I don't like Chang'an, I like... the pipa.
The day before Lunar New Year's Eve, the weather was fine at noon.
As afternoon approached, when Yan Huanyue put away her sword, a thin layer of snow had already fallen on the eaves outside the barrier in the backyard.
She made a hand seal to disperse the barrier, then looked up at the white snow that came from afar from the sky.
Pei Xuanzhi, wearing a cloak, sat under the eaves of the corridor, leaning against the stove, reading a book.
Seeing that she had put away her knife, he looked at the pastries and oranges on the stove and said quite seriously, "You seem to be more skillful and powerful than a few days ago. You can control your spiritual energy freely and consume much less."
When Yan Huanyue turned to look at him, a snowflake landed on her long eyelashes, feeling cool and refreshing.
Pei Xuanzhi gazed at her quietly. "It's snowing. A boat ride in the snow is the most elegant thing. Senior Sister, are you taking me with you today?"
Yan Huanyue sheathed her sword with a hand seal, took a few steps to the eaves and drank a cup of tea he had brewed. "It's already afternoon, let's set off early."
.
To avoid others finding her strange because of her thin clothing, Yan Huanyue put on a moon-white cloak.
Pei Xuanzhi sat on his sword sheath and followed Yan Huanyue, guiding her through sparsely populated paths all the way to the small ferry crossing outside the city.
Although it is outside the city, it is still a bustling place.
Numerous restaurants and eateries were built along the north bank of the river. At the end of the year, many merchants from the suburbs would come here to sell their New Year's goods.
Pei Xuanzhi jumped off his sword early, covered his mouth and sneezed softly, then exhaled white mist and said, "We flow from west to east. When dusk comes, one side will be snow-covered trees and silver fields, and the other side will be brightly lit. Further east, there will only be snow-covered banks."
Yan Huanyue followed him to the ferry, where several people from the painted boats had already spotted them.
Just as he was about to come up and ask, Pei Xuanzhi pointed to a small boat in the distance. The man knew that he had chosen it, so he went to board the boat and untie the rope.
After boarding the boat, Pei Xuanzhi gave the middleman a coin and said, "There's no need to hire a boatman anymore; we'll row ourselves."
After receiving the money, the man beamed and lit several small stoves. Just as he was about to lay out the fruit, Pei Xuanzhi said, "No need."
The man then took his leave, turned around, and went ashore.
Pei Xuanzhi took out several talismans and pasted them on the boat deck, and the small painted boat slowly drifted eastward with the current.
Inside the boat, a plum blossom was placed on a black lacquered wooden table. Pei Xuanzhi took out several porcelain plates from his treasure pouch and arranged them, placing snacks and fruits on them. He also took out a box of tea and teaware, waiting for the hot water on the small stove.
Yan Huanyue sat opposite him, resting her chin on her hand, watching him slowly pour tea leaves into his teacup, and couldn't help but laugh, "So you went back to your room to get so many things just now."
Pei Xuanzhi smiled faintly and said calmly, "These utensils have been prepared in advance; just pack the fresh snacks, fruits, and tea."
She turned to look out the window, where a misty, chilly air was rising from the distant shore, mingling with the endless snowflakes.
As the hot water boiled on the stove, Pei Xuanzhi got up, picked it up, and poured it into a cup, instantly releasing the aroma of tea.
Yan Huanyue leaned against the window, lazily watching him sit upright at the table, his slender fingers holding the teacup and pouring tea into it.
A cold wind blew in from the window, blowing the gold ribbon binding his hair at his temples. When he raised his hand, the small bell of the longevity lock under his cloak could be seen swaying gently.
Yan Huanyue brushed a strand of hair from her temple that had fallen near her lips and said softly, "Xuanzhi, you like Chang'an the most, don't you?"
Pei Xuanzhi paused for a moment, the black jade bracelet hanging on his wrist, swaying slightly.
He looked up at her, a slight smile on his face, and said, "Is that what you think, Senior Sister?"
Yan Huanyue replied, "Yes, perhaps you haven't noticed, but I can tell you like it here. Since arriving in Chang'an, you seem to be much more cheerful than you were at Tianyan Sect."
Pei Xuanzhi lifted his sleeve and placed a cup of hot tea beside her. His eyes, shimmering with a faint starlight, gazed earnestly into hers as he softly said, "Senior Sister Yan, perhaps you haven't realized it, but I don't like Chang'an, I like..."
A sudden burst of pipa music rang out, accompanied by a subtle fluctuation of spiritual energy.
Yan Huanyue suddenly turned her head to look out the window and saw a painted boat slowly drifting in from behind.
Inside the open windows of the painted boat sat Xue Yuannian, Xue Jingnian, and a woman who seemed somewhat familiar.
The person sitting by the window, gently plucking the strings of a jade-necked pipa and then adjusting the tuning pegs, was none other than Tan Guiyi, whose face was slightly pale.
Xue Yuannian glanced at them unintentionally, then immediately stood up with a smile, cupped his hands in greeting, and said from afar, "Fellow Daoist Pei, Fellow Daoist Yan, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Xue Jingnian, who had been focused on watching Tan Guiyi tune the strings, suddenly turned to look at them.
Tan Guiyi, who was holding a pipa, looked much thinner than when she was seen in the mountains. Upon hearing this, she turned around and looked at them with her pipa half-held back. Her misty eyes resembled an empty mountain about to rain.
Pei Xuanzhi gently put down his teacup and nodded to Yan Huanyue in greeting.
The woman sitting next to Tan Guiyi had her hair tied up in a high bun, and her demeanor was extraordinary.
He simply walked to the window, glanced at them, and said with a smile, "So it's Mr. and Mrs. Pei. My elder brother went to greet you, and since he came back, he's been saying that he's been waiting for you two to send him an invitation to get together and play chess again. But he hasn't received an invitation yet, so I just said that his habit of being overly familiar with people has come out again."
This must be Xue Jingnian's second sister, Xue Liannian.
Although these words were directed at Xue Yuannian, they clearly implied that they did not take Xue Yuannian seriously.
Just as Yan Huanyue was about to speak, Pei Xuanzhi gently put down his teacup and said unhurriedly:
"It was my oversight. Although I am in poor health and Madam Lu is ill in bed, I should still overcome the difficulties, cheer up, and host a banquet to respectfully invite our distinguished guests."
Upon hearing this, Xue Liannian remained cheerful and raised his cup by the window, saying, "So that's how it is. It's just that Liannian saw his elder brother and younger brother fighting at home, so he narrow-mindedly blamed others. Young man, don't be angry."
Pei Xuanzhi picked up his teacup and took a small sip. "What a coincidence. I'm not exactly a very forgiving person either. You understand my feelings, so I'm sure you can understand, right?"
Xue Liannian suddenly didn't know what to say.
She felt that Pei Xuanzhi was really disrespectful, but he was also a man of temper, so she smiled and said, "I understand, I understand, it was my fault."
As the painted boats sailed side by side, Xue Liannian smiled at Yan Huanyue and said, "Sister Baoying, do you still remember me?"
Yan Huanyue nodded.
When she was a child, one year after the New Year at home, Xue Jingnian brought a small box of gold hairpins and jade ornaments to the sect for her, insisting that she wear them.
At that time, she didn't know what was good or bad. She thought those things were not as pretty as the little velvet flowers on other people's heads, and she absolutely refused to accept those cold, hard jewelry.
On that same day, Xue Liannian caught up with Tianyan Sect and gave Xue Jingnian a good beating.
Knowing that he stole his mother's jewelry box to give to Bao Ying, whom he had been longing to see at home, he went to find her.
That day, she and Yu Zhao had just left the dining hall when several Xue family servants invited them to Xue Jingnian's residence.
Xue Liannian pinched her cheeks and squeezed her hands from time to time, saying, "Baoying is so cute. This box of things is all for you. When you grow up, come to Chang'an and become a Daoist couple with our Jingnian, okay?"
The teenager Yu Zhao said with a stern face, "She is my fiancée and will be my Daoist partner in the future."
Xue Jingnian was sitting to one side with a bruised and swollen face. At that time, his short legs could not reach the ground, and he was just swinging his feet with a hopeful expression.
Upon hearing Yu Zhao's words, he immediately burst into tears.
.
Xue Liannian, leaning against the window frame, reached out and gently pinched Yan Huanyue's cheek, saying with a smile, "Since it's inconvenient at your residence, you can come to the Xue family to play anytime."
Yan Huanyue politely declined, saying, "Thank you, Miss Xue, but I still need to take care of Xuanzhi."
She glanced at Tan Guiyi again and asked, "Why is Fellow Daoist Tan also in Chang'an?"
Seeing that she was so preoccupied with Pei Xuanzhi, Xue Jingnian couldn't help but sneer, "You're in Chang'an, why can't she be?"
Xue Yuannian kicked him under the table, but smiled and said:
"Fellow Daoist Tan lost track of a fellow Daoist some time ago, and was heartbroken and fell ill. Now that her master, Elder Sihong, is not at the Divine Capital Gate, Jingnian asked her to come to my house to find some useful medicine so that she can properly treat and recuperate."
Yan Huanyue immediately covered her mouth in shock and asked, "Heavens! Fellow Daoist Tan and Senior Brother Yu are inseparable. Could the missing fellow be Senior Brother Yu?"
Pei Xuanzhi looked at her with a calm expression.
Tan Guiyi handed the pipa to the woman outside the screen on the painted boat and said, "No, it's Yinhuan... We were ambushed and separated in an old house, and we followed the trail to a mountain, but we couldn't find him anywhere..."
Yan Huanyue clasped her hands together in the wind and said devoutly, "I hope that Fellow Daoist Fu will be blessed with good fortune and remain safe and sound."
Tan Guiyi sneered inwardly. These young girls always had something repulsive about them. They were indecisive and foolishly kind, thinking that simple love and kindness, and casual prayers could move the heavens. It was simply laughable.
She couldn't be bothered to think about Fu Yinhuan.
The idea that good people are always blessed is a lie. That self-righteous good-for-nothing Fu Yinhuan is probably dead beyond dead. Her mental illness stems only from the ten years of life she lost...
Thinking of this, I couldn't help but feel both hatred and resentment. My heart ached, and I immediately grabbed a cup of hot tea and drank it down.
Yan Huanyue naturally guessed how Tan Guiyi got sick.
However, Tan Guiyi is a disciple of a legitimate sect. If she dared to steal lifespan, she certainly wouldn't be able to evade the sect and her masters as easily as the rogue cultivator Fu Yinhuan.
She came to Chang'an for more than just the medicine; what else could it be for...?
The woman behind the screen plucked the strings of her pipa a couple of times and began to play an old tune from Chang'an.
Xue Liannian returned to his seat and said, "Fellow Daoist Tan, you have a truly keen ear. We couldn't tune it, and the Qin Nu tuned it, and we couldn't even turn the tuning pegs of the Demon Bone Qin. In a little while, we'll give this Demon Bone Pipa to Fellow Daoist Tan."
Tan Guiyi said, "I like this pipa. Since you've asked, I won't stand on ceremony."
Xue Jingnian laughed and said, "Second sister, it wasn't easy for you to get this pipa. Fellow Daoist Tan is always like a man; if he likes something, he likes it, and if he doesn't like it, he doesn't like it. He won't be polite to you."
Seeing that they were having a good time, Yan Huanyue didn't want to waste time with people she didn't know well, so she said, "You guys keep talking, Xuanzhi and I will go take a look ahead."
Xue Jingnian's smile vanished instantly. "What's so interesting about the two of you strolling around? Wouldn't it be better to walk alongside us and chat?"
Seeing that Xue Jingnian always seemed to think she owed him something, Yan Huanyue couldn't help but sneer, "There's really nothing to talk about with you."
Seeing this, Xue Yuannian smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "Jingnian is ignorant. Fellow Daoist Pei and Fellow Daoist Yan, you may go. I will talk to him."
As she spoke, she turned around and glared fiercely at Xue Jingnian.
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2023-11-27 23:28:49 and 2023-11-28 23:54:17!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: San San 1;
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Watermelon Head 32 bottles; Fruit King 24 bottles; Wu Yi 15 bottles; Yi Bai 12 bottles; Wei Zhen, I and English Must Die 10 bottles; Prchtig 5 bottles; Little Mouth Baba 3 bottles; Fang Fang Bu Fang, 42293163, Luo, Haaa 2 bottles; Ju San, Zhi Zhi Fu Zhi Zhi, AAA Special Chef, PaulCraddock, i, Zhou Man's Sword Bone, kurosakiiji, Xin, Cute Cheese, Balabala 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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