Li Wanyin was stunned. This was the first time she had seen so clearly just how much a hairstyle could change a guy's appearance.
Of course, Chen Shi'an had been good-looking before his haircut too, but his look and bearing were completely different now. With his hair tied in a topknot, he had possessed a more classical charm, an air of cultured composure and calm. After the haircut, he had gained a bright, youthful energy, and looked fresh and clean-cut.
The contrast was truly striking.
Never mind Li Wanyin-even Black Cat almost failed to recognize him. The cat stared wide-eyed at Chen Shi'an for a while, circled him, then twitched its nose and sniffed before finally confirming that this fellow who looked "only halfway like a Taoist" was indeed Chen Shi'an.
Their reactions made Chen Shi'an a little self-conscious. He touched his face and said, speechless, "What? I only got a haircut. How come neither of you recognizes me anymore?"
"Because you really look so different!" Li Wanyin said with a smile.
"Meow." Black Cat chimed in too, as if agreeing.
"Does it look bad?"
"No, no! I think it looks really good!"
Although Chen Shi'an was younger than her, he was undeniably a handsome young man. Realizing she had been staring at him for quite some time, Li Wanyin grew a little embarrassed. She hurriedly changed the subject and helped carry his newly purchased household supplies into his room.
"It's fine, Wanyin. I can do it myself."
"You bought so much stuff."
"Yeah, things I'll need day to day."
"Oh, you bought oil, rice, soy sauce, and vinegar too? I still have some in the kitchen..."
"We'll need them eventually. When yours run out, you can use mine too."
"Then we can cook together next time we're free."
Li Wanyin smiled. "Cooking for one is actually more awkward. With two people, we can share a meal. I can cook, so next time you can try my cooking."
"Then I won't stand on ceremony."
"Haha, it's not actually that good. Just don't complain..."
"If I complain, it'll probably be that you didn't make enough to fill me up."
Li Wanyin was thoroughly pleased to hear that. Did this little Taoist learn nothing but sweet-talking spells up on that mountain? How was he so good with words? Young and handsome too-if he went out fortune-telling on the street, wouldn't the girls fall for him every time?
The washing machine finished its cycle and played a little tune. Li Wanyin took a bucket over to unload the clothes and hang them up.
She hand-washed her underwear every day, while her other clothes accumulated for two or three days before she put them in the washing machine together. Frugality was ingrained in her, after all. Running the machine for just two or three garments seemed like a waste of water and electricity.
She had never told Chen Shi'an these details of her daily routine, but he noticed them anyway. It seemed he had better hand-wash his own underwear from now on too. Since the washing machine was shared, he ought to be considerate of the other person using it.
Now they lived under the same roof. The living room lights shone warm and bright, the cat lounged on the sofa, Chen Shi'an put his things away, and Li Wanyin hung laundry on the balcony.
Every so often, Chen Shi'an looked up at her as she hung the clothes. There was something deeply peaceful about it.
Although this was his home too, Chen Shi'an sometimes felt as though he had wandered into someone else's house and was peeking into their life. After all, this scene was so different from life in the mountains. He seemed to be adjusting, but he still needed time to get used to it.
For starters, the cranky old man he had lived with on the mountain had been replaced by a gentle, beautiful young woman, and the Taoist robes on the drying rack had been replaced by dainty pink women's undergarments. How could that possibly feel the same?
Chen Shi'an wasn't a creepy Taoist, just a curious one. Staring too much would make him a lecher, but not looking at all would hardly make him a man. After taking a couple of glances to broaden his horizons, he withdrew his gaze.
By the time Li Wanyin finished hanging her clothes, Chen Shi'an had finished putting his things away.
Like her, Chen Shi'an had changed into slippers for indoors.
"Shi'an, I've already showered, and there's still hot water in the heater. You can go straight in if you want a shower."
"Okay, no hurry. I usually wash with cold water."
"Even in winter?"
"Not that far. We have a big pot at the temple. One pot of hot water is enough for my master and me."
"You heat water for baths? We did that at home when I was little too."
"Did you like tending the fire, Wanyin?"
"Oh, how did you know?"
Li Wanyin thought back to her childhood. "I really did love it, especially in winter. Sitting in front of the stove tending the fire warmed me all over. It was so comfortable. Our pot wasn't very big, though, so we had to refill it several times for the whole family."
"Did you ever toss a sweet potato into the fire while you were tending it?" Chen Shi'an asked with a smile.
"You know about that too?"
"Haha, because I did it too."
Those shared childhood memories made Li Wanyin feel much closer to Chen Shi'an. She had attended high school and college in the city, where many of her classmates had grown up with water heaters at home. When she told them about these childhood pleasures, they found it hard to relate. Instead, they were surprised that her family hadn't even owned a water heater...
"I thought your childhood would've been different from ours, since you grew up practicing Taoism..."
"Apart from not going to school, it was pretty much the same."
Li Wanyin caught the key detail in his words. She paused, then asked, "Shi'an, you... you never went to school?"
"Yeah, just a few days of elementary school. So now I've enrolled in the second year of high school to catch up."
"..."
Chen Shi'an spoke as though it were nothing, but Li Wanyin couldn't stay so calm.
Leaving aside how someone who had never attended school could enter the second year of high school, or why he would do so, could he really catch up after missing so many years?
The particular worry she showed when looking after her younger siblings visibly appeared on Li Wanyin's face. She didn't say much, only offered some earnest encouragement. "Then you've got a lot of studying ahead of you, Shi'an... but I believe in you. You can do it!"
Chen Shi'an blinked, then smiled and nodded. "Okay."
As they talked, Chen Shi'an took out the half watermelon he had bought and cut it into pieces with a small knife.
"Wanyin, I bought some watermelon. Have some with me."
"No, no, you go ahead."
Li Wanyin waved it off almost by reflex, but Chen Shi'an seemed to have already spotted her longing for it. He simply took the biggest slice and put it into her hand.
"Eat."
"...Then, thank you, Shi'an."
"No need to be polite, Wanyin. I can't finish it alone anyway. What do you think? Sweet, right?"
"Mm-hmm, really sweet.
You're so good at picking them..."
Li Wanyin ate delicately, holding the melon in her right hand and cupping her left palm to catch the seeds she spat out. The watermelon was full of juice, but she didn't let a single drop fall to the floor.
"This is actually my first watermelon this year." Li Wanyin's large eyes curved into sweet crescents.
"Well, what a coincidence. Mine too."
They sat together on the sofa eating watermelon. Chen Shi'an asked, "You must've done pretty well in school, right, Wanyin? Uncle Lin said you just graduated this year?"
Li Wanyin nodded. "Yeah, in June. But I wasn't that good at studying. I only went to a vocational college."
"A vocational college?"
"Yeah."
Li Wanyin's voice grew much quieter. Fortunately, the watermelon was sweet enough to offset some of the bitterness in her words. "During my last year of high school, my parents were in a car accident. My dad passed away afterward, and there was no one to look after my mom in the hospital. My little sister was still young too, so I took more than half a year off school to care for my mom. When I went back, I couldn't keep up anymore. My entrance exam score only got me into a third-tier university, and the tuition was really expensive, so I chose a vocational college..."
Her tone was fairly calm as she spoke about the past now, but Chen Shi'an could imagine the darkness she had lived through that year.
"How's your mom doing now?"
"She's recovered pretty well. She just can't do heavy work. She found a job doing handwork at a small factory in our town. We get by."
After finishing her watermelon, Li Wanyin's dejection vanished, as though that brief low mood had only been Chen Shi'an's imagination. Full of drive again, she continued, "What I want now is simple. Find a job as soon as possible, and then... mm, save up two hundred thousand!"
"You want to save that much?"
"Yeah."
"What are you planning to do with it once you've saved it, Wanyin?"
"Hehe, I haven't decided yet. Anyway, you can't go wrong saving money first. My mom doesn't earn much, and my sister's schooling costs money too."
As she spoke of her little sister, a look of immense pride visibly appeared on Li Wanyin's face. "My sister is so sensible. She's much better at studying than I ever was, and she gets the best grades in her school. She takes her high school entrance exam next year. Her teachers all say she can get into the best high school in our province."
"So, as her big sister, I need to work harder too. My mom isn't in good health, and my sister's at a crucial point preparing for her exam. I don't want them worrying about anything else."
"..."
Chen Shi'an and the cat both listened. Looking at this young woman, whose tenacious vitality seemed ready to overflow, neither man nor cat quite knew what to say.
"...Why aren't you saying anything? Don't believe in me?" Li Wanyin asked with a smile.
Chen Shi'an came back to himself and smiled. "No, of course I believe you can do it, Wanyin. I'm just a little envious of your sister, having such a wonderful big sister."
"I'm envious of you too!"
"Of me?"
"Yeah. Cultivating in peace up on a mountain sounds so appealing. No worries, no pressure. I never used to understand why anyone would want to live as a hermit in the mountains, but now I do. Once I have money someday, I'd like to find a mountain and build a little home of my own, raise chickens, grow vegetables, and live carefree."
Chen Shi'an chuckled. "Then you might be disappointed, Wanyin. Taoists have worries too. Haven't I come down the mountain to go to school?"
"Haha, I'm sure studying won't stump you. You're just as smart as my sister, Shi'an!"
"That really is high praise."
Something occurred to Li Wanyin, and she took out her phone. "Shi'an, let's add each other on WeChat. It'll be easier to get in touch when we need something."
"WeChat? Give me a moment, Wanyin. I'll download it."
"...You don't have WeChat?"
"No. Usually there's no one I need to contact."
"You haven't connected to the Wi-Fi yet either, have you? Connect to the Wi-Fi here, Shi'an. Using it at home saves mobile data too."
"Wi-Fi?"
Chen Shi'an realized what she meant. "Did you get an internet connection, Wanyin? Then let's include the internet bill when we split the rent."
"No, no, Uncle Lin has always had it set up. He already includes it in the rent. Search for it-the name is 901, and the password is lwy0709... tap this, then this."
Chen Shi'an knew how to use a phone, but he clearly wasn't as adept as Li Wanyin. Seeing him fumble around like an old man, unable to find the Wi-Fi settings, the gentle young woman leaned closer and pointed at his screen to help him.
They were very close together.
Although Li Wanyin wasn't much older than Chen Shi'an, she was already a graceful, shapely young woman.
Fresh from her shower, she carried the distinctive fragrance of body wash and shampoo. Chen Shi'an's gaze involuntarily drifted to her profile. As she spoke, her vocal cords vibrated, and that faint, delicate scent seemed to waft from her pale, gently trembling neck, slowly curling around his nose...
It was an indescribable fragrance. Its owner was warm, gentle, and free of makeup, yet the scent was so subtle and soft, barely there as it tugged at the little Taoist's heart.
For one fleeting moment, Chen Shi'an couldn't help imagining burying his face against that neck and breathing in its scent...
That frivolous, improper thought suddenly sent his Taoist resolve wobbling, as though it had lost its footing.
*Steady, steady, steady! **Steady yourself!!***
Fortunately, his eighteen years of diligent cultivation hadn't been wasted. In barely an instant, clarity returned to his eyes.
That was close...
No wonder Master told me to be careful while experiencing the mortal world. They actually tested your Taoist resolve with this?!
I almost fell for it!
"There, it's installed. Register and log in first."
"...Okay. Thanks, Wanyin."
Fortunately, Li Wanyin hadn't paid much attention to his momentary distraction. She merely thought he was still a little dazed and slow to catch on.
Uncle Lin was right. Shi'an really was an upright, reassuring, all-around exemplary Taoist...
(Thanks to Rice for the Alliance Leader gift! What a generous boss! May you strike it rich! I love Little Fishing Village the most (*o´∀`)o)
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