83 Make a wish
◎Call it to me again when you get home tonight. ◎
In that instant, Ying Jianhua truly understood what it meant to feel a chilling sensation as if one's blood were flowing backwards. He immediately turned his back and walked in another direction, but realizing that he was going against the flow and would easily be exposed, he stopped and instead stopped in front of the stall, pretending to buy something.
After overcoming his initial fear, he calmed down and his mind raced as he quickly considered Lu Ping's purpose in coming here.
With no companions by his side and not dressed in official robes, the likelihood of him coming on official business was greatly reduced.
So, was it for personal matters? But according to Ying Jianhua, Lu Ping's parents were both deceased, and he only had a nine-year-old sister. Jinxi City was several months away from Liuli Capital; what personal matter could have warranted him traveling such a long distance?
His vigilance only increased. He tossed out five copper coins and bought a mask to put on.
Regardless of Lu Ping's purpose in coming, he must not allow Du Zhijin to meet with him.
never.
"Excuse me." After putting on his mask, he lowered his voice and pretended to bump into Lu Ping unintentionally. Lu Ping didn't mind. There were far more people in Liuli City than in Jinxi City. It was crowded with people and carriages. He had been trampled by people and horses several times along the way.
However... the scent on that person from earlier seemed familiar to him.
Out of his constable instincts, he subconsciously glanced back, trying to find the person. However, just as he had said, the city of Liuli was teeming with people, and once inside, a person disappeared like a drop of water in the ocean, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
The important matter was at hand. He shook off the jumbled thoughts in his mind, carefully protecting what he was carrying as he struggled through the crowd, finally arriving at his destination.
This is a place quite different from the bustling streets. The doors are deserted and the red paint is peeling, except for a long and wide plaque that still shines coldly in the deep night.
Lu Ping looked up and saw three large characters written in gold ink on the plaque, written with vigorous strokes.
"Department for Suppressing Evil".
————
Ying Jianhua certainly wouldn't bump into Lu Ping without a reason. He noticed that Lu Ping was carrying something in his arms, so he thought he'd try to see if he could get a clear look at the whole thing. Unfortunately, Lu Ping lived up to his reputation for skill, which even Du Zhijin had praised; his stance was very stable, and Ying Jianhua only saw the sharp corner of the thing.
What was that pointy thing? He felt he had seen it before, but couldn't quite place it.
To the west of Rurikyo, there is a river, but it's not quite a river; it's actually a ditch called "Mingyue Canal".
Sometimes, Ying Jianhua greatly admired the ability of the people of the capital to entertain themselves. "I offered my heart to the bright moon, but the bright moon shone on the ditch"—such a poignant and bitter line of poetry—yet they actually named the ditch "Bright Moon Ditch," and young men and women even entrusted their feelings to it without feeling it was unlucky.
Through the two rough holes in the mask, he saw Du Zhijin queuing in front of the river lantern stall. Remembering his own past situation, he couldn't help but chuckle.
Back then, wasn't his feeling towards Du Zhijin also a case of "the bright moon shines on the ditch"? He even had the absurd idea of never expressing his feelings and being content to remain just a "friend" for the rest of his life.
He later told her about it, and she was quite surprised.
He still remembered what she said: "I don't cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, so why can't I have a Daoist partner? Besides, the Path of Ruthlessness is the easiest path to start a family."
The Great Way is impartial, but this impartiality is compassion that treats all people equally, not a lack of compassion that appears to be compassionate towards any particular individual.
After thinking it over, it was finally her turn. Ying Jianhua watched as she picked up a carp lantern and put it down, then picked up a lotus lantern and put it down again, looking conflicted. She couldn't help but walk over and point to the lotus lantern, saying, "This one will do."
"Oh, okay." Du Zhijin subconsciously took out his money to pay, but only realized something was wrong after he got the lamp in his hand. He asked, "Who are you?"
He took off his mask, and she was slightly surprised, but she didn't ask why. She assumed it was just a whim and excitedly dragged him to release lotus lanterns.
Seeing that she didn't ask for the reason, he breathed a sigh of relief and was pulled towards "Mingyue Canal".
Then he discovered a problem.
Why are all the men on this street falling into Du Zhijin's arms?!
He didn't think anything was wrong with the first one. He just assumed that the crowd was too dense and the person had accidentally bumped into Du Zhijin. But in just a few steps, a total of one, two, three, or four men "accidentally" fell down, and they were all young and upright boys.
"Be careful." Du Zhijin reached out and helped the man upright. The blue-clad young man's face instantly flushed red, and he apologized repeatedly: "I'm so sorry, I've disturbed you, young lady... I don't know where you live or what your name is. I will definitely come to apologize to you in the future..." "No need, Zhouzhou, let's go. The wind will pick up soon and the river lanterns will drift away."
Ying Jianhua said calmly, and without further ado, took Du Zhijin's hand and walked out, so fast it was as if a dog was chasing them.
They're just a bunch of drooling stray dogs. As for him? He's at least a domestic dog.
He didn't realize until he reached the edge of the "Bright Moon Canal" that Du Zhijin hadn't said a word. Could it be that she was angry with him for acting on his own initiative?
The thought of this possibility made him uneasy, yet he also felt that he had done nothing wrong.
They're sleeping on the same bed, so a little jealousy isn't considered being a jealous husband, is it? If she thinks he's jealous, then he can only, and can only, secretly be jealous in the future, without letting her find out.
Knowing he was favored, it was hard for him not to become arrogant. But there were too many other women around her, and he could only barely accept Crimson Tail.
After a moment of wild speculation, Ying Jianhua finally lost her composure and took the initiative to admit her mistake: "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have... interrupted you just now."
"Huh? Whose leg are you going to break?" Du Zhijin seemed to wake up from a dream.
The image should be: "..."
Alright, it turns out he was worrying unnecessarily; she hadn't even considered that possibility.
Relieved, he couldn't help but ask, "What were you thinking about just now?"
"Oh, it's nothing." She gave a slightly silly smile, shook their clasped hands shyly, and looked away. "It's just that, just now, you called me Zhouzhou."
"This is the first time you've called me that."
Upon hearing this, Ying Jianhua fell silent.
They had shared their pasts and knew each other's most intimate names long ago. But she often called him "Amo," while he only uttered that name hidden in his heart today.
Zhouzhou.
It was his lack of honesty, his overthinking. Ever since Du Zhijin exposed his feelings, he often wondered if they could have gotten together sooner if he had confessed his feelings earlier.
"I..." He felt a pang of sadness and wanted to apologize, but then he heard her say, "It's okay, you can call it to me when we get home tonight."
Du Zhijin thought that if he felt embarrassed to talk about it in public, he wouldn't feel ashamed if it was just the two of them alone at home.
However, it is clear that the painting was interpreted in a different way.
His face flushed red inch by inch, quickly turning the color of a lotus lantern, and even his glaring gaze seemed light and weak.
Wait, why am I glaring at her?
He not only glared at her, but also called her a "hypocrite," yet he didn't refuse her advances.
Du Zhijin became even more confused.
The area around the "Mingyue Canal" was even more bustling than the market, with a group of calligraphy and painting stalls in addition to ordinary vendors.
After all, what if the handwriting of the wish is too ugly, and the Old Man Under the Moon, the Matchmaker, the Bodhisattva, or the Jade Emperor can't recognize it?
Perhaps influenced by the atmosphere, Du Zhijin also held great expectations for the lotus lantern in his hand. Ying Jianhua couldn't help but think to herself, "Instead of making wishes to those gods, I should make wishes to your master."
He didn't know whether the other gods were real or fake, or if they would respond, but she was Gu Zhang's only disciple, so he couldn't have chosen the wrong person to rely on, right?
"Oh right." Du Zhijin suddenly realized, and simply handed him the borrowed pen so he could use it. Ying Jianhua thought for a moment, then picked up the pen and wrote, "May your life be smooth and joyful."
Those nearby, seeing his beautiful handwriting, assumed they were also vendors and quickly handed him their lanterns, also giving Du Zhijin two copper coins.
“Write one for me too! Just write, ‘With a treasure in the family, everything is good.’”
The two looked at each other, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes. But since they had been offered money, they couldn't very well refuse.
Later, Yingjianhua also developed a business of painting on lamp surfaces. Because he painted quickly and well, people found it amazing and soon a long line formed.
The kind old man who lent them his brushes and ink was very unhappy about having his business taken away. He stood by, puffing out his cheeks and glaring. Ying Jianhua then asked Du Zhijin to give him some silver. He was about to shout again when he saw Du Zhijin draw his sword without saying a word and immediately fell silent.
Uncle: One is skilled in wielding swords and spears, the other in writing and calligraphy; neither of them can afford to offend the other.
However, they didn't expect to make money from this anyway. After writing for a while, seeing him rubbing his wrists from time to time, Du Zhijin said, "Let's pack up and stop drawing."
After everyone left, she took his hand in her hands, rubbing it while saying with concern, "Does it hurt a lot? Should we go see a doctor?"
Ying Jianhua found it amusing: "Why see a doctor? I am a doctor myself."
Du Zhijin was speechless: "A doctor cannot heal himself."
He shook his head, picked up the lotus lantern at his feet, and said, "Let's go, or we'll miss the curfew."
It was indeed late, and the lights from the surrounding stalls could only illuminate a small area. The candlelight of the lotus lantern was even more meager, only reflecting their lowered profiles.
The two held their breath and placed the lamp into the water together, watching it sway and drift away with the current.
Ying Jianhua wrote: "I've heard that the farther something travels, the easier it is for a wish to come true."
"Is that so?" Du Zhijin made a simple hand gesture towards the water. Then he saw that the lotus lantern, which had been lagging behind, suddenly accelerated and broke through the encirclement, taking the lead among all the river lanterns.
He glanced at her: "You cheated."
She blinked and lied without batting an eye: "It's fate."
He smiled, amused by her childish actions.
That was not only his wish, but also hers.
After writing "May your life be smooth and joyful," he also wrote "May we find one heart to share, and stay together until our hair turns white."
And she clearly saw it too.
"Let's go home together." She hesitated before extending her hand.
"Yes." He took her hand without hesitation.
They walked side by side into the myriad lights of homes, to their own lamp.
In a corner unnoticed by anyone, the lotus lantern suddenly flickered with candlelight and was silently swallowed up by the undercurrent.
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