71. Take a walk
Chen Yunsheng looked at Jiang Nan, who was slightly annoyed by his sneak attack. The wasteland covered with ice and snow in his heart seemed to be completely melted by the warm autumn sun at this moment, and even a little warm spring flowed out.
The hand he used to straighten her hair couldn't help but linger on the ends of her hair, and finally gently fell on her cheek and rubbed it gently with the back of his hand.
"It's a mess." His eyes fell on the tips of her ears, which were slightly red.
Jiang Nan felt embarrassed by his gaze and turned her head away from his hand, but she refused to admit defeat: "It's you who did it."
She smiled, and then thought to herself that this was how it felt after confirming one's feelings. It was as if the whole world had turned into a marshmallow, soft, sweet, and light.
Chen Yunsheng was infected by her smile and happily admitted his mistake to her: "It's my fault."
He took her hand again, and naturally intertwined their fingers.
"Come on," he said, "I'll take you somewhere."
"Where are we going?" Jiang Nan asked curiously, letting him lead the way forward.
"You'll know when you get there."
He led her along the garden path to a relatively secluded corner deeper in the old house. There was an independent, old-looking two-story building with withered creeper vines climbing all over the walls, making it look a bit lonely.
"Where is this?" Jiang Nan looked at the small building that seemed to have been uninhabited for a long time.
"This is where I lived when I was a child," Chen Yunsheng paused, looking up at the small building with a hint of complicated nostalgia in his eyes. "After my grandmother passed away, I moved out and lived on my own. This place has been empty ever since."
He walked forward and gently pushed the door open.
The furnishings inside the house were simple yet tidy. The furniture was mostly old-fashioned solid wood, simple in style and exuding a sense of heaviness. Hanging on the walls were a few faded black-and-white photos, mostly landscapes, and one depicting a gentle woman holding a small boy. The woman in the photo had a gentle expression, while the boy had a serious face, vaguely reminiscent of Chen Yunsheng today.
"This is my grandma," Chen Yunsheng said, looking at the photo. "Before I was ten years old, I lived here with her most of the time."
His tone was calm, but Jiang Nan could hear a hint of tenderness in it. She looked at the gentle woman in the photo, then at the man beside her, and suddenly understood the source of the delicate and gentle nature that occasionally appeared in his character, which was inconsistent with his cold appearance.
"Grandma must be a very gentle person." Jiang Nan said softly.
"Yes," Chen Yunsheng said, "she likes quietness and likes to grow flowers, especially osmanthus. Many of the osmanthus trees in this yard were planted by her herself."
He led her hand and slowly ascended the creaking wooden stairs. On the left side of the second floor was his old bedroom. It still retained the layout of a child's room, with a small bed, a bookshelf, and even an old telescope on the desk.
"Did you like looking at the stars when you were a child?" Jiang Nan stroked the telescope curiously.
"Well," Chen Yunsheng walked to the window and opened it, letting in sunlight and fresh air. "At that time, I felt that the universe was very vast and mysterious. Besides watching documentaries, my favorite thing was to go looking for stars on my own."
He paused for a moment, then looked back at her with a hint of smile in his eyes: "Now I feel that the world around me is quite mysterious."
Jiang Nan pretended not to understand and turned to look at the books on the shelf. Most of them were popular science books and fairy tales, with some thick, seemingly profound tomes. Surprisingly, there were a few martial arts novels mixed in.
"Did you read these when you were a child?" Jiang Nan pulled out a copy of "A Brief History of Time" with a look of surprise, but this surprise was mixed with admiration and disbelief.
"I didn't understand much, I was just flipping through it," Chen Yunsheng walked over to her, pulled out a copy of The Little Prince with frayed edges from the bookshelf, and handed it to her, "I did understand a little bit of this."
Jiang Nan took the old book. She glanced up at him before lowering her eyes to look at the cover. The image of the Little Prince standing on his planet was a little blurry, but its original exquisiteness could still be seen.
She slowly turned the pages and found some pencil marks inside. The handwriting was childish, but full of innocent childishness.
"Did you draw this?" she asked, pointing to a page of star marks.
Chen Yunsheng came over to take a look and said a little embarrassedly: "Probably, I can't remember clearly."
Sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating the swirling dust particles in the air and settling on the two men's shoulders, each leaning close. In this old house, imbued with the memories of Chen Yunsheng's childhood, time seemed to slow down. They stood side by side before the bookshelf, flipping through the pages of old books, occasionally exchanging anecdotes about their childhood.
Chen Yunsheng talked more than usual. He'd point to a book and reminisce about a summer afternoon, or point to a tree outside the window and recall watering plants with his grandmother. These trivial yet heartwarming memories, like a jigsaw puzzle, pieced together a side of him that Jiang Nan had never known before: a child who had once been innocent, drawn to the starry sky, and secretly read martial arts novels.
This realization made Jiang Nan feel that the distance between them had been invisibly shortened.
"Why did you bring me here?" Jiang Nan closed the book in his hand and looked up to ask him.
Chen Yunsheng was silent for a moment, his eyes fixed on the only sweet-scented osmanthus tree outside the window. He said softly, "I want you to see my past."
Hearing this, Jiang Nan's heart trembled slightly.
He wanted her to understand his past, to understand how he became the Chen Yunsheng he is today. This honesty and sharing made Jiang Nan feel a mixture of joy and trepidation.
"It's beautiful," she whispered, referring both to the room and to his past.
Chen Yunsheng turned to Jiang Nan, his eyes bright and clear: "Thank you."
She didn't say anything else, but stretched out her hand, took his, and interlocked their fingers again. With an intimate gesture, she gave her answer.
Chen Yunsheng slightly tightened his grip on hers and tilted his head to look at her.
"There will be pressure," Chen Yunsheng continued the previous topic, "but I will face it together. You've already seen my grandfather's attitude. My parents are more concerned about the stability and dignity of the Chen family. As long as our relationship is harmless, they won't interfere too much."
He paused slightly, his tone solemn: "As for the outside voice, it is even less important. What matters is what we think of each other."
Jiang Nan looked at Chen Yunsheng. "Okay," she said. "I understand."
These few simple words sounded like an important confirmation. Chen Yunsheng smiled, then looked down at their clasped hands—the pink diamond ring shone brightly in the sunlight.
"This ring," he said suddenly, "does it feel different now that I wear it?"
Jiang Nan followed his gaze. The diamond, which had always been slightly cool, seemed to have been touched by his body temperature and became warm. She hummed softly, her tone timid, "It seems a little bit."
The two smiled at each other and sat in the small building for a while, quietly enjoying the leisure of the autumn afternoon and the novelty and sweetness of this newly established relationship.
"Let's go back?" Chen Yunsheng suggested, "It's getting dark."
"Okay." Jiang Nan nodded decisively, and also felt the coolness of early autumn slowly coming in the afternoon.
So the two of them went downstairs and walked slowly back, but the atmosphere was completely different from that morning. Although there were still few words, the deliberate avoidance and tentativeness disappeared, replaced by a natural closeness.
After returning to the courtyard, Chen Yunsheng went to the small study to deal with a backlog of emails, while Jiang Nan curled up on the sofa nearby to read. But she found it difficult to fully concentrate on the text. Her eyes kept drifting to Chen Yunsheng behind the desk.
As Jiang Nan pondered these thoughts, he slowly fell asleep. His head and arms relaxed, and the book in his hand slipped to the ground.
Chen Yunsheng, who was busy, heard the sound of something heavy falling to the ground, and looked over curiously. Then he saw Jiang Nan sleeping on the sofa, and the book in his hand had slipped to the floor.
He was stunned for a moment, then regretted it. He promised her that he would change his habit of forgetting things when he was busy, but he made such a mistake on the first day.
Chen Yunsheng quickly stood up and walked lightly to Jiang Nan's side. He squatted in front of the sofa and looked at her quietly, his eyes sweeping over her forehead, eyes, nose, and finally stopping at her slightly parted lips with a natural pink hue.
He blinked, a strange and strong urge coming over him that made him want to lean over and kiss her gently.
But in the end he just reached out and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his movements gentle and soft.
Jiang Nan seemed to be aware of something in her sleep. She unconsciously shrank into the sofa and continued to sleep.
Chen Yunsheng looked at her like this, a warm smile on his lips. Then he stood up, and after a few seconds of silence, he finally decided to carry her back to the room to rest. Jiang Nan felt her body move in her sleep and said hazily, "Where to?"
Chen Yunsheng heard her question and replied quietly, "Go back to the room."
Jiang Nan hummed and said nothing more.
Chen Yunsheng looked at her sleeping face and smiled. He then carefully carried her into the room and gently put her down. He then carefully took off her shoes and covered her with a blanket. After doing all this, he stayed by the bed for a while before going downstairs.
Later, Jiang Nan was awakened by the aroma of food.
When she opened her eyes, she found it was completely dark, with only a few spotlights in the room. She froze in her bed for a moment before slowly rising. Looking up, she saw Chen Yunsheng sitting at a desk not far away, staring at his laptop with a serious expression.
"Awake?" He heard the noise and immediately closed his computer, looking back at me. "Are you hungry? Dinner is here."
Jiang Nan sat up and blinked rapidly, feeling a little embarrassed: "I slept for so long...why didn't you wake me up?"
"You seem to be sleeping soundly," he said, walking to the round table on the other side and taking out the food from the thermal box one by one. "Get up and eat something."
"good."
Dinner was carefully prepared by the kitchen. It was light and delicious, perfect for the early autumn season. Jiang Nan got up, washed his face, and sat down at the table.
"When we get home tomorrow," Chen Yunsheng picked up a piece of greens with his chopsticks and placed it in her bowl, casually asking, "Do you want me to clean up your room?"
Hearing this, Jiang Nan raised her head blankly: "What room?" When she met his calm gaze, she finally understood what room it was, and her cheeks instantly flushed.
Seeing her blushing face and bewildered expression, Chen Yunsheng explained sheepishly, "What I meant is that your guest room has good lighting, but there's no desk. I thought I could prepare another desk for you. If you find it inconvenient, you can stay as you are, or come into the study and join me."
So that's how it is.
Jiang Nan breathed a sigh of relief, lowered his head and ate the rice in the bowl, muttering softly: "Oh, I thought..."
"Why?" He deliberately asked, with a smile in his tone.
Jiang Nan's face turned even redder. She glared at him in embarrassment and stopped talking.
Chen Yunsheng stopped teasing her and changed the subject. However, the atmosphere became more lively and intimate because of this episode.
After dinner, the two of them cleared the table and put their things in the tea room, then walked downstairs around the albizzia tree and chatted. Their conversation was nothing special, mostly about their past. But they continued walking until around eight or nine in the evening before going upstairs.
At night, the two of them still shared one bed and one couch.
But this time, when Jiang Nan lay on the soft big bed and listened to Chen Yunsheng's even breathing not far away, his mood was completely different from last night.
There is no more tension and embarrassment, replaced by a sense of safe anticipation.
Although there are still many uncertainties in the future and many things that need to be adjusted and faced, her heart is now filled with an emotion called happiness.
She gently turned the ring on her ring finger, and a smile of joy unconsciously appeared on her lips.
"Chen Yunsheng." She called softly.
"Hmm?" A response came immediately from the other side. The voice was awake and obviously not asleep either.
"Good night," she said.
There was silence for a moment, and then came his gentle response:
"Good night, Jiang Nan."
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