Chapter 29 Praying with Sugared Hawthorns 保留的格式如下：章節內容具體的翻譯保

urned into a snowman. Shaking off the accumulated snow from her body, Qi Lin exercised to loosen up her stiff limbs and closed her eyes, commanding herself to forget about the dream just now.She looke...Chapter 29: Making a Wish with Candy on a Stick

"Our humble home is unworthy of such good friends. Please don't flatter us."

Qi Lin and Mu Qingfeng were sitting inside the small house, where a hole in the roof allowed the setting sun to cast natural light. Qiuyan's mother, frail from illness, lay on the only bed with a coarse blanket over her; she looked haggard and occasionally coughed.

Qiuyan had been squatting beside Blackie all along, sometimes touching his bandaged forehead, but he was still watching Qi Lin carefully to ensure that she wouldn't expose him for stealing things.

"Our humble abode has nothing decent to offer you both. Please bear with us. Cough cough..." Qiuyan's mother started coughing again as she spoke.

"Mother, are you okay" Qiuyan put aside his play and ran to the bedside, gently patting her back as he worriedly looked at her.

"It is I who am being rude for dropping in unannounced," Mu Qingfeng smiled faintly. Looking at Qi Lin, he added, "Xue, she wouldn't mind."

Qi Lin nodded and gave Mu Qingfeng a grateful look; to sit with her in this dilapidated house and still smile so gently was indeed worthy of the friend he was.

Even here, Mu Qingfeng exuded an air of nobility that seemed to ennoble the place.

Qi Lin handed a meat bun to the old woman with a smile. "This is my way of making up for it."

The old lady tried to wave her hand in refusal but was too breathless to speak properly.

"Take it, not just for yourself but also for your child." She placed the bun into the woman's hands and said with a smile, "Eat this."

The old woman looked at Qi Lin gratefully; tears welled up in her eyes as she lowered her head to weep.

"Mother, when I grow up, I will definitely give you a good life. Eat this bun now, and I'll work harder for it later," Qiuyan gently patted his mother's back and said earnestly while also looking at Qi Lin with gratitude.

After sitting inside the house for some time, Qiuyan's mother began coughing heavily; Mu Qingfeng stepped forward to take her pulse. Only then did Qi Lin realize that Mu Qingfeng knew some medical skills. Not wanting to disturb him while he was concentrating on taking the woman's pulse, she got up and left the small house.

"Wait a moment."

Turning around, Qi Lin saw Qiuyan running out with some fruit in his hands. He put them into her arms and said awkwardly, "I will definitely return your money one day; these fruits are to apologize for today's trouble."

"In the name of these few fruits, I forgive you. The money is also settled, but you have to answer me a couple of questions or else... " Qi Lin bent down and patted his head, adding with a smile, "I will tell your mother about what you did."

"Okay, okay, just ask; as long as you don't tell my mother, I'll say anything that I know." Upon hearing the threat to expose him to his mother, Qiuyan immediately agreed.

Zi Lin pinched Qiyuan's face, then found a clean and flat rock to sit on. She patted the space beside her and asked Qiyuan to sit down. Initially, Qiyuan was worried, but seeing Zi Lin’s harmless eyes made him walk over cautiously.

"What happened to your injuries" This was the first question she had in mind; after all, he wasn’t injured when they first met. "Did someone beat you up Or were you caught while stealing something"

"No." At the mention of stealing, Qiyuan’s face turned red with shame as he shook his head and said, “I originally planned to use your silver coins to hire a doctor for my mother, but on the way I met Fat Tiger who took away all my silver coins and even…”

Zi Lin could almost imagine how this scrawny kid was beaten up by a group of children. She patted Qiyuan’s shoulder gently.

"Does it hurt" she asked softly, but seeing him shaking his head, Zi Lin had to ask the next question, "How did your mother fall ill"

"It's all the shadows' fault," said Qiyuan tightly clutching his hands together. “A few days ago, my mother and I were picking herbs when we heard a strange sound on our way back home. It sounded like rats, but then we saw numerous shadow creatures flying past us. My mother protected me by shielding me with her body and got hit by the shadows; ever since she returned home, she fell seriously ill.”

"Did you get to see what those shadow creatures looked like"

The shadow creature was extremely terrifying. It could disperse into thousands of soldiers or converge back together, emitting a horrifying howl," said Qiyuan as he hugged himself and trembled in fear. "Since then, there has been one shadow creature every night. I even came across one."

"You came across one" Zi Lin looked at him with surprise. Could you actually meet them

“Yes,” Qiyuan paused for a moment and recalled that incident as he became somewhat afraid. “A shadow flew past me, hitting my body. I thought it was fruit from the tree, but when I grabbed onto it, it felt furry and scratched at me.”

Seeing Qiyuan’s trembling skinny body, Zi Lin held him in her arms to comfort him saying, "Don’t be afraid, Qiyuan. Snow Sister will protect you."

"Really" said Qiyuan as he looked up with shining eyes at Zi Lin. “Those are shadow creatures. Aren't you scared”

“No.” At first she was wondering what kind of monster this would be, but after hearing Qiyuan’s explanation, Zi Lin wasn’t afraid anymore and even felt a little confident. She patted her chest and said with conviction, "Sister always keeps my word. I will definitely catch those shadow creatures, no—I’ll find out the truth to make sure you’re not scared anymore."

For some reason, seeing Zi Lin’s determined look made Qiyuan suddenly feel less afraid. He grinned and showed his two small fangs.

At this moment, Mu Qingfeng just walked out. Seeing the cheerful smile on Zi Lin's face, he smiled as well and approached them saying, "Is there anything that has you so happy You can tell me."

“Big Brother,” when Qiyuan saw Mu Qingfeng coming over, he ran to him immediately and held his hand while asking. “Big Brother, how is my mother”

Only after saying this did he realize that he was not worthy of holding hands with Mu Qingfeng. Qiyuan quickly let go and stepped back.

"Your mother has already gone to sleep. Don't worry; she just got a fright, caught a cold, but it will be fine once she takes some medicine," said Mu Qingfeng as he patted Qiyuan’s head gently before turning to look at Zi Lin with a smile. "I gave her one Wind-Dispelling Pill and I’m sure she won’t cough anymore tonight. Tomorrow we’ll buy more medicine, which should heal her in three days."

Zi Lin folded her arms and nodded thoughtfully towards Mu Qingfeng. She couldn't tell at all; he actually carried such things with him.

"Really" Upon hearing this, Qiyuan grabbed Mu Qingfeng's hand again and nearly jumped up. "You're not joking with me, right, Big Brother My mother is alright She won't die"

"No." Mu Qingfeng gave Qiyuan a definite answer.

"Oh, that’s wonderful." Qiyuan was elated and kept jumping while pulling on Mu Qingfeng's hand, laughing heartily.

Qi Lin felt a pang in her heart; someone so young being worried about his mother dying must have been under great pressure before.

Mu Qingfeng gave Qiyuan some silver coins and told him to buy medicine for his mother the next day, also giving him his address and telling him that if he had any issues, he could find Mu Qingfeng. Qi Lin also casually mentioned her own address to Qiyuan and lectured him.

Qi Lin told Qiyuan that no matter how hard or tiring it was, he mustn't steal or rob; such behavior is disgraceful.

After receiving Qiyuan's guarantee, Qi Lin hooked pinkies with Qiyuan before going down the mountain.

"Thank you today." On their way back, Qi Lin said while walking, "If not for you, I really wouldn't know what to do."

She was referring to Qiyuan's mother; although she came from the twenty-first century, she wasn’t skilled in herbal medicine and couldn't help Qiyuan as much.

"It’s just a small favor." Mu Qingfeng smiled slightly, looking at the setting sun and said, "I also want to thank you."

Huh

Qi Lin frowned in confusion; what did she do that he had to thank her for

Mu Qingfeng pointed at the red horizon and said, "Such a beautiful scene is rare indeed. If not for Miss Asha, how would I get to taste such delicious buns or see this magnificent view"

Qi Lin finally understood what Mu Qingfeng was saying; she giggled as she looked at the sunset, feeling a slight sadness.

"The setting sun is infinitely beautiful but alas it is near dusk."

"Great poem!" Mu Qingfeng folded his fan and smacked his palm, exclaiming, "How poetic to say 'the setting sun is infinitely beautiful but alas it is near dusk'; I didn’t expect Miss Asha to be so talented."

Hmm Realizing she had inadvertently quoted a poem from the ancients, Qi Lin awkwardly smiled and said, "No no, this isn't my original work. I meant that...this line of poetry was written by someone I know."

"Oh May I ask who is this person and where are they now" Mu Qingfeng enjoys making friends and even more so loves to compose poems together; he couldn’t let such a good verse slip away, "Please tell me."

"Well…" Qi Lin scratched her head in embarrassment and said, "Unfortunately, my friend travels around without a fixed home, wandering far and wide. I have no idea where they are now."

She hoped to get away with it, but Qi Lin regretfully looked at Mu Qingfeng. When she saw the disappointed look in Mu Qingfeng's eyes, Qi Lin finally let out a sigh of relief and apologized silently to Li Shangyin in her heart.

By the time they returned to the inn, it was already dark. Lüzhu was anxiously waiting at the door of the inn; when she saw Qi Lin, she almost burst into tears.

Mu Qingfeng originally wanted to stay for dinner but had to leave in a hurry due to business matters and reminded Qi Lin not to go out and remember to close the windows before leaving.

After finishing dinner, Qi Lin took an impromptu bath. Lüzhu then told her that most people believed the ghostly figure seen was the late emperor's second prince Bai Qianye returning for vengeance, which started to cast doubts on Feng Changqing’s reign.

The Taoist priests also claimed it was Bai Qianye’s restless spirit causing havoc, which made people even more fearful. As a result, many citizens began purchasing so-called talismans frequently in hopes of warding off evil.

Of course, Qi Lin didn’t believe in ghosts and spirits causing trouble.

Sitting on the bed after bathing, Lüzhu brought over a tray.

"Miss, what is this"

Qi Lin took one look and recognized it as the fruit Qiyuan had given her. She realized that these were fresh hawthorns; Qi Lin picked up one to taste and immediately felt its sourness.

"If we made candied haws, they would be delicious." Although very sour.

“Candied haws What’s that” Lüzhu looked at Qi Lin with a puzzled expression. "Is it like a wine gourd"

Qi Lin frowned slightly and stared at her in surprise.

This place and this era didn't have candied haws!

Intrigued, she came up with an idea that pleased her. She had Lüzhu buy some sugar the next morning despite limited materials and made a batch of syrup using it and some fragrance essence. Thus, Qi Lin crafted the first candied haw in Fenghuang Kingdom.

"Are these candied haws" Mu Qingfeng examined the freshly-made candied haws carefully before looking at Qi Lin's confident eyes and asked, "For me"

Qi Lin nodded. "This is the first batch."

"Then I feel truly honored." With that, Mu Qingfeng took a bite of one of them. The sweetness of the syrup was pleasant at first; however, as soon as he bit into it, the tartness made him frown slightly, but together they had another flavor. "Not bad. You want Qiyuan to make candied haws and sell them for profit"

“You are truly a shrewd businessman.” Qi Lin snapped her fingers and said with satisfaction, “This is an unprecedented business opportunity. It’s simple and affordable; it will allow Qiyuan to support himself.”

"Indeed.nsultation among us, the only one capable of handling this task is Prince Ziyin.""Yes, Your Majesty. Prince Ziyin has earned the title of National Safeguard for our dynasty, undefeated in a hundred ba...