Xiuxian Work Log

The sky was clear and bright, as if washed by rain. The rice paddies in the photos were mosaics, and various fruit trees and vegetation were layered, creating a colorful, rich and beautiful scene.

Sunlight streamed into the room through the gaps in the vegetation. A girl in a blue dress and black boots, with a low ponytail, raised her head and looked intently at the painting hanging on the wall.

Ever since that day when Lin Qingyue discovered that the black cat in the painting could move, he had never seen the black cat move again.

In order to verify whether she was seeing things or the black cat could move, Lin Qingyue observed the painting from time to time.

The painting looked very old; the yellowed paper and worn brushstrokes proved its age.

The painting depicts a young lady with a flower in her hair. The young woman, with a youthful and ethereal demeanor, sits on a low stool, legs spread apart, palms resting on her knees. Her brows furrowed as she glared fiercely at a black cat rolling around on a Cuju ball.

Seeing this, an elderly female behind her smiled slightly, looked at the girl with gentle eyes, and placed a white flower next to her ear.

……

The sound of knocking on the door woke Lin Qingyue up.

There was no rhythm to the knocking, but it must have been from many people. The rhythm was dense and ragged, and it was obvious it wasn't Wen Lingyun.

Lin Qingyue stood up and walked towards the wooden door.

The door was suddenly opened, and what came into view was a group of monkeys stacked high, with the monkey on top holding a piece of emerald green stone.

Perhaps because the door opened too suddenly, the little monkey at the bottom who was originally holding the door lost his balance, which indirectly affected the height of the entire monkey stack.

There was a scream in an instant, and the monkeys were scattered into pieces.

Lin Qingyue carefully avoided kneeling in front of her, squatted in front of the monkey lying on the ground holding the green mirror, and remained silent.

Who could have thought that Monkey, who had taken on the grudge on the first day, would come to find her with Qing Jing and his group?

The monkey holding the green mirror saw Lin Qingyue staring at it, and quickly stuffed it to the monkey next to him who was still in shock. As if they had agreed on it, except for the unlucky monkey who was caught by Lin Qingyue, the other monkeys ran away screaming as if someone was chasing them.

Sang Ji came in from outside with food and smiled with glee when he saw this scene.

"I knew they would definitely mess with you. Normally they bully kids and steal their candy and cakes, but now they've finally been dealt with."

Lin Qingyue grabbed the lone monkey and prevented it from running away. He looked at Sang Ji with curious eyes, as if saying: Did they also steal your candy?

Sang Ji's face darkened. "They never stole my candy. But when I was little, I looked at them a few more times, and they used the juice from their yellow fruits to stain my bed. I've never forgotten my mother's indescribable expression at that time."

"Later, Yi Hanmei and Ning Chengtao said I wet the bed, and then everyone in the village knew about it. I asked my mother if she told anyone, and she threw me to Ning Chengtao's house. I happened to see Ning Chengtao and those monkeys, and then I knew the reason."

Lin Qingyue continued to look at Sang Ji, his eyes revealing confusion.

Sang Ji shook his head, feeling a little speechless, and finally spoke slowly.

"I had agreed to go on an outing with them, and I'd bring some red snap berries. I fell on the way, and the bag my mom had given me got caught on a branch and tore, so it couldn't hold the red snap berries. I was at my wit's end when I found a bag on the edge of a field, and I used it to pack the red snap berries."

"Later, we all ate the red green fruit." Sang Ji paused. "When I was going home, I ran into the uncle next door. He asked me if I had seen the bag of fertilizer he had placed on the field in front of the mountain. That's when I realized that the bag had been used to hold arrowheads."

Sang Ji took out a red gradient fruit from the food and showed Lin Qingyue what the red green fruit looked like. He continued, "I originally planned to keep this secret forever. I don't know why Ning Chengtao suddenly found out about this."

"So you were worried about the truth being exposed, so you hid it for three years? It's really hard for you, such a big mouth."

The vines were pulled apart, and a bright and heroic face appeared in the window.

Lin Qingyue was stunned when he saw the person coming.

She was the girl who said she couldn't even beat Kuwasaki.

The girl noticed Lin Qingyue's gaze and smiled generously at him.

"Hello! Outsider, my name is Ning Chengtao! What's your name?"

Sang Ji stopped Ning Chengtao, "She can't speak our language, but she understands what we say."

Ning Chengtao opened his eyes, thought for a moment, and suddenly realized: "Is she... that?"

Ning Chengtao pointed to her mouth, and Sang Ji quickly asked her to put her hand down.

"It's good that you know. She's very pitiful. She also has a frail and sickly son. I don't know what she's been through."

Lin Qingyue, who said "poor thing" and "has a frail and sickly son", looked at the two of them with resentment in his eyes.

No?

When did she become pitiful? How did Wen Lingyun become her son?

Lin Qingyue wanted to rush up and refute right now, but because she had not yet learned the language, she was like a cook without rice, unable to do anything.

Upon hearing Lin Qingyue's tragic experience, Ning Chengtao expressed sympathy and proposed an idea.

Ning Chengtao: "Maybe the Shenshan water will have some effect on her son. When we were kids and Old Man An couldn't cure us when we were injured, he always told us to drink a bowl of Shenshan water."

"Can you ask your mother to let you go to the sacred mountain to get a bowl of water? Then I will call Hanmei and we can go to the sacred mountain together to play."

Sang Ji saw through her little thoughts and complained, "You mainly want to go to the sacred mountain to play, right? Grandma will definitely not let us go. If she knew you went to such a dangerous place like the sacred mountain, your uncle would break your legs."

Lin Qingyue had just sent the monkey away, with Qing Jing still in his hand, when he heard a slight sound.

Ning Chengtao jumped in from the window, and his body, which was taller than Lin Qingyue, pressed on Lin Qingyue, hooked his arms around her neck, and smiled maliciously.

"Don't we have her? Just tell her that Lady Xia Luo asked her to go to the sacred mountain. Your mother would never go against Lady Xia Luo's request. Then tell her that Lady Xia Luo asked us to protect her safety and go into the mountain with her."

Sang Ji was obviously moved, but a little hesitant.

"What if Lord Xia Luo finds out?"

Ning Chengtao blinked, spread his hands and leaned against the wall.

"Lord Xia Luo hasn't appeared in the village for a long time. We'll just go in for a quick look and be out soon. Even if Lord Xia Luo knew about this, he would turn a blind eye."

Lin Qingyue felt that Sang Ji had gone from being hesitant to being eager to try, and was discussing with Ning Chengtao what to bring into the mountains.

Sang Ji: "Do you want to bring paper and ink? I want to draw the scenery inside."

Ning Chengtao: "I have to bring my knife and the bird on the grill... for grilling. Will there be a lot of birds there? No, I have to steal my uncle's bow."

Sang Ji: "And some dry food, a tent. Maybe bring an umbrella and listen to the sound of the rain hitting it."

Ning Chengtao: "The rope is very important. Do you want to bring a pot? No, the pot is too big. Just use sticks to skewer the meat and grill it. The necessary spices are also indispensable."

……

Lin Qingyue watched their heated discussion, feeling helpless. He looked up at the wall and happened to meet the eyes of the girl in the painting.

The girl saw her and winked playfully.