Su Qing had no idea that Patriarch Bodhi had not actually left the banquet.
She was even less aware that, far from leaving, he had transformed into another guise to watch her from the sidelines in secret.
She simply proceeded with the post-banquet arrangements as planned.
Everything moved along in an orderly fashion; even the musicians performed without a hitch.
The only thing that truly irked Su Qing...
...was that she was constantly being accosted for small talk by people, both familiar and unknown.
Although the banquet wasn't held in her honor, she had somehow, inexplicably, become one of its primary focuses.
It was as if speaking a few words with her was some kind of rare treasure.
This gave her quite a headache.
Truth be told, she didn't enjoy being the center of attention.
She much preferred peace and quiet...
Still, this was the Dragon King's birthday feast, after all. She couldn't just leave as she pleased and risk offending the guests.
So, just as she had during the gathering at Mount Hua, she stayed until the very end...
...chalking it up to a chance to make a few new acquaintances.
The minutes and seconds ticked by.
Before she knew it...
twilight had quietly descended.
And so, the banquet of song and dance finally drew to a close.
The many deities of the Heavenly Court and the monks from Spirit Mountain began to depart one after another...
Most of the heavenly officials were quite busy; they had only managed to attend the celebration by squeezing it into their tight schedules.
Now that the festivities were over, there was no reason to linger; it was time to return to their official duties.
As guests departed, Su Qing—acting in the role of the host's son-in-law—naturally had to see some of them off.
Of course, she didn't have to escort them all the way home; merely watching them depart and offering a farewell was enough.
As Taishang Laojun prepared to leave, he spotted Su Qing and said with a chuckle:
"Look at you, girl, running yourself ragged today. You’ve worked hard. You really ought to demand some rewards from that old Dragon King later! Don't be shy with him; he's made a killing today."
Laojun knew the Dragon King well, and he saw through the situation far more clearly than Su Qing did.
He knew exactly how much the old dragon had gained today.
Setting aside the heavenly treasures and spirit herbs, the true benefits weren't these superficial gifts, but something far more profound...
Su Qing was momentarily stunned, then nodded. "Whether the Senior Dragon King gained or not, I wouldn't know. But I certainly am exhausted."
"Well, you were the center of attention for so many!" Laojun laughed.
Su Qing looked helpless. "Speaking of that, it’s been quite the headache. I wasn't the guest of honor, yet I somehow became the focus. I don't understand it myself."
"Hahaha, I'm not surprised at all. After all, you carry no small amount of weight in the eyes of most heavenly deities," Laojun said, stroking his beard.
Su Qing shook her head dejectedly. "What weight could I possibly have? I was just a minor deity in the Moon Palace for a while. Even now, I'm at most a Mountain God. It's just that my mountain is a bit larger than most."
Laojun chuckled and shook his head. "The Mountain God of the Changbai Mountains carries a lot of weight indeed, you silly girl."
"……"
"Well, well, as long as you understand now," Laojun smiled. "Oh, by the way, you must invite me to your wedding feast! This old man has always loved a good drink, especially a junior's wedding wine."
Su Qing gave a helpless smile, speechless at Laojun's bizarrely sharp transition in topics.
Nevertheless, she nodded and replied, "I will, I certainly will."
"And of course, you'll have to invite this old man to your child's one-month feast too."
"I get it, Senior Laojun," Su Qing said, resigned.
"Hahaha, excellent! Ah, I hope I can drink your wedding wine within five hundred years!" Laojun patted her shoulder with a grin. "Alright, I've said my piece. I'm off. If you run into any trouble in the future, you can always find me at the Heavenly Palace."
With that, Laojun mounted an auspicious cloud and departed the Dragon Palace for the Heavenly Court.
Su Qing watched him go.
She rubbed her temples, thinking helplessly to herself:
"It doesn't matter which world I'm in, the elders always love nagging about marriage... My head's practically spinning from all the pressure lately."
Ao Ying said I wouldn't lose out on this trip...
Why do I feel like I'm the one suffering for it?
Su Qing shook her head, quickly reining in her stray thoughts, and continued seeing off the other deities.
Regardless, she had to finish the task at hand before worrying about anything else.
Not long after Laojun left, Maitreya walked out of the banquet hall and pulled Su Qing aside, appearing to have something private to discuss.
Curious, Su Qing watched as he produced a scroll and handed it to her.
"What is this?" Su Qing asked, puzzled.
Although the scroll remained closed, she knew it was likely no ordinary object.
Maitreya kept his ever-jovial expression and pointed at the scroll.
"Young friend, do you remember the matter the Buddha entrusted to you?"
"Of course."
"This object will help you find that person. After all, the world is vast, and finding a reincarnation is no easy feat—especially when it's someone you've never met. He asked me to deliver this to you! Since I happened to run into you here at the Dragon Palace, I thought I'd give it to you today."
Upon hearing this, Su Qing immediately understood.
She nodded. "I see. Thank you for going to the trouble of bringing this to me, Senior."
"I should be the one thanking you; after all, we're the ones asking for your help," Maitreya said with a shake of his head.
"It’s no trouble. I did receive a favor from the Buddha, after all," Su Qing answered honestly.
Maitreya smiled at her response. "Well then, now that the item is in your hands, I must be going. Take care!"
"You too, Senior. Take care!" Su Qing said with a smile, eyeing Maitreya's large belly.
Maitreya nodded, then performed a hand seal and departed the Dragon Palace on an auspicious cloud.
"There goes another senior." Su Qing watched the departing Maitreya and muttered to herself, "Wait, that sounded a bit odd... Never mind. Back to seeing the others off. It'll be over soon, and then I can finally rest."
After seeing off Maitreya and Laojun...
...Su Qing still had to see off the rest of the guests. It clearly wasn't time for rest just yet.
Fortunately, she wasn't working alone; Leng Xiang and Ao Ying had come to assist her.
As for people like Gongsun Zhixue, Su Qing was just thankful they weren't causing any trouble.
A long while passed.
Once everyone was finally gone, a weary Su Qing collapsed onto her bed, looking utterly drained of life.
Rate on N.U.
