GBP Chapter 99 Preparations for the Pre-Seclusion
Chapter 99 Preparations for the Pre-Seclusion
Soon, the seven-day National Day holiday came to an end. The relatives and friends who came here for Xiaobao's wedding gradually left the canyon in the one or two days after the holiday.
Xiao Bao and Xiao Xue stood at the villa entrance, seeing off their relatives and friends one by one. Every hug and every blessing was filled with deep affection.
As the last relative's car disappeared from sight, Xiao Bao took Xiao Xue's hand and sighed softly, "After all the excitement, it's suddenly a little quiet and I'm not used to it." Xiao Xue smiled and leaned on his shoulder, "But it's nice this way too. Now it's just the two of us again."
Back in the villa, the two sat on the sofa in the living room, silent yet seemingly in sync. Xiao Bao broke the silence, saying, "Honey, I've been so busy these past few days and haven't had a chance to spend much time with you. Now, it's just the two of us, and we can do whatever we want." Xiao Xue blinked, "How about we rest for a few days first, and then go on a trip?" Xiao Bao readily agreed.
At night, the moonlight streamed into the bedroom like water. Xiao Bao and Xiao Xue slept in each other's arms, feeling each other's warmth in the tranquility and looking forward to more wonderful days to come.
The next morning, Xiaobao and Xiaoxue packed their luggage. Xiaobao said, "Since we're going on a trip, first we have to take you to see the most mysterious place in our house." Xiaoxue said, "Okay."
Xiao Bao drove Xiao Xue to the canyon. Xiao Bao said, "This is the outer edge of the canyon, the place you often come to. Now I'll take you to the most mysterious place in the canyon." Xiao Bao drove the car into the underground garage of his house, and then crossed a small hill below the garage to enter the valley within a valley.
Xiaoxue had never been to this place before, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "So beautiful!" The first thing that caught her eye was the lake, which looked absolutely stunning. Around the canyon, in this valley within a valley, there were many exotic flowers and rare herbs. The villas inside were simply decorated, and the houses were basic, but they were decorated with a very warm and inviting atmosphere. There were also some venerable elders or people with high levels of cultivation practicing there.
Xiao Bao led Xiao Xue on a tour, and they kept a low profile throughout, being careful not to disturb the people who were cultivating there.
After their visit, Xiaobao and Xiaoxue quietly left the valley within a valley. Xiaobao smiled and said to Xiaoxue, "How was it, darling? Wasn't this place special?" Xiaoxue nodded in response, "Indeed, it felt full of mystery and tranquility."
Then, they returned to their car, ready to embark on their real journey and explore more unknown and wonderful places.
A Special Trip
Xiao Bao and Xiao Xue said goodbye to Lin Yue and Gong Yong and drove to the airport. Xiao Xue asked, "Where are we going now?" Xiao Bao said, "During the more than ten years I've been on missions, every time I go to a new place, I look for a scenic spot to see the scenery. This time, I'll take you to some of the countries I've been to before, or some very beautiful places I've discovered during my missions within our country. These places aren't as crowded with tourists as you usually see; they're more secluded and less frequented, but the scenery is exceptionally beautiful."
Xiaoxue's eyes were full of anticipation: "That must be amazing!"
Once on the plane, Xiaobao held Xiaoxue's hand and told her about the unique features of those places. Xiaoxue listened intently, as if she were already immersed in those beautiful landscapes.
After a long flight, they finally arrived at their first destination. It was a tranquil beach with azure sea and sky, and fine sand as white as snow. Apart from them, there was hardly anyone else in sight.
Xiao Bao and Xiao Xue strolled hand in hand on the beach, feeling the gentle caress of the sea breeze and enjoying this romantic moment that belonged only to them.
While Xiaobao and Xiaoxue were away on their trip, Gong Yong and Lin Yue took over the logistical work following the wedding. First, Lin Yue settled accounts with the hotels they had booked – one five-star hotel, several guesthouses, and a few regular hotels. After Lin Yue and Gong Yong finished their rounds, they had collected all the bills.
On the way, they went to their own five-star hotel. The manager said, "Boss, isn't this your own hotel?" Lin Yue replied, "One thing at a time. We need to get the accounts straight." After paying the hotel bill, they also paid for the separately hired chefs. For the past three months, they had paid them a certain amount each month. However, in the last month, during that final period, Lin Yue and Gong Yong bought some cigarettes and alcohol, as well as some things prepared according to local customs for the chefs. They also added an extra 10,000 yuan to each chef's salary because they had indeed worked hard.
Basically, we just borrowed some round tables, chairs, and benches from the company, arranged for people to return what needed to be returned, remove what needed to be removed, and take away some shelves and the like, restoring the company to its previous state.
With Gong Yong's tireless efforts, and the help of his employees, it took him a week to restore everything to its original state. Production resumed as normal, and employees returned to work. While Xiao Bao was away, Gong Yong took over Xiao Bao's work, allowing the young couple to travel, while Lin Yue took over Xiao Xue's responsibilities, beginning to manage the finances.
They had discussed it with their son and daughter-in-law, and they would go on vacation for a month, while the elderly couple would stay at the company for the same month to help look after it. The work became much simpler afterward, and Lin Yue and Gong Yong resumed their grueling work. This time, they weren't working for someone else, but for their son and daughter-in-law. The elderly couple smiled at each other, feeling that their burden and task were finally complete, and it was time to prepare for what they needed to prepare.
Lin Yue and Gong Yong planned to go into seclusion after their son's wedding, when he returned from a trip and his wife and son took over their work. During this seclusion, they needed to make things clear with the spirits and monsters in their home, especially the rat spirit, the willow tree spirit, the two snow wolf spirits, the eagle spirit, and the ginseng spirit. They needed to inform them, otherwise, their long-term seclusion might lead to these spirits causing trouble outside the canyon.
Because the unruly spirits outside are usually either captured or scattered by the various immortal sects and Taoists, but within Lin Yue's realm, many spirits survive. Lin Yue embraces all things, allowing them to coexist with humans. Among all the places in the country, Lin Yue's canyon currently boasts the largest number of spirits, but these are spirits from his private territory. Besides the spirits nurtured by this land itself, many others have come to Lin Yue's canyon to seek refuge for various reasons.
Lin Yue said that since you are willing to come to the canyon, as long as you do not disturb the normal humans living here, and you do not fight and compete for territory, you can live peacefully here, cultivate yourselves.
So during this month, Lin Yue took walks with the rat spirit, the willow spirit, and Gong Yong. In the canyon, whenever they encountered a little spirit with intelligence, they would explain to them that they might need to go into seclusion for a while, and that if they had any urgent matters, they could contact Xiao Bao, the willow spirit, the rat spirit, the wolf spirit, or the eagle spirit.
Gradually, Lin Yue realized that his parents were getting old. He was afraid that if he suddenly went into seclusion, something might happen to them or they might fall ill, and he wouldn't be there for them. But this time, Lin Yue felt that he needed to go into seclusion, and he needed a good one. So he decided to wait until his son and daughter-in-law returned from their honeymoon before quietly going to Wuzong Valley to go into seclusion.
Lin Yue counted down the time at home, waiting for his son and daughter-in-law to return. This was the longest wait of his life. In the past, when his son and daughter were on missions, he hadn't felt any sense of danger, knowing they could protect him. But this time, with his son and daughter-in-law gone, he felt inexplicably uneasy. He didn't know if something had happened to his son and daughter-in-law, or if his cultivation had reached a certain critical point, requiring him to go into seclusion.
In this inexplicable anxiety, Lin Yue kept counting the days, like a lover waiting for the last thread of longing for someone who won't come home, her heart heavy with worry. "The thread in the mother's hand, the clothes on the traveler's back"—perhaps this best describes this longing.
Lin Yue also began arranging things at home. First, she contacted her brother and sister-in-law, who had already retired, to return to the valley to take care of her parents. Lin Yue's parents were quite old, over ninety years old. When the brother received the call, he said to Lin Yue, "Sister, I just returned to Qingcheng from your valley. Why are you calling me back again?" Lin Yue said, "Our parents are getting old. Taking care of them isn't just my responsibility. You and your wife should go back quickly. Your brother-in-law and I really need to go into seclusion this time, and you'll have to take care of our parents for a while. As for Xiaobao and Xiaoxue, they're young and busy with work, so they don't have much time to go back to the valley to take care of their grandparents' daily needs. Although they have caregivers and bodyguards, they're not doing very well without your company. I hope you and your wife can come to the valley to keep the elderly company." The brother said, "Don't I have children to take care of too?" Lin Yue said, "You can bring the children here to study, isn't that the same thing? Think about it carefully. You have 15 days to think it over. After 15 days, when the children come back, Gong Yong and I will go into seclusion. I don't know how long the seclusion will last, but I know I should go. The rest is up to you, especially regarding our parents' health and food."
This was Lin Yue's final notice to her younger brother. Because Lin Yue runs a company here and lives in the canyon, she brought their parents to live with her. For the past ten years or so, Lin Yue and Gong Yong have been taking care of their parents and brother; her brother's wife hasn't visited them often. So, sometimes when people get old, they really want their children around, but it has to be the children who are filial. Lin Yue's parents are over ninety, almost a hundred years old. Although they are still relatively healthy, able to walk around, not bedridden, and don't need special care, they still need companionship.
While Lin Yue and Gong Yong were arranging the follow-up matters, they made a special trip by plane to the leadership center to explain their tasks to the senior leaders. The leaders said, "Isn't this just a retreat? A simple retreat will suffice." But Lin Yue felt that this retreat might not be so simple. As the white-haired man had said, perhaps a retreat could last for years, decades, or even centuries, and by then, very few people would still be alive. Therefore, Lin Yue's trip was to explain the subsequent matters to the relevant leaders.
Meanwhile, Lin Yue went to her eldest daughter Coco's house to see her grandchildren. This was part of the trip Lin Yue and Gong Yong took. Then Lin Yue and Gong Yong went to her second daughter's house. Her second daughter and the white-haired man hadn't officially registered their marriage according to the country's laws, but they did live together. Lin Yue also acknowledged this son-in-law who was over five thousand years older than her. Lin Yue spoke to this son-in-law about some things, and he asked her, "Do you feel you must go into seclusion? You really have to go into seclusion?" Lin Yue said, "Yes, I feel it's my destiny, or someone is telling me I must take this step." The white-haired man said, "During your seclusion, your physical body might need someone to protect it. It would be best if you went into seclusion in a valley within a valley. If others find you're not breathing, they might think you've died and cremate your body." Lin Yue said, "I know this, I'll take care of it." Jingjing said, "Mom, should I move?" "Go back to the valley, move back to the valley within the valley. That way, if someone tries to harm you while you're in seclusion, White-Haired Brother and I will be there." Lin Yue said, "It might indeed be necessary for you to come back and stay for a while. Firstly, your grandparents are almost a hundred years old. I'm afraid that while I'm in seclusion, their lives will definitely become a bit difficult. Although I called your uncle and aunt hoping they would return to live in the valley, or take your grandparents out, it's impossible now; they've already adapted to life in the valley. I hope that since you two have been free for so many years, you can go and live in the valley for a while and help Mom look after the house, okay?" White-Haired Brother said, "Okay."
Finally, on her way home, Lin Yue took Jingjing and the white-haired man with her. A month later, Xiaoxue and Xiaobao finally took a plane back to the home they had been longing for.
The couple initially enjoyed their carefree and romantic trip abroad, but after two weeks, they both started to miss home and their own little nest. Life abroad wasn't as wonderful as they'd imagined; they'd witnessed too much of the complexities of human relationships and the chaos of war, and decided it was time to go home. So, just one month after their trip, the couple took a plane and rushed back home.
Back home, I had a very satisfying dinner with Lin Yue, my second sister, and her husband. Sitting at the table, Lin Yue told her son and daughter-in-law, "Tomorrow we're going to hand over our work. Your dad and I need to go into seclusion, and we don't know exactly how long, so tomorrow is the last day. We'll go to hand over our work, and your dad has already done so. After that, he'll go into seclusion with me." Xiao Bao asked, "Mom, is it in such a hurry?" Lin Yue said, "I've been counting down the days until you come back. This is the last bit of time I can endure." Xiao Xue said, "Mom, okay, you go into seclusion. You don't need to wait for us."
Lin Yue took out an imperial green gourd pendant from her person, gently hung it around her daughter-in-law's neck, then personally pierced a small hole in her neck, dripped a drop of blood onto the pendant, cast a few incantations, and put it on her daughter-in-law. She said to her daughter-in-law, "This is a family secret passed down through generations. You can see that the space inside is quite large, right? You know the rumors that we are masters of spatial artifacts, and I am indeed passing this on to you now. This gourd contains a small world inside, where you can grow flowers and trees, and also raise living things, but it's not particularly large. This is Wei Ma's masterpiece. The ones I gave you before were like warehouses, static spaces, but this one of yours also has a static space inside that thatched house. Go and start exploring it yourself."
Lin Yue took out the pendant that her son used to wear again and hung a gourd on it, essentially adding a gourd space to the original pendant. Now, Xiao Bao's space had an additional gourd-shaped secondary space. Previously, Xiao Bao's space could only store things; it was a perpetual warehouse. But with the gourd, it could now hold living things, just like Xiao Xue's. At the same time, Lin Yue took out another gourd and hung it around her second daughter's neck. She had also secretly hung one around her eldest daughter's neck when she visited her, without letting her son-in-law know. Now, with the white-haired brother beside her, he said, "I don't need this one. The one I have is more advanced."
The next morning, Lin Yue and Gong Yong went to hand over their company work to their son and daughter-in-law. After the handover was completed, they spent the evening with Lin Yue and her parents in the valley. Looking forward to the start of their retreat!