Chapter 44 The Heart of Dao Stirs:

As the mind thinks this, the mouth also says it.

The reply Shen Bingsi received was:

"Oh? Today is Qixi Festival!"

What?! Today is Qixi Festival?! How could today be Qixi Festival?!

Shen Bingsi's mind was in a mess. She vaguely remembered that the Water and Land Dharma Assembly started on the first day of the lunar month, and they arrived six days later. Today was the second day since they arrived, which was the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the day when the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet. It is also known as the Qixi Festival, a day to wish all lovers in the world a happy ending.

For Shen Bingsi, however, it was a fatally unlucky day. In previous years, he would try to avoid crowded places or simply not go out at this time, because the air outside was filled with poisonous fumes.

No wonder……

Many incongruous details are vividly clear in my mind, like flowing pearls. Why must the competition be in pairs? Why are there competition events like "crossing the river," "spinning silk," and "threading a needle"? Aren't these all alluding to the folk customs of the Qixi Festival, where the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet in the sky by crossing the Milky Way, and the Weaver Girl threads a needle to adorn the sky with beautiful sunsets every day...

"Smack!" A small flower hit the bridge of Shen Bingsi's nose, waking him up.

He turned his head and looked at his close friend beside him.

Rong Xie lowered his head slightly to avoid the flowers and herbs thrown by the enthusiastic villagers. His eyebrows were curved and his eyes sparkled with laughter. His already fair and delicate appearance was made even more vivid and radiant by his heartfelt joy, making it hard to look away.

A series of petals landed on Rong Xie's cheeks. The little girls seemed to particularly enjoy throwing petals at his face. Rong Xie's gentle nature couldn't withstand such enthusiasm, and he kept dodging towards Shen Bing Si until he bumped into Shen Bing Si's shoulder.

"Eh."

Rong Xie subconsciously raised his head, his gaze searching upwards for something, his watery eyes filled with affection, and a faint blush spreading across his face.

Their eyes met in mid-air.

In an instant, all the surrounding noise disappeared, and Shen Bingsi could only hear a rapid and heavy throbbing sound.

Knock knock, knock knock.

The sound pounded against the periosteum, struck the chest cavity, and even made the throat dry and tight.

Many past scenes flashed before his eyes like a revolving lantern, and in each of them, a pair of gentle eyes were watching him. When he was hiding from Miss Shen in the plum garden, when he was meditating with the small window open in the inner gate warehouse, when he was packing up to say goodbye in front of the Huanxue Manor gate to prepare for a new mission, when he was weaving through the crowds on the streets of Shengjing, whenever he turned around, he would meet such a pair of gentle eyes, as if they were always following him and waiting for him. The endless affection was never spoken, but it flowed even more intensely from their eyes, as if he was the only one in the world who deserved to be so noticed.

Knock knock, knock knock.

The ground began to shake, and Shen Bingsi felt a wave of dizziness.

"Now, please welcome our 'Most Perfect Couple for Qixi Festival' to come forward and receive their awards from the Mayor and Grandma Huang!"

Some noisy sounds came from afar, but Shen Bingsi couldn't understand what they were saying. A huge wave surged in her mind, and a gale swept up the dark clouds in the distance, pressing down on her head.

"Bing Si?" A gentle voice called to him.

"Ah, the mayor will have to wait a while. He went down to the lotus pond to pick the king of flowers. Let's ask Granny Huang to show us her embroidery—a handkerchief with a double lotus pattern!"

"This handkerchief is embroidered with a whole pattern of twin lotus flowers. The embroidery is very exquisite, and the overall color is fresh and gentle. It is suitable for both daily use and collection!"

There was also a very noisy voice that kept babbling annoying things. Shen Bingsi frowned and forced herself to concentrate.

"Bing Si, are you alright? You seem... sweaty." The gentle voice asked with concern.

"It's alright," Shen Bingsi replied blankly.

He finally regained control of his consciousness, broke free from the turbulent sea of ​​thoughts, and returned to reality.

Something cool and slippery was placed in his hand, and he looked down at it.

At the center of her vision were two lotus flowers intertwined, their shapes very strange. Although they were supposed to be pure flowers symbolizing purity rising from the mud, the scene exuded a lewd aura. Through their large, tightly pressed flower heads, Shen Bingsi seemed to see two limbs entangled together. The white image from the embroidered book in Hanmo Workshop reappeared, covering the twin lotus flowers and appearing on the handkerchief in Shen Bingsi's hand.

"Ice Crystal, oh... slower..."

"Bing Si, please..."

The broken voice called his name like a sob, gradually changing its tone to become soft, charming, and sweet, each call making one's bones melt and one's soul become intoxicated.

"shut up!"

Shen Bingsi suddenly became angry. He clenched his fist, and the handkerchief in his hand instantly turned into dust. The lewd scene disappeared, but he did not feel any better.

He turned his head and looked at Rong Xie standing next to him. Rong Xie also had a handkerchief in his hand. He snatched the handkerchief away and crushed it into powder.

The surroundings were quiet. Everyone was stunned by the sudden change. Whoever Shen Bingsi looked at would back or dodge to the side, while the others looked at Shen Bingsi as if she were a madwoman.

"Bing Si, you—" Rong Xie disregarded everything and stepped forward to grab Shen Bing Si's arm, placing his fingers on his pulse point.

The next moment, he shoved her away violently.

"Hmm." Rong Xie took two steps back before using his spiritual power to steady himself and avoid falling to the ground.

A series of gasps rose from the surrounding area.

A blinding golden light shot out from Shen Bingsi, quickly engulfing him. A strong surge of spiritual energy exploded from the center of the golden light, and even ordinary people without spiritual energy could feel the suffocating pressure.

"boom--"

Golden light shot into the sky, drawing a bright arc across the evening sky.

The incident happened so suddenly that the crowd had no time to react and scattered in all directions. Only after running a short distance did they stop and look back.

Where two outsiders had been standing, only one person remained. The outsider whose body had emitted golden light was gone, but the layer of golden mist that had enveloped him was still flowing in the air, slowly dissipating.

"What happened?"

"What was that just now?"

"Why did that out-of-towner suddenly start glowing? And then he just disappeared! I wasn't the only one who saw it!"

"He flew away."

"What? It flew away?"

“Look at the sky.”

A boy with exceptional eyesight stepped forward and pointed to the sky.

The crowd looked up at the sky and stared in disbelief at the arc of light that pierced the twilight.

"Was that...the trace left by that outsider just now?"

"He's not human!" "Is he a god?"

Realizing they had just witnessed a miracle, the villagers began to discuss it animatedly, with exclamations and gasps of amazement filling the air.

"Speaking of which, why did the god suddenly get angry and leave? Could it be that we did something disrespectful and angered him?" the loud-voiced girl muttered worriedly to herself.

Although it was a muttering to himself, the sound could be clearly heard by everyone around him.

Ah, that seems to be the case!

"Is it because they think our prizes are too simple?" "Is it because the town mayor hasn't returned yet?"...

The crowd speculated anxiously, their initial joy at witnessing the miracle turning into unease.

They searched everywhere for a lifeline to alleviate their panic and soon found Rong Xie still in the same place.

"Quick, let's all beg this god's friend to put in a good word for us with the god!"

"This fairy's friend is beautiful and kind-hearted; she'll definitely speak up for us!"

The crowd suddenly surrounded Rong Xie, talking to him all at once. A cacophony of voices enveloped him, and many hands reached out to tug at his sleeves and pat his shoulders. He felt as if he had been caught in a storm, completely unable to control anything, including his own body.

He was even more bewildered and at a loss than they were.

"Everyone, please be quiet." A dignified voice came from behind the crowd, and a loud-voiced girl helped Granny Huang walk over.

Given Granny Huang's status, the crowd automatically parted to make way for her.

“Young Master Rong, although I am merely a palace weaver, I know that there exists a kind of person in the world who exists between immortals and mortals, called a cultivator. Your friend must be a cultivator, right?”

Granny Huang's words brought Rong Xie back to his senses.

"Yes...that's right." Rong Xie regained feeling in his feet, which were still on the ground. "I'm sorry, he didn't mean to ruin your hard work. I'll compensate you for those two handkerchiefs at market price. I'm really sorry..."

Grandma Huang shook her head: "There is only one pair of those handkerchiefs. It's a pity. Although I know a thousand kinds of embroidery techniques, my inspiration is only for that one moment. I can never embroider the same feeling again."

"I'm sorry..." Rong Xie didn't know how to express his apology. He hurriedly bowed to Granny Huang, but Granny Huang helped him up.

"This is not your fault, child. I am not saying this to ask you for compensation. Those two handkerchiefs originally belonged to you. How you deal with them is your own business and has nothing to do with me. However, regarding today's matter, that cultivator surnamed Shen probably has some unspeakable difficulties... The handkerchiefs are gone, but the key is people's hearts. I can see that you two are both good children with feelings and loyalty. Please don't let things fall apart, that would be the greatest loss."

Granny Huang's kind words of advice made Rong Xie's heart ache. How could he not know that people's hearts were the most important thing? But how could he control people's hearts? He couldn't even control his own heart. He knew that Shen Bingsi cultivated the Path of Ruthlessness. If he showed even the slightest sign of affection, he would be struck down by an invisible sword aura. When they met again, they would not be close friends but enemies.

He was still lost in the dream of being "a perfect match", and became complacent. He really thought that he and Shen Bingsi were a perfect match, and even wanted to find clues on Shen Bingsi's face that showed that they shared the same feelings.

All he found was a cold, indifferent face.

Shen Bingsi's face had never been so terrifying. He pushed him away without any mercy, refusing to be touched by him, and even tore the Ropa they had worked so hard to get into powder, leaving not even a fragment. He couldn't even keep it as a souvenir.

This feeling is so uncomfortable.

...It's so painful.

Rong Xie felt an urge to vomit.

If only he had never liked Shen Bingsi.

If there were a medicine in the world that would reduce your cravings a little with each dose, that would be wonderful.

It was already late when we left Lotus Town.

Rong Xie wandered aimlessly through the tangled weeds. After a while, he found that both his feet were stuck in the grass. Looking ahead, all he could see were tall weeds, and he couldn't see the path at all.

He went the wrong way; there was no road ahead, the view was narrow, and he couldn't tell where he was.

It was getting dark, and he needed to hurry back.

Go back...go back to where?

Go back to Xiangji Temple?

Go back to that meditation room where I lived with Shen Bingsi?

Is that room still open? Could it be that Shen Bingsi has already checked out...?

But if we don't go to Xiangji Temple, where else can we go?

Prosperous Pavilion? The city gates have been closed for a long time.

The hot spring villa on the Blue Plain? It's too far, and he's not familiar with the roads there.

After much thought, I decided that Xiangji Temple was the only option.

No matter what, he has the token for the Sutra Repository, with his name on it, so Xiangji Temple wouldn't refuse him entry.

Moreover...

Moreover, since he hasn't explicitly stated that he likes Shen Bingsi, there might still be room for maneuver in this matter.

Thinking this way, Rong Xie felt a little better.

He pulled his feet out of the weeds, turned around, and returned to the path he had been on.

It was getting darker and darker, and soon we wouldn't be able to see the road clearly.

Once people reach a certain age, they dislike encountering any unexpected events while traveling, especially if their pre-booked accommodations suddenly change, forcing them to sleep outdoors.

This was intolerable for Rong Xie. Compared to wandering aimlessly in the wasteland after dark, the pain of being abandoned by his best friend seemed bearable.

"Let's go back, we'll talk about it when we get back." Rong Xie muttered to himself as he took out a flying talisman and infused it with spiritual power.

Maybe things aren't so bad. Maybe he can still play innocent in front of Shen Bingsi. In any case, he should return to Xiangji Temple before he completely loses his way. Even if he can't stay in the temple, he can try his luck at the hermitage of Baishui Mountain Man in the back mountain.