Was this okay?
Zhou Shaojin stared at the hand Cheng Chi was holding, both alarmed and delighted.
Alarmed by how bold Cheng Chi was—what would they do if someone saw them? Delighted that Cheng Chi actually liked her this much… that he had even dismissed those attending her…
She stumbled along after him as they walked forward.
Cheng Chi stopped and smiled at her, waiting until she stood steady before saying: “Am I walking too fast?”
He had never accompanied anyone shopping on the street like this before, and at first couldn’t quite grasp the proper pace.
Zhou Shaojin’s face flushed crimson. Looking at his smiling eyes made her flustered, and she stammered: “N-no. It’s me walking too slowly.”
Cheng Chi lowered his head and whispered by her ear: “Then we’ll follow your pace and walk slowly…”
This accommodating tone made Zhou Shaojin feel her entire body heating up.
Cheng Chi watched as her fair neck and ears turned pink.
Especially those ears—shell-like, delicate and exquisite, with plump little earlobes that made one want to take a bite.
He laughed at himself. Now he could see her and let his thoughts run wild about everything.
How had he managed to remain so detached before?
Clearly, everything depended on meeting the right person!
He smiled slightly, taking Zhou Shaojin’s hand and walking forward, asking her: “Is there anything you want to buy?”
Cheng Chi’s warm, large hand was clean and comforting, tightly enveloping hers like the source of warmth in her body, making her head feel fuzzy—how could she carefully think about what Cheng Chi was saying?
She shook her head, thinking that as long as she could be with Uncle Chi, anywhere would be fine…
Cheng Chi didn’t quite know where he should take Zhou Shaojin either.
Temple fairs didn’t have fixed stalls, and he didn’t usually visit temple fairs.
After pondering for a moment, he led Zhou Shaojin to stop at a small stall surrounded by many young girls around her age, only to discover that the stall sold glass ornaments—though of course, those glass items were clearly inferior quality at first glance, not on the same level as what he bought for Zhou Shaojin.
Cheng Chi continued leading her forward. Seeing a stall selling incense, with only two or three people picking through the wares at the front, but also several rather exquisitely crafted incense boxes.
He knew Zhou Shaojin always liked such things, so he stopped with her before the stall, saying gently: “See if there’s anything you like.”
Zhou Shaojin’s mind was still in a daze. When Cheng Chi asked her to choose, she stepped forward to look at the incense.
There was a triangular box made with delicate little feet, done in cloisonné enamel with a blue base and golden lotus flower patterns. Both the craftsmanship and design were exquisite and quite rare.
Zhou Shaojin looked at it several more times.
Cheng Chi pointed at the box and said: “Boss, wrap this one up for us.”
The boss was a young fellow in his early twenties, not tall, dark and thin, with smiling eyes that had been glancing at Zhou Shaojin ever since he saw her. Hearing this, he immediately responded cheerfully. While deftly taking out a paper box to package it, he smiled and said: “Sir has excellent taste. This came from the Western Heaven, from Buddha himself. A foreign merchant left it at an inn. Ten taels of silver…” At this point, he sized up Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi knew this item was worth at most three to five taels of silver. However, it was rare that Shaojin liked it, and it was only a small amount of money. Rather than waste time haggling with this vendor, he’d rather take Shaojin to a few more stalls, let her buy more little things she liked, and spend more time with her… He didn’t bargain with the vendor and simply nodded.
Huai Shan suddenly appeared from nowhere and tossed a small piece of silver to the vendor.
Zhou Shaojin jumped in fright, instinctively wanting to pull her hand out from Cheng Chi’s grip.
But Cheng Chi held it even tighter.
Zhou Shaojin’s face flushed red as she used her peripheral vision to glance at Huai Shan.
But Huai Shan had disappeared just as he had appeared!
She looked up in astonishment.
All around were people browsing the temple fair. From time to time, people looked her way with admiring gazes, but there was no trace of Huai Shan anywhere.
In the past, when people looked at her this way, she was always very afraid.
With Cheng Chi beside her, she suddenly felt that having people look at her like this didn’t matter.
After all, they were all people who had nothing to do with her.
Even if the sky fell, Cheng Chi would hold it up.
But she still felt a bit embarrassed and leaned closer to Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi found this quite amusing and whispered by her ear: “The people around me aren’t as oblivious as those around you!”
Zhou Shaojin was so mortified she didn’t know what to do. After a long while, she murmured: “Uncle Chi is talking nonsense. The people around me are also very good!”
Cheng Chi laughed heartily.
The vendor’s eyes lit up when he saw the silver, knowing he’d encountered a wealthy customer. His hands moved even more nimbly than before. Just as Cheng Chi laughed, he finished wrapping the package.
“Sir, your item.” He smiled obsequiously as he handed the item to Zhou Shaojin.
But before Zhou Shaojin could reach out, Cheng Chi took it and carried it for her without calling for anyone.
The vendor’s eyes brightened even more. He quickly said to Zhou Shaojin: “Miss, we also have several kinds of incense from the Western Regions. Would you like to take a look? The incense is made very well—some smell sweet without being cloying, some smell fresh and crisp, and some have a lingering, romantic fragrance. I can see you’re someone who understands incense. I won’t delay your browsing—I’ll just bring them out for you to smell. Whether you buy or not is fine. I just want someone knowledgeable like you to see them…” Without waiting for Zhou Shaojin’s response, he squatted down and pulled out seven or eight paper boxes from under the stall. “Take a look!”
Very eager indeed.
Zhou Shaojin wasn’t good at refusing others, and since the boxes containing the incense were quite beautiful, she picked them up to smell.
The vendor, wanting to make this sale, naturally spilled flattery freely: “Miss is truly blessed! Is this gentleman your elder brother, father, or uncle? He’s really good to you. Whatever you want, he doesn’t even bat an eye. Actually, I also have an incense shop over by Xizhimen called ‘Western Region Sanskrit Incense,’ specializing in goods from the Western Regions. If you ever have time, you could browse there too…”
Both Cheng Chi and Zhou Shaojin froze, their expressions somewhat subtle.
Zhou Shaojin’s mood dimmed.
Was the difference between her and Uncle Chi so obvious?
Even a vendor meeting them for the first time could tell they were of different generations?
Cheng Chi felt quite displeased.
Though Shaojin was delicate and soft, surely he wasn’t so old as to be mistaken for her father?
Seeing their expressions, the vendor’s heart cried out “disaster!” His eyes caught sight of their clasped hands, and he cursed himself for being foolish. He slapped himself on the mouth and apologized: “Dear customers, don’t listen to my nonsense. This mouth of mine can’t keep quiet—that’s why my business is so poor. The gentleman is elegant and refined, the young lady has the beauty of a sinking fish and falling goose—truly a perfectly matched couple. If the young lady weren’t still wearing a maiden’s hairstyle, I would have thought she was this gentleman’s wife! However, your happy occasion must be near, right? I must congratulate you both! You’re the most well-matched couple I’ve ever seen…”
These two clearly came from wealthy, prestigious families. If their happy occasion weren’t near, how would their families allow them to visit the temple fair together on the Bathing Buddha Festival?
The man didn’t actually seem that old, just too composed, not very youthful. That young lady was too delicate and tender, looking quite young. The man was willing to attend to her personally, and they didn’t seem like ordinary people—that’s why he had misjudged.
Zhou Shaojin’s face, which had just cooled down, flushed bright red again with a whoosh. She couldn’t help but steal a glance at Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi was quite clear about these business tactics, but who didn’t like to hear pleasant words?
He snorted coldly in his heart.
If he’d said this earlier, they might have patronized this vendor’s business. Saying it now was too late!
Without even glancing at the vendor, he only asked Zhou Shaojin gently: “Have you found anything you like?”
When Cheng Chi drew close, Zhou Shaojin’s heart became like a tangled mess—how could she still have the mood to select incense?
Seeing her looking indecisive, Cheng Chi knew she wasn’t accustomed to such markets and even less accustomed to refusing others. He simply tugged her hand and said: “Then let’s continue browsing. Perhaps we’ll encounter something else you like.”
Zhou Shaojin naturally nodded.
Cheng Chi carried the incense box and held her hand as they continued forward.
But Zhou Shaojin could feel that Cheng Chi wasn’t as happy as before.
Was it because of what that vendor said?
She hadn’t expected Uncle Chi to care so much!
He… must have once agonized over their status and relationship just as she had…
Thinking this, her heart immediately softened, as if rippling with a pool of spring water, tender and lingering.
She wanted Cheng Chi to be happy!
Wanted Cheng Chi to be cheerful when he was with her!
Just as her heart felt as joyful as if it held a little bird when she was with Cheng Chi.
Zhou Shaojin bit her lip again and again, finally tugging at the hand Cheng Chi held hers with, saying softly: “Uncle Chi, I’m… I’m a bit tired…”
She didn’t want to browse the temple fair anymore.
She was afraid of encountering more vendors like that one, saying things Uncle Chi didn’t like to hear.
Looking at her light green shoes embroidered with auspicious cloud patterns, Cheng Chi silently reproached himself.
Shaojin had been raised in the inner chambers—she probably had never walked such a long distance in her life.
He had been too careless.
“Then shall we go sit at the teahouse by the big locust tree?” Cheng Chi consulted with Zhou Shaojin.
The teahouse would also have many people!
Zhou Shaojin gathered her courage and said: “Could we go see Daxiangguo Temple?”
Cheng Chi was quite surprised.
Most of the time, Zhou Shaojin passively accepted his kindness. It was rare for her to actively propose doing something like this.
This made him feel he wasn’t performing a one-man show.
There was a joy of being anticipated by one’s beloved.
“Wonderful!” He smiled and said, his eyes once again glancing at her hem. “Then I’ll call for a sedan chair.”
She wasn’t that fragile.
Zhou Shaojin said shyly: “No need! We can just go together.”
Did she want to go with him to Daxiangguo Temple to pray for blessings?
Cheng Chi’s heart began pounding wildly.
So being with one’s beloved was this wonderful—even very ordinary, common things could make one’s heart beat like a drum.
He smiled and took Zhou Shaojin’s hand as they headed toward Daxiangguo Temple.
Perhaps because the masters had lectured on Buddhist teachings this morning and everyone had gone to browse the temple fair in the afternoon, Daxiangguo Temple had even fewer worshippers than usual.
Cheng Chi led Zhou Shaojin to offer incense at the main hall and asked if she wanted to draw fortune sticks.
Zhou Shaojin shook her head.
They had to meet up with Li Shi at the beginning of the you hour. She suddenly didn’t want to listen to those great monks interpret fortunes—she only wanted to spend a bit more time with Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi thought the same.
Seeing it was still early, he smiled: “Then shall we go sit at the back mountain for a while?”