Chapter 155, Act Two: A Night of Lanterns
As dusk settled over Floating City, the streetlights were already on. The colorful ribbons overhead flowed like streaks of silver water falling from the sky.
Tingyu and Fengyi walked side by side on the street.
Before leaving, she was specially dressed up by Huali. A simple pearl hairpin was inserted diagonally in her hair, and the bamboo green dress accentuated her long neck. The small cherry blossoms on the cuffs were faintly visible in the lamplight.
Feng Yi walked beside her, subtly separating Tingyu from the crowded people.
The young man walked with a steady gait, the lamplight outlining his handsome profile, exuding an aloofness that made him seem unapproachable. Yet, this same man's deep eyes were now fixed intently on the woman beside him.
Suddenly, Tingyu stopped in her tracks, her gaze drawn to a lantern hanging in the corner of the stall.
They were two exquisite lotus lanterns, their ribs connected, sharing a single base, their petals nestled together, intertwined in the candlelight.
As Feng Yi looked over, her brows furrowed imperceptibly.
She reached out to take it, "Boss, this lamp..."
Hearing this, the stall owner looked up, "Miss wants to buy..." But when he followed Tingyu's finger, his expression suddenly changed, "Oh dear, Miss, no, no, this won't do!"
The stall owner immediately took down the lamp, saying, "My youngest son must have hung it up by mistake. Please forgive me, young lady and gentleman. This doesn't count; this doesn't count."
Unexpectedly, the other party reacted so strongly. Tingyu asked in bewilderment, "This lamp is so exquisite, why can't it be sold?"
The stall owner wrung his hands anxiously. "The girl is probably from out of town," he said in a very low voice, with a hint of fear and apprehension. "You don't know this, but according to our local saying, twin lotus flowers are an omen of impending disaster. This brat keeps doing such unlucky things. I'll definitely teach him a lesson when I get back!"
A dark glint flashed in Feng Yi's eyes, which were like icy mud churning at the bottom of a pool.
"Nonsense."
Suddenly, a resolute, clear voice interrupted the stall owner. Tingyu's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear: "A lamp is a lamp, a person is a person. There are countless twins in the world; if everyone were like you, wouldn't there be chaos long ago?"
Feng Yi paused in her mocking laughter and turned to look at the slender yet upright figure beside her.
“Prejudice in people’s hearts is the greatest disaster.” Tingyu didn’t want to say more, and turned to look at Fengyi. “If you’re not going to sell, then let’s go.”
“He’s telling the truth.” Feng Yi’s expression was obscure under the lamplight.
Tingyu tilted her head. "What, really?"
"Twins are an omen of misfortune...it's true. When twins were born in Floating Life City, misfortune struck one after another; plague raged, and the entire city was nearly... wiped out." Feng Yi's words carried a chilling, bloody undertone. "That was a lesson etched into our very bones a hundred years ago; twins mark the beginning of calamity..."
Tingyu hadn't expected this past event. A thoughtful look crossed her face. "...Is that so?"
Seeing the girl lost in thought, Feng Yi felt a mixture of disappointment and something else.
"But that's all in the past, isn't it?"
Suddenly, the girl's gaze pierced through the fog like a sharp blade, carrying a power that penetrated the heart. "We can't deny everything just because of a sad past. Otherwise, how innocent would those people be?"
Feng Yi's fingertips trembled slightly as she looked up into Ting Yu's eyes.
Clear, gentle, and even with a shimmering smile, it soothed the dark pool in his heart like a feather.
Feng Yi remained silent for a moment, then suddenly nodded and smiled, “...Yes.”
The streets were bustling with lanterns and noise. But all he could see were the eyes of the young girl, which shone clearly into his heart.
*
Huali stood on the bridge, resting her chin on her hand, and sighed, "That's wonderful. Tingyu and Fengyi have really spoken up for the Lantern Festival."
Rong Xing nodded in empathy, "You have no idea, the moment I saw this scene tonight, I got goosebumps instantly."
"The dead memories suddenly came back, instantly conjuring up eight ways to die by explosion."
The two unfortunate souls, deeply affected by the suffering, exchanged a glance. Suddenly, Huali remembered something, opened the Qinglin Pendant, and beckoned to him, "Rongxing, Rongxing, come here."
Rongxing immediately leaned closer out of curiosity. He was already taller than Huali, so when he bent down, their heads naturally touched.
Huali pointed to two fist-sized spirit pearls in the white bone grass, "The spiritual consciousness has recovered more than half, and it should be able to awaken in a while."
Rongxing's eyes lit up instantly. "Songran, Rongniang?" Huali nodded.
The two whispered intently, their figures unexpectedly intimate and harmonious.
Just a few steps away, Shen Yu, perched on a bridge pier, took in the entire scene.
The boy had been standing with his arms crossed, tapping his arms idly with his fingertips, his gaze lazy. But when the two heads came together, his fingertips suddenly stopped moving.
Immediately afterwards, a strange, sharp irritation pierced his heart; it wasn't deep, but it was enough to make him feel uncomfortable all over.
Shen Yu subconsciously frowned. Seeing the two of them chirping endlessly, a click of his tongue, clearly showing his impatience, escaped from the boy's lips, breaking the silence before him.
"Tsk."
Huali and Rongxing turned their heads at the same time, "What's wrong?"
Shen Yu straightened up, her chin slightly raised. Her beautiful eyes, which always held a hint of mockery, appeared exceptionally deep in the dim light, fixed directly on Rong Xing.
Rongxing: "?"
“I said…” Shen Yu’s voice was flat but carried a hint of harshness, with a slight rise at the end, “You’re blocking the light.”
Rong Xing was confused. "Huh?"
Shen Yu raised his chin and pointed towards the direction of the glass lantern above their heads. "With such a grown man standing here, blocking out all the light, how are people supposed to see anything?"
His gaze casually swept between the two of them, his suppressed annoyance almost overflowing. "Squeezing so close, aren't you afraid of getting heat rash?"
Rongxing felt wronged: "......" Huali was there too, why only talk about him?
"Quick, quick, Tingyu and the others are coming this way, hide!" Huali paid no attention to the conversation between the two, focusing intently on the distance.
Seeing two people walking this way from under the bridge, she immediately grabbed Shen Yu's wrist and turned to pull Rong Xing back, but her body was pulled back by an undeniable force. "Eh?"
The moment Huali looked up in astonishment, she was already being pulled by Shen Yu like an arrow released from a bow, rushing towards the brightest spot in the opposite direction from under the bridge!
The wind suddenly howled in my ears—
The moment Huali followed Shenyu through the dimly lit underpass, she felt a sudden sense of openness before her.
The colorful ribbons in the sky were like the Milky Way flowing backwards, and countless glass wind chimes and colorful wishing charms intertwined and flowed under the halo.
Shen Yu pulled her along, her high ponytail cutting through the hazy light mist like a swift shadow, weaving through this flowing river of light.
Light and shadow flashed rapidly across their running figures.
The wide sleeves and hem of the rosewood dress billowed in the running wind, like petals blooming and closing in the night.
The two rushed to the edge of the crowd releasing paper lanterns by the river. Countless lanterns carrying wishes floated slowly on the river, like a flowing galaxy.
Shen Yu finally stopped, his chest heaving. He turned his head slightly, his gaze shifting from the front to Hua Li's face.
He quickly glanced at her empty back, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his amber eyes.
Karin was still caught up in the adrenaline rush, her almond-shaped eyes shining brightly. She unconsciously licked her lower lip, which was dry from running, and looked towards the opposite bank.
Tingyu was squatting by the riverbank, placing paper lanterns into the waterway, while Fengyi's tall figure watched her quietly with his eyes lowered.
Their hands were still intertwined, and Shen Yu's heart skipped a beat, as if she had been burned. When she let go, her movements were so quick that she was somewhat embarrassed.
Huali withdrew her gaze with satisfaction. First, she looked at the paper lanterns on the river, then turned to look at Chen Yu, when suddenly a brilliant idea flashed in her mind.
"Hey, Shen Yu. I remember your Canglan Prefecture was all endless grasslands, right?"
Shen Yu was slightly taken aback by her sudden topic, and a hint of pride and nostalgia flashed deep in her eyes.
He first gave a brief "hmm" and then explained, "The vast sky is like a dome, and the grasslands are so expansive that you might not see the edge even after riding for three days."
Huali sensed the familiarity and sense of belonging he had with the vast wilderness in his tone, and suddenly pointed to the dreamlike river of lights before her, "You must rarely see a scene like this, right?"
She turned around, bought a lamp from the old lady next to her, and handed it to her, saying, "Why don't you try it too? Write your wish on it."
Shen Yu was taken aback at first, then took the lamp. But instead of placing it in the river, he quickly put it into his Qiankun bag.
Karin: "?"
Seeing the girl's questioning gaze, the tips of his ears quickly flushed red, but he still firmly shook his head.
"Why should I entrust what I want to a paper lantern that drifts with the tide and whose fate is not in my own hands?"
Huali was slightly taken aback.
The boy's gaze was sharp and bright, penetratingly looking into the girl's eyes. "If there is anything I want, I will ride my horse to fight for it and take it with my sword."
A fiercely aggressive smile curved his lips, radiating the youthful exuberance unique to young men. "Even the moon in the sky, I will personally shoot it down... Hmm."
Before he could finish speaking, the girl next to him jumped up and covered his mouth, "Okay, okay, I know you want to say it, but don't say it yet!"
Huali saw the old woman selling lanterns closest to them—
They were still holding freshly made, exquisite lotus lanterns in their hands, and the kind expressions on their faces were about to be replaced by exclamations of traditional Chinese culture.
She gasped! Everyone knows that the village auntie is a true champion among roosters!
Huali immediately chuckled dryly, "Well... he's a bit of a chuunibyou... he's a little mentally unstable... ladies, please don't take it to heart, may your business prosper, may your business prosper!"
Shen Yu's Adam's apple bobbed, and he was about to retort when Hua Li immediately shot him a glare.
The boy paused, and finally squeezed out a broken syllable through gritted teeth, with difficulty and humiliation.
"...Um."
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