Chapter 73 Happy Birthday, Han Zhi

When the copper bells on the eaves were gently tinkled by the evening breeze, Han Zhi was at a loss as to what to do in front of the people.

"you……?"

The palace was crowded with people, including Chi Changyuan, Shuishen, Nishang, Leng Baibai and Fenjin. His eyes moved and suddenly trembled violently.

"Thirteen or sixteen?" He was incredulous: "Why are you here?"

Thirteen scratched his head and said embarrassedly, "Not only us, His Highness the Rain God also brought all the people from the Chaoxi Clan here."

He took a few steps back, and Han Zhi saw a group of small mushrooms standing behind him.

"Lanlan..."

It has been almost two years since he was reborn, but he has never visited them once.

Lan Lan jumped into his arms and said, "Han Zhi, Han Zhi, we've known each other for so long and we didn't know your birthday is September 10th!"

Han Zhi: “…”

In fact, he didn't know before.

Han Zhi froze in place, Lan Lan in his arms still chattering as he counted the gifts he had brought: dried mushrooms stained with morning dew, a small cloak with wood grain, and even Thirteen was holding a cloth bag, saying it was osmanthus honey brewed by him and Sixteen.

Chi Changyuan stepped forward, brushing away the dust from his shoulders with his fingertips. His voice was softer than the evening breeze: "I'm sorry for not telling you in advance..."

He just remembered that Han Zhi once told him that he wanted to meet Lan Lan and the others.

Originally, he just wanted to bring them here, after all, the relationship between the Chaoxi tribe and Fenjin was delicate, but Leng Baibai and Fenjin somehow knew that he was going to celebrate Han Zhi's birthday, so they came on their own initiative.

"Don't make decisions on your own next time."

That's what he said, but he couldn't suppress the smile on his lips.

Lan Lan, who was in Han Zhi's arms, tugged at his sleeve and pointed outside the temple: "Han Zhi, look! The Rain God Temple has even hung small lanterns under the eaves. They must look like stars when they light up at night!"

He looked in the direction Lan Lan pointed, and sure enough, he saw several lanterns painted with various patterns hanging next to the copper bells. When the evening breeze blew, the lanterns swayed gently, and the sound of the lanterns overlapped with the sound of the bells, as soft as a ball of clouds.

"We did this together," Lan Lan said. "I made the mushroom pattern, His Majesty the Rain God made the water pattern, and His Majesty the Ice God made the snowflake pattern..."

He added reluctantly, "That guy is the flame."

There was no need to explain that person, Han Zhi also knew it was Fenjin.

He looked at Fenjin, who stood aside with his arms folded and an indifferent expression. There was still some orange-red paint on Fenjin's fingertips that hadn't been wiped off. Hearing the noise, the tip of his ears moved almost imperceptibly, but his face remained stern. He only muffled a reply, "What are you looking at? I just painted it casually. I didn't do it specially for you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Leng Baibai came over to interrupt him: "Oh? So who was it that stayed up until midnight yesterday, saying that the flame on the lantern wasn't bright enough and insisted on re-mixing the paint? And who was it that complained that the fire inside wasn't bright enough and insisted on using your Samadhi True Fire?"

The tips of Fen Jin's ears instantly turned red. He glared at Leng Baibai fiercely, then turned and walked out of the hall. He took two steps and stopped again: "...If the lantern doesn't light up at night, come find me."

The moment these words left his mouth, the hall fell silent. Even Lan Lan stopped chattering and looked at him with wide eyes. Fen Jin seemed to think these words were too blunt. The tips of his ears blushed, nearly dripping blood. His steps quickened, and he stalked out of the hall almost in a hurry. The hem of his clothes swept past the threshold, stirring up a wisp of wind.

Leng Baibai covered her mouth and laughed, then moved closer to Han Zhi and whispered, "Well, he's like that."

Han Zhi said nothing, but his gaze followed Fen Jin's back outside the hall. The lanterns beneath the eaves were still swaying, and one, painted with a flame pattern, stood out. Tongues of orange-red flame swirled around the lantern, its edges tinged with a faint golden hue. It was more vivid than the other patterns, perhaps due to the warmth of the Samadhi True Fire, which had permeated the light within the paint.

He felt a little panic.

This panic was not for Fenjin, but for the fact that the person Fenjin was going to celebrate his birthday was him.

"Han Zhi?" Chi Changyuan noticed his stiffness and gently placed his fingertips on the back of his hand. The temperature was warm, like melted snow. "What's wrong? Don't you like it?"

"No, it's beautiful."

It was indeed very beautiful and he liked it very much.

He didn't know if it was because of the jade pendant, but he felt what "happiness" meant for the first time in a long time.

Sixteen said in a silly and cheerful tone: "Master, do you want some osmanthus honey? I learned how to make it from the masters of the Chaoxi Clan."

Thirteen said helplessly: "Didn't I tell you that it's time to call you His Highness?"

Han Zhi laughed: "It doesn't matter, if you want me to be your boss."

Sixteen scratched his head and chuckled, holding out the osmanthus honey in his hand. "Master, try it! My brother and I worked on it for three days, and we added extra honey!"

Thirteen nodded beside him: "Lan Lan also said that adding some morning dew to the dried mushrooms makes it taste even better."

Lan Lan immediately poked her head out from Han Zhi's arms, holding up the small cloth bag in her hand and shaking it: "Yes, yes! I specially picked the tenderest mushrooms and dried them in the sun for several days!"

Han Zhi reached out to take the cloth bag, his fingertips touching the remaining warmth on the cloth, and the fear in his heart slowly melted into a soft warmth. He opened the cloth bag, and the sweet fragrance of osmanthus immediately wafted out. The honey-colored syrup wrapped around the plump osmanthus flowers made his heart sweet just by looking at them.

He picked up a piece of dried mushroom, dipped it in some osmanthus honey and put it into his mouth. The fresh fragrance of the mushroom mixed with the sweetness of the osmanthus spread on the tip of his tongue, warming his heart.

"It's delicious." He said softly.

"Really?" Sixteen's eyes lit up even more. "Then tell me if the boss doesn't have enough, and I'll go and endure it again!"

Leng Baibai leaned against the pillar, watching the lively scene, and joked with a smile: "Okay, don't just focus on feeding honey, it will be dark soon, and the lanterns should be lit. Someone is still waiting outside.

As he spoke, he pointed outside the hall. Han Zhi looked over and vaguely saw the corner of Burning Jin's clothes swaying under the corridor. He guessed that he had not left yet and was hiding outside waiting to see the lanterns light up.

He didn't know what to feel.

Perhaps he was the only one who remembered that five hundred years ago, Leng Baibai told him that he would send him to his mother, and he was actually very excited.

He knew his father didn't like him, so he tried hard to make his mother like him.

To this end, he prepared many gifts for his mother.

There were straw butterflies he had woven himself, ice sculptures he had meticulously carved, and many more, and he remembered them all.

But that night, it snowed heavily in the Kingdom of Jin, a rare occasion. Leng Baibai sent him to the gate of the Jin Palace and left. The man who came towards him had a cold temperament and a face as cold as ice.

He was dressed in black and just glanced at him without any expression, then turned and left.

But he raised his head and said the most inappropriate thing.

"Are you my mother?"

The other person's figure froze.

He turned around, probably without anger: "I am your father."

Han Zhi continued, "But my father is the Ice God."

That's the sentence.

The gift that was originally prepared to be given away never had the chance to be given away. Fenjin looked at him with cold eyes, as if he was looking at a pile of weeds.