamas, had just woken up. Standing in front of Chen Shi'an's door, she saw the neatly folded pillows and blankets inside and her heart skipped a beat. Her sleepiness vanished instantly, and she quickly made a phone call to him.

"Little Cicada woke up so early?"

"Where are you? Where are you? We agreed to go out together, why did you sneak off first!"

"I didn't run away."

"Where are you...?"

"Come up to the rooftop and watch the sunrise together."

"You're on the roof?!"

"Okay, come quick."

A moment later, Chen Shi'an heard footsteps on the stairs behind him and ran quickly.

When I turned my head again, the girl in cute pajamas was already in front of me.

Seeing the Taoist priest and the cat turn around to look at her, Wen Zhixia finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"I thought you ran away!"

"Little cicada is awake so early?"

"...I was afraid you'd oversleep, so I woke you up."

"I woke up a while ago."

"Then why don't you sleep a little longer? Can't you sleep well..."

"No, I slept very well. I'm used to waking up early no matter where I am."

"Watch the sunrise?"

"Hmm, have you ever seen the sunrise in your county, Little Cicada?"

"……without."

Wen Zhixia felt a little ashamed. She had never made a point of watching the sunrise in the place where she grew up. Instead, she would go to places by the sea with great interest to watch the sunrise over the places where other people lived.

She stood beside Chen Shi'an, the low buildings in the distance forming a gray-blue silhouette, and the thin mist from last night still lingering on the telephone poles.

"That's perfect, I'll show you around today."

"Heh, you're talking like I'm the guest!"

The girl reached out her finger and touched the cold metal railing on the wall, which was still covered with autumn dew that had condensed the night before.

When does the sun rise?

"coming."

As soon as Chen Shi'an finished speaking, a faint light appeared on the eastern horizon.

Before long, the sun peeked out, first as a bright golden hue, then slowly climbing upwards, dyeing the surrounding clouds orange-red and light pink, and even bathing the two people and a cat watching the sunrise on the rooftop in a warm glow.

Wen Zhixia never thought the sunrise in a small county town was anything special, but at this moment she felt a sense of wonder, a kind of small yet beautiful splendor.

Just a moment ago, their faces were still shrouded in mist, yet at some inexplicable instant, they were illuminated by the first rays of dawn, their shadows appearing along with the light, stretching long and narrow across the rooftop floor—

The longest shadow belongs to Chen Shi'an, the shortest shadow next to his is hers, and the dark shadow pacing back and forth along the wall with its big tail is the cat's.

Wen Zhixia took out her phone and looked at Chen Shi'an with a grin.

"Taoist priest, let's take a picture together!"

"alright."

"Ahhh, I haven't changed out of my pajamas yet!"

……

After seven o'clock, the small county town became lively.

Wen Zhixue and Li Yilan also woke up and, together with Wen Zhixia, moved all the luggage they would need for the two-day road trip into the trunk of the car.

"Xiao Chen, if you don't have anything else to do, you can come with us on a road trip," Li Yilan said with a smile.

Wen Zhixia remained silent, but her ears were perked up.

"No, Aunt Lan, you go ahead. I have to go back to the mountains today. We can go together another time."

Wen Zhixia remained silent, her shoulders slumping. "Alright then, Shi'an, let's have breakfast together before you go. Uncle will take you to try the most authentic noodle soup restaurant in our area."

"Okay, thank you, Uncle Wen."

Not forgetting the wood she stole for the Taoist priest yesterday, Wen Zhixia dragged out the sack of timber and had Chen Shi'an tie it to the back of the bicycle.

Li Yilan also went back into the house, took a lot of local specialties, fruits and snacks, packed them up, and asked Chen Shi'an to take them back to eat. She also gave him two bottles of water to take with him.

Since they were all heartfelt gifts that he couldn't refuse, Chen Shi'an accepted them without hesitation, and the back seat of his bicycle was packed full of them.

At 7:30, Wen Zhixue locked the door, and the group went out together to have breakfast.

The noodle shop wasn't far away. Wen Zhixue drove with the mother and daughter in the car, while Chen Shi'an rode a bicycle with a cat perched on her shoulder, following behind him.

To accommodate Chen Shi'an's cycling speed, Wen Zhixue did not drive fast.

Wen Zhixia sat in the back seat of the car, occasionally turning her head to look through the rear window at the Taoist priest riding closely behind her, chuckling and waving to him.

Arriving at the noodle shop, the four of us shared a hearty bowl of noodle soup for breakfast before parting ways.

"Uncle Wen, Aunt Lan, Xiao Zhi, shall I go now?"

"Okay, Xiao Chen, be careful on the road. Come visit us again next time you have time."

"Okay, Uncle Wen and Aunt Lan, you have fun too. Little Zhi, I'm leaving now, bye-bye."

"Go on, bye-bye!"

Wen Zhixia waved to him and watched him get on his bicycle. The black cat jumped onto the luggage on the back of the bicycle, and then onto his shoulder.

A person, a cat, and a bicycle rode along the street, gradually disappearing into the distance until they reached the corner and were no longer in sight.

The holiday has only just begun.

The girl inexplicably felt that her vacation was over...

Ahhhhh!
Why do I suddenly feel like I want to go back to school so badly?!
The girl who wished she could have a day off every day yesterday now feels like she's gone mad...

……

[Head west along the current road, turn right after 60 meters, and enter...]
The mobile phone hanging on the bracket at the front of the car is broadcasting map navigation information.

For Chen Shi'an, cycling is not only a mode of transportation, but also a unique pleasure.

The scenery along the way was beautiful, but he wasn't riding very fast.

The bicycle doesn't have an odometer, but the mobile phone map can display the speed. The current average riding speed is only about 40 kilometers per hour.

Occasionally, when he encounters traffic jams, he can ignore the congestion and ride directly through the side roads, just like the cyclist I saw that day.

This trip down the mountain to pursue his studies was the first time in his life that he had been so far from the Taoist temple and for so long.

Chen Shi'an was unusually excited as he was about to return home.

Similarly, there was Fatty on his shoulder. Even though there was a backpack for it to crawl into, it still insisted on climbing onto his shoulder and accompanying him on the journey back.

The map originally predicted a three-hour ride, but Chen Shi'an returned to the town in less than an hour and a half.

Chen Shi'an no longer needs navigation to get from the town to the village at the foot of the mountain.

He gripped the handlebars lightly with both hands, his feet alternately pedaling, the wheels rolling over the country road strewn with fallen leaves, occasionally crushing a few pebbles with a soft creaking sound.

When you reach an uphill section, put a little effort into your footing, and the bicycle will slowly ascend the mountain.

When he reached the downhill section, he stopped pedaling without braking, letting the bicycle accelerate naturally downhill. The cuffs of his uniform billowed in the wind, and he felt exceptionally cheerful.

Finally, the scattered houses of the small mountain village came into view, the blue-tiled farmhouses as always.

As Chen Shi'an rode his bicycle through the village lanes, his gaze swept over the farmhouses, and a sense of familiarity filled his heart.

Most of the houses had their gates wide open, the wooden door frames worn smooth by time, faded Spring Festival couplets pasted on the lintels, red peppers and dried corn hanging under the eaves, and several bundles of firewood stacked against the wall...

Free-range chickens, ducks, and geese swaggered around the village. When they saw Chen Shi'an riding his bicycle by, they flapped their wings and ran around wildly. The dogs from every household started barking, creating a vivid and lively scene of chickens flying and dogs barking.

After a month's absence, the small mountain village hadn't changed much, except that the leaves of the old locust tree at the village entrance had turned a bit yellow with autumn.

On weekdays, few outsiders visit; occasionally, only some hikers who have gotten lost come to visit.

The villagers thought it was just another careless tourist who had gotten lost. When they heard the dog barking, they all came out of their yards out of curiosity, only to find Chen Shi'an instead.

"Hey! Shi'an's back! Where did you get that bicycle?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Shi'an slowed down, lightly tapped his foot on the ground to stop at the roadside, and replied with a familiar smile:
"Aunt Li, you're back from the market so early?"

"I didn't go, I didn't go this morning! Aping is back for the holidays. He's been working away from home for two years and always said he didn't have time to come back. It's rare for him to come back today. I was even thinking of killing a chicken for him. Shi'an, didn't you go to study in the city? Did you ride your bike back? Is school on holiday?"

"Yes, I came back to visit during my vacation."

"That's perfect! You haven't eaten yet, have you? Come to my house for a meal!"

"It's alright, Aunt Li, I'll just go back up the mountain and get something to eat. It's still early."

When the village children saw Chen Shi'an's bicycle, they all gathered around to look at it with curiosity.

This entry-level bicycle, which might not seem 'cool' to cycling enthusiasts, is incredibly 'cool' to these kids from the mountains.

Although he usually lives on the mountain, he always passes through this small village at the foot of the mountain whenever he goes down. Chen Shi'an is very familiar with the villagers here.

I rode my bike slowly along the way, chatting with the uncles, aunts, grandfathers, and grandmothers I met.

Everyone was quite interested in his going down the mountain to study, and they all asked Chen Shi'an how his studies were going. After all, when the old Taoist priest was still alive, he often mentioned that his disciple was the God of Literature...

Before long, Chen Shi'an rode his bicycle to the last few farmhouses at the end of the village.

Further on, the path leads up the mountain.

After thinking about it, Chen Shi'an decided not to bring the bicycle up the mountain.

I stopped in front of a farmhouse and happened to see an old man stacking firewood inside.

"Uncle Wang."

"..."

The old man turned around at the sound, squinted to see who it was, and a smile spread across his wrinkled face.

"Shi'an, why are you back?"

"It's a holiday!"

(Thank you so much, Wen Shanyu, for being the patron! You're so generous! May you prosper! Thank you so much for your support!)
(End of this chapter)