Chapter 25

“Plum blossom fruit! Selling plum blossom fruit!”

The rough voice of a woman selling goods sounded right next to her ear. Shen Yao Xing’s yawning motion paused, and she turned her head, curious about the “plum blossom fruit” the woman was talking about.

Do plum blossoms bear fruit?

Driven by curiosity, Shen Yao Xing slowly walked over. Looking at the stall, she saw round ball-shaped objects displayed, with two plum blossom petals adorning the top of each ball. They didn’t look like any fruit at all, but were clearly just buns.

“Young miss, you’re from out of town, right? Come, come, buy one and try it. This is a specialty of our Plum Blossom Valley, you can’t buy it anywhere else. It’s really delicious!” The older sister was particularly enthusiastic, giving her a detailed introduction.

Shen Yao Xing hesitated, after all, they didn’t look very appetizing.

“Give it a try, you haven’t had breakfast yet anyway,” Meng Xin Yi chimed in from beside her.

Might as well try then. They had been here for almost two days now. The journey had been too long, and these two days were spent resting at the inn. They hadn’t eaten or played anything yet.

The young girl counted out a few copper coins from her pocket and handed them over. “Then I’ll take two.”

“Alright!” The older sister smiled as she accepted the money, deftly wrapping up two buns in oiled paper.

Shen Yao Xing, who had thought the taste wouldn’t be much, was surprised after taking a bite. The soft, chewy texture was somewhat like rice cake, with a moderate sweetness and a faint fragrance of plum blossoms. The only drawback was that it stuck to her teeth a bit.

The two walked and ate. Plum Blossom Valley wasn’t as prosperous as the capital city, just a small town known for summer retreats. Now at the height of summer, there were quite a few people here to escape the heat. When they arrived at the town that day, all the inns were already full. If it wasn’t for someone happening to check out, they might not have had a place to rest.

“Didn’t you say before that there were many plum blossoms here? How come I haven’t seen any all the way here?” The young girl asked indistinctly, her mouth full of food.

“The flowering season has long passed, naturally there are no flowers to see.”

“Then what are we doing here?”

Meng Xin Yi swallowed a small piece of the plum fruit, raising her gaze to fall on a large banyan tree, with quite a bit of meaning: “It’s good to come here just to relax. The weather is hot now, but this place is cooler.”

Shen Yao Xing tilted her chin up slightly, squinting her eyes to enjoy the cool breeze blowing in her face, nodding in agreement: “It is indeed cooler than other places.”

The young girl’s optimistic attitude made Meng Xin Yi’s lips curl up, dispersing some of the thoughts weighing on her heart. The two walked along the street, stopping when they saw a long queue in front of a multi-story building.

Shen Yao Xing wiped her mouth after finishing eating, and looked up at the conspicuous sign hanging above the door that read “Chun Yi Garden” in large characters. It was as if there was gold to be picked up inside, with everyone queuing up to squeeze in.

“What is this place for?” The young girl looked around, unable to contain her curiosity.

Before Meng Xin Yi could answer, an older woman queuing nearby, whose brow wrinkles deepened as she was pushed by people behind her, heard the question and looked at her with some surprise: “It’s a place to watch opera, of course. Are you from out of town? How can you not know this?”

Watch opera?

Images of the few times she had gone to the opera houses in the capital with Mother Shen floated in Shen Yao Xing’s mind. She couldn’t understand or appreciate it, but couldn’t leave due to Mother Shen’s intimidation. She could only sleep in the opera house until Mother Shen had watched her fill.

Instantly losing interest, Shen Yao Xing wanted to tell Meng Xin Yi to leave. Unexpectedly, this woman became interested instead, pulling her arm to squeeze in with the queue.

“Hey…” Shen Yao Xing wanted to call for a stop, but just as she opened her mouth, she was forced to close it due to a sweaty arm pressing against her face. Various smells of sweat and odors rushed to her nostrils, her face contorting almost into one piece.

She didn’t know where the woman was trying to pull her. Shen Yao Xing had no time to care, only forcefully pushing away the people squeezing her, her feet constantly moving in the direction of the woman’s tugging.

Until she felt she had climbed some stairs, the sense of crowding finally lessened. The young girl breathed in fresh air in big gulps, throwing off the woman’s hand.

“If you want to watch, couldn’t you choose a better route?” Shen Yao Xing was somewhat annoyed. She was already small in stature, and this person had dragged her all the way, her face pressed against other people’s armpits the whole time. That suffocating feeling had nearly smothered her to death.

Meng Xin Yi, not knowing what she had done wrong, shrugged: “I had already looked it over earlier. The best way to get in was to squeeze in.”

Shen Yao Xing gave her a white-eyed look, leaning slightly against the railing nearby, panting slightly.

This opera house wasn’t particularly large, but it wasn’t small either. At this point, the first floor was already full of people. On the second floor, except for the area near the stairs where there were fewer people, everywhere else was also packed.

Their position wasn’t good, right next to a huge pillar that almost blocked half the view of the stage.

Meng Xin Yi didn’t seem to mind, staring at the performers on the stage below with great interest. If there was a place to sit it would be fine, but just standing like this, she couldn’t even sleep.

Shen Yao Xing rested her elbow on the railing, supporting her chin and tilting her head to look at the stage. There were three people on stage, two of whom were taller, while the remaining one had makeup like a small painted face, seeming somewhat clumsy in interactions, even reciting lines haltingly.

The clumsy small painted face constantly made people in the theater laugh out loud. Even though the tips of his ears had turned completely red, he still continued without retreating.

The small painted face raised his long sleeve and withdrew to a corner of the stage in a practiced manner. Perhaps due to nervousness, he secretly glanced at the audience, just happening to sweep his gaze to the young girl leaning out on the second floor. His body suddenly stiffened, standing there in a daze.

The two people on stage kept giving him hints, but he paid no attention. His doe eyes stared blankly at that face on the second floor, that face that appeared in his dreams every night.

Suddenly the young girl tilted her head at him, and only then did Lin Luo Sheng remember the makeup on his face. As if startled, he raised his sleeve to cover his face and quickly ran backstage, leaving the two people on stage to awkwardly look at each other, not knowing whether to continue or not.

The audience, who had been watching intently, were interrupted by this sudden turn of events and pointed at the people on stage with dissatisfaction. At this moment, a middle-aged woman walked out from behind the stage and controlled the situation with just a few words.

“Hey,” Meng Xin Yi elbowed the person next to her, finding it quite interesting, “What do you think made that small painted face suddenly run off stage?”

“How would I know?” The young girl was leaning on the railing, looking rather listless.

The two people on stage seemed as if nothing had happened and continued their performance.

The audience quieted down, and Shen Yao Xing, resting on the railing, found her eyelids fighting each other. Just as she was about to doze off, she felt someone tug at the hem of her clothes. She opened one eye to glance at Meng Xin Yi, who had somehow moved away and was now looking at her side with a meaningful smile.

“Hey…”

The sudden sound of a young man’s voice startled Shen Yao Xing. Glimpsing the hand clutching her clothes, she instinctively swatted it away.

Lin Luo Sheng withdrew his hand in pain, his moist doe eyes slightly red: “Why are you so rough, you’ve hurt me…”

The two were quite close, and suddenly meeting those watery eyes, Shen Yao Xing seemed startled and retreated towards the woman’s direction, her eyes widening as she looked him over: “Who are you!?”

The young man’s face turned pale, the moisture in his eyes increasing, his fingertips trembling slightly. His slightly hoarse voice seemed somewhat disbelieving: “You… don’t remember me?”

Shen Yao Xing frowned, staring at the young man’s face for a while. His features did seem somewhat familiar. A flash of realization struck her, and she raised her finger as if suddenly enlightened: “It’s you! I remember you…” What was his name again?

Seeing the young girl’s confused expression, Lin Luo Sheng dug his fingers into his palm, pressing his lips tightly before saying softly: “Lin Luo Sheng, my name is Lin, Luo, Sheng.”

As if afraid the young girl wouldn’t remember, he pronounced each character separately and clearly.

“Oh right,” Shen Yao Xing scratched her face somewhat awkwardly, elbowing the woman behind her who was taking pleasure in her predicament. She looked at the young man and forced a smile: “You… do you need something?”

Lin Luo Sheng’s ears turned slightly red, his eyes shifting uneasily as he stammered: “Last time, last time I didn’t get a chance to thank you before you left…”

“No need, no need,” Shen Yao Xing waved her hands repeatedly, hurriedly distancing herself: “It was just a casual act, don’t take it to heart!”

If she had known this person was here, she would never have come in!

Hearing her say this, Lin Luo Sheng became somewhat anxious: “You saved me on the arena, how could that be just a casual act!”

“You, you can make any request, I will definitely repay you…”

Looking at the young man’s blushing face, Shen Yao Xing felt as if her skull was stuffed full of garlic, making it impossible for her to think, stinging her eyes.

The gazes of people around gradually settled on them. Shen Yao Xing glanced at the young man who was slightly lowering his head, feeling extremely annoyed: “No need, I have something to do, I’m leaving first.”

“Wait…” Lin Luo Sheng wanted to grab the young girl’s sleeve, but she nimbly avoided it.

The two figures disappeared into the crowd. It was too late to chase after them now, he could only stand in place and stamp his foot in frustration.

——————

As the sky gradually darkened, Plum Blossom Valley remained bustling at night. Lanterns were lit in shops and at some stalls along the street, illuminating the roads. There were even more people out than during the day.

In the inn, Shen Yao Xing and Meng Xin Yi were crammed into a small room. Although the room was small, it had everything. Only the bed was a bit small, but there was no help for it, this was the only room available.

“Tonight, do you want to sleep on the floor or on the bed?” Meng Xin Yi asked.

The young girl was cracking melon seeds, shrugging to indicate she didn’t care.

Glancing at the lively street outside the window, Shen Yao Xing suddenly felt hungry. She put the melon seeds on the table, stood up and dusted off her hands: “I’m going out to buy something to eat, do you want anything?”

Meng Xin Yi, who was making the bed, shook her head, “No need, you can eat outside and come back later.”

“Fussy,” the young girl snorted lightly, turning to leave the room.

At this time, Plum Blossom Valley was even more lively than during the day. Without the scorching sun’s heat, the cool night breeze made one feel refreshed.

Shen Yao Xing found a random noodle stall selling meat dishes, and only headed back after eating until she was full.

When passing by a fork in the road, a faint smell of blood wafted over with the night breeze.

Shen Yao Xing’s footsteps paused. Instinctively, she didn’t want to pay attention, but the increasingly strong smell of blood made her feel somewhat nauseous. She turned her head to look down a small alley. There was no light inside, and the moonlight shone on the walls, making them appear ghastly white.

The young girl licked the corner of her lips, lightly leaped onto a rooftop, and followed the direction of the blood smell. As she got closer, the smell of blood became increasingly strong. Until a faint sound reached her ears, her footsteps suddenly halted, and her gaze dropped downward.

Shen Yao Xing crouched down, looking down from the eaves. This spot had just exited the alley, but it was far from the street. There were no pedestrians, no lights, only the brightness cast down by the silver moon overhead, illuminating half of the scene below.

In the hazy light, she saw a man standing in a pool of blood, a dripping sword gleaming faintly in the moonlight. Around him were dismembered limbs. He lowered his head, the sword’s edge slicing through the air at the nearest half-body, the cold aura coiled around the blade instantly splitting that remnant into two.

The thick, putrid smell made Shen Yao Xing unable to help covering her mouth. In an instant, the originally lowered head suddenly raised, eyes glowing red staring directly at her.

Shen Yao Xing realized that every time she saw this person, it was under such terrifying circumstances.