Chapter 76: Strange Prophecy: The Magic Hour of Twelve O'Clock in the Night...
Ye Wan took some red beans in advance and soaked them overnight. The red beans absorbed water and became plump, making it easier to produce sand when cooked.
Ye Wan poured the red beans into the casserole and added a large spoonful of granulated sugar. The sugar particles slowly melted and seeped into the middle of the beans. The red beans were simmered over low heat, and the skin of the red beans cracked into flowers, emitting a sweet fragrance along with the steam.
Ye Wan stirred slowly with a spoon, added another spoonful of condensed milk, and watched the red beans slowly turn into a smooth and sticky bean paste.
Ye Wan likes to keep some fine particles in the bean paste, which makes the taste richer. She picked up a spoon and took a sip. The cooked bean paste was sweet and dense, and very suitable as a filling for various desserts.
Youan had changed into a short jacket and bloomers, and was wearing white cotton gloves. He was holding a pair of scissors and said, "I've almost finished picking the wisteria flowers you asked for."
He looked like a hardworking and simple gardener who came out of a fairy tale. Ye Wan wanted to laugh, but swallowed it back.
It was already late spring, and although the rose bush in the backyard had never bloomed, the wisteria hanging on the grape trellis seemed to have suddenly gotten the message and was blooming wildly.
It was a fresh morning when Ye Wan opened the door to the backyard. Dewdrops rolled down the green leaves and snails moved slowly under the leaves. She was surprised to see the wisteria spikes cascading down from the shelves. Countless purple flowers stacked together, forming a dreamy gradient curtain.
There was a faint sweet fragrance floating in the air. Ye Wan felt that it would be a shame not to use these wisteria flowers to make some delicious food.
So she happily called Youan out of bed and picked a lot of wisteria petals in the morning.
For the morning, nothing is more suitable than omelets. Ye Wan mixed the wisteria flowers with eggs and fried them in a pan. The wisteria flower omelets she made were beautiful in color and sweet in taste. She also made some wisteria pancakes, squeezed the flower juice and mixed it into the skin to form a beautiful taro purple, then filled it with red bean filling and steamed it.
Finally, mix the dried wisteria flowers with jasmine flowers and make a pot of hot tea.
Youan moved a small table and placed it on the porch in the backyard. Ye Wan placed the prepared wisteria cakes, wisteria fried eggs and wisteria jasmine tea on the table. The two of them, a mouse and a civet cat sat on the porch to eat breakfast, watching the wisteria flowers on the trellis dancing in the breeze, creating layers of purple ripples.
The wind blew past, making a gentle rustling sound. The table was filled with brightly colored snacks. Ye Wan drank wisteria tea and felt that this moment was quiet and beautiful.
Then she sighed again.
You An had already finished a plate of purple vine red bean cakes. When he heard her sigh, he asked, "Are you still thinking about Mr. Leo?"
Ye Wan nodded.
Ever since learning about the witch's story that day, the tavern has introduced all kinds of food that the witch likes to eat in an attempt to summon her back: crispy bean curd, curry tofu, and roasted tofu. Ye Wan suspected that she had fallen in love with all kinds of spicy food, and pickled a jar of peppers, but nothing happened.
Miss Feiying seemed to have disappeared. Ye Wan went to ask the raccoon cat, but it just shook its head and refused to admit that it knew her.
Although Ye Wan felt that Mr. Tanuki was the Tanuki sculpture he saw at the shrine that day.
There were quite a few people in the tavern tonight. Ye Wan bought a few large silver carp from the seafood stall and opened a jar of kimchi.
The red lantern peppers, erjingtiao, and radish strips have a strong aroma and moderate spiciness. The fish offal is used to cook tofu, and the fish head and fish meat are cooked together with pickled peppers. It is sour and spicy. As the weather gets warmer, it is very appetizing.
Emma really likes to eat this pickled pepper spicy fish. The fish meat is tender and fragrant, and the pickles are refreshing and very appetizing. She gave Ye Wan an idea: "I know a witch who is very powerful. She can tell you about finding people, love and so on. You can go there to take a look and also have your love fortune told." She nodded at Youan behind the counter.
Ye Wan's face flushed instantly: "Eat your meal."
Adhering to the idea that it is better to believe it than not, Ye Wan dragged Youan and followed the address provided by Emma to the tent of the legendary fortune-telling witch late at night after the tavern closed.
Actually, I didn't want to come late at night, but Emma said that this witch only opens late at night. This Shadow Alley is extremely narrow, and the entrance is marked by a small, bumpy wooden sign, as if it had been gnawed by a troll.
The alley was so narrow that it could only accommodate two or three people. Ye Wan could only walk closely next to Youan. The sky was squeezed into a dark river by the alley. There were no signs on the shops on both sides. Ye Wan looked through a dirty window and saw a huge glass jar in the shop. There was something like an eyeball in the green liquid.
Ye Wan was a little scared.
You An silently held her hand and said firmly, "Don't be afraid, I'm here."
Ye Wan suddenly felt relieved.
The witch's tent was at the end of the alley. It looked like an abandoned tent, covered with various mud stains. There were many people queuing at the door of the tent.
The quiet feeling of dread vanished.
Ye Wan and You An waited for almost an hour before it was their turn.
The moment he opened the tent, a sweet candle aroma wafted over him, causing Ye Wan to sneeze three times. The witch wasn't as mysterious and beautiful as he'd imagined. She wore a bright pink witch robe and a matching tricorn hat. Only a pair of black eyes were visible from under the hat, making it impossible to see her face. Her voice was like sticky bubble gum:
"Oh, you wonderful couple! The Eye of Wisdom reminded me that you need this." She quickly pulled out a pink heart-shaped crystal bracelet from a nearby cardboard box.
"This can protect your love, and it only costs 10 Gold Coins."
Ye Wan felt like she had been tricked by Emma. She was afraid that the person before her was a liar, but she still asked, "We're not here for love advice... We're looking for someone..."
The witch's smile froze on her lips. "Looking for someone? Do you have any of that person's belongings?"
Ye Wan took out a cherry blossom branch from her bag, and the witch took it: "Oh, it smells exotic."
Ye Wan sat up straight: "You know all this, Master!"
The witch held a branch in one hand and covered the crystal ball with the other hand. Suddenly, white mist rose from the cold crystal ball.
Cherry blossoms were faintly visible swirling in the white mist, and the petals transformed into a gentle pink track that passed through the layers of mist in the crystal ball, extending all the way to the shrine that Ye Wan and Youan had visited.
"It's that shrine!" Ye Wan said in surprise, "Master, you are truly amazing!"
The witch handed her the cherry blossom branch, and then rummaged through the cardboard box for a long time before pulling out a transparent crystal. The crystal was carved into the shape of a cherry blossom, with a pink three-dimensional cherry blossom inlaid between the petals. The edge of the crystal was wrapped with golden patterns, and there was a small bell at the bottom.
The witch said, "At the magical hour of sunset, take this and you will see whoever you want to see."
Ye Wan took it carefully. The cherry blossom crystal sparkled with a strange light in the dim light.
The witch held out her hand: "Thank you for your patronage. Since you look kind, I'll give you a discount. 60 silver coins."
Ye Wan: “…”
You An stood behind Ye Wan, not saying a word. He squinted his eyes and stared at the witch. Then he said, "Give it to her. 60 silver coins."
Ye Wan was greatly surprised.
She remembered that Youan had always scoffed at this kind of divination. Even coming here was dragged here by Ye Wan. Even after he said so, Ye Wan obediently paid the money.
She stood up and prepared to leave with Youan, but suddenly there was a "bang" sound from behind.
The crystal ball on the table suddenly shattered, and the debris scattered rapidly in all directions. Youan quickly rushed to Ye Wan and held her in his arms. The crystal fragments immediately hit him.
Ye Wan was shocked: "What's wrong? What happened?"
The witch, wearing a pink wizard robe, looked like a swollen strawberry puff. Her pupils suddenly expanded into two dark full moons, and her whole image became terrifying.
"Oh my god, what is this? It's 'The Grudge'." Ye Wan said tremblingly.
Youan covered her eyes and said, "Don't look, don't be afraid." He put his arm around her waist and tried to take her away by force, but the witch behind him spoke softly:
"I see... a great shadow falling over the kingdom, and the cursed crown is about to fall asleep again..."
Her voice seemed to have the hum of a contralto: "The only way to break the curse is the legendary true love's kiss from another world..."
"I seem to have heard this voice somewhere before. What's the story about true love's kiss? Are you talking about Sleeping Beauty here?" Ye Wan said.
Finally, You An took a deep look at the witch who was still chattering, and dragged Ye Wan out of the tent: "That is one of the characteristics of a witch's magic going wild. Don't worry about it."
"So she really is a witch. I thought she was a liar. You don't know, I was deceived several times when I first came to the capital."
She looked at the cherry blossom-shaped crystal in her hand, then looked up at Youan: "Now Mr. Leo can fulfill his wish."
Those eyes were smiling, with a bright look, full of life and energy. Compared to something as easily broken as cherry blossoms, they were more like the strong and shining sand stars in the desert.
It was the magical hour of twelve in the middle of the night. They were at the entrance of a dark alley. Everything was silent. The only light source was a weak gas lamp hanging overhead, which lengthened their shadows.
In this magical moment: Cinderella will lose her crystal shoes on the steps of the palace, the pumpkin carriage will turn back into an ordinary pumpkin; the last petal of the golden rose will wither in the beast's castle; the mermaid's tail will turn into endless foam in the sea.
This is a very important moment. In a fairy tale, His Royal Highness the Prince would fall in love with the heroine at such an important moment.
At this moment, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Oceana was particularly moved by the heroine who was looking at him with a smile.
Even the spring breeze favored her, lifting the hair by her ears.
It was indeed more touching than the ending of any fairy tale. He didn't want to care about anything anymore, whether it was the witch's curse on the crown or the shadow hanging over the kingdom.
He only knew that daybreak and dawn were about to come, and the magic of twelve o'clock was about to lose its effect. However, as a wise crown prince, he would never allow his beloved woman to throw away a crystal shoe and sneak into the pumpkin carriage to leave.
So Youan lowered his head and kissed his beloved girl.
The wind died down at twelve o'clock.
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