"Of course it's me, the beautiful and virtuous Hua Hua, with Xian Xian as my partner~~" Mu Yuan stood up abruptly, holding the mortar in one hand and accurately wrapping her arm around Ning Xian's shoulder with the other, while also nuzzling him, "Right, Xian Xian~~?"
Suddenly, a gust of air swept through the sky—there was a murderous aura!
Even if Mu Yuan couldn't see, she could quickly withdraw her hand, sidestep, and a heavy axe slashed vertically between Ning Xian and Mu Yuan. If she had been a step slower, she probably would have sliced off Mu Yuan's restless hand. Feng's outer robe was tied at her waist, beads of sweat glistening, reflecting on her cold and beautiful face. Her tall and straight body stood holding the axe.
Mu Yuan scoffed at the attack, replying, "What, you have a problem with that? You should remember that I was with Xuanxuan first. You're just a young master, and instead of showing respect, you dare to fight me?"
Without a word, Feng raised his hand, twirled the axe in his hand, and swung it down again in mid-air—Mu Yuan could only rely on her hearing and instinct to judge the direction the axe was coming from, but she couldn't see the stone bench and medicinal herbs on the ground. This chase and dodge caused chaos in the courtyard—"Murder! Ah Huang has rebelled!"
Ning Xian rubbed her forehead, feigning tears—"Hua Hua, you can't even see properly anymore, can you please stop bothering Ah Huang?" Now she has to sort the medicinal herbs all over again…
Mr. Dongli patted Ning Xian's shoulder. He wasn't worried about the yard; someone else would take care of it. He just smiled kindly and said earnestly, like an elder, "Young lady, you have some talent. It's not bad for young people to be a little flirtatious, but you must keep a close eye on your own backyard and lest it catch fire." After saying that, he tactfully withdrew, not wanting to interfere in the young people's romantic entanglement. Ning Xian opened her mouth to look at his back, but didn't know how to explain—Uncle, you've really misunderstood…
After finishing off the wooden kite, Feng dropped the axe, clapped her hands, and walked over. "Ning Xian."
"Huh?" Ning Xian's eyes were fixed on the messy courtyard, not on Feng. "What's wrong?"
"Yes, today is the Qixi Festival. There's a lantern festival in town. Let's go for a walk tonight."
The Qixi Festival? Now that you mention it, she does remember something like that—but this courtyard—she looked up and saw Mr. Dongli waving at her from the window in the room—Go on, go on. Young people should go out and have fun occasionally—but he didn't forget to add, "You can clean up the courtyard when you get back."
...What a jarring remark! How could she possibly be in the mood to go?
Feng leaned down slightly and whispered in her ear, "You've been in the Demonic Sect all this time, so I don't think you've ever seen the lantern festival of the Qixi Festival in the folk tradition. Go and take a look."
...Okay, I almost forgot she was cultivating her relationship with Feng. She tried to ignore the messy yard and nodded. She was still a little happy inside. "Okay, let's go."
Suddenly, she felt a tight grip on her foot. Hua Hua, lying on the ground with a head full of blood bumps, was clutching her ankle tightly, saying in a mournful, weak, and broken voice, "I want to go too..."
"..."
"..."
With a flick of her foot, Feng sent the axe flying to her hand, and viciously ripped a bloody hole in his body.
"Alright, now he won't want to go. Let's get ready to leave."
Feng went back to her room to change out of her sweat-soaked clothes from chopping wood. Ning Xian squatted down, poked Mu Yuan, and asked worriedly, "Hua Hua, are you alright...?"
Convulsions, convulsions—the breath stops.
—Amitabha, Huahua, may you ascend to heaven.
Chapter Sixty-Five: The Lantern That Symbolized Love
— An oil lamp, similar to a light bulb from a certain era, served the same function.
The Qixi Festival is a custom that has been passed down since the beginning of the Zhu Nan Hong family's dynasty. Although dynasties have changed and dynasties have risen and fallen, the folk customs have remained unchanged.
As dusk settled, before it was completely dark, the streets were already brightly lit, with colorful lanterns hanging high, and the crowds quickly began to stir. In places like lantern festivals, couples go hand in hand, and those without partners can easily find one and be a couple. So, if you have a handsome man or a beautiful woman coming to the lantern festival, you must make sure they hold hands tightly. If they accidentally get separated, the handsome husband or beautiful wife might soon be surrounded by a pack of single wolves.
His gaze searches for single beautiful women and handsome men, constantly scanning the crowd.
Two figures that suddenly appeared in the crowd were quickly drawn to the blatant, infatuated gazes of a large number of people.
One of them wore a dark red, tight-sleeved robe with a cinched belt that accentuated his slender, refined, and upright figure. His skin was as white as jade, with sharp, cool lines and a flawless complexion. He had icy phoenix eyes, a straight nose, and thin lips, but a beauty mark under his left eye added a touch of allure to his otherwise cold demeanor.
The person beside him, dressed in flowing white robes, was more like a demon than a celestial being, possessing a bewitching charm and always carrying a faint, ambiguous smile that stirred the heart. However, his eyes remained closed and lowered, preventing anyone from seeing what kind of captivating and alluring gaze they held.
If two men come to the lantern festival together, they're either homosexuals or single men looking for their soulmates, right? Just one glance at the disharmonious atmosphere between these two eliminates that first assumption. So, naturally, they become the focus of countless women's attention.
A cold beauty and a seductive vixen... The female wolves quickly divided into two camps, ready to attack at any moment—but why did that vixen young master keep his eyes closed? How could he see the road like that?
As the women, blinded by lust, began to pay attention to this issue, a figure that had been completely ignored by them finally emerged from the automatic shielding—
Beside the white-robed, demonic man, a woman held his hand, trying to prevent him from bumping, falling, or getting hurt... As for what the woman looked like—it wasn't clear. Why were they looking at a woman?
—What a handsome, alluring man in white, turns out to be blind?
Even if someone is very good-looking, they can only look at them. Who would choose a blind person as their spouse?
As a result, the camp became one-sided, and all eyes were focused on the cold beauty in red.
……
—The resilient flower eventually followed.
Ning Xian and Feng were both attending the Qixi Festival lantern display for the first time, but he wasn't. So, while Feng was unaware of the "single wolf group" at the festival, he was well aware of it. Therefore, he used his blindness as an excuse to cling tightly to Ning Xian, never leaving his side, leaving Feng alone in the sight of the single wolf group.
A hand slapped down on his shoulder, and Feng's voice was cold as she said, "No need to get so close!"
"There are too many people, I'm afraid we'll get separated." Mu Yuan had no intention of leaving Ning Xian's side for even a moment—what, did she want to commit a crime in public?
"Feng, Feng!" Ning Xian quickly interrupted them before Feng could make a move, "Mu Yuan is blind, which is very inconvenient for her, don't be so stingy..."
A vein bulged on Feng's forehead, and she clenched her fist, making a "crack" sound—who's stingy!?
Ahead, a large group of people were making a great commotion. Ning Xian curiously craned his neck to look and asked the "experienced" Mu Yuan, "What are those people doing building that high platform over there?"
"That's called 'lantern snatching.' The most exquisite and beautiful lanterns selected at the annual lantern festival aren't for sale; they're placed at the highest point on the platform, and people go up to 'snatch' them. The man who snatches the lantern can give it to his sweetheart to pledge their love. Everyone at the Qixi Festival will bless the couple. If the woman accepts the lantern, it means she agrees to marry him..."
Before he could finish speaking, a red figure beside them had vanished in a flash. Mu Yuan felt a gust of air and instinctively turned her head, but the phoenix was no longer there—wait, it flew away already?
The crowd erupted in excitement, and suddenly a large crowd surged forward to watch the spectacle. Mu Yuan pulled Ning Xian into her arms, shielding her from the jostling.
"What's going on..." Ning Xian looked up and saw a fiery red figure, like a falcon, leaping over the climbers trying to snatch the lanterns on the high platform. His toes barely touched the frame as he flipped and soared upwards in the lamplight of the night, his movements simple, fluid, and incredibly swift—just like that day when he scaled the high wall of the Netherworld Heavenly Courtyard and charged straight into the enemy ranks, a sight so beautiful it was impossible to look away...