Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“Dog meat is good for your body in winter. Even the gods couldn’t resist the taste of it. He had dog meat hot pot,” Wang Yao said certainly.

“That’s not possible. Are monks allowed to eat meat?” Su Xiaoxue asked, even though she knew the answer.

“You should ask them,” Wang Yao said.

“Dear donor, you are in a temple, be aware of your speech,” the monk said as he turned around.

“The monk is upset,” Su Xiaoxue said with a smile, like a playful fairy.

“Monk, you had dog meat, is it delicious?” Wang Yao asked with a smile.

The monk’s eyes were full of anger.

Su Xiaoxue laughed. She was in a very good mood.

“What is going on here?” asked another monk who had come along. This monk was older and fatter.

“Mr. Wang, did he also have dog meat?” Su Xiaoxue asked as she looked at Wang Yao.

Song Ruiping and Chen Ying stood to the side and watched them teasing the monks.

“Yes, he did,” Wang Yao said after observing the older monk for a moment.

“Hey, Monk, is dog meat delicious?” Su Xiaoxue teased the monk.

“Dog…” The fat monk looked at Su Xiaoxue. He wondered why such a pretty girl, who looked like a goddess, would speak without thinking.

“Amitabha, are you joking? This is a temple. Where is the dog meat?” the fat monk asked seriously. He suddenly looked like an eminent monk.

“I thought monks never lied,” Su Xiaoxue said.

“I was telling the truth,” the fat monk said.

“We’ll stop talking about dog meat. Let’s walk around,” Wang Yao said with a smile. It was pointless to continue talking with the two monks about dog meat.

“OK,” Su Xiaoxue said.

The monks turned around and left.

Wang Yao and the other three women entered the hall. A statue of the South China Sea Goddess of Mercy was there for people to worship. Since they were in the temple, they worshiped the statue.

All of them knelt down in front of the statue and bowed to it. Wang Yao took a close look at the statue, which looked very kind. Goddess, do you know your monks have been drinking alcohol and eating dog meat? Wang Yao thought. He then put his palms together and bowed to the statue.

“Shall we take a look at the hill behind?” Wang Yao suggested.

There was a statue of Buddha on the hill. The statue was curved into the hill. Although it didn’t have a long history, it looked artistic. Wang Yao thought it must have been created by a master.

“It’s snowing,” Su Xiaoxue happily said.

Small snowflakes were floating in the air.

“Is there a building on the top of the hill?” Su Xiaoxue pointed at the top of the hill, which was not too far from them. She could vaguely see the corner of a building.

“Yes, but it was just built. Do you want to go and take a look?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yes,” Su Xiaoxue said.

There were a lot of steps on the staircase, which was long and narrow.

“Are you tired?” Su Xiaoxue gently asked.

“No,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

Su Xiaoxue was not heavy. Wang Yao wouldn’t feel tired even if he was carrying a cow.

The stairs were not too long for Wang Yao. It didn’t take them long to reach the top of the hill. It was a small hill with uneven ground on the top. There was also a small house on the top of the hill. The house looked quite nice and new.

“Is that it?” Su Xiaoxue asked.

She was a bit disappointed at first glance. However, she soon found that she could get a good view of the surroundings when standing on top of the hill. The world was covered by snow, forming a very unique scene.

“This place is very different from Beijing,” Song Ruiping said.

She rarely got a chance to visit a small place like Lianshan. She looked around. All she could see were small hills. In Beijing, all she could see were tall buildings. The small hills might not be as grand as those tall buildings, and Lianshan was not a historical city like Beijing, but it had its own character.

It was like a person who appreciated homemade dishes after dining out too often.

On their way back, Wang Yao saw a monk sneaking into the back of the hill with a pack in his hand.

“What is he doing?” Su Xiaoxue curiously asked.

“Destroying evidence,” Wang Yao replied.

“What evidence?” Su Xiaoxue asked.

“Evidence of eating dog meat,” Wang Yao said. He could smell the meat. “Those monks completely lack self-discipline.”

The monk lived on the hill without any boundary. They didn’t follow any rules or prohibitions. The Buddha statue had no impact on them. They had to discipline themselves.

“All the monks on the hill have broken the rules,” Wang Yao said.

He imagined those monks got together to eat dog meat hot pot, drink wine, and watch erotic movies. They must have wonderful times.

Song Ruiping didn’t speak. She just smiled.

Su Xiaoxue’s pretty face turned red from the cold weather, but she was in extremely good mood. She hadn’t felt so happy in a long time.

She liked the hill. That was how she felt.

It was starting to get dark by the time they left the hill.

“Ma’am, I’ve arranged the accommodation for you and Miss Su,” Chen Ying said.

“Good,” Song Ruiping said. “Dr. Wang, thank you for showing us around.”

Wang Yao had spent the whole afternoon with them.

“You are welcome,” he said. He didn’t think he would get many patients on such a cold day. After all, flu season had passed. “It’s nice to walk around anyway.”

“Are you busy tomorrow?” Su Xiaoxue asked gently before she left.

“I don’t think so,” Wang Yao replied.

“Good to know,” Su Xiaoxue said.

On their way to Haiqu, Su Xiaoxue kept smiling. No one knew what was on her mind.

“Have you had a wonderful day?” Song Ruiping asked.

“Yeah,” Su Xiaoxue said.

“Good.” Song Ruiping could tell that her daughter was happy, very happy. Su Xiaoxue hadn’t been so happy for ages. Song Ruiping thought she should have taken her daughter out earlier.

“Can you show us some other places tomorrow?” Song Ruiping asked.

“Sure,” Wang Yao said.

Chen Ying put some presents into Wang Yao’s vehicle before saying good bye.

“We brought this stuff from Beijing. It’s just some local food. Please accept it,” Chen Ying said as she was putting the presents into Wang Yao’s vehicle.

“Thank you,” Wang Yao said.

“I hope you like it,” Su Xiaoxue said.

“Well, you are my guests. It is my treat for dinner tonight,” Wang Yao said.

“Hmm…” Chen Ying couldn’t make a decision. She looked at Song Ruiping.

“No, thank you. We’ll sort out our dinner,” Song Ruiping said with a smile.

“OK, see you tomorrow,” Wang Yao said.

It was late afternoon when he arrived home. His mother had made dinner.

“How come you brought so much stuff back?” Zhang Xiuying asked as Wang Yao went back and forth twice to bring the presents home. “You went shopping?”

“No, I told you I went out with friends,” Wang Yao said.

“I saw a few people go to your clinic. They left since you were not there,” Zhang Xiuying said.

“I see. I put a notice on the door,” Wang Yao said. He always put a notice on the door during his absence so that people wouldn’t waste time waiting for him.

“Your friends are from Beijing?” Zhang Xiuying asked.

“Yes, the patient I mentioned to you before,” Wang Yao said.

“That girl?” Zhang Xiuying asked.

“Yes,” Wang Yao said.

“So, she’s fit enough to travel?” Zhang Xiuying asked. She had kept this girl, who her son had mentioned before, on her mind. She knew the girl suffered a lot from a terrible disease. It was not easy for her to survive.

“Yes, but she can’t walk yet. She uses a wheelchair,” Wang Yao said.

“Where have you been on such a cold day?” Zhang Xiuying asked.

“Jiulian Hill,” Wang Yao said.

“You went up there?” Zhang Xiuying was surprised.

“Yes,” Wang Yao said.

“Shall we eat first,” said Wang Fenghua, who had been smoking.

“Right, let’s eat,” Zhang Xiuying said.

She went through the presents as Wang Yao was having dinner.

“What is this?” Zhang Xiuying asked after finding a delicate tea set among the food. “Cloisonné?”

“That’s something special from Beijing,” Wang Yao said.

“Let me take a look.” Wang Fenghua took over the tea set. Each tea cup had different patterns. They were delicate. Wang Fenghua apparently liked the tea set very much.

“Dad, you like it?” Wang Yao asked.

“Yeah, they are pretty,” Wang Fenghua said with a smile. “It’s a waste to use them for tea.”

“A tea set is supposed to be used for drinking tea,” Wang Yao said.

After chatting with his parents for a short while after dinner, he left for Nanshan Hill.

Meanwhile, Song Ruiping, Su Xiaoxue and Chen Ying had checked in the best room of the best hotel in Lianshan town center.

“Ma’am, Miss Su has fallen asleep,” Chen Ying said.

“Good. It was a long trip to get here, and she’s been out for the whole afternoon. She should be really tired,” Song Ruiping said.

Su Xiaoxue was tired. She had a shower after arriving at the hotel. She then had a simple dinner and went to sleep.

“What is our plan tomorrow?” Chen Ying asked.

“We’ll met with Dr. Wang again and return to Beijing the day after tomorrow,” Song Ruiping said.

After Chen Ying left, Song Ruiping sat next to the window. She looked through the window at the town center covered by snow. She had never been to Lianshan before. If it was not for her daughter, she would probably not have come there in her entire life.