Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 66: Snowy Days, Sweet Potatoes, and Music Go Better Together
Time flies, and the years pass like a shuttle; how many times have flowers bloomed and withered, and the fragrant grass turned green? How many times have snowflakes and plum blossoms graced the scene? … Just like that, several years have passed, and winter has come again, blanketed in snow. The swirling snow covers everything, turning the world into a sea of white.
On the snow-covered path from Xiahe Village to Shanghe Village, a boy’s figure slowly emerges in the midst of the blizzard, humming a strange tune.
“Wolf Fang Moon, the beloved one looks haggard, I raise my cup, drinking in the wind and snow… Who knocked over the cabinet of the past, stirring up dust and disputes? The character ‘fate’—how many times have we reincarnated… You lock your brows and cry, but cannot call back the beautiful face…”
The boy is about thirteen or fourteen years old, with an honest face and a pair of bright, black eyes that shine even in this snowy weather. He wears a blue robe, with a black belt at his waist, black boots, and a rabbit fur hat on his head.
As he trudges through the snow, his footsteps make crunching sounds, and he holds a roasted sweet potato, blending into the swirling snow.
“I heard that snow and sweet potatoes pair well with music,” he remarks randomly as he walks, then suddenly bursts into a nervous laugh.
If it weren’t for the heavy snow, which left him alone, people would definitely think he was crazy.
Crossing the snow-covered wooden bridge and circling the foot of the mountain, he arrives at Landlord Li’s residence in Shanghe Village. The courtyard is deep and the threshold high. The boy steps up to the gate, flanked by two large stone lions, with red lanterns hanging nearby, and knocks.
Knock, knock, knock—no response. The boy shows no signs of discouragement and knocks again.
After a long while, he finally hears the impatient sound of someone stepping on the snow, grumbling in annoyance from inside the yard.
The door opens, and a servant pokes his head out, wanting to see who the fool is that disturbed his peaceful dreams on such a snowy day.
It is said that those who serve the prime minister are of no small importance.
“Haha, good morning, Uncle Li! I’ve disturbed your sweet dreams again, and I apologize,” the boy says with a silly smile on his face, handing over a roasted sweet potato as a gesture of goodwill.
“It’s you again! What, have you finished reading so quickly?” The servant takes the sweet potato, but his impatience doesn’t wane. He glances at the boy and replies irritably.
The boy is not bothered by the servant’s bad temper and continues to smile, cupping his hands and saying, “I’m just being greedy and couldn’t digest it all; I’ve only copied it down. This time, I hope Uncle Li can say a few good words, allowing me to borrow a few more books, so I won’t disturb your sweet dreams as much in the future.”
“Don’t talk nonsense; who do I think I am to help you? Just go yourself, and make sure to close the door behind you. Don’t disturb my sleep again,” the servant, despite being flattered by the boy’s words, says in a grumpy tone. The weather is so cold, and the snow is heavy, so after finishing his instructions, he hunches back into his quarters to catch up on sleep.
The boy loudly thanks the servant’s retreating figure.
After closing the gate, he follows the familiar path toward Landlord Li’s study. Borrowing books seems easy now, but when he first came here he had run into plenty of obstacles; if he had not happened to meet an old acquaintance, he would never have been able to borrow any books at all.
Landlord Li was the sort of man who liked to put on an air of refinement. With a large estate and plenty of wealth, he wanted the trappings to match. He bought calligraphy and paintings by famous artists and cartloads of poetry collections and books to furnish a study. Yet Landlord Li had never actually gone inside to read them; the books simply gathered dust. When Zhu Ping’an heard about this, he naturally wanted to help put the study to better use, but he was turned away again and again. Only after a chance encounter with an old acquaintance was he finally allowed in to borrow books. Over time, the Li household grew accustomed to the boy who occasionally came to exchange one batch for another.
The boy is also considerate: he always returns the books promptly and never damages or soils them, which is why Landlord Li allows him to keep borrowing.
As the boy quickly approaches the study, a lively and excited voice suddenly breaks his train of thought.
“Oh, Zhu Ping’an, you’re truly amazing! How did you know it would snow heavily today?”
A chubby girl with a blue ribbon tying her hair, wearing a nearly new cotton jacket, clutches a silk bag in her hand as she chirps happily while walking briskly towards him.
The boy turns his head and sees the silk bag in the girl’s hand, causing his silly smile to grow even wider.
What an innocent silly girl! She actually believes it.
Before Zhu Ping’an could say anything, another voice, crisp and pleasant like a lark flying in on a snowy day, calls out.
“Foolish Hua’er, you’ve been fooled by him.”
With the voice comes a girl who seems like a little fairy sent down by the Heavenly Emperor, wrapped in a fluffy cloak and wearing a pleated skirt, with a ribbon tied around her waist. The most striking feature is her pair of ink-black eyes, full of spirit…
Behind this girl follows a crowd, including an old nurse and several young maidservants, trailing behind her.
“Miss, I’m not a fool. Look, the note inside the silk bag says ‘It will snow today.’ This note was written by him the last time he borrowed books. How amazing! He even guessed it would snow today,” the chubby maid Hua’er pouts, feeling wronged, and unfolds the note from the silk bag for her mistress to see.
“Oh dear, you really are a silly girl! You’ve been sold by him and are still helping him count the money!” The mistress helplessly taps the girl’s forehead.
Zhu Ping’an can’t help but laugh at the wronged expression on Hua’er’s face, feeling a bit guilty inside. Maybe next time he shouldn’t trick this silly girl.
The truth of the matter is:
The last time Zhu Ping’an came to borrow books, he saw the chubby maid Hua’er eagerly muttering about wanting it to snow, almost losing her mind over it. Unable to resist teasing her, Zhu Ping’an told her he had read the I Ching and studied the art of divination. While he couldn’t call upon the wind or rain, he could predict when it would snow or rain. After that, he lit a stick of incense, pretended to calculate something, and then wrote a line on a piece of paper, sealing it in the silk bag belonging to Hua’er. He told her that she could only open the bag when it snowed, or else it wouldn’t work.
Sure enough, this morning, Hua’er got up and saw the heavy snow falling outside, blanketing everything in silver. She couldn’t wait to open the silk bag, only to find the note stating: It will snow today.
Hua’er immediately gasped in surprise, “Ah! Zhu Ping’an is so amazing!”
And that’s how the current situation came about.
Zhu Ping’an looked at the wronged maid and then at the mistress who was scolding her, finding it quite amusing. How is it that the mistress is so intelligent, almost demonic, while the maid is adorably foolish?
Just then, the mistress, who had been reprimanding the maid, suddenly noticed Zhu Ping’an staring at her. She frowned and haughtily scolded him:
“What are you looking at, toad Zhu Ping’an! If you keep staring, do you believe I’ll have someone gouge out your eyes?”
Uh-oh, indeed, even after growing from a little girl into a young lady, she remained just as proud, materialistic, cold-hearted, and dismissive of others!
If anything, she had just transformed from a cunning little girl into a cunning young woman.
Zhu Ping’an’s opinion of the proud and arrogant young lady Li Shu had not changed at all; he still disliked her. What good was beauty? Daji, Yang Yuhuan, Zhao Feiyan—the more beautiful the woman, the more trouble she brought.