Xie Shang used the flashlight on his phone for illumination, walking ahead, "Follow me."
Wen Changling jogged a few steps to catch up to Xie Shang.
"Do you also live around here?"
She walked behind and to the left of Xie Shang, not very close to him.
"I just moved here recently," Xie Shang moved the light source to the left, "How long have you lived here?"
Wen Changling calculated, "A little over half a year."
Xie Shang turned his face to the side, "You've been here half a year and you still get lost?"
The light from the phone shone at an upward angle, casting Xie Shang's side profile shadow on the wall, his eyelashes magnified by the light like the wings of a fluttering butterfly. Above, a red rose poked its head out from a yard.
Beauties and flowers, pretty things always clump together.
After admiring the view, Wen Changling explained, "There are a lot of alleys around here." And they are confusing, deep, complex, and similar. Not finding her way was not entirely her fault.
"There are quite a few."
The shadow on the wall lowered its head, suddenly overlapping with the silhouette of a delicate girl next to it.
Wen Changling consciously stepped back, hearing Xie Shang say again, "Being excessively directionally challenged is also a kind of illness."
She felt that Xie Shang was mocking her.
Roses have thorns, beauties have spines, pretty things can prick you.
Somehow, Xie Shang had led Wen Changling out of the "maze" without taking any wrong turns, using whatever method he had to navigate.
He turned off the flashlight on his phone, "Here we are, do you recognize the way now?"
The street was brilliantly illuminated by lanterns.
"I do." Granny Zhu's house was right up ahead, Sister Tao's fruit shop hadn't closed yet, and many little stores along the road were still lit up, making Lotus Pond Street's night market quite lively.
"See you later."
This time, Xie Shang said, "See you later."
Wen Changling watched him turn and walk towards the neighboring Ruyi Pawnshop.
She had an epiphany: So he was that pawnshop owner who had poor business and lacked enthusiasm for his shop.
"Xie Shang."
Xie Shang stood under the pawnshop's signboard and turned around, the lantern above his head swaying, the light in his eyes also flickering.
"Wait for me a second."
Wen Changling ran into her house and soon came back out, jogging up to Xie Shang and handing him the handkerchief.
This kerchief was given to her by Xie Shang at the Lileitu Police Station, and at the time she hadn't looked at it closely, only later noticing that it had an embroidered pattern and letters she couldn't understand.
She had visited the Gu Family, where they valued making marks on personal items.
"It's been washed clean, I forgot to thank you last time." She looked at Xie Shang, her expression very sincere, "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Xie Shang took the handkerchief.
*****
It's said that Boss Xie from Ruyi Pawnshop is quite a looker.
— This is the latest gossip topic from the neighborhood senior citizens' information group.
Yang Xining is a full-time artist who had been stuck all morning without inspiration, unable to draw anything. She simply slipped on her slippers and went out for a stroll.
Her mother, Madam Jiang Lanying, called her to give the guests haircuts.
Impossible, a great artist would never be a haircut girl; she had principles and integrity.
She walked into Ruyi Pawnshop and, lifting an arm, leaned on the counter, "Can you pawn anything here?"
"After an assessment by our professional appraisal team, anything of value can indeed be pawned," Qian Zhouzhou said with a professional smile, "What would you like to pawn?"
Yang Xining struck a pose as if holding her sore neck, displaying her regal demeanor, "How much am I worth?"
Qian Zhouzhou: "..."
Silence spoke volumes in that moment.
Psh, only seeing appearances, what a lowly thing to do. Yang Xining rolled her eyes, ready to leave, when a glimpse of the courtyard behind the door caught her attention. From just one corner of the yard, a hand was visible, watering the plants.
Yang Xining couldn't move an inch further, her body instinctively bending at a ninety-degree angle, her neck craning forward, and then half a face came into her line of sight.
This side profile was stunningly beautiful.
Suddenly, she understood the "counter sister." Facing that face every day, not undervaluing it would indeed be a tough job.
Outside, the voice of her mother, Madam Jiang Lanying, was deafening.
"Yang Xining!"
"Come and give the customer a haircut!"
"If you don't come, don't even think about getting your living expenses for the month!"
Yang Xining withdrew her prying gaze, "I'm coming, what's the rush!"
Poetry and the distance were still bullshit, as the living expenses each month were the top priority for an obscure digital artist. Yang Xining dashed out of the pawnshop.
"The third one today."
Sister Tao sprayed water on the grapes.
Wen Changling ate the cantaloupe that Sister Tao had specifically saved for her, "Hmm?"
Sister Tao pointed at the pawnshop across the street, "Today's third female customer."
Wen Changling naively thought, "His business must be getting better."
"Better my ass, they only go in to check out Boss Xie," Sister Tao could have been a part of the street intelligence group if she wasn't running a fruit stand, "Running a pawnshop on this street, it's surprising he even thought of that."
Wen Changling nodded and agreed with Sister Tao's perspective.
"Have you seen that Boss Xie yet?"
"Yes, I have."
"That face," Sister Tao whispered to Wen Changling, "why even run a pawnshop, he could have become rich in minutes by being a gigolo."
Wen Changling lowered her head and chuckled secretly.
"Shopkeeper, how much for these mangoes?"
Sister Tao went over to greet the customer.
The male landlord came downstairs, opened the freezer, rummaged around inside, took out a box of strawberries, tore off the packaging, and shoved one in his mouth, spitting out the leaves above.
He walked behind Sister Tao, wearing a long-sleeved undershirt on the outside, the hem pulling up and half of his protruding belly exposed, "Why are there no durians?"
"They don't sell well, so I didn't stock them."
Even if stocked, they would just end up in that bastard's belly.
The bastard then pinched Sister Tao's buttocks, "Get some tomorrow, I love to eat them."
Sister Tao was a widow with two sons, renting a storefront on Lotus Pond Street to sell fruits. The male landlord was an old bachelor with a few storefronts, and he didn't work, idling away his days eating and drinking. He frequently took fruits from Sister Tao's store without asking and never paid a dime.
Sister Tao glared at the stairwell. Even though she was biting her teeth in anger, she still spoke in a hushed tone, "Bah, hands and feet of a damned bastard."
Wen Changling poked at the cantaloupe in the plastic box, her eyelashes obediently downcast.
Granny Zhu made sesame rice cakes, and by evening Wen Changling visited the fruit store again to bring Sister Tao some. Sister Tao was busy, so Wen Changling went to the kitchen at the back by herself.
Around seven o'clock, Xie Shang saw Wen Changling walking out of the dead-end alley behind the main street.
"Lost again?"
She said, "I'm taking a walk."
"There's no way through ahead."
The electricity meters for Lotus Pond Street were all located in the alley ahead, and to prevent children from electrical accidents, community workers had sealed off the way.
"I know, I'm heading back now."
She walked back, with Xie Shang walking alongside her.
She strolled leisurely, as if in a good mood, and unusually started a conversation, "I heard that anything can be pawned at your pawnshop."
"If it's valuable, or if I'm interested, anything can be pawned," he replied.
So casual.
Is it because his family has many lawyers?
Wen Changling was curious, "Can a person be pawned as well?"
Xie Shang didn't say it was impossible, but counter-asked, "Are you thinking of pawning yourself?"
He casually draped his jacket over his wrist, appearing at ease and laid back. Wen Changling had often seen him in black, but today's white attire made him seem much softer.
He suited black, he also suited white. He was difficult to define, hard to confine.
"Just asking." Wen Changling downplayed her own worth, "I can't be pawned, I'm not valuable enough."
"Do you know how much I've paid in fines at Lileitu Police Station?"
She shook her head.
Xie Shang looked at her, "Miss Wen, you are quite expensive."