The phone rang yet again. Chen Ying looked at the screen, and it was still Cheng Jiangyi calling. He glanced at the time—it’s already 22:23.

This late at night, what reason could this person possibly have to keep calling him?

“Hello,” Chen Ying answered the call in an abrupt tone, pushing the door of the convenience store at the same time. Once outside, he lit a cigarette and took a puff. He just got off work, doing overtime, and he was simply exhausted. He only made a stop to buy a pack of cigarettes on the way home, and now he found himself being harassed by unimportant people. So annoying ah.

After listening to the person on the other end of the phone, he was even more upset.

“Get lost. Why on earth would I help you raise your child?”

“She’s not my child, nor is she for me to raise. You should raise her. It’s fate.” 

Of course, Cheng Jiangyi was so thick-skinned that he dared to continue, “How about I put it another way. Take this as an early warning call. I don’t know when but it should be soon. A young miss will appear near you. She may be a little weird, such as wearing ancient costumes, and her accent and vocabulary could be different from ours, but don’t worry, she is a normal human being. It’s just that the times she’s from are a little different from ours. You are a man of broad knowledge, courage, and curiosity—you will definitely be able to accept and handle this well. When you meet her, please take her in and take good care of her.”

“You’re not dead yet, so don’t ask me for help.” And what’s this, giving him a bunch of compliments just to get him to agree won’t make him happy at all, okay?

Cheng Jiangyi ignored him, “Right now, a young man named Yue Lao is rushing to meet you. His number is 2238. He will tell you the truth; what he says is real. With your wisdom and patience, you will definitely be able to understand; all you have to do is trust him, and then be ready to deal with this matter.” 

“Cheng Jiangyi, you’re clearly out of your mind—does your wife know?” Before Chen Ying could finish speaking, he suddenly heard a loud ‘BANG!’ right next to him, very close.

Chen Ying jerked in surprise and turned around to see that there was a person standing on the roof of his brand-new car—his baby that he’d only been driving for a week!

Wearing a wide-sleeved robe and dress, ancient costume style; long, straight, black hair gently blowing in the breeze; a young face, fair and beautiful, with striking temperament and imposing aura—a girl. Possibly 15 or 16.

Her legs were bent in a half-crouch. She stood up slowly and looked around her.

That posture… it’s as if she just dropped down from somewhere.

No, there were no aliens or Terminators. She must have jumped up, Chen Ying thought.

It’s just that the surroundings were empty, and he hadn’t seen anyone at all just now. And even if she jumped, she couldn’t have jumped up so high, so neatly, with such a loud noise and— damn it, his car roof was dented! Chen Ying’s face turned green. This brat stomped on his car!

“Chen Ying, you have to trust me. Think about it. Your brother and I are business partners and close friends. We have started a company together. Can I still prank you with this kind of thing?”

The girl finally noticed Chen Ying. She looked terrified and stared at him with wide eyes.

Chen Ying hung up the phone, threw away the cigarette in his hand, and glared at the girl. Think about who should be terrified ah! The unknown person here was not him, okay? Wasn’t she the one who could dent the roof of a car with just a jump?

The girl’s expression changed from panic to vigilance—Chen Ying acquired a sullen look in response. Wasn’t he the one who should be vigilant in this situation?

“Hey, you smashed my car,” Chen Ying said.

The girl frowned, looking confused and hesitant, then she glanced around, really looking as if planning to make a run for it.

“Where did you come from?” Chen Ying asked.

She didn’t answer. Instead she jumped off the roof of the car. Her agility was too unbelievable, her movements light but powerful. The small face was stiff and upright, as cold as ice—her long hair fluttered with her every move, black and shiny under the streetlights. Damn, she’s incredibly beautiful.

Fortunately, she was not tall, and Chen Ying could look down at her. He was taller than her, and he was more imposing than her—ha! But he was already a fully grown man at his age, so it was really nothing to be proud of that he has the height advantage.

Two people—you stare at me, I stare at you—looked at each other for a long time. 

Chen Ying pointed to his car and repeated, “You smashed my car.” He paused, this time he emphasized, “My new car!” 

The girl glanced at his car, but there was no reaction. From the  expression on her face, she didn’t seem to take the damage to his car seriously at all. 

Chen Ying was very upset, really quite unhappy in his heart. Which family’s brat was this? He lowered his head to call back and settle accounts with Cheng Jiangyi. Did this guy find a little model or cosplayer to mess with him?

Before he could make the phone call, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the girl turn away and prepare to leave. Chen Ying quickly reached out to pull her. “Wait.”

Just as his hand touched her, she flicked her sleeve, and Chen Ying’s arm was flung away. Chen Ying was taken aback—her physical strength was so unbelievable that his arm hurt a little from being thrown. After the girl moved her hands, she took a step back and stared at him, looking wary.

“Are you mute? Can you talk? Can you tell uncle what’s wrong with you?” Chen Ying was even more unhappy now. What an impolite brat, and quite fierce at that!

At this time, a young man suddenly came running from a distance, shouting at them all the while, “Wait a minute, wait a minute.”

Wait what minute, they haven’t moved at all? Chen Ying and the young miss both look at the person coming their way.

The man ran up to them, gasping for breath. He took a good look at the two, took out his handheld device, looked at them again, then asked, “Chen Ying? Mi Xi?” 

If no one says ‘no’, then it must be ‘yes’. The newcomer seemed very satisfied. He breathed a sigh of relief. “Hi, I’m Yue Lao, number 2238.”¹

Damn, Cheng Jiangyi really did it; the actors he hired were performing well ah! Chen Ying began to think carefully about how he could have offended Cheng Jiangyi recently. He must have formed a deep resentment of him to drop him in this mess. But after thinking about it, no ah, he hasn’t done anything to Cheng Jiangyi recently, and the last time they had a grudge was more than half a year ago.

While Chen Ying was contemplating, the young miss named Mi Xi was already talking to Yue Lao 2238. She lowered her waist and saluted, “I see Mr. Yue Lao.”

She was really polite ah. Chen Ying was calm, simply watching the scene.

“Mi Xi, you came earlier than I expected—but it doesn’t matter. I have already made arrangements. As the Yue Lao you met over there has told you, you don’t have to be sad, you will have a new beginning here. You can live again. Your dead parents know about this, and they are happy for you.”

So there was still knowledge even after death? This situation was quite dramatic. Chen Ying continued to watch the play.

“Mr. Chen, Cheng Jiangyi called you to explain the situation, right?” Chen Ying was now dragged into the play, having watched it for a while. He didn’t reply, but Yuelao 2238 has already seen the answer from his expression. “Mi Xi came a little early, so I wasn’t able to talk to you in advance, but it’s fine as long as Cheng Jiangyi explained it to you clearly.”

Clear, my ass! Who the hell even has an idea what was going on? Just as Chen Ying was about to say that all these—whatever this is—has nothing to do with him, Yue Lao 2238 pulled Mi Xi over. “Mi Xi, this is your future guardian. His name is Chen Ying. He is twenty-eight years old this year, and except for smoking and swearing, there should be no other bad habits.”

Wait a minute— what guardian?

“What do you mean by smoking and swearing?”

“Uh, smoking is…” Yuelao looked at Chen Ying, notices the stub of a half-smoked cigarette under his feet and quickly points to it. “It’s smoking that. That’s not good, you don’t want to imitate it.”

Mi Xi nodded.

“To swear is, uh, to say vulgar words. This is also not good, so don’t learn it.”

Mi Xi nodded again.

Damn, does this count as slandering a man in person, saying bad things about him to his face while pretending that he doesn’t exist? Chen Ying crossed his arms across his chest, “Hey, you two, I’m still here.”

“Come on, come on.” Yue Lao’s smile seemed to say since we’re all here, let’s introduce ourselves. “Mi Xi, meet your Uncle Chen Ying. Mr. Chen, come, meet Mi Xi. Mr. Chen, Mi Xi is an orphan who came from a long way. She is not familiar with this place and its language. She needs a guardian to take care of her. You have a fated destiny with her, so I entrust Mi Xi to you.”

“What is a guardian?”

“It’s the person who takes care of you. For example, your father and mother are your guardians. This is Uncle Chen Ying, so he can be your uncle.”

“Who is her uncle?” At this point, Chen Ying was about to explode from anger—why do these two treat him as if he’s invisible ah? Has he promised to be a guardian of orphaned children who came from afar? Where did he agree??

==============

VERY IMPORTANT TRANSLATOR NOTE:

Throughout this story, our heroine,Mi Xi, is referred to by the various characters around her as 小姑娘 or ‘xiao guniang’. Y’all are probably familiar with ‘xiao’ it means small/little/young. ‘Guniang’ is a little more nuanced—at its most basic, it refers to a ‘young unmarried woman,’ similar to ‘damsel’ or ‘maiden’ or ‘lass’ or ‘mademoiselle’. It’s also a bit old-school enough that elders (like grandmas or, that’s right, uncles) use it to refer to their juniors affectionately. Most translations would directly translate ‘xiao guniang’ as ‘little girl’, but that phrase makes it seem like Mi Xi is 9 years old, and that’s clearly not what people in the story are thinking when they refer to her as ‘xiao guniang.’

‘Little young lady’ doesn’t quite roll off the tongue but then, neither does ‘Second Young Master’ and yet we keep rolling with it, right? I might also use ‘little miss’ or ‘young miss’ or variations thereof.

I will try to avoid ‘little girl’ because we are already fighting an uphill battle what with Chen Ying being 11 years older than Mi Xi, and Mi Xi legally being a minor in modern times, without making it seem that he thinks of her as someone still attending grade school.

Here’s a link to a post about another translator’s headache on what to do with the word ‘guniang’, and the many, varied flavors the word has.

P. S.
Last warning. Mi Xi is 17 yrs old when she time travels to the modern world. Chen Ying, her reluctant guardian, is 28 yrs old. If this squicks you—walk away now. But Mi Xi is the eldest di daughter of a General’s household from ancient times. She is long past the age of marriage, and she herself would tell you that she is not a child.

FOOTNOTES

¹ I don’t know about this guy #2238, but Yue Lao — the ‘old man on the moon’ — is an immortal who “unites with a silken cord all predestined couples, after which nothing can prevent their union.” His legends serve as the basis for the ‘red thread of fate.’ He’s basically a godly matchmaker with 100% success rate! ↩

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