Chapter 19: First Meeting with the Master

Qin Huan was speechless, but then she sat up straight, her whole demeanor returning to its usual cool and aloof state.

Jiang Jingchu ran his tongue across the inside of his cheek, giving a thin smile.  “Don’t be so stiff; it’s easy to blow our cover.”

When Jiang Jingchu and Qin Huan got off the cable car, the dark night sky, which had initially only had a few occasional silver streaks, had transformed into a flurry of rapidly appearing “fireworks,” brilliantly illuminating the entire sky, like pearls falling to earth.

Everyone craned their necks, engrossed in the celestial spectacle.

Only one person didn’t look up, instead focusing on the woman beside him, his gaze gentle, lingering, and full of affection.

By this time, the meteor shower was at its peak.

Qin Huan tilted her slender neck, her face glowing under the illumination of the meteors.

Then, someone in the crowd suddenly reminded,

“Hurry and make a wish! There are so many meteors tonight; even the most greedy wishes might come true.”

Qin Huan quickly closed her eyes.

First, that little Qin Zhiyi is healthy, happy, and grows up strong.

Second, that Jiang Jingchu is safe and sound, and all his wishes come true.

Third…

Qin Huan thought for a moment.

Third, that Wen Li’s career flourishes, and he finds his own special someone soon.

“Jiang Jingchu, you should make a wish too.”

After making her wishes, Qin Huan eagerly opened her eyes, meeting Jiang Jingchu’s gaze, which he hadn’t had time to retract.

Jiang Jingchu’s eyes flickered, his voice low and magnetic.

“Do you think the heir apparent of the Jiang family needs to rely on wishes to get anything?”

Although Qin Huan didn’t believe in gods or Buddhas, she was somewhat superstitious due to her grandmother’s influence.

She quickly reached out to cover his lips.

“Don’t speak so confidently! Spit three times to reverse it!”

Jiang Jingchu’s eyes curved slightly, his mouth making a “woo woo” sound.

Qin Huan then let go.

Jiang Jingchu smiled.

“Got it, Master.”

And, obediently spat three times, his demeanor casual and roguish.

Jiang Jingchu’s calling Qin Huan “Master” stemmed from their first encounter.

That summer, Qin Huan had just experienced a major turning point in her life: the college entrance examination.

In the afternoon, Qin Huan, in a simple white T-shirt and jeans, with her hair in a neat ponytail, carried a thermos and walked towards Mingxi Mountain.

Mingxi Mountain was the only tourist attraction in the town, famous for the Yue Lao Temple on the mountain, which had a history of nearly three hundred years.

During holidays, many tourists came here, and Qin Huan’s grandmother would set up a table at the entrance of the scenic area to tell fortunes, supplementing their household income.

Qin Huan walked quickly, arriving at the entrance of the scenic area with sweat on her forehead. She took a breath, placed the thermos on a nearby stone table, and went to the public restroom to wash her face.

A splash of cool water refreshed her.

Looking in the mirror in front of the washbasin, she saw two luxury cars pull up one after another, followed by three or four boys around her age, who walked over laughing.

“Wait for me, I’ll go pee.”

One of the boys with a perm said, ducking into the nearby men’s restroom, while the others leaned against the stone table, lazily smoking.

The restroom had poor soundproofing, and Qin Huan vaguely heard the boy with the perm answer a phone call.

“We agreed to part ways amicably. What do you mean by clinging to me like this?”

The other person said something, and the boy with the perm impatiently clicked his tongue.

“Enough already. We’ve only been together for less than half a month. One Hermès bag is enough to compensate you. Take it and leave. Maybe we can still greet each other when we meet again.”

Qin Huan raised an eyebrow, calmly turning off the faucet and walking out.

Jiang Jingchu took a puff of his cigarette, boredly exhaling smoke rings, his narrow eyes glancing at a girl whose face was still wet, like a water lily, walking straight towards him.

“Wow, Young Master Jiang, you’re always lucky with women. Look, isn’t that little white flower coming for you?”

Faced with the teasing, Jiang Jingchu scoffed, saying nothing, but a roguish smile curved his lips.

Watching the “little white flower” walk straight in front of him, he casually blew out a puff of smoke.

“No WeChat, no phone.”

Qin Huan had never encountered such a ridiculous situation. She frowned, scanning the boy in front of her: sharp jawline, full lips, straight nose, and an arrogant, imperious gaze.

Tsk, what a handsome face, but what a fool.

“Excuse me, I need to get something.”

Qin Huan said expressionlessly, using a clever move to reach behind Jiang Jingchu, pulling him hard, causing him to stumble almost losing his balance.

Then, she shook the thermos she was holding, and turned to leave amid the stunned expressions of the group.

“Damn, Young Master Jiang, was that wishful thinking? That’s amazing! I’ve never seen anything like it!”

Jiang Jingchu didn’t expect this either. He scoffed, biting hard on the cigarette holder, his gaze slowly falling on the “little white flower” as she walked away.

Even from afar, Qin Huan could still hear the laughter of the group.

She didn’t care, thinking about her grandmother who was still hungry, and quickened her pace.

Qin Nai Nai, with silver hair but strong eyes, saw her granddaughter from afar and felt incredibly distressed.

“Oh, Huan’er, I told you not to bring food. I brought my own.”

Qin Huan smiled, handing the thermos to her grandmother.

“Grandma, I’m on vacation now, and I have time to cook. Don’t eat those steamed buns and pickles anymore.”

She pulled her grandmother up and pushed her towards the nearby visitor center.

“Go eat, Grandma. Rest there for a while. I’ll call you if there’s any business.”

After seeing her grandmother leave, Qin Huan breathed a sigh of relief, casually pulling up a chair and sitting down, taking out her phone.

After playing for a while, feeling tired, Qin Huan leaned back on the chair, took a nearby fan, and covered her face, closing her eyes to rest.

When Jiang Jingchu and his group arrived, this was the scene they saw.

Under the sunlight, the girl leaned leisurely on the chair, her smooth, black ponytail hanging loosely behind her.

The fan covered her cheeks, barely revealing a small section of her fair and full forehead, reminding people of scenes from Miyazaki Hayao’s cartoons, beautiful and exquisite.

However, at this moment, Han Xian didn’t have such romantic thoughts. After coming out of the restroom and hearing about Jiang Jingchu’s embarrassing situation, he was already very interested in the woman who didn’t care about Young Master Jiang’s appearance.

Now, having been told that the woman he was interested in was this girl, he immediately became interested and wanted to lift the fan to see her face.

Glancing at the divination sticks on the small square table, Han Xian had an idea, clearing his throat.

“Beautiful lady, can I get a fortune told?”

Qin Huan was about to doze off when she was suddenly awakened, thinking it was business, and was about to find her grandmother.

However, after removing the fan and focusing her vision, she saw the group of young masters she had met at the restroom entrance, and lazily lay back down.

“No.”

“No?”

Han Xian had just recovered from Qin Huan’s pure and beautiful appearance, and he couldn’t believe it when he heard this. He laughed.

“Is it that you don’t want to, or that you can’t?”

Qin Huan didn’t lift her head or open her eyes.

“Fortune-telling also depends on fate. You guys aren’t sincere, so I won’t do it.”

Jiang Jingchu never believed in fortune-telling, and he knew Qin Huan’s excuse.

“Forget it. She doesn’t even take business that comes to her, so why bother?”

Jiang Jingchu said, raising his foot to leave, but Han Xian grabbed him.

He took out his wallet, pulling out a few pink bills and placing them on Qin Huan’s table.

“Beautiful lady, is this sincere enough?”

Seeing Qin Huan’s eyes lightly scan the red bills, Han Xian pressed on, taking out the remaining money from his wallet.

“This is all yours if you tell a good fortune.”

Qin Huan’s watery eyes finally showed a ripple of emotion.

Jiang Jingchu thought, so she’s not that great after all; she’s just greedy for money.

He saw the girl slowly sit up straight, handing the divination sticks to Han Xian.

“Think about what you want to know first, then shake.”

Then, she waited leisurely for Han Xian to shake the sticks.

Han Xian was just teasing Qin Huan, pretending to shake the sticks a few times, handing the stick that fell out to Qin Huan.

“Come on, Master, tell me about my love life.”