They walked beneath the bridge. Fewer and fewer people passed by along the road, and the ancient temple’s bell began to toll. Suddenly, a sky full of fireworks rose across the river.
Massive fireworks exploded across the night sky, illuminating the town as brightly as day. The cheers instantly reached their peak.
The corner was dimly lit, illuminated only by the occasional flicker of light reflected off the river. In the darkness, their breaths intertwined heavily.
Wen Shubai’s hand cradled the back of Ji Zhaoxi’s head, his fingertips sinking into her hair.
He did not rush to deepen the kiss. Instead, he gently savored her lips, which had been cooled slightly by the wind.
Their noses brushed together, and the warmth of their breath vanished between their entwined lips and teeth. He tasted the faint sweetness of malt candy.
Their breathing grew heavier and heavier. The kiss left her mind blank, and she instinctively tilted her neck back, her fingertips unconsciously clutching his lapel.
The light from the fireworks flickered between bright and dim, occasionally sweeping over the figures hidden in the corner.
Both their ears were flushed red. His forehead rested against hers, their noses rubbing together affectionately. Every breath carried an intimate warmth.
The fireworks continued to explode overhead, tassels of different colors drifting down in showers. Laughter filled the bridge, occasionally mixed with the sound of children bickering.
“Crunch—”
A child bit into the rabbit-shaped sugar figurine in his hand and looked at the person beside him in confusion.
“Sister Liu, why are you eating her sugar painting?”
This felt a little frightening.
Liu Fuyin bit down on the sugar figurine in her hand with a loud crunch. Frowning, she stared at the countless lanterns floating on the river without saying a word.
The sugar figurine quickly disappeared, leaving behind only a thin wooden stick. Liu Fuyin stared sullenly at the crumbs clinging to it.
Ji Huahua had really grown up. She had thought Ji Huahua would never grow up…
A few days later, the Ji family’s butcher shop began selling pork again. Every household still had leftovers, so not many people had come to buy fresh meat over the past few days.
Just as Wen Shubai was considering buying a house at the foot of the Heaven’s End Sect, the Second Elder suddenly arrived.
Although the Ji family had been sending money to the Second Elder all along, this was their first time meeting him in person.
“Oh my, you must be Madam Ji and Master Liu,” the Second Elder said, acting as if he were already an old acquaintance.
Ji Yingjin and Liu Dazhuang exchanged a glance and laughed a few times.
Ji Zhaoxi stared at the Second Elder in bafflement. What had brought him to her home?
“It’s all my fault for coming so late. I haven’t come down the mountain in ages, so I had no idea when people were supposed to pay their New Year’s respects.”
The flesh on the Second Elder’s face trembled whenever he smiled.
Liuli silently pinched the flesh on her own cheeks. She had been eating quite a lot lately too.
Delicious!
The Second Elder continued praising Ji Zhaoxi, telling them how gifted she was and how well suited she was to cultivating the Unfeeling Dao.
At first, Ji Yingjin and Liu Dazhuang had remained wary, but after being showered with so much praise by the Second Elder, smiles finally spread across their faces.
“We were only saying it casually at the time. Who would have thought Xixi would suddenly awaken a spiritual root?” Ji Yingjin covered her mouth as she laughed.
The Second Elder rubbed his several-layered chin. “It seems the Heaven’s End Sect really is a good fit for Miss Ji. No wonder even the Sect Leader praised her talent.”
Liu Dazhuang was even more delighted when he heard that. “Oh my, so she really is gifted!”
This was the Sect Leader of the Heaven’s End Sect, a name he had previously heard only from storytellers.
The three of them chatted happily, becoming more animated as the conversation continued. Somehow, they ended up talking about pork.
“Second Elder, I’m not bragging, but within a hundred-li radius, there’s no pork better than ours…” Ji Yingjin shook her head.
The Second Elder swallowed. “That goes without saying. Otherwise, Madam, you wouldn’t have made so much money.”
“Second Elder, don’t leave just yet. Try some of our pork before you go.” Liu Dazhuang came over carrying two butcher’s cleavers.
The Second Elder’s eyes lit up. He had been waiting for someone to say exactly that. “Then I’ll trouble you, Master Liu.”
Ji Yingjin squeezed her way over and smiled. “Second Elder, if you find it tasty…”
The Second Elder patted his belly. “Don’t worry. If it’s good, I’ll be sure to tell the others about it!”
Before they could say much more, another customer came to buy pork.
As soon as the two of them left, the Second Elder immediately walked over to Wen Shubai with a serious expression.
“Shu Bai, what exactly are you thinking?”
He leaned forward to look at Ji Zhaoxi, who was weighing pork nearby.
Wen Shubai replied gently, “Second Elder, I want to get a house at the foot of the Heaven’s End Sect. Xixi still wants to remain at the sect, so that way, the two of us can see each other more easily.”
The Second Elder stared at Wen Shubai in a daze. “So you plan to wait for her in that house every day?”
Wen Shubai gave a soft laugh. “I can arrange the house, and I can also help the people living nearby.”
Although there were few demons at the foot of the Heaven’s End Sect, they were not entirely absent.
The Second Elder’s mouth twitched. No wonder he had managed to anger the Sect Leader so thoroughly.
He coughed. “Shu Bai, forget about building a house. Just return to the Heaven’s End Sect with Miss Ji.”
Wen Shubai lowered his eyes. “Second Elder, I’ve already spoken to the Sect Leader about this.”
The Sect Leader had taught him many things and hoped that he would one day ascend. But his heart had already strayed from the path. He could not leave his Junior Sister.
The Second Elder sighed helplessly. “Come back. The Sect Leader didn’t say anything, and those disciples still aren’t mature enough. Who will take them out to gain experience in the future?”
Fortunately, he had arrived early. If he had come a few days later, Wen Shubai might already have finished building the house…
Watching Wen Shubai earnestly wash vegetables, the Second Elder suddenly asked, “Shu Bai, are you truly not going back?”
“Miss Ji is still young. She’s at the age when people grow tired of one thing and move on to another. If you stay in a house waiting for her all day, will the two of you even have anything to talk about? Do you really think Miss Ji will like a man who does nothing but cook for her and wait around at home?”
The entrance was bustling with activity. Ji Yingjin was even happier as she listened to people praising Ji Zhaoxi, and the women’s conversation carried over to them.
“Xixi is truly capable. She can butcher pigs and cultivate immortality too,” one auntie praised.
Ji Zhaoxi handed the pork to the woman and said brightly, “Auntie, here’s the pork you ordered.”
The auntie kept tugging on the young man beside her, but his face had turned bright red, and he refused to take even one step forward.
Was his mother crazy? Ji Zhaoxi cultivated the Unfeeling Dao. How could she possibly take a liking to him?
Wen Shubai silently watched the scene from a short distance away.
The Second Elder lifted his chin and gave a laugh. “A man who never strives and spends all day cooped up at home—what future can he possibly have? Shu Bai, you’d better think this through.”
“You don’t have to ascend. You can remain at the Heaven’s End Sect. Why are you restricting yourself? Staying at the foot of the mountain is no better than returning to the Heaven’s End Sect.”
Wen Shubai was silent for a while before saying, “Second Elder, that would be improper.”
The Second Elder stood up and rubbed his belly. “Then stay at the foot of the mountain if you insist. The Heaven’s End Sect has plenty of excellent disciples, anyway.”
He only hoped that Wen Shubai would not end up crying and begging Miss Ji not to fall for someone else.
After the Second Elder left, Wen Shubai silently stared at the green vegetables in the basin.
