Chapter 533: Little by Little Each Year, Then Grown |
Publish Time: 2026-06-28 17:32:00
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Those five words ruined Master Zhu’s mood for selling at his stall.
Chen Changsheng, however, just laughed loudly, slapped his butt, and walked away without sparing a thought for Master Zhu’s distress.
One knot undone, yet another formed.
Master Zhu could only offer a series of bitter smiles, his anxiety lingering for a long time, leaving him restless.
Mr. Chen’s actions caused him so much trouble!
Ruyi wandered around east and west with Lihua.
They watched street performances, ate peaches, listened to singers, and had a wonderful time.
Lihua leaned close to Ruyi’s ear and whispered, “The temple fair is so fun.”
Ruyi laughed. “Of course it is! It was my favorite thing when I was little.”
She spotted a seller of Candied Hawthorn and her eyes instantly brightened.
“Do you like Candied Hawthorn?”
Lihua blinked. “What is that?”
“Something yummy.”
“Then Lihua likes it.”
Ruyi walked up and spent six coins of silver on two sticks. Compared to many years ago, Candied Hawthorn had gotten one coin more expensive.
She pulled one piece off the stick, broke it in half, and offered it to Lihua on her shoulder.
Lihua took a bite. The sour hawthorn filled her mouth first, then the sweet sugary coating outside.
“So sour!”
“Mmm, sweet!”
Lihua’s eyes lit up, then she declared, “Tasty!”
Ruyi chuckled. “You really like these sour and sweet things, huh.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because ordinary cats usually don’t eat such stuff.”
“Lihua isn’t an ordinary cat.”
Ruyi smiled. “True!”
While the girl and cat were happily eating, a voice came from behind them.
“Is it good?”
Ruyi turned around. “Uncle Chen, how did you find us?”
“Not hard to find,” Chen Changsheng replied.
Ruyi paused, suddenly realizing. “Yeah, I guess not. After all, Uncle Chen, you are a Deity.”
She handed the other stick of Candied Hawthorn to Chen Changsheng. “Here.”
Chen Changsheng asked, “Bought for me?”
“Mmhmm.” Ruyi nodded with a smile. “When I was little, Uncle Chen bought them for Ruyi. Now it’s Ruyi buying for Uncle Chen.”
“You still remember that,” Chen Changsheng said.
Ruyi grinned. “Of course I remember! Back then, I really thought Uncle Chen didn’t like Candied Hawthorn. It wasn’t until I grew up that I realized Uncle Chen had tricked me for years!”
Chen Changsheng remarked, “Ruyi really got clever.”
“Of course I did!”
Ruyi continued, “And I also know that with those puzzles just now, I didn’t actually answer correctly. After all, I know well the limits of my abilities. Master Zhu probably just wanted to do us a favor and give me an easy win. Even though I really shouldn’t have taken it, you know the saying – you don’t refuse gifts offered with a smile, and you shouldn’t expose them either, right?”
“My guess is that Uncle Chen and Master Zhu definitely talked about this afterward, right?”
Chen Changsheng paused, genuinely surprised by Ruyi’s insight.
He couldn’t help but say, “Not just a little clever.”
Ruyi smiled proudly. “Uncle Chen, Ruyi isn’t a little kid anymore.”
Chen Changsheng reached out and gently patted her head.
“Yes, not a little kid anymore. Our Ruyi is a young lady now.”
Ruyi had grown up.
Chen Changsheng’s mind grew distant.
It felt like just a blink, yet everything was different.
It made him feel like he’d missed a great many things.
In a blink, that not-so-clever little girl now understood so much.
It also created a profound sense of unreality in Chen Changsheng. The person before him felt different from the Ruyi he used to know.
For a moment, his thoughts became scattered.
“What’s Uncle Chen thinking about?”
“Thinking about how Ruyi grew up over the last decade or more.”
“Little by little each year. You grow taller, then you grow up.”
Chen Changsheng snapped back to focus and nodded. “You are right, Ruyi.”
He might be having illusions, but the facts before him made it clear: this was indeed Ruyi. The Ruyi who often argued with him and loved preserved fruit.
…
Since it was a temple fair, there had to be a blessing ritual.
In the early days, when Qingshan City wasn’t stable, such rituals had been postponed indefinitely. Only now, in times of peace, did the officials invite the Daoist Priest down from the mountain to perform the proper rites.
Following the tradition of previous years, the Abbot of Qingxian Taoist Temple should have personally presided over the ceremony, setting up the altar and conducting rituals to pray for good weather and abundant harvests the next year.
But this year, another priest came instead.
They said the Abbot Lingyunzi was unwell, so his junior brother had come to conduct the ritual. His Daoist name was Wuwei, meaning ‘go with the flow’ or ‘non-action’, and he possessed considerable spiritual attainment.
Though it was late at night, the place was brightly lit.
Before the Dragon King Temple stood a tripod filled with incense and candles.
A Daoist Priest stood there, holding a ritual sword and bell, performing sword dances and ringing the bell before the temple, conducting the ceremony to invoke Heaven.
Beside him, drumming resonated, accompanying the ritual.
“Light the incense!”
As the bell stopped ringing, Daoist Wuwei breathed out a stream of True Flame, igniting the incense and candles.
After three solemn bows, Wuwei inserted three large sticks of incense into the tripod, calmed his breath, and sheathed his sword. Only then was the ritual considered complete.
Then, the townspeople came forward to offer incense and pray to the Dragon King.
For a time, the Dragon King Temple flourished with incense and prayers, bustling and lively.
Ruyi looked away from the scene and asked Uncle Chen, “Uncle Chen, are there any real Immortals inside Qingxian Taoist Temple?”
Chen Changsheng asked, “What does Ruyi think?”
Ruyi shook her head. “I don’t think so. I always thought these Daoist Priests might be able to talk to Immortals, but none of them actually are Immortals.”
Chen Changsheng smiled. “The Daoist Sect is profound. If you believe, they exist; if you don’t, they don’t.”
Lihua finished her Candied Hawthorn. “Believe? Not believe? Lihua wants to hear too!”
Ruyi said, “The talk’s over, Lihua. Maybe next time.”
Daoist Wuwei, finished with the ritual, prepared to lead his disciples back up the mountain.
As his gaze shifted, it suddenly froze, settling on a specific spot.
Wuwei’s gaze pierced through the crowd and landed on a cat perched calmly on a woman’s shoulder.
A flash of golden light sparked in his eyes, and his brow furrowed deeply.
“Spectre!”
His disciples, noticing their Master’s sudden stillness, called out: “Master?”
“Find somewhere to rest and wait. Your Master will return shortly.”
Daoist Wuwei placed his hand on the sword at his waist and strode purposefully into the crowd.
The Tabby Cat on Ruyi’s shoulder seemed to sense something. That feeling of intense scrutiny was deeply uncomfortable, but hidden within the throng, it couldn’t pinpoint the source.
Lihua leaned towards Chen Changsheng and whispered urgently, “Someone is watching Lihua.”
Ruyi asked, “Who’s watching you?”
Lihua shook her head. She didn’t know.
Chen Changsheng turned to look.
Through the crowd, he spotted a Daoist Priest approaching their direction.
It was the same priest who had just performed the ritual.
Chen Changsheng turned back. “It’s the Priest who performed the ritual just now.”
“Likely a problem,” he added.
Ruyi paused. “Should we leave then?”
“No need to worry. With me here, nothing will happen. Didn’t Ruyi want to go into the temple to offer incense?”
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