Chapter Forty-Four: The Aesthetics of Straight Men
When the university exams were over, high schools were just beginning to prepare for their final exams.
After a long time away from the Xuanzhen Temple, Lu Xuezheng finally managed to carve out some time to visit. To his surprise, the temple was bustling with activity, the crowd much larger than the dilapidated place he had first visited. The statues had been replaced with new bronze ones, and the temple itself had undergone renovations and expansions. At first glance, he thought it was a newly opened temple, especially with the two new stone lions at the entrance that looked quite impressive.
He hadn’t expected such a transformation after being away for a while!
Lu Xuezheng stood at the entrance for a while, and if it weren’t for the plaque bearing the words “Xuanzhen Temple,” he might have thought he had come to the wrong place.
On weekends, the temple was busy with many worshippers coming to offer incense, making it feel like a sea of people inside.
As Lu Xuezheng wove through the crowd looking for someone, he was unable to find Ye Xue, and even Xu Zhou, whom he recognized, was nowhere to be seen. After asking some of the other Taoists at the temple, he learned that Ye Xue no longer handled simple daily tasks like answering queries. They would only call on her when they encountered problems they couldn’t solve.
After asking for directions, Lu Xuezheng finally found Ye Xue in the backyard.
She was sitting in the sun with a cotton doll, looking quite content.
Seeing her, Lu Xuezheng hurried over and mentioned what he had observed: “I haven’t come here to offer incense in ages! The Xuanzhen Temple has completely changed! It’s so crowded, it feels even busier than the nearby Tianyi Temple. Hey, didn’t you say the temple was struggling financially? It looks pretty good now!”
Ye Xue grabbed a stool and placed the cotton doll on it, explaining to Lu Xuezheng, “Recently, the temple’s business has improved a bit, so we have some extra money to renovate.”
Lu Xuezheng replied, “Sister, this is more than just a little improvement! You don’t know how many people are outside; I almost lost my shoes trying to get through the crowd!”
Ye Xue laughed, “What nonsense! It’s not that exaggerated.”
Lu Xuezheng chuckled as well, clearly pleased with the temple’s changes.
Ye Xue decided to skip the small talk and directly asked, “You’re here to worship Wenchang Wang, right?”
With his upcoming college entrance exams, Lu Xuezheng was focused on studying, and the only reason he came here was to pray for good luck.
He nodded in agreement, saying, “Yeah, finals are coming up, so I thought I’d come and pray for some peace of mind.”
Ye Xue said, “Then come with me.”
She led Lu Xuezheng to the side hall, which housed the statues of Zhenwu, Wenchang Wang, and other Taoist deities.
Ye Xue handed him three sticks of incense. “Here.”
While both were there to worship Wenchang Wang, their situations differed. Those who sought blessings without putting in effort would not be helped by the god of literature. However, Lu Xuezheng was diligently studying at school, and praying could help him during his exams.
Lu Xuezheng lit the incense and bowed sincerely.
After finishing, he turned to Ye Xue and asked, “Can you help me check how I’ll do on my final exams? Will I pass all my subjects?”
Ye Xue raised an eyebrow, “Are you sure? If you have a bad mindset, it could easily affect you.”
Lu Xuezheng nodded earnestly, “I’m sure, I’m sure!”
Ye Xue reached into a drawer and pulled out some coins to do a divination.
She looked at the hexagram that appeared, and after a moment, put the coins away.
Lu Xuezheng swallowed nervously and asked, “So, what does it say?”
Ye Xue’s expression remained calm. “It’s a mixed blessing, an upper-middle hexagram.”
Lu Xuezheng’s face fell, “Huh? Does that mean there will be big problems? What if I get sick during the exam or forget to fill in my answer sheet?”
Ye Xue was puzzled by his interpretation. “What it means is that there will be some difficulties during your exam, but you’ll ultimately make it through safely. That’s why it’s called a mixed blessing.”
Lu Xuezheng frowned, “I’m just worried that the difficulties will outweigh the good.”
“Well, since it’s an upper-middle hexagram, it indicates more joy than fear,” Ye Xue laughed. “Do you have so little confidence in yourself?”
Lu Xuezheng replied, “It’s not that; it’s just that with the exams coming up, I feel uncertain.”
That sounded like pre-exam syndrome.
Ye Xue comforted him, “The results of divination can be unpredictable. Even if I get a bad reading, it might just be that the reading influences your mindset, causing those difficulties to materialize.”
Lu Xuezheng scratched his head in confusion. “What do you mean? That sounds deep.”
Ye Xue then asked, “Have you heard the story of Oedipus?”
When Oedipus was born, there was a prophecy that he would kill his father and marry his mother. To prevent this from happening, his father, King Laius, abandoned him on a mountain. Years later, unaware of his lineage, Oedipus killed his father and married his mother. Laius’s attempt to change the prophecy only contributed to its fulfillment.
Lu Xuezheng recognized the story, saying, “That’s the one about killing one’s father and marrying one’s mother, right?” He added, “I understand the reasoning, but Western gods can’t control Taoist spells, can they?”
Ye Xue sighed, “I’m just saying don’t rely too much on divination; focus on your exams!”
Lu Xuezheng replied, “Oh, got it.”
After their conversation, Lu Xuezheng felt much calmer.
Once they left the side hall, he noticed the cotton doll sunbathing on the stool and remembered that Ye Xue had been holding it when he arrived. Curious, he asked, “Hey, where did you get this Barbie doll? It looks pretty nice.”
To a straight man’s eye, any kind of doll probably just looked like a Barbie.
The cotton doll seemed to have heard him and started babbling excitedly, but Ye Xue couldn’t quite make out what it was saying because it was too animated.
She quickly interrupted Lu Xuezheng, “No, this is a cotton doll.”
“Huh?” Lu Xuezheng asked, bewildered, “What’s a cotton doll?”
Other than those with spiritual knowledge or low luck, most people couldn’t hear its voice, and Ye Xue didn’t want to explain “spirit” to Lu Xuezheng for fear of scaring him.
Fearing that he might say something to provoke the cotton doll, she handed him a cup of water. “After talking for so long, aren’t you thirsty?”
Lu Xuezheng took it, “Oh, I’m fine. I’m not that thirsty…”
He took a sip and glanced around. When he caught sight of something ahead, he almost choked on the water. “Cough, cough, cough!”
Lu Xuezheng hurriedly swallowed and asked in surprise, “Hey, how is Mr. Yu here?!”
As Ye Xue followed his gaze, she saw Yu Qi stop in the backyard garden, carrying a bucket of water. He then scooped some water with a ladle to irrigate the vegetables. Though it was a simple task, he performed it with a certain grace.
The affairs at Xuan Zhen Temple had specific divisions of labor; watering the plants was originally Ye Xue’s responsibility. While she was in class at school, the task was handed over to Xu Zhou and Bai Liu.
Now that Ye Xue had returned, the responsibility had reverted to her.
However, after only a couple of days working in the fields, Ye Xue noticed that whenever she intended to water the plants, the soil was already damp, indicating that someone had come before her to irrigate.
After observing patiently for a while, Ye Xue realized that it was Yu Qi who had been helping with the chores.
When Bai Zi’ang saw Yu Qi watering the plants with the ladle for the first time, he was shocked and speechless.
At first, Yu Qi tried to be discreet, but when he noticed others watching him, he openly began to help Ye Xue with farming.
Ye Xue had tried to compete with him for the chores a few times but was unable to outmatch him, ultimately deciding to let him take over.
Yu Qi rolled up his sleeves and continued watering the seedlings. Dressed in a white casual outfit, he looked somewhat aloof when silent, but he exuded an aura of calm.
Lu Xuezhen glanced from Yu Qi’s white outfit to Ye Xue’s matching white loungewear and thought, “…”
Ye Xue’s voice broke the silence, “He lives here now; where else would he be?”
Stunned, Lu Xuezhen stuttered, “Live—live here? You’re living together?”
Ye Xue shot him a quizzical look, “What’s so surprising? I said he lives here, so of course we’re living together.”
Was she supposed to let Yu Qi live with the deities in the main hall?
Lu Xuezhen recalled the first time Ye Xue had met Yu Qi, noting that even back then, he had sensed something special about Yu Qi’s feelings for her.
In less than six months, had things progressed this quickly? But Ye Xue was only eighteen; didn’t that make Yu Qi a bit predatory?
Seeing Lu Xuezhen’s stunned expression, as if his worldview had been shattered, Ye Xue thought he might want to stay as well.
After pondering for a moment, she suggested, “If you want to stay here, it’s fine. There are lots of students coming over to study at the pavilion; if you want to review, you’ll be much more productive. I can save you a spot.”
Hearing this, Lu Xuezhen suddenly realized, “Ah, you meant that kind of living arrangement?”
Ye Xue was even more baffled, “What do you mean ‘that kind’? This living?”
Lu Xuezhen felt embarrassed for his earlier misinterpretation. “Nothing; I was just being narrow-minded!”
The commotion caught Yu Qi’s attention. He slowly looked up and, upon seeing Ye Xue, his cold demeanor melted away like spring rain.
After finishing watering the plants, Yu Qi set the bucket aside and walked over to them.
He approached Ye Xue and asked, “It’s windy today; why aren’t you resting inside?”
He knew Ye Xue was sensitive to the cold. Whenever she stepped outside and felt the wind, her face would turn pale.
At that thought, Yu Qi’s gaze shifted briefly to Ye Xue’s cheek before he looked away.
Ye Xue explained, “Even though it’s windy, the sun is strong, so I brought the cotton doll out to bask in the sunlight.”
“Mm.” Yu Qi acknowledged.
Finally seizing the opportunity to interject, Lu Xuezhen greeted, “Hello, Mr. Yu.”
Yu Qi turned his attention to Lu Xuezhen, studying him for a couple of seconds. He quickly recalled that this was the child of an employee he had met at Jin Xin, responding coolly, “Hello.”
Lu Xuezhen understood what it meant to experience extreme double standards.
However, Yu Qi was his father’s boss—the top boss at that—so even though the young man standing beside Ye Xue had softened considerably, Lu Xuezhen still felt an undeniable pressure.
He awkwardly suggested, “Since I’ve finished my prayers, I should head back now?”
“Hmm?” Ye Xue was surprised. “Didn’t you want to stay?”
Seeing Yu Qi’s gaze land on him again, Lu Xuezhen became even more anxious, fearing that Yu Qi might learn about his previous blunder. He quickly said, “No, no, I think I’m better suited to school!”
As he spoke, Lu Xuezhen shoved his accumulated spare change into Ye Xue’s hands, asking her to put it in the donation box for him, before he dashed off.
Ye Xue watched him flee faster than a rabbit, perplexed, “What an oddball; he’s not scared silly by the earlier divination, is he?”
Yu Qi asked, “What divination?”
Ye Xue chuckled, “Nothing, I just helped him check his final exam situation.”
Looking at the coins in her hands, she realized that Lu Xuezhen must have given her all his recent pocket money, as the pile included five and ten-dollar bills aside from the larger notes.
Ye Xue tucked the coins into her pocket and turned to Yu Qi, saying, “I’m going to the main hall to put the money back in the donation box. Can you watch the cotton doll for me? It likes to sunbathe; when it’s had enough, just flip it over for me.”
Yu Qi nodded, “Okay, I got it.”
After Ye Xue left, he recalled what she had just said and walked over to the spot where the cotton doll was, giving it a nudge. He found the side facing up had already become hot and switched it to the other side.
“I’m so angry…”
Whispers from the doll reached his ears, causing Yu Qi to pause, puzzled.
The doll, sporting braids and dressed in pretty clothes, strained to raise its voice, almost cracking, as it ranted, “High school boys are the worst!”
“No taste whatsoever!”
“Serves them right for not having a girlfriend!”
“Anyone who can’t tell a Barbie doll from a cotton doll should get out of Hai City!”
Listening to the doll’s accusations, Yu Qi, who couldn’t make heads or tails of it, thought, “…”
wannaberecluse On SRTT Chapter 98.2