Chapter 156 Hiramiya Chiya: Return to Tokyo and take you down the mountain
In the summer night, people are quiet, stars hang low in the forest and shine on the rocks in the stream, and cicadas are chirping all over the paths.
The moonlight tonight is still gentle, reflecting in the mountain stream, breaking into bits of rippling light along with the rushing water.
Pinggong Qianye sat on a rock beside the mountain stream, looking at the fish swimming in the pool, relaxing for a rare moment.
He originally wanted to continue on his journey tonight, but Jingu Yaezakura kept whispering in his ear through the moon doll, "It's time to rest, it's time to rest, it's time to rest..."
The sound is like the chirping of cicadas.
There was no choice but to obey her.
Pinggong Qianye glanced at the time. It was only around 10 o'clock in the evening. At this time in the past, he would still be traveling in the mountains and forests.
It’s not that he didn’t rest much, but he seldom stopped to rest like this.
After all, a month is too short. 18 days have passed and he has only just arrived in Tottori Prefecture.
He originally planned to stay in Kyoto for 7 days and then 3 days for the return trip.
This means he only has about two days to arrive in Kyoto.
You also need to go to Ogamiyama Shrine to help Iori Miyaji and try to bring the girl in the box back to life.
Time is indeed urgent.
While Pinggong Qianye was thinking, the Moon Doll came out from the dense forest, holding a pear in both hands, flew over and handed the pear to him.
"There are still some wild dates over there. I'll go pick a few more."
As Jingu Yaezakura spoke, she controlled the Moon Doll and went back into the dense forest to look for fruits in the mountains.
It's like a child playing house.
Pinggong Qianye did not stop her. He got down from the stream, washed the mountain pears with the stream water, and started eating.
When he finished eating the mountain pears, the Moon Doll came back with a few mountain dates.
After handing the jujube to Pinggong Qianye, he flew back into the dense forest, busying himself.
About half an hour later, she finally stopped swaying and sat on Pinggong Qianye's shoulder. She clenched her right fist and gently beat her thigh.
"How is it? Does it taste good?"
"Yes, Not Bad."
"There are still too few wild fruits in this forest, not rich enough."
The Moon Doll shook his legs and said, "It's a pity that there is no place to grow watermelons nearby. Summer is best suited to watermelons."
"If the Moon Goddess steals melons under the moonlight were painted into a picture, it would be a strange story."
"What do you mean by stealing? They grow and thrive under the moonlight. As the moon god, this is called taking back my own offerings."
Hiramiya Chiye smiled, and then heard Jingu Yaezakura mumbling through the moon doll, "What is stealing? Can the affairs of gods be called stealing?"
"Are there other moon gods in Japan?" Hiramiya Chiye changed the topic.
"Yes, I am still too weak to be the only Moon God."
"Are there any conditions that need to be met?"
"You want to help me?"
"If I can help it."
The Moon Doll stood up, rubbed its cheek against Pinggong Qianye's face, and said with a smile: "When I am strong enough, I will naturally be able to master more of the Moon God's authority."
"Need a demon bead like the Moon-Swallowing Toad?"
"That's also a method." Moon Doll nodded. "Expanding the Tsukimi Shrine and attracting more believers is the most orthodox way. But this is difficult. Many shrines are competing for believers now."
"Can you really predict marriage?"
"We can only glimpse a little bit. No one can predict what will happen in the future."
Hiramiya Chiye felt it was a pity. If Jingu Yaezakura could really accurately predict matters of marriage, then using this as a gimmick, she would quickly attract a large group of believers.
For many young men and women, calculating marriage is a very interesting thing.
"Master Liansheng, would you like me to help you calculate it?"
There was undisguised happiness and joy in Jingu Yaesakura's voice.
"Aren't you not good at it?"
“We can still measure a little bit.”
Pinggong Qianye had no scruples about this. "Your true body is not here now. Even if you want to test it, you should not have the ability to do so."
"It is indeed the case……"
Jingu Yaezakura's voice fell for a moment, but she soon regained her spirits. She secretly glanced at Hiramiya Chiye's profile, covered her cheek with her little hands, and thought for a while.
Quietly asked: "Do you have a girl you like right now?"
"No."
Pinggong Chiye answered straightforwardly.
"Is there no girl you have a good relationship with?"
"Like a friend?"
"Uh-huh."
"The president of the school's supernatural club is Suzune Horii. I have a pretty good relationship with her and she's a good friend."
"anything else?"
Hiramiya Chiye said with a smile: "The moon god in Tsukimi Shrine should also be considered one."
"What do you mean it should count?"
The voice of Yaezakura Jingu transmitted through the moon doll sounded slightly dissatisfied.
"Because I don't know whether I should classify her as a deity or an ordinary girl."
"Can't she be a normal girl who becomes a moon goddess?"
"Once you say this, it's not ordinary at all."
"..."
Jingu Yaezakura was silent for a long time, and then she murmured softly: "I can do what ordinary girls can do."
"But what you can do is far beyond the scope of an ordinary girl."
Jingu Yaezakura fell silent again, and the moon doll sat on Hiramiya Chiye's shoulders, legs together, two small hands supporting her cheeks. Hiramiya Chiye still didn't have a very accurate definition of what Jingu Yaezakura was.
She should have a real, tangible body rather than an imaginary one.
But at the same time, her body can disappear with the moonlight.
This has exceeded the limitations of an ordinary body and can only be explained by the body of a god.
But real gods, like the Buddha and Bodhisattvas worshipped in Buddhism, do not have fixed human bodies.
All the incredible supernatural powers they possess are possible only because they have freed themselves from the constraints of the flesh.
The same should be true for Shinto gods.
The reason why it feels real and tangible may be because Jingu Yaezakura has reached a high level of cultivation, where she can make the fake become real.
Like the Inugami beside Iori Miyaji, ordinary people cannot see its existence, let alone touch its body.
Because it is illusory, similar to the existence of a soul.
Of course, it can also live in the body of a human or a dog and have its own body.
But if that's the case, it would be like Yaezakura Jingu possessing the moon doll.
"Sometimes I also want to be like an ordinary girl..."
Jingu Yaezakura spoke again, her voice was very low, like a gentle breeze blowing in the evening, with only the strength to shake a leaf.
"Since I was born, I have never left the Tsukimi Shrine, even though I can easily spy on places thousands of miles away."
“Sometimes I wonder whether this world is real or illusory.”
"If this world is real, then what about me? Am I just an illusion?"
Jingu Yaezakura seems particularly sentimental tonight.
"I always feel like I don't fit in with this world. Tsukimi Shrine is like an anchor point for me to come into this world."
"If the Tsukimi Shrine disappears one day, I will disappear with it, right?"
"Normal, real life will not disappear just because another person, an object, or a building disappears, right?"
The Moon Doll put down her hands that were supporting her chin, bent her legs and wrapped them around her knees.
It's strangely cold tonight.
A large, warm palm touched the moon doll's back, then wrapped her in the palm and held her in front of him.
"After we return to Tokyo, I'll take you down the mountain."
"..."
The moon doll's eyes twinkled, just like a pair of normal watery eyes, staring blankly at Pinggong Qianye.
"Don't you want to?"
"I'm not unwilling."
Jingu Yaezakura's voice trembled slightly. After a while, the moon doll lay in the palm of Hiramiya Chiye, rolling happily.
……
At Tsukimi Shrine, the moonlight is as white as snow, and an osmanthus tree flutters in the wind.
On the tree trunk, Yaezakura Jingu's eyes were slightly red, and she stretched out her right index finger and gently brushed the corner of her eyes.
A little moist and a little warm.
"He's coming to take me down the mountain. That's great."
Is this moving emotion proof of her real existence?
What determines the boundary between reality and illusion?
Yaezakura Jingu thought about many things, but in the end she couldn't come up with an accurate answer.
Then, I don’t want to think about it anymore.
Time is precious, so think about happy things.
She has always had a lot of things she wants to do.
For example, shopping, eating lots of delicious food, going to an amusement park, visiting Chiya Hiramiya's home...
There are so many things I want to do.
Before, she felt that a month had passed so quickly, but now she felt that time was passing so slowly.
Maybe this is the trouble of being human?
……
There isn't so much trouble in life.
A quiet day like this is a good day.
Prince Omae stayed in his tea room and ended the call with Prince Iori.
It was really rare that the Iori chief priest of the Ogamiyama Shrine would actually call him on his own initiative.
If Iori Miyaji hadn't asked about the condition of his own Moon Goddess, he would have really thought that the other party was simply here to reminisce about the past.
Humph, it's obvious that he called to test the waters.
I guess he is going to seek the scriptures for that dog god?
It's a pity that the Moon Goddess is unique. No matter how hard that Inugami studies, he can never compare to his own Moon Goddess.
But he did not suffer any loss. He asked a lot of questions about Master Liansheng and learned that he was still in Tottori Prefecture and it would be a long time before he returned to Tokyo.
I feel particularly happy.
It was the hesitation in the last conversation of Iori Miyaji that made him feel that something was wrong.
The Omiyaji didn't think too much and continued to concentrate on the art of tea.
During this period, his tea art has improved a lot.
This is a fact recognized by the entire Tsukimi Shrine.
What, it tastes bad?
This is complete nonsense!
Expel you from the shrine!
Oimasa Miyaji happily poured himself a cup of tea.
(End of this chapter)
