Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 327 Opening the Blind Box
"I woke up early this morning and opened the window. I felt…it looked like it was going to rain."

When he woke up in the morning, Chen Xuan muttered to himself as he looked at the gloomy sky. He continued to practice the calming and health-preserving exercises in the yard. The sultry air in the midsummer morning could not affect his mood.

Even though the Qi-calming and health-preserving exercises are of no use to him now, he has been practicing them since he was a child and they have become an indispensable part of his every morning. Even knives raining from the sky cannot stop him from doing this exercise.

Gao Jingming was reading in the study. He looked up at Chen Xuan outside the window and was slightly speechless. He always felt that something was wrong with Chen Xuan today, but he couldn't tell what was wrong.

It clearly looks no different from before.

In their residence in the capital, they lived together in the backyard, but the buildings were separate, just like when they were in Gao's house.

Gao Jingming didn't understand, so he simply stopped worrying about it and continued reading with his head down.

Chen Xuan moved around for a while, and early in the morning, not long after he got up, he inexplicably asked the maid to bring him hot water for a bath.

Seeing this, Gao Jingming felt that something was wrong with Chen Xuan. He wanted to say something but couldn't. He was so distracted that he couldn't even concentrate on reading. Something must be wrong with Xuan.

After taking a shower and changing into clean clothes, Chen Xuan stood in front of the bronze mirror, looked at himself, and nodded with satisfaction.

His clothes nowadays are very simple in style, mainly in blue, white and black, some are three-color, some are solid colors, which have the elegance of Confucian robes and the chivalrousness of knight's robes. There are no fancy decorative patterns on his clothes, which makes them look very plain. However, his clothes are so stylish that he looks good in anything he wears.

After taking a shower, he put on black and white clothes, which, combined with his indifferent expression, gave people an air of being at peace with the world.

He looked at himself for a moment, and for some reason he leaned closer to the bronze mirror to examine himself carefully. His face, chiseled by a knife and an axe, was flawless, his eyebrows sharp, his eyes bright, his nose hairs hadn't grown out of his nostrils, his mouth was open, and his teeth were white and even...

Looking sideways, Gao Jingming saw Chen Xuan busy in the room through the window. He was so stunned that he almost dropped the book on the table.

Something is wrong. Something is very wrong with A Xuan today!
Soon after, the maid brought breakfast. While eating, Gao Jingming looked at Chen Xuan from time to time, wanting to say something but not knowing where to start.

Chen Xuan didn't notice Gao Jingming's strange reaction, as if his mind had already flown away to who knows where.

Breakfast was almost over when Gao Jingming couldn't help but ask, "A Xuan, are you nervous?"

After a pause, Chen Xuan said in bewilderment, "Young Master, why are you saying that? Why am I so nervous for no reason? Are you kidding me? I wouldn't even blink if the sky fell. Do you think I would be nervous?"

"Explanation is concealment, and concealment means guilt!" Gao Jingming said confidently. He was sure that Chen Xuan was nervous.

The two brothers grew up together, so they know each other very well. Chen Xuan's series of actions in the morning showed that he was not at peace, but Chen Xuan probably didn't even realize it.

"Master, you don't have a fever, do you?" Chen Xuan said speechlessly.

Gao Jingming looked at you with a questioning look on his face: "Stop it, Xuan, are you in trouble? Do you need help?"

"Since you don't have a fever, young master, why are you talking nonsense? I'm fine. What could happen to me?" Chen Xuan shook his head subconsciously. For some reason, the two of them, who had been able to talk about everything since childhood, actually concealed the fact that he was going to meet Ji this time.

Sighing, Gao Jingming smiled wistfully and said, "It's only been two days since I came to the capital, Ah Xuan, you've changed. You've become a stranger to me."

That being said, for some reason, Gao Jingming felt happy for Chen Xuan from the bottom of his heart. Although he didn't know what Chen Xuan was nervous about or what he was hiding, it didn't matter. Chen Xuan would definitely tell him later when he couldn't hide it.

"That's weird. Master, if you are in the mood to chat with me, why don't you read some books? Don't you plan to take the imperial examination? Let's go. I'll continue to go out for a stroll, eat, drink and have fun, so that you can be free and unrestrained." After eating and drinking his fill, Chen Xuan said this and stood up to leave.

Then Gao Jingming saw that Chen Xuan, who had already gone out, ran back and took an umbrella with him. It looked like it was going to rain that day, but after a while, Chen Xuan ran back, rinsed his mouth, and exhaled, as if there was no bad smell in his mouth. Then he nodded with satisfaction and left.

Gao Jingming was completely dumbfounded by this series of actions. "You still say you're not nervous?" He was so forgetful and distracted. When had Chen Xuan ever behaved like this since he was a child?

Seeing that Chen Xuan hadn't returned, Gao Jingming actually wanted to secretly follow him to see what he was up to. But then he thought better of it. Not only was he not capable of following Chen Xuan, what was the point in following him? It would be better to pretend he knew nothing. Chen Xuan would definitely tell him later...

Chen Xuan went out and recalled the direction of Jinghu Lake. He passed through the city and walked towards that direction. It was still early, so he was not in a hurry, really.

As they were walking, they came to a remote place and Chen Xuan couldn't help but cover his face. How embarrassing! It was just meeting an online friend, not going through fire and water. Why was he so worried?

It's a joke.

Well, meeting an "online friend" is just like opening a blind box. Before you meet them, you never know whether they are a man or a woman, old or young, young or old, or ugly. Chen Xuan has never experienced this in his two lifetimes.

They'd known each other for years, but had never met in person. All they knew was that the other person was most likely a woman, and nothing else. Based solely on the impressions they'd exchanged through letters, it was inevitable that they'd formed a preconceived notion about the other person. When the time came, how could Chen Xuan not be anxious? What if, after meeting, the other person turned out to be a shaggy, ungainly man? That would be truly thrilling, shattering all previous impressions. It would be like the end of the world.

So, when it comes to meeting online friends, more than 90% of the time, things will end in disappointment after the meeting. Everything that happened before the meeting will never go back to how it was before. It's so magical and realistic.

When Chen Xuan saw this kind of thing on the Internet in his previous life, he just thought it was funny. Now that it was his turn, he realized how complicated this kind of thing was.

"Who cares? I don't want anything from him. We've known each other for many years, so I'll accept him even if he's a seven-foot tall man." Taking a deep breath, Chen Xuan, with the idea that if he sticks his head out he'll get hurt, and if he hides his head he'll get hurt too, he'll get hurt too. He put aside all distractions and headed towards his destination.

We are just friends, not an online relationship, so it's not a disaster.

But, but then again, he also hoped that the friends he had never met would not be too different from his imagination. Whether he admitted it or not, everyone yearned for a better life...

Jinghu Lake is located in the southern part of the city. It is a beautiful lake with irregular shape. The widest part is more than ten miles, and the narrowest part is seven or eight miles. The lake water is clear, and on windless days, it is as calm as a mirror. There are many pavilions and towers along the lakeside. Usually, many people go there to play, especially boating on the lake, which is quite interesting.

It is worth mentioning that there is a floating island floating above Mirror Lake, only five or six hundred meters above the lake surface. The floating island is the leisure villa of Princess Fuyao of Jing Kingdom.

If it is a rainy day, you can't see the small island in the void from below.

"With my great Grandmaster's cultivation, there is nothing in the world that I dare not face, absolutely nothing!"

On the way to Mirror Lake, Chen Xuan, in an effort to alleviate his anxiety, couldn't help but think to himself, "That little princess's leisure villa is so high up, she's practically exposed to the elements. Isn't she afraid of getting rheumatism?" Especially during a thunderstorm, she's just looking for excitement.

However, if I can think of this, how could others not think of ways to avoid such a situation in advance? The formation covers the capital, and I am afraid that even thunderstorms cannot strike those places.

Don't say that, even though he was thinking about all sorts of random things, Chen Xuan's mood actually calmed down inexplicably.

It started to drizzle while they were still on the road. Fortunately, Chen Xuan had brought an umbrella with him. He walked in the rain with the umbrella, and the rain gradually wet the corners of his clothes.

In fact, Chen Xuan likes rainy days very much. The sound of rain can cover everything and make him feel peaceful and happy.

Those who love mountains are steady, those who love water are kind, and those who love rain are quiet. What you like is closely related to your own personality.

When Chen Xuan arrived at the edge of Jinghu Lake, the rain was like a curtain, creating countless ripples on the surface of the lake. The lake was vast and misty. Looking into the distance through the rain curtain, there were many buildings shrouded in the mist and rain.

Many boats were swaying on the lake, laughter and joy could be heard faintly, and tourists were strolling along the lakeside. Time seemed to have slowed down at this moment.

The agreed time was almost up, so Chen Xuan made some inquiries and headed towards Zuixianlou.

It was a restaurant built on the lakeside, half of which extended into the lake. It was decorated with carved beams and painted buildings. It was not magnificent, but more simple and peaceful. You could enjoy the beautiful scenery of Jinghu Lake while sipping tea and drinking wine and opening the window.

Zuixianlou is one of the most famous restaurants in Beijing. It is one of the must-visit places for outsiders. It has a profound background. If you want to consume there, you have to make a reservation in advance. Even on some special days, reservations have to be made several months in advance.

As the autumn examination was approaching, countless scholars and writers came to the capital, and it was unknown how many days were left to wait for reservations at Zuixianlou.

But Chen Xuan just asked his good friend yesterday if he wanted to make an appointment, and today the other party arranged it. This is really capable.

When he arrived at the gate of Zuixianlou, Chen Xuan's originally calm mood became inexplicably tense again. There were many tourists around, so he hid himself under an umbrella and looked around furtively. Everyone looked like a good buddy to him, and no one looked like a good buddy to him.

While he was hesitating, a receptionist from Zuixianlou approached and said with a sweet smile, "Sir, you have been here for quite some time. Do you have a reservation?"

It seemed like they were asking if I had a reservation, but in fact they were trying to chase me away. They almost told me to stay at the door if I had nothing to do.

Raising his head slightly, Chen Xuan smiled and said, "I came here at the invitation of a friend."

"I'm sorry for being rude. I don't know who your friend is. Let me show you the way," the receptionist said politely.

Yesterday, my good friend replied to me with a letter, without mentioning any specific names, but with a code word for the contact, as if it were something that could not be seen in public. Chen Xuan recalled briefly, "The wind blows through the sycamore leaves without a sound."

Upon hearing this, the receptionist smiled eagerly and said, "Sir, please follow me."

……

(End of this chapter)