Qiguan Yuan pulled the dark robe tighter around himself, gathering the collar to cover his collarbone and chest.
Pei Yubai's size was indeed a bit too large for Qiguan Yuan; his robe was quite big, completely covering Qiguan Yuan.
This perfectly satisfied Pei Yubai's desire to prevent others from seeing Qiguan Yuan's body.
Pei Yubai followed beside Qiguan Yuan.
Without his outer robe, the lines of his shoulders and arms were completely exposed, but he didn't seem to care. It was the tourists around him who held up their phones even higher.
Meng Xu, holding a megaphone, announced, "The afternoon's activities will be at the archery range in the scenic area. Everyone is welcome to try them out—archery, pitch-pot, and 'chuiwan' (a type of Chinese ball game) are all available."
"Winners will receive small gifts including Suoyang cake and Dunhuang clay tablet paintings. Those who want to ride in a donkey cart should go to the east side, and those who want to ride camels should go to the Beacon Tower Ancient Road in the west side. Meet at the parking lot in two hours."
Then he slipped away on his own.
He thought his Chenbao, would be interested in things like Suoyang cake and Dunhuang clay painting boards.
I'll buy some things for Chenbao first and send them back. Once he's recovered a bit, I'll bring him to Dunhuang for a trip so Chenbao.
The guests dispersed in twos and threes.
Shen Yuzhou dragged Cheng Yanqiu to the archery range, saying he wanted to have an archery contest with Cheng Yanqiu.
Lin Yanru and Su He'an went towards the pitch-pot game.
Jiang Wantang, carrying her flying-themed dress, headed straight for the donkey cart. She believed that a long dress paired with an antique-style donkey cart would create a more atmospheric feel and look better in photos.
Qiguan Yuan glanced towards the archery range.
The targets were lined up in a row, and there were quite a few tourists. Some people drew their bows and aimed for a long time, but the arrows flew out and didn't even glide past the edge of the target.
The onlookers burst into laughter, and even the archer laughed, scratching his head as he returned the bow.
"Let's go take a look," Qiguan Yuan said.
There were five or six people lined up at the archery range.
When it was the turn of a middle-aged man, he drew his bow fully, his posture quite professional. After releasing the bow, the arrow struck the outer ring of the target. His wife clapped beside him, showing her support.
The man put down the bow and took a sip of water with a smug look on his face.
The staff had set up a row of small prizes nearby.
The cynomorium cake was wrapped in oil paper and stacked in three layers.
Next to it are several Dunhuang clay tablets, each about the size of a palm, depicting flying apsaras and nine-colored deer. The lines are rough and the colors are mineral pigments, which gleam with a dark luster under the sun.
Qiguan Yuan waited a while, and after everyone in front of him had tried it, he took the bow from the staff.
The bow is an antique-style recurve bow, made of wood, with hemp rope wrapped around the handle.
Qiguan Yuan held it in his hand and weighed it; it was much lighter than the one Yun Yin had used back then.
He looked at the bowstring again, plucked it with his finger, and the string vibrated.
He casually drew an arrow.
He wasn't moving very fast when nocking the arrow; he was getting used to the bow.
The last time I touched a bow was in the Heavenly Realm; it's been hundreds of years since then.
His bow-drawing motion wasn't considered standard for these staff members.
His stance was casual, yet he easily drew the bow to its fullest extent, aimed, and released.
The arrow flew very fast, its arc was beautiful, and it struck the bullseye perfectly.
The people nearby paused for a moment, then began to applaud.
The middle-aged man put down his water bottle and said, "Young man, you've trained before, haven't you? You're amazing."
Qiguan Yuan did not answer.
He drew a second arrow, nocked it, drew the bow, and released it.
The second arrow pierced the first arrow's shaft, just past its fletching, and split it open.
The third one is the same.
Qiguan Yuan returned the bow to the staff member.
The staff handed him two pieces of Suoyang cake and a clay painting, asking him which design he wanted.
Qiguan Yuan looked down and picked one with a flying apsara pattern.
The antennae on the clay tablet were simple, but the skirt ribbons were drawn very elegantly. He turned the clay tablet over; the back was blank.
Pei Yubai watched from the side.
He didn't shoot any arrows; he just stood not too far behind Qiguan Yuan.
There was no way around it; many people here were watching Qiguan Yuan. If he didn't keep an eye on him, he suspected that his Yuanyuan would be snatched away at any moment.
When Qiguan Yuan was carrying mud slabs, his robe slipped down his shoulder a little, and Pei Yubai reached out and pulled it back for him.
The movement was very natural; he pulled his hand back immediately after finishing.
Qiguan Yuan shoved the clay tablet into Pei Yubai's hands. "Hold this for me."
Pei Yubai looked down at the clay slab and put it into the bag at his waist.
That bag was originally for a kettle, but now it's filled with a mud slab, and it's bulging out.
"Aren't you going to shoot a couple of arrows?" Qiguan Yuan asked him.
"I won't shoot," Pei Yubai said. "Just watch you shoot."
Qiguan Yuan smiled but didn't say anything.
He broke a piece of Suoyang cake in half, took a bite of one half himself, and offered the other half to Pei Yubai's lips.
Pei Yubai to eat, his lips brushing against Qiguan Yuan's fingertips. Qiguan Yuan didn't pull his hand away, letting him touch it before withdrawing it.
Qiguan Yuan found Pei Yubai's intentional or unintentional touches quite agreeable.
Next to the archery range is the pitching game.
Su He'an was throwing arrows, dropping them one by one into the pot.
Her aim was pretty good; she got six out of ten sticks in. Lin Yanru stood beside her and counted them for her, laughing each time one went in.
When Qiguan Yuan passed by, he glanced at the pitcher. It was made of bronze, with a narrow mouth and a wide belly, and the handles on both sides were also bronze; it was quite well-made.
He didn't play pitch-pot much when he was in the Heavenly Realm, but he did play it frequently for a period of time while waiting for Yun Yin in the mortal realm.
Someone recognized Qiguan Yuan; they were clearly a fan of Qiguan Yuan and asked him to give it a try.
Qiguan Yuan, saying he couldn't bet accurately.
But seeing the disappointed expressions on his fans' faces, Qiguan Yuan still caught the arrows and casually threw three at a time.
I got one out of three.
Fans comforted him, saying, " Yuanyuan, it's okay. You've done a great job. Many people can't even make one shot."
Qiguan Yuan smiled, offering no explanation, only saying, "Have fun."
There are fewer people on the Chuiwan side.
A little boy held a golf club and practiced aiming at a small ball on the ground for a long time. He swung the club, and the ball rolled half a meter before veering to the side.
His father squatted down beside him, teaching him how to grip the pole and how to stand.
Little babies have always been very attractive to Qiguan Yuan.
Qiguan Yuan stood by and watched for a while. The little boy swung his club again, and this time the ball rolled two meters, still crooked.
Qiguan Yuan walked over, squatted down, and said, "Loosen your grip a little, and don't squeeze your arm so tightly."
The little boy blushed, his eyes sparkling.
Handsome brother!
The little boy adjusted his grip as instructed, swung again, and the ball rolled straight out, bouncing off a small flagpole in the distance.
"I won!" The little boy ran over with his golf club, then turned back and shouted to Qiguan Yuan, "Brother, I really won!"
Qiguan Yuan stood up, smiling and nodding.
The little boy ran back, took a piece of Suoyang cake from his pocket, and stuffed it into Qiguan Yuan, saying, "Brother, here, have this. I won two pieces!"
Qiguan Yuan took it and patted his head. "Thank you."
The little boy turned and ran, leaving a trail on the ground as his golf club dragged along.
Pei Yubai stood behind Qiguan Yuan and straightened his somewhat disheveled sleeves.
The dark robe slipped down again, Pei Yubai caught it from behind, this time pressing the robe down on his shoulders to make the fabric hold its weight and prevent it from slipping again.
"You're quite patient, teaching everyone you meet," Pei Yubai whispered in his ear.
"The little ones are all easier to teach than you." Qiguan Yuan glanced back at him, a hint of mischief in his eyes. "I don't need to get jealous easily when I teach you; you'll never learn anyway."
"This is difficult for me, Yuanyuan, you are so attractive, I always have to stay by your side to feel at ease."
Qiguan Yuan tilted his head. "Okay, I do like your possessiveness towards me more."