Striving for Science C31 pt1

"Chang'an, what's wrong with you?" Ding Yang finished his bow and, seeing Shen Chang'an standing stiffly, assumed he didn't believe in this. So he persuaded him, "Don't be so serious. Come on, come on, you bow with Xu Ze, ask Yuelao to bless you to find a beautiful, kind, and gentle woman."

“To find a kind and gentle beauty, a man must first become an elegant, witty, and gentle person himself.” Shen Chang'an thought for a moment, deciding he didn't need to pray to the god statue, “It's better to rely on oneself than to pray to the gods.”

“That's what they say, but what if Yuelao sees you're handsome and wants to give you a kind and understanding beauty anyway?” After saying this, Ding Yang bowed to the Yuelao statue, “Great Immortal Yuelao, I absolutely didn't mean to make fun of you. I'm just helping you develop your followers.”

“Nonsense.” Shen Chang'an was exasperated by Ding Yang's persistence, so he decided to just go along with him and offer a perfunctory prayer to avoid further nagging.

“Wait.” An elderly man with white hair and wearing a dark blue cotton jacket hurriedly stopped Shen Chang'an, “Young man, I see you have a peach blossom complexion and the Red Luan star is shining brightly, clearly indicating a destined fate. Why are you praying to Yuelao?”

“What?” Ding Yang stared at Shen Chang'an in disbelief, “We agreed to be single dogs together, but you secretly got a lover?”

Shen Chang'an couldn't help but laugh, he looked helplessly at the old man standing in front of him, “Sir, you can tell fortunes?”"

“I can't tell other fortunes, only destiny in love.” The old man stroked his beard, giving a heartfelt lecture, “Young man, be loyal to your partner. Excessive greed for beauty will be punished.”

He wanted to tell the old man that he didn't have a partner, but seeing how old the man was, he didn't want to deliberately provoke him. Shen Chang'an couldn't argue with him about this, so he just nodded, “You make a good point.”

“Then remember, never pray to Yuelao again. Even if you do, he won't help you find another partner.” The old man was immediately satisfied. He walked slowly towards the temple entrance, occasionally turning back to sneak a peek, as if observing whether Shen Chang'an was secretly praying to Yuelao while he wasn't looking.

Noticing the old man's behavior, Shen Chang'an: "..."

He didn't have a scumbag face, why did the old man treat him like he was stopping a scumbag from cheating?

“Forget it.” Ding Yang patted Shen Chang'an's shoulder sympathetically, “It's fate, Chang'an. You should just stand aside and not affect others from praying to Yuelao.”

Shen Chang'an walked aside with a wry smile, observing the passersby. As the sky grew brighter, more young people came to pray to Yuelao. Some came as couples, others came with friends, laughing and joking, full of joy.

With so many happy people, when someone was unhappy, they would stand out in the crowd. Shen Chang'an noticed a young girl wearing an outdated dark coat, walking alone in the crowd. She looked dazed as she walked to the oak tree outside the Yuelao Temple, looking up at the wooden plaques hanging on the tree, each holding countless wishes.

Her face was pale, and she tiptoed to reach a certain plaque, but she couldn't reach it because she was too short. She didn't know what she was thinking, but she suddenly squatted down under the tree and hugged her knees.

Was she crying?

The joyful people around her didn't notice the sad girl in the corner. Some cried, some laughed. Sadness and joy were always two worlds that didn't intersect.

Shen Chang'an patted his pockets. He had gotten up in a daze that morning and hadn't even brought a tissue. He looked around and found a pack of tissues for one yuan at a stall. He walked over to the crying girl and silently handed her the tissues.

“Thank you.” The girl said hoarsely, her eyes full of sadness, but no tears.

“What do you want to take? I'll get it for you.” Shen Chang'an looked up at the oak tree and pointed to the plaque the girl was trying to reach, “Do you want this one?”

The girl nodded.

Shen Chang'an stretched out his hand and took down the plaque, handing it to the girl. The plaque looked quite old, and the words on it were somewhat blurred due to sun and rain. It was faintly visible that it said, “So-and-so will always love So-and-so."

Gently wiping the dust off the plaque, the girl whispered her thanks.

“You're welcome.” Seeing her heartbroken appearance, Shen Chang'an comforted her, “Think positively. Everything is scarce in this world, except men. There are still tens of millions of single men in our country.”

The girl smiled at Chang'an, “You're so witty, you must have a lot of girls who like you, right?”"

"Still single to this day, I refuse to answer your question.” Shen Chang'an sighed dramatically. He saw a sign hanging on the oak tree trunk, with the words “Wishing Tree” written on it. “Why don't you make another wish?”

“Wishes don't come true anyway, why bother making them?” The girl clutched the wooden plaque tightly. “I came here today just to make the person who made a wish with me back then fulfill his promise.”

“The sun is about to rise.” Shen Chang'an looked up at the eastern horizon, then got up and bought a few wishing plaques from a vendor. “The November sun is particularly harsh. They say if you get sunburnt in this month, it's hard to get rid of the tan. You girls love beauty so much, don't expose yourselves to this kind of sun.”

The girl didn't speak. She looked down at the worn wooden plaque in her hand, her eyes filled with resentment and anger.

“Here.” He handed her two wooden plaques, smiling brightly at her. “We each have two, you make your wish, and I'll hang them up for you.”

The girl looked at him with hesitation as she took the brand new wooden plaques.

Shen Chang'an took out a pen and started writing on the wooden plaques.

Wishing Dao Nian good health and happiness – Chang'an.

Wishing I eat well and stay healthy – Chang'an.

After writing on both plaques in a flamboyant style, Shen Chang'an took out his phone, took a picture, and sent it to Dao Nian.

Chang'an: See how righteous I am, I didn't forget to include you in my wishes.

***

Inside the residential house.

“Sir?” Liu Mao saw Dao Nian suddenly open his eyes after being silent, thinking something big had happened. He quickly said, “Is there some major event happening in the world?”

Dao Nian glanced at him, took out his phone, and opened the chat box. He saw the photo Shen Chang'an sent. After saving the photo, Dao Nian slowly typed his words.

Nian: Don't be superstitious.

After sending the message, Dao Nian looked at Liu Mao: “Should I build a mansion, make it my permanent home?”

“My Lord?” Liu Mao looked at Dao Nian in shock. “What do you mean?”

In this world, no matter how far away, Sir can go anywhere. For Sir, everywhere is his home, yet he has no home.

He has no mansion, no joys or sorrows, and even… no family or friends. Born to be incapable of having emotions, Sir suddenly said he needs a mansion as a home. If this gets out, it will surely shake the six realms.

“Nothing, just a casual remark.” Seeing the shock in Liu Mao's eyes, Dao Nian slowly lowered his eyelids and closed his eyes again. “You all retreat, don't disturb me.”

“Yes.” Liu Mao slowly walked downstairs, turning his head to look at the bird cage in the corner. The scarlet-breasted parrot yao sent by the bird tribe was burying its head in the spirit rice. Seeing Liu Mao looking at it, it immediately stopped pecking the rice and pretended to have a small appetite.

Liu Mao sprinkled a handful of spirit rice into the food box in front of her: “The bird tribe sent you to be by the Lord's side, just to help you mooch food and drink?”

Fei Ying: …

Seeing Fei Ying not speaking, Liu Mao clapped his hands: “For the sake of your ancestral home being in Shu City, I'll give you some advice. Since you're a parrot here, you should be a good parrot that pleases your master.”

“Mr. Liu, have you also been to Shu City?” Fei Ying was surprised. The elders in her tribe said that Liu Mao was very lucky. He wasn't a yao cultivator known for speed, yet he became Sir's mount.

"Don't ask what you shouldn't," Liu Mao said with a stern face. "Put away all those little tricks of your bird clan. In this world, if my Lord wants to know something, nothing can be hidden from him."

No wonder when the Elder and the Beast Tribe Elder brought them here, the Lord didn't even look at them. After Liu Mao left, the parrot secretly glanced at Hu Ming outside the courtyard, who was digging a mud pit to plant flowers. That fox spirit was already digging in the dirt, still thinking about how to seduce the Lord.

Forget it, she'll just be a parrot with a strong will to survive. At least she's stronger than that fox spirit who's always trying to please the Lord. Who would have thought that the Lord is so straightforward? They said they'd help, and he really made them work.

***

Shen Chang'an sent a message to Dao Nian and hung the wooden plaque on a tree. The girl, who had been so downcast, hadn't written a single word on either of the blank plaques.

"Aren't you going to write?" Shen Chang'an asked.

"There's no need." The dawn broke, but the early winter sun had no warmth. Its faint light couldn't even penetrate the fog.

The girl returned the blank wooden plaque to Shen Chang'an and quickly disappeared behind the Yuelao Temple.

Shen Chang'an watched her retreating figure and sighed.

"What are you sighing about?" Ding Yang walked over and nudged him with his elbow. "I was wondering why you weren't interested in worshipping Yuelao. So you were making a wish here."

Shen Chang'an returned the blank wooden plaque to the vendor and took out his work badge from his jacket. "Let's go. The sun is up. It's time for patrol."

At the Yuelao Temple fair, not only were there vendors selling food, but also folk dance performances. Eight strong men led the way, carrying a statue of Yuelao. Tourists could throw flowers or coins at the statue.

Behind the Yuelao statue, folk artists dressed as famous historical figures from love stories walked and danced, holding large colorful silk fans with embroidery like "a hundred years of happiness" and "a match made in heaven".

Tourists crowded the streets, eager to watch the folk dance performances. Shen Chang'an, despite his good physical condition, was jostled about by the excited crowd. By the time the evening arrived and the tourists thinned out, he sat down on a stall, feeling utterly exhausted, longing for the comfort of his bed.

"Sir." The girl he had met that morning appeared beside him. The setting sun cast a warm orange glow on her pale face.

"You haven't left?" Shen Chang'an was startled to see her.

"I still can't give up." The girl bit her lower lip, shaking her head slightly. "I want to see him."

Shen Chang'an looked at her without speaking.

"I'm scared. Could you accompany me?" The girl pointed in a direction. "His home is over there."

Shen Chang'an stared at her for a few seconds. "Do you absolutely have to see him?"

The girl nodded affirmatively again.

"Alright, I'll go with you." Shen Chang'an agreed.