Immortal Travel of Longevity

"Here is your tea, sir."

The waiter poured a cup for Chen Changsheng and waited respectfully at his side.

"Pour another cup," Chen Changsheng said.

"Huh?"

The waiter stared blankly for a moment. "Right away."

Though confused, he poured a second cup.

"You don't need to go to the trouble, Mister Chen," Zhishu said. "I can no longer drink tea."

"Courtesy must still be observed," Chen Changsheng said.

The waiter blinked and followed Chen Changsheng's gaze, only to find the seat across from him entirely empty. He had no idea who the man was talking to.

Chen Changsheng shook his head, offering no explanation.

The waiter froze, suddenly recalling what the shopkeeper often told him.

The shopkeeper always said the tea house had a permanent guest. He told him never to slack off, and that if he heard strange noises or suddenly saw a woman, he shouldn't be alarmed.

The waiter swallowed nervously, anxiety creeping in. "Sir, I—I scare easily. Please don't frighten me."

Chen Changsheng smiled. "Do you think there are ghosts?"

"Well, aren't there?"

The waiter clicked his tongue. "When I first started here, the shopkeeper pulled me aside and said a bunch of weird things. Basically, he meant there was something unclean in the tea house."

"Is that so?"

Chen Changsheng looked at Zhishu.

Zhishu looked at him and lowered her head. "I dealt with Shopkeeper Liu years ago. He knows I am here."

"Right?" the waiter went on, oblivious. "It's terrifying."

"Have you ever run into one?" Chen Changsheng asked.

The waiter shook his head. He hadn't encountered anything of the sort since he started working here.

"Then what are you afraid of?"

"It just gives me the creeps."

The waiter smacked his lips. "Besides, who isn't afraid of ghosts? I figured I'd go to the City God Temple someday to ask for a Dharma Instrument. Even if there aren't any ghosts, it's good to have one around. If I get unlucky and run into something, at least I'll have some protection."

"That makes sense, but you usually won't encounter ghosts anyway," Chen Changsheng said. "Especially not in Qingshan City."

The waiter blinked. "Qingshan City? What's so special about our city?"

"This place is quite unique," Chen Changsheng said. "In the past hundred years alone, five kings and lords have established themselves here. There was King Yu first, then the commander of the Rebel Army. During the chaos, the city was taken by the King of Wei, and after his defeat, the Prince of Yan garrisoned his army here. Even earlier, Prince Yu resided here. Ordinary demons and ghosts wouldn't dare approach this place. If you were unlucky enough to encounter one that did, any Dharma Instrument you prayed for probably wouldn't be able to stop it anyway."

The waiter was stunned. "You sure know a lot, sir. Please, give me some pointers. Who knows, it might save my life one day."

"There are plenty of methods," Chen Changsheng said. "For example, you can frequent the City God Temple to offer incense. Over time, your body will absorb a trace of that incense. It might not do much, but it can still ward off evil and prevent disaster. It is much more effective than a so-called Dharma Instrument."

The waiter nodded vigorously. "I'll be sure to go pay my respects more often. Thank you for the guidance, sir. Thank you."

"That hardly counts as guidance," Chen Changsheng said. "The Qingxian Temple outside Qingshan City is full of Daoists. Even their ordinary disciples know this, and they wouldn't hold it back if you asked. Besides, with the experts of Qingxian Temple protecting the area and their Dao lineage established here, demons and ghosts generally wouldn't dare enter the city."

"Is that so..." the waiter murmured.

Curiosity getting the better of him, the waiter asked, "You're clearly a well-traveled man, sir. Our Yuanchuan's Dao lineage was indeed bestowed by the Emperor, and a few Immortal lords from Qingxian Temple do come down the mountain from time to time. I saw a few of them years ago, but I didn't dare go up and speak to them. I'm just curious—do the lords of that temple really possess the means of an Immortal, or is that just talk?"

Chen Changsheng smiled. "If you believe, it is true. If you don't, it is not."

"Ah..."

The waiter didn't know what to say.

He just thought to himself that this guest sounded exactly like those Daoists.

It left him somewhat confused.

While he was still mulling it over, a voice rang out from downstairs.

"Waiter! Get down here and attend to the customers!"

The waiter quickly shouted an acknowledgment. "Sir, I have to go," he said to Chen Changsheng.

Chen Changsheng nodded and let him go.

Once the waiter was gone, the upper floor fell quiet.

Sunlight spilled through the window and pooled on the table. Zhishu sat hidden in the shadows. As a practitioner of ghost cultivation, she could tolerate the light, but it still caused her some discomfort.

"What are your plans now?" Chen Changsheng asked.

Zhishu shook her head, at a loss.

"Cao Lang is gone, my Lady has passed on, and the Little Miss hasn't returned. I don't know where to go."

"Yu Hongjin was staying at the Tang Family Old Residence," Chen Changsheng said. "You can go find her there. She suffered some injuries a while back and went on a trip, but she should be heading back right about now."

Zhishu hesitated. "Has the Little Miss been doing well lately?"

Chen Changsheng thought about it. "She is relatively carefree, though just as reckless as she used to be."

She had nearly lost her life.

Zhishu paused. She looked hesitant, unsure if she should go.

"Mister, I actually wonder why the Little Miss never came back," she said. "I am afraid she has forgotten me. I wouldn't feel right showing up at her door..."

Chen Changsheng paused. "So you are just going to wait here?"

Zhishu lowered her head in silence.

"You can wait," Chen Changsheng said. "She will come looking for you. All this time, she just hadn't been able to figure things out. Now that she has ventured out, she will definitely come find you. She was merely delayed by certain matters."

A glimmer of hope returned to Zhishu's eyes.

But a moment later, she grew flustered, as if agonizing over what she would say and do when she finally saw the Little Miss again.

When Zhishu finally gathered her wits, she glanced up and said, "Mister Chen, someone behind you is watching you."

Chen Changsheng paused and glanced back.

An old man with a head of white hair stood behind him.

It was the owner of the tea house, Shopkeeper Liu.

Shopkeeper Liu had been standing there for a long time, quietly observing the man seated at the table.

He looked incredibly familiar, and a figure surfaced in the old man's mind.

It was Mister Chen, the storyteller who used to perform on the stage.

When Chen Changsheng turned around, their eyes met.

A wave of warmth and familiarity washed over Shopkeeper Liu.

He was certain that eyes could not lie. The man in front of him recognized him, just as he recognized the man.

"Mister Chen."

Shopkeeper Liu called out tentatively.

Chen Changsheng stiffened slightly. "You have the wrong person, Shopkeeper. This Chen is..."

Shopkeeper Liu took a step forward.

The old man shook his head. "Mister Chen, there is no need to trick me by claiming to be your own nephew. Eyes do not lie. I will not fall for the same trick twice."

Chen Changsheng paused. "I thought you hadn't noticed..."

Shopkeeper Liu sat down and let out a long breath. "At first, I didn't. But looking back on it later, things never quite added up. Then, one day, it finally dawned on me. You were afraid of scaring me, weren't you, Mister Chen?"

Chen Changsheng gave a slight nod. "I was a little worried about that. After all, who doesn't grow old?"

Shopkeeper Liu's hand trembled at those words.

"Look how foolish I was," he said with a sigh. "When I first figured it out, I actually thought you just didn't see a lowly helper like me as a friend..."

A wave of self-reproach washed over the shopkeeper.

Chen Changsheng smiled. "How could that be?"

Shopkeeper Liu looked up, suddenly flustered.

"R-right! You always loved a good drink back in the day, Mister Chen! Niu Xiao! Niu Xiao! Go fetch that jar of wine from my room!"

Chen Changsheng raised a hand to stop him. "There is no need for the trouble..."

"Don't be so polite, Mister Chen," Shopkeeper Liu insisted. "It is my own home-brewed wine. If we can't finish it, you can take the rest with you. It isn't much."

A short while later, Niu Xiao staggered over, lugging the wine jar.

The waiter was inwardly puzzled.

The shopkeeper treated this jar of wine like his greatest treasure.

Why was he suddenly willing to bring it out today?

He naturally didn't dare ask, so he simply announced, "Shopkeeper, the wine is here."

Shopkeeper Liu smiled and nodded. "Wait off to the side."

"Right away."

The waiter stood silently off to the side, ready to act at a moment's notice if needed.

Chen Changsheng looked at the jar of wine. "It is kind of you to remember, Shopkeeper Liu. This Chen ought to thank you."

"No, no, I'm the one who should be thanking you, Mister Chen. If it hadn't been for you back then, the tea house wouldn't have needed an extra hand. I wouldn't have been able to make a living, much less reach where I am today. Everything I have is thanks to you."

"That was your own hard work, Shopkeeper Liu."

"You flatter me. Here, let me pour you some wine."

Listening to the shopkeeper repeatedly call the man "Mister Chen," the waiter was taken aback.

Mister Chen?

Which Mister Chen?

He looked at the youthful face of the gentleman in the green robes, his heart giving a sudden jolt.

It couldn't be...

His mind spun for a moment, but on second thought, he realized how impossible it was.

This man looked far too young. How could he possibly be that Mister Chen, Chen Jiucha?

The waiter figured it was just someone with the same surname and didn't dwell on it any further. Still, in all his years here, he had never heard of the shopkeeper having an old friend named Chen.

How truly bizarre.

Chen Changsheng took a sip of the wine. It was smooth and left a sweet aftertaste. It had likely been brewed with mountain spring water. A faint, earthy undertone suggested it had been buried underground for quite some time.

It was good wine! Truly excellent wine!

Zhishu rose to her feet. "I will leave you two to catch up, Mister Chen, Shopkeeper."

Chen Changsheng gave a slight nod. "Yu Hongjin will be here soon enough."

Zhishu paused for a moment before nodding in response.

Shopkeeper Liu stared blankly for a second before realization struck. "Was that Madam Cao?"

Chen Changsheng nodded.

Shopkeeper Liu was momentarily dazed. "So she really is still here..."

"She has already left. She just departed."

Shopkeeper Liu paused. "Years ago, while Mister Cao was still alive, he told me that after he passed, Madam Cao might linger around here for a long time. He asked me to look after her if I ever saw her."

He sighed. "I hadn't seen any sign of her all these years. I gave the staff a few instructions just in case, but I never expected Madam Cao to truly still be here. Love in this world is truly a tormenting thing."

Chen Changsheng took another sip of wine. "People follow their own paths. She made her own choice."

Shopkeeper Liu nodded, then raised his cup to drink with him.

The waiter had heard every word clearly, and a sudden chill crept down his spine.

He shivered. Just hearing the name 'Madam Cao' made his scalp tingle with fear.

Madam Cao? Which Madam Cao?

Who else could it be!

It was Mister Cao's wife from all the rumors!

Years ago, he had heard one of the older waiters whisper a warning to him: 'Mister Cao's wife isn't human!'

At the time, he had assumed it was just malicious gossip and loudly chewed the man out for it.

But now, listening to the shopkeeper's conversation, panic seized his chest.

His legs began to tremble.

Even though he had heard the gentleman in green say that 'Madam Cao has already left,' a deep terror still gripped his heart. His hands shook as he held the teapot.

The few casual words exchanged by the two men had left the waiter a nervous wreck. Yet they sat there, simply drinking and chatting as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

The waiter couldn't help but wonder. Just who was their shopkeeper? And who on earth was this Mister Chen...

Drinking on an empty stomach wouldn't do, so the shopkeeper sent him out to buy some side dishes.

Hearing this, the waiter felt a massive wave of relief and hurried out of the tea house.

"Haa... haa..."

Out on the street, the waiter took several deep, gasping breaths, struggling to calm his racing heart.

For a long while, he couldn't shake off his daze.

In a complete stupor, he made his way to a restaurant and ordered some food to go.

But when he arrived back at the entrance of the tea house, he hesitated.

Is Madam Cao's ghost really in there?

Do ghosts eat people?

Am I going to die in there...?

A flurry of terrifying thoughts swirled through his mind, leaving him in a panic.

He looked down at the food in his hands.

Even if he was going to quit, he had to get this month's wages first!

He hadn't been paid for the month yet!

Mustering his courage, he marched inside and carried the food upstairs.

Forcing a smile onto his face, he said, "Shopkeeper, sir, your food is here."

Shopkeeper Liu's tolerance for alcohol was poor.

Not to mention that today, he was drinking without any restraint. Downing cup after cup like that would have floored even a seasoned drinker.

By the time the waiter returned, half the jar of wine was already gone, giving him a fright.

Drinking like that! Was he trying to kill himself?!

Shopkeeper Liu was thoroughly intoxicated. "Mister Chen," he slurred, exhaling heavily. "Mister Chen..."

"When I first came to work at the tea house as a helper... hehe, I don't care if you laugh at me. I just wanted to hear you tell stories every day. Back then, I used to think about how wonderful it would be if I could take you as my master. To be like you, standing up on that stage... even if you didn't say a single word, the audience would still cheer for you..."

"Ah, but it's a pity I was too late. You had already taken Mister Cao as your disciple. I was so envious..."

Shopkeeper Liu muttered on, spilling many secrets he had kept hidden in his heart all those years.

He was completely drunk, his body swaying back and forth.

He poured another bowl of wine down his throat.

Wiping his mouth, he chuckled and continued. "Hehe, I could never figure it out back then. I clearly worked much harder than Cao Fa did, but it just wasn't me. Now, though... I think I finally understand."

"With your abilities, you must have known all along. Everyone has their own fate. Maybe... maybe I just wasn't cut out for it..."

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