Chapter 30 He said to Morax, "I miss you so much..." in the dim light.
Is he really not coming back? Qiao Xi stroked the osmanthus tree in the box.
After finishing lunch, Qiao Xi returned to the Bamboo Garden, grabbed a mirror, and haphazardly applied lipstick and blush to her face. Sometimes the color was fine, but she would always apply more than necessary, resulting in an overly saturated color on her face, which startled Jin Lan who came to find her.
"Are you really a ghost?" Jinlan stood outside, peering through the window, frowning as she looked at Qiaoxi.
"Want some too?" Qiao Xi asked Jin Lan generously, holding up the powder compact.
Jinlan looked at the brightly colored face powder in Qiaoxi's hand and, strangely enough, felt a little tempted.
"That's so embarrassing." Jinlan said, awkwardly sticking her head out.
Qiao Xi placed a red dot on the center of his forehead and laughed, "Ha, little boy."
Jinlan felt that Qiao Xi was praising him. He rested his arm on the window, propped his chin on his hand, and asked Qiao Xi, "What's that stick stuck in your door?"
"A stick?" Qiao Xi blinked.
"Right there." Jinlan said, pointing towards the courtyard gate.
Looking behind her, Qiao Xi frowned: "That's my osmanthus tree."
"Osmanthus trees? Are there still osmanthus trees on Tianheng Mountain?" Jinlan asked in surprise.
“It’s a New Year’s gift from Morax,” Qiao Xi said.
Jinlan blinked, looked at Qiao Xi, then at the door, thinking to himself: Forget about New Year's gifts, isn't this a token of love?
He said to Qiao Xi in a very serious tone, "Your keepsake is about to die."
"ah?!"
*
The snowmelt in the yard had mostly dried, and the newly laid pebbles gradually settled into the ground with each step. Qiao Xi put on her cloak and hat and ran outside. She pulled Jin Lan along, and the two arrived at the gate.
The osmanthus tree that had several leaves when it was planted now only has one leaf left.
Qiao Xi frowned and carefully touched the leaf. With a "snap," the last leaf fell off.
"......"
Qiao Xi turned to look at Jin Lan, who was covering her forehead.
After she explained the whole story to Jinlan, Jinlan said, "Logically speaking, it's fine to plant during the autumn and winter when plants are dormant. But maybe it's because Tianheng Mountain isn't suitable for planting osmanthus. Otherwise, how come such a common tree has only grown one on the entire mountain?"
Qiao Xi carefully dug out the sapling and put it back into the long box in Morax. The trunk lay in the box and gradually came back to life.
Qiao Xi thought for a moment and said, "Can we just leave it here?"
Jinlan shook her head: "But it won't grow big like this. It will always have to leave the protection of the box and be planted in the ground."
Qiao Xi thought Jin Lan made sense. She thought that as long as the sapling could survive, it didn't necessarily have to be planted in front of her door.
She said to Jinlan, "When you go down the mountain to patrol during the lantern festival tonight, I'll go with you and we'll plant it where the osmanthus tree used to grow."
Jinlan nodded: "You're quite smart."
Qiao Xi tilted her head and smiled: "Of course."
*
Before the New Year, at the lantern festival at the foot of the mountain, villagers spontaneously set up stalls along the road, where people could exchange anything they wanted. Decorative lanterns hung on the trees and houses on both sides, with messages of hope for the coming year written on them.
The immortals do not interfere much in the affairs of ordinary people; they remain in the shadows, quietly guarding the lights of every household.
Therefore, when Qiao Xi came to the lantern festival, she was only accompanied by Jin Lan.
The two weaved through the crowded streets. As night fell and the city lights came on, warm light danced like a dragon amidst the bustling crowd.
Jinlan traded the wheat cake for two malt candies, popped one into her mouth, and gave one to Qiaoxi.
Qiao Xi hugged her osmanthus tree, looking left and right, and was attracted by a small rabbit lantern.
The old lady who owned the lantern stall recognized Qiao Xi and greeted her warmly, offering her a lantern for free. Qiao Xi felt too embarrassed to accept anything from her, so she took out two pieces of candy from her pocket and handed them over.
The stall owner lit the little rabbit lantern and handed it to Qiao Xi. The white rabbit emitted a warm light, which shone gently on Qiao Xi's face. Qiao Xi held up the lantern and asked Jin Lan with a smile, "Is it pretty?"
Jinlan frowned: "You have candy but you won't give it to me? You even took one from me. Give it back."
As he spoke, he reached out his debt-collecting hand towards Qiao Xi.
Qiao Xi was happy and didn't argue with Jin Lan. She touched her right pocket, then tugged at her left pocket, and took out two mints. Before she could share them, Jin Lan took them both.
Qiao Xi: "Save one for me."
Jinlan then returned one to Qiaoxi.
Qiao Xi, carrying a rabbit lantern and eating candy, patrolled with Jin Lan to eliminate any safety hazards. They were heading to the place where the osmanthus tree used to grow when a Qianyan soldier ran up from behind, shouting, "Captain! Captain! Something terrible has happened!"
Qiao Xi turned her head, thinking that the lines sounded familiar.
Jinlan asked the visitor, "What happened?"
"A wild boar got into the camp and knocked your bed off the ground!" Qianyanjun said as he arrived.
Jin Lan's expression changed. He turned to Qiao Xi and said, "I'll go with you tomorrow? I have to go hunt wild boars now."
Qiao Xi felt sorry for Jin Lan, so she gave all the candy in her pocket to Jin Lan and said, "You should go back now, I can go by myself."
Jinlan asked worriedly, "Are you sure you can do it?"
Qiao Xi: "You look down on me."
Jinlan smiled, nodded, and quickly pulled the team members towards the camp.
Jinlan went back, and with her masters gone, Qiaoxi was left alone in the bustling crowd at the lantern festival.
She blinked, hugged the osmanthus tree tightly, and headed towards the place where the osmanthus had grown.
Leaving the village, Qiao Xi walked uphill along the road, passing a wheat field before entering a small grove of trees. The trees had lost all their leaves in the winter, and in places where the sun couldn't reach, there was still some snow that hadn't completely melted.
The lantern Qiao Xi was carrying illuminated the surroundings. She arrived at the place Jin Lan had mentioned, put down the lantern, squatted down, took out a small shovel, and began digging a hole.
After the pit was dug, just as she was about to take the osmanthus tree out of the box, she heard steady, powerful footsteps coming from behind her.
If the osmanthus were in bloom right now, she thought she wouldn't be able to smell that familiar, delicate fragrance. But now, in the quiet winter woods, there were lights from houses in the distance.
Qiao Xi turned around and saw a familiar person—Morax.
At first, Qiao Xi was a little uncertain because she had always thought that Morax would not be able to return until the summer.
She stood up blankly, holding the lantern, only when Morax approached silently.
The two stood a few feet apart. Qiao Xi blinked as she looked at the other person, the rabbit lantern in her hand swaying and illuminating her red cloak.
"You're back?" Qiao Xi said.
"You're back." Morax's tone was as calm as ever. He approached and looked down at Qiao Xi. "I heard from Liu Yun that you were here, so I came to see you."
Qiao Xi: "Have you met your masters?"
"I've seen him."
Qiao Xi: "Are you injured?"
Morax paused, seemingly surprised that Qiao Xi would ask him that, and replied, "No."
Qiao Xi nodded and asked, "Are the Yakshas alright?"
“All is well,” Morax said.
Qiao Xi pursed her lips. She felt a strange feeling in her heart. Why did Morax's appearance make her want to cry? Not because she was sad, but because she felt a little wronged.
Qiao Xi paused for a moment, then looked up, smiling as she held up the lantern. The light illuminated her chubby face, and she still had some lip rouge on her lips, a warm red color. She asked Morax, "Does it look good?"
Morax walked up to her, looked into her eyes, and said, "Very beautiful."
Qiao Xi lowered her head and smiled.
Morax asked her, "Did you receive the gift?"
Qiao Xi nodded: "Yeah, isn't this what they're going to do to get the seed?"
Morax: "I remember you said you wanted to plant it by the front door of your yard."
Qiao Xi looked up at Morax: "I planted it, but it lost its leaves. I want to find a suitable place. Jin Lan said it used to grow here, so it should be okay to plant here."
Morax said thoughtfully, "So, the osmanthus tree you sent me was sent to a haunted house?"
"Huh?" Qiao Xi blinked in surprise.
Morax sighed softly, then couldn't help but chuckle. He bent down and looked at Qiao Xi earnestly: "You can plant it anywhere, I'll help you."
Qiao Xi smiled and nodded.
She ultimately decided to plant the osmanthus tree in the place where it had previously grown. She told Morak that once the tree grew up, both the Qianyan Army and the villagers would be able to smell its fragrance in the autumn.
Qiao Xi smiled and said, "Isn't this great?"
Morax did as she asked and took the osmanthus branch out of the box.
Qiao Xi squatted on the edge of the pit, and Morax squatted down beside her.
Even when squatting, Morax is still taller than Qiao Xi, and his size completely envelops her.
As a result, that faint fragrance is particularly noticeable.
Morax handed the osmanthus branch to Qiao Xi. Qiao Xi looked up, and the moment their eyes met, she met Morax's calm gaze.
Qiao Xi silently lowered her head and buried the osmanthus branch in the soil.
Morax said, "I'll take care of the rest."
Upon hearing this, Qiao Xi moved aside to make room for Morax.
Morax used the power of rock to slowly fill in the soil.
When the two planted a tree together, they were so close that their shoulders brushed against each other from time to time, making Qiao Xi unable to resist turning around to look at Morax's profile again and again.
At that moment, Morax also turned his head and looked at Qiao Xi.
Suddenly, he paused, then calmly raised his hand and gently wiped Qiao Xi's cheek.
It's itchy.
Qiao Xi blinked, looking at Morax with a blank expression.
The dim light from the rabbit lantern seemed to veil their faces in the darkness of night.
Morax lowered his hand and said gently, "Your face is covered in mud."
Qiao Xi nodded: "Then, thank you."
Morax looked at Qiao Xi's face and suddenly frowned, because he forgot that his hands were also covered in mud. Qiao Xi's face was not only not cleaner because of his wiping, but it was even dirtier.
The mud stains were quite noticeable on her fair face.
Morax paused for a moment, then simply raised his hand again and wiped Qiao Xi's clean half of her face a few times, making both sides symmetrical. He suppressed the smile on his lips, stood up, and looked down at her, saying, "The tree is planted, let's go back."
Qiao Xi stood up and looked at Morax, feeling the emotions that had been sealed away slowly spreading with his arrival.
Just as Morax was about to turn around, Qiao Xi suddenly said, "Morax, I miss you so much."
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