Lantern Festival Wishes
The light snow fell all night, and this morning it fell even more heavily, covering the roof ridges and ground of the Silver Bamboo Clan with a layer of white snow.
A slight chill lingered in the air, and a misty fog enveloped everything.
This did not dampen the festive atmosphere; the streets and alleys were bustling with activity early on, and red lanterns swayed on the eaves.
The Silver Bamboo Sect added a few touches of red to the otherwise white landscape.
Qi Yuan directed her disciples to hang lanterns on Honglin Peak, while Ye Hanyun and Ye Munian were probably still in bed, snuggled up in their warm blankets.
She rushed up Silver Peak and shouted towards Ye Hanyun's door, "Ye Munian will see this year's snow before you do!"
There was a commotion coming from inside the room, and soon Ye Hanyun, dressed in her personal robes, opened the door: "Impossible! I must beat him!"
Qi Yuan took Ye Hanyun to Lianqian Peak. This time, she didn't even need to lift a finger. Ye Hanyun pounded on the door, shouting, "I saw the snow first! You lost!"
Two seconds later, the door burst open, and Ye Munian, who had been sleepy, was now furious: "Damn it! You'll be crying when we have a snowball fight later!"
"Why aren't you going downstairs? How can you celebrate the New Year without hanging lanterns?" Qi Yuan gently tapped their heads.
"Yes," the two replied thankfully.
With the arrival of the new year, the Yinzhuzong Temple, adorned with red lanterns, is filled with vitality and a sense of everyday life.
"Go ahead and hit me! You can't hit me!" Ye Munian made a face with a cheeky grin.
"Idiot, watch me beat you until you cry for your parents!" Ye Hanyun made a big snowball and threw it at him.
Ye Munian exclaimed, "You're cheating! Why are you using spiritual power in a snowball fight?!"
"I'll use it, what can you do to me?" Ye Hanyun twisted her waist.
Qi Yuan sat quietly to one side, watching the two of them, a faint smile appearing on her face that she herself was unaware of.
Ye Hanyun made a pause gesture and walked towards Qi Yuan: "Senior Sister, you watch us play like this every year, aren't you coming?"
She paused for a moment, then said, "I'm not playing."
Deep down, Qi Yuan wanted to have a snowball fight. She wanted to join them and have a great time.
However, her status as the senior sister seemed to be a shackle binding her, especially... Ruan Yiyun. Qi Yuan had no choice but to suppress the throbbing in her heart and avoid such activities.
"Come here, senior sister, this is so much fun!" Ye Munian shouted.
He thought for a moment, then said, "Master isn't at the sect these days! You can play whenever you want!"
Qi Yuan had a sudden thought: could she try it when Ruan Yiyun wasn't around?
She flinched, but still slowly stood up and said, "Okay."
The two looked at each other and laughed: "To think that one day we'd actually get to play with our senior sister!"
A blush quickly rose to Qi Yuan's face. She reacted quickly, picking up snowflakes and throwing them at them: "Shut up."
The three of them were having a great time, leaving the white ground uneven with their feet. The other disciples looked at each other, but when they saw that their senior sister was also having a snowball fight, they didn't hesitate and started playing too.
This was the first time she had shown a genuine smile since the sect competition.
Qi Yuan was tired from playing and sat down to rest on the snow. She looked at the snowballs flying around in the air, her eyes filled with joy, nostalgia, and even... a trace of sadness.
Ye Munian, panting heavily, exclaimed, "Senior Sister is indeed Senior Sister; she's even so good at snowball fights."
“That’s right. Your senior brother is just as skilled,” Ye Hanyun said.
“I don’t acknowledge you as my senior brother,” Ye Munian retorted.
Qi Yuan suddenly said, "There's a lantern festival tonight. Let's go together."
"Senior sister, why do you suddenly want to go to the lantern festival? Of course we'll go! Let me tell you, the lantern festival is always so lively every year!" Ye Hanyun said, gesturing excitedly.
"Look at him, senior sister! He's always flirting with girls at the lantern festival. It's just his face, I'm handsome too!" Ye Munian said disdainfully.
"I've reformed! No, I'm just now free from worldly desires!" Ye Hanyun's face flushed red.
"Alright," Qi Yuan couldn't help but laugh.
Large snowflakes fell on Liu Gongzong, turning the ground into a pure white expanse.
Lu Wenxing stood quietly in the snow for a long time. The chill deepened, and the cold wind, carrying snowflakes, rushed towards him, the cold air suddenly penetrating his mouth and nose.
The disciples of Liugong Sect were still having a snowball fight. He felt a little cold and breathed out warm air to rub his hands.
He suddenly felt a bit bored and was about to turn around to go back when three familiar voices came from behind him: "Senior Brother Lu".
Lu Wenxing paused, then turned around abruptly: "It's you."
Ye Hanyun picked up a snowball and threw it at his shoulder: "Senior brother, want to come with us?"
“Okay.” Lu Wenxing paused for a moment and then smiled.
The snow gradually stopped, and it was getting dark.
Qi Yuan said, "Senior Brother Lu, why don't you join us for the lantern festival later?"
Lu Wenxing was about to agree but then stopped herself, asking hesitantly, "But I've never participated in a lantern festival before... Will I feel out of place?"
"This is my first time participating too, just like you," Qi Yuan said earnestly.
He laughed and said, "Alright. I'll go too."
*
Lanterns floated like a sea, shimmering with color. In the distance, the sounds of music and the harmonious strains of sheng and qin played, like heavenly music. Though it was a world of cultivation, it was interwoven with the everyday life of ordinary people, creating a magnificent chapter in the grandeur of the world.
Under the hazy moonlight, colorful paper lanterns, like twinkling stars, hung high on both sides of the street.
"So beautiful!" Qi Yuan couldn't help but exclaim, her gaze lingering on the spot.
The lantern festival was bustling with people, and Qi Yuan strolled around alone, wearing a warm, soft woolen brocade cloak.
Ye Hanyun and the other two said they wanted to have a contest between men and would arrive a little later.
"Junior Sister Qi!"
"Senior Sister!"
She looked up at the sound and saw Duan Yu, Pei Yin, Sima Chu... they were all in front, and even Wu Shangyao and a few other juniors were there.
"Is everyone here?" Qi Yuan asked as she walked over.
“Of course, after tonight comes the Spring Festival, how can we not go to the lantern festival? Speaking of which, this is the first time I’ve met my senior sister in such an occasion,” Sima Chu said.
Qi Yuan was stunned.
What was she doing at this time of year in previous years?
Reviewing sect affairs? Practicing martial arts? Watching fireworks rise at midnight from outside the window?
It seems like they all exist. But that won't happen again.
"Senior sister! You might like solving riddles, why don't you go take a look over there?" Pei Yin said hurriedly.
"Riddles? They seem interesting." Qi Yuan walked in that direction, where there were many people gathered in a circle.
"Guess the riddles! Guess the riddles!" the crowd shouted.
Under the cover of night, people gathered around lanterns adorned with colorful ribbons, whispering and discussing amongst themselves.
Qi Yuan squeezed through the crowd and asked the excited woman next to her curiously, "Excuse me, what's going on here?"
The woman exclaimed excitedly, "Young Master Ouyang's riddles are always incredibly difficult! He said that if you answer all the riddles correctly and then go to him to answer the last question, you'll receive a mysterious reward!"
Young Master Ouyang?
She looked towards the second floor, and even through the thin veil, she recognized the person as Ouyang Lanyue at a glance.
She subconsciously looked for a figure next to Ouyang Lanyue, but couldn't find it.
Qi Yuan went inside, and the masked man pointed to the first riddle on the colorful banner:
A solitary mountain range, layered peaks, and scattered clouds (Guess the Chinese character)
She answered, "Rise."
The man nodded slowly and led her to the next colorful ribbon.
A lone sail on the horizon, a sorrowful farewell (Guess the Chinese character)
"ear."
Half a lifetime spent in love, yet no regrets (Guess a Chinese character)
"clear."
Why must we have known each other before we met? (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"We hit it off immediately."
A crow has taken over a magpie's nest (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"vanished into nothingness."
Desiring to ascend to the moon palace and pluck a cassia branch (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"unattainable."
Laughable to death (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"Extreme joy begets sorrow."
Carry an umbrella on a sunny day and bring food when you're full (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"Unexpected."
Eighty-four hours (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"Changing one's mind frequently".
A small boat (Guess the Chinese idiom)
"...One tree cannot support a forest."
The masked man said, "Congratulations, young lady. I will now take you to see Young Master Ouyang. There is only one question left."
"Okay, thank you for your help." Qi Yuan nodded.
She went upstairs in full view of everyone, but contrary to expectations, she did not answer the final riddle face-to-face with Ouyang Lanyue.
Because the man told her that besides her, there was another person who answered all nine questions correctly.
The man put a fox mask on her and told her to go in by herself. Just as Qi Yuan was about to enter, she ran into another man wearing a rabbit mask.
She paused, realizing that the man in the rabbit mask was the other person who had answered all nine questions correctly.
The two walked in without speaking, one after the other, and sat down on either side.
Ouyang Lanyue turned around to see which two people had made it to the final stage.
He said, "Old clam..."
Upon seeing the two, a look of surprise flashed across his face. Ouyang Lanyue then changed the subject: "The Milky Way meets two stars. Guess the Chinese idiom."
Was the last question really that easy? She wondered, puzzled.
Qi Yuan quickly replied, "A match made in heaven."
"A match made in heaven." The male voices rang out simultaneously.
She froze upon hearing the familiar voice, as did the man wearing the rabbit mask.
Ouyang Lanyue closed her fan and rested it against her chin, smiling as she said, "Correct answer. Please, Miss Fox and Young Master Rabbit, remove your masks."
Qi Yuan was on edge, nervously removing her mask, yet a faint sense of anticipation lingered in her heart.
She held her breath and looked at the "Rabbit Prince".
The man had a high nose and thin lips, with long, jet-black hair cascading down his back. A red ribbon tied a strand of hair that fell over his shoulder, and his upturned eyes added a touch of allure.
Mu Qinghuai stared at her blankly.
Ouyang Lanyue stood up from her seat and tossed two items to the table: "What a coincidence, you two are the ones who answered nine questions correctly. Ah Huai, Qi Yuan, this is a reward for answering ten riddles correctly."
Qi Yuan reached out and caught it, then looked down and saw it was a red love knot.
Mu Qinghuai felt the same way. He suddenly thought of a line of poetry: "Two silken belts around the waist, a knot of hearts in dreams." His face flushed instantly.
She asked, "Is this love knot the reward?"
Ouyang Lanyue's smile concealed a slyness: "Of course. It has a very auspicious meaning. 'A thread of love, a flower of longevity for a thousand years.' Not only does it have auspicious omens, but this love knot is also different from ordinary ones. It has been infused with spiritual power and can block an attack when encountering danger."
Qi Yuan probed with her divine sense and indeed found a rich spiritual energy within. She stood up and thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Young Master Ouyang."
“You don’t need to address me with respect. Just call me by my full name or surname from now on. You two are the only two people who came here, so why don’t you go to the window and wave down to the people below?” Ouyang Lanyue said with a smile.
The two paused for a moment, then walked up together.
Ouyang Lanyue removed the veil, stepped aside, and called Qi Yuan and Mu Qinghuai to stand over.
Qi Yuan did not hesitate and stood side by side with Mu Qinghuai.
The people below were shouting and screaming. She spotted Ye Hanyun and Lu Wenxing looking up at her in the crowd…
The clock struck midnight.
This means it's Chinese New Year.
People laughed and shouted in unison, "Happy New Year!"
Fireworks burst open in the night sky, illuminating and reddening the entire area above the lantern festival. Brilliant sparks flew everywhere, radiating dazzling light.
"Happy New Year," Qi Yuan said softly.
Even though she didn't call his name, Mu Qinghuai was certain that Qi Yuan was speaking to him.
At that moment, all the colors around him disappeared, and he saw only her.
Mu Qinghuai understood what this feeling was.
He likes Qi Yuan.
Happy New Year. Wishing you a peaceful and prosperous year.
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