At the end of the alley that crosses the street, there is a criss-crossing river. Although it is not as wide as the main river, there are scattered lights swimming in the narrow river, lying on the misty water and spinning. Qiong Yi squatted on the rocks by the river, holding a lotus lantern. She looked back and saw that the three people's eyes were on her, and she couldn't help but laugh: "They are all staring at me like this, I'm a little nervous."
After saying this, she kneaded the secret and used magic to light the short candle at the heart of the lamp. The beating candle flame lit up a whole lotus lantern. The petals made of paper revealed a faint and soft light. She held the handle of the lamp in her hand and gently held it. Putting it in the water, I thought to myself: I hope I can pass the assessment next month with perfect A, I hope I can continue to come to Qingfeng to study in the next year, I hope... I can spend a little longer with Sheng Jin.
"Did you make a wish?" Sheng Xuanyuan asked her.
"Um."
After Sheng Xuanyuan lit the lantern in his hand, he put it into the river and thought to himself: Then I hope her wish can come true.
Two lanterns floated along the water, one behind the other, turning into two distant beams.
"I'll hang this lamp in the house when I go back." Yan Ting weighed the lamp in his hand deeply and said.
After everyone put off the lights, they returned to the market. They saw the two children in front holding sugar paintings, and followed the flow of people to find the sugar-painting people. The young man handed the peacock-shaped candy man to the little girl who was looking at him eagerly, and then asked them: "What kind of paintings do the guests want to draw?"
Su Ye thought for a while: "Draw me a tiger, one that is more ferocious!"
"Okay. Where's this one?"
Yan Ting held the goldfish lantern in his hand deeply, "Please follow this painting."
"As for me, just draw a little bird." Qiong Yi smiled and said to the man, Sheng Xuanyuan said lightly, "I can do it."
The young sugarmaker scooped up the translucent and thick syrup, keeping his wrist steady. The syrup pulled out long sticky threads where the spoon poured slowly, and solidified on the frozen stone slab, almost like a stick. A lifelike tiger jumped out from behind the pen. He took a thin knife and slid it along the gap between the bamboo sign and the stone slab. The tiger jumped out of the slate table and turned into a crystal clear sugar painting in his hand.
Qiong Yi saw it with surprise and interest. The young man smiled and handed the sugar painting to Su Ye, "Here, take it, sir." Then he painted a few more pictures in succession, all in one go. Qiong, who received the bird candy painting, also raised it to look at it, turned it over and over again, and looked at it carefully, and was so happy that she couldn't bear to bite it.
"How about I help you if you don't eat it?" Su Ye joked, shaking the sugar painting with the missing tiger head in his hand.
"Sorry!" Qiong Yi replied, holding the candy and unable to draw, and continued walking along the flow of people. Sheng Xuanyuan held the candy painting and refused to eat it. It was too sweet for him. He put half of his hand behind Qiong Yi to prevent her from being hit by pedestrians. The lights were particularly bright in front, and when I got closer, I saw a half-foot-high wooden frame set up on the side of the road. The red-painted wooden frame was covered with strings of paper lanterns. There were red paper ribbons tied under each lamp, and there were Written with handwriting.
Qiong was also standing in front of the lampstand, the candles shining brightly like daylight. She raised her hand to hold a piece of paper, turned around and said, "Sheng Kyung, it's a lantern riddle."
Sheng Xuanyuan lowered his head slightly and looked from behind her. Qiong Yi felt that he was getting closer, and the hot breath of his breath was in her ears: "I heard that as long as you can answer the answer to the riddle, you can take away the paper lantern with the riddle attached to it. .”
Qiong also looked at the many empty positions and thought, no wonder there are so many missing.
"I'm afraid the rest will be a bit difficult." Sheng Xuanyuan looked around and slightly raised the corners of his lips: "Find a paper lantern you like, Qiong Yi."
She smiled and asked, "Can you pick anything?"
"certainly."
Guessing lantern riddles is very interesting, so many people stop here to solve riddles. Qiong Yi and Sheng Xuanyuan guessed several word riddles in succession. They thought they had solved the riddle, so they took off the paper lantern and went to solve the riddle. "Where are Su Ye and Yan Tingshen?" Qiong Yi held the paper lantern and suddenly thought of this. Two people who were missing.
"Over there." Sheng Xuanyuan pointed. The two people at the other end were standing in front of the lampstand, seeming to be guessing. "There are a lot of people, don't get lost." He said, and after speaking, he extended his hand to her.
Qiong Yi hurriedly bit the candy painting in her mouth, met his hand, and intertwined their fingers.
A warm and soft touch came from the palm of her hand, and Sheng Xuanyuan's heart throbbed. The short walk with her to the puzzle point also became distant at this moment. There were many tourists around him, and the night was hazy. He suddenly realized Now seems to be a good time to express my feelings to her.
After realizing this, his breathing became heavier unconsciously, and the soft snow under his feet became a little bit harsh. He turned his head and said: "Qiong Yi, I..."
Unfortunately, at this moment, two children running and making trouble on the street bumped into them, and their words were scattered and they were left dumb in their throats.
The snow was slippery, and Qiong Yi was staggered by the impact. The first thing she subconsciously did was not to steady herself, but to grab the child who was about to fall. Fortunately, Sheng Xuanyuan reacted quickly and helped her.
The child's parents caught up and apologized to both of them. They also took the child to apologize to her. Qiong also waved her hand and said, "It's okay, but there are a lot of people here and the snow is slippery, so we'd better keep a close eye on the children." Bar."
The couple nodded: "Yes." After that, they took the child and walked away.
Sheng Xuanyuan let go of his hand on her back, looked at her and hesitated to speak.
Qiong also didn't know what he was going to say just now, so she gently moved her wrist and pulled him: "What did you want to say to me just now?"
Seeing that Sheng Xuanyuan's face was a little red and his eyes were averting, she realized something and her heartbeat suddenly started to beat faster.
"No, I said..." he said awkwardly, "when the lantern festival is about to end, don't run around."
Is this what you want to say?
"Oh." Qiong Yi lowered his head, full of disappointment, and said, "I won't run around."
But he said in his heart: Sheng Kyung, idiot, idiot!
Sheng Xuanyuan bit his lip. After being interrupted midway, his mind was in a mess, and the words that came to his mouth seemed to be speechless. He closed his eyes and felt a little regretful: ...Why did I just speak randomly?
The atmosphere between the two was somewhat tense, as if they had been frozen in the cold weather for a long time.
After the lantern riddles, there was the Snow Prayer Dance at the end of the lantern festival. Amidst the sound of music and drums, the dancers in white danced gracefully on the stage. After the dance, it really started to snow.
"I heard from Su Ye that the lantern festival is complete only after receiving the Snow Girl's blessing with lanterns." Sheng Xuanyuan pointed to the crowded stage not far away, "I held the lantern and went to 'bless' the Snow Girl. There were many people there. You wait for me here, I’ll be back soon.”
She nodded: "Yes."
Qiong Yi finished eating the sugar paintings and stood in front of the lampstand holding the cold stove. Only a few paper lanterns on the lampstand were half-lit and half-dark. Except for the stage on one side, most of the people on the street have disappeared. Children and residents of the town have gone home to rest. Most of the remaining pedestrians are tourists in groups, taking advantage of the last lights to feel the remaining warmth of the lantern festival.
Qiong also heard the child's sobbing cry, which was weak. She was a little confused, and thought of Sheng Xuanyuan's instructions. She thought that she should be fine if she didn't go far, so she followed the cry and saw a man in a dress. Gorgeous boy.
The child was wearing a thick coat embroidered with gold threads and a pair of armor. She guessed that he was the child of a wealthy family and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
The boy raised his head and sniffed: "Woo... My lantern, my lantern has been taken away!" He raised his hand and pointed to an older boy running on the street in the distance. A dimly lit lantern was being thrown, seeming to be dancing in a show of power.
Qiong also raised her eyebrows. She had seen a lot of snatching between children, but this boy was obviously bullying the younger. So she knelt down, handed the copper stove in her hand to the boy, wiped his tears, and comforted him. Said: "Don't cry, I have many beautiful lanterns, how about I give those to you?"
The boy looked at her empty hands: "You didn't, you're lying!"
"It's somewhere else. Just wait here with me for a while, and you'll see it soon."
"I don't want it! I don't want it! I want my original lantern!" The boy cried harder and harder. He grabbed her hand and walked towards the street: "Help me, sister, help me get it back..."
Qiong was also in trouble. She was already far away from the place where Sheng Xuanyuan asked her to wait, and she was afraid that he would not be able to find her when the lantern was brought back with help.
The young man in the distance was playing Cuju with the lantern. He made a face at the boy and Qiong Yi, made a snowball and threw it at them: "Haha! If I get it, it's mine! Do you still want to take it back?" dream!"
The boy cried "Wow--".
Qiong Yi's face hardened: "Return other people's things!"
The young man snorted: "Old witch! Who listens to you!" After that, he ran away.
In all her life, Qiong Yi has never heard anyone call her an "old witch". Does she have anything to do with this word? Really unable to bear it, he cursed: "How arrogant!" Then he told the boy: "Just wait here! I'll get it back for you!"
Seeing Qiong Yi running away, the boy immediately stopped crying.
Qiong Yi ran a hundred meters away and looked around to see the young man missing. "It's strange, is he hiding?" she thought to herself. There were no pedestrians on the street here, and the lights were dim. Looking at the dark fork in the road, Qiong was a little uneasy. She took a breath to calm down, then tentatively walked forward, and shouted loudly: "Hey! Don't hide here. Damn it! How old are you and still bullying children? Give other people’s lanterns back!"
The surroundings were quiet and there was no response.
But a moment later came her echo.
wrong.
Why is there an echo in the street?
No way?
Qiong Yi's heart skipped a beat, realizing that something was not going well, and turned around hastily, but the street behind her was no longer the one she came from just now, but a void of darkness. Her fear increased sharply, and when she looked towards the road ahead, she saw There is a faint path, with a pale green fire in the distance, which is extremely strange.
I won't be deceived, right? Did that young man do it on purpose? Or is it a partnership between the two of them... Qiong Yi was puzzled and clenched her fists. What kind of place is this? Could it be... the "Mingfu Street" that Su Ye mentioned?
The road under my feet was shrouded in darkness, and I couldn't see anything clearly. It was so dark that I couldn't even see my fingers. Her heart was beating violently in her chest, and her breathing was quickening.
Mingfu Street is a place of eternity, a place where fish and dragons are mixed together... Qiong Yi covered her heart and tried to calm down, but the more she thought about it, the more panicked she became.
Don't panic...you can't...
She stepped backwards, trying to feel her way out.
"Oh... finally here..." A ghostly sound sounded from the soles of his feet like it was coming from a deep valley. Qiong Yi trembled in fright and jumped up suddenly, "Ah! -"
