Darkness fell quickly. Nights in the mountains were different from those in town. Once the sun set, it was as though someone had sucked away the light, and everything went dark in the blink of an eye.
By the time Pei Yubai left his private courtyard, the moon had already risen.
It was not very bright. A thin layer of light spread over the flagstone path, leaving his shadow faint as he walked. He passed through the covered walkway, and by the time he reached the front hall, everyone else was already there.
Shen Yuzhou stood on the steps with a lantern in his hand. It was made of red paper, with a thin bamboo stick hanging from the bottom.
Cheng Yanqiu stood beside him, also examining the lantern in her hands.
Ji Shiyu crouched to one side, carefully trying to open his lantern without tearing the paper.
Meng Xu stood beneath the old pagoda tree, also holding a lantern.
The other guests were waiting to release their lanterns too.
"Tonight is our last night at Yue Lao Temple," Meng Xu said. "We'll set off for the next place first thing tomorrow morning. There aren't really any tasks tonight. We're just releasing lanterns. The locals say wishes are more likely to be heard if you release lanterns at Yue Lao Temple."
Shen Yuzhou raised his lantern. "Can we wish for anything?"
Meng Xu thought for a moment. "Probably."
They each opened their lanterns. Shen Yuzhou borrowed a pen from somewhere and scrawled a line of words on the paper.
Cheng Yanqiu leaned over to look, but before she could make it out, Shen Yuzhou covered it with his hand.
Holding the pen, Jiang Wantang hesitated for a long time before finally writing just one character.
Pei Yubai wrote nothing. After opening his lantern, he raised it for a look. The red paper was translucent in the moonlight, revealing the silhouette of the candle inside.
At some point, the monk had appeared beneath the old pagoda tree.
He still wore a red robe, just as he had the night before, and stood in the shadows with his hands hanging at his sides, watching them quietly.
Moonlight shone on his bald head, giving it a faint glow.
Shen Yuzhou was the first to release his lantern. Holding it up, he ran to the middle of the clearing, bent over, and lit the candle.
The flame flickered a few times before steadying, and the hot air inflated the lantern. He let go. The lantern swayed, then slowly floated upward.
"It's flying! It's flying!" Shen Yuzhou shouted, tilting his head back.
The others released their lanterns one after another.
Pei Yubai stood at the very back, watching their lanterns rise one by one.
He glanced down at the lantern in his hands and lit the candle. The flame flickered in the wind. He let go, and the lantern floated up.
Standing beneath the old pagoda tree, the monk watched the lanterns and suddenly murmured something. His voice was too quiet for anyone to make out.
After releasing her lantern, Jiang Wantang did not return to the group. She stood at the edge of the clearing, looking down at the pen in her hand. Ink still clung to its tip.
She hesitated, then turned and walked toward the old pagoda tree.
The monk saw her approaching but did not move. His expression was calm, as though he had known all along that she would come.
"Master," Jiang Wantang said quietly, standing before him. "I'd like to ask about someone."
The monk looked at her without speaking.
"Mr. Qiguan. Is he still here?"
The monk shifted his gaze from Jiang Wantang's face to the lanterns overhead. They had already floated very high, scattered across the night sky, and it was impossible to tell whose was whose.
"What do you want with him?"
Jiang Wantang gently rubbed her fingers against the pen.
"Cloud-Hidden Town is my grandmother's hometown. When I was little, I heard her mention a Mr. Qiguan here who could help people with their questions about marriage and romantic fate."
"She said he was very accurate, and that she'd consulted him when she was young too. When I saw Mr. Qiguan interpreting fortune sticks in the side hall earlier, I guessed he must be that Mr. Qiguan's descendant. So I wanted to ask him a few questions."
The monk listened but did not answer immediately. He lowered his head and looked at the moonlight on the ground. Only after a while did he speak. "Qiguan Yuan visits Yue Lao Temple only once a year. Each time, he interprets fortune sticks for only three people. During the day today, he already finished interpreting three people's fortunes. He has left."
Jiang Wantang's fingers stilled for a moment. "Left? Where did he go?"
"This humble monk does not know."
At some point, Shen Yuzhou had come over and was standing behind Jiang Wantang, still holding the pen he had written with.
Hearing the monk's words, he could not resist cutting in. "Why does he only interpret fortunes for three people? Can't he do a few more?"
The monk glanced at him. The corner of his mouth moved, though it could not quite be called a smile. "Qiguan Yuan interprets only ill-fated bonds."
Shen Yuzhou froze for a moment. "Ill-fated bonds?"
"Not all red threads should be tied together. Some bonds are mistakes, some are debts, and some are repayments. Those are the ones Qiguan Yuan interprets."
After speaking, the monk looked up at the lanterns in the sky.
The last lantern had already drifted far away, leaving only a scattering of orange-red points of light among the stars. It was impossible to tell which were lanterns and which were stars.
Shen Yuzhou wanted to ask more, but Cheng Yanqiu tugged at him from behind.
He looked back, and Cheng Yanqiu shook her head. Shen Yuzhou closed his mouth.
Jiang Wantang stood where she was with her head lowered, moonlight falling on her hair. After standing there a while, she softly said, "Thank you, Master," then turned and left.
She still held her round fan without fanning herself. It hung at her side, swaying gently with her steps.
Ji Shiyu stood outside the group, watching Jiang Wantang's retreating figure.
His expression barely changed, but he had pinched a crease into the lantern paper in his hand. He lowered his head, smoothed out the crease, then looked up again, his gaze still resting in that direction.
Shen Yuzhou leaned toward Cheng Yanqiu and whispered, "Qiguan Yuan is so strange. He only comes up the mountain once a year and only interprets fortunes for three people each time. Isn't he deliberately keeping people hanging?"
Cheng Yanqiu ignored him.
Shen Yuzhou continued, "Where exactly does he live? Last time, it took us two hours to walk out of the mountains. That place is way too far away."
Cheng Yanqiu still ignored him.
Lin Yanru stood to one side, listening to Shen Yuzhou without joining in.
She glanced at Pei Yubai. He stood at the edge of the clearing with his head tilted back, watching the lanterns in the sky.
Moonlight fell across his face, making his expression hard to see clearly. But from the side, his jawline looked tightly set.
The lanterns had all been released. The clearing fell quiet, with only the sound of wind blowing through the old pagoda tree.
The monk had left at some point. The space beneath the old pagoda tree was empty.
Meng Xu clapped his hands. "All right, go back and rest. We have to get on the road early tomorrow."
Shen Yuzhou yawned, stretched, and followed Cheng Yanqiu back.
Pei Yubai did not leave with anyone. He remained where he was for a while longer, watching the lanterns that were now barely visible in the sky.
When he returned to his private courtyard, the gate to the courtyard opposite was still closed. Moonlight shone on it, making the grain of the wooden panels clearly visible. The gap between the doors was pitch-black, with no light inside.
Pei Yubai glanced at it, then pushed open his own gate and went in.
He quickly washed up and lay down on the bed. The window was open, and moonlight streamed in from outside. He closed his eyes.
Then he fell asleep.
He slept straight through until dawn.
When Pei Yubai woke, it was not fully light yet. The light outside the window was gray-blue. The bamboo shadows were still on the ground, a little shorter than the night before. He sat up and checked his phone. Five forty.
He did not lie back down. He got out of bed, washed up, and changed. Today, he wore a thin black jacket over a dark gray T-shirt, dark trousers, and running shoes.
He put the script in his bag and set the bag beside the bed, then picked up his phone and sent Meng Xu a message: I'm heading down the mountain first. I'll wait for you in town.
After sending it, he slipped his phone into his pocket, pushed open the door, and went out.
As he passed through the front hall, a monk was sweeping the courtyard. It was not the red-robed monk from yesterday, but an old monk in gray robes, sweeping the flagstones with stroke after stroke of his broom.
Seeing Pei Yubai, he stopped, pressed his palms together, and bowed his head slightly. Pei Yubai nodded in return and walked past him.
Outside the main gate of Yue Lao Temple was a flight of stone steps leading down the mountain.
Going down was much easier than going up. Pei Yubai did not walk fast, but his strides were long, taking two steps at a time.
The trees on either side of the steps were still very dark. He could not tell what kind they were, only see their black silhouettes. The town below was still asleep, without any lights, and only thin wisps of white smoke rose from the chimneys of a few homes.
After coming down the mountain, Pei Yubai did not return to the guesthouse.
He followed the road at the village entrance in another direction. It led to the back mountain, toward the woods where they had picked mushrooms on their first day.
The road was difficult, growing narrower and more remote the farther he went. After about half an hour, the asphalt road gave way to concrete, the concrete to gravel, and the gravel to dirt.
The trees on both sides grew more numerous and denser, forming something like a green tunnel.
Pei Yubai did not hesitate. He kept walking forward.