Qiu Hongxiu rested her chin on one hand, playing with the small flame on the lamp wick: "It's not about doing anything. When a child says they want to change, they can change their mind in an instant. Just now, my sister said in the kitchen that she went to Lingjian Manor once and learned a lot of lessons. From now on, she will cherish those who are good to her even more."
"Are they talking about you, bald guy?"
Shangguan Tou murmured, "...Sure enough, the people from Lingjian Manor have started again."
Qiu Hongxiu said, "Xuezhi's honesty, simplicity, and a little bit of silliness are quite endearing. But you need to be careful to maintain the right balance. If you go even slightly off, she might not be a girl anymore."
Shangguan Tou said, "You're overthinking it. Judging from Zhi'er's attitude towards me, she doesn't seem to have that kind of intention."
Zhong Tao said, "When did Hongxiu ever worry about the girl? She's worried about you, you old lecher."
Shangguan Tou exclaimed in astonishment, "Zhi'er is still so young, how could that be?"
Zhong Tao said, "Why not? Such a pretty and innocent young girl, if she were my sister, I would definitely devour her in one go."
Shangguan Tou picked up a fish bone and flicked it at her: "Try touching her!"
Zhong Tao knocked the fishbone away: "I think you're trying to keep it all to yourself!"
Qiu Hongxiu said, "Stop arguing. I'm at ease with Yipintou. I'm worried about Xuezhi. She's in the prime of her youth, and she's already met such a heartbreaker. You keep saying he's her brother, but what have you done that's like a brother would do? How can you guarantee she won't have any wild thoughts?"
"Don't worry, I won't let her fall in love with me."
"Is this something you can control?"
Shangguan Tou smiled and said, "Of course." Then he fell into deep thought.
At this moment, Xuezhi was in her room, suffering from severe insomnia, and sighing, "How can I ask Sister Zhaojun about Fengzi? I just can't bring myself to say it."
Half an hour later, Zhong Tao clapped his hands and said, "Hahaha, I told you, Man Feiyue would never be able to beat Yuan Shuangshuang this year. Sure enough, sure enough!"
Qiu Hongxiu said, "The Snow Goose Divine Whip is still very effective. As for Man Feiyue, nine out of ten of the moves she knows are not suitable for the arena."
"But it's hard to say when it comes to the weapons ranking, since the requirements are more lenient. Right, Baldy?"
Shangguan Tou said, "That's right."
Qiu Hongxiu stared at him for a moment and said, "Moreover, the Lotus God Nine Forms of Moon Valley are also very interesting, aren't they?"
Shangguan Tou said, "That's right."
"The Arhat Fist of Chonghuo Palace is also quite good, isn't it?"
"That's right."
Zhong Tao got excited and hooked his arm around Shangguan Tou's shoulder: "Xuezhi is very cute, isn't she?"
“That’s right.” Shangguan Tou suddenly looked up. “What?”
39
Suzhou's temple fairs start a little later than elsewhere, so on the opening day, many vendors set up stalls early in the morning, and the streets are packed with people. At the Taibo Temple, people carry hundreds of Buddha statues, parading through the city. Devotees, men and women, crowd around the statues, walking or by boat, gradually make their way to the Zhide Bridge. Throughout Suzhou, red and green hues dance in the air, carriages and boats throng the streets, a scene of vibrant beauty.
Chong Xuezhi, Shangguan Tou, Zhong Tao, and Qiu Hongxiu also came out early in the morning. However, because Xuezhi lingered at the mask and weapon shop and Qiu Hongxiu was attracted by the rouge and powder stalls, the group did not arrive at Zhide Bridge until after noon. At that time, Xuezhi was already wearing a Guan Gong mask, holding a windmill in her right hand and a paper fish in her left. Shangguan Tou beside her was holding a small phoenix woven from bamboo strips that had been pierced by a small dagger.
After stepping over the stone piers and squeezing through the three-bay stone archway, the four finally caught their breath. Xuezhi wiped the sweat from her brow and took off her bright red cotton-padded coat. Shangguan Tou stopped her: "Don't take it off, you'll catch a cold." Xuezhi said "Oh," and obediently put it back on. Zhongtao finally couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Baldy, why do you look so much like a mother?"
Shangguan Tou asked, "Where is Hongxiu?"
Zhong Tao pointed behind him: "This."
"where?"
Zhong Tao turned around again and found that Hongxiu was gone. He panicked, looking left and right, but seeing no one, he leaped onto the stone archway to investigate, startling many people. Finally, he caught a glimpse of Hongxiu under the eaves. A handsome man was talking to her. Hongxiu was striking seductive poses, exuding charm from the inside out. Zhong Tao jumped down, as if to rush over and catch them in the act, but Shangguan Tou suddenly blurted out from behind, "You know the consequences of disturbing Hongxiu while she's hunting."
So Zhongtao had no choice but to stop, staring intently at the man and woman under the eaves, his eyes blazing with fury.
Shangguan Tou patted Zhong Tao's shoulder with great sympathy, left him behind, and followed Xue Zhi, who had spotted the colorful lanterns and disappeared into the crowd.
"You like this?"
"Hmm." Xuezhi was engrossed in looking at it when she suddenly turned around. "I just think it looks nice. Let's go."
"If you like it, just buy it." Shangguan Tou was about to take out his money when Xuezhi grabbed his sleeve and dragged him forward, saying, "You won't see it now, let's wait until tonight."
At this moment, the owner of the lantern shop said, "The young couple has such a good relationship."
"No, no, he's my older brother."
Shangguan Tou glanced at her hand gripping his sleeve and a slight smile played on his lips: "Yes, sister. Let's go into the temple."
Upon entering the Taibo Temple, Xuezhi immediately insisted on drawing a fortune stick. Shangguan Tou didn't believe in such things and refused to draw one no matter what, but Xuezhi persisted until he finally said it was just this once. Then, looking at the row of fortune sticks, Xuezhi hesitated for a long time before finally choosing "Juncheng's Destiny: Moonlit Fortune Stick" somewhat awkwardly.
"You go first." Xuezhi handed the divination box to Shangguan Tou.
Shangguan Tou picked up the divination stick container and began to shake it. At this moment, a woman next to him said, "Oh, young master, when you shake the divination stick, you should think of the person you like, then the divination will be accurate." After saying that, she took a divination stick container, closed her eyes and thought for a moment before shaking it. When the divination stick fell, she laughed and said, "Oh, it's a good one. I'll go and interpret it."
Shangguan Tou shook the slip again. He picked it up and saw four large, bright red characters: "Extremely Auspicious."
Xuezhi peeked over and exclaimed, "Wow... extremely auspicious! I'll go interpret your fortune!" She rummaged through the fortune-telling shelf for a while, picked up a slip of paper, and read: "A perfect match. Whether you and she are compatible. If both of you are willing to be together, and after a period of getting to know each other, you believe you are compatible, then you can be together. There's no need to overthink it. It's your own destiny. Only a good outcome is assured..."
Shangguan Tou smiled and said, "Not very accurate."
"Not allowed?" Xuezhi's eyes narrowed to slits. "Who was Sister Zhaojun thinking about just now?"
"That's because nobody thought of it, so it's hard to say for sure."
"Oh... That's no fun. I'll do it."
Xuezhi took the fortune-telling container, closed her eyes, and inexplicably, a smiling face appeared in her mind, making her feel extremely embarrassed. Then she shook it a few times with a loud bang, scattering fortune slips all over the floor. People around her turned to look at her, and Shangguan Tou immediately helped her pick them up. Her face flushed, she shook it again, finally drawing a slip. She picked it up nervously and saw that it read: "Down."
40 41 42
40
Xuezhi stared wide-eyed at the blood-red "down," on the verge of tears.
"What's wrong?" Shangguan Tou leaned over to take a look and sighed, "I told you not to believe this stuff, and look what happened, you've made yourself feel bad."
Xuezhi went to look up the fortune slips.
"It's like the phoenix leaving the Qin Tower, and the clouds gathering over Wushan. The phoenix leaving the Qin Tower means the beloved is gone. The clouds gathering over Wushan also mean the beloved is gone. It means the two are not suited to be together. All matters, including marriage, are thus decided. Don't be discouraged. You should choose another suitable partner." Xuezhi cried, "I don't believe it! Why is Sister Zhaojun's fortune so good, but mine is so bad!" After saying that, she threw away the paper and started shaking the fortune sticks again.
Shangguan Tou asked, "Can I draw twice?"
Xuezhi pretended not to hear and finally drew another one: down.
"My lord, in your relationship with her, you only seek to steal her fragrance. You steal her jade with all your heart. You take the jade, steal her fragrance for yourself, not for love. In other words, it's just a union of pleasure and desire. Such a union is too stifling. Those who share a bed but dream different dreams will end up together. Therefore, a union between oneself and another must be based on love to have any happiness." Xuezhi continued with a mournful face, "Once is a coincidence, twice is a coincidence, three times is fate!" Then she shook the divination sticks again.
After shaking for a long time, I finally got a winning number: 0.
Xuezhi finally felt better and cheerfully went to have her fortune told:
"To accomplish something, one dons iron shoes and struggles tirelessly. One suffers greatly, exhausting oneself, yet gains nothing. It's all too clear—in the end, both hands are empty." Xuezhi's eyes were lifeless. "In the end…both hands are empty. Enough, let's go."
Xuezhi went out listlessly.
At this moment, the middle-aged woman who had started drawing lots returned and whispered to Shangguan Tou, "Who is that little girl to you?"
"She's my sister."
"Your sister is really pitiful. Everyone knows that temple fairs rig the fortune-telling to attract tourists, with 60% for good, 30% for medium, and 10% for bad. As for the worst fortune, there isn't one here. It's not easy for her to draw two good fortunes in a row."
Shangguan Tou remained silent for a moment, then left.
So Xuezhi spent the whole afternoon in a bad mood. As she walked, she overheard some unpleasant gossip that didn't seem to belong there. Apparently, Lin Xuanfeng had spoken up for Xuezhi these past few days, and a few people were discussing whether it was a cover-up. Then someone else said that Xia Qingmei was a womanizer, pursuing Feng Zi while also trying to seduce Xuezhi. Upon hearing this, Xuezhi's pent-up anger flared up, and she ran over and beat those people up. In the end, none of them understood what had happened. Only Shangguan Tou looked at Xuezhi, his pale amber eyes showing a hint of doubt. Xuezhi didn't explain, and spent the entire afternoon feeling irritated.
It got dark quickly.
Xuezhi followed Shangguan Tou out of the temple, intending to stroll through the market. When they reached the bridge pier, Shangguan Tou suddenly remembered they hadn't bought any lanterns and said he'd go back to buy one. Xuezhi, feeling dejected, absentmindedly agreed and then stood there waiting for him.
Soon, a vendor called out from behind her:
"Young lady, would you like to see the colorful lights?"
"No, my older brother is buying it for me."
The vendor left.
Not long after, someone else asked, "Young lady, why don't you look at the colorful lanterns?"
"don't want."
Another vendor left.
A moment later, someone else spoke from behind her: "Excuse me..."
"No, no, no!" Xuezhi turned around, looking at the person impatiently. "How many times do I have to tell you before you'll be quiet?"
The person behind her said in a daze, "It really is Miss Chong."
Xuezhi was also stunned: "Young Master Xia...?"
"It's me." Xia Qingmei smiled slightly, her dimple deepening, making her look especially sweet. "Did you come alone?"
The Taibo Temple was brightly lit at night, and on the other side of the bridge, lion dances, street performances, acrobatics... all sorts of lively activities were taking place. Xia Qingmei was tall and beautiful, with eyes that sparkled like stars. Xuezhi felt dizzy for a moment, and the following words blurted out:
"No, I...I'm with my sister."
"Your sister?"
"Yes, is Young Master Xia also alone?"
“I was with people from Lingjian Manor and Xueyan Sect.” Xia Qingmei breathed a sigh of relief. “You left Lingjian Manor a few days ago, and I thought we wouldn’t see each other for a long time. I didn’t expect to run into each other so soon.”
"Haha, maybe we'll run into each other again at Shaolin Temple soon."
"Is Miss Chong also going to participate in the Weapon Ranking Tournament?"
"Hmm. I'd love to have a friendly match with you then."
"If Miss Chong is willing, I, Xia, will gladly accompany you." Xia Qingmei said happily, "I don't know why, but every time I chat with you, I always feel very energetic. It must be because of your influence."
"You flatter me." Xuezhi looked around. "My sister hasn't arrived yet... I think I should go find her first."
"Do you want me to come with you?"
"No, no, thank you."
After hastily saying goodbye to Xia Qinghan, Xuezhi felt a pang of regret. She'd actually given up on the conversation because of excessive nervousness; she really was an idiot. But after walking a short distance, she couldn't find Shangguan Tou, so she ran back to the temple. The temple was bustling with people, but she couldn't see anyone dressed in white. But soon Zhongtao called out to her.
“Girl, Baldy said he has something to do and asked me to stay with you for now.” Zhongtao handed Xuezhi a phoenix lantern. “This is for you.”