My low-key cultivation of immortality was discovered by the emperor in my diary.

Chapter 13 Ji Lingchuan, is it a misunderstanding?

As the palace gates opened to the rising sun, celestial smoke curled and a grand bell resounded. (Note)

The Xuanzhen Temple was quiet all around. Walking on the cobblestone path, Lüyun looked around for a moment and whispered, "It's been more than two years since I've been here, and nothing has changed."

Chu Lengyu hummed in agreement.

Although this place was familiar to Lü Yun, it still felt somewhat unfamiliar to her.

However, although the original owner didn't have many friends, they were all reliable.

After spending these past few days together, she has come to like Lüyun as a companion, and she thinks she can also get along well with "Senior Brother Ji".

After walking for a while, they suddenly heard the young Taoist boy in front of them call out, "Senior brother."

Chu Lengyu and Lüyun stopped at the same time and saw a tall and handsome young man standing not far away. When their eyes swept over him, a hint of surprise flashed across their faces.

Upon their reunion after so long, Ji Lingchuan was almost afraid to recognize him.

Upon seeing him, Chu Lengyu felt an instant connection and a sense of familiarity. She teased him softly, "It's been two years since we last met. Senior Brother Ji, have you perhaps forgotten us?"

"How could I forget?" Ji Lingchuan seemed to wake from a dream and smiled lightly. "I just didn't expect... Junior Sister has grown up so much."

Lüyun is doing well, not much different from before, except that she has become a bit thinner.

But the last time he saw Chu Lengyu, she was only twelve years old, her figure just beginning to develop. Dressed in a plain white mourning robe, she knelt before the coffin, like a stubborn little white flower that had taken root.

Unexpectedly, nearly three years have passed, and she has grown into a graceful young woman.

The word "Sister Chu" stuck in his throat, and he couldn't bring himself to say it. Ji Lingchuan thought to himself that "Junior Sister" was indeed the most appropriate way to address her, as it was neither too formal nor too intimate.

Anyway, they've been reciting scriptures together since childhood, so that's how they've always been addressed.

The person had been brought, and the young Taoist boy had completed his task. He bowed and left on his own.

It was freezing cold outside, so Ji Lingchuan led the two of them to the guest room for a short rest.

After all, he was a man from out of town, and they hadn't seen each other for a long time, so they felt both familiar and strange. Even the usually carefree Lü Yun was unusually reserved and didn't take the initiative to speak.

However, Ji Lingchuan didn't let the atmosphere become awkward. He boiled water and made tea to entertain them, and slowly said:

Last year, Abbot Zeng decided to travel and his return was uncertain, so he handed the Taoist temple over to my master. Therefore, my master is now taking over the duties of abbot and is much busier than before.

My junior sister's arrival was unfortunate; a family in the village invited her to perform a religious ceremony, and she left early yesterday morning. If her journey goes smoothly without any delays, she might be back this afternoon.

"Congratulations, Uncle Lin," Chu Lengyu said with a smile.

Ji Lingchuan didn't treat them like outsiders and complained, "After Master became the acting abbot, he complained to me every day about how the abbot has so many responsibilities."

Upon hearing this, the two women chuckled.

The somewhat awkward atmosphere was eased, and the distance between them was shortened considerably.

Ji Lingchuan carefully observed their expressions. Seeing that they had relaxed, he asked, "Junior Sister, you haven't been out for a long time. Why did you suddenly come without giving me a heads-up?"

Chu Lengyu was about to speak when Lüyun spoke first, her brows furrowed and a hint of resentment in her voice: "If we had given them a heads-up, they probably wouldn't have been able to come!"

"What does this mean?" He turned his gaze to Chu Lengyu in surprise.

Chu Lengyu patted Lüyun's hand, then looked at the Taoist-robed youth opposite her and said calmly:

"Senior Brother Ji, please don't blame Lü Yun for her temper; she was just worried and confused."

However, I also want to ask, since my godfather passed away, why have my uncle and senior brother cut off all contact with me? More than two years have passed without a single word from them.

If you feel that my second uncle has obtained the title of Duke of Zhenguo, and that I have lost power and am no longer important, then you may speak frankly with me, and I will not bother you again.”

"Junior sister, what are you saying?" Ji Lingchuan asked, looking bewildered.

He paused, then quickly explained, "How could we have lost contact? During every festival, Master would send people to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion with letters and gifts without fail, and he even personally came to the mansion twice to perform a blessing ceremony for you. What you're saying today, Junior Sister, really confuses me."

"I have never received any letters or gifts, nor have I ever met Uncle Lin, let alone participated in any blessing ceremony." Chu Lengyu found it all absurd.

If Ji Lingchuan wasn't lying, then she vaguely guessed what was really going on behind the scenes.

Green Bamboo thought about it carefully and said, "The manor did hold two blessing ceremonies. I don't know which monk came, but they were for Young Master Lin and Second Miss. They had nothing to do with my young lady!"

The liveliness of their home was never related to them.

Ji Lingchuan found it increasingly absurd, so he excused himself and left the guest room to find something.

Green Bamboo shook her young mistress's arm and asked, "Miss, have we misunderstood Brother Ji and the others?"

"If it's the Chu family pulling the strings behind the scenes, I'll make them pay the price," Chu Lengyu said, enunciating each word clearly.

She inherited the original owner's memories and knew how much she, a weak and vulnerable young girl, longed for help from the outside world when she was isolated and ostracized in the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

For two whole years, there was no news from them. The original owner thought they had chosen to side with her second uncle and abandoned her. So she gradually became disappointed and stopped pinning her hopes on others.

The gentle and kind Chu Lengyu was like a flower that could not see the sun or get nutrients, gradually withering and falling in some corner of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

After a while, the tea boiled on the stove, making a bubbling sound. Chu Lengyu leaned over and took the teapot down.

Just then, Ji Lingchuan rushed back, carrying a wooden box in his hands.

Sweat beaded on his forehead as he said hastily, "Fortunately, all the correspondence has been properly preserved, otherwise I would have no way to defend myself today."

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Note: The poem is a patchwork and not the original version.