Chu Lian was startled by Xiaoxiao’s sudden gesture, as he had not expected her to boldly grab his hand, their fingers intertwining. His heart, which had given up hope, seemed to start beating again.
He greedily did not withdraw his hand, but time was so fleeting, he heard her cheerful and excited voice.
"Perfect, this is it, Mister Chu, come with me."
His hand was quickly released, and he found himself unwittingly following Xiaoxiao.
"Shopkeeper, please make it according to his middle finger."
Chu Lian had no idea what was going on and simply stretched out his hand for the other party to measure.
"All done, sir. Please come to collect it on the 13th."
Seeing that the ring matter was settled, Xiaoxiao was in a good mood, and she turned to thank Chu Lian.
"Mister Chu, thank you just now, you’ve really helped me out a lot."
Chu Lian smiled awkwardly. Although he did not know what he had helped her with, seeing her smile so happily, he assumed it must have been something good.
"You’re welcome. This is our first time meeting since I’ve returned, isn’t it? How about we go for a meal?"
He wanted to greedily talk to her a little longer, so he offered to take her out for a meal.
"No, not this time, I have other things to do, so I have to go."
Xiaoxiao said and quickly led Wang Xiangxiang out of the door; indeed, she had other matters to attend to and could not stay any longer.
Watching her hurried departure, Chu Lian felt that in all their interactions, she had mostly kept him at arm’s length, even calling his name so distantly. Could it be because she accepted that she had married the wrong person?
He shook his head resignedly, casually picked a silver bracelet for his sister, and quickly left the Silver Pavilion.
"Xiaoxiao, who was that guy just now?"
As soon as they were outside, Wang Xiangxiang couldn’t help but inquire gossip-like.
"He’s the young master of Yuelai Restaurant. We’ve worked together before."
Wang Xiangxiang, startled by Xiaoxiao’s earlier action, hadn’t dared speak up, "You scared me to death just now."
"What happened?" Xiaoxiao asked, puzzled.
"What do you mean, what happened? You just grabbed another man’s hand in public."
Wang Xiangxiang thought to herself that Xiaoxiao was indeed very bold. If someone they knew saw that, there was no telling how they might talk about her.
"..." Oh God, she had been so focused on the ring size that she completely forgot that this was a conservative place, not the modern age.
"Didn’t you see how shocked he was at the time?"
Seeing Xiaoxiao’s reaction, Wang Xiangxiang was even more exasperated, feeling that Xiaoxiao didn’t seem to take it seriously, even though he was a man.
"You were shocked too, weren’t you? I was wondering why you suddenly became so quiet and stopped talking."
Only then did Xiaoxiao realize her friend’s silence, who had been chattering away only moments before.
"Anyone would be shocked by that situation. You should avoid doing this in the future. If your husband knew about it, he might misunderstand."
Wang Xiangxiang pursed her lips, reminding Xiaoxiao.
Wang Xiangxiang’s words served as a reminder, and Xiaoxiao admitted she was wrong this time. She would have to be more careful in the future, not to have physical contact with other men, to avoid any misunderstanding by her cost-saving husband.
As they walked down the street, Wang Xiangxiang asked, "So, where are we going next?"
"To the Bookstore? What for? Are you going to give your husband another book?" How many gifts was Xiaoxiao preparing for her husband?
Xiaoxiao smiled mysteriously, "You’ll know in a bit."