The facilities in the old bookstore are also a bit old. However, they do not appear old, but retain the flavor of time.
Chen Wenwen walked through a row of bookshelves and pulled out a book.
This book is very old, with some yellowing on the pages and a unique smell.
Books have flavor, Chen Wenwen has always felt that way.
It's not the fragrance of ink that ordinary people call it. What Chen Wenwen smells in the book is something else.
For example, the difference between new and used books.
The new book gives people freshness and yearning, hiding the unknown and expectation.
The smell of old books makes people obsessed with them. The books are filled with intoxicating fragrance, like an ancient tree, with clear growth rings hidden in the mottled leaves, and a rich past imprinted in the vicissitudes of life.
The books in this bookstore have also gone through a long time like this bookstore. The books are filled with the fragrance of cherry blossoms and the rustling maple leaves.
The store manager is a kind old man with gray hair. According to him, this store has been passed down from his grandfather's generation, and the history beyond that can no longer be tested.
The bookstore business used to be very prosperous, and children in the town would come to buy comics drawn by famous writers in the city, such as "Doraemon" and "Astro Boy", but now the young people in the town are I ran to the city, and the bookstore became much cooler.
The store manager's son and grandson are also in Tokyo. Occasionally during holidays, the son and daughter-in-law will bring their grandson back to stay for a while. They discussed bringing the store manager to live in Tokyo, but the store manager refused.
For him, this bookstore is his home, where he was born, grew up, got married, had children... and he deserves to die here.
When the store manager saw Chen Wenwen and others, he showed a kind smile on his face. He said that there were not many young people left in the town, and the old people in the town were also dying. Maybe one day, Shikatori Town would disappear from this world.
Chen Wenwen silently listened to the old man's ramble without responding.
It's not that she can't understand the old man's words. As a top student at Shilan Middle School, proficiency in several foreign languages is the foundation of the basics. Even Lu Mingfei, who was once uneducated and incompetent, has a foreign language level of IELTS 6. What's more, Needless to say, Chen Wenwen is a literary expert.
Moreover, the students at Shilan Middle School basically all have backgrounds. Chen Wenwen's father is a diplomat, so Chen Wenwen has quite a talent for languages.
She could understand, but she just didn't know how to respond.
She knew clearly that the old man only regarded her as a son or grandson who would never come back a few times a year, and as a place of emotional sustenance. These words should not have been said to a passing tourist, but the old man was too lonely and had nowhere to go. After resolving the problem, he used her as an outlet to vent his anger.
While listening to the old man's words, she placed the books she selected on the counter.
A copy of "Man'yoshu", a copy of "Rashomon", a copy of "Yin Dou's Dancer", and a copy of "The Tale of Genji".
""The Tale of Genji"..."
The old man slowly wrapped these books with oil paper. This was a technique used in bookstores a long time ago. It was similar to the current plastic packaging. There was no heat shrink film at that time, so some bookstores would choose to use this method to protect books from moisture. A relatively ancient craft.
The old man packed the bags and said, "It's quite a coincidence. My bookstore hasn't had any customers for a long time. Not only did two young people come in today, but you all bought "The Tale of Genji". What a coincidence." ?”
"Is anyone else coming to buy The Tale of Genji today?"
The old man bundled the wrapped books and handed them to Chen Wenwen: "I came here this morning because there were very few customers in the store, especially young people, and the young man was very good-looking, so I was quite impressed."
"That's right." Chen Wenwen held the book in her arms, "Then we are quite destined."
"Yes." The old man nodded cheerfully, "That young man must have been from the town before. He called out my name as soon as he came in, and asked me if it was almost time for the Shikatori Festival. I I also feel that he looks familiar, but I just can't remember who he is... Oops, I'm getting old and I can't remember..."
"Shikatori Matsuri?"
When she came, Chen Wenwen also saw busy people on the road, but she never thought about the festival.
The old man nodded and pointed to the mountain behind. From here, you can vaguely see the red torii gate: "The shrine on Mount Shikatori enshrines the deer spirit of Mount Shikatori. She can protect the town from being attacked by wild beasts and from natural disasters." Damage, please keep the children who are traveling far away safe and sound."
Chen Wenwen glanced at the mountain from a distance: "Can I go to the shrine?"
The old man nodded: "That young man should also be at the shrine on the mountain. If you meet him, please help me ask the name of the child. May the deer spirit bless you."
"May the deer spirit protect you."
Chen Wenwen said goodbye to the old store manager and walked towards the back mountain in the direction pointed out by the old store manager.
——
Lu Mingfei walked up the winding mountain road. On both sides were forests that had not yet completely fallen leaves. Occasionally, he could hear the chirping of birds flying across the sky.
After passing through the torii gate, there is a long shrine. This road is much easier to walk. From here, it is the realization of God, so the floor tiles are also specially laid, and there will be no potholes like the previous mountain roads.
Climbing up the stairs to the end of the road, Lu Mingfei finally saw what the Shikatori Shrine looked like.
The purpose of entering is the worship hall of the shrine, which is as old as the town and still retains the Japanese-style roof of the past. There are divine Komatsu dogs (similar to stone lions) on both sides of the worship hall, and on the right side there is a sailor's house for washing hands.
Passing through the worship hall is a small Japanese-style courtyard. The Susha and Shōsha are located on both sides of the courtyard. Directly in front of the courtyard is the main hall, which houses a vivid deer statue.
There are two sacred trees on both sides of the main hall. The leaves of the one on the left have fallen off. Lu Mingfei is not a Tibetan fox who likes to study water monkeys, so naturally he cannot recognize what species it is at a glance.
The one on the right is easy to spot, it's a red maple.
The leaves fluttered in the wind, like swaying fire.
But what is more attractive is not the tree, but the young man holding a book under the tree.
The handsome young man stood in the thin sunshine, wearing a white shirt and a black suit, with fresh straight hair, holding a book sealed in oil paper in his arms.
The wind blew the hem of his clothes, and the young man seemed to realize that Lu Ming was coming, and turned around to brush against him.
He stood in the sunshine and smiled, like a harmless boy from his neighbor's family. No, maybe because he was too delicate, Lu Mingfei even thought he was a female high school student wearing men's clothes.
But no one can deny his beauty. A person with such clear water reflects infinite brilliance in the sunshine.
But Lu Mingfei felt a little awkward.
He felt pressure on this infinitely beautiful boy, as if he had become a domesticated teddy facing a wild beast, whose throat would be torn apart if he was not careful.
To be honest, he had only seen this kind of pressure from Boss Gu. Even Senior Brother Chu couldn't give him this feeling. If it weren't for the warm and beautiful scene in front of him, Lu Mingfei might not be able to bear it anymore. .
Of course, not to fight hard, but to escape.
It's not that he doesn't believe in Lu Mingze's strength. He understands that as long as he continues to trade with Lu Mingze, he can realize all his wishes. Even Boss Gu is no match for him. Su Xiaoqiang and Chen Wenwen are also within easy reach, but because of In this way, he became even more wary and afraid of Lu Mingze's existence.
Gu Bei taught him that everything you get will have a price set by fate.
So now he is very reluctant to trade with Lu Mingze.
And if he didn't trade with Lu Mingze, he would definitely not be able to defeat him. He still knew himself.
So running is the best option.
The two stood in the shrine courtyard for a while, and Lu Mingfei finally realized something was wrong. The other party saluted him, so he should return the salute.
He was confused for a moment and said: "Hi?"
The young man was stunned for a moment, then covered his mouth and laughed.
His smile is like flowers blooming, warm as spring.
Lu Mingfei's heart felt cold. Just when he was thinking about how to escape, there were footsteps again from the worship hall.
The two turned around and found a girl holding a book.
Chen Wenwen.
"Lu Mingfei? You are here too." Chen Wenwen smoothed her hair that was messed up by the wind.
Lu Mingfei laughed dryly: "Ah ha ha ha ha, yes, what a coincidence. President, why are you here?"
Chen Wenwen turned to look at the young man. She was also shocked by his appearance. After calming down her emotions, she also saw the oil-cover book in his hand: "Did you buy that from the bookstore in town? "Genji" Story"?"
The young man looked at the book in his hand and then saw the book in Chen Wenwen's arms: "You are talking about old Saito's shop, right? Where did you buy the book from?"
Chen Wenwen nodded: "The old store manager said, let me ask you what your name is."
The young man smiled: "Well, old Saito doesn't remember me anymore..."
Why are you still chatting? ?
Lu Mingfei on the other side watched the two people chatting, and felt chilled in his heart. He was afraid that this young man would burst out and tear himself and Chen Wenwen into pieces. Although Chen Wenwen rejected his confession, they asked themselves, even if they were standing here, The ones who are most likely to be saved are the fat Xu brothers or Zhao Menghua who has been having trouble with him. Lu Mingfei probably also needs to be rescued, not to mention Chen Wenwen who doesn't have any big festivals and occasionally takes care of Lu Mingfei.
Fortunately, although the young man put a lot of pressure on Lu Mingfei, he didn't seem to have the intention to kill anyone. There was a heartbreaking melancholy in his eyes, but he still smiled: "Old Saito If you ask, just tell him that my name is Liuli."
"Kazema Ruri."
——
A hot spring hotel reserved by a literary club.
A black Hummer parked in front of the hotel. Two teenagers and a girl got out of the car. The leader was wrapped in a black coat and had a badge with a pattern of the half-decayed World Tree on his chest. The teenager behind him looked carefree. , wearing a T-shirt with Lelouch, who is popular this year, printed on it, the girl hid behind the boy, grabbed the boy's arm with one hand, revealed a small head, blinked and looked secretly into the hotel, the girl on her body There is a green-haired cc printed on the clothes, which is obviously a couple's clothes for the boy.
The corners of Yuan Zhisheng's eyes twitched, and Ying sat upright in the driver's seat of the Hummer, her shoulders hunched up and down, obviously suppressing her laughter and feeling uncomfortable.
The proprietress of the hotel ran out and knelt down in front of Yuan Zhisheng: "Miyamoto Ayako, Miyamoto, has met the young master."
Yuan Zhisheng helped the other person up: "Long time no see, Aunt Ayako."
Miyamoto Ayako stood up. She behaved differently from the descendants of the Snake Qihachi family who fell to the ground when they saw Minamoto. Her kneeling was more of a formal thing, a formality. Minamoto helped her up. She then patted Yuan Zhisheng's arm and said, "It's been four or five years, and you've grown into a man."
"It's been many years."
Minamoto Chisheng and Miyamoto Ayako chatted for a while, but they did not introduce Gu Bei and others to each other. They just asked Miyamoto Ayako to arrange several rooms and parking spaces for a few people.
Miyamoto Ayako didn't ask any more questions. Even though she was only a peripheral member of the Snake Qihachi family, she knew that the less you knew about some things, the better. Minamoto didn't tell her, and she didn't ask. This was the way to save her life.
Several people were walking and chatting in the hotel.
"What an unlucky time you came. I just received a group of guests this morning and gave them some good rooms. They were a group of students. They seemed to be here for a study trip or a club training. I heard they were from China. Yes, the little girl who is their president speaks very good Japanese, with a pure Tokyo accent. I didn’t even know that she was from China at first, but the Japanese level of the other people in their team is not that good. The best thing is a young man. It is said that this young man has traveled to Japan before, so he can speak Japanese..."
Miyamoto Ayako is more or less a talkative person, or maybe she is just extremely enthusiastic about familiar people, such as Minamoto Chiaki.
As for Gu Bei and Eli Yi, she only briefly chatted for a few words before turning the topic back to Yuan Zhisheng.
There should be part of this reason why Eri was too withdrawn, which led to Miyamoto Ayako not recognizing the famous head of the Uesugi family, otherwise this aunt might have to kneel down again at this time.
"Aunt Ayako, I see the town is very lively. Are there any activities going on?"
"Oh, you haven't come back for so long and you even forgot about the Shikatori Festival?"
Shikatori Festival...
A word that is both familiar and unfamiliar.
A word he didn't want to recall.
Back then, he stabbed out that knife and buried all the related memories together with that name, but the dead person would chase him into his dreams all the time like a dead soul.
Now, he has returned to this small town lost deep in his memory, and everything in his dream seems to have caught up with him again.
"Shikatori Festival...is this during this time?"
"Of course, have you forgotten? There are two Shikatori Festivals every year, once when the cherry blossoms are blooming, and once when the maple leaves are red. I remember you loved this festival when you were a child. At that time, you would help the shrine maiden sell Ema. …”
The dead memories seemed to be reviving. Minamoto interrupted Ayako Miyamoto: "Aunt Ayako, that is all in the past."
Miyamoto Ayako stopped and said, "Yeah, it's all in the past... Are you going to visit the shrine in the future? That kid Arisukawa is still working at the shrine, aren't you going to see her?"
Sakura's ears twitched, as if she heard something concerning.
Gu Bei's ears also moved, and he smelled the gossip.
Eriki's ears also moved. After being with Gu Bei for a long time, Eriki also learned the correct way to eat melon.
But Yuan Zhisheng shook his head: "No, we have other things to do."
With that said, regardless of the disappointed expressions on Gu Bei and Eryi's faces, they took the key from Miyamoto Ayako and took Gu Bei back to the room.
Eriki and Sakura share a room.
