Wang Fugui sat by the doorway.
Behind him was the small bamboo house that held their warm memories,
Before him, a cold sword.
One threshold,
Two worlds.
He wept,
Wept for a long time,
Then he laughed.
He laughed, a mad, ferocious laugh.
He rose and returned to the bamboo house, looking at everything familiar.
He frantically rummaged through everything in the house, wanting to find something of hers, evidence of her existence.
She had come, she had loved, this was not a dream...
This was not a dream!
Finally, in a corner, he found a dust-covered Daoist robe.
He picked up the robe and buried his face in it, heedless of the dust and stains, greedily inhaling the scent.
Her scent.
He unfastened his own clothes, that festive red robe.
He threw the robe on the ground like trash, discarded as if it were worn-out shoes.
He put on the Daoist robe and tied up his hair.
"From today on, I have no family, no fiancée. I have nothing. In the capital, there is no longer the young master Wang, no longer the dissolute Immortal of Wine.
I am a Daoist, just like you. Now we are a match, and no one will oppose us, no one will stop us."
The Daoist robe was slightly small on him, but he paid it no mind. He tightened the sash and walked out of the bamboo house.
Wang Fugui drew his sword and kicked away the accumulated snow.
"You couldn't even wait one day for me. When I find you, I will properly discipline you. Let's see if you dare to keep waiting for me, dare to disobey me again.
With this sword as my monument, with the frost and snow as my tomb, I will bury the past...
Did I agree to this? Did I give my consent? You took it upon yourself to end our feelings.
This young master does not agree! This young master will find you!
Feng Tieniu, Tieniu..."
Wang Fugui, carrying his sword and wearing the Daoist robe, descended the mountain.
From then on, the world no longer had the young master Wang Fugui, but instead gained a Daoist.
He knew where to find her; he had a destination.
She had said her home was in the Lanling Kingdom.
"You must have gone home. Don't worry, I'm coming now. I'll find you at your home, propose at your home..."
He descended the mountain. He had been to the Lanling Kingdom before and knew to head south.
He was very hungry, staggering along the path.
He dared not take the main road, nor the official road, fearing his family would catch up.
He had no skills, no food, and hadn't eaten for two days. Fortunately, he still had money.
Ahead, by the roadside, was a small tavern. He bought some dry rations and drank some wine, then continued on his journey.
He reached a small town, bought a horse, and also a lot of wine. All the way, he rode the horse, drank the wine, acting like a madman.
Half a month later, he entered the Lanling Kingdom.
He began to inquire where the Feng family resided, but no one knew.
It didn't matter; he would try another city.
He searched for two years, his footprints covering the Lanling Kingdom, but found nothing.
He traveled day and night, eating and sleeping poorly. He grew thin, his fair skin turned sallow, and his beard grew long, yet he neglected to trim it. People who saw him looked at him as if he were a lunatic.
The once elegant and handsome young master Wang was now as destitute as a beggar.
He paid no attention to the gazes of those around him, still madly asking everyone he met if they knew where the Feng family was.
He found over a dozen Feng families, but none of them had a woman named Feng Tieniu or Feng Junwan.
Those who were kind would give him some food and send him away.
Those with bad tempers would simply throw him out.
Some of the violent ones would beat him, leaving him covered in bruises.
He licked his wounds alone in dark corners, but his conviction to find her never wavered.
One day, he arrived at a Daoist temple.
She was a Daoist nun; perhaps she would live in a Daoist temple.
Wang Fugui casually walked up the steps and entered the temple.
Inside, several Daoist priests were attending to the deities.
Wang Fugui walked in and kowtowed.
The Daoist priests glanced at him but said nothing. All Daoist sects were one family; traveling Daoists returning to a temple were returning home.
Wang Fugui knelt devoutly before the deities, praying with sincerity.
After a long while,
"Hey, you scruffy fellow, come over for some tea."
An old Daoist priest sat in a pavilion, beckoning to Wang Fugui as he exited the temple.
Wang Fugui walked over, made no ceremony, picked up the tea cup, and drank it down in one gulp.
"Daoist friend, you seem troubled."
"Seeking a woman."
"Well, a person who has left home is still troubled by love. Little scruffy one, your six senses are not pure."
"She is a Daoist nun."
"Good heavens, even more exciting."
"Do you have any Daoist nuns here?"
"No, only Daoist priests. Will you make do?"
"Do you have wine?"
"Yes."
The tea cup was replaced with a wine bowl, and the old and young men clinked them together.
"Can't find her?"
"If I could find her, would I still be searching?"
"Can't let go?"
"Why should I let go?"
"So, you've ended up like this. Though I don't know what happened to you, do you think, looking like this, even if you found her, you could win her back?"
"I... don't know."
"Your cultivation is weak, your body frail. Traveling the world for years, even if you aren't beaten to death, you'll likely die young.
Cultivate. Live for a thousand, ten thousand years. In all that time, aren't you afraid you won't find her?"
"Then I shall both search and cultivate."
"You don't need to be so hard on yourself. Calm your mind. Whichever way you go, you'll be traveling. Why not search while traveling, experiencing the mortal world, observing the myriad beings, and tempering your spirit?
If you continue like this, you won't live much longer."
"The Daoist priest speaks wisely."
"As a Daoist, besides this ill-fitting robe, you don't have a single decent Daoist artifact. Are you a proper Daoist?"
"Can't the Daoist priest tell if I'm proper or not?"
"Ho, quite candid. Well, seeing as you aren't a disciple who went through formal initiation, but all Daoist sects are one family, this humble priest will help you.
Later, I will have someone bring you some Daoist robes, a whisk, and Ba Gua bronze coins.
This is a book on fortune-telling. Take it and memorize it well. You can learn the art of divination."
"Will learning this help me find her?"
"No, but it's enough to fool people. At the very least, it's a skill to make a living and support yourself. Looking at your destitute state, don't starve to death somewhere, don't beg for food every day, and bring shame upon the Daoist family."
"Doesn't deceiving people bring shame then?"
The old Daoist smiled slightly.
"Making money isn't shameful."
Wang Fugui left, wearing a new Daoist robe and carrying the fortune-telling items, looking more like a Daoist.
"Daoist priest, have a bowl of wine."
"Oh, what's going on today? In the morning, a Daoist seeking a Daoist nun. In the afternoon, another Daoist nun. Are you looking for a Daoist priest?"
"Ha, a Daoist seeking a Daoist nun, is that a proper Daoist? I'm not looking for a Daoist priest, I just want a bowl of wine."
"Then what are you looking for?"
"Looking for my young master."