Double Happiness at Gao Village

Su Qing and her party did not stay long at Guanyin Zen Temple. They stayed for one night, waiting for the heavy snow to stop. After replenishing some dry rations, they prepared to leave.

Nothing unexpected happened during the night. After all, Su Qing carried no treasures worth coveting. Even if she did, the three of them did not flaunt their wealth, so they naturally didn't attract unwanted attention.

However, after hearing some things about the Great Tang, the old monk couldn't help but feel a sense of longing for it. He even entertained the idea of going to live there.

After Su Qing's group left, the abbot of the Zen temple watched them depart in the distance and sighed softly. "I wonder when the next traveling monk from the Great Tang will come by."

The abbot wasn't particularly interested in Su Qing's group and couldn't tell who they were; he was merely interested in treasures.

After leaving Guanyin Zen Temple, Su Qing and her party continued their journey west.

They traveled for several more days. The path was desolate, with few signs of human life. Fortunately, they had replenished their rations at the temple, so they didn't have to rely solely on hunting to survive for those six or seven days.

Another day of heavy snow arrived.

After days of traveling through the wilderness, Su Qing's group finally spotted signs of civilization. Seeing smoke from a chimney in the distance, Chen Chaoyan breathed a sigh of relief. They had encountered very few people on the road and had been camping outdoors until now.

Seeing that smoke meant they would have a place to stay tonight and wouldn't have to sleep in the wild again.

Actually, Chaoyan didn't mind sleeping outdoors herself; she could handle a bit of hardship. She just didn't want her godmother to suffer with her. After all, her godmother could have stayed in Chang'an to enjoy a comfortable life instead of following her to the Western Heaven.

"There's smoke over there, so there must be a household. Shall we go there to ask for a place to stay for the night?" Chaoyan tugged at Su Qing's sleeve and said with a smile.

Su Qing nodded. She had also seen the smoke. "We shall do as you suggest," she said.

Su Qing knew exactly what place that smoke belonged to. After all, she had chosen the direction and found the path. It would be a problem if she didn't know where the road led.

As for where this place was? It was, of course, Gao Village.

Su Qing didn't refuse to go there. For one, camping in the wild was indeed a hassle. Secondly, calculating the days, Zhu Bajie probably hadn't left Fuling Mountain yet to become a matrilocal son-in-law at Gao Village.

However, Su Qing couldn't be entirely sure. While destiny was fixed, it only dictated the final outcome; deviations could still occur in the middle. Things weren't always exactly as they had been in the past.

But even if there were differences, it wasn't a big deal. She was there to handle any trouble that might arise, so she wasn't afraid of any complications.

Chaoyan had no idea what place it was, nor did she know what Su Qing was thinking. Seeing Su Qing nod, she led the horse and walked toward Gao Village with her.

The three of them didn't walk slowly, and before long, they reached the boundaries of Gao Village. The area was filled with thick bamboo fences and rows of thatched huts. While it couldn't be called prosperous, it was significantly better than many of the places they had seen on the road.

Su Qing nodded slightly. It had been a while since she had seen such signs of human life.

"Godmother, wait for me a moment. I'll go find a house to ask for lodging," Chaoyan said, taking the initiative when she saw Su Qing was silent.

Su Qing shook her head and said, "Go ask for lodging there. Let's not disturb the ordinary farmers."

Chaoyan looked in the direction Su Qing pointed and was slightly stunned, unsure of Su Qing's intent. However, she didn't overthink it. Her godmother was often mysterious, but her actions always had a purpose. So, since Su Qing told her to go, she didn't object.

The direction Su Qing pointed was, naturally, the home of Elder Gao—the very Gao Village that Zhu Bajie would constantly yearn for on the journey to the West. Su Qing wanted to go there partly to see the place and partly to confirm the situation. Other than that, there was no other reason.

When they reached the front of Elder Gao's manor, Chaoyan knocked on the door.

Before long, a servant came to open it. The servant was initially a bit annoyed, but seeing that Su Qing and the others were beautiful, his anger mostly dissipated. He asked gently, "Young ladies, why have you knocked? Are you looking for my master for something?"

Chaoyan performed a Buddhist salute and chanted, "Amitabha. This poor monk is a pilgrim from the Great Tang in the East going to the Western Heaven to seek scriptures. We wish to stay here for the night. Could you please inform your master?"

The servant's eyebrows twitched slightly. He looked Chaoyan over and noticed that although she had hair, her attire and temperament were indeed no different from the nuns he usually saw. He nodded and said, "Please wait a moment while I go speak with the master. If he agrees, I will let you in."

Chaoyan didn't say anything, just nodded and said, "Thank you for your trouble."

The man returned the salute, nodded, and turned to leave.

After the servant left, Chaoyan turned to look at Su Qing, only to find her staring blankly at the 'Double Happiness' character posted on the manor's door.

"What is Godmother looking at?" Chaoyan asked, somewhat puzzled.

Su Qing snapped out of it and said, "Nothing... just looking at the Double Happiness character on the door."

Chaoyan tilted her head and asked, "Is there something special about it? Is Godmother thinking about her late husband?"

Su Qing couldn't help but cough twice. How on earth did this girl link those two things together? Besides, she didn't even have a husband. She had a few Daoist companions, though.

Regaining her composure, Su Qing said, "No... I just saw the character and thought that someone in this family must have gotten married recently."

"They wouldn't post it if they weren't getting married, right?" Chaoyan answered, stunned.

Su Qing rolled her eyes, not knowing how to continue the conversation with the girl. She couldn't exactly tell her that some things had happened outside of her expectations, could she?

"Alright, alright. The servant should be back soon. Go wait by the door," Su Qing said, giving up on the conversation and pointing toward the gate.

Chaoyan scratched her head, unsure of what she had said wrong, so she simply did as Su Qing said and continued to wait. However, she still felt that her godmother was being sentimental. After all, even if her godmother had lived much longer than her, she was still human—a person with feelings. It was normal to think of the past!

Su Qing looked at Chaoyan and shook her head slightly, turning her gaze back to the Double Happiness character.

She didn't know whose wedding it was for... whether it was for Cuilan's older sisters or for Cuilan herself. If it was for the sisters, that would be fine. But if it was for Cuilan, it meant that Zhu Bajie had indeed arrived at Gao Village early.

Su Qing sighed inwardly, thinking, "Forget it, I'll take it one step at a time. As long as the ultimate destiny remains unchanged, the journey west won't be affected much. At most, there will be some changes in the process of subduing Zhu Bajie."

As she was thinking, the servant who had gone to report opened the door again. "Please come in! The master says you may stay here."

Chaoyan chanted a Buddhist name and said, "Thank you, Benefactor."

"Amitabha, I am just relaying the master's words. Give me your horses; I'll take them to the stables," the servant said, shaking his head and repeating the chant.

Su Qing didn't refuse and handed over the reins.

Shortly after, Su Qing and the others followed the servant to the living room and met Elder Gao, who was waiting there. Elder Gao was slightly surprised to see that they were indeed women. However, after a brief moment of surprise, he stood up and performed a Buddhist salute. "Amitabha! I heard from the servant that you are from the Great Tang in the East, traveling to the Western Heaven to seek the true scriptures?"

Su Qing nodded slightly and then left the talking to Chaoyan. After all, among the three of them, Chaoyan was the only true nun.

Knowing Su Qing's plan, Chaoyan returned the salute and said, "That is correct, Benefactor."

"That is a long journey... you must have suffered quite a bit along the way," Elder Gao sighed. "Someone, bring tea for the high monks."

Su Qing smiled and shook her head. "Actually, I am no high monk; I am just a commoner. Among us, she is the only one who practices Buddhism."

Elder Gao was stunned for a moment and looked at Chaoyan. Chaoyan nodded and explained the situation. Upon learning the reason, Elder Gao felt a deep respect for Su Qing. It was rare for someone to be willing to accompany a child who wasn't their own on such a long and arduous journey.

"I see... in that case, you are even more admirable," Elder Gao remarked.

Su Qing shook her head helplessly and began chatting with Elder Gao about other things. As they talked, Su Qing took the opportunity to ask, "By the way, when we arrived, we saw the Double Happiness character on your door. Has someone recently gotten married?"

Elder Gao didn't think much of the question, assuming Su Qing was just curious. He chuckled and said, "It was my daughter; I recruited a son-in-law for her. I have had no sons in my life, only three daughters. My eldest and second daughters both married locals. Only the youngest was too young and remained unmarried."

"Later, I thought it would be better not to marry her off but to recruit a son-in-law instead. That way, we'd have more company, and there would be someone to inherit the family estate in the future."

"As luck would have it, a fellow showed up recently. He's quite refined and good-looking. He said he's from Fuling Mountain, surnamed Zhu, with no parents or siblings, and was willing to be a matrilocal son-in-law."

"Seeing that he had no family and no attachments, and could settle down as one of our own, I recruited him."

"And I must say... that son-in-law is quite remarkable. He's as strong as an ox and exceptionally hardworking. He's also very good to my daughter... his only flaw is that he eats a bit much... but that doesn't matter. Since he's capable, it's fine if he eats a lot."

"Finding such a son-in-law is truly a stroke of good fortune."

Elder Gao talked at length, not hiding his satisfaction with the son-in-law. However, after hearing this, Su Qing's mouth twitched slightly. She had held onto a sliver of hope, but it turned out Old Pig really had arrived at Gao Village early.

However, Zhu Bajie clearly hadn't revealed his true form yet, so Elder Gao didn't find him repulsive. Su Qing was also a bit puzzled. Logically, Zhu Bajie was someone who knew the Thirty-Six Transformations; how could he fail to maintain a human appearance? Why would he occasionally revert to his original form?

If he hadn't messed that up, given his current attitude toward Miss Gao, he wouldn't have caused her to suffer.

While thinking, Su Qing continued to chat with Elder Gao, mentioning that she wanted to see this son-in-law named Zhu, as she was curious about how strong he was. Elder Gao didn't mind and said that once the son-in-law returned, he would have him show Su Qing.

Su Qing nodded and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you, Elder Gao."

"No trouble at all," Elder Gao said with a smile. "By the way, it's getting late. I'll have someone prepare some vegetarian meals."

"Thank you very much," Chaoyan said quickly, her stomach beginning to growl at the mention of food.

Elder Gao laughed and gave the orders. He liked Su Qing very much; it was rare to find someone so young who could share common topics with an old man like him. If she didn't look so young, he would have thought she was as old as he was!

As for Chaoyan, Elder Gao didn't have much of an impression of her. Although she had started the conversation, he had mostly ended up chatting with Su Qing. And as for Yudie, she hadn't spoken at all.

Time passed by.

Su Qing chatted with Elder Gao for a long time, while Chaoyan and Yudie went to the guest room to tidy up their lodgings for the night.

Meanwhile, the two of them also chatted. "Sister Yudie... I feel like there's a faint demonic qi in this Gao Village, and that son-in-law named Zhu sounds strange. He doesn't seem like an ordinary person."

Yudie gave Chaoyan a strange look, thinking, "Actually, you've been followed by two non-humans this whole time..."

But she couldn't say that. She said, "I'm not sure about that... I didn't feel anything special. If there were a problem, Mother would have told us. Maybe... you're just overthinking it?"

Chaoyan rubbed her head, thinking about her godmother's odd behavior today. She felt more and more that her godmother had likely noticed something but didn't tell her for fear she would act recklessly. After thinking for a long time, she decided to ask her godmother privately later.

On the other side, the vegetarian meal was soon ready. At the same time, the son-in-law named Zhu, who had been working outside for half the day, also returned. Hearing that guests had arrived, he ran to the living room to meet them.