Chapter 102: Youth Fireworks Festival
People come and go in front of the temple.
When the sunset glow faded and the sky darkened, Heimiya Chiye saw off Suzuka Haruhi and others who had been listening for two hours.
Before leaving, Pinggong Qianye vaguely saw that their watery eyes were filled with confusion and puzzlement, as if they were doubting something.
Perhaps they have realized from Buddhism how wonderful life is.
In addition to allowing them to return home with a full load, the temple also received a considerable amount of donations because of its lectures on Buddhist teachings.
Speaking of which, girls are really generous when it comes to the things they like.
Classmate Lianghua alone donated 10 yen to the temple. It was probably the New Year's money she had saved for a long time.
The other five girls also each offered a considerable sum of money.
"Master Liansheng, you are my Buddha!"
Now that there were no outsiders present, Ruyi, who had been taciturn all along, became visibly excited.
Just now, he was standing aside and saw with his own eyes how Master Liansheng received the six female donors who came with unclean purposes such as covetousness, teasing, and ambiguity.
There was no anger, no shyness, no timidity, but he defused their numerous verbal attacks with a nonchalant attitude.
By changing the topic again, he led them into the door of Buddhism, and they listened quietly and obediently to the Dharma for two hours.
What is Buddha?
How to believe in Buddhism?
How can we use the wisdom of Buddha to deal with things and behave in our daily lives?
The topic progressed step by step, so that they left with a full knowledge of Buddhism.
This is what every true Buddhist practitioner should do.
This is also the direction in which we should study and work hard.
As he had said before, Guru Padmasambhava is the Buddha on his path of practice!
"It seems a little late now."
Pinggong Qianye ignored Ruyi who was already showing signs of going crazy. He looked up at the dark sky, then glanced at the time on his phone. It was almost 6:.
Tonight is the time for the Sumida River Fireworks Festival, and he had previously agreed with Horii Suzune to meet near Asakusa Station.
Even though it was a unilateral decision made by Horii Suzune, he did not object.
With a light touch of his finger, he turned to the unread message interface, and sure enough, there were two messages from Horii Suzune.
[Hiramiya-san, it’s getting late. In case you forget what day it is tonight, I’m letting you know in advance. See you at Asakusa Station at 7pm.]
[I have already set off and will arrive in about 20 minutes]
Well, there is still half an hour until 7 o'clock. If I can catch the tram, I will almost make it.
Pinggong Qianye put away his cell phone, closed the temple door, and went to the station with Ruyi.
Recently, Ruyi has been staying with Hase Shuichi, traveling back and forth between Shinjuku Ward and Arakawa Ward every day.
"It turns out that Master Liansheng is also interested in tonight's fireworks display."
Ruyi, who successfully got on the same train with Chiya Hiramiya, began to look for topics to talk about.
Shinjuku District and Asakusa Station are not on the same route, but he doesn't mind changing trains at Asakusa Station, and he can also choose to visit Sensoji Temple.
"Something just happened."
Pinggong Qianye didn't start the small talk, he just felt very hungry.
This afternoon, I was so busy explaining Buddhism to those girls that I barely drank any water. I was also rushing to Asakusa Station and hadn’t even had dinner yet.
There's nothing he can do about it; he's always punctual and doesn't like to be late.
……
Asakusa Station saw a surge in passenger traffic tonight, with people from many areas and tourists from other places choosing to come here to watch the Sumida River Fireworks Festival.
Because this has always been a good viewing point.
Not far from the station, Horii Suzune was sitting on a bench, drinking cantaloupe-flavored soda while scrolling through the contents of her mobile phone.
On it was a message sent by Pinggong Qianye a few minutes ago: [On the way, may be late].
Occasionally she needs to politely turn down some boys who want to approach her and talk to her.
[Hiramichi-san, I have finished a bottle of soda]
After sending the message, Horii Suzune raised her head slightly and glanced at the couples in the crowd.
In fact, there are still about 7 minutes before the agreed time of 10 o'clock. She came a little early on purpose, of course, for the purpose of making someone late.
Deliberate and calculating, now this word is very suitable to describe her.
There is no way. In a relationship, someone always has to take the initiative.
Two silent matches cannot produce dazzling sparks.
She has always believed that everyone should be the protagonist in their own life.
She has always been proactive in doing what she wants to do, instead of waiting for the so-called fate to fall from the sky.
Fate is too vague and illusory, and she never places her hopes on it.
After taking a sip of soda, Horii Suzune lowered her head and opened her phone. A new message from Hiramiya Chiya had been sent.
I've arrived
Horii Suzune stood up and looked in the direction of the train for a while, then she saw Hiramiya Chiya walking towards her.
He was accompanied by a handsome young monk, and the two seemed to have a good relationship.
Horii Suzune subconsciously frowned slightly, but fortunately, the monk quickly said goodbye to Pinggong Chiye and walked towards another road.
"Hiramiya-san, you're late."
"I was delayed by something just now."
Hiramiya Chiya walked through the crowd and came in front of Horii Suzune.
It seemed a bit strange at first glance.
Tonight, Horii Suzune wore a yukata, which is commonly seen in fireworks festivals.
The overall color tone is mainly blue and white, with blue florals evenly scattered on the surface of the white yukata, and a cluster of not-so-bright red and yellow colors at the neckline.
How should I put it, it looks good, but it feels a bit strange.
Horii Suzune, who always wears school uniform, always looks smart and capable.
At this moment, she seemed to have put away all her edge, and instead had a more gentle temperament.
"Ms. Hiramiya, you seem to have the scent of other girls' perfume on you." Horii Suzune's nose twitched slightly, as if she smelled something. She took two steps forward and sniffed Hiramiya Chiye's collar a few times.
"I was just giving them a lecture on the sutras and preaching the Dharma."
"they?"
"Suzuka-san is in a group of 6."
"Ryouka-san came to your temple?"
Perhaps sensing the obvious emotional fluctuations in her tone, Horii Suzune added, "Hasn't her problem been completely resolved yet?"
"The problem has been solved. She came here specifically to thank you for your help last time."
Hiramiya Chiya was talking to Horii Suzune as they walked towards a higher place.
There are people below, and the higher you go, the wider your view will be, and the better the scenery you can see.
But there are many smart people who think this way, and the better positions are already occupied by people.
While they were still looking for a suitable viewing spot, a group of fireworks had already rushed from the ground to the sky in the distance and bloomed.
The fireworks burst into a riot of colour, falling like fireworks.
"No need to look for a spot deliberately, just be among the crowd."
Horii Suzune gently pulled Hiramiya Chiye's sleeve and moved closer to him, her face taking on a blush against the backdrop of the fireworks.
Seeing that Horii Suzune didn't care about the viewing position, Hiramiya Chiya naturally wouldn't care either.
There were a lot of people around, and Hiramiya Chiye could clearly feel Horii Suzune's body gradually leaning towards her, with her shoulder almost touching her arm.
Maybe it was pushed here by passers-by, after all, there are too many people here.
After thinking for a while, Hiramiya Chiye took Horii Suzune to the corner on the far right and let Horii Suzune stay in the corner. He stood on the outside, using his tall body to create some space for himself.
In this way, Horii Suzune will no longer be pushed and squeezed by passing tourists.
However, Hiramiya Chiye did not see any expression of joy and gratitude on Horii Suzune's face. Instead, she sighed softly, as if she was regretting something.
But she soon smiled and told Chiya Hiramiya some things about the Sumida River Fireworks Festival.
Despite the noise around her and the sound of fireworks exploding in the distance, Pinggong Qianye could still clearly hear what she said.
The Sumida River Fireworks Festival usually takes place from 7:8 to :, which is an hour and a half. Other fireworks festivals are also held within this time range.
After all, those fireworks flying into the sky are made of money.
The bigger, more stunning, and more beautiful the fireworks are, the more money they require.
Some people often say that Japan's spring is cherry blossoms, summer is fireworks, autumn is yellow flowers, and winter is snowflakes.
Hiramiya Chiye felt that it should be slightly modified. In the summer in Japan, the scene before him should be one with money to spend.
After watching for about half an hour, Hiramiya Chiya and Horii Suzune left the viewing point near Asakusa Station and walked along the street lined with various food stalls.
The real fireworks display is not as beautiful as in the anime. After all, there are people everywhere, and without the blessing of filters, even the most beautiful pictures need to be discounted.
All kinds of noise, the constant conversations, discussions, quarrels... will gradually wear away the patience of those who are in it, and make all beautiful things gradually become hateful.
Only food can't talk, because they can't talk.
Pinggong Qianye walked along the way and tried almost every snack.
Some of them taste good, but some of them have become less delicious due to too many customers, and it is rare to see any surprising food.
There is no legendary delicacy that emits golden light once opened.
Alas, the cooking skills of the Japanese chefs this time are not good.
Walking through the busy streets, Horii Suzune pointed to the left front direction towards Hiramiya Chiya, where a haunted house was built. Two male members of the supernatural club were standing at the door, distributing flyers and soliciting customers.
There are two small stalls on both sides of the haunted house, one selling oden, and the other selling fried noodles, fried dumplings and other food.
Pinggong Qianye walked over and asked for a portion of food to try.
While chatting, I heard them complaining that the people from the photography department disappeared when the Spark Conference started and all ran out to take pictures.
This is also an interesting youth life.
Pinggong Qianye took a bite of a large piece of radish. The seasoning was good, but the radish was not well chosen.
After eating, Hiramiya Chiya and Horii Suzune came to the entrance of the haunted house.
"President, do you want to go in and take a look around with Hiramiya-san?"
"Especially you, Hiramiya-san. You don't even know what scary things are in the haunted house, right?"
"Oh, oh, don't hesitate, bring the president in to experience it and see if there are any deficiencies."
The two members of the supernatural club almost pushed Hiramiya Chiya and Horii Suzune into the haunted house.
“I really hope the president can succeed.”
"That's right. Tonight is the fireworks festival. It's the perfect time to leave a romantic memory."
"It's youth. I miss it so much."
"Yes, the breath of youth, but why are the two of us here on such a youthful day?"
"..."
After a deep silence, the two members of the Psychic Society looked at each other and sighed, gaining a deeper understanding of youth.
Your youth and my youth seem different.
The dark haunted house, with dark red or pale green lights, creates a frightening atmosphere.
Since the haunted house was built, Pinggong Qianye has indeed never entered it once.
He has always been able to subdue real ghosts, so he also finds these fake ghosts very interesting.
After all, real ghosts rarely dare to jump out like this and face you in person.
Last time there was a lone brave man, and then his ashes were scattered.
After walking about one-third of the way, Pinggong Qianye keenly noticed something was wrong.
He had previously placed three talismans that could suppress evil spirits in the haunted house. There should be a talisman about 3 meters inside the entrance.
But now, I can no longer feel the aura of that talisman.
Was the talisman forgotten by members of the supernatural society when they changed the layout, or was it taken away by tourists coming in and out, or was it torn off intentionally by someone?
Hiramiya Chiye said nothing as she followed Horii Suzune around the haunted house.
The three talismans he had placed earlier all disappeared.
(End of this chapter)
