The Guide to Capturing a Black Lotus

Liu Fuyi and Mu Yao returned to Taicang three days later.

When they arrived travel-worn at the county mayor’s residence, Ling Miaomiao was observing Mu Sheng in her room. She was observing so carefully that she didn’t even hear the knock on the door.

At that time, Mu Sheng had his hair down. His eyes were lowered and he was quietly and meticulously polishing a vase, polishing it very attentively, with only the tips of his ears occasionally moving, like a sensitive little animal.

He finished polishing the vase, put it down gently, and went to polish the other things on the table. The places he polished were spotless, and a few rays of sunlight came through the window, orange in color, and fell on the back of the boy’s pale hands, forming bright patches of light, one after another.

When he took one step, Ling Miaomiao followed a step, staring at him with unblinking eyes, suspecting that this man was the reincarnation of a sweeper robot.

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After the sun came up, he looked like a faded colorful painting. The expression on his face gradually faded away, and he was back to his current appearance.

At first, Miaomiao thought he was pretending.

Only later did she find out that he truly was photophobic, like a nocturnal animal that wakes up briefly at night and then falls into a deep sleep after the sun comes up.

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“……Sister Mu?” Miaomiao froze as she looked at her.

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“Shh.” Liu Fuyi put up a finger. As soon as he opened his mouth, that familiar feeling came back. He was half amused and half chiding as he lowered his voice, “Don’t be so loud, Er Bao is sleeping.”

The second child was a boy, only four months old, a little more miserable than the snow silkworm. He didn’t have a first name, instead, he had a nickname, Erbao.

Ling Miaomiao was accustomed to seeing the Daoist immortal couple who did not know the ordinary lives of the common people. In her memory, they would blush even when holding hands, but in the blink of an eye, they were like the mountain peasants, having children and spending their days. It truly was a novelty to behold.

“I told you to cut your beard when you got back.” Mu Yao tilted her head, blushing from embarrassment.  “Look, you’ve scared Miaomiao.”

Liu Fuyi touched his precious beard. He clicked his tongue, but smiled indulgently at Mu Yao before turning his head to Ling Miaomiao and saying apologetically, “You don’t know how bad the conditions were at Qilin Mountain. It snowed heavily every day, and once we decided to settle down, we stayed for two years. I’ve forgotten all the bothersome formalities, so I don’t have that much time to take care of these things.”

Ling Miaomiao’s guilt came along with her gratitude. As she tried to say something, she stared and thought for a while, but what came out was: “It’s so cold, did the silkworms not freeze to death?

“……” Liu Fuyi looked askance at her, deliberately shaking his head and sighing: “Alas, Miaomiao only cares about the silkworms.”

“No, no, Brother Liu, I……”

“Silkworm!” The little girl’s crisp voice was violently inserted into the conversation, taking out the finger that was sucked in her mouth and shouting out a nonsensical conclusion, “Me!”

Mu Yao pursed her lips, explained: “This child, she thought you were talking about her.” She then freed up a hand to pat the girl’s shoulder, “Xue Can¹So, her name means snow silkworm. Creative, I know, right? Anyways, that’s why she thought they were talking about her, since the “Can” in her name sounds and is the same and the “can” which means, silkworm., say hello to your aunt.

“Auntie——” The little girl called Xue Can had a pink face. Half curious and half timid, she looked at Ling Miaomiao’s face, dragging out her words, and drooling.

“Yes.” Ling Miaomiao also looked at her curiously and replied crisply. Unsure of how she should treat her, she bent down and hugged her. The child carried a smell of milk.

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After the older one was hugged, the younger one was no longer content, and raised his white-lotus-root-like arms from his mother’s arms, hitting the baby sling. His eyes narrowed into a seam, crying until his face reddened.

This sharp cry instantly alarmed Mu Sheng. His silhouette flashed like lightning and blocked in front of Ling Miaomiao. His eyes were empty, with not even a trace of human energy, and his eyes were full of cold disgust when he looked at the source of the noise, as if he wanted to strangle it to death on the spot.

Ling Miaomiao saw this look and rushed to grab his clothes, to pull him back.

Liu Fuyi seemed to be unaware of it, and picked up Er Bao’s hand and forced it into his hand, excitedly saying, “Ah Sheng, look, he’s greeting you.

Mu Sheng was completely tense and the child was similarly unwilling. His hands were balled up into fists, and he refused to open them.

Ling Miaomiao was amused and worried. She wrapped her hand around Er Bao’s little fist first and carefully moved it away from Mu Sheng’s eyes, then blocked it with her body: “Brother Liu, take it easy, he can’t recognize anyone now.

“It’s all right……” Liu Fuyi only finished part of his reply before Mu Sheng, who had been as silent as a wandering soul, suddenly snapped and grabbed Ling Miaomiao’s wrist, forcefully pulling her into the house.

Miaomiao tried to speak while walking backwards, but he came around and stood straight in front of her, blocking her view. His eyes were cold and he seemed to not be very happy.

Seeing that she withdrew her gaze and did not look at Liu Fuyi, he carefully licked his lips, lowered his eyelashes, and made a fist in front of her.

Ling Miaomiao stared at him for a long time, and also stretched out her fist, and tentatively bumped his.

“……” Mu Sheng raised his eyes to look at her and hid his hand back in his sleeve, his eyes full of accusations.

Ling Miaomiao was even more baffled.

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*

“This is the Snow Spirit Ice Silk?”

Ling Miaomiao held the box with both hands and carefully looked at the silk lying inside. It was so thin that it was nearly half translucent, like a thin layer of fallen snow. She was afraid to touch it excessively, for fear of ruining it.

“You said that Ah Sheng has woken up?” Liu Fuyi frowned. He had not answered her question but asked one in return. There was steam was rising elegantly from the tea cup in front of him. Xue Can reached out to touch the cloud-like steam, but Mu Yao was quick to catch her small paw, lecturing in a low voice.

A charcoal fire was warming the room, and the two of them had already taken off their thick fur winter coats. They didn’t have time to catch their breath before holding the two children in their arms, busy as could be.

A trace of sympathy spread through Ling Miaomiao’s heart. She looked back at Mu Sheng, who was sitting obediently, and thought that although this person was like a fool, he was more obedient than a child: “He only woke up twice in the night, and when the sun came out during the day, he was still like this.

This was a matter that he certainly knew best, and he also knew what the consequences of rashly coming out will be. But that day he was so indulgent that he stayed until the early morning sun, so much so that he couldn’t wake up at night for two days.

“The sunlight is not good for the demons, they absorb the moonlight and move around at night.” Mu Yao’s voice was cold, “But Ah Sheng is different. In fact, when he was out of control, he saw daylight and his demonic power increased. When my father discovered this, he had to put him in a dark room.

She glanced at Mu Sheng, Mu Sheng met her gaze, but did not have the slightest reaction: “That he is now in such a state, means he is gambling between reason and uncontrolled evil, if he wins, he can be like before; if he can not take advantage of a deceive opportunity, he will be controlled by his ruthless side, devouring heaven and earth. Luckily, with you as his limit, he can still barely control himself and not continue down that path.

Ling Miaomiao silent, staring at the box with snow ice silk, a little doubt in her tone: “Is this thing really useful?”

The silk which looked like a piece of paper, and even had to be cut down to a strip to become a gate that could withstand the weight of a thousand kilograms, seemed a bit dangerous.

“But this alone will not do.” Liu Fuyi quietly continued, “Back then, before Bai Jin tied up his hair, there was one thing that we have not done. Do you remember what it was?”

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Ling Miaomiao paused: “What is it?”

Mu Yao sighed: “Before that, Murong’er cut his hair with the Broken Moon Scissors.”

“……” Ling Miaomiao blinked slowly, and half of the hope in her eyes was immediately extinguished.

Liu Fuyi looked at her. As if he could not bear to see her show that kind of expression, he took out a bulky object from his pocket and slapped it on the table very boldly.

It was a pair of iron scissors, the handles were slightly rusted.

Ling Miao Miao was shocked that he carried this kind of murder weapon with him, and when she looked at it again, she saw that a crescent moon was engraved on the pivot screw, and the scarlet rust was like blood.

“This is……”

She found it unbelievable, didn’t they say that the broken moon scissors could only be exchanged for with your predestined life expectancy?

“Guess who asked for this?