River God Offering

Yuan Xi was brought from the countryside to the city by his family so he could attend elementary school. But before the school year even began, he came down with a terrible illness, vomiting and suffering from diarrhea until he was bedridden. No doctor or medicine could help. Just as it seemed his life was about to end, Yuan Xi vaguely saw his parents carrying him into a room filled with smoke. He heard an old woman say something about a paper effigy taking his place and how difficult he would be to keep alive. When Yuan Xi opened his eyes again, he had been sent back to the countryside. It was as though he had never been sick, and before long he was running and jumping around again. The villagers gossiped that when Yuan Xi was little, he had climbed aboard a boat carrying offerings to the River God and become the River God's attendant. That was why he couldn't leave the village. Was the River God really that domineering? Yuan Xi shouted inwardly. Still, nice! Now he wouldn't have to go to school! Yuan Xi's hopes were dashed by reality. He still had to go to school, trekking over mountains and through rivers, crying all the way. Even if monsters and demons blocked the road, he still had to go! A hundred brides comb their hair, wedding rites through winter and spring Red smiles cast shadows, three figures become one The ghost peddler comes at dusk to knock upon the door Three bridal sedan chairs welcome the gods, a night of offerings for the souls of the dead [A Reader's Guide] 1. I originally planned to write about the protagonists growing up from childhood friends to sweethearts, but the story turned out so cheerful that they stayed in the childhood-friends stage the whole time. So this is a rather childlike supernatural adventure about kids. 2. I haven't paid much attention to the story since it was completed, and only recently realized there was a lot of controversy in the comments about changing categories. First, I want to apologize. Since the protagonists are children, when I went to read the comments after finishing the story, I saw people who had only read the blurb and first chapter calling the author a pedophile. I reflected on whether having child protagonists had given readers the wrong impression. Around that time, my editor contacted me and said the story had no CP and needed to be moved to another category. I argued about it for a while, but was eventually convinced. I also felt that since the protagonists hadn't grown up and their friendship was still purely innocent, changing categories was the right thing to do. 3. I originally planned to write a second book after finishing their childhood story, once I felt the protagonists had truly grown up, and then write about their adult relationships. But because of the controversy around the CP and the category change, and because I was recently reported for being in the wrong category again, I've decided not to write a second book. The protagonists will stay children, and I won't add complicated romantic feelings to their story. 4. I truly love this story. It gave me a lot of strength to grow, and finishing it brought about a great deal of personal growth for me. Thank you to everyone who has loved this story, too. 5. Finally, I'm going to close the comments and let the protagonists grow up slowly in their own fairy-tale world. Theme: It's better to resolve a feud than let it fester.