IMMFBCG Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Warmth

In Fengyang Village, staying up for the New Year doesn’t mean staying up until the next morning, but rather lighting New Year’s fire throughout the house, bidding farewell to the old year, and welcoming the new one. It symbolizes that the coming year will be prosperous and full of good fortune.

Ye Yangyun had filled the entire house with lights and candles, even the stove in the kitchen wasn’t spared. The lights would burn through the night, lasting until the morning.

After washing her hair and taking a bath, Ye Xue went to help as well, lighting the candles in the corners of the house.

Yu Qi took the lighter from her and lit the remaining lanterns.

Ye Xue hung each lantern on both sides of the room, explaining as she went, “This is called ‘Zhao Xu Hao’ (Illuminating the Void). It is said to bring wealth in the coming year, so every New Year’s Eve, I ask Master to buy extra lanterns, and I fill every corner of the house with them!”

Yu Qi smiled indulgently, “Does it work?”

Ye Xue hung up the last lantern and said, “Of course not, I’m still so poor. It seems that superstitions are really useless.”

But Yu Qi thought Ye Xue looked incredibly cute, and he had the urge to pat her head.

His fingertips itched slightly. He tightened his hand a bit but didn’t act on it.

At this moment, the phone rang.

Ye Xue ran to the living room to grab her phone, and the caller ID showed Bai Liu’s name.

She put the phone on speaker, and just as she answered, Bai Liu’s loud voice came through, “Happy New Year, Shishu! When are you coming back? I miss you so much!”

Xu Zhou seemed to be next to him and immediately teased, “What you miss is your holiday, right?”

Bai Liu was annoyed, “How can you say that, Shixiong? Don’t I do any work?!”

Ye Xue hadn’t heard their playful bickering for a while and couldn’t help but smile.

Xu Zhou didn’t continue the teasing. Instead, he greeted Ye Xue, “Happy New Year, Ye Xue Shishu. I heard you have a lion dance custom over there; it must be quite lively.”

Outside, the sound of firecrackers could be heard, as some villagers had just started setting them off.

Ye Xue moved the phone near the window so they could hear the sound of the firecrackers and smiled, “Although the lion dance hasn’t started yet, it’s indeed quite lively now.”

“Wow!” Bai Liu sounded envious. “It sounds so festive! I also want to buy firecrackers and set them off.”

Xu Zhou, completely unbothered, replied calmly, “Fireworks and firecrackers are prohibited within the Fifth Ring.”

Bai Liu wanted to hit something in frustration.

Ye Xue laughed, “Alright, it’s the New Year, can’t you wait until after the holiday to fight? By the way, where’s Shixiong?”

Xu Zhou explained, “Master is preparing the lighting and ancestor worship. When it hit midnight, he asked us to come give our New Year’s greetings to Shishu first.”

Bai Liu added, “Shishu, my dad prepared a big red envelope for you. Hurry back, okay?”

Ye Xue thanked them one by one.

After hanging up the phone, Ye Xue put it back in its place but felt someone lightly touch her hair.

She turned her head to find Yu Qi gently brushing her hair, speaking in a soft tone, “Your hair is still wet.”

Ye Xue froze for a moment, then reached up to touch her hair. Sure enough, it was still damp.

Her hair was long, and it was difficult for it to dry naturally. The windows were tightly closed, and not even a breeze could get in.

Yu Qi grabbed a towel, and slowly placed it on top of her head, covering her hair.

Ye Xue was about to say that she could do it herself, but Yu Qi’s fingers were already gently brushing through her hair, drying it little by little. Occasionally, his fingertips brushed against her ear or cheek. Yu Qi’s hands were always much warmer than hers as if they were always warm no matter the season.

This gentle touch reminded Ye Xue of the familiar warmth she used to feel on the tips of her hair during the night.

Ye Xue didn’t say anything, just tilted her head slightly to look at Yu Qi, allowing him to continue.

Yu Qi focused on drying her hair. When he noticed Ye Xue was quietly watching him with her pure black eyes, like stars in the night sky, his expression softened.

Outside, the occasional barking of dogs could be heard, but the room remained tranquil and peaceful.

Yu Qi folded the towel and softly said, “There, it’s dry now.”

Ye Xue touched her hair again and confirmed that it was no longer damp.

Not knowing what else to say, she simply said, “Thank you.”

Yu Qi seemed to smile slightly before seriously replying, “You’re welcome.”

Ye Yangyun had finally finished the last bit of cleaning and walked into the hall, saying, “It should be about done. You two should rest now. It’s going to be lively tomorrow.”

He threw the rag into the bucket, and then looked around the room, pausing when his gaze landed on Ye Xue and Yu Qi. With a smile, he asked, “Why aren’t you two saying anything? Are you both getting sleepy?”

Ye Xue looked at Ye Yangyun. “Yes, if you don’t come back soon, I’ll be falling asleep.”

Yu Qi tightened his grip on the towel and lowered his gaze to the floor.

Ye Yangyun no longer teased them, urging, “Go to bed. Once the sun comes up, you won’t be able to sleep with all the noise.”

Ye Xue was used to the village customs, but Yu Qi, being new, wasn’t.

Ye Xue said, “Master, shall we go to our room now?”

Ye Yangyun waved his hand. “Go ahead, go ahead.”

Ye Xue turned to Yu Qi. “Let’s go. We can rest now.”

Yu Qi hummed and obediently followed her.

They walked towards the backyard.

Ye Yangyun watched their figures for a while before continuing to clean up.

Ye Xue had been walking ahead of Yu Qi, but before long, he caught up and walked alongside her.

Along the way, the lights were bright, and occasionally a breeze would blow, chilling Ye Xue’s ears. She instinctively touched her earlobes.

This year’s winter felt colder than usual.

Yu Qi noticed her small action and his gaze flickered slightly.

When they passed his room, Yu Qi didn’t stop, continuing to walk with Ye Xue until they reached her room, where he stopped.

Ye Xue pushed open the door to her room and turned back to say to Yu Qi, “Good night?”

Yu Qi smiled gently and replied, “Good night.”

After Ye Xue entered her room, for some reason, she found herself looking out the window. Yu Qi was still standing outside, staying there for a long time before finally leaving.

It felt just like that time when he had escorted her back to Xuan Zhen Temple. Back then, Yu Qi seemed to have watched her until she turned a corner and disappeared from his sight before he left.

Ye Xue reached up to touch the protective talisman around her neck, a bit confused.

She had a vague guess in her heart but wasn’t sure about it.

Under the bright lights, Ye Xue fell into a deep sleep, still feeling confused.

She didn’t know how much time had passed, but in her sleep, she vaguely heard some sounds, and something was gently placed beside her pillow.

Ye Xue was still half-conscious and vaguely remembered that her master seemed to have come in and placed her red envelope.

When the sound came again, someone reached over and tucked the blanket around her.

Ye Xue was extremely tired. Aside from the intense study sessions during her final year of high school, she hadn’t stayed up so late in a long time. Just opening her eyes felt difficult.

When the first rays of sunlight streamed in, the lively sounds of roosters crowing filled the village, followed by the banging of gongs and the sound of fireworks.

Ye Yangyun opened the door, and the lion dance troupe was already at the doorstep, wishing him a Happy New Year.

Ye Yangyun smiled warmly and said, “Happy New Year.”

The lion danced around the door, bowed to Ye Yangyun, and then left.

When Ye Xue woke up, she found two red envelopes beside her pillow.

One was obviously from Ye Yangyun, as he would always leave a red envelope under her pillow every year. She was very familiar with the style of the envelope.

She carefully put away the red envelope from her master’s and then picked up the other one, which had a cute design of red cherries and a little cartoon girl on the cover.

No wonder last night when she was sleeping, she had the feeling that two people had come into her room. It turned out that Yu Qi had also placed a red envelope under her pillow.

…

Ye Yangyun had already made breakfast, leisurely sipping hot tea while watching TV. The noise outside didn’t seem to affect him at all. When he saw Ye Xue come out, he put down his cup and called, “Ah Xue, come over and eat. I got up early to make you some soup dumplings.”

Ye Xue looked around and asked, “Master, where’s Yu Qi?”

Ye Yangyun thought for a moment before answering, “He woke up earlier than me. It seems like he left early this morning.”

Seeing that it was almost time, Ye Yangyun went to his room to get his wooden sword and prepare to go out and practice Tai Chi Sword. While walking, he reminded Ye Xue, “Ah Xue, after eating, make sure to put the dishes away in the kitchen. We’ll wash them when I get back.”

Ye Xue responded with a couple of “mm”s but said, “Master, I’ll wash the dishes myself. You can go ahead and play.”

By the time Ye Xue finished her breakfast, Yu Qi rushed back in a hurry, holding a bag in his hand.

Seeing him in such a rush, Ye Xue couldn’t help but ask, “Yu Qi, where did you go just now?”

Yu Qi stopped halfway and went to the heater to warm up. After drying off the cold air on his body, he walked over to Ye Xue and took out something from the bag.

He wrapped a scarf around Ye Xue’s neck, expertly tying it, and then pulled out a fluffy pair of earmuffs, placing them on her head, gently covering her ears.

The cold ear lobes were instantly surrounded by warmth.

Yu Qi then said, “I went out to buy some things.”

He looked at Ye Xue, his eyes full of warmth, “Is it still cold?”

“You went out just to buy these things?” Ye Xue, seeing that he was waiting for a response, continued, “It’s already warm, not cold at all. By the way, this is for you…” She pulled out a red envelope from her pocket and handed it to him. “Happy New Year! Wishing you prosperity!”

Yu Qi paused for a moment after receiving it and then softly said, “I haven’t received a red envelope in many years.”

He held the red envelope and smiled slightly, his smile gentle. “This is the first one in a long time.”

Ye Xue thought about Yu Qi’s family situation and his troublesome relatives. She said earnestly, “From now on, every year, I will give you a red envelope.”

Yu Qi’s hand holding the red envelope tightened slightly. He looked at Ye Xue and gently asked, “Really?”

Ye Xue nodded, “Really.”

Yu Qi didn’t say anything further. He just looked at her, and for a moment, his eyes seemed to reflect many emotions.

Ye Xue, however, extended her pinky finger and smiled with her eyes slightly squinted. “If you don’t believe me, we can make a pinky promise.”

Yu Qi quietly stared at her.

At first, Ye Xue had just been joking with the pinky promise; she hadn’t played such childish games with her friends in years.

But Yu Qi extended his hand, gently linking his pinky with hers, and their thumbs met, sealing the promise.

Then, he loosened his grip and enveloped her hand in his palm.

The warmth spread through Ye Xue’s hand. She froze for a moment and instinctively looked at him.

Yu Qi softly spoke, “Ye Xue, I…”

“Daoist! Daoist! Do you have any ghost-repelling talismans left?”

Bao Wenxuan’s voice echoed as he ran into the room.

The moment he entered, he noticed the odd atmosphere in the room. “Huh?”

Ye Xue appeared calm, though her face was slightly flushed.

Yu Qi, however, looked at him coldly.

Bao Wenxuan scratched his head, not understanding, and asked, “Ah, what’s going on?”