“Brother!” Ji Xinglan suddenly called out. She raised her small hand and pointed across the long street to where Ji Xinglou was walking towards them. Ji Xinglou held a candied hawthorn in each hand, with Changsheng following behind him.
Ji Xinglou ran over and glanced in surprise at Gu Jianli, who had suddenly appeared, then handed one of the candied hawthorns to his sister.
“Thank you, Brother!” Ji Xinglan took it, opened her small mouth to take a bite, but then she remembered and offered it to Gu Jianli with a sweet smile: “For you!”
Gu Jianli had no appetite for this. She was too worried about Wujing being beaten. She could only say, “I don’t eat this. Lanlan, you eat it.”
“It’s very sweet. Don’t you like sweet things too?” Ji Xinglan asked curiously.
“Lanlan, be good and eat it yourself.” Even though Gu Jianli was anxious inside, she put on a composed appearance and spoke in a soft and pleasant tone.
Listening to Gu Jianli’s voice made Ji Wujing’s ears itch. He tilted his head and rubbed his ear against his shoulder.
“Okay…” Ji Xinglan began eating. But the bright red hawthorn was bigger than her mouth, so she could only stick out her tender little tongue and lick the sugar coating on the hawthorn.
Only then did Changsheng catch up.
“Donglin, what are you doing here?” Changsheng cheerfully patted the shoulder of the leading man among a group of seven or eight people.
Gu Jianli was stunned for a moment and carefully observed the expression on Changsheng’s face.
Changsheng glanced at Ji Wujing’s expression and greeted Gu Jianli with a salute, surprised, “Madam, you are here too.”
Gu Jianli nodded, realizing she might have made a big mistake.
Fu Donglin looked at Gu Jianli in surprise and asked, “Could this be…”
“It’s the madam!” Changsheng said beside him.
The seven or eight people all shouted in unison, “Hello, Madam!”
Gu Jianli nodded politely in return, but inside she was embarrassed by her mistake. The hand she had wrapped around Ji Wujing’s arm slowly and reluctantly withdrew. She didn’t dare look at Ji Wujing’s expression; he was surely laughing at her with his eyes. She just knew it!
She squatted down to talk to Ji Xinglan to ease the awkwardness: “Lanlan, why did you leave the house today?”
Ji Xinglan had just bitten into a hawthorn and, after eating a little bit, her face scrunched up from the sourness. She said, “Daddy took us out to play. We were going to buy candy, but after Brother bought the candied hawthorn, we’ll buy candy! Hmph, it’s too sour…”
She looked at the candied hawthorn in her hand and then at Gu Jianli.
“Hmph, so delicate!” Ji Xinglou rolled his eyes and took a big bite of a hawthorn, suppressing the urge to tear up from the sourness.
Gu Jianli bent down, held Ji Xinglan’s small hand, and took a small bite of the top hawthorn on the skewer to taste it.
It was indeed sour. So sour that she couldn’t help but frown.
“If it’s sour, don’t eat it.” Gu Jianli took the skewer from Ji Xinglan’s hand and carefully wiped her hands with a handkerchief.
“Xinglou, you shouldn’t eat it either. It might upset your stomach from the sourness.” Gu Jianli also took the skewer from Ji Xinglou’s hand and wiped his hands.
“Who asked you to wipe my hands!” Ji Xinglou hid his hands behind his back, raising his chin and looking defiant.
Gu Jianli was long used to Ji Xinglou’s peculiar temper and didn’t pay him any mind. She looked at the two skewers in her hand, unsure where to put them.
A shadow fell over her, and Ji Wujing bent down to take the two skewers from her hand. He straightened up and slowly ate a hawthorn, the very one Gu Jianli had just bitten into. Then he handed the two skewers to Fu Donglin, saying, “They’re good for the stomach, eat them.”
“Thank you, Master!” Fu Donglin, whose face was full of scars, boomed.
Gu Jianli was startled.
Ji Wujing turned and walked into Shijin Pavilion. Just as he crossed the threshold, he turned to Gu Jianli and asked, “Which candy is the best?”
“Of course, the signature Shijin candy,” Gu Jianli replied.
“Oh. Never mind, I don’t want to buy it anymore.” Ji Wujing walked back out, “Let’s return to the manor.”
“Ah…” Ji Xinglan was extremely disappointed, her beautiful eyes dimming instantly. But she was an obedient child and dared not go against her father’s words. She lowered her head, looking very dejected.
Gu Jianli blamed Ji Wujing in her heart for being such an unreliable father. Seeing Ji Xinglan looking so upset and on the verge of tears, she felt a pang of sympathy. She rubbed the little girl’s head and said to Ji Wujing, “Wait a moment, let me buy some for Lanlan. It will just take a moment.”
Worried that Ji Wujing might leave with Ji Xinglan, Gu Jianli quickly took the little girl’s hand and hurried into Shijin Pavilion. Inside, they were greeted by rows of lifelike golden sugar figures.
Shijin Pavilion was one of the top candy shops in Yong’an City, with branches every few streets. It sold all kinds of candies, which were very popular with children.
The most famous product was the Shijin candy. Shijin candy came in ten different types, each with a different color, all packed in a round box with ten compartments. The box had a hidden mechanism that made a pleasant sound when shaken.
Gu Jianli had been eating it since she was a child.
Every now and then, the shop would introduce new types of candies. Whenever there was a new kind, Gu Jianli would always rush to buy and eat it.
She hadn’t been here for a long time. There were several new types of candies she hadn’t tried yet.
Gu Jianli bought a box of Shijin candies for Ji Xinglan and then picked her up, allowing her to choose other candies she liked.
“Is this all?” Gu Jianli asked.
“Yes, this is enough!” Ji Xinglan leaned in and gave Gu Jianli a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for buying me candy!”
Gu Jianli smiled gently but her gaze wandered to the newly introduced white jade lotus seed candy on the shelf. Perhaps because children preferred brightly colored candies, Ji Xinglan didn’t choose the new, pure white candy.
But based on Gu Jianli’s years of experience with candies, she knew this new white jade lotus seed candy must be very delicious.
“Are you sure there’s nothing else you want?” Gu Jianli asked again, not giving up.
“Yes!” Ji Xinglan nodded, putting a piece of yellow ingot-shaped candy into her mouth.
Ji Wujing and Ji Xinglou stood nearby, one big and one small. Ji Xinglou complained, “Women are so troublesome. It takes forever to buy candy!”
Ji Wujing casually grabbed a handful of candy and stuffed it into Ji Xinglou’s mouth.
Reluctantly, Gu Jianli left Shijin Pavilion. The seven or eight people from earlier were nowhere to be seen. Gu Jianli put the little girl down and straightened up, finally taking a good look at Ji Wujing. She pressed her lips together and softly asked, “Are you feeling better?”
At least he was able to go out and no longer needed a wheelchair.
She murmured quietly, “You look a bit healthier…”
Ji Wujing looked at her and slowly said, “I want to eat fish.”
It was indeed time for lunch, and the two children must be hungry as well. Gu Jianli glanced back at her sister’s restaurant. Her sister stood at the entrance, looking their way. Gu Chuan stood beside her, also looking over, with an unfriendly expression on his face.
Gu Jianli felt inexplicably guilty. She said, “The fish here is very good,” and led the group into a small restaurant next to Shijin Pavilion.
The waiter greeted them warmly and led them upstairs to the second floor.
Ji Xinglou bounced ahead, while Gu Jianli carefully guided Ji Xinglan up the stairs. Ji Wujing followed just one step behind. Changsheng brought up the rear, trailing a bit behind.
Suddenly, Ji Wujing reached out and placed his palm on Gu Jianli’s forehead. Gu Jianli was slightly taken aback, and Ji Wujing withdrew his hand, saying from behind her in a calm tone, “Hmm, it seems you are completely recovered.”
Gu Jianli lowered her head and awkwardly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She couldn’t help but remember the time she had been sick and vomited all over him.
She lowered her gaze, carefully listening to the sound of Ji Wujing’s footsteps behind her, her thoughts tangled.
When Ji Wujing ate fish, he was as focused as ever. Ji Xinglan and Ji Xinglou were well-behaved while eating. In the not-so-spacious private room, the four of them quietly ate their meal.
“Why haven’t you been home for so long?” Ji Xinglan suddenly tilted her little head and looked at Gu Jianli.
Gu Jianli took a small sip of tea, unsure how to explain to the child.
Ji Xinglan tugged at Gu Jianli’s sleeve, her voice soft and childish: “I missed you!”
Ji Xinglou, sitting nearby, snorted and said arrogantly, “She ran away with someone else. Once Father breaks her legs, she won’t be able to run anymore!”
Gu Jianli hadn’t had time to be moved by Ji Xinglan’s words before she was stunned by Ji Xinglou’s comment. She looked up at Ji Wujing, who was sitting across from her, eating fish slowly and steadily, and suddenly felt a bit sorry for him.
His first fiancée abandoned him when he was seriously ill, and the second wife arranged by his family was counting the days until he would die. Now, she too had left him…
Gu Jianli felt a pang of guilt in her heart, but she ruthlessly suppressed it. Perhaps her father was right: the orders of one’s parents and the words of a matchmaker were important. Her father hadn’t approved of this marriage, nor was there a matchmaker involved. She had sat in the bridal sedan, but they hadn’t even performed the wedding ceremony.
Maybe their marriage really didn’t count?
Moreover, that day when she told him she was leaving, what did he say? He dismissively said she was troublesome and told her to go if she wanted. If he hadn’t reacted that way, what might she have done?
Gu Jianli’s mind was in turmoil as she desperately searched for excuses to rid herself of the guilt.
She lifted her tea cup to take a sip, but Ji Wujing suddenly stood up and grabbed her wrist. Gu Jianli looked up and met Ji Wujing’s eyes, seeing her confused reflection in his fox-like eyes.
“What… what’s wrong?”
“This isn’t good to drink.” Ji Wujing smiled, pulling up the corner of his mouth.
Gu Jianli looked down in surprise and realized she had picked up a small bowl of vinegar instead of a tea cup…
Her cheeks flushed with heat, and she awkwardly set the vinegar bowl down.
Ji Wujing straightened up, and Gu Jianli was startled. Was he about to leave? She hurriedly called out, “Fifth Master!”
Ji Wujing raised an eyebrow, lazily glancing at her.
Gu Jianli took a deep breath, stood up, and mustered the courage to ask, “Will you be attending the Lantern Festival banquet?”
“Why?”
Gu Jianli steeled herself and said, “If you go, it would be better if someone takes care of you. Uh… I mean… can you take me with you…”
She felt that her request was a bit excessive, her voice growing quieter and quieter until she finally lowered her head, not daring to look at Ji Wujing.
Ji Wujing scoffed, “Why be so foolish and say the truth outright?”
Gu Jianli looked up again, her eyes showing a hint of sincerity. She said, “But you said you don’t like being lied to.”
Ji Wujing’s amused smile slowly faded, and he scrutinized Gu Jianli.
Feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, Gu Jianli quietly looked away and murmured softly, “I can’t lie to you anyway…”
