0049 049 White clouds, gentle breeze, and the floating snake fairy
Early on the morning of the 10th, just as dawn was breaking and it was the coolest time in the mountains, Qi Shuyao was taken out of bed, changed into a comfortable set of sportswear, and her hair was neatly combed. After washing her face and brushing her teeth, she opened her eyes and stretched vigorously.
"What are you doing, going hiking?"
"right."
"Huh? No, my legs are still weak."
The little girl, dressed in a white tracksuit, curled up on a stone pillar by the door and refused to go out. Qi Yu smiled, picked her up, and put her in the car.
"But we haven't eaten yet! How can we climb a mountain on an empty stomach?"
"It won't take long. We'll eat after you come down."
"Wait for me to come down, aren't you coming?"
After exchanging a few words, the car stopped at the foot of a mountain, where an old woman stood with a smile.
"This is Granny Bai. Let her take you there."
Qi Shuyao got out of the car with some doubt and walked towards Grandma Bai. The old woman seemed to recognize her, smiled and came up to her, took one of her hands, touched it, and nodded.
She looked back and saw Qi Yu nodding to her from inside the car.
The old man led her from the foot of the mountain, through a dim grove of trees, where an inconspicuous ancient path came into view. She had been to Xianhui, this small town, several times before. It was a place with an antique charm, where every brick and tile retained traces of antiquity. It was a famous tourist attraction, but it seemed that it had never been exposed on the internet, nor had anyone mentioned it beforehand.
Grandma Bai seemed to sense her question and explained it to her.
"This mountain is called Mangxian Mountain. The scenery is not particularly beautiful. There is only a Mangxian Temple on the mountain, which is not open to outsiders, so tourists do not know about it."
"But aren't I an outsider too?"
The mother-in-law smiled and shook her head.
The temple is on the mountaintop, and you have to walk through a long pine forest to get there. The mountain is not steep, but the stone steps have been worn smooth and rounded, and you could fall down if you are not careful.
She didn't know how long she walked, her legs just mechanically lifting and lowering. Finally, she saw the statue that the ancients had built for the snake fairy, which Granny Bai had mentioned. Looking down from the top of the mountain, she realized that the snake's body was coiled on the mountain. The longer the snake's body was, the higher the steps leading to the fairy temple were, stretching endlessly into the depths of the mountains.
It was a very thick and long python, but its appearance was not frightening. On the contrary, it had some handsome features, and its tongue was carved with lifelike detail. I was not afraid to look into its eyes.
Grandma Bai stood behind, smiling as she watched her walk forward to examine the snake's head, and told her the local legends.
"Legend has it that this mother snake cultivated here tens of thousands of years ago, but failed to ascend to heaven time and time again due to various reasons. She had been in the human world for too long and had experienced all kinds of tribulations. She also began to be reluctant to leave this place. She had a kind heart and wanted to protect this place. She watched the people who were multiplying and living here, so she left her physical body and magic here."
When her mother-in-law saw that she had raised her hand, she stepped forward and gestured for her to put it down.
"You can touch her. The Snake Queen likes children and likes children to be close to her."
Qi Shuyao usually enjoyed listening to these legends and anecdotes, but she never believed they actually existed. However, seeing the old man's expectant expression, she reached out and touched the snake's head.
Grandma Bai continued with a smile.
"People here believe that they must visit the Snake Goddess twice in their lives. The first time is when the child is born, when the parents or the child come together to worship the Snake Goddess and let her see them. We have continued this tradition so as not to disappoint her choice. The second time is before the child reaches adulthood, when they must come to worship in person and ask the Snake Goddess to show them the way for the future."
The old woman was getting on in years, and her eyesight was becoming somewhat cloudy. She smiled and looked up, first bowing twice to the dragon spirit, then turning to her.
“When your mother was born, I was the one who brought her here, but I didn’t live to see her come back before she came of age. A few years later, someone sent word that your mother had given birth to a daughter and asked me to go up and help with the prayers.”
The news came so suddenly that Qi Shuyao stood there stunned for a long time.
"Grandma, do you know my mother?"
"I know her. She lived here until she was almost ten years old, and then she left."
She wanted to ask something more, but Granny Bai had already taken out the key and walked towards the gate of the Dragon Fairy Cave. The gate was locked with a heavy, rusty padlock, which was also rusty inside. Granny Bai turned the keyhole for a long time before she could open it.
"You'll have to go in by yourself. Just feel it with your heart. The Snake Goddess will bless every kind child."
Qi Shuyao lowered her raised foot again. She was not kind; she had long since become an evil devil. If the Snake Goddess was really that effective, she probably wouldn't have been able to leave this temple.
Seeing that she hesitated to come forward for a long time, Granny Bai finally lowered her hand that was supporting the door. She sighed inwardly, as if to make amends for her.
"Kids these days, especially those in big cities, don't believe in this stuff anymore. And rightly so, you all have to go out and explore the world. Even the Snake Queen can't do that much..."
Before she could finish speaking, Qi Shuyao quickly stepped into the door that was about to close. Grandma Bai promptly pushed the door open and pointed her in a direction.
The temple was extremely cold, like the dead of winter. Qi Shuyao hugged her shoulders and walked towards the only path. There was only a small door in front of her. Although it was open to the elements, it was pitch black, and not a single ray of light could be seen. She walked into the old temple. There were no memorial tablets or incense burners inside. It was covered with a thick layer of dust, and there wasn't a single footprint on the dust.
She wandered around the first hut, found nothing, and then walked toward the open door. The rooms were connected, and the dilapidated wooden doors were half-fallen off, hanging on the doorframes, creaking in the wind.
After passing through several doors, she finally found the snake's tail in a small hut. It was embedded in the floor, with the tip pointing upwards. She squatted down and examined it carefully, confirming that it was indeed a statue.
Such a huge and vivid statue spreads across the entire mountain. Granny Bai said that outsiders do not know about this place, which means that no outsiders were involved in its construction. How could such a small city as Xianhui have been built for hundreds of years?
Qi Shuyao stood in the room, closed her eyes, and sensed her surroundings. One minute, five minutes, fifteen minutes passed. She silently opened her eyes and walked towards the small door on the left.
After leaving the room, the temple came to an end, and finally she saw light. She walked towards the steep cliff and looked down. The vertical peaks stood neatly on the ground, barren of vegetation. The wind blew her hair wildly, making it almost impossible to see anything. But the scene before her was so familiar. She took out her phone from her pocket, opened the camera, and zoomed in.
Xianhui is located between Yangcheng and Jingyang, a city squeezed out of a gap. Standing on the peak, she looked down and saw Yangcheng to the left and Jingyang to the right, with an unobstructed view of both cities.
So, this is what the Snake Queen saw?
The wind subsided a bit. Qi Shuyao put away her phone, straightened her hair, and stood up straight. She recalled what Granny Bai had said: it was several years after her mother came of age that someone asked her to come up here to pray for blessings. Judging from Granny Bai's expression, that child was referring to her. That meant that her mother was at least in her twenties when she gave birth to her, a few years older than Qi Yu.
It turns out her parents were in a relationship where the woman was older than the man.
She stood on the rock and suddenly laughed a few times, looking up at the sky. It was as if everyone knew the woman who gave birth to her, but no one would tell her who she was. What happened to that woman? Why didn't anyone show their face to her?
Perhaps she really was a burden to her, or the biggest mark she didn't want to mention in the past, so that even if she thought of her occasionally on sleepless nights, she would regret it so much that she would slap herself.
So, is she now enjoying family life with a new husband and a new child?
Of course, no one answered her; only the wind rushed past her ears, whistling as it disappeared into the distance.
Going up the mountain is easy, but going down is hard. However, Qi Shuyao's mood improved considerably when she came down. She admired the trees on both sides of the ancient road and occasionally reached out to touch the leaves.
It was still early, and the dew on the leaves hadn't dried completely. Looking at the dampness in her palms, she suddenly thought of a question.
"Grandma, do you bring all the newborn children to the ceremonial gathering to worship?"
"Yes, it used to be my mother, but she passed away, and now I'm all alone."
"Can you remember every single child who travels this road every day?"
"No, there aren't many young people left at the Fairy Gathering, nor are there any newborns. It's been a long time since we've come here."
Was my mom like that back then?
"Yes, there are fewer and fewer people."
"Do you remember a family with the surname Gu here? They have a daughter named Gu Chaohuan, who should be about the same age as my mother, and her son is about the same age as me."
"Surname Gu? I've never met anyone with the surname Gu. This is probably just a temporary stop."
"Is there anyone with the surname Li? There's a girl named Li Qing."
"Yes, I remember this one. He's a few years older than you. He came back to Xianhui with his parents later. When they picked him up, he was already two or three years old."
As Grandma Bai spoke, she stopped in her tracks to think. She turned to look at Qi Shuyao with her cloudy eyes and added uncertainly.
"The person who carried that girl up there seemed to be your mother's uncle and aunt from the Fairy Gathering, but I really can't remember. My mother was still alive then, and she brought most of the people up. You were the first child I brought up by myself."
Qi Shuyao couldn't hear the rest of what she said. The two had already reached the foot of the mountain, and Qi Yu was leaning against the car waiting for her.
Qi Shuyao walked over, took his hand, waved back at Grandma Bai, and got into the car.
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