Chapter 1473 - 740: Go with the Flow (2)
"What is it? Just say it!" Lin Beichen said, clearly annoyed.
The old village chief pondered for a moment, then looked at Lin Beichen and said, "Once you’re taken away by the soldiers tomorrow, neither I nor anyone else from the Daoist Temple will offer you any help. You’ll have to rely on yourself for everything that follows."
"I want you to be clear about your situation. Don’t have any illusions about us; you must depend solely on yourself."
"Understand my intentions in arranging things this way. I know it will be tough for you, and you might face some hardships, but you must hold on. Do you understand?"
Lin Beichen was stunned after hearing the old village chief’s words.
Although he knew the old village chief wasn’t that heartless, hearing these words still pained him greatly.
Despite his efforts to control his emotions, Lin Beichen’s dissatisfaction had reached its peak.
This made it incredibly hard to endure; he never expected to face such a situation.
Knowing full well that those soldiers would come to arrest him, he couldn’t run and could only wait for it to happen.
Lin Beichen thought it was ridiculous; he had never felt this oppressed before. How was this different from awaiting death?
Facing the old village chief before him, Lin Beichen didn’t know how to feel towards him.
Seeing the resentment in Lin Beichen’s eyes, the old village chief felt a bit reluctant, but he had to consider the long-term plan.
Lin Beichen believed he had been patient enough, yet his heart was filled with the urge to vent his dissatisfaction.
...
But on second thought, the old village chief originally thought he was too aggressive and lacked resolve. If he lashed out now, wouldn’t that only confirm the village chief’s opinion?
With this in mind, Lin Beichen quickly calmed himself down, concealing his emotions.
He relaxed, slowly walked over to the old village chief, and tentatively said, "Old village chief... since you know those soldiers will come to arrest me, I’m hoping that at a critical moment, you can lend me a hand."
"You have to think carefully. If I lose my head, how will Daoism ever revive?"
"This isn’t a joke. You need to thoroughly consider this. I injured the son of the city’s general and provoked the Sima Clan. Do you think I stand a chance? Can you guarantee I’ll come back alive once they take me?"
Lin Beichen intentionally exaggerated the situation, hoping the village chief would agree to his request.
That way, he wouldn’t have to worry too much, and at a critical moment, someone would be there to help, making things a bit easier for him.
He wouldn’t have to rack his brain and exhaust himself dealing with those soldiers, reducing some of his suffering.
However, to Lin Beichen’s disappointment, despite saying so much, the old village chief didn’t respond at all.
With an expressionless face, the old village chief stared intently at him for a while. After he finished speaking, the old man said nothing and just turned around and left.
Lin Beichen anxiously blocked the old village chief and asked, "Old village chief, please say something. Can you help me or not?"
"Where are you going? Let’s talk this through, or I’ll truly feel uneasy."
The old village chief looked at Lin Beichen, annoyed, and said, "Go to bed, move..."
Lin Beichen was shocked, not expecting that the old village chief hadn’t taken in a word of what he said, and was instead heading off to bed, paying no attention to him.
Lin Beichen realized he was just embarrassing himself, watching the old village chief’s departing figure with resentment in his heart.
He muttered to himself, "This is outrageous, setting me up with all this but not helping me. Isn’t this sending me off to die?"
"He’s carefree, even has time to sleep, while my heart is in turmoil."
Sighing, Lin Beichen angrily went to the back mountain.
He sat alone on the cliff there, thinking about what the old village chief had said.
With dawn approaching, the soldiers would come to seize him, leaving Lin Beichen torn between escaping or waiting to be captured.
If he fled, the old village chief would surely be angry; if he didn’t run, he’d be caught by the soldiers, suffering all sorts of harsh treatment, just thinking about it gave him a headache.
He really didn’t want to endure that pain, wavering in indecision.
"Squeak, squeak..."
Suddenly, a strange noise caught his attention, and Lin Beichen looked up to see a white-furred monkey in the distance.
It seemed the white-furred monkey also noticed Lin Beichen and kept its eyes fixed on him.
This made Lin Beichen happy; he didn’t expect such a beautiful monkey in the back mountain.
Just as Lin Beichen pondered how to greet the monkey, it called out to him again.
Lin Beichen found it curious, unclear about what the white-furred monkey wanted to convey.
But it seemed the monkey had no hostility towards him, which reassured Lin Beichen.
After a short staring contest with the monkey, it tossed a big peach to Lin Beichen.
Thrilled, Lin Beichen picked up the peach.
He excitedly waved at the white-furred monkey, inviting it to come over and sit.
Uncertain if the monkey understood his meaning, as it was Lin Beichen’s first time communicating with an animal, something unexpected happened.
It appeared that the white-furred monkey understood his gesture and began moving, swaying its body as it walked towards him.
Seeing the monkey’s actions, Lin Beichen gleefully said, "What a smart monkey, it actually understood me and is coming over."
"Great, this white-furred monkey must be extraordinary, I want to see what other special abilities it might have."
With curiosity, Lin Beichen watched the white-furred monkey sit beside him, carefully observing it, his gaze exploring the monkey’s body.
The white-furred monkey appeared a little uncomfortable as Lin Beichen stared intently.
...
Feeling amused, Lin Beichen quickly put the peach in front of the white-furred monkey, happily saying, "Here, take back the peach. It’s of no use to me. You can enjoy it slowly."
"You know, I just got here, not in the best mood, came here to let off some steam."
"Never thought I’d meet you here, really brightened my day, seems we have quite the connection."
The white-furred monkey blinked its eyes and occasionally shook its head at Lin Beichen, producing "squeak, squeak" sounds as if responding to him, endearing itself to Lin Beichen.
After hearing Lin Beichen’s words, the white-furred monkey seemed pensive, nodded slightly at him, then ran off.
Watching the white-furred monkey’s retreating figure, Lin Beichen smiled helplessly.
He looked up at the starry night sky, feeling somewhat restless inside.
Not wanting to return to his place, he decided to stay there, hoping that watching the twinkling stars might ease his mind.
Leaning against the cliff, lost in thought, Lin Beichen unknowingly drifted into a slumber.
In his dream, he remained entangled, troubled by this affair, unsure of what decision to make.
He even dreamt of being subjected to torture and abuse, fueling his rage in the dream.
Waking suddenly from his dream, Lin Beichen looked around, discovering the early light of dawn.
As he got up, reality hit him; a scene unfolded before him that was hard to face.
The Daoist Temple was brightly lit, people moved about, vibrant noise filled the air.
Lin Beichen immediately understood; the City Lord had sent soldiers en masse to arrest him at the temple.
"Hmph..." Lin Beichen snorted, knitting his brows in anger, "These bastards, they sure arrived quickly."
"They couldn’t wait for dawn to rush to the temple, eager indeed."
Furious, Lin Beichen saw that the Daoist child, the old village chief, and others had been brought to the main hall by the soldiers.
This stunned him, the last thing he wanted was for others to suffer because of him.
His anger deepened, yet he didn’t reveal himself immediately, intending to see what the soldiers planned.
In truth, part of him was also sulking with the old village chief for not helping him.
This was why he hadn’t gone back to his place, instead staying on the mountain cliff overnight.
Watching from afar, Lin Beichen saw the soldiers confront the old village chief, angrily demanding, "Old Daoist, I urge you once more, hand over the criminal quickly."
"You can’t shield him; do you even know what crime he’s committed?"
The old Daoist raised his head, glancing at the soldiers, and feigned confusion, asking, "Officer, what’s happened here? Coming to the Daoist Temple before dawn to arrest someone, what crime could this person possibly have committed?"