Chapter 2. The Old Man of the Moon Sends Blessings “Little girl, your destiny has arrived.”…

When the sky began to brighten slightly, Xin Jiao Zhou left the woods.

After a night of light sleep and recuperation, the toxins in her body were barely suppressed.

The injuries on her body could not be cured by ordinary medicine. There was no need to rush, as the most urgent matter was to clean her body thoroughly and change into proper clothing.

After a night of fighting, even if there was no blood stained on her, the unavoidable smell of blood on her body was not very pleasant.

Xin Jiao Zhou unconsciously rubbed her sore shoulders, and suddenly the image of that hand appeared in her mind. It was long, clean, with distinct knuckles, pressing lightly but firmly on her shoulder, very beautiful.

Thinking of this, the place where that hand had pressed on her shoulder suddenly sparked a tingling sensation, a feeling she had never experienced before.

Her heart seemed to feel a bit strange.

Xin Jiao Zhou shook her head, shaking off that unusual feeling in her heart. She looked up at the road and followed her intuition northward…

Soon, she saw a town.

In the grass by the roadside stood an ancient boundary stone, with three large characters neatly engraved on it: Guanyin Town.

*

In this small town with simple folk customs, the residents’ daily lives were uneventful, living their own small lives. How could they have ever encountered such a person—

This person had black hair and a jade-like face, with moist ink-colored hair tied with a dark red-patterned hairband. She wore a dark robe, with an exquisite waist ornament inlaid with a large ruby in the center, a low-key yet luxurious display of jewels and treasures.

Compared to the precious jade ornaments, even those who previously had little knowledge of such things could see that the fabric and embroidery of the seemingly ordinary long robe were of the highest quality.

However, this exquisite dark robe was now covered with patches of dark stains, making people secretly lament its ruination.

Given the person’s overall aura and extraordinary demeanor, those dark patches were clearly not just water stains.

The crowd felt a chill run down their necks, and they couldn’t help but shrink back.

As for this person’s appearance, it was even more extraordinary, comparable to a deity descending from the ninth heaven.

However, there was a red mark between the eyebrows on that jade-like face, which looked truly ominous and made people’s hearts swell with fear.

The red mark between the eyebrows was so attention-grabbing that, mixed with fear, it diluted people’s previous impressions of this person’s features.

The arrival of such a beautiful yet inauspicious outsider caused an eerie silence to fall over the bustling and auspicious small town for a moment.

Xin Jiao Zhou noticed the people on the street appraising her, and also noticed that strange silence.

—It seems I need to be more discreet.

On the surface, however, she remained as usual, seemingly unaware, walking quietly alone on the streets of the small town.

Before long, Xin Jiao Zhou stopped in front of a shop with a large sign that read “Jinyi Fang” hanging outside.

Looking inside from the doorway, one could see various fabrics displayed in the shop, as well as many finished products on display.

It should be a clothing store.

The town was small with few people, and at this moment, the shop assistant was nowhere to be seen, and there was no one outside to greet customers.

However, even if someone were here now, they probably wouldn’t dare to come and greet her.

Xin Jiao Zhou stepped into the shop…

Three quarters of an hour later.

A jade-faced young woman with an otherworldly appearance walked out of Jinyi Fang.

She wore a white jade crown, her black hair tied up high in a simple ponytail, adorned with a white jade phoenix hairpin. She was dressed in white brocade robes with silver patterns, and a matching headband across her forehead.

Her entire attire was as pure as ice and jade, and the wearer’s face was as beautiful as a precious gem. Although her expression was cold and distant, one couldn’t help but feel goodwill towards her at first sight, yet also not dare to approach.

No one would associate this white-robed “Jade Guanyin” with the previous dark-clad “Blood Asura” outsider.

The previously absent shop assistant followed her out of the store.

Even after she had walked far away, the shop assistant still stood at the door calling out, “Esteemed guest, please come again—”

After the jade-faced young woman passed by, everyone couldn’t help but turn to look back frequently, all wanting to catch a few more glimpses.

After Xin Jiao Zhou left, the whole street became lively for quite a while due to the appearance of this white-robed young woman, but no one dared to approach and disturb her at the time.

Later, Xin Jiao Zhou’s white-robed appearance was praised by the people of this small town as the “White-robed Jade Guanyin,” and became a beautiful tale passed down in this Guanyin Town.

It was said that in this Guanyin Town, because everyone adhered to their duties and accumulated good deeds, the town’s customs were simple and honest, attracting the Guanyin deity from heaven to descend to the mortal world to experience mortal emotions… but these are stories for another time.

*

Guanyin Inn.

The diners leisurely enjoyed their afternoon tea, accompanied by the storyteller’s thrilling narrative, living a carefree life.

“…Just then, that stunningly beautiful man in red pulled out the folding fan from his waist, gracefully turned his wrist, and with a ‘swoosh’—”

The storyteller paused his actions to match the content, his expression teasing, hooking the audience’s attention.

“Then what? What happened next?” a woman in the audience anxiously asked.

“The fan opened, and the red-clad beauty’s hair flew, exuding an extraordinary aura—

He looked alluringly with eyes like silk threads, covering his face and laughing coyly: ‘The Third Princess has finally deigned to see this humble one.'”

“Boo—”

A chorus of disapproval rose from the audience, their reaction to this matter surprisingly unanimous.

It was unclear whether it was disbelief at the beauty’s “self-degradation,” regret that he couldn’t avoid such commonplace behavior, or envy and jealousy towards the royal nobility’s “monopoly” on the world’s beauties. In any case, the reasons varied.

Xin Jiao Zhou walked into this inn amidst such an atmosphere.

The noise in the inn was loud, clearly audible even from outside, quite lively indeed.

Although they were booing just now, people were still reluctant to give up on the romance between the stunning beauty and the royal lady, and continued to listen to the next chapter with great interest.

Xin Jiao Zhou, maintaining her composure, completed the check-in process.

This mortal world wasn’t bad at all.

Xin Jiao Zhou ordered a pot of clear tea and walked silently to a corner, finding a round stool to sit down quietly.

The person next to her, sensing someone approaching, naturally handed over a handful of sunflower seeds without turning their head, their eyes never leaving the storyteller’s stage.

Holding the seeds given by the stranger, Xin Jiao Zhou’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Looking at that person again, it was the eager woman from before.

The woman, cracking seeds without turning her head, elbowed the person beside her and asked, “Hey, fellow fan, what do you think?”

Xin Jiao Zhou raised an eyebrow: “There must be some hidden circumstances.”

Hearing this, the woman excitedly turned around, grabbing Xin Jiao Zhou’s arm: “Good sister, you have a discerning eye!”

Xin Jiao Zhou lowered her gaze to look at her grabbed arm, raising an eyebrow.

“How could my Lang be someone who covets wealth and status.” The other person clenched her fist, indignant: “It must be that the Third Princess is threatening him, and he had no choice but to meet her, to protect his family who are in the Third Princess’s hands.”

Someone nearby turned their head, unable to resist commenting: “I’ve never heard that Young Master Ruan had any family?” “Sister, are we listening to the same story?” “Is this a serial story?”

Xin Jiao Zhou curved her eyes, turning her head to cover her smile.

“Eh? Sister, you look quite pretty when you smile.”

…

The story reached the point where the beautiful man in red and the Third Princess were having a secret rendezvous on a boat on Mingyue Lake at night, and today’s storytelling came to an end.

“To know what happens next, please tune in for the next installment.”

With that, the storyteller closed his fan and left with quite a swagger, leaving the audience to ponder and itch for more.

By this time, the lanterns were just being lit, and it was time for dinner.

The diners who had been gathered in the main hall dispersed, some returning home, others calling over waiters to order meals on the spot.

Xin Jiao Zhou ordered a pot of fruit wine, enjoying it with the Guanyin Town specialty dishes recommended by the innkeeper, savoring the tranquility of this small town.

This elegant and noble manner was not often seen among the common people, and it unconsciously attracted many sidelong glances.

People only now noticed that a graceful young woman had come to the inn.

Although many people felt goodwill towards her, those cold and distant eyes cooled the heat in many people’s minds.

No one dared to go and disturb her.

After finishing her simple dinner, Xin Jiao Zhou called the innkeeper, made arrangements for bathing preparations, and then was led back to her room by an inn attendant.

Before leaving, the attendant finally mustered up the courage. She smiled and said, “Miss, you’ve come at just the right time. Today is the annual Old Man of the Moon Festival in Guanyin Town, which is the liveliest day of the year here. In the evening, the streets, especially around the Temple of the Old Man of the Moon, will be very lively. If you feel bored staying in your room, you can go out for a stroll. There will be many interesting programs at the festival, I’m sure you’ll like it.” After saying this, she left the room and closed the door.

With nothing to do in the evening, it might be good to go out for a walk.

Xin Jiao Zhou took a small sip of fragrant tea.

The nighttime Guanyin Town was indeed much livelier than during the day.

Perhaps because of the Old Man of the Moon Festival, there were many more young women and men on the streets.

Colorful lanterns hung high, the dim light shining through the colorful fabric, creating a rich and ancient atmosphere.

During the festival, the most common sight was still the festive red color.

On both sides of the road, many interesting trinkets were displayed, among which the most popular were the red thread knots.

The red thread represents a man’s admiration and is used to form a connection with the woman he admires. The man would tie one end of the red thread to his delicate wrist, and if he saw a woman he liked, he would give the other end to her. If she accepted, he would personally tie a love knot for his sweetheart, and then, connected and guided by the red thread, they would go to the Old Man of the Moon Shrine together to ask for a blessing. Once this step was completed, the relationship was considered formed.

“Little girl, today is the Old Man of the Moon Festival. Asking for a marriage destiny today is most effective. Won’t you go and ask for one?” a voice sounded from the side behind her.

Xin Jiao Zhou turned around and saw an unfamiliar old woman. She smiled politely and declined, “A fortune-teller once said that I have a calamitous fate, the destiny of a lone star. I’d better not bring misfortune to some young gentleman.”

“Oh, how could such a beautiful young lady be a lone star? That fortune-teller must be poorly skilled, a half-baked fraud. Don’t believe her nonsense,” the old woman said.

The old woman enthusiastically engaged Xin Jiao Zhou in conversation.

“Listen to this old woman. I trained at Guanyue Mountain. The moment I saw you, I knew you were a rare person blessed with good fortune.”

“Otherwise, I wouldn’t even bother with most people.”

The old woman suddenly looked disgusted, as if thinking of some possibility.

The next moment, her expression returned to one of kindness and benevolence.

As she spoke, she reached out towards Xin Jiao Zhou’s face, “Come, let me take a closer look at you.”

Where was Guanyue Mountain? She had never heard of such a place before.

There was no harm in it, and seeing the old woman’s persistence that wouldn’t be easily dissuaded, Xin Jiao Zhou allowed her to cup her chin and examine her face back and forth.

After examining for a while, the old woman let go and sighed deeply.

This performance actually made Xin Jiao Zhou’s heart skip a beat.

After a moment, the old woman said, “Little girl, your destiny has arrived.”

Xin Jiao Zhou’s long lashes fluttered slightly, “Ah?”

She didn’t expect that after looking for so long, the other party would come to such a conclusion.

Xin Jiao Zhou couldn’t help but laugh.

Composing herself, she resumed her usual calm demeanor, “Daoist, what do you mean by that?”

“The workings of heaven cannot be revealed,” the old woman said, shaking her head.

After mysteriously saying this, she shoved a wooden hairpin into Xin Jiao Zhou’s hand, then blended into the crowd, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Xin Jiao Zhou opened her fingers, and a wooden hairpin lay quietly in her palm.

Under the bright moon and sparse stars, the hairpin was covered with a layer of clear moonlight, looking ancient and mysterious.

The wood grain on the hairpin grew naturally, winding towards the same direction—

Xin Jiao Zhou looked at the hairpin, following the direction of the wood grain, her gaze gradually becoming unfocused, some distant memories beginning to unfold—

“Beautiful elder sister, would you like to buy some moon festival candy?”

In the darkness, a vendor’s cry exploded by her ear. Xin Jiao Zhou’s pupils suddenly constricted, her consciousness momentarily detached, returning to reality, her gaze simultaneously regaining clarity.

She couldn’t help but frown.

She had actually stood there stupidly, completely off guard. Looking at the wooden hairpin in her hand again, she wondered what mystery it held.

Recalling the old woman’s words, “A destined person?” Xin Jiao Zhou’s expression relaxed, and she smiled, her eyes unusually gentle.

—Where would he/she be?

Xin Jiao Zhou closed her fingers, carefully tucking the wooden hairpin into her belt, then looked down at the little girl in front of her, “I’ll buy some.”

The little girl, having sold out her moon festival candy early for the night, happily took the silver given by the customer and put it in her purse, then skipped away.

“Old Man of the Moon Grandmother above, today is truly a good day!”

The little girl thought happily.