This humble Taoist priest wants to take the college entrance exam.

Chapter 145 Little Cicada's Little Cicada

The first day of the long holiday.

Chen Shi'an got up at five o'clock as usual.

It was still dark, but he had already finished washing up and gone back to his room to pack his luggage.

Travel light when going down the mountain, and bring even less when returning.

Chen Shi'an brought a change of clothes with him; the one he was wearing now was washed for him by the class monitor.

Chen Shi'an wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the clothes had a faint scent of the class monitor. At first, he thought it was because they used the same laundry detergent, or that Lin Mengqiu was nearby at the time. But now that the class monitor wasn't there, her scent was still faintly there, which made Chen Shi'an a little confused.

Could someone have secretly worn his uniform?

Chen Shi'an's expression was strange. He brought his face close to the inside of the Taoist robe and sniffed it again...

Fortunately, it actually smells quite nice.

When I wear the uniform, it feels like I'm wearing the class monitor's uniform...

That class monitor is such a jerk; we can't let her touch the clothes again next time.

There wasn't much other luggage to bring. Chen Shi'an opened the ceramic jar in the room, took out thirty handmade incense sticks, and put them into a bamboo incense tube.

This is the handmade incense he made last time. After it was made, it was stored in a cellar for a period of time, and the flavors of the various spices inside have blended together, so it can be used normally.

The materials were all found by him on Shuiche Mountain last time. They were made from various wildflowers, herbs, pine branches and cypress wood. After thinking about it, he named it Huanyi Xiang, which has the effect of soothing emotions and creating an elegant and refreshing atmosphere.

It's perfect to send a tube of cicadas to Xiaozhi's parents, since we've arranged to have lunch at their house. Chen Shi'an never visits empty-handed, so bringing a small handmade gift to express his feelings is enough.

It was still early, so Chen Shi'an decided not to go out for a run today and instead came to the balcony to do some health exercises.

Perhaps because it was about to return to the mountains, Fei Mo seemed very excited this morning. Chen Shi'an didn't go out, so it ran out on its own and inspected its territory before leaving.

After finishing his exercises, Chen Shi'an didn't forget the little cart with a broken wheel. He found some tools and repaired it in the living room.

Li Wanyin got up earlier than he expected, opening her door and coming out at 6:20.

"Sister Wanyin is awake?"

"Hmm! I just slept until I naturally woke up!"

"Really? I think I heard an alarm clock."

"...!!!"

Li Wanyin was surprised, thinking to herself, "Does your little brother have such good hearing? Or is her room not soundproof?"

Can't you give your sister some privacy?!

"Can...can you hear that?"

"The alarm clock is very clear, okay?"

"..."

Li Wanyin turned the alarm clock back on, closed the door, and tried it again. Sure enough, the alarm was still quite noticeable.

But the thought of how poorly soundproof the door of this rented room made the embarrassed older sister remind herself that she should be more careful...

Fortunately, Chen Shi'an didn't seem like the kind of younger brother who would eavesdrop on others, which put Li Wanyin at ease.

"Shi'an, have you fixed the car?"

"Yes, one of the washers on the wheel is rusty. Just replace it and it should run smoothly now."

"It really is! Thanks to you, otherwise it would have been so difficult to drag this out..."

It seems there really needs to be a man in the house.

Li Wanyin pushed the small cart, which had been sticking to the ground, but now it was very smooth.

"Shi'an, you probably haven't had breakfast yet, have you?"

"No, didn't Sister Wanyin say she was going to make fried rice for me? I'm waiting for you to make it."

"Okay, okay, I'll go make it for you right away~"

Fearing that Chen Shi'an might prepare breakfast for her in advance, as he usually does on weekends, Li Wanyin wanted to make him breakfast today, even though Chen Shi'an's breakfasts were really delicious.

The rice was cooked in advance when she came back from the market last night. In case it spoiled, Li Wanyin scooped out the rice and put it in the refrigerator before going to bed.

Making fried rice is simple, but making it delicious requires skill.

Li Wanyin makes fried rice more often than she makes sweet soup; fried rice used to be the most common breakfast at home.

While she was busy in the kitchen, Chen Shi'an watched from the side without offering any guidance, simply letting Li Wanyin do as she pleased.

"alright--"

"It smells so good! Sister Wanyin's cooking skills are really good."

"No way, I'm nowhere near as good as you. Shi'an, if you're in a hurry, go ahead and eat. I'm going to brush my teeth first."

"No rush, let's go together."

"Where's Shimo?"

"Meow--"

As soon as I mentioned cats, they appeared. When it comes to food, Fatty Mo is more enthusiastic than anyone else.

The two people and the cat finished breakfast together, and it was already 6:50.

Chen Shi'an took out his phone; Wen Zhixia had already sent him a message.

Zhizhi: [Taoist priest, are you awake yet? Don't let me wake up so early while you're still asleep!!]
Chen Shi'an: [Getting ready to go out]
Zhizhi: [Wait for me!]
Chen Shi'an put down his phone, put the dishes and chopsticks in the kitchen, and prepared to wash them.

"I'll wash it. Shi'an, have you packed everything?" Li Wanyin took the bowl from his hand, not letting him wash it.

"Okay, I'm getting ready to go out."

"Okay, then you can go now. Be careful on the road."

"it is good."

Chen Shi'an left the kitchen, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and took the repaired cart down to the stairwell on the first floor so that Li Wanyin wouldn't have to make an extra trip up and down the stairs when she set up her stall.

"Let's go, Sister Wanyin."

"Okay, bye-bye—"

Li Wanyin emerged from the kitchen at some point, her hands still covered in dish soap foam, and watched him leave.

"Remember to send a message when you get to the mountains!"

"it is good."

Chen Shi'an closed the door to his house.

Li Wanyin stood still and looked back. Shi Mo also stood up from the sofa, stretched, and then jumped off the balcony.

"..."

The house, which had just been bustling with activity, suddenly became quiet.

Li Wanyin's shoulders slumped.

Go back to the kitchen and continue washing the dishes.

……

Some are happy and some are sad.

When Chen Shi'an saw Wen Zhixia at the intersection, the girl was carrying a heavy backpack on her back and several bags in her hands, and she was running towards him excitedly, swaying as she went.

"Taoist priest! Are you leaving?"

"Isn't this what I've been waiting for you to do?"

"Hehe, I wasn't late. Who gets up so early every day like you? I'm so sleepy."

"Hmm? You seem quite energetic."

"Hurry up and let's go, why did you take so little?"

"It's because you brought a lot of stuff. You're only going back for two or three days. What are all these bags and packages you've brought..."

"Then help me carry it, it's so heavy...!"

Wen Zhixia handed half of her things to him, and with Chen Shi'an's help, she immediately felt much lighter.

By this time of October, sunrise has unknowingly been delayed until seven o'clock. The sun has just risen in the east, and today is still a clear and beautiful day.

The gentle morning light slanted down in front of the two of them. When Wen Zhixia turned to talk to him, the light fell into the girl's eyes, and Chen Shi'an could see the beautiful mountains in her irises.

"You walked from the station to school last time, didn't you?"

"Yeah, shall we walk to the station together now?"

"do not want!"

Wen Zhixia was terrified of him. What kind of iron man was he? Who could stand him?
They even walked to the station together!
There was a bus stop right outside Chen Shi'an's residential area, but none of the bus routes went to the city's main bus station. To avoid the hassle of transferring, the two walked to the bus stop near the school gate.

Before the car even arrived, Wen Zhixia ran to the school gate and peered into the campus through the tightly closed electric sliding gate.

Chen Shi'an stood next to her and looked at the campus with her.

"so quiet."

"Well, after all, you've been chattering away outside of campus."

"You're the one who's chattering away."

Looking at the campus in front of her, and then at the Taoist priest standing beside her, helping her carry her things, Wen Zhixia felt that fate was truly wonderful.

If she hadn't sat next to Chen Shi'an on the first day of school, perhaps the two of them wouldn't know each other now.
Hmm... they should know each other, just like all the students in the school know Dao Ye from Class 5. She should also know Chen Shi'an, and perhaps Chen Shi'an also knows her, who ranked first in the liberal arts exam, but their relationship is probably not like it is now.

Thinking about it this way, Wen Zhixia felt a little envious of Lin Mengqiu and Sister Wanyin, because according to the trajectory, they would definitely meet and get to know Chen Shi'an, one being his deskmate and the other his roommate.

It seems that with her, it was just a fleeting moment of fate; if you missed it, you might really miss it forever...

Fortunately, she chose to sit in the empty seat next to Chen Shi'an that day.

What seems random might actually be inevitable? After all, of all the people on that bus, Chen Shi'an was the one who looked most pleasing to the eye…

Not only that! The two classes even had PE together! Perhaps, given her personality, even if she didn't know Chen Shi'an, she would have gotten to know him and talked to him back then?
After all, Wen Zhixia is a very proactive person!

Who cares about fate?

Thinking of this, Wen Zhixia swayed her body, nudged Chen Shi'an with her shoulder, and looked up at him, asking:
"Taoist priest, if we hadn't met on that day while riding in the carriage, would you have gotten to know me later?"

"Can you even hypothesize about something like this?"

"Just hypothetically!"

"Well……"

Chen Shi'an thought about it seriously for a moment, "If we can meet three times, then I might..."

"Three times!! And possibly again!!"

"how about you?"

"I'll meet you once. I'll get to know you once."

"..."

Looking at the serious expression on the girl's pretty face, Chen Shi'an couldn't bring himself to deny it.

After all, in reality, Xiaozhi has already proven with her actions that she only needs one meeting to get to know him.

……

The bus to the city's main station has arrived.

The two people and the cat got into the car together.

Chen Shi'an had already walked this route; it would take him fifty minutes to walk slowly.

Taking a bus would be much faster. The two of them got off the bus together and boarded another long-distance bus heading to the county town. The journey wasn't too far; it only took forty minutes to get to Wen Zhixia's house.

Although it was on the way, if Chen Shi'an wanted to take a bus back to the mountains, he would have to take it for two more stops and then transfer to a long-distance bus to get back to the town.

The city's main station is the starting station. Although it's crowded during holidays, it's still early, and the two of them easily found two empty seats next to each other.

"Does Little Cicada want to sit inside or outside?"

"You sat inside last time, this time I'll sit."

Wen Zhixia bent down and sat down in the seat first, and Chen Shi'an then sat down in the seat next to her.

The long walk was tiring, and the lazy Fei Mo, just like last time, crawled into Chen Shi'an's backpack, leaving only a zipper opening so that his big cat head could peek out for some fresh air.

"I wonder if there will be traffic..."

"No rush, it will arrive eventually."

"Here——"

Wen Zhixia took out a sealed cup of soy milk from her bag and handed it to Chen Shi'an. She also took out a cup for herself and sipped it slowly.

As the sweet, warm soy milk entered her mouth, she swung her legs comfortably in front of her seat, her shoulders pressed tightly against Chen Shi'an's, the young woman in a very pleasant mood.

"Thank you, Little Cicada!"

Chen Shi'an didn't stand on ceremony with her and took the soy milk and drank it.

The bus started moving.

Wen Zhixia drank her soy milk while looking out the window.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a hand reach out. Wen Zhixia followed the direction of the arm to look at Chen Shi'an's face, but Chen Shi'an gestured for her to look at the hand.

Wen Zhixia's gaze returned along his arm and landed on his palm.

A delicate little wooden figure is lying in his hand.

It was the 'wooden cicada' that Chen Shi'an had promised to give her last time.

"You finished carving so quickly!"

"Hmm, it's not fast. This is one of the slowest pieces I've ever carved. Here you go."

"Thank you, Taoist priest!"

Wen Zhixia was overjoyed and took the 'wooden cicada' from his hand. After his meticulous polishing, it felt as smooth and warm as jade in her hand.

The small wooden carving was so perfectly and lifelike that even the texture of the school uniform and the strands of hair brushing against her shoulders were carved out.

Especially that smile when she looked back, like a vibrant summer day, bright and pure, with the unique impetuosity and vitality of youth, like a little sun that unexpectedly illuminated the dull corners around her.

Even though the little figure on the wooden carving was clearly her, in that instant, she felt as if she had become Chen Shi'an, as if she could feel the same emotions he experienced when he first saw her...

This sense of dislocation was quite peculiar. Wen Zhixia didn't know if it was because his wood carving was so exquisite that it caught her eye, or if it was because Chen Shi'an had truly been struck by his work when he first saw her.

"Taoist priest, is this what you looked like when you first saw me?"

"Yes, the way I looked when I saw you, and how I felt when I saw you."

"You carved it with such care!!"

This was the first time in the girl's life that she had received such a thoughtful gift, and it was also the first time she had seen herself in such a way through the eyes of others.

Perhaps it was because her wood carving was so good that she became somewhat insecure.

"Did it really look that good back then?"

"Yes, there are some that really caught my eye."

"whee……"

"What are you laughing at?"

"What you're saying makes me blush!"

Wen Zhixia looked at the wooden base again, and sure enough, there were a few small characters that she had asked Chen Shi'an to carve on it: [Chen Shi'an gave this to Xiao Zhi].

In addition, he even actually carved a tiny cicada on it.

Wen Zhixia was both pleased and annoyed. She was not some annoying cicada at all!

"Do you like it?"

"like!!"

Wen Zhixia was overjoyed and knew she had to show it off to her mother when she got home.

I'm so envious of her!

(End of this chapter)