The viewing spot in the restaurant Lin Chongtan had booked was excellent. I stood by the window, eating a candied hawthorn stick Liangji bought for me while watching the acrobats below.
Back in Gusu, Father would directly invite acrobat troupes to the manor. I always watched them closely, but for some reason tonight, my mind kept drifting.
Although my eyes were on the performance below, my thoughts kept straying to Lin Chongtan. Does he remember what happened that night? He had been drinking too; maybe he forgot. No, he was able to take me back to the dormitory and play the flute for me—he must remember.
The more I thought about it, the more annoyed I became. I bit down hard on a candied hawthorn but accidentally bit my tongue, making me gasp in pain.
“Young Master Chun, what’s wrong?” Liangji asked from beside me.
With the hawthorn still in my mouth, my voice was muffled. “Bite my tongue.”
Liangji leaned in. “Let me see.”
I pushed the hawthorn to the side of my cheek and opened my mouth slightly. Liangji looked by the light of the lamps. “It looks like a pretty hard bite. Wait a moment, Young Master; they brought some medicine out with them.”
As Liangji walked away, I kept my mouth open. Because of the candy, saliva began to collect. I frowned, looking for Liangji to see if he had returned with the medicine, but I unexpectedly locked eyes with Lin Chongtan.
He was looking at me.
My first instinct was to turn away, and I nervously snapped my mouth shut. By the time I realized my reaction was awkward, Lin Chongtan was no longer looking at me.
He was standing with our younger cousin, speaking softly. My cousin’s eyes were full of admiration as he looked at Lin Chongtan.
“Ah, are those Shizhi and Qiuqiao?” Cousin Wan suddenly pointed somewhere below. Cousin Qiong looked closely. “It is them! They came out to play too.”
The two girls they mentioned were the daughters of the Assistant Censor. They had no brothers in their family, so they were only accompanied by maids and servants. The crowd below was a chaotic mix of people, and the two girls were inevitably being jostled.
Knowing the daughters of the Assistant Censor were below watching the acrobats, Lin Chongtan spoke to our cousins for a moment and then sent Cousin Wan’s head maid to invite the two ladies upstairs. After giving the instructions, he looked at me. “Little Di, let’s go for a walk downstairs.”
Our younger cousin was still small, so he didn’t need to avoid the company of women, but Lin Chongtan and I were not suited to stay here. Although I didn’t want to spend time with him, I had to follow along.
Outside the restaurant, there were even more pedestrians than when we arrived. Many were young men and women in beautiful clothes, bathed in the glow of the lanterns, their sleeves carrying heavy scents. In fact, I had dressed up specially for tonight as well.
In the school dorms, I usually wore the green and white student uniform. For the festival, I changed into a light purple soft silk shirt and swapped my usual waist-hanging incense pouch for a new one.
After walking with Lin Chongtan for a short while, I noticed he already had several sachets in his arms.
The Qixi Festival is a festival for young women, and many go out on this night. On this day, they can boldly express their affection for a man by giving him their handmade sachets.
Lin Chongtan handed the sachets tossed into his arms to Qiongqiu, but as soon as he handed a few over, another one appeared in his arms in the blink of an eye.
The girls who threw them would quickly walk away under the protection of their maids, their faces turning bright red with shyness.
After a while, Qiongqiu simply used a bag to hold the sachets given to Lin Chongtan. I looked at Liangji. Seeing my gaze, he said to me quite proudly, “Young Master Chun, don’t worry, I prepared a bag too.”
His voice was loud, and everyone nearby heard him.
I heard Baichi let out a muffled laugh.
This Liangji is truly going to be the death of me.
“Young Master Chun, don’t walk so fast, wait for me!”
I didn’t want to stay with a dummy like Liangji anymore and hurried forward with my head down, but after only a few steps, my wrist was caught.
The person grabbing me was Lin Chongtan.
“There are too many people tonight. Don’t wander off,” he told me.
I looked at his hand gripping my wrist, feeling quite uncomfortable. “I know.” As soon as the words left my mouth, he let go and turned to the catching-up Liangji. “Keep a close eye on your master.”
Liangji nodded quickly and squeezed in beside me. “Young Master Chun, you walked so fast just now, I almost couldn’t catch up.”
I glared at him. “Talk less today.”
Although Liangji didn’t understand why I was suddenly picking on him, he nodded honestly.
There is a bridge in the capital called Sparrow Bridge, named because sparrows like to gather there. During Qixi, it becomes the “Magpie Bridge.” Without realizing it, we walked near the bridge. There is a legend that if a couple walks back and forth across the bridge seven times, they can make a vow for their next life.
Many people were walking across it. I was thinking about going around the bridge when I saw Lin Chongtan take the first step onto the stone stairs. Because he went up, I had to follow. There were even more people on the bridge than at the acrobats’ show. Liangji and I were pushed apart by the crowd. Just as I was shouting his name, a hand reached out from the side and pulled me over.
It was Lin Chongtan.
He first grabbed my arm, and once I was pulled to his side, his hand moved to my shoulder. I was practically held in his arms as we moved forward.
The overly intimate posture made me want to struggle immediately, but he didn’t let go like before; instead, he held on quite firmly.
“Little Di, help me out,” his voice whispered in my ear.
There were too many people on the bridge, and I was being squeezed closer and closer into his chest. “Help you with what?”
“Just don’t move,” Lin Chongtan said.
I didn’t understand at first, but then I saw the problem. It turned out that as soon as Lin Chongtan got on the bridge, girls started bumping into his arms, personally stuffing sachets into his hands or his belt. I knew the capital’s customs were open, but I didn’t expect the girls to be so bold. It left the usually calm and composed Lin Chongtan with no choice but to hold me in his arms to ward them off.
But this was torture for me.
I didn’t want to be so close to him, especially after the night I got drunk. Being pressed so close to him now, I could smell the fragrance on him, and beneath it, a faint scent of medicine.
We finally got off the Magpie Bridge, but Liangji and the others were nowhere to be found.
Lin Chongtan and I stood near the bridge and waited. Pedestrians flowed past like clouds, while only the two of us stood still. He gazed at the lake water shimmering under the moonlight, the clear glow reflecting in his eyes. I rarely spent time like this with him—staying quiet and saying nothing.
Before long, Liangji and the others found us.
We strolled a bit longer before returning to the restaurant. The two daughters of the Assistant Censor had already left, leaving behind the seven-hole needles they had used to compete with our cousins.
“Brother Tan, let’s compete at this, okay?” My younger cousin had been wanting to play, but the girls wouldn’t play with him, so he had to ask Lin Chongtan.
The seven-hole needle is a game girls play on Qixi. They face the moon and try to thread five-colored silk threads through a needle with seven holes. The one who threads it fastest wins and takes the gift the loser prepared beforehand.
Lin Chongtan good-naturedly agreed. He clearly let my cousin win. After winning, the boy was incredibly happy and reached out to ask Lin Chongtan for a gift.
“I didn’t bring a gift with me. How about this jade pendant?” Lin Chongtan started to remove it, but my cousin stopped him.
“Brother Tan, I don’t want a pendant. Paint a picture for me,” he said. “I heard Father say your paintings are excellent.”
As soon as he said that, my two female cousins declared they wanted to compete with Lin Chongtan as well.
Sure enough, Lin Chongtan “lost” three paintings in one go.
Watching them being so harmonious, I slowly turned my face away.
My cousins seemed to feel they were leaving me out and asked, “Cousin Chun, do you want to try too?”
I glanced at Lin Chongtan, who was asking my younger cousin what kind of painting he wanted. I bit my lip. “No thanks. I don’t know how to play this.”
I didn’t care for his paintings; why bother competing for one?
After heading back, I returned to my room and found that Liangji had brought a set of seven-hole needles with him. He was interested too and sat by the window struggling to thread them. Seeing him fail for a long time, I couldn’t help saying, “Let me try.”
Liangji handed them to me, muttering, “I saw them do it so fast just now.”
I finished threading them in no time. Liangji looked amazed. “Wow, Young Master Chun, you’re so fast.”
“It’s very simple.” Being praised by Liangji, I couldn’t help but smile.
Liangji added, “If you had competed with the Second Young Master, you definitely would have won a gift too.”
He suddenly mentioned Lin Chongtan, and the little bit of happiness in my heart vanished instantly. I gave the needles back to Liangji. “You do it. I’m going to bathe.”
On the third day of the break, something happened.
It was said that Father had sent a ship to the capital, filled with gifts for Third Uncle’s family. Both of my female cousins had found good matches, and their wedding dates were close. Third Uncle was an honest official, and Third Aunt’s personal savings weren’t large. This shipload of gifts largely solved the problem of their dowries.
The reason I say “it was said” is that I didn’t know Father had sent gifts until the ship docked and began unloading.
Lin Chongtan handled the whole thing. When presenting the gifts, he simply said they were Qixi gifts for our two cousins.
Of course, besides the two cousins, Third Aunt and our younger cousin also received gifts. Even the concubines in Third Uncle’s backyard received gifts sent by Lin Chongtan.
As for Third Uncle, Lin Chongtan simply played a game of chess with him.
Liangji found out all of this.
Liangji described the gifts to me, saying the courtyard couldn’t even hold them all. He told me our cousins’ eyes turned red when they saw them.
No girl is indifferent to her dowry. A small dowry often leads to being looked down upon by the husband’s family, yet their father had always been a clean official with no extra wealth.
This ship of gifts completely set their minds at ease.
“The Second Young Master saw me and warned me not to spread the word,” Liangji asked confusedly. “Why can’t we talk about this?”
I put down my teacup. “Because Third Uncle values his reputation. Didn’t you see they unloaded the goods at night? It’s fine to tell me, but don’t go gossiping outside.”
Compared to the excitement in the other courtyards, my place was quiet. No one came to see me these past two days, and even Liangji, who usually loves a crowd, didn’t go out. When I asked why, he wouldn’t tell the truth, only saying there was nothing fun outside.
I knew what he was thinking. He had been secretly competing with Lin Chongtan’s pageboys, Qiongqiu and Baichi. Because of the gifts, the status of those two in Third Uncle’s manor had skyrocketed. Servants called them “Brother Qiongqiu” and “Brother Baichi.” Liangji was still just Liangji, and he was sulking.
I felt a bit sorry for him. If he weren’t following me, he wouldn’t have to live so miserably.
When the break ended and I returned to the dormitory, a box appeared in my room while I was bathing. Liangji was guarding it. Seeing me come out, he stood up quickly. “Young Master Chun, Qiongqiu and Baichi brought this. They said the Second Young Master told them to deliver it.”
My eyes lit up. Had Father prepared a gift for me this time too?
I opened the box myself. The contents were a mix of things—everything from snacks to daily items. They were all novelties I had never seen before. Tucked into the corner was a rolled-up painting.
I unfurled it. The scroll depicted the capital’s market with its carved pillars and ornate buildings. Under the soft moonlight, the lanterns flowed like a dragon, seemingly bright enough to light up the heavens. On the stone street, young men and women in elegant robes were surrounded by servants.
Somewhere, someone had lost a purple silk handkerchief. The summer wind caught it, swirling it into the air above the Magpie Bridge.
On the back of the scroll were a few small words—”Night Tour on Qixi.”
“Wow, this is painted so well,” Liangji exclaimed in admiration.
I thought so too. I even reached out to touch the painting; the people and scenery felt as if they were right before my eyes, incredibly lifelike.
The owner of the painting was obvious. He had actually sent me a painting as well.
Even though I didn’t like Lin Chongtan, this painting was so good that I couldn’t help looking at it several times before going to bed.
I made sure to have Liangji put the painting away carefully.
The next day, the first class was painting.
Instructor Ming assigned us work to be turned in after returning to school. I took the painting I had done during the break out of my bag, tied it with a ribbon bearing my name, and handed it in.
A moment later, I heard Instructor Ming laughing and clapping his hands. His voice was full of delight. “What a wonderful ‘Night Tour on Qixi’! As the poem says, ‘The star-bridge and fire-trees, a night in Chang’an, ten thousand red lotuses bloom. Silk robes borrow the spring from the moon; the breeze and dew are delicate, the sky clear as water. The walled city shuts out the moon, while brothels boast of joy; people are like shadows in the Silver River…’ Lin Chun Di, this painting is magnificent.”
I looked up, only to find to my horror that Instructor Ming was holding the “Night Tour on Qixi” that Lin Chongtan had given me, not my own “Night-Blooming Cereus in Summer.”
Liangji had brought the wrong painting.
I opened my mouth to explain, but Instructor Ming kept praising it. The other students in the room gathered around, talking excitedly with amazement in their eyes and praise on their lips.
This was the first time I had ever been praised by an instructor and my peers.
Unknowingly, I closed my mouth. My palms, clenched tightly beneath my sleeves, began to sweat.