Dusk.
Chu Ge and Qiu Wuji strolled around the neighborhood, bathed in the glow of the setting sun.
They said they were going out for dinner, but they passed several restaurants without even glancing at them.
It was as if they had only gone out for the sake of walking.
"Um… the Heavenly Origin Sect's Rejuvenating Elixir, oh, I didn't know that was true…" Chu Ge kicked a small stone by the roadside as he walked forward. "In that case, I should write that Elder Yang of your sect has refined a new soul-nourishing medicine, so we won't have to buy it from others anymore." Qiu Wuji suppressed a strange feeling in his heart: "Isn't that… a bit too shameless…"
"Someone publicly spouts things that are only said in this world, and doesn't even feel ashamed."
"…" Qiu Wuji tilted his head slightly and muttered, "I didn't want to follow your settings in the first place."
"You can try to change things privately, but you should be more careful about doing it publicly. For example, if you revealed something about subways and taxis in that world, it would be just too… too incongruous, indescribable."
Qiu Wuji pouted: "Oh." Chu Ge was charmed, lowered his head, kicked the stone, and remained silent.
A fallen leaf drifted gently down from the roadside. Qiu Wuji caught it casually in her hand. The leaf fluttered in her palm, carried by the evening breeze, yet it didn't drift away, like a butterfly dancing in her hand.
"Seeing this leaf made me realize autumn has arrived," Qiu Wuji suddenly said. "It's hotter here than where we are; I always thought it was still summer."
"Hmm… I didn't really have a concept of it. I thought it was late summer before, but after Qixi Festival I realized the Beginning of Autumn had already passed."
"You, you're clueless about the four seasons and the five grains."
"I can write books." Qiu Wuji rolled her eyes, ignoring him, still looking at the fallen leaf in her palm, a slight smile on her face.
She loved autumn.
That was Qiu Wuji's season.
What would her first autumn in this world be like? Chu Ge secretly glanced at her smiling face and mumbled, "It's not fair. You have something in your hand, and I don't." Qiu Wuji was a little confused. It's just a fallen leaf; you can just pick one up. You're kicking a stone, and I don't have one… He asked, "What do you want?"
"This." Chu Ge mustered his courage and reached out to grab her other free hand. "That's fair."
Qiu Wuji was stunned for a moment, actually feeling a bit tempted to hold it too. Why was he so tense, his muscles taut?
His next reaction was—I should probably punch him; that's lecherous behavior.
But that first reaction had already passed, and getting angry a second later seemed strange…
Qiu Wuji remained silent, holding hands, both heads down, one kicking a stone, the other watching the fallen leaf, pretending nothing had happened.
Well, it's not like they haven't held hands before.
Qiu Wuji secretly listened to his heartbeat, feeling it was pounding even faster than hers, almost leaping out of her throat. She couldn't help but chuckle. Really…
"Ahem." Chu Ge cleared his throat twice, trying to change the subject: "My mom introduced me to a capable person; he seems to be able to help you get an identity."
"Huh?" Qiu Wuji's attention was completely diverted: "Really? I've searched a lot, and it seems really difficult."
"It should be possible… He probably knows more about some special procedures that aren't widely known." Chu Ge briefly explained what he knew, then added, "By the way, if you're getting an identity, will you still use the name Qiu Wuji?"
Qiu Wuji hesitated for a moment: "Of course, is there a problem?"
Chu Ge said, "It feels normal in fantasy novels, but weird in modern times."
Qiu Wuji's eyebrows furrowed: "In modern times, it's more normal to be called Gu Ruoyan, right!"
"Huh?" Chu Ge's face turned green. How could a woman's logic be like this? "I didn't mean that..." Qiu Wuji tilted his head back to look at the sky. "What's so strange about it? You're surrounded by enemies, and you're still alive."
Chu Ge: "...Then shall we go take some ID photos?"
Qiu Wuji asked suspiciously, "You're not trying to trick me into getting a marriage certificate, are you?"
Chu Ge was speechless, both amused and exasperated. "How did you even know that?"
Qiu Wuji snorted.
He wouldn't tell him that he had searched "Does living together count as marriage?" a long time ago, and some answers said that only those with a marriage certificate are legally married.
This world is strange; do couples need someone else to issue a certificate?
But this is a good thing; it means we're completely innocent!
Chu Ge chuckled, "You don't have an ID, so you can't even get a marriage certificate."
Qiu Wuji quickly retorted, "Who said I wanted a marriage certificate?"
"Hmm, hmm, hmm," Chu Ge said, "Then shall we go take ID photos?"
"Why are you emphasizing ID photos? It feels like you're implying something, not just saying you need them."
"Because ID photos will make you look less like a fairy descended from heaven. If you really asked me to send them a casual photo, I wouldn't."
Qiu Wuji: "..." Chu Ge dragged Qiu Wuji into the photo studio. The photographer gasped, "You've got some skills, young man. Your girlfriend is really beautiful."
Chu Ge smiled but didn't reply, and Qiu Wuji, with a sour face, also didn't reply.
It felt like even explaining was difficult now...
"Beautiful lady, lower your head a little... a little lower, yes, a little to the left..."
Qiu Wuji swallowed her anger. She felt the other person was deliberately making things difficult. She clearly felt she was sitting perfectly straight, but his words made her look crooked.
Why make things so complicated? Our photo-taking magic weapon can just snap a picture and we're done…
"Click!" The flash went off, and Qiu Wuji, feeling like she'd been granted a pardon, was about to run away when Chu Ge, smiling, grabbed her again: "Wait, how about a group photo?"
Qiu Wuji's expression darkened: "You said you weren't lying to me about getting a marriage certificate…"
"No, no, who takes a full-body photo to get a marriage certificate?"
"Full-body?"
"Yes, come on, stand here…"
Qiu Wuji looked over, but it was just a backdrop of a landscape painting, looking very fake: "Will this even look good?"
"Sure, we can even do some post-processing, making it look misty and ethereal, like we're in a fairyland. Let's see how it looks?"
Qiu Wuji hesitated, somewhat tempted. What would it be like to stand beside him amidst the misty mountains…?
She subconsciously followed, standing next to Chu Ge.
Her hand was unconsciously grasped by him again…
"Hey, closer, yes, even closer…" the photographer coaxed patiently, "Oh, beautiful lady, don't be so shy, just a moment… Oh, spreading your arms too wide doesn't look good in photos, it ruins the lens structure." Chu Ge almost wanted to reward him with a title of leader; he was so considerate.
Qiu Wuji, taking her first photo, obviously didn't understand much. She just silently obeyed whatever the photographer said, otherwise, it would "ruin the lens structure," after all.
Our photo-taking tools shouldn't be like this! What a lousy camera!
"Smile, cheese~"
"Click!"
In the photo, Qiu Wuji is clinging tightly to Chu Ge's arm, so tightly that his hand almost sinks into a ditch. Both of them have silly smiles on their faces, looking rather foolish.
And also very innocent.
"It's awful." After picking up the photos and leaving the photo studio, Qiu Wuji looked at each of his ID photos with a sour face. "It doesn't look like me at all!"
Chu Ge smiled. "That's good, that's exactly what I wanted."
"If it doesn't look like me, how can I be sure it's me?"
"At first glance, it doesn't look like me, but upon closer inspection, it's still you." Chu Ge still smiled, he couldn't get enough of looking at the group photos in his hands.
Qiu Wuji in the group photos really looked like him, not only did he look like him, but he was also sweet.
Qiu Wuji knew what those photos were like and was too ashamed to look at them anymore. Seeing his expression made him annoyed, he kicked him and said resentfully, "Go eat!"
"After this photo is edited, does it look even a little like your Yunji Sect?"
"Tch, the Yunji Sect looks a million times better than this." Qiu Wuji said, "If you're so capable, go in there and take a picture there, that's the real thing."
That actually made some sense. This world was real, while the world in the book was "fake."
But the green mountains and white clouds in that photo are just a backdrop, an illusion; the distant mountains and clouds over there are the real ones.
And that boundless autumn over there is the true form.
The peerless sect leader who reigns supreme over an entire era.
Chu Ge pondered for a long time, lost in thought, then smiled slightly: "One day, I will go in."