Gu Yue walked for a while, then suddenly stopped. Qing Linyun also stopped silently and followed her gaze to the famous snack street in the East Sea.
Gu Yue looked around for a while, seemingly still hesitant, but finally she made up her mind and strode inside, with Qing Linyun following closely behind.
The alley was bustling with people, and both sides were lined with vendors with stalls. The sounds of hawking, bargaining, and the clatter of spatulas blended together to create a lively and vibrant atmosphere.
The snack street in Eastsea City.
Gu Yue stopped in front of a sugar figurine stall, stared at the golden sugar paintings for a while, then seemed to suddenly remember something, turned her face away, and continued walking forward.
Qing Linyun followed behind, watching her back, feeling secretly delighted.
'This Miss Gu, even her shopping trips look so awkward.'
'He asked me out himself, but now he's treating me like a prisoner.'
I said.
"Miss Gu, where are you taking me? We can't possibly be driving me around Eastsea City, can we?"
Gu Yue paused, her ears turning red again, but she said stubbornly, "Who brought you? I just... just wanted to go for a walk."
"Alright, alright, let's go."
Qing Linyun didn't expose her, and followed her with a smile.
"You must be tired from walking, you should eat something, right? I'm starving after all this walking."
Gu Yue snorted but didn't reply, though her pace unconsciously slowed down.
The lively atmosphere of the food street is truly captivating.
Qing Linyun saw a grilled fish stall ahead, the fish skin sizzling and dripping with oil, the aroma of spices wafting far and wide. Without saying a word, he went up and ordered two skewers.
"Try it."
He handed a skewer of grilled fish to Gu Yue.
"A specialty of Eastsea City. I heard that even people from Sea God Island come here specifically to eat this grilled fish."
"I doubt it'll be as good as the grilled fish Huo Yuhao makes at the Shrek Academy. I'll take you there to eat Shrek Academy fish when I have time."
Gu Yue glanced at him, then at the skewer of grilled fish, hesitated for a moment, and finally took it.
She took a small bite, her eyes brightening slightly, but she quickly suppressed that expression and commented with a straight face, "It's alright."
"Not bad?" Qing Linyun laughed. "Your evaluation is not worthy of the fish's sacrifice."
Gu Yue her eyes at him, ignored him, and took another bite.
For the rest of the journey, the two of them gradually became more at ease.
Qing Linyun bought things as she walked, such as fried meatballs, roasted chestnuts, and savory pancakes. She tasted them all along the way, and if she found something she liked, she would slip it into Gu Yue's hands.
Gu Yue complained, but her hands never stopped eating. By the end, the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up slightly, but she quickly suppressed it.
'Hmph, you've served me quite well.'
Qing Linyun didn't notice her little scheme.
He was pondering; this snack street looked somewhat like a street he remembered.
It's the same kind of stall, the same kind of lively, bustling atmosphere.
However, at that time, he was accompanied by a little girl, who was short and had two braids. She couldn't resist the sight of candied hawthorns.
Na'er.
As he pondered this, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
There was a stall selling candied hawthorns just ahead. The bright red hawthorns were strung on bamboo sticks, coated with a shiny sugar coating, and gleamed enticingly in the setting sun.
He walked over almost instinctively.
"Boss, one skewer, please."
"Okay, here you go!"
Qing Linyun took the candied hawthorn, turned around and handed it to Gu Yue: "Here, please have some."
Gu Yue was stunned.
She looked at the string of candied hawthorns, then at Qing Linyun, her expression a mix of surprise and something else.
The bright red candied hawthorn skewer hung between the two of them, as if a pause button had suddenly been pressed.
He bought me candied hawthorns.
'Exactly the same as back then.'
Gu Yue's heart skipped a beat.
Of course she remembers.
Back then, she hadn't broken up with Na'er yet. Qing Linyun had just brought Na'er back, and whenever he had free time, he would take Na'er to the street. Every time they stopped at a candied hawthorn stall, he would stop, buy a skewer, and watch Na'er eat it with her mouth full of sugar crumbs, laughing helplessly.
She was there during that time too.
Those memories, Na'er remembers, and so does she.
She always thought that it was a special treatment reserved for Na'er, a unique favoritism given to the little girl who was taken in.
But now, Qing Linyun handed the candied hawthorn to her.
'Did he mistake me for Na'er?'
Or is it just a habit of his that he wants to buy candied hawthorns whenever he sees them?
Gu Yue's heart was in turmoil, but she tried her best to keep a straight face. After a long while, she reached out and took the string of candied hawthorns, saying softly, "Thank you."
She lowered her head and took a bite.
The sourness of hawthorn, mixed with the sweetness of the sugar coating, melts on the tip of the tongue.
It's a little sour, and a little sweet.
'So, this is what it tastes like.'
She suddenly felt that she might understand why Na'er liked going out with Qing Linyun so much.
Qing Linyun didn't think much of it.
He saw that Gu Yue was quite happy to accept the candied hawthorn, so he bought himself a skewer, munching on it as he walked, and mumbled something indistinctly.
"Let me tell you, this candied hawthorn berry shop has to be the best in Eastsea City. The sugar coating is thin, the hawthorn is sweet, and the sourness isn't overpowering. They have tons of repeat customers."
Gu Yue didn't reply, but simply gripped the candied hawthorn skewer a little tighter.
At the end of the snack street is a river.
The river was not wide, and the current was not rapid. The moonlight shone on the river surface, breaking into pieces of silver light.
A stone arch bridge spans the river, its railings worn smooth and shiny by time, clearly indicating that it is an old bridge.
Qing Linyun walked onto the bridge, leaned against the railing, and looked up at the moon.
Tonight's moon is round and bright, hanging in the sky like a white jade plate.
Gu Yue followed him onto the bridge, stood beside him, and also looked up at the moon.
Neither of them spoke.
The only sounds in the air were the rushing of the river and the faint noise from the distant food street.
The atmosphere between the two returned to that subtle, indescribable state.
Gu Yue looked into the distance, but her mind was filled with Qing Linyun. She felt that Qing Linyun seemed to have an extraordinary charm today.
It makes you want to go up and touch it.
'No, what am I thinking? I am the Silver Dragon King, and he is just a nobody human!'
Gu Yue thought to himself.
Qing Linyun glanced at Gu Yue out of the corner of his eye.
Gu Yue held the half-eaten candied hawthorn in one hand and rested the other on the bridge railing. Her eyes were fixed on the moon, but they were unfocused, and it was unclear what she was thinking.
'I knew it! She didn't ask me out just to go shopping and eat candied hawthorns.'
'You've been holding it in all this way, it's time to speak up.'
Sure enough, after a while, Gu Yue finally seemed to have made up her mind, her voice soft and slightly casual.
" Qing Linyun."
"Um?"
"Um, Tang Wulin," Gu Yue said, gazing at the river, "You've been calling him away every day lately, what have you been teaching him?"
Qing Linyun's heart skipped a beat, but he remained outwardly calm.
'Here I am.'
'As expected, Gu Yue has already set her sights on Tang Wulin.'
"I took him on as my apprentice."
"We've been teaching him cultivation techniques all along."
He chuckled, his tone relaxed, "That kid's talent is so-so. If he doesn't practice more, how will he make me look good in the Class Promotion Tournament?"
"Just cultivation?" Gu Yue turned her head and stared at him. "Nothing else?"
"What else could it be?" Qing Linyun asked innocently. "He's just an honest kid, what else could I possibly do with him?"
Gu Yue stared at him for a while, but couldn't find anything wrong. She turned back, her tone a little muffled. "The aura around him is a bit strange."
"An aura?" Qing Linyun feigned ignorance. "What aura? I can't sense it."
Stop pretending.
"Didn't you notice? I don't believe you couldn't sense Tang Wulin's aura."
Gu Yue spoke hastily, clearly without thinking.
"Oh? I'd like to ask, what kind of aura did our Miss Gu Yue sense from Tang Wulin? Was it really necessary to drag me here to interrogate her?"
When Qing Linyun said this, Chao Gu Yue raised an eyebrow, clearly looking forward to a good show.
Gu Yue was speechless for a moment.
She lost this verbal exchange and couldn't press the matter further.