Chapter 30
The two of them went downstairs side by side. Jiang Lai lagged a few steps behind the woman, head lowered, lost in thought.
All at once, the woman was struck by a playful urge and stopped short.
Jiang Lai had been walking while idly nudging pebbles with her foot. Before she could react, she crashed straight into the woman’s back. The woman was so thin that the bones of her shoulder blades seemed to jut out.
Her nose slammed into bone with a dull thud.
Jiang Lai clutched her nose and stumbled back several steps. Tears sprang to her eyes from the pain; her nose felt as if it had been punched, aching and numb at the same time.
“Alai, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
The woman hurried forward, the teasing look on her face gone in an instant, replaced by a trace of panic.
“It’s fine, it’s fine.”
The girl held her nose and fought back the tears. “It has nothing to do with you; I wasn’t watching where I was going. But you—did you get hurt?”
The woman shook her head, a little flustered. “...I’m fine.”
Jiang Lai sniffled; her eyes were still red, and when the woman saw that, an indescribable feeling swelled in her chest.
“Alai, put your hand down. Let me take a look.”
“Oh, really, I’m fine. You don’t need to worry.”
She leaned toward the woman, deliberately trying to sound light and cheerful.
Seeing the girl’s reddened nose tip, Cheng Shuyang sighed. Her voice was muffled. “I’m sorry.”
The ache in her nose was impossible to ignore, but seeing the woman look unhappy only made her more anxious.
A soft breath brushed the tip of her nose. Jiang Lai stared blankly at the woman. “Aunt Cheng…”
The woman’s face kept drawing closer and closer, so close it felt as if even her breath could wrap around Jiang Lai.
It was as if the pain had vanished. Jiang Lai only felt her cheeks heating up at a visible pace; her gaze darted away, too embarrassed to look directly at the person in front of her.
She could hear her own heartbeat; it was loud.
“Aunt Cheng, no need…”
The woman didn’t move, leaning in a little more. “It’ll be over quickly; I’ll do it fast.”
Hesitantly, Jiang Lai lifted her eyes, only to run straight into the woman’s gentle, slightly worried gaze. Then she lowered her head again at once.
Warm breath brushed over the tip of her nose.
“Blow on it, and the pain will fly away.”
Pedestrians passing by kept glancing at them with curiosity, and Jiang Lai shot each of them a glare in return.
Aunt Cheng was so gentle. She must be this gentle with everyone, right…
A strange bitterness rose in her chest, and even the words she blurted out sounded a little wronged.
“Is Aunt Cheng this nice to everyone?”
A low laugh came from above her head. Unconvinced, Jiang Lai looked up at the woman, then glanced stubbornly aside, muttering under her breath about something or other.
“All right.”
The woman hooked a little finger into the center of her palm, the gesture carrying a hint of coaxing. “You and the others are different, of course.”
That one sentence was enough to coax a foolish smile out of Jiang Lai, though she still insisted, “Aunt Cheng is always so good at coaxing people.”
Is that so?
Maybe only the girl would think that. Before she could fully guard herself against any of it, her heartbeat had already slipped out of rhythm ahead of her.
Even though waves were already surging in her heart, nothing showed on her face. “Let’s go. We still need to buy things.”
When they were almost at the supermarket entrance, Jiang Lai suddenly seemed to remember something and clapped her hands. She only left behind a quick “Wait for me” before darting off like a gust of wind.
“Hey…”
The rest of her words caught in her throat; the girl’s figure had already vanished from sight.
There were people coming and going at the supermarket entrance, and quite a few seemed to have recognized her. They whispered to one another nonstop.
The woman, long used to living under the spotlight, found nothing unusual about it. She even greeted the crowd politely.
By the time Jiang Lai ran back over, the woman was already surrounded by a ring of enthusiastic fans.
She didn’t interrupt, only went to stand in a corner and waited quietly.
After a long while, the crowd gradually dispersed.
Only then did the woman notice the girl standing beneath a tree, smiling at her.
Like a small pebble dropped into a calm lake.
“Why didn’t you come over?”
The woman curved her lips in a faint smile and beckoned her over.
“I was afraid I’d bother you.” Jiang Lai walked up beside her, her tone a little playful.
The woman gave her a mock-reproachful look and tapped her shoulder lightly. “How can you tease me too?”
The girl leaned closer with a smile, the amusement in her eyes impossible to hide. “How would I dare tease you? You’re the movie queen, the dream lover of millions of fans, after all.”
Cheng Shuyang’s cheeks warmed at her words, and she couldn’t help tapping her again. “You’re getting more and more disrespectful.”
Though she said that, the smile in the woman’s eyes was almost overflowing, and even her voice carried a faint coaxing note.
“Then it seems I was worrying for nothing.”
“Hm?”
The woman looked at her sidelong. “I forgot to ask; where did you go just now?”
Jiang Lai took out a face mask and shook it in front of her. “I was thinking the supermarket would be crowded, and you might not be used to it. But it looks like I don’t need it now.”
The woman raised an eyebrow, her tone soft. “Thank you, Alai.”
“If you don’t need it, I’ll put it away then…”
“Wait.”
The woman grabbed her wrist and took a mask out of the bag, putting it on herself.
“Aunt Cheng…”
Jiang Lai stared at her, a little at a loss.
“Since you bought it, I can’t waste your thoughtfulness.”
Cheng Shuyang pinched her cheek. Mm, very soft. It felt like cotton candy; she couldn’t help pinching it twice more.
Then, as if nothing had happened, she strode into the supermarket.
“Come on, hurry up. Otherwise Teacher Zhao’s going to start rushing us.”
Watching the woman’s back, Jiang Lai lifted a hand to her cheek, where the warmth of the woman’s touch still seemed to linger.
Her face reddened, and she was a little dazed.
When she still hadn’t followed, Cheng Shuyang stood where she was and called out to her twice. Only then did Jiang Lai come back to herself and hurry after her.
There weren’t many people in the supermarket, so the situation Jiang Lai had expected didn’t happen; the two of them bought the ingredients they needed without trouble.
When it came time to pay, Jiang Lai was a step quicker and held up her payment code first. The woman, a beat too late, could only put her phone away helplessly.
“We agreed that I’d pay this time.”
The woman complained at her in mock annoyance.
Jiang Lai held the groceries in one hand and tugged at the hem of the woman’s clothes with the other. “You’re a guest. How could I let you spend money?”
“I never win an argument with you.”
“Then that means what I’m saying makes sense.”
Jiang Lai walked ahead of her, then suddenly turned back to look at her.
“I just don’t want you always giving in when you’re with me.”
The girl’s expression was suddenly serious, and the woman felt briefly at a loss for how to respond. She bit her lip and looked away.
“You silly child, what nonsense are you saying…”
The woman brushed a fallen leaf off her shoulder. There were countless things in her eyes she wanted to say, but in the end they became only a sigh. “Let’s go home.”
Watching the woman’s movement, Jiang Lai felt a sting in her chest; her voice turned muffled. “I’m not talking nonsense. I’m serious.”
The woman’s hand paused. The yellowed leaf still lay quietly in her palm.
“Aunt Cheng…”
“Let’s go home.”
Her voice was thick with bitterness she couldn’t hide.
Jiang Lai said nothing more. The two of them fell silent and walked in the direction of home.
After they got back, everyone began preparing lunch.
By the time Jiang Lai had dropped the spoon on the floor for what was probably the umpteenth time, the teacher and student exchanged a look and very tactfully pushed her out of the kitchen.
Jiang Lai scratched the side of her nose, embarrassed. She really wasn’t good at housework in the kitchen; she truly hadn’t meant to do it.
She also knew very well what she was capable of, so she automatically walked over to the little girl playing with toys in the corner and became her playmate.
Once Jiang Lai left the kitchen, only Zhao Dan and Cheng Shuyang remained in the room.
She turned to look at the woman washing vegetables seriously and started calculating how she could probe the woman’s attitude for her daughter’s sake...
Perhaps her gaze was too intense, because the woman suddenly looked up, and their eyes met.
Zhao Dan acted as though she hadn’t been caught peeking at all. “Shuyang, when we’re on set, Alai has been relying on you a lot. Thank you for taking care of her.”
“Teacher, you’re too kind. Alai is very well-behaved; she rarely gives me any trouble.”
“Is that so? That’s good. I was worried she’d cling to you.”
The woman shook her head and said nothing else.
Zhao Dan knew she needed to add a little more fuel. “Shuyang, may I ask you for a favor?”
“Go ahead.”
“Is there any boy around Alai’s age near you? A girl would work too. Could you introduce someone to her?”
The green vegetables in the woman’s hand suddenly slipped back into the water.
Seeing that, Zhao Dan immediately knew she’d hit on something.
“...Didn’t Alai just break up?”
“But isn’t the best way to forget one relationship to start a new one?”
“Would a girl be okay too?”
“Of course. As long as Alai is happy, I can accept it whether the other person is male or female, or even if there’s an age difference. I just want Alai to be happy.”
Zhao Dan spoke earnestly, but the woman felt a little uneasy inside, as if a sponge had soaked up water and was now heavy and sinking against her chest.
“Shuyang? Are you listening?”
“Mm?”
The woman came back to herself and forced a smile. “I got it. I’ll keep an eye out for you in the future.”
When the three of them sat down to eat, the woman was obviously a little distracted, her gaze occasionally drifting toward Jiang Lai beside her.
The girl was focused on shelling shrimp in her own bowl and naturally didn’t notice. She lowered her head and ate mechanically from her rice bowl.
Then a peeled shrimp suddenly appeared in front of her.
“Eat more. You’re too thin.”
Jiang Lai’s hands didn’t stop moving, but her mouth kept chattering.
“Alai, you don’t need to peel it for me…”
Using the daughter of her own teacher in front of the teacher herself, Cheng Shuyang always felt a little uncomfortable. Worried that the woman might get angry, she secretly glanced at Zhao Dan’s face; seeing that the latter didn’t seem angry, she finally relaxed.
“Shuyang, it’s fine. If she gives it to you, just eat it.”
Zhao Dan looked at her gently. “You really are too thin; eat a little more and build yourself up.”
“Mom, you should eat too.”
Jiang Lai soothed her by putting some food into the woman’s bowl.
Zhao Dan tapped her on the forehead and teased, “I thought all you had eyes for was your Aunt Cheng, and you’d forgotten all about your mother.”
“Cough, cough, cough!”
The woman, hearing that, accidentally choked and turned bright red.
“I’ll get you some water!”
The girl’s expression tightened; she was even more anxious than if she had choked herself.
After taking the cup Jiang Lai handed her and drinking a mouthful of water, Cheng Shuyang finally felt better. She looked up and met the girl’s worried eyes.
She patted Jiang Lai’s hand under the table and said softly, “Don’t worry. I’m fine.”
Only then did Jiang Lai’s face regain a little color, and she smiled. “You nearly scared me to death.”
A light breeze drifted in through the window, but it could not blow away the worries of the people sitting there.
Author’s note: