Chapter 1415 - 710: Fundraising (2)
The old man’s son said that if Lin Beichen felt this matter could not go on because his father had passed away, he could choose to leave; the villagers would not force him. Hearing this, everyone’s hearts grew heavy.
Looking at the villagers, a surge of responsibility rose in Lin Beichen’s heart. He took a deep breath and firmly declared that he would keep his promise and fulfill the old man’s wish. His words moved the villagers deeply; they admired Lin Beichen’s breadth of heart and compassion even more.
The old man’s son also expressed deep gratitude to Lin Beichen. He thanked Lin Beichen for helping his father leave in peace, and for thinking of the villagers and helping them escape their plight.
Lin Beichen nodded, accepting everyone’s thanks. Then he began to carry out the rainmaking ritual, working hard to ease the drought in the village. With his help, the villagers finally escaped their sea of suffering and began to live a good life.
After Lin Beichen finished all the preparations, his heart was in fact quite heavy. The old man should have been here to witness this moment with his own eyes, yet now that wish would never be fulfilled. Lin Beichen shook his head, dispelling these gloomy feelings, and walked over to Hu Yi.
His expression was solemn, his gaze steady on Hu Yi. "I’m about to begin the rainmaking. As my disciple, you must study it with all your heart. You might have use for it in the future."
"Learning is a process of accumulation day by day. As long as your eyes are sharp, your hands quick, and your mind focused, there is nothing you can’t learn. Remember what I’ve said." Lin Beichen spoke with earnest weight.
Hu Yi felt a bit helpless after hearing this; she had only just been exposed to the basics of Daoism and knew nothing about these profound Daoist Arts.
Facing Lin Beichen’s instructions, she felt at a loss, but when she saw his serious expression, she still hurriedly nodded. "Master, I’ve taken it to heart. I’ll definitely study hard and won’t let you down."
"I’ve engraved Master’s teachings in my heart. Though I’m rather slow-witted and haven’t learned much yet, I won’t give up on learning and working hard." Hu Yi answered firmly.
Lin Beichen was very satisfied with Hu Yi’s attitude. He turned and said to the old man’s son, "I’ve made a list. Follow the list and get some things ready."
"For the rainmaking to succeed, these items are crucial. No matter how capable I am, without them I can’t complete it." Lin Beichen emphasized.
The old man’s son respectfully took the list. After looking through it carefully, he was a bit surprised, but still followed Lin Beichen’s instructions to prepare everything. Very soon, he had gathered all the necessary items.
Lin Beichen chose the highest peak and began the mysterious ritual of rainmaking.
The villagers were all ordered to retreat three zhang away and were not allowed to approach. Only Hu Yi stayed by Lin Beichen’s side.
Hu Yi stared fixedly at Lin Beichen. She saw him holding a Wooden Sword, chanting under his breath. Her heart was full of curiosity, but she knew she must not disturb Lin Beichen at this moment, or the consequences could be unthinkable.
The villagers were even more curious, talking among themselves: "Will it really rain? I can’t even remember when it last rained."
"Let’s hope this Immortal can succeed; that would be wonderful."
"If it doesn’t rain again, we won’t harvest a single grain and can only wait to starve to death."
"Everyone just pray, and hope our dream comes true."
Under Lin Beichen’s efforts, the originally cloudless sky was suddenly filled with dark clouds, and bean-sized drops of rain poured down in torrents. Seeing this scene, the villagers burst into cheers: "It’s raining! It’s really raining!"
"This is great! Looks like Heaven has pity on us and sent this Great God to save us."
"Everyone hurry and kowtow to the Great God to thank him for granting us rain." The villagers all knelt to the ground, kowtowing to Lin Beichen in gratitude.
But Lin Beichen only smiled faintly. "There’s no need for this, everyone. This is something I promised the old man—just a small effort on my part."
"Don’t treat me as a Great God. I really can’t shoulder such praise." he said modestly.
Hu Yi looked at Lin Beichen with sheer delight. "Master, you’re incredible! Your strength is beyond anything I imagined!"
"Every time we meet with hardship, you make me look at you with new eyes and worship you even more." Hu Yi praised him endlessly.
Lin Beichen shook his head helplessly. He felt this was just a trivial matter, not worth such a big fuss. He began to think about his own plans, and when he saw the old man’s son wanting to help him, he felt deeply grateful.
His original intention in coming here was very simple: to help the common folk here break free from ignorance.
Now, hearing the old man’s son explain to the villagers his intention of building a Daoist Temple, Lin Beichen felt comforted.
Although the villagers had heard the village chief Wu Dazhu mention this before, back then the chief opposed it and spread rumors, so they hadn’t taken it seriously.
Now, hearing the old man’s son bring it up again, the villagers were momentarily at a loss.
Even so, Lin Beichen believed that with time they would come to understand his painstaking good intentions.
Although Lin Beichen was glad in his heart, he knew very well this was no easy matter.
The old man had previously told him frankly that there was simply no spare money here to support the building of a Daoist Temple.
After witnessing Lin Beichen’s abilities, the villagers admired him to the point of prostration, and all hoped he could do something for them.
They all said to the old man’s son and Lin Beichen, "We all agree to build a Daoist Temple; after all, this is a good thing."
"We know you’re seeking blessings for us common folk, not for yourself. So the common people have no objections to building a Daoist Temple."
"That’s right. You’ve helped us so much; we all understand that in our hearts. It’s just that there were too many matters before, and we couldn’t get around to it for the moment, so it kept getting put off."
Seeing everyone one after another voicing support for building a Daoist Temple, Lin Beichen was not surprised. He knew clearly that the common folk had never been the main force opposing the temple; it was Wu Dazhu who kept meddling and obstructing, making the matter drag on until now.
However, the funding issue weighed on Lin Beichen’s heart like a boulder. To build a Daoist Temple required ample financial support; otherwise everything would be empty talk. And the villagers’ lives were not comfortable now—this money, to them, was only a drop in the bucket.
Lin Beichen did not want the common folk to suffer for this, nor did he want to put them in a difficult position. He hesitated to speak. Although he was delighted that everyone supported him building a Daoist Temple, he found it hard to bring up the issue of funds.
Hu Yi saw through Lin Beichen’s thoughts; she also knew what the old man had said to Lin Beichen. All along the way, Lin Beichen had shielded her from the wind and rain, while she had never done anything for him. Now she felt it was time to step forward.
Hu Yi walked to stand before the common folk and said, her face full of guilt, "Thank you all for supporting us, but building a Daoist Temple is not easy; funding is a big problem."
"We don’t have spare money at hand, and even with the intention, it’s hard to make it happen."
"Master also knows everyone is not well-off, so he has kept putting this matter aside. Now that everyone has brought it up, the first thing we must solve is the funding problem."
"When everyone adds firewood, the Flame burns high. Since you all have the heart for it, I hope we can unite as one and solve this problem together."
After hearing Hu Yi’s words, the villagers finally understood why Lin Beichen had always hesitated. They all asked, "Tell us then, what way is there to solve this problem?"
"We’re willing to support you and also willing to contribute our own little bit of strength."
Hearing these words, Hu Yi was overjoyed inside. A sudden inspiration came to her, and she said to everyone, "How about this: from now on we start fundraising and see if we can solve the funding issue as soon as possible."
"If the funding problem is solved, I will ask Master to build the Daoist Temple here right away. What do you all think of this idea?"
After Hu Yi spoke her mind, the villagers all nodded in agreement. In an instant, a voluntary and lively fundraising drive began, and the villagers did everything they could to contribute money and effort.
Seeing what Hu Yi was doing, Lin Beichen felt somewhat astonished. He hadn’t expected this seemingly fragile disciple to be able, at a critical moment, to help him solve such a big problem. Watching the villagers enthusiastically donate, his heart was filled with gratitude.