Jiang Li looked up at the blue sky and took a deep breath of the fresh, sweet air. She let out a satisfied sigh from the bottom of her heart. From the border of southern Yunnan to its central area, the weather and air were completely different.
She walked lightly along the stone road. Every stone slab was firm and solid, and the feeling of stepping steadily on the ground made her feel very secure.
A gentle breeze blew, and her soft long dress swayed slowly with the wind, showing her graceful figure.
Along the way, people she knew greeted her.
“Jiang Li, you’re back.”
“Miss Li, good morning! What nice things are you working on this time?”
“Nothing special, just doing something casually,” Jiang Li replied with a faint smile. Her smile was bright, and her expression gentle.
“Even when you do something casually, you always make it special,” said the owner of the embroidery shop next door. She was from Jiangnan, just like Jiang Li, and spoke in a soft Jiangnan accent.
Jiang Li had lived for a long time in a small town in southern Yunnan. It was an old town, surrounded by mountains and water, with a history of over a hundred years.
People here are very warm and welcoming. No matter the season, travelers from China and other countries come and go, filling the place with laughter and lively activity.
A group of children saw her return and immediately ran around her, calling out, “Sister Jiang Jiang! Sister Jiang Jiang!”
Jiang Li took out small packets of raspberries she brought back and gave them to the children. The kids, who had been circling her, happily bounced away after receiving them.
Jiang Li looked at their innocent and playful backs and smiled softly.
When she returned to her antique shop, she asked someone to unload the items she had spent half a month collecting. She repeatedly reminded them to handle everything carefully.
It took more than half a day to unload and sort all the antiques, placing them neatly in the restoration room.
She gently caught her breath, wiped the light sweat from her cheeks, and walked through the curtain into the small courtyard at the back.
She turned on the tap, scooped up some clean water, and her fair, beautiful face glowed softly under the sunlight.
After washing her face, she felt much more comfortable. She picked some half-dried roses from the courtyard and went inside to take a relaxing rose petal bath.
Half an hour later, she removed her face mask and carefully applied body lotion. Her skin looked soft and glowing. Only then did Jiang Li feel satisfied as she stepped out of the bathroom.
She casually put on a dark blue home robe. Her exposed skin looked bright and fair.
She walked through the front hall, checked the time on her phone, and saw a message from Shang Huai Zhou.
【.】
Just a period. What did that mean?
She rested her chin on her hand and thought for a moment, then politely replied:
【.】
They had been added as contacts for some time but had never spoken. This was their first conversation—starting with a single period from him.
It was only polite to reply the same way.
Jiang Li was very satisfied with her response and even smiled slightly. She bent down, picked a rose from the courtyard, and smelled it. The scent was refreshing.
She replied to him later in the afternoon.
“……”
Still just a single period.
Shang Huai Zhou let out a faint laugh and replied:
【I thought it was a fake account.】
What!
Her account was perfectly fine—how did it become a fake account?
He really had an imagination.
Jiang Li sat on a hanging chair in the courtyard, resting her chin on one hand while lazily scrolling her phone with the other. She typed slowly:
【Oh. Sorry, I was busy earlier. Just saw it now.】
Shang Huai Zhou glanced at her half-hearted apology and replied:
【I heard from Shang Luo that you’re coming to Beijing recently?】
Jiang Li didn’t know why he was asking, but after thinking for a moment, she politely replied:
【Yes, I have a performance. I’ll go there.】
Just “go there”?
Shang Huai Zhou stared at her message in silence.
Did his grandfather not tell her about their engagement or their relationship?
He didn’t think about it further and sent another message:
【When are you planning to come?】
Jiang Li leaned back in the hanging chair. The sunlight in southern Yunnan was soft and comfortable. Because of the glare on her phone, she shaded the screen with her hand and replied:
【Not sure yet. Maybe in a few days, maybe next week.】
Shang Huai Zhou looked at this message and sneered slightly in his mind.
Not sure?
Has this girl learned to act difficult now?
Jiang Li then cautiously asked:
【Do you need something?】
In her impression, Shang Huai Zhou was cold and proud. It was rare for him to contact her unless forced.
Shang Huai Zhou had just seen her uncertain answer when he saw her follow-up message. He frowned slightly:
【Nothing. We’re not close anyway, just asking.】
【Oh.】
Jiang Li agreed with his “not close.”
They had been somewhat close in the past, but after years without contact, they were truly not familiar anymore.
A few days ago, Jiang Li had suddenly received a call from Grandpa Shang. She wasn’t surprised. She had a performance in Beijing, and her work unit was the Beijing Classical Dance Theater. The Shang family had connections in the system, so it was normal they knew about her performance.
He didn’t talk much—just invited her to stay at the Shang family residence for a few days.
He didn’t mention that Shang Huai Zhou would contact her. So his sudden message felt very unlike him.
Had he changed after all these years?
Never mind. It wasn’t important.
What mattered most to Jiang Li right now were her treasures. The items she brought back were hard to get, and cleaning and restoring them would take a lot of time.
It was both painful and happy at the same time.
Three days later, Shang Huai Zhou received a call from Grandpa Shang early in the morning. Jiang Li would fly to Beijing the day after tomorrow, and he was told to pick her up at the airport.
Grandpa Shang didn’t give him a chance to refuse and hung up.
Shang Huai Zhou looked at the phone number in silence.
He remembered her saying she wasn’t sure about the time of arrival. Yet now his grandfather knew the exact flight, while he, the one who asked, didn’t.
He let out a quiet cold laugh and opened their chat.
Their last message was still her single “oh.”
After that, Jiang Li never contacted him again, let alone told him the exact time.
He sent another message to “Not eating ginger Jiang Jiang”:
【What time is the flight?】