Chapter 184: Shizun, I've Made You Wait a Long Time...

He quickly returned with a bowl full of rice and a lunchbox. He sat beside Chu Wanning.

Chu Wanning was slightly surprised and hesitated. "You … aren't you going to Shi Mei's table?"

Mo Ran was startled. "Why would I go to that table?"

Hearing this, Chu Wanning's mood suddenly became happy. He lowered his eyes and coughed lightly. "I thought the food over there would suit your taste."

Mo Ran saw that the tips of his ears were slightly red and suddenly realized that Chu Wanning wasn't jealous, right? His heart throbbed and he smiled. He whispered in his ear, "Wherever you are, that's where I like."

Chu Wanning's ears were completely red this time.

His knee was originally leaning against Mo Ran's, but now he felt even more sensitive and wanted to move away. Mo Ran didn't want to. Under the cover of the table, he touched Chu Wanning's leg.

"You –!"

His voice attracted the attention of others. "What's wrong with the Immortal?"

Chu Wanning knew that he had misspoken and forced himself to be calm. "Nothing."

Mo Ran held back his laughter. He felt that Chu Wanning was really interesting.

He didn't want to do anything ridiculous or lustful. After all, this was a matter of killing five hundred enemies and sacrificing a thousand of his own. He just didn't want Chu Wanning to be so far away from him.

So he grabbed Chu Wanning's leg and childishly pulled him back, wanting him to lean on him.

Chu Wanning moved away again, and he pulled him back again.

In the end, Chu Wanning couldn't take it anymore. He kicked him under the table, but he didn't run away.

Mo Ran laughed.

Chu Wanning said, "You're really sick."

The two ate.

Mo Ran first looked at Chu Wanning's bowl. Sure enough, there were only a few simple vegetables and a piece of tofu. The soup dumplings had already been eaten by the other ignorant children at the table.

Mo Ran handed him the small bamboo food box.

"What's this?"

Mo Ran whispered, "Xiao Long, six crab roe and six shrimp. I made it especially for you … Shh, don't make a sound. Eat quickly. I knew that when you're on the table, you can never win against others."

"…"

It was too obvious that he was the only one at the table. Chu Wanning felt a little embarrassed and didn't want to move. But when she saw Mo Ran's black eyes looking at her with sincerity and some flour on his cheeks, she couldn't bring herself to reject him.

What's more, the words' specially made for you 'sounded very tempting.

Chu Wanning didn't say anything. After a while, he silently opened the food box and then put the lid of the bamboo box up. He started to eat the delicious and hot crab roe. The rich and hot soup flowed out from the delicate dough, soaking into his heart and making him feel warm.

"Is it good?" The man looked at him, hoping to get a look of approval.

Chu Wanning bit his chopsticks and said, "It's not bad. You try one too."

"I'm not eating. It's all for you." Mo Ran smiled. His black eyes were full of light and warmth. "It's good that you like it. Why don't you try another shrimp one?"

The man was focused. The flour on his cheeks set off his pair of black eyes, making him look even more pitiful and cute.

Chu Wanning was still a little confused by Mo Ran's choice. He didn't understand why he gave up on Shi Mei and turned to him. But at this moment, Mo Ran's eyes were too pure and too determined. There was no room for anything else. It was enough to make anyone who was stared at by him feel at ease.

After dinner, the village chief invited everyone to watch a play outside the ancestral hall. The stage was set up by the river. The sound of copper cymbals rang out, and the Hu Qin played. On the stage, Wen Sheng, Dan Jiao, Sheng Jiao, Painted Face, and Clown Jiao appeared on the stage one after another. The play was lively. Their sleeves danced, and their faces changed. Jiao Er grabbed Cai Feijin's fire lock. With a rosin nozzle in his mouth, he raised his head and glared angrily. In an instant, a raging fire surged, shining brightly on the pearls and jade, winning the cheers of the audience.

Chu Wanning didn't want to watch this kind of trick. First, it was because the tricks in the mortal world were too clumsy. He could see through the trick at a glance, so he lost a lot of fun and excitement. Second, it was because the audience was jostling shoulder to shoulder. The scene was so lively that he couldn't enjoy it.

He wasn't interested. Shi Mei wasn't interested either. Both of them planned to leave. Mo Ran didn't say anything. He walked beside them and finally looked back at the stage.

Shi Mei said gently, "Let's go. If we go back too late, the Lord will be worried."

"Okay."

Mo Ran didn't say anything. He lowered his head and followed. But after a few steps, he heard Chu Wanning ask faintly, "Do you want to watch it?"

"It's about Wang Kai and Shi Chong competing in wealth. It's quite interesting."

He didn't say that he wanted to watch it, nor did he say that he didn't want to watch it. But Chu Wanning quietly listened to him and said, "Then let's go back and watch it before we leave."

Shi Mei was slightly startled, "Shizun, we've already delayed handing in the appointment by staying for dinner. If we stay to watch the play …"

Chu Wanning said, "Just watch this play. We'll leave after we're done."

Shi Mei was very gentle. He smiled and said, "Okay, I'll listen to Shizun."

The three of them returned to the stage and squeezed into the lively crowd. Many of the refugees in Linyi had never been to Sichuan before, so they had never watched Sichuan opera. They were shocked by the fluttering sleeves and the dazzling changes of faces. The short children couldn't see the stage. Some were carried by the adults on their necks, while others climbed on the stage and looked around.

"The King gave me the Coral Jade Tree, the light of treasure …"

On the stage, 'Wang Kai' and 'Shi Chong' tried their best to cling to the riches and splendor. Their faces and necks were red as they tried to push each other down.

"Fifty miles of purple silk road home, who can stop it?"

"Good! Hahaha, one more scene! "

The eyes of the people watching the play were shining. The children had pastries stuffed in their mouths. They freed their hands and clapped with the adults.

This was not the Upper Cultivation Realm, where there were all kinds of manners and manners. No one sat there foolishly and watched the show. They took a sip of jasmine tea, while the attendants massaged their backs and the maidservants fanned their hands. The cold air below the stage forced the performers on the stage to lose interest in singing. It was dull, and the song "Farewell My Concubine" sounded like a tortoise parting with a cricket.

These people were simple and unsophisticated, but they were in full swing. They were all standing and clapping, standing on their tiptoes and shouting. It was very boorish and lively. Chu Wanning stood in the middle of the wave, not knowing how to deal with it. A boring person like him would probably rather sit in the Upper Realm of Cultivation and listen to the tortoise parting with a cricket than watch Wang Kai fight Shi Chong in the crowd.

There was another person who didn't like this kind of intense emotion.

Shi Mei stood for a while. He seemed to have a headache from the sound of the suonas, but he still stood there with a good temper. Until a big man next to him saw the scene of "breaking the Coral Jade Tree". He jumped up and clapped fiercely. He accidentally knocked over the tea that another man was drinking. The hot tea splashed all over Shi Mei.

"Ah! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! "

"Immortal, I'm really sorry. Look at my clumsy hands and feet."

Shi Mei hurriedly said, "It's okay, it's not a problem."

But his clothes were dirty and wet. He sighed and said to Chu Wanning helplessly, "Shizun, how about I go back first? I'll go back and change my clothes, and then I'll report the result of the assignment to the Lord."

Chu Wanning said, "Okay, be careful on your way back."

Shi Mei smiled, said goodbye to Mo Ran, and left first. Chu Wanning thought that his escape technique was good. Should he find someone to crash into? That way, he wouldn't be surrounded by the enthusiastic crowd and couldn't get away. While he was deep in thought, suddenly he heard a burst of cheers from the crowd. He lifted his eyes and looked toward the stage. The actor playing Wang Kai was so enraged that his long beard was fluttering in anger. Holding the fire packet in his mouth, he suddenly spat out a huge flame into the river.

"Boom —"

The river rippled, and the sparkling water was soaked into orange-red.

"Wow! Good! "

"Spit it out again! Do it again! "

"…" Chu Wanning didn't understand. What was there to see … If Xue Meng came over, he could burn a hundred or a thousand times without using a torch.

While he was uninterested, he suddenly saw Mo Ran's smile. That tall man didn't need to stand on tiptoe at all. He just stood there calmly, and no one could block his line of sight. His handsome face was illuminated by the firelight. His dimples were deep, and his gaze was gentle but deep. It seemed that there was something in his mind that no one could see clearly.

Sensing Chu Wanning's gaze, he turned around and smiled even more brightly. His black eyes seemed to be a little wet, but it also seemed like there was nothing. It was just Chu Wanning's illusion.

"When I was young, I often went to the theater to listen to this play. Every time, I would be chased away by the manager before the play was over." Mo Ran's tone was casual and calm. "This is the first time I've listened to the whole play … Shizun, did you like it?"

"…"

Chu Wanning looked into his eyes and finally said.

"Yes, it was not bad."

Mo Ran's smile bloomed. The night seemed to have brightened up. On the stage, there was a faint chanting. It started and ended, and started again. Black eyebrows like smoke, indigo feathers rustling, the king is exhausted, the lowly concubine is still alive …

"Oh, Farewell My Concubine." Mo Ran turned around and smiled. "Let's go. You're satisfied now that you've finished watching the battle of wealth. Let's go back."

"Let's watch a while more."

"Hmm?"

"It's not that boring. There's no harm in watching a few more plays."

Mo Ran raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he was pleasantly surprised. Then he smiled brightly. "Alright."

Farewell My Concubine, Jinshan Temple, Judgment of the Double Nail, Sitting in the Tower, Killing Pity.

One play after another, no one left. As the time went by, people became more and more cheerful and energetic.

An old man was reciting along with the Yan woman on the stage. "Good words keep people warm in winter, but bad words hurt people in June."

At the most intense part of the play, Song Jiang suddenly killed people, winning the applause of the whole audience. The applause even covered the singing of the performers on the stage. Chu Wanning was pushed and patted on the shoulder by the villagers who were drunk, but he had no way to retreat. It was not good for him to lose his temper. Just as he was in a dilemma, a pair of warm hands rested on his shoulders.

He turned around and met Mo Ran's eyes. He did not know when this man had stood behind him. He smiled and brought him over, letting him lean on him and not be disturbed by the people around him.

For a moment, the laughter and the sound of gongs and drums became so distant. Chu Wanning's ears were slightly hot. He looked at Mo Ran for a moment, and finally turned his face away, unwilling to look at him again.

But the temperature behind him was so hot, and the breath was so hot. A strong chest was pressed against him, and a big hand with distinct knuckles was wrapped around his shoulder. When the drum became denser, the fire-breathing play was played again. The people's eyes were attracted, and they shouted and clapped.

Chu Wanning also wanted to reluctantly clap twice to pretend to be calm.

But before he could raise his hand, his whole body was wrapped around by Mo Ran from behind. Perhaps it was because he felt that no one would notice, or perhaps it was because he was pushed even closer by the people around him, or perhaps it was because in such a grand scene, he especially wanted to be closer to the person he was close to, and even closer. He hated that he could not be mixed into one, and his bones and blood merged.

In any case, Mo Ran lowered his eyes and hugged him from behind, encircling him in his arms. His strong arms held the person in his arms, and then he turned his face. At the moment when the fire on the stage lit up the night sky, he kissed Chu Wanning's ear.

Suddenly, the flames rose, illuminating the performer's face and burning into the hearts of the spectators.

"Thank you for accompanying me." Mo Ran whispered in his ear. His voice was low and hoarse, but very gentle. "I know that you don't like it."

"… You think too much. I like it."

Mo Ran smiled lightly and did not say anything. He hugged him even tighter, and rested his chin on his neck.

The flames flickered, and Chu Wanning suddenly wanted to ask, so he opened his mouth. "Mo Ran, why did you …"

"Hahaha, good!"

His voice was weak, and was immediately swallowed up by the clamor of the crowd.

Mo Ran asked, "What?"

"… Nothing." Chu Wanning's face was slightly red, and then it was lightly covered by a thin layer of anger. He did not want to ask this question a second time. Once used up all his strength. At this moment, he only felt very embarrassed and angry, and did not want to open his mouth again.

Mo Ran was quiet for a while. He actually did not hear Chu Wanning's question clearly, but suddenly said, "The person I like has always been you."

"…"

His heart suddenly beat fiercely.

"It's always been you. I was too stupid. In the past, I couldn't tell my own feelings."

Thump, thump, thump. His heart beat like a drum, and the sound on the stage seemed to be covered by the sound in his chest.

"I'm sorry."

"…"

"I made you wait for a long time."

His eyes were dazzled by the fireworks, and his ears were buzzing. He could not hear anything clearly, and the world was spinning. He did not know whether his feet were on the ground or in the clouds. Only the person behind him was real. The wind used to have no color and no trace, but now it had become the lingering smell of Mo Ran that lingered at the tip of his nose.

Chu Wanning actually did not want to hear too much explanation. All he wanted was a word of affirmation from the person he loved. Now that he suddenly received this affirmation, he could no longer see his surroundings clearly. In his dizziness, he felt that everything was multicolored. He couldn't think, couldn't move, and was immersed in this intense surge of oil paint. In the end, he lost his five senses.