That day, the temple fair in Lin'an Prefecture was halfway through when it began to rain heavily.

The rain poured down, and the original pedestrians all sought shelter. The small vendors pushed their stalls, hurrying home to avoid the rain. "This rain is really heavy, where did it come from?"

"Ah, bitter! Hurry, hurry!"

In just a short while, there were few people left. The rain lashed against the bluestone bricks, and soon only a serene scene remained. The young female constable pursed her lips, standing silently under the large tree adorned with red silk ribbons, waiting.

The rain didn't stop, and she didn't know how long had passed. The girl, who was looking down at the reflection of the sky and clouds on the bluestone slabs, suddenly paused. The rain stopped abruptly, and an oil-paper umbrella appeared over her head. The person holding the umbrella was clearly handsome, and a surge of anger and grievance welled up in the girl's heart:

"You lecher, you!"

The sound stopped abruptly.

She stared blankly at her senior brother holding the umbrella. Zhan Zhao held the umbrella and said softly:

"Let's go, let's go back..."

The great thief had broken his promise for the second time.

……………………

"I always feel that Constable Jue is not in a good mood."

"No, it's not that she's not in a good mood, it's that she's in a very bad mood."

Many young constables, seeing the heroic girl walk out with her sword, quickly stopped their hushed conversations and retreated. They all knew about the great thief's broken promise, and felt that the entire government office was filled with a huge storm, making it hard to breathe.

The sound of deerskin boots hitting the ground was strong and crisp.

The girl entered the back hall, poured herself a cup of tea at the table, but happened to hear the voices inside. She frowned slightly, thought for a moment, didn't make a sound, and quietly went to listen. Inside were officials from nearby cities reporting on the disaster situation.

A tidal surge had occurred nearby.

The official reported with a smile: "All thanks to His Majesty enjoying the Mandate of Heaven, governing with clarity, and therefore being blessed by the gods. With all the adults working diligently, the country is peaceful, so although there is a natural disaster, this humble servant has worked conscientiously, and no one in the city has been injured or killed. Truly, Heaven blesses my Great Song..."

"No one injured or killed?"

The official stroked his beard and said, "Yes."

"There was also a thief who tried to cause trouble during this natural disaster, but he has been captured and beaten to death on the spot."

"It was none other than the great Jiangnan thief, Dao Yuan."

"Hmph... this petty thief is not worth mentioning. How dare he act recklessly while this official is controlling the flood."

"There was no time to report to superiors at the time, so in a moment of urgency, I had no choice but to kill him."

"Just like killing a mad dog."

"His body was abandoned in the street, left for insects and ants to peck at."

"Hmph... not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning."

The young female constable froze.

Zhan Zhao's eyes narrowed slightly.

The official still had a polite smile on his face, explaining how conscientiously he had worked to overcome the natural disaster, and how arrogant the thief was, and how he had righteously led the constables to kill him, recounting the scene in detail.

But he was facing Bao Zheng.

At this moment, the two constables beside him seemed unable to bear it any longer. One of the constables kicked the portly official to the ground and gritted his teeth, "Is this what you call meritorious service, sir?!"

He turned over, knelt on the ground, and gritted his teeth, "Lord Bao, please decide!"

"This dog official ran away first! I saw with my own eyes when the city was in danger, it was Yuan who saved people!"

"My mother, my children, and many other people... were all saved by him!"

"This humble official is incompetent and could only watch him..."

The middle-aged man took off his official hat, kowtowed heavily, and said with a choked voice:

"...stopped the river with his sword, and died from exhaustion."

A crisp breaking sound rang out.

Several people in the back hall subconsciously turned their heads and saw the girl in red standing there blankly, opening her mouth, unable to speak. Zhan Zhao immediately stepped forward, stretched out his arm to block her, and said, "Junior Sister Jue, you go out first."

The girl walked shakily around her senior brother and walked to the kneeling constable.

She murmured, "He... is dead?"

The middle-aged man gritted his teeth and took out something from his arms, holding it with both hands, and said with some difficulty:

"He said..."

"Sorry for breaking the promise..."

Inside the white cloth was a hairpin broken in two.

The girl opened her mouth, recalling the words she said when they first met.

'Use your dirty money?'

"This hairpin is not dirty..."

The girl恍惚了, but felt the world shaking, and then saw the nervous faces of her senior brother and Lord Bao. But it was strange, why did they become so tall? Then she realized, how did she fall to the ground? Strange, it's raining...

Eh, such heavy rain...

The girl's face was dull, and tears flowed uncontrollably from her eyes.

She stretched out her hand and subconsciously grabbed Zhan Zhao's arm, her fingers digging so hard that they almost embedded into his bone.

"He, he..."

Zhan Zhao was speechless.

The low sob could no longer be suppressed and turned into a cry, a repressed, low-pitched cry like the wind.

……………………

"So, Junior Sister, you really aren't leaving with us?"

Beside the post station, the Southern Hero Zhan Zhao rode his warhorse. Bao Zheng was an imperial censor and would not stay in one place for too long. After inspecting the officials, he had to return to the capital to report his duties. But the girl in red, still with her golden ring and high ponytail, remained in Jiangnan.

"Don't do anything stupid."

Zhan Zhao finally couldn't help but say these words.

"Senior Brother, what are you talking about?!"

The girl raised her sword-like eyebrows, full of heroism, "Am I the kind of idiot who would do that?!"

She looked at the beautiful scenery of Jiangnan in the misty rain, and her voice softened:

"I just, really like Jiangnan..."

Lord Bao from the capital and the Southern Hero Zhan Zhao eventually returned to the capital, while the girl in red rode her horse, the sound of hooves dripping, walking in the misty and rainy alleys of Jiangnan, never looking back.

…………

Twenty years later.

"Is this really true..."

"That famous constable of the Six Doors, actually had such a past?"

Several young men with heroic eyebrows and eyes listened in stunned silence.

They had never imagined that the famous constable who filled the martial world and intimidated the heroes of the green forests actually had such a past. From afar, they saw the woman, no longer a young girl, her high ponytail replaced with a more dignified hairstyle, her sleeves wide, using a sword to roam Jiangnan.

But unlike ordinary people, there were two broken hairpins side by side in her hair.

The one telling the story was the head of a wealthy merchant family in the entire Lin'an Prefecture.

Several young constables said:

"Our superior is the number one constable in Jiangnan Province. She rode her horse past Hanshan Temple in Suzhou, and once listened to the rain and fell asleep in Zhenjiang under Jinshan. Countless famous scholars, knights, wealthy merchants, and even those nobles want to marry her, but in the end, they all returned in defeat. We all say that she actually loves Jiangnan, and that's why she doesn't care about those people."

The wealthy merchant telling the story laughed, "That's wrong."

He leaned back, looking at the proud constable like a Jiangnan swallow riding past, the sound of hooves dripping, thinking of the absurd and youthful years of twenty years ago, and said softly:

"She's just waiting for someone."

"Waiting for someone?"

"Yes, the famous scholars of Jiangnan, the great heroes of the Northern Frontier, and even the nobles of the capital, these are naturally excellent, but she is not waiting for these people."

"Then who is she waiting for?"

"Waiting for whom?"

"Waiting for someone in Jiangnan who can catch up with the wind."

"When will he come? Otherwise..." Several Jiangnan teenagers looked at each other, gearing up, "Let's tie that guy up and send him to the lady's door, hehe, she will definitely reward us."

"Tie someone up and send them over?"

The wealthy merchant couldn't help but laugh. He looked into the distance, where the Buddhist bells continued to ring, bringing up flying flowers and fallen leaves. In his ears were the sounds of the mortal world, the sound of the wind, and the sound of reading.

Jiangnan Province has繁花 (fan hua, prosperous beauty), talented scholars, and beautiful women.

There are Buddhist bells ringing, and 清风杨柳 (qing feng yang liu, gentle breezes and willows).

There was also once the most romantic and the most arrogant great thief in the world.

The wealthy merchant was lost in thought for a long time, and finally said softly: "It's a pity she will never be able to wait for him again."

Flowers bloom and fall, flowers fall and bloom.

The sons and daughters of Jiangnan grow old in Jiangnan, and white hair finally appeared on the temples of the red-faced girl.

When the heroic attire turned into the clothes of a famous constable of the Six Doors, and finally retired from military uniform, turning into simple and plain clothes, too much time had passed. In front of a tombstone outside Jinshan Temple, the white-haired woman leaned against the tombstone.

She poured down a pot of strong liquor.

Her eyebrows and eyes still had the heroism of those years, and she said softly:

"How many years has it been? Speaking of which, Jiangnan is indeed very good, as good as it was back then."

"Speaking of which, I actually don't miss you anymore."

"The old man is selling charcoal, and although the little girls have changed, the flowers in Jiangnan are still as beautiful as ever. The little brother who made Tangbing (soup cakes) got married, had children, and the children were promising. He passed away a few years ago, but there is still someone selling Tangbing."

"The taste is also very good, but sometimes I feel that it is not as good as what I ate back then."

"The worldly taste of Jiangnan is still very strong, and the stars at night are bright."

"The prosperity of Jiangnan is not inferior to the sky."

"Jiangnan is too good, so good that I have forgotten you."

There was a monk behind her.

The woman said: "Master Fahai."

"This poor monk's life is about to end, and I have come to visit an old friend today."

"Is that so?"

The monk placed the offerings he had brought.

The white-haired woman gently stroked the tombstone with her fingers and suddenly said:

"...Master, do you say, now that this life is over, is there such a thing as a next life?"

A true Buddhist cultivator does not cultivate for the next life, but the monk was silent for a long time, and then affirmed:

"There will be."

The woman seemed to have a lot more to say, wanting to ask if she would see him, if they would meet again, but at this time there seemed to be nothing to say. She knew that this was just the monk's compassion. Where in the world are there past and present lives? So in the end, she just smiled faintly, looked at the tombstone, and said:

"Is that so?"

"If it's still in Jiangnan, that would be best."

The monk was silent.

He turned around and left, walking back up the mountain step by step.

In the events of that year, the snake demon was suppressed under Jinshan Temple for thousands of years, using her cultivation to integrate into the mountains and rivers of Jiangnan to nurture this land. The unending torment for thousands of years was a more painful punishment than death... And Xu Xian eventually became a monk at Jinshan Temple. When Fahai went up the mountain, he saw the equally old and peaceful monk, with green lamps and ancient temples. The two simply nodded to each other.

Bai Suzhen, who came to repay a debt of gratitude, eventually mistakenly killed her benefactor.

Xu Xian, who was happily married, eventually became a monk.

The couple was in the same place, but moved like the stars Shen and Shang, never to see each other again in this life.

Jiangnan no longer had a great thief.

But the famous constable had Jiangnan.

Even himself, wanting to save people, ultimately failed to protect his friend.

In his anger, he exhausted his life's cultivation.

Affection is a sin.

Life is suffering.

Only you, on the other hand, are free.

The monk's expression softened, and he climbed the pagoda with some difficulty. Then, to the exclamations of his disciples, he actually climbed over the pagoda and sat alone on top of the pagoda, looking into the distance at the Qiantang River's tide, the wind coming, making his heart open, and the Buddhist bell rang heavily. Because of suppressing Bai Suzhen, Fahai's cultivation was exhausted. Looking at the tide in the distance, listening to the bell, he seemed to see the great thief lying there with his arms as a pillow, smiling and asking himself:

"Fahai, where is the Buddhist Dharma?"

The old monk put his hands together and replied with a smile:

"Amitabha..."

"The Buddhist Dharma is only in the mortal world."

The Qiantang tide came like thunder.

The Buddhist bell vibrated, for the last time.

ps: Today's first update... three thousand four hundred words.

The story is over, with one more chapter than expected.

This story is actually about waking up...