Chapter 132: Chapter 132: Invitation
Translator: 549690339
Dugu Nian, very unwillingly, opened the door. Without even looking at who was standing outside, she turned and walked away.
The youth outside the door wanted to greet Dugu Nian, but she just turned around and walked away without giving him a single glance. His hand, raised in the air for a greeting, froze in embarrassment.
Fang Lin stood up and looked at the youth outside the door. He didn’t recognize him, and assumed they had no common acquaintances.
“Brother Fang, I’m Chu Qingfeng, a mid-level disciple, here to pay you a visit.” The youth saw Fang Lin, and immediately put on a smile, greeting Fang Lin with a bow.
Even though Chu Qingfeng was a mid-level disciple, he showed a lot of respect for Fang Lin, who was a lower rank disciple. Judging from his manners, he obviously considered Fang Lin as his equal and didn’t look down on him because of his rank.
Seeing this courtesy from the other party, Fang Lin, who was also a stickler for etiquette, responded with a salute and a smile, saying, “Brother Chu, you’re too kind. May I know why you’ve come to see me?”
Fang Lin didn’t want to beat around the bush. Chu Qingfeng certainly hadn’t come for a casual visit— he could have done so half a month ago. The fact that he had chosen to visit now suggested he had a certain purpose in mind.
Chu Qingfeng didn’t expect Fang Lin to inquire so directly. All the pleasantries he had prepared suddenly seemed unnecessary.
“Brother Fang, indeed you are very straightforward. I won’t beat about the bush further. On the seventh day of next month, I hope you can come to the Ten Thousand Bamboo Forest behind the Green Bamboo Peak to attend our
Appreciation of Bamboo Gathering, which is held by us official disciples.” Chu Qingfeng pulled out an invitation, grandly presenting it to Fang Lin.
As Fang Lin had thought, this man hadn’t come to visit, but to deliver an invitation. Chu Qingfeng was just a messenger.
However, Fang Lin knew nothing about this so-called Bamboo Appreciation
Gathering, and moreover, wasn’t interested. He directly responded, “Brother Chu, thank you for inviting me personally. However, next month I may be quite busy and so I’m afraid I won’t be able to attend the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering. ”
Chu Qingfeng wasn’t surprised at Fang Lin’s refusal. He had been prepared from the beginning— he knew Fang Lin wasn’t an easy person to deal with.
Chu Qingfeng chuckled and said, “Brother Fang, you may not know that the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering, which happens only once a year, will this time have the Four Elites of Pill Sect present. Brother, you are a distinguished guest that the four brothers have specifically instructed us to invite. I hope you won’t reject us. Please do us the honor of attending.”
On hearing that all the four of the Pill Sect Elites would be present at the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering, Fang Lin was somewhat taken aback.
“Will Ouyang Jing also be there?” Fang Lin asked.
Chu Qingfeng nodded: “Brother Ouyang will return to Pill Sect next month and will surely appear at the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering. Besides him, some disciples from the Martial Sect will also be invited. They are all quite reputable in the Martial Sect. If you could come, you would surely make more friends.” Fang Lin fell into deep thought, having figured out something.
The Bamboo Appreciation Gatherinz might seem like nothing, but the participants were indeed high-profile individuals. Those Four Elites of Pill Sect alone accounted for a lot.
However, the fact that the Four Elites of Pill Sect had specifically instructed Chu Qingfeng to invite him suggested that they had ulterior motives.
Fang Lin couldn’t help thinking this way, considering he had disputes with two members of the Four Elites of the Pill Sect.
Whether it was Ding Xuanji or Yu Qiufan, either of them might make trouble for him under the guise of the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering. That would be troublesome.
Who knew what schemes Ding Xuanji or Yu Qiufan might plot? If he were to naively attend, it would be strange if he did not fall into their trap.
However, Fang Lin was indeed curious, especially about the renowned Ouyang Jing.
Fang Lin was very interested in Ouyang Jing, who was just like him, being oppressed by the Sect Chief Gu Daofeng. They could be described as two men sharing the same affliction.
Like Fang Lin, Ouyang Jing had also chosen to resist. However, the intensity of his resistance far exceeded that of Fang Lin’s.
Therefore, Fang Lin wanted to meet Ouyang Jing and discuss their experiences of resisting Gu Daofeng.
Of course, Fang Lin himself was someone who enjoyed stirring up trouble. Rather than letting Ding Xuanji and Yu Qiufan constantly think about how to deal with him, he might as well take the initiative to teach them a lesson while having the chance.
In that instant, Fang Lin thought through a lot. He reached out and took the invitation from Chu Qingfeng.
“In that case, I’ll accept your invitation. The seventh day of next month, right? I’ll definitely be there,” Fang Lin said.
Seeing Fang Lin agree, Chu Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief, a joyous look on his face. After exchanging a few more pleasantries with Fang Lin, he left.
Fang Lin cast a glance at the invitation, then casually tossed it aside.
“Hey, you really have a lot of free time. Why run to some Bamboo Appreciation Gathering? It sounds so boring.” Dugu Nian sat on a stone bench, her voice filled with mockery.
With a face full of enigmatic smiles, Fang Lin retorted, “What do you know?”
The day after the Ice Dew Pills were refined, Han Yinyue came to collect them.
When Han Yinyue saw the four Ice Dew Pills, her face lit up with undisguised joy. She thanked Fang Lin profusely.
Fang Lin tried to return the Four-Sided Square Ding to Han Yinyue, but she insisted on giving it to him and adamantly refused to take it back.
Having no other choice, Fang Lin kept the Four-Sided Square Ding. To be honest, he really liked this pill furnace.
Fang Lin told Han Yinyue that he would attend the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering next month.
Han Yinyue subtly reminded Fang Lin that the Bamboo Appreciation Gathering next month was not a simple gathering and was organized specifically targeting him. Not only Ding Xuanji or Yu Qiufan were behind it, but also someone even more powerful.
When Fang Lin asked who this more powerful person could be, Han Yinyue said she wasn’t quite sure, but hinted that it might have possible connections with Gu Daofeng.
Fang Lin suspected that this person was certainly not Gu Daofeng. If Gu Daofeng wanted to deal with him, there would be many other ways. There would be no need to organize such a Bamboo Appreciation Gathering.
But if it wasn’t Gu Daofeng, yet had some connection with Gu Daofeng, who could it be?
Temporarily, Fang Lin had no clue about it, and didn’t think about it further. After all, there was still a month left.
After seeing off Han Yinyue, Fang Lin began to relax. But with Dugu Nian around, his relaxation didn’t last.
Every day, Dugu Nian practiced Shaking Three Mountains, causing the pill furnace in the courtyard to clang loudly. On several occasions, Fang Lin wanted to curse out loud, but he held himself back.
Suddenly, one day, an ecstatic Dugu Nian told Fang Lin that she could finally perform the first strike of Shaking Three Mountains.
After watching her demonstration, indeed, she managed to pull off the first strike of Shaking Three Mountains.
However, that was it. Fang Lin reluctantly complimented her a little, and that was all.
By the end of the month, while Fang Lin was languidly watching Dugu Nian practice Shaking Three Mountains, a slightly childish and nervous young voice sounded from outside the courtyard: “Is….ls Brother Fang Lin living here?”
