STOTTD | Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Unlike before, there was no black qi inside the bulging abdomen now, instead there was a vague mass of something that looked like cotton wool.

It really was "twins."

"No wonder, the black qi of the Qi-Eating Spirit must have been fighting with it all along."

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) put down the redwood tray, took a few steps to Shen Jibai, and covered the skin over his abdomen with her palm, circulating qi to investigate it.

Although the two of them had already had several physical contacts before because of unexpected situations, and this matter now had a very proper reason, the other person still was not used to it, and even felt somewhat resistant.

She could clearly feel the skin under her palm suddenly tightening, even his body becoming stiff.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) withdrew her hand at the right time, and said, "There's something else."

This situation was obvious, Shen Jibai was not surprised.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) said, "It can sense qi, and it will move along with the direction qi circulates. It should not be an evil thing, but it's impossible to determine exactly what it is."

As she spoke, she sighed, "If only daoist master were here."

Shen Jibai said, "Shen Jibai is waiting here for daoist master, and will also check the ancient books for a bit."

She nodded, "We've been busy all morning, let's go fill our stomachs first while the dining hall has not closed yet."

Shen Jibai slightly nodded, turned around and faced away from her, lowering his head to straighten his robe.

A rustling sound rang out. In such an intimate situation, even Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin), who had been washed by modern knowledge, only reacted belatedly. She hurriedly turned around and retreated out, then sat cross-legged on the cushion in the main hall and closed her eyes to calm herself.

After a while, Shen Jibai, fully dressed, walked out from the library. After passing her and reaching the door, he stopped, looked back at her, and motioned for her to follow.

He did not say a single word, the sense of distance became even stronger, yet there was less hostility.

It was probably because she realized that by accident, there was hope of filling the gap standing between the two of them. Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) relaxed a lot.

She stood up, put both hands behind her back, and slowly followed behind him.

Thinking that even her only enemy had turned into a friend, as long as she made sure no one else would suspect her identity again, she could then enjoy complete peace of mind.

After leaving the quiet room, and passing the thousand-year-old ancient peach tree in the middle of the square, which was extremely robust, covered in blossoms, and had red marriage charms hanging all over its branches, Shen Jibai turned his head and looked at it a few times.

Following his gaze, Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) looked over once and said, "It's already July now, but this peach blossom can still smile in the spring breeze, and even blooms more luxuriantly than in spring. Isn't that pretty rare?"

Shen Jibai withdrew his gaze, and said calmly, "This tree is in bloom all year round."

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) did not believe it.
Unless this peach tree had become a spirit, but how could Taiqing Daoist Temple possibly let a peach tree that had become a spirit stay here and absorb incense offerings.

The two of them went into the dining hall one after the other.
It was already nearing closing time, so there were not many people in the hall. On the several-zhang-long dining tables, only a few cultivators were sitting sporadically, all lowering their heads and eating noodles quietly.

Today's breakfast was plain noodles, with toppings of bamboo shoots, water bamboo, and fragrant celery, three kinds, available for people to choose freely.

Shen Jibai added a ladle of bamboo shoots, and carried the porcelain bowl to sit at a nearby dining table. Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) wanted all three, and added some rice vinegar and zhuyu herself, mixing it into a three-in-one mixed noodle bowl, and sat across from him.

On the white wall at one side of the dining hall, a big "silent" character was written. The hall was also quiet beyond compare, and one could only hear the crisp sound made by bamboo chopsticks striking porcelain bowls.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) mindlessly slurped her noodles. After half a bowl went into her stomach, she only then belatedly realized that the opposite side was too quiet, and had not made any sound for a while.

Lifting her eyelids and looking over, she saw Shen Jibai with his head slightly lowered, one hand loosely holding chopsticks, the other hand clenched into a fist, as if he was deliberately enduring something.

She had a mouthful of noodles, and before she had time to swallow, she blurted out, "What's wrong?"

Shen Jibai said with some helplessness, " ... My hand cramped."

"Cough cough."
She swallowed the noodles, turned her head away and coughed hard a few times, barely holding back her laughter.

Out of respect, she did not continue slurping her noodles, but quietly watched for a while. When she saw the other side had recovered, she then tightened her grip on the chopsticks and夹起 the noodles into her mouth.

"Since Shen Shaoqing of the Dali Temple is a martial practitioner, and needs to stretch his tendons and bones every day, how could he cramp for no reason?"

Shen Jibai: "I do not know, Shen is also very puzzled."

She did not say anything else, and concentrated on finishing the remaining half bowl of noodles. When she looked up, she saw Shen Jibai looking toward the back kitchen with a troubled expression.

"What now?"

He opened his mouth, seeming somewhat hard to say, " ... Can I get a refill on the noodles?"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin): "Yes."

Shen Jibai stood up and took his noodle bowl to the cook, and got another bowl of bamboo shoot noodles.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) was already full, and it was not very appropriate to just leave this person behind and go back alone, so she could only rest her elbows there and wait.

The last few cultivators also left the dining hall, and the cook sat quietly behind the cabinet to rest. Inside the hall, only the two of them remained.

Shen Jibai asked casually, "Shen sees the word 'silent' written on the wall of the quiet room, and it is the same here. Does it have some special meaning?"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) said, "For Daoists, entering stillness is like Buddhists entering meditation, it is one of the basic mandatory lessons for cultivators. Entering stillness requires calming the mind, and only with a calm mind can one enter the Dao, silence is the root. This is the same in nature as the white walls of Buddhist temple dining halls, which write down the precepts and rules, and the white walls of the dining hall of the Dali Temple, which write the Yonghui Code Commentary."

"The dining hall of the Dali Temple did not write the Yonghui Code Commentary, but ..." Shen Jibai slightly raised one eyebrow, "Shen Jibai can discuss it with Songgong."

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin): " ... "

No way, right.
She clearly remembered that historical records said that on the white walls of the dining hall of the Dali Temple in the Tang dynasty, legal statutes were written all over them, and as long as these officials and servants ate, they had to honestly look at the wall filled densely with writing, reading the Yonghui Code Commentary while eating.

It was said that because of this, the dining expenses of the Dali Temple were the lowest among the several temples.
Could it be that this extremely appetite-killing "law-wall" came from her casually mentioning it?

A sin, a sin.
She prayed that the workers of the Dali Temple would never know the truth, so they would not hate her.

The person across from her stood up and went to refill another bowl of noodles.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) noticed something, and said, "Shen Shaoqing did not eat much last night, are you very hungry now?"

Shen Jibai was also somewhat puzzled, picked up a strand of noodles, but did not hurry to put it in his mouth, "With Shen Jibai's usual appetite, one bowl of noodles is enough."

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) suddenly grabbed his wrist, and said, "Don't eat it!"

Shen Jibai looked up at her: "?"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) let go of his hand, "It's the thing inside your stomach causing trouble. What if it gets bigger after you are full?"

Shen Jibai put down the chopsticks as instructed, "Makes sense."

After putting the porcelain bowl into the wooden bucket placed at the door, the two of them walked out of the dining hall and returned to the quiet room.

When they passed the peach tree in the middle of the square, covered all over with flowers, Shen Jibai, walking in front, suddenly lurched to one side and tilted toward the peach tree.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) hurriedly took a step forward, wrapped both arms around his waist, and firmly caught him from behind.

"Are you all right?"

Shen Jibai let out a breath, and said in a low voice, "I'm fine, it's just that my legs cramped."

"... Then sit under the tree and rest for a while first."

Shen Jibai: "That would be good."

After helping him walk to the ancient tree, she heard him say, "Shen only needs to rest for a moment, Lingyun Jun (Lingyun Jun) should go back first."

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) glanced over at him.

This person's joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness were all very real, and it seemed he was not very good at lying, even the excuse he used to send people away was rather clumsy.

"Then A Zhou (A Zhou) will go back to the library first."

The girl turned and left, her slender back looking somewhat stubborn.
Although her appearance was exactly the same as Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin), her temperament and demeanor were vastly different.

Shen Jibai quietly watched her, until he saw her turn into the courtyard of the quiet room, only then did he say in a low voice, "Come out."

The brilliant branches slightly trembled, and after a while, a girl emerged from inside, her round face pale with a hint of pink, her deer-like eyes lively to the extreme, a half peach blossom stuck at the corner of her eye, and when she lowered her head to look over, twin buns hung down to her waist, revealing a pair of pointed ears.

After meeting his gaze for a moment, she tilted her head and smiled, "Ah! You can see me again? Who opened your heavenly eyes?"

"Lingyun Jun (Lingyun Jun)." Shen Jibai said, "You once said that 桃花妖s are elves spread among the human world by Old Man of the A Zhou (A Zhou)on[[8], responsible for conveying wishes of binding fate. Is that true?"

"Yes! Why?" The girl tilted her head and looked at him.

"Since they can bind fate, then they must also be able to break fate."

"They can, yes," the girl said, "it's just that very few people do this. Do you want to break the fate bond?"

Shen Jibai extended his left hand, "Is it difficult?"

"Not difficult."

The girl floated down, hovering in midair, looking down at the fate bond on his ring finger, and let out an "mm..." with some difficulty, then extended a finger to scratch her lips.

"What's wrong?"

" ... Better not break it, you will regret it."
She shook her head very hard.

Shen Jibai smiled when he heard that, "Why?"

"This tied-knot style only appears in heavenly-ordained marriage, heavenly-ordained marriage cannot be encountered, only prayed for. But throughout history there have always been many people who pray but do not get it, and few who move the heavens to obtain a good marriage. If it is truly broken apart, when the fate opportunity comes in the future, you will definitely be in unbearable pain."

She floated backward and sat back onto the peach branch.

"It doesn't matter, you can just do it."
"Why are you such a stubborn person!" She covered her ears and shouted.

"Who is Shen Shaoqing talking to?"

Shen Jibai's expression changed slightly, "Why did Lingyun Jun (Lingyun Jun) return?"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) walked to his side, "Of course I came to see what matter was so important that it could make Shen Shaoqing lose focus and go solve it at this critical moment."

Shen Jibai stood up, "Nothing, I was just talking to myself."

The 桃花妖 circled around Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) once, stopped on her right side, and let her gaze fall on her right hand, then covered her mouth and laughed, "So the other end of this red thread is on Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin)'s body, no wonder you were making a fuss about breaking the bond."

Shen Jibai: " ... "

The 桃花妖 floated back in front of him, and said with a smile, "This envoy is also very curious, with Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin)'s temperament of hating inhuman things, just how will she view this heavenly-ordained marriage?"

Shen Jibai turned his head away, pretending not to hear.

His appearance was exactly the same as when he did not want to pay attention to Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin), simply a guilty man with no silver here.

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) immediately opened her heavenly eyes, and at once saw a demon wearing a pink ruqun dress, with half a peach blossom pinned in her hair.

She was slightly shocked, "How could there be a demon in Taiqing Daoist Temple?"

"Who is a demon!" The 桃花妖 put her hands on her hips, "This grandma is the messenger of fate sent by Old Man of the A Zhou (A Zhou)on! How could I be compared with those 桃花妖 that bring disaster and cause chaos!"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin): "Got it, a demon with an official position."

The 桃花妖 was so angry that she raised her eyebrows, "You!"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) soothed her, "All right, all right, just kidding, 桃花妖, don't mind it!"

The 桃花妖 was a messenger rooted in the human world, and in hundreds and thousands of years, this was the first time anyone had addressed her as a "桃花妖." She nodded very pleased, and with her chin raised said, "This 桃花妖 will forgive you this once, and won't argue with you."

Only then did Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) look at Shen Jibai's face with great interest, and smiled meaningfully, "So Shen Shaoqing deliberately sent Chaonan A Zhou (A Zhou) away in order to ask for a marriage fate?"

The 桃花妖 said, "No, he wants to break the marriage fate!"

Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) asked in surprise, "Why?"

Shen Jibai lightly pressed his thin lips together, and did not speak.

The 桃花妖 pointed at his left hand, "This red-thread fate bond tying method is unique to heavenly-ordained marriage, which means this is a marriage fate he asked for himself, but now he doesn't want it anymore! Truly fickle, does he really think heavenly-ordained marriage is so easy to ask for! In a thousand years, I have only seen a few cases!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) exaggeratedly went, "Ohhhh," and winked at the 桃花妖, "Young couples having a fight and wanting to break up, most likely they're just talking about it! They can't actually break up! But ... why can A Zhou (A Zhou) not see the red thread on her hand?"

term: 食气灵
pinyin: shí qì líng
translation: Qi-Eating Spirit
explanation: A supernatural being that feeds on qi. "Qi" is vital energy in Chinese thought, and "spirit" here refers to a paranormal entity.

term: 真人
pinyin: zhēn rén
translation: true person
explanation: A Daoist honorific for an accomplished or enlightened practitioner. In context, it refers to a real Daoist master.

term: 大理寺
pinyin: Dàlǐsì
translation: Dali Temple
explanation: An imperial judicial institution in ancient China. It handled legal cases and judicial review.

term: 入静
pinyin: rù jìng
translation: entering stillness
explanation: A Daoist practice of calming the mind and entering meditative composure. It is treated as a basic cultivation exercise.

term: 《永徽律疏》
pinyin: 《Yǒnghuī lǜ shū》
translation: Yonghui Code Commentary
explanation: A legal commentary on Tang dynasty law. It is associated with the legal code of the Yonghui era.

term: 凌云君
pinyin: Língyún Jūn
translation: Lingyun Jun (Lingyun Jun)
explanation: An honorific title used for Zhou Xin (Zhou Xin) in this passage.

term: 桃花妖
pinyin: táohuā yāo
translation: 桃花妖
explanation: A spirit associated with peach blossoms. In Chinese folklore, such beings are often tied to human affairs and romance.

term: 月老
pinyin: Yuèlǎo
translation: Old Man of the A Zhou (A Zhou)on
explanation: A Chinese deity of marriage and matchmaking. He is believed to tie red strings between destined couples.

term: 天命姻缘
pinyin: tiānmìng yīnyuán
translation: heavenly-ordained marriage
explanation: A fated union decreed by destiny. It refers to a marriage relationship believed to be predestined.

term: 此地无银三百两
pinyin: cǐ dì wú yín sān bǎi liǎng
translation: a guilty man with no silver here
explanation: A set phrase meaning an attempt to deny something only makes it more obvious. Literally, it comes from a story about someone burying silver and leaving a sign that admitted it.