The deeper the night grew, the more bustling the streets became.
The lights shone as bright as day, and the crowds surged joyously, featuring robes and attires from all over.
Street performances were in full swing, accompanied by the sounds of gongs, drums, and cheers. The lantern festival was radiant and colorful, with vendors lining the streets and their cries rising and falling.
A pleasure boat slowly sailed past on the river, with faint sounds of music drifting over.
Chai Xiaomi was in a hurry to find someone, her gaze subconsciously sweeping far across the hull of the boat, but her figure suddenly paused.
She saw a stone statue standing quietly on a lotus base at the bow of the boat.
The hand gesture resembled that of a Buddha, but it was not a Buddha statue.
It was glazed in colors, stunningly beautiful, with bright and fresh clothing like a fairy from the Dunhuang flying apsaras murals.
Especially those slender eyes, which were exceptionally expressive.
The pleasure boat moved forward slowly, and the stone statue gradually moved backward in her line of sight.
But Chai Xiaomi felt as if those slender eyes had always been fixed on her, locking onto her tightly.
A strange feeling suddenly sprang up in her heart.
She suddenly had an illusion—this silent stone statue seemed to recognize her.
This recognition was not just knowing her name, but knowing that she didn't belong here, that she shouldn't appear in this era.
A woman passed by with a child, and upon seeing the stone statue, she stopped, clasped her hands, and prayed softly:
"Dongzi, quickly pray to the Goddess of Santu to bless you with a speedy recovery from your asthma. Mother is willing to exchange a year of good luck for it."
The child coughed softly a few times.
Chai Xiaomi couldn't help but turn her head and ask, "When praying to the gods, why do you have to exchange something?"
Hearing her voice, the woman looked over and smiled as she explained, "Miss, you must be from out of town, right? No wonder you don't know. The Goddess of Santu is an evil god worshipped in the Santu Temple of our Qianwu Town."
"An evil god?" Chai Xiaomi grew even more confused. "Since she is an evil god, why do you still worship her?"
"Although she is an evil god, she never harms people without reason. She only does one thing—fulfilling people's wishes."
"Santu refers to the River Styx, the boundary between life and death, yin and yang, illusion and reality. The Goddess of Santu oversees transactions across boundaries, exchanging life for death, reality for illusion, and lifespan for blessings in the underworld."
"Beauty, fortune, memories... As long as you are willing, everything can be negotiated. You can exchange 'a day of courage' for 'three coins of beauty', or use 'three years of life' to exchange for 'a moment of good luck'. However," she looked up at the sky, "it is said that only on the night of the new moon, at a specific hour, can one have the fate to see the true form of the Goddess and make a real exchange."
Chai Xiaomi walked hurriedly on the street, thinking about the woman's words all the way.
If it was really that effective...
Could she also go and pray to the Goddess of Santu? Use anything she had, anything at all, to exchange for the completion of a task, for a chance to resurrect and go home?
She didn't necessarily have to come back to life.
Giving her three days would probably be enough.
She just really, really wanted to see her parents, her family, and her friends one more time.
She died too hastily, not even having the time to say a proper goodbye.
Thinking carefully, there were still many unfinished things, dramas and novels she was halfway through, the dessert shop in her favorites that she hadn't had time to visit, and the idol concert she had been saving up for.
Ah! And the chat history with her bestie on her phone! It was full of dark history, and she didn't even have time to delete it before she died!
She wasn't afraid of being smashed to pieces, but she had to leave her innocence in the world!
As she was recalling with annoyance, her eyes suddenly caught sight of Wu Li and Song Yueyao in a bow and arrow shop not far ahead.
Chai Xiaomi's heart tightened, and she hurriedly lifted the hem of her skirt to rush over.
Just then, the urgent sound of horse hooves rang out from behind!
She looked back in panic, only to see a tall horse already in front of her, its hooves raised high, and its shadow instantly enveloping her.
"Miss, be careful!"
In a flash, a goose-yellow figure leaped down from the horse's back, wrapping an arm around her and steadily carrying her away from the spot, landing on the side of the street with a spin.
Still in shock, Chai Xiaomi raised her eyes.
Ouyang Rui's eyes darkened, feeling as if he had crashed into a pool of startled autumn water.
He seemed to... see the fairy from the painting.
Once she stood firm, he immediately let go of her hand, took a half step back, and bowed respectfully.
His tone carried the clear and free-spirited nature unique to wealthy young masters:
"I am Ouyang Rui. I was in a hurry just now and offended you, Miss. I hope you can forgive me."
He looked up, his bright eyes gazing at her. "May I ask for your name, Miss?"
Only then did Chai Xiaomi clearly see that the other party was a young gentleman, his black hair neatly tied up with a jade crown, a white jade hairpin inserted horizontally, wearing fine silk clothes, exuding the nobility of a young master from an aristocratic family.
"There's no need to ask for my name. This is a bustling market. If you want to ride a horse next time, please find another place." She patted the hem of her skirt that had just been brushed, her brows slightly furrowed. "Otherwise, I'll lie down on the ground and extort all your wealth in a minute."
What was the difference between this and a delinquent racing a modified motorcycle on a pedestrian street?
Before the other party could speak, she turned and ran quickly towards the bow and arrow shop at the corner of the street.
Behind him, a servant hurried up, panting: "Young Master, are you hurt?"
Ouyang Rui didn't answer, only raising his hand to point at the fading light pink figure, and then raising one finger.
"One day."
The servant stared at that finger, a bit bewildered.
"Within one day, I want to know everything about her."
His tone was quite domineering.
"Got it! Don't worry, Young Master, leave it to me!"
As the servant of the Ouyang family, the wealthiest family in Qianwu Town, they had informants all over the city. Let alone a girl, even if it was a fly, they could find out which household it flew out of.
The master had asked matchmakers to introduce so many young ladies, but the young master didn't even bother to lift his eyelids.
Now that it was rare to see him take an interest in a girl, how could they dare to neglect this matter?
The servant turned and ran towards the entrance of the alley, walking as if on the wind, immediately sending people to inquire.
*
Inside the bow and arrow shop.
The light was slightly dim, and various longbows and short crossbows hung neatly on the wall.
The shop owner was enthusiastically pointing to one of them, introducing it to Song Yueyao: "Miss, look, this Cudrania wood bow is light and handy, most suitable for beginners—"
"It lacks toughness and trembles easily when fully drawn." A voice cut in faintly.
The owner paused and looked sideways.
By the door, a young man leaned against the wall, his arms crossed, his gaze sweeping over the bows on the wall.
Whenever the owner introduced a certain bow, he would lazily add a couple of sentences.
"The string groove is easy to loosen, the bow tips are too hard, the arrow rest is not straight..."
Every sentence hit the vital points.
The owner sweated slightly on his forehead and couldn't help but look at the young man a few more times.
He was secretly surprised. He looked young, but his eyes were very sharp, and what he said was exactly right.
He quietly put away his set of boastful words for customers, turned around, and took out a plain elm wood bow from the corner, handing it to Song Yueyao: "If you are just trying it out, this one is actually more practical, cheap, and durable."
After speaking, he subconsciously glanced towards the door again.
This time, it was quiet over there, and the young man's cold, picky voice didn't sound again.
Song Yueyao took the bow, secretly glad that she had called Wu Li along.
His archery skills were superb, and sure enough, he also had a lot of research on the types of bows.
Ever since she heard Jiang Zhiyu mention that bows and arrows could suppress the demonic aura of the Nine-Tailed Fox last time, she had already had the idea of learning archery.
Faced with the barbarians' provocation, she only found out after asking Madam Liu that the New Moon Archery Tournament required participants to compete in pairs.
Although five days was a rather short amount of time, she was the one who had instigated this affair. She couldn't possibly leave Wu Li to face their wager all on his own. Besides, he couldn't enter the competition alone anyway, and with her joining him, they would have a slightly better chance.
