Chapter 68: Slacking Off, Day 68
Sheng Qing and Cao Ruobing were chatting happily, but she kept moving closer to the riverbank, clearly looking for an opportunity.
But Wen Ying wasn’t paying attention to that.
With the River Lantern Festival in full swing and crowds everywhere, Wen Ying once again felt the same spiritual energy fluctuations she had noticed at the mountain stronghold’s gate.
It really did seem that these puppet strings were the reason the townspeople were so deeply integrated into the town.
Just as Wen Ying was lost in thought, someone tugged at her sleeve.
She turned to see Shen Linfeng, who had been following her.
He handed her a note: “Sister, are you looking for something?”
“You caught me,” Wen Ying said, quickly coming up with a good excuse. “I was looking for some food for you.”
With that, Wen Ying’s eyes caught sight of a stall selling stinky tofu. “Stinky tofu, do you want some?”
Shen Linfeng’s brow furrowed slightly, and he quickly shook his head.
It was clear that Shen Linfeng was not a fan of strong-tasting foods.
Indeed, stinky tofu isn’t for everyone.
Although… Wen Ying was quite fond of it.
Wen Ying continued her search, her gaze falling upon… a stall selling durian?
“Then, durian…”
Before Wen Ying could finish her sentence, Shen Linfeng started shaking his head wildly.
Wen Ying looked again, and this time she finally saw a noodle stall.
“How about a bowl of noodles?”
But just as Wen Ying finished speaking, the stall owner ladled a spoonful of piping hot soup from a pot, pouring it over the “noodles” in a bowl. The aroma instantly filled the air, reaching Wen Ying and Shen Linfeng.
If Wen Ying’s nose wasn’t mistaken, the scent, reminiscent of a latrine, had to be luosifen.
When she turned to look at Shen Linfeng, his expression had gone from one of rejection to pure horror.
Wen Ying: “…”
Had the things sold at this night market really gotten this absurd?
In her countless past reincarnations, Wen Ying had come to this river lantern festival every time because of the mission. Although she hadn’t paid much attention to her surroundings before, she was pretty sure… that they hadn’t all been selling such strange things.
After a moment of thought, Wen Ying pulled a piece of oil-paper from her sleeve.
Inside was some osmanthus cake she had made during lunch at the Seeking Immortals Sect’s dining hall.
“I happened to get some osmanthus cake. Do you want a piece?” Wen Ying asked, opening the oil-paper.
Since she had promised to find him something good to eat, Wen Ying didn’t want to break her word.
Shen Linfeng’s eyes lit up. He quickly wrote a note and handed it to Wen Ying: “Thank you, sister.”
He then took a piece of osmanthus cake from her palm.
He took a careful bite, a look of pure bliss on his face.
He was just a child after all.
Wen Ying smiled faintly.
“Miss Wen, I finally found you!”
Just then, Wen Ying heard a familiar voice.
If she wasn’t mistaken… it was Lu Xiaojie.
She turned to see a breathless Lu Xiaojie, who had clearly been running to find her.
“You were looking for me?” Wen Ying asked him, but didn’t notice Shen Linfeng’s expression become instantly guarded.
“Yes, Miss Wen.” Lu Xiaojie nodded vigorously, then suddenly gave Wen Ying a full 180-degree bow. “Miss Wen, thank you so much for the steamed buns!”
Wen Ying truly hadn’t expected Lu Xiaojie to seek her out just to thank her for the buns.
“No need…” Wen Ying’s words were cut short as Lu Xiaojie gave a second bow.
“Afterward, I ate one of my own steamed buns and almost broke a tooth,” Lu Xiaojie said with his second bow. “You buying my buns, Miss Wen, was truly an act of kindness. Your generosity is something I will never forget.”
Wen Ying: “…”
So, you ate one too.
“Miss Wen, I can never repay such kindness. There is only one thing left for me to do… repay you with my body!” Lu Xiaojie’s shocking statement left Wen Ying stunned.
Wen Ying was so startled she almost crushed the osmanthus cake in her hand.
“Miss Wen, please let me work for you in the Shen residence!” Lu Xiaojie said with his third bow. “I… I really don’t want to sell steamed buns anymore…”
Oh, so that’s what he meant.
Wen Ying let out a sigh of relief. It seemed she had an overly complicated and jaded mind.
So, Lu Xiaojie wanted to pledge his service to her?
Since Lu Xiaojie already knew her identity, he should have hated her just like the rest of the town.
But… it seemed Lu Xiaojie was Lu Xiaojie, no matter if he was in the Seeking Immortals Sect or in Ping’an Town.
Now that Wen Ying knew the source of all the strange spiritual fluctuations was the puppet strings, solving the problem was simple enough.
Wen Ying extended her hand and slapped Lu Xiaojie’s chest.
“Miss Wen, what are you…” As Lu Xiaojie’s spiritual fluctuations were severed, his eyes instantly became hazy.
After a moment, Lu Xiaojie’s expression slowly returned to normal.
“Senior Sister Wen?” Lu Xiaojie looked at her in confusion, then at his surroundings. “What… what’s going on?”
He remembered that a few days ago, their group had come to Ping’an Town to exterminate demons… How had he ended up making and selling steamed buns?
It seemed he had indeed regained his senses.
Wen Ying used a sound-transmission spell to explain the strange phenomena of Ping’an Town, including everything she had discovered in the stronghold.
“How could that be…!” Lu Xiaojie’s eyes widened in disbelief. He quickly covered his mouth, taking a moment to fully process what he had just heard.
Senior Sister Wen was truly amazing! They had all been manipulated, yet Senior Sister Wen was completely unaffected.
“Miss Wen, I finally found you!”
Just as Lu Xiaojie had regained his composure, Wen Ying heard that familiar line again.
Lu Xiaojie had just said it…
Wen Ying had no idea she was so popular with people looking for her!
The voice was somewhat familiar as well.
She turned to see… Lin Ruge.
Although he was uninvolved in any of this, he was still the adopted son of Hua Pi’s family. It was best not to let him know the truth behind it all.
Even in this false world, his parents’ love for him was real. Humans are easily swayed by emotion, and there was no telling how Lin Ruge would react when he learned the truth about his adoptive parents.
Even more terrifyingly, Wen Ying used her mind-reading spell and learned the purpose of his visit…
It was horrifying.
“Senior Sister Wen, who is he…?” Lu Xiaojie asked in confusion.
He didn’t recognize this person; he was not from the Seeking Immortals Sect.
“Someone unimportant,” Wen Ying said quickly. “Run!”
“Huh?” Lu Xiaojie had never seen Wen Ying so flustered.
“Little brother, Lu Xiaojie, help me stop him!” Wen Ying commanded before she turned and ran into the crowd.
It was no joke. She was being proposed to by a man with a heart condition, who was a moocher, a freeloader, and a mama’s boy. She had to run!
That’s right. Lin Ruge had come to ask for her hand in marriage.
After Wen Ying’s plan had succeeded, Lin Ruge, just as he had promised, had come down from the mountain to formally propose to her.
This time, it wasn’t just to appease his parents; he had come out of genuine love, intending to propose in the most respectful way possible.
He never expected that upon seeing him, Miss Wen would turn and run, even having two people block his path.
Could it be… that the events on the mountain had caused a rift between them…?
Lin Ruge tried to push past the two men blocking his path, but a note was shoved into his hand.
“You want to marry Wen Ying?”
Lin Ruge looked down and saw the note was from the quiet young man.
“You are…?” Lin Ruge asked.
“He is Miss Wen’s brother. He can’t speak,” Lu Xiaojie explained.
Lu Xiaojie knew he was Senior Sister Wen’s “little boy toy,” but since everyone else was still under the spell of Ping’an Town, he stuck to the storyline’s setting.
“Ah, you’re her little brother!” Lin Ruge said politely. “Yes, that’s right. I wish to marry Miss Wen.”
Lu Xiaojie almost choked on his own spit.
What was going on?
This man actually wanted to propose to Senior Sister Wen?!
How many ridiculous things had happened to Senior Sister Wen while he was busy selling steamed buns in Ping’an Town…?
She had even managed to get her marriage arranged.
“But Wen Ying doesn’t agree,” the young man’s second note said.
Why was it that this young man, who was supposed to be Miss Wen’s brother, kept referring to her as “Wen Ying”?
And the hostility in his gaze… it wasn’t very threatening, but Lin Ruge still felt a faint chill.
It didn’t look like the expression of a brother towards his sister’s suitor.
It looked like a rival’s hostile stare!
Meanwhile, with Wen Ying.
Because she wasn’t paying any attention to Sheng Qing’s mission, she was just focused on running as far away from Lin Ruge as possible.
The best place to hide is in a crowd. So, she ran towards the densest crowd, which, of course, was by the river.
Sheng Qing had been waiting all night for Wen Ying to approach the riverbank.
Seeing her finally get close, Sheng Qing smiled and walked over to her as fast as she could.
“Sister, there’s something I need to tell you…” Sheng Qing said with a smile.
It was only as Sheng Qing approached that Wen Ying remembered the ridiculous mission.
“Are you going to tell me you’re about to jump into the river?” Wen Ying asked, finding it all rather amusing.
“How did you…” Sheng Qing’s pupils contracted in shock, but they soon widened into a triumphant smile. “Even if you know, you can’t stop me.”
Sheng Qing suddenly circulated her qi, as if preparing to break free from someone, and jumped with all her might into the river.
Wen Ying watched her jump, her arms crossed, a look of amusement on her face. “Why would I stop you?”
If she wanted to jump, why should Wen Ying stop her?
It came as no surprise that Sheng Qing was a cultivator.
But…
Thinking of Sheng Qing’s missing front teeth…
It had to be said that Sheng Qing’s cultivation level was extremely low.
Even Lu Xiaojie’s was a far cry from hers.
But when Sheng Qing hit the water, there was no expected “splash.”
Instead, there was a loud, resounding “thud,” like two hard objects colliding.
Wen Ying looked down at the river—
And saw that there was no water in the so-called “river.”
Sheng Qing was stuck in the dry riverbed, with her head buried in the ground and the rest of her body sticking up at a ridiculous angle.
Wen Ying thought that this pose was just perfect.
She didn’t even need to find a hole to hide in; she was already in one.
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