The guests walked along the stone-paved path of the Fated Marriage Village. The wooden doors on both sides were tightly closed, and herbs and dried chili peppers were hanging under the eaves to dry.
These are all things the guests did these past two days because they had nothing else to do, so they copied what they saw in the videos.
They had taken the same route out once before, when they entered through the camera lens of the TV program. They got lost, exhausted, and had no choice but to seek help from Qiguan Yuan, who led them out.
Shen Yuzhou walked in the middle of the group, looking around at the surroundings, and said with emotion, "Back then, Brother Yuan seemed so mysterious. It was like, he was sitting in the pavilion, and we were standing in the pavilion, and even though we weren't far apart, it felt like we were in a different world from him."
Cheng Yanqiu nodded and looked at Qiguan Yuan: "Indeed, when we knocked on the door and no one answered, we went in and saw him leaning against the couch. Our first reaction was that Teacher Qiguan looked like a celestial being."
Lin Yanru moment and then shared her feelings at the time. "When I saw the red thread in Teacher Qiguan's hand, I was immediately drawn to it, but I thought it was just decoration. I never imagined that Teacher Qiguan believed in the God of Yue Lao."
Su He'an stood next to Lin Yanru without saying a word, but the camera in her hand remained pointed at Lin Yanru without ever moving away.
Qiguan Yuan walked ahead without looking back.
He listened to what the people behind him were saying, neither denying nor agreeing with them.
I won't explain further.
He did indeed sense Yun Yin's presence the moment the wooden door was pushed open.
When Pei Yubai stepped across the threshold, he was leaning against the couch, examining a game of chess.
Yun Yin's aura inside the Tree of Fate suddenly became unstable, and he immediately detected Pei Yubai's aura as well.
The reason for not opening the door was to allow Pei Yubai to step into the front yard and get closer to the Tree of Fate, so as to further confirm whether Pei Yubai was Xiu Yun Yin.
When that person's presence swept in over the threshold, his fingers, which were holding the chess pieces, stopped.
Eight hundred years later, Yun Yin's soul was nurtured in the Tree of Fate by his Power of Origin. Its aura was so faint that it was almost non-existent, but he still recognized it.
He recognized him at first glance: Pei Yubai was Xiu Yun Yin.
But at the same time, he also confirmed that Pei Yubai seemed not to remember him.
Therefore, he did not acknowledge her on the spot.
After seeing Pei Yubai and his group off, Qiguan Yuan went down the mountain ahead of time and headed to the Fated Marriage Village.
He observed Pei Yubai's every movement, every tilt of his head, and the slight upward inflection at the end of every sentence.
Those small details reveal traces of Xiu Yun Yin, but they are incomplete, like looking at a person through a layer of fog.
Yet, he could still recognize through the fog that this was the person he had been waiting for.
Pei Yubai no longer remembers him. What he needs is a way for Pei Yubai to slowly approach him, not to stand in front of him and tell him, "You were once my lover, the one I never had a chance to Thread of Fate with."
Pei Yubai's divine status hasn't been repaired yet, so he's not in a hurry.
He and Pei Yubai were already bound by fate. Before Pei Yubai's divine status was restored, he only needed to write their names in the Marriage Register. Once Pei Yubai status and memories were restored, even the Tree of Fate couldn't stop them.
He no longer relies on the Tree of Fate for magical power. If the Tree of Fate causes any more trouble, he will personally uproot it. At worst, his physical body will be weak for a while.
The Tree of Fate seemed to sense his thoughts and became much more obedient afterward.
Eight hundred years ago, Qiguan Yuan and Xiu Yun Yin were able to be restrained by it because Qiguan Yuan had not separated himself from his origin. Now that he has separated himself from his origin and is no longer restricted by the position of the Old Man Under the Yue Lao, destroying the Tree of Fate is just a matter of a thought.
He didn't make a move because a part of Yun Yin's broken soul was still being nurtured in the tree roots. He needed that tree to nourish his soul, and it wouldn't be too late to make a move once his soul was fully restored.
The guests arrived at the foot of the Yue Lao Temple.
The bluestone steps lead upwards, flanked by low shrubs and unidentified wildflowers. Moss grows in the cracks of the steps, making them slippery with dew.
Shen Yuzhou stood at the bottom of the stone steps, looking up at the eaves of the Yue Lao Temple, then suddenly turned to Qiguan Yuan: " Brother Yuan, do you have a lot of red threads there?"
Qiguan Yuan was standing by the roadside, watching two ants tangled together on the ground. Hearing his question, he looked up and asked, "Hmm?"
Shen Yuzhou rubbed his hands together. "Everyone online says your red thread is very effective. I'm wondering if you got it from the Yue Lao Temple Under the Moon."
Cheng Yanqiu chimed in, "I'd like one too."
Lin Yanru didn't speak, but she slowed her pace.
It seems everyone wants Qiguan Yuan.
Qiguan Yuan looked at them, then at Pei Yubai, then reached into his sleeve and fumbled around for a moment before pulling out a handful of red thread.
The red threads were tangled together, messy and knotted, some long and some short, piled up in his palm, a striking red.
He handed the ball of red thread to Shen Yuzhou: "Which one do you want?"
Shen Yuzhou looked at the tangled mess of red threads and reached out to grab one. Just as his fingers touched the thread, Pei Yubai's hand reached out and gently pressed down on the tangled red thread. "We're almost at the Yue Lao Temple. It might be more effective if you go and pray for it yourselves."
Shen Yuzhou was stunned, completely taken aback. "Really?"
Qiguan Yuan smiled and said, "Sincerity is key."
Pei Yubai took the red thread from Qiguan Yuan's hand.
Qiguan Yuan watched as he took the red thread from her hand without stopping him, a slight smile curving her lips, "If you want the red thread, why ask for it? Yuanyuan can grant all your wishes."
Pei Yubai put the ball of red thread into his pocket, looked down at Qiguan Yuan, and said, "I only want Yuanyuan."
Qiguan Yuan smiled and leaned closer to him, his lips brushing against his earlobe. "You really are a jealous person."
Pei Yubai tightened his arms around him, pulling him closer, without denying it.
His lips were pursed, and his chin was tense.
The live chat exploded with comments at that moment.
[That scheming Pei doesn't want the other guests to get Yuanyuan's Thread of Fate, does he?]
[ Pei Yubai, would it kill you to give me one?!]
[I want one too!!! Yuanyuan, look at me!!!]
[The vicissitudes of life that Pei Yubai will not give]
Qiguan Yuan naturally couldn't see the comments.
He leaned against Pei Yubai's chest, glanced at the direction of the Yue Lao Temple, then stepped out of Pei Yubai's arms, turned around, and saw a person standing at the entrance of the Yue Lao Temple.
Jixian was wearing a faded gray monk's robe, his bald head gleaming faintly in the morning light, and he looked at them expressionlessly.
He clasped his hands slightly together in greeting to Pei Yubai, saying, "Greetings, benefactor." Then he looked at Qiguan Yuan, his gaze falling on the bits of grass stuck to the hem of his clothes, his eyes asking him what had happened.
Qiguan Yuan broke off a branch from a low tree by the roadside, flicked away the grass clippings from his clothes in front of Ji Xian, and looked at Jixian: "I need to talk to you about something."
Jixian glanced at him, then took a step forward. "Let's go in first."
Once inside, Qiguan Yuan leaned against the Tree of Fate and casually picked a marriage fortune stick.
I glanced at the fortune slip: Yue Lao of Marriage bless me to become rich, rich, and extremely rich.
Qiguan Yuan was amused by the fortune slip. "Seeking wealth from the Matchmaker Yue Lao, who governs marriage; this person is quite interesting."
Jixian looked at him with a resentful gaze. "If it weren't for you on that variety show, there wouldn't be so many worshippers coming here every day. Qiguan Yuan, you're good at causing me trouble."
Qiguan Yuan tugged at the red thread on his marriage fortune slip. "Is that so?"
Jixian nodded. "Someone was very rude, secretly touching my head and saying something about absorbing some incense smoke."
Qiguan Yuan glanced at his bald head, which seemed much smoother, then turned his head to look at the photographer carrying the equipment, and waved to him, signaling him to come over.
The photographer walked up to him, Qiguan Yuan shifted his gaze back to the lens, a smile still playing on his lips, "My Xiao Yuan Grains fellow beauties) shouldn't do such things. Polite children are more likely to attract the attention of the gods at the Yue Lao Temple."
Even though they knew Qiguan Yuan Qiguan Yuan n't see the comments, the Xiao Yuan Grains responded excitedly after he said that.
[I am a polite child]
[ Yuanyuan [starry-eyed] wants a red string!]
[It's me! It's me! I'm the little kid!]
After Qiguan Yuan finished speaking, he glanced at the photographer, lowered his voice slightly, but remained gentle. "I have some personal matters to attend to. Could you please step aside for a moment? I'll call you when I'm done."
The photographer nodded, picked up his equipment, and walked away.
Qiguan Yuan turned around, held the marriage fortune stick between his fingertips, and gently twisted it. The bamboo stick turned to ashes between his fingers, leaving only the red thread on the stick in his palm, its color slightly darker than before.
He glanced down at the red thread, then flicked it casually, and the thread disappeared from his hand.
Since we've already taken his signature, let's grant his wish.
Anyway, the god who presides over marriage is Lu Zhao, not him.
He raised his hand to support himself on the lowest branch of the Tree of Fate, then deftly flipped himself up and landed on the branch, his clothes hanging down, the red fabric swaying gently in the wind.
He lowered his head, looking at Jixian and Pei Yubai under the tree, and said to Jixian, "Go and get me some marriage fortune slips. Get plenty; I need them."
Jixian looked up at him. "What do you need so many marriage fortune slips for?"
Qiguan Yuan gathered his drooping robes. "I'll be going on a long trip in a couple of days. The Power of Marriage in the Northwest is weak, and I need to step in and resolve that."
Jixian didn't leave immediately. Standing under the tree, he asked again, "Is the problem in the Northwest related to your colleague?"
Qiguan Yuan nodded. "It's also related to monks."
Jixian was silent for a few seconds. "I'm no longer a monk. My hair won't grow back, and 'Amitabha' is just a catchphrase."
Qiguan Yuan leaned against a branch, gave a perfunctory "I know," and then urged him, "Go quickly."
Jixian turned and went to the storeroom.
Qiguan Yuan leaned against a branch, while Pei Yubai stood under the tree, looking up at him.
Qiguan Yuan plucked another fortune stick from a tree branch overhead, glanced at it, and read aloud, "May the God of Yue Lao bless my CP, Qiguan Yuan and Pei Yubai, so that they may be happy together."
He handed the fortune slip to Pei Yubai, holding it between his fingertips as he presented it to him. "This fortune slip has come true."
Pei Yubai took the fortune stick, held it firmly in his hand, and whispered, "Then we should thank this fortune stick properly."
He asked Qiguan Yuan when he was leaving.
If we had come down the mountain any later, we might have missed our flight.
Qiguan Yuan said he would leave once Jixian returned.
When Jixian returned, he was carrying a handful of marriage fortune sticks, about a hundred of them, tied together with a red thread.
Qiguan Yuan jumped down from the tree, and when he landed, the hem of his clothes flipped up and then fell down again.
He took the handful of bamboo skewers, weighed them in his hand, and then tucked them into his sleeve.
The other guests returned from exploring the various parts of the Yue Lao Temple. Shen Yuzhou and Cheng Yanqiu each held a red string in their hands, seemingly having obtained them from somewhere, their faces beaming with "I have a red thread now too!"
They seemed very happy and firmly believed in the effectiveness of the red thread described online.
Jiang Wantang didn't have a red thread in her hand, so she went to draw a marriage fortune stick. Clearly, she was very satisfied with the result this time, and even had a smile on her face.
The fortune slip said that her marriage was a destined one.
The photographer returned, carrying his equipment and aiming it at Qiguan Yuan again.
Qiguan Yuan had already descended the steps, his robes sweeping across the bluestone steps, making a very light footstep sound.
The others followed him down the mountain and back to the village.
Meng Xu arranged for a minibus to be parked in an open space at the entrance of the village. The minibus was white and had the program's logo printed on the side.
Qiguan Yuan got on the bus and randomly found a seat by the window.
Pei Yubai sat down next to him, and the others boarded the train one after another, quickly filling the carriage.
Qiguan Yuan leaned against the window and took out the phone Pei Yubai had given him.
He didn't know where he had thrown his own phone; it was probably gathering dust in some corner of the house.
He opened Weibo, ready to see what his Xiao Yuan Grains were saying this time.
As soon as he entered, the page refreshed automatically and a trending Weibo popped up with a long title that listed two people's names.
Qiguan Yuan spotted the names " Qiguan Yuan " and " Pei Yubai " among the long string of text, and clicked on them.
The page loaded for a few seconds, and then white text on a black background popped up. The opening scene was a description of Qiguan Yuan hooking his arm around Pei Yubai's chin, grabbing his collar with his other hand, and wrapping his legs around Pei Yubai's waist.
The following text provides more details, describing how the two became entangled under the eaves and onto the bed.
Qiguan Yuan stared at the text and fell silent.
???
What's this?
He... and Pei Yubai?
His finger remained on the screen, not swiping down.
Pei Yubai was standing next to him, noticed his serious expression and leaned over to take a look, then fell silent as well.
In the front row, Shen Yuzhou was talking to Cheng Yanqiu. Halfway through his sentence, when no one responded, he turned around and saw Qiguan Yuan and Pei Yubai staring at their phone screens in silence. Curious, he leaned over and asked, " Brother Yuan, what are you looking at?"
Qiguan Yuan turned his phone over and placed it face down on his lap. His tone was calm, but his words were startling. "Nothing. I was reading an article about how I hooked Pei Yubai's chin, grabbed his collar, and wrapped my legs around his waist."
Shen Yuzhou was taken aback. Cheng Yanqiu was also taken aback.
Lin Yanru she choked.
The carriage was silent for a few seconds, then Lin Yanru's voice rang out. "... Can I take a look?"
Qiguan Yuan didn't seem to notice anything and generously handed it to Lin Yanru look at.
Lin Yanru read the first paragraph and then guiltily looked away.
Oops.
This seems to be something she wrote.