On New Year's Eve, Jiang Wen, uncharacteristically, personally took to the kitchen. He made dumplings for the spirits in the temple, then led everyone to huddle in the kitchen to watch the Spring Festival Gala.
This time, it wasn't as chaotic as during the New Year. Everyone was comfortably eating and watching the gala on the big screen in the temple.
Jiang Wen wasn't particularly fond of the Spring Festival Gala, but the little foxes found it very novel. Perhaps it was the unique worldview of long-lived beings; the little foxes were very patient in whatever they did. They rarely felt bored doing something for a long time. Instead, they happily put their energy into it, enjoying the pleasure of repeating the same thing.
Jiang Wen had asked Bai Jing about this. Bai Jing simply told him that the difference between spirits and humans lay in this. As humans with only a short lifespan of a hundred years, their enthusiasm for anything had its limits. But spirits were different. They possessed lifespans recorded in millennia, and they wouldn't feel bored even enjoying solitude.
This made Jiang Wen think of Ziyun. As a locust tree, she had once enjoyed thousands of years of loneliness.
This situation had its good and bad sides. At least for Jiang Wen, he was still very envious of the spirits' long-lasting patience. Perhaps it was precisely because of this that humans were able to surpass the demon race in social development and become the dominant creatures in the world.
The more he interacted with the White Fox Clan, the deeper his understanding of spirits became. In this interaction, Jiang Wen felt that his mentality was slowly changing. He was no longer eager for quick success, and he had a different perspective on time. Perhaps this was because he had now become a long-lived being.
After dinner, everyone stayed in the kitchen. Because there were too many little foxes, they could only transform into their original forms to move around in the house.
Jiang Wen sat in a chair by the fireplace, listening to the crackling of the firewood in the hearth, enjoying this rare tranquility.
Bai Jing, on the other hand, transformed into a little fox, wagging several tails as she lay on him.
Yan Gongli and the Moxiang sisters sat opposite, chatting idly. From interesting events from ten thousand years ago to cultivation insights, they waited for the arrival of midnight like ordinary people.
When the countdown was broadcast on TV, the little foxes also shouted along.
"Five!"
"Four!"
"Three!"
… …
"One!"
"Happy New Year!"
"Don't worry, I'm here," Jiang Wen comforted. He didn't think that kind of thing would happen.
The temple was noisy for most of the night. The next day, when Jiang Wen woke up from meditation, he saw a dense crowd of white foxes as soon as he opened the door.
They were all squatting in the courtyard, waiting for Jiang Wen to appear.
Seeing Jiang Wen's door open, they all congratulated him in unison: "Wishing True Man Jiang boundless happiness and longevity as high as the Southern Mountain. May you become a saint and ancestor, and be one with the heavens."
"Good, good, good." Jiang Wen was overjoyed listening to the little foxes' New Year blessings. Regardless of the content of the blessings, the New Year's flavor was definitely abundant.
He couldn't help but wave his hand, and countless red envelopes flew out of his sleeves. They densely formed the style of "Ten Thousand Swords Returning to Their Origin," shooting down towards the little foxes.
The little foxes were first surprised, then happily shouted: "Grab the red envelopes!"
Suddenly, a chaotic fox battle was inevitable, and the scene was extremely chaotic.
Even the other few were alarmed, and couldn't help but take action to snatch one or two of the red envelopes flying all over the sky.
Opening them, they saw that each one contained eight hundred and eighty-eight yuan, which felt like an unexpected surprise.
"Your Ten Thousand Swords Technique has become so proficient that you can even control these red envelopes," Yan Gongli joked.
"That's natural. I've been preparing for this for a long time," Jiang Wen said proudly.
After all, for this effect, he had prepared ten thousand red envelopes. Scattering them all at once naturally had a spectacular effect.
After the New Year greetings were finished, Jiang Wen also gave everyone New Year gifts. The lively New Year began like this, and there were many people who came to the temple to worship.
Jiang Wen also spent a lot of incense points to bestow blessings on the people who came to worship the gods during the New Year. At least in this year, everyone would be smooth and successful.
Opening his phone, there were many people who sent him blessings. Wang Sheng's family sent a message, wishing him a Happy New Year. They also sent a large red envelope, which turned out to be five eights. Old Master Shen also had New Year blessings, and also gave the temple a sum of incense money. Looking at eight eights, Jiang Wen couldn't help but sigh that the richest man in Jiangcheng, the Shen family, was indeed wealthy.
Shen Yue Shu and her sisters also sent messages. After Jiang Wen replied to them, he also gave each of them a red envelope, as a gesture of care for the younger generation. His sister-in-law also sent greetings, and he gave a corresponding red envelope.
After finishing the New Year greetings to acquaintances, Jiang Wen came to a cemetery at the foot of the mountain and placed offerings in front of several tombstones.
Here were his grandparents and his parents.
Jiang Wen still remembered his father once saying that if they, the couple, died, there was no need for too many ceremonies. Just come to their graves to see them during the New Year.
He had always kept his word and would come back to see them every year.
Perhaps even in life and death, they still wanted to see how he was doing each year.
"You two can rest assured, I'm doing very well." Jiang Wen poured a glass of wine, staring at the tombstone for a long time before slowly leaving. His footprints were imprinted in the mud, following the mountain road away.
There was no flying through the air, nor shrinking the earth into inches. It was just simple walking, not even paying attention to the mud on the ground. Letting the snow water and mud dust pollute the snow, letting the cold wind in the mountains blow against his ears.
Jiang Wen just wanted to walk quietly, to feel this long-lost ordinariness.
"Squeak." The little guy crawled out of his chest, looking at the surrounding environment with its eyes open. Perhaps it wasn't familiar with this place because it wasn't in the temple. It cried out to Jiang Wen, rubbing its head against his chest.
"Are you awake?" Jiang Wen couldn't help but smile at the little celestial fox's appearance. He gently scratched its face, taking it away slowly.
The little guy had been growing quickly these days, and its dependence on Jiang Wen had also increased. Most of the time, even Bai Jing couldn't separate it from Jiang Wen, so much so that Bai Jing often complained that he had abducted the White Fox Clan's future hope.
Jiang Wen denied this. Regardless of whether the little guy would become the White Fox Clan's leader in the future, he would take good care of it.
"Let's go, let's go home."
"Squeak ~"
