Bai Susu returned to Liu Xian's side and stood quietly. Liu Xian, in her human form with a snake's tail, gently raised her hand and lightly brushed the girl's cheek with the back of her hand, cool as jade.
A teasing, laughing voice rang out:
"Good boy, I want to see if you can emerge victorious in this battle."
Bai Susu finally couldn't help but speak up:
"Liu Xian, why did you allow the royal princess into the temple? You know perfectly well that no matter what, they will always side with the royal family."
There were also her unspoken thoughts, and Liu Xian had clearly hinted that she would become the ruler of the temple...
Because no matter who is actually in power in the temple, Ling Xiao receives the same amount of faith.
Why should she take risks for a ridiculous title of disciple?
Liu Xian raised an eyebrow slightly, propped her chin on her hand, and looked at her disciple's face, which was filled with barely concealed excitement, before suddenly saying:
Are you scared, Susu?
Is she afraid?
Bai Susu took a deep breath and had to admit that she was cowardly. But should she just give up like this, hiding behind Liu Xian's fame and receiving the wealth and honor bestowed by others?
I'm not reconciled!
Bai Susu's eyes seemed to hold flames as she calmly said:
“I used to be afraid, but I’m not anymore. If I still can’t beat others with Liu Xian behind me, then it’s fate.”
"Good girl." After hearing this, Liu Xian sighed, her long, smooth snake tail gently stroking the girl's calves.
…………
Winter passed and summer solstice arrived; the years flowed by like water, and five years have passed in the blink of an eye.
Ever since the appearance of the Willow Immortal, who once resided in the capital and manifested his divine power among the people, that scene is still talked about with great relish by the people.
After that, miracles occurred repeatedly, protecting the people of the Ming Dynasty and ensuring their well-being. Women especially regarded Liu Xian as their guardian deity.
Because of the saying "love me, love my dog," snakes have somehow become auspicious creatures. If people see a snake in their home, they not only don't drive it away, but they also happily feed it eggs, calling it a "guardian snake" that will protect the family.
Temple women would wear snake-shaped jewelry, keep non-venomous snakes as pets, and concoct snake venom. This fashion also spread to women in the general populace.
The Dragon Boat Festival falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
Ling Xiaojing, feeling restless, stepped out of the secluded palace. The city was bustling with activity, with stalls everywhere selling red ropes, zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), five-spice dishes, and gauze-wrapped moths.
A young girl, barely out of her teens, was pulling her female companion along as they picked out longevity threads and sachets from a stall, their hands and mouths constantly chattering away.
A girl in yellow pointed to a longevity thread woven with silver threads and red rope and said, "This is nice, I like it."
"It looks nice, but it must be quite expensive, right?" his companion said, glancing at it sideways.
"It's alright, I have money," the girl in yellow said smugly, taking out some silver, tying the longevity thread to her wrist, and raising her hand to admire it.
"Hey, our allowances are about the same, how come you suddenly have so much money? Tell us or not, don't blame us for interrogating you."
As she spoke, her companion made a tickling gesture and laughed maliciously, and the other girls asked the same question.
The girl in yellow was extremely ticklish; upon hearing this, she took several steps back and clasped her hands together in a gesture of begging for mercy.
"Alright, alright, I'll tell you. This money was a reward from my mother because I've already secured my place in the Willow Immortal Palace!"
Speaking of this proud achievement, the girl in yellow couldn't contain her joy and excitement.
The other girls' eyes widened in surprise. Being able to enter Liuxian Palace was an extraordinary thing for them; usually, only one person could enter a whole street!
So they all crowded around her, bombarding her with questions about the girl in yellow, such as how she got in.
The commotion attracted the attention of many people. Upon hearing that the girl in yellow had entered the Willow Immortal Palace, everyone's face showed a hint of envy.
Ling Xiao walked through the crowd and could still hear the sounds of people talking around her; someone was stomping their feet.
"No, I'm going to take the girls in my family to ask them for their secrets and practice accordingly. I refuse to believe that my family can't produce a girl who can enter the temple!"
Many people echoed, "Let's go together! Let's go together!"
You should know that there are many benefits to entering Liuxian Palace. For example, when the imperial court attacks overseas, each ship must have three women from Liuxian Palace, and the profits are substantial.
There was no way around it; they were not only respected, but they also protected the people on board from getting sick, guided the way, and could quickly discover valuable products in unfamiliar countries.
As Ling Xiao walked down this street, he thought to himself:
"Tsk tsk tsk, a system that's playing both sides, you're quite the oddball in the system world."
"Who said that? This system is not two-timing. I just gave Susu some useless things because I felt sorry for her. Then she occasionally asks this system questions."
The system, hands on hips, shouted in a fierce but inwardly cowardly manner.
"Oh, useless stuff? Asking occasionally? How dare you say that?"
Ling Xiao flicked him on the head with a sharp sound, "Are you kidding yourself? You've already used up your secret stash, haven't you?"
After finishing speaking, he looked at the reddening ball of light and shook his head inwardly. The system had been flattered by that girl Su Su so much that it was almost losing its rationality.
However, Su Su was truly clever. Despite having no resources at first, she seized upon the "spirit's" weakness and gradually grew stronger through the books supplied by the system.
The words "secret stash" struck the system's brain like lightning.
He stammered an explanation, saying things like these were all legitimate integrals, and that he had also put in a lot of hard work. Seeing Ling Xiao remain silent, he argued further:
"I'm doing this to support the host's faith; it's all out of good intentions..." Then came some more difficult-to-understand words, to which Ling Xiao responded with a smile.
Ling Xiao strolled leisurely through the bustling city, observing the myriad hustle and bustle of life, and occasionally joined in, buying a string of candied hawthorns and a red string to tie around her wrist.
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