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"Oh?" Quan Shaoqing raised an eyebrow. "What have you realized?"

"A single flower embodies an entire world, a single leaf represents the Tathagata, flowers bloom green in spring, leaves fall in autumn, the boundless Prajna heart is free, silence and movement reveal the natural state."

Quan Shaoqing scanned her up and down, clearly disbelieving, and continued with a skeptical tone, "What else?"

"The Buddha said: ’If we had no debt to repay from a previous life, how could we have met in this one!’"

Quan Shaoqing looked at her serious face and couldn’t help but laugh. "Where did you hear all this from? It’s quite interesting. Anything else?"

Gu Xiaoxi tilted her head in thought, recalling what Yi Haoran had said, and recited step by step, "When destiny arrives, it will go; when it congregates, it will disperse; when it arises, it will grow; when it falls, it will extinguish; all phenomena arise from conditions—all are bound by fate. Destiny when it arrives is decreed by heaven; when it leaves, it’s seized by man; such is the cause we plant, such is the effect we reap, all is created by the mind. "

Quan Shaoqing suddenly laughed out loud, struck by a bittersweet feeling.

His voice was cheerful, unable to suppress his amusement, he asked, "Have you understood it all?"

Gu Xiaoxi rolled her eyes at him, glaring with a sullen face, "If I had understood it all, I could become an immortal."

It was a pity that even if Yi Haoran recited it to her every day, she couldn’t comprehend the meaning!

It was like playing the lute to a cow.

Although she recited it smoothly, it was just memorizing what he had said.

Quan Shaoqing reached out and tousled her hair with a rare lightness in his tone, "You’re still just a child indeed."

Gu Xiaoxi brushed his hand away and moved a little further from him. She hated when people touched her head; it made her think of Bai Yaxuan... irritating!

Quan Shaoqing still felt the soft touch of her hair on his palm as he watched her frown, not teasing her anymore.

After all, he was inexplicably in a good mood today and cherished the quiet time chatting with her.

At that moment, the sun was about to set.

The sunset danced across the surface of the sea as if it was a mischievous child.

Gu Xiaoxi and Quan Shaoqing sat shoulder to shoulder, staring off into the distance in a daze.

...

Suddenly, Quan Shaoqing turned to look at Gu Xiaoxi’s little face, illuminated red by the setting sun, and asked earnestly, "Do you believe in fate?"

"I don’t know?"

If she really had to talk about fate...

Gu Xiaoxi smiled lightly, supporting her cheek with one hand, "Everything is up to us to believe in! If we had to rely on heaven for everything and do nothing ourselves, what could we achieve?"

Quan Shaoqing felt that Gu Xiaoxi made sense, "You’re quite pragmatic!"

"If you weren’t pragmatic, why would you work so hard?" Gu Xiaoxi retorted without hesitation.

"Ha ha ha!"

Quan Shaoqing stood up and suddenly laughed heartily, rubbing her head vigorously with his big hand, full of mirth, "It seems, your little head is filled with quite a lot."

Gu Xiaoxi wrinkled her nose in annoyance, swatting at his hand.

But before she could hit him, Quan Shaoqing had already disappeared.

Gu Xiaoxi sat blankly on the roof of the boat, watching the sun that had already sunk into the sea.

...By then, only a dark blood-red hue remained on the surface of the sea.

In a daze, that hopeful, throbbing, and warm hazy feeling returned to her heart, just like the Quan Shaoqing who had just left.

He had been there, yet it was as if he had never been; his coming and going was but a thought away, and when the breeze blew, no trace was left behind to indicate someone had been beside her.

Yet, he was like a sudden scratch that had unintentionally stayed deep in her memory.

When she tried to look for the traces of his presence, she found that the person talking to her just moments ago seemed to be an inadvertent figment of her imagination, or perhaps a dream at all!

Gu Xiaoxi touched her face; she wondered if she was having illusions.

It was getting dark.

The sea breeze was growing cold. Going for a vacation by the sea—who even came up with that? It was enough to have had the thought.

Gu Xiaoxi went back to check her bedroom, then picked up and read some finance-related books she found in the living room.

Bai Yu, Chen Lu, and the others were discussing things related to Small Stone Island.

"It is said that Small Stone Island is covered with chrysanthemums and that there are seven colors, but such a sight is rare to come by in a thousand years," Ren Yun said, her face full of excitement.

Chen Lu nodded, then, with a hint of mystery, added, "Do you all remember the painting of Small Stone Island?"

"Remember, one painting auctioned for 1.3 billion, a rare sight in our world," Li Jiani exclaimed with amazement.

"It’s claimed that the scenery depicted in that painting really exists.

Afterwards, for over thirty years, photographers stayed on Small Stone Island from August to October each year to capture the scene, but never once did they witness a mountain full of blooming chrysanthemums, let alone multi-colored ones. "

Chen Lu spoke with a heavy tone, all these she had read from a geography book.

It was also mentioned in literary books that the painter and his wife had truly seen the scenery at that time.

But at that time, there were no cameras, so no evidence could be left behind.

As time went by, all those became unverifiable legends.

"Small Stone Island has another legend, do you want me to tell it to everyone?" Bai Yu’s eyes lit up with excitement, her tone light and breezy.

"Tell us, we’re all listening," Li Jiani said, her face showing great interest.

Chen Lu just smiled and said nothing.

Bai Yu chuckled: "At midnight, before the flowers bloom, there will be a rosy glow over the mountaintop, and fairies will dance. Only those with fate can see it."

After hearing Bai Yu’s words, those present couldn’t help but scoff, "Fake, right? A rosy glow over the mountaintop, is that supposed to be Spirit Mountain? Even immortals wouldn’t dwell in the middle of the sea."

"Hahaha!" Bai Yu herself burst into laughter, "That’s why it’s just a legend! Moreover, only those with fate can see it. You mortals are not likely to witness such supernatural beauty."

"In a few hours, we will arrive at Small Stone Island. Not expecting a mountain full of blossoms, but a few flowers wouldn’t be a wasted trip," Chen Lu joked with a laugh.

She naturally knew about the legend of Small Stone Island. In the end, it’s just a legend, and no one believed it.

Gu Xiaoxi flipped through a book while their words stopped at her ears.

She didn’t care!

Although there are many magical things in the world and many phenomena are unverifiable, most are natural landscapes.

It’s just that humans can’t fully comprehend the subtleties of nature.

Soon it was time for dinner.

Everyone gathered in the dining hall, where the long table was packed with people.

Gu Xiaoxi ate the fastest and, without much fuss, went back to her room to sleep after the meal.

As for when the ship would dock, she had no idea.

They reached the coast at eight in the evening. A fire was lit on the edge of the island, wine was grabbed, and a bountiful supply of food was prepared for a barbecue extravaganza.

"Hey Bai Yu, have we gone to the wrong island? It’s pitch dark on the mountain, and the trees are tall, with little hills rolling on.

Where could the chrysanthemums be? As expected, it’s just a legend, a lie, right?

" Ren Yun looked around with a flashlight but didn’t even see a bush, let alone flowers.

"It’s your own fault for taking it seriously." Bai Yu never took it seriously, but she didn’t expect there to be not even a single flower!

Dongfang Le invited Gu Xiaoxi to come out and have fun.

Gu Xiaoxi really wasn’t in the mood, especially upon seeing Fu Zhe and Luo Yiyan with grim expressions, which discouraged her from wanting to have fun.

"You go ahead! I want to sleep," Gu Xiaoxi took a deep breath, turned over, and continued to sleep.

Seeing her lack of excitement, Dongfang Le said, "Weren’t you really eager to come out and play? Why are you no longer interested now?"

"Lele, be good, don’t disturb me." Gu Xiaoxi sent Dongfang Le away and covered herself with the blanket to continue sleeping.

Just as she was falling asleep, someone yanked her blanket away.

Bai Yu rushed in, "There’s no wind tonight, come on, let’s all drink and party together!"

Gu Xiaoxi was forcibly dragged out of bed by her.

Linhai was beautiful and the air was mild, especially as the island’s towering mountain created an angle, blocking the sea breeze with its rocks.

There was almost no wind by the shore.

The burning campfire was very lively, and it even felt a bit hot for those sitting nearby.

Fu Zhe, Luo Yiyan, and others, not usually known for light-heartedness, were grilling barbecues. Everyone danced to the music blasting from the speakers, creating a festive atmosphere.

The usually mild-mannered Tang Youling brought some barbecued skewers over to Gu Xiaoxi and passed her the food, "You don’t seem happy?"

Gu Xiaoxi accepted them with a thank you.

Actually, she was quite full from dinner and hardly hungry, but she didn’t want to snub his courtesy.

"Why didn’t you want to come out and play earlier?" he asked.

"I was sleepy!" Gu Xiaoxi said indifferently and sincerely.

Tang Youling raised an eyebrow. If he wasn’t mistaken, Gu Xiaoxi had been asleep for most of the day.

Still sleepy?

Of course, he knew that people who felt down would never admit they were in a bad mood, so he didn’t press on with the question.

After hesitating for a long while, he spoke to Gu Xiaoxi politely, "Do you need to talk to the gentleman? He’s quite worried about you?"