Chapter 33 Going to Yunmeng
On a moonlit night after the beginning of winter, Si Zhui finally couldn't resist the urge to touch his hands.
Lan Jingyi secretly came to tell him that Hanshan Temple outside Gusu City had been haunted recently, with pilgrims being chased by ghostly flames at night, so frightened that they dared not open the temple for several days. The two agreed to go and investigate at night, thinking that they would return quickly so as not to alarm the elders.
Sizhui hesitated. The last time he was injured and forced to kneel was still fresh in his mind. Wei Wuxian's words, "You are not allowed to leave the mountain without permission again," were like a little whip, always wagging in his ears. But Lan Jingyi pulled his arm, his eyes sparkling as he said, "Let's go and see. If the evil spirit is strong, we will run away. We will never try to be brave!"
In the end, the young man's curiosity prevailed.
The two of them slipped out of the Cloud Recesses under the moonlight and hurried all the way to Hanshan Temple. The temple was indeed filled with a gloomy atmosphere. The candlelight beside the incense burner flickered, and there were piles of uncollected incense ash in the corners. It looked as if there was indeed an evil spirit lurking there.
"Look over there!" Lan Jingyi pointed at the beams of the hall. He saw a few clusters of green ghostly fire swirling around the beams, and faintly heard tiny whimpering sounds.
Si Zhui gripped his wooden sword tightly and was about to step forward when he saw the will-o'-the-wisp suddenly disperse, transforming into several small shadows that stumbled and hid behind the Buddha statue. He was stunned for a moment before realizing that the so-called "will-o'-the-wisp" were just a few foxes that had accidentally eaten phosphorus stone, their stomachs glowing and looking scary.
"So that's how it is." Lan Jingyi breathed a sigh of relief. "It was a wasted trip."
Si Zhui, however, felt something was amiss. How had the little fox ended up in the temple? He peered behind the Buddha statue and discovered a dilapidated den with two newborn fox cubs inside. The mother fox must have been worried the cubs would get cold, so she took them into the warmth of the main hall.
"Let's go, don't scare them." Si Zhui pulled Lan Jingyi out, "Go back and tell the abbot not to drive these foxes away."
As they turned back, they realized the moon was already setting in the west. The Cloud Recesses' curfew had long passed, and the mountain gates were probably already locked.
"What should we do?" Lan Jingyi was so anxious, he was spinning in circles. "If the master finds out, we'll have to copy the family rules a hundred times!"
Si Zhui frowned as well. He wasn't afraid of having the family rules revoked, but he was afraid that if Wei Wuxian found out, he'd get worried again, and maybe even forbid him from leaving the mountain again. As the night wind blew, he suddenly remembered what Wei Wuxian often said: the gates of the Yunmeng Jiang Clan were unlocked at night, and since Uncle Jiang Cheng was the most protective, he might be able to stay there for a night.
"How about... let's go to Yunmeng?" Si Zhui asked hesitantly.
Lan Jingyi's eyes lit up: "Yes! Sect Leader Jiang will definitely help us!"
The two hit it off immediately, using the moonlight to head towards Yunmeng. Luckily, Si Zhui remembered the shrinking technique Wei Wuxian had taught him, and although he wasn't very proficient at it, it saved him a lot of effort. By the time they arrived at Lotus Pier, it was just dawn.
Jiang Cheng was practicing swordplay in the martial arts arena when he saw two half-grown children standing at the entrance of the dock, their bodies still covered in dew. He immediately frowned, "Why are you here?"
"Master Jiang!" Lan Jingyi was like seeing a savior, and quickly told Jiang Cheng about how he had secretly gone down the mountain and missed the curfew, but he omitted the episode at Hanshan Temple for fear that Jiang Cheng would think they were fooling around.
Jiang Cheng's face darkened after hearing this. "Is this what Lan Qiren taught you? How dare you stay out all night?" He cursed, but turned to the servants and said, "Take them to the guest room to wash up and prepare some food."
Si Zhui felt warm in his heart and bowed quickly: "Thank you, uncle."
Jiang Cheng glanced at him and said in a stiff tone: "Who told you to call me uncle? You are so disrespectful." But when he turned around, he secretly gave a look to one of the servants, asking him to keep quiet.
After they washed up and sat at the table to drink porridge, Jiang Cheng walked in with a sword in hand. He looked at Si Zhui and asked, "I heard you were injured last time? What happened?"
Si Zhui was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that he would know, so he had to tell him the truth about the landslide during the night hunt.
"You're so clumsy." Jiang Cheng scolded him, but he threw a small bottle from his sleeve. "This is Jiang's healing medicine. It's better than your Lan's. Take it."
Si Zhui took the medicine bottle. His fingertips touched the cold porcelain bottle, but his heart was warm: "Thank you, uncle."
Jiang Cheng said nothing more, turned around and walked out, suddenly stopping at the door: "Don't be so reckless again. If you really want to go hunting at night, tell your father. If he's worried, I'll go with you."
Si Zhui and Lan Jingyi exchanged glances, each seeing surprise in the other's eyes. It turned out that this seemingly stern Sect Master Jiang, like Wei Wuxian, also had a lot of tenderness hidden within him.
After breakfast, Jiang Cheng had a boat prepared to take them back to the Cloud Recesses. Before leaving, he gave Si Zhui a bag of Yunmeng specialty dried fish: "Give it to the rabbit when we get back."
Si Zhui knew that the "rabbit" he was talking about was actually Wei Wuxian. He smiled and nodded, "Thank you, uncle. I'll pass it on."
The boat sailed along the waterway of Lotus Pier, the reeds on both sides swaying in the wind. Si Zhui looked at the medicine bottle and dried fish in his hands and suddenly felt that occasionally "going out of line" might not be a bad thing. At least it let him know that besides the warmth of the Cloud Recesses, there are many people in this world who quietly protect him, just like the water of Yunmeng, which appears cold but hides an inextricable warmth underneath.
But...how can I explain this to Daddy and Father when I get back? Si Zhui scratched his head, suddenly feeling a little worried.
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