Jiang Lin had thought that since he had been gone for so long and his master was away, the courtyard would be covered in dust. Cleaning the whole place would take ages—the dust would practically eat people alive.
But when Jiang Lin and Jiu Yi cleaned together, they found it was not that difficult after all. There was still some dust, but it seemed to have accumulated over roughly a month.
Moreover, the quilts stored in the cabinet carried the scent of sunshine, along with a faint, delicate fragrance.
Jiang Lin found that fragrance somewhat familiar. It seemed to belong to a woman, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not remember. And why would his quilt smell like a woman?
That night, perhaps because Jiu Yi was too tired, she fell asleep while clinging to Jiang Lin.
Jiang Lin had already grown used to having Jiu Yi as his pillow, too.
After all, in the height of summer, Jiu Yi's body was soft and smooth, and cool as silk. It was simply far too comfortable.
When he woke the next morning, Jiang Lin took Jiu Yi by the hand and headed for Sun Moon Town.
Since he had returned "sneakily" the day before, he had not yet visited the town market or anywhere of the sort.
Now, when Jiang Lin led Jiu Yi into Sun Moon Town, the aunties setting up their stalls first froze, then greeted him in surprise. "Jiang Xiaozi, you're back!"
Jiang Lin would smile every time and reply, "I'm back. I even brought home a wife while I was at it."
The aunties would then exclaim, "She's so beautiful!"
Jiang Lin had thought Jiu Yi would give him a coy, reproachful look at the little joke, but he soon noticed that she had