Young master, why not become a corpse immortal?

Chapter 325 Eating Plums, Saying Goodbye

It was autumn, and the plums were ripe.

These fruits were exactly the same as those Lin Jiang had eaten in his previous life; they were slightly sour at first, followed by a sweet aftertaste.

Perfectly ripe plums are hard to find, as that perfect moment is fleeting, and no one can say for sure whether they will taste just right.

Lin Jiang used to dislike plums, not liking the lingering astringency. But now, he's willing to try them.

So he bought a small basket of plums and returned to the courtyard. Little Ginseng was jumping around on the table practicing his martial arts. When he saw Lin Jiang carrying the plums, he curiously peeked over with his little head:
"what is this?"

"It's a plum."

"Is it tasty?"

"It's okay."

"Let me try it! Let me try it!"

The little ginseng immediately perked up.

"Let me wash up first."

Lin Jiang walked to the bucket in the corner of the yard, scooped water to wash the ginseng carefully, and handed the reddest one to Xiao Shanshen.

The young ginseng carefully held the fruit, which was quite large for her, in both hands, swaying as if she were holding a small basket.

She leaned closer, timidly took a bite, and chewed carefully, blinking her bright, dark eyes as she did so.

"Hey, it's sweet and delicious."

"Is that so? That's good then."

Seeing that Xiaoshan Shen liked it, Lin Jiang also picked up one to taste.

The flavor is indeed a perfect blend of sweet and sour.

After eating the plums, he looked around the courtyard for a moment and soon saw Gong Xuan concentrating on drawing talismans at the stone table in the courtyard.

He was staring intently at the talismans spread out on the table, so focused that he didn't even notice Lin Jiang approaching.

"Taoist Master."

It wasn't until Lin Jiang called out that Gong Xuan snapped out of his daze and subconsciously turned to look.

“Young master,” Gongxuan exhaled, “you startled me.”

"I've suddenly appeared behind you more than once, why are you still so startled?" Lin Jiang chuckled, then pulled a basket of plums from his pocket and gently placed it on the table: "Want to try some?"

Gong Xuan stopped what he was doing: "Try it."

The two found a place to sit and slowly began to eat plums.

Before long, the small table was piled high with fruit pits, and half a basket of plums had already been eaten by the two of them.

"It tastes pretty good, but I wonder how it compares to the ones in the north."

"It might not even be as sweet as the ones from the north."

"What a pity." Gong Xuan sighed softly, a ripple appearing in his eyes. He turned to look at Lin Jiang: "If someone had told me a year ago that I would be involved in the Star Point War, I would have laughed at them for being delusional."

"Your skills were only one step away from the final stage, so it's not surprising that you got involved."

Gong Xuan pondered silently, even those among the Stars might not be involved in this complicated affair.

"Speaking of which, you are truly my benefactor. If I had not met you, I fear I would never have had the chance to shine in this life."

Gong Xuan was quite emotional, his words filled with sorrow. Lin Jiang rolled his eyes and said, "Why should we be so polite? If we hadn't met that day, I'm afraid I would still be stuck in Baishan Town, struggling to repair the damage to my Qi."

Looking back now, their meeting was like helping each other out; without someone to guide him, Lin Jiang's cultivation level would have led him astray.

"I will be leaving the capital in two days."

"Then I should pack my things and go find the Zhou Dynasty ruins."

"Take this."

Lin Jiang gently placed a delicate white jade bottle into Gong Xuan's hand. Gong Xuan took it, carefully shook it, and immediately heard the crisp sound of pills colliding inside the bottle.

"what is this?"

"Return to your homeland, transform into all things." Lin Jiang said slowly, "I have refined two kinds of pill formulas. After taking the former, you can immediately return by simply thinking about where you were; the latter can temporarily transform your body into something else."

“I have indeed heard of these two pill formulas. They are top-tier treasures that everyone in the world desires.” Gong Xuan scratched his head and said with a worried look, “But with my fate and fortune, if I really take them, I’m afraid I’ll lose them.”

"No, it won't." Lin Jiang gently shook the bottle again, and suddenly a soft, sweet female voice came from the top of the bottle:
"Hello, sir."

Gong Xuan was taken aback again, and pointed at the bottle, asking:

"Is this a treasure?"

"The White Jade Bottle," Lin Jiang introduced. "It's a treasure I casually took from the national treasury. It possesses the power to suppress one's destiny, and since it is unaffected by your destiny, the pills inside can naturally be preserved safely."

"As long as you take me with you, I will stick to you and never let you lose these precious pills."

Upon hearing this, Gongxuan solemnly put away the small bottle and carefully tucked it into his pocket.

A lump of gratitude choked in his throat, but he couldn't find the words to express it. Finally, Lin Jiang waved his hand and said cheerfully, "Eat the plums first. This fruit spoils easily, so don't waste them." ...

Gong Xuan had already set off before Lin Jiang.

Lin Jiang, accompanied by Xiao Shan, walked with Jiang Jinyue to the city gate, watching the figure gradually disappear into the distance until it vanished from sight.

He waved goodbye with a light wave of his sleeve.

Gongxuan's journey of chasing stars and pursuing his life will ultimately be a solitary one, with no one else to help him.

However, Lin Jiang was certain that Gong Xuan would gain some enlightenment this time and would eventually achieve what he sought.

After seeing off his old friend, Lin Jiang returned to the palace and found Zhao Liulang.

At this moment, Zhao Liulang had already prepared three rare treasures from Daxing for him.

Of the Three Jewels, one has already developed spiritual intelligence, and the other two, though not yet enlightened, are still extraordinary.

The sentient treasure was a book, within which the voice of a woman echoed, claiming to be an expert in everything.

This book was personally written by King Wenzu and contains detailed records of the customs and traditions of many foreign lands beyond the borders of Daxing.

Even without any magical power, for Lin Jiang, the practicality of this scroll far surpasses that of countless top-tier magical artifacts.

The other two items include a mysterious garment, which, according to Zhao Liulang, is as solid as a rock and can transform into anything.

Even if only a wisp of it remains, it can be restored to its original state in an instant. This is a treasure personally crafted by the Imperial Preceptor to prevent Lin Jiang's clothes from exploding again, in mind the lessons of the past.

The other item was a perfectly round gold ingot, heavy in the hand. Once released, this ingot could be recalled with a slight thought; with a gentle shake, it would transform into several ordinary gold ingots, truly a wonderful means of travel.

The three treasures were indeed not particularly remarkable, but they were all indispensable to Lin Jiang, which shows that Zhao Liulang had put a lot of thought into their selection.

"I only hope that Master will return with a full harvest on this trip."

Zhao Liulang also sincerely offered his congratulations.

"I will do my best." Lin Jiang said, then paused for a moment, then suddenly smiled and narrowed his eyes. "Sixth Brother, there is a hidden house deep in the Ghost Market of the capital. Your third son has set up a secret room in the house. At the end of the secret room is a coffin. Why don't you touch that coffin and send some of your Qi into it?"

Zhao Liulang was stunned by these seemingly random words, his mind filled with unresolved doubts. Lin Jiang, however, said nothing and went straight out of the palace to prepare his luggage.

The next morning, an ordinary-looking carriage appeared on the streets of the capital. The driver was a strange man with wide, unblinking eyes. The carriage door was tightly closed, and although the window was slightly open, it seemed as if a black cloth covered the inside, making it impossible to see anything clearly.

Inside the carriage was a rather spacious building with two floors. The first floor was a hall, and the second floor was a guest room with four rooms in total. Although each room was not very big, it was enough to have one's own small space amidst the weariness of the journey.

The chariot was a treasure of the former Zhou Dynasty. The current Daxing Dynasty has no way to reproduce it. The Grand Preceptor has devoted a lot of energy to this, but so far there is no clue.

Nowadays, there's not much use for the carriage in Daxing, so it was given to Lin Jiang so that he could have an easier time on the road.

Lin Jiang was studying the carriage. He was near the north wall of the building, where there was a window. If he opened it, he could see the back of Yu Wenyun's head.

Yu Wenyun also felt Lin Jiang's gaze. With a bright smile on his face, he asked directly:

"Young master! Is there anything you need?"

"General Yu, there's no need to be so polite. I just wanted to see where this small window leads."

"You're being too polite!" Yu Wenyun laughed heartily. "I am currently a criminal under investigation. If it weren't for you pleading with His Majesty, I would probably have lost my head long ago. Now I am your retainer, and your orders are my destiny."

What did Zhao Liulang say to Yu Wenyun back then?
If someone else had said this, Lin Jiang would probably have thought that the person was being overly flattering, but since it came from Yu Wenyun, Lin Jiang felt that what he said was probably true.

Seeing that the other party was driving, Lin Jiang did not bother Yu Wenyun. Instead, he turned his head and looked directly at the other side of the hall.

Over there, Jiang Jinyue was discussing various matters of martial arts with the small ginseng in her palm, while on the bench directly opposite Lin Jiang sat the richly dressed Yi Er San.

At this moment, Yi Er San kept his mouth covered by his sleeve and stared intently at him.

The two stared at each other for a long time, then turned their heads away, no longer looking at Lin Jiang.

He was prepared to be bothered by Yi Er San this time, but he never expected Yi Er San to be so quiet.

Could it be that Zhao Liulang placed some kind of forbidden spell on the numbers one, two, and three?
"Young master, could you please not look down on me like that..."

"One, two, three," he said in a very low voice.

"Ok?"

"Brother Zhao told me that as long as I don't pester you all the time, he will let me go with you and let me find love. But you are so handsome, if you keep staring at me, I'm afraid I won't be able to suppress my feelings and I'll be captured by you."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiang only sighed inwardly.

Zhao Liulang, as expected of an emperor for so many years, could subdue these people with just words, without relying on any magical skills.

The Imperial Advisor probably doesn't have this kind of skill, otherwise Daxing wouldn't have ended up like this recently.

Just as he was pondering this, Lin Jiang suddenly sensed a disturbance coming from the coffin inside the inner palace. Zhao Liulang's voice rang out directly from inside the coffin:

"Master?"

Upon hearing the sound, Lin Jiang's eyes lit up immediately.

Zhao Liulang has gone and touched a coffin in the ghost market!

P.S.: I have to catch a flight tomorrow, so the second chapter might be posted a little late.

(End of this chapter)