Liu Yiren returned to her small courtyard, carrying the medical kit. She saw Yan Shouyi sitting listlessly on the swing, yawning.
Strangely, the several kittens she kept were all gathered around Yan Shouyi, affectionately rubbing their heads against his thighs.
Even the most aloof Maine Coon cat seemed to want to snuggle into Yan Shouyi's arms.
Ordinarily, Liu Yiren treated this Maine Coon cat like royalty, and it had never shown her such affection!
Thinking of this, Liu Yiren felt a pang of annoyance. She called out to her cats, "Mimi, come here!"
The cats remained indifferent.
"Come here, I'll give you dried fish!" Liu Yiren refused to believe it.
The cats cast a perfunctory glance at Liu Yiren, but their eyes clearly conveyed disdain!
Liu Yiren was flabbergasted. What was going on? Everyone said cats were difficult to train, but she had been their dutiful attendant for years, surely they hadn't lost all affection?
"Where's your doctor? Maybe I can treat the wound myself. If it's any later, I'll bleed dry…" Yan Shouyi said.
Liu Yiren walked towards Yan Shouyi with hurried footsteps, shooed away the "filthy cats" surrounding him, and said, "The doctor isn't here right now. I brought the medical kit. I've also learned some emergency procedures, I'll bandage your wound for you."
"Perhaps I should do it myself. Don't force yourself…"
“…Shut up! You must let me do it!!!” Liu Yiren shouted.
She simply couldn't stand Yan Shouyi's lack of trust. It was the same as when they were cycling before; now, when it came to bandaging wounds, Liu Yiren, who never accepted defeat, refused to be seen as a useless vase in Yan Shouyi's eyes.
Yan Shouyi had no idea what had angered Liu Yiren. He was a little scared now, afraid that as Liu Yiren was bandaging him, she might suddenly stab him to vent her anger.
After all, a woman's heart was something even the divine art of the Six Paths could not fully comprehend.
However, he still obediently extended his hand.
Liu Yiren dipped a cotton swab in iodine and carefully treated Yan Shouyi's wound, removing dirt. She puffed out her cheeks and gently blew on the wound. Then, she sprinkled medicinal powder on a cotton pad and bandaged it with gauze and medical tape. It looked quite professional.
Yan Shouyi exclaimed in surprise, "I didn't realize your hands were so nimble."
"I'd be even happier if you didn't look so surprised," Liu Yiren said, giving Yan Shouyi a glare. "Just one last step, and the bandaging will be complete!"
"Isn't it already bandaged?" Yan Shouyi asked, confused.
Liu Yiren then took out a marker and drew a smelly piece of poop on the bandage on Yan Shouyi's arm.
"Perfect!" Liu Yiren's mischievous plan had succeeded, and she burst into laughter.
Yan Shouyi: "..."
Seeing Yan Shouyi's frustrated and helpless expression, Liu Yiren beamed with the joy of victory. She felt as if they were two chess players, but their moves were not chess pieces but mutual taunts. The poop drawing was a stroke of genius, completely confounding Yan Shouyi!
It felt so good! Hahaha!
"You're so childish!" Yan Shouyi quipped.
Liu Yiren scoffed, stretched her arms, and then smiled as she extended her hand, "My name is Liu Yiren, what's yours?"
Yan Shouyi shook Liu Yiren's hand, "Yan Shouyi."
Afterward, they sat on the swing, gently swaying. Liu Yiren said, "That Brother Sun today, his full name is Sun Zhipeng. He's also a resident of Zui Hua Li. He grew up here. I'm different; I used to live in Sichuan and Chongqing and liked to go on cycling adventures. I recently came to Rong City and, finding no friends, started cycling with them. Actually, I'm not close with them… I wasn't close before, and I won't be in the future."
Sun Zhipeng's cycling accident with Yan Shouyi had completely erased any good impression Liu Yiren had of him; in fact, she felt a bit disgusted.
And although the incident originated because of Yan Shouyi, he had bravely saved her in a critical moment. Therefore, Liu Yiren felt more favorably towards Yan Shouyi.
Of course, if Yan Shouyi weren't so sharp-tongued, Liu Yiren would like him even more.
Yan Shouyi said, "I'm in a hurry to get to dinner…"
Liu Yiren: "..."
She was building up the atmosphere to share a story, and he was only thinking about food?
The mood was ruined, and Liu Yiren lost her enthusiasm. She huffed at Yan Shouyi, "Always eating, eating, eating. You don't look like you have much flesh on your bones, why are you so gluttonous?"
Yan Shouyi chuckled helplessly, "It's not about the meal itself, but a promise I made to someone."
"Then you're really amazing!" Liu Yiren gave Yan Shouyi another glare. She had lost count of how many times she had rolled her eyes today.
However, keeping a promise was the mark of a man's responsibility. So, Liu Yiren didn't truly blame Yan Shouyi for anything. Instead, she said,
"Then you go. But if you have time in the future, can you come to Zui Hua Li to visit me often? I don't have many friends here, and I'm really bored!"
Yan Shouyi looked troubled.
"Try refusing me," Liu Yiren suddenly flared up, startling her cats into hiding under the table.
Yan Shouyi then said, "I didn't mean it like that. It's no problem to visit you, but the transportation to Guling is not very convenient, and I doubt Zui Hua Li would let an outsider like me in so easily, would they?"
"Hmph, if you can really come to visit me, I can get you a pass."
"Getting a pass costs money, right? I have no money!"
"..."
Well, after all that, this guy still didn't want to come and visit her!
This time, Liu Yiren was truly angry. She pushed Yan Shouyi out of the courtyard, closed the door, and shouted in frustration, "Then go! I don't care about playing with a country bumpkin!"
"Hey… you…"
Blocked outside the door, Yan Shouyi wanted to say something but couldn't quite articulate it.
He felt that no matter what he said, Liu Yiren would likely get angry. To avoid further enraging her, he decided to keep quiet.
However, since Liu Yiren had bandaged his wound, she was quite a nice girl. Yan Shouyi decided to give her a small gift.
So, he called out from outside the door, "Liu Yiren, catch!"
Liu Yiren looked up and saw a bracelet flying over the courtyard wall. She quickly reached out and caught it. "What's this?"
"A bracelet, blessed. Wearing it can calm your mind, bring peace, and reduce anger!" Yan Shouyi shouted.
"Are you saying I have a bad temper?? Take it back, I don't need this thing!!"
Liu Yiren waited behind the door for a while but received no response from Yan Shouyi. She pushed the door open and saw that Yan Shouyi was long gone.
Looking at the empty alley outside, Liu Yiren felt a bit disappointed. She pouted, closed the door, and examined the bracelet in her hand.
The bracelet was strung together with red thread and comprised ninety-nine small red wooden beads. Liu Yiren's arm was slender, so it could be wrapped around three or four times. What Liu Yiren liked more was that the bracelet also had three smooth, pure white jade stones strung onto it. Liu Yiren wasn't knowledgeable about jade, but she found these three stones felt excellent to the touch. However, she didn't think the bracelet was valuable, likely a street stall item. These three jade stones were probably artificially synthesized, as natural jade was rarely so pure white without any flaws.
After playing with the bracelet for a while, Liu Yiren was surprised to find that one of the small wooden beads was carved into the shape of a piece of poop!
The appearance was exactly the same as the pattern she had drawn on Yan Shouyi's bandage!
"He carved a piece of poop for me in such a short time???" Liu Yiren was astonished.
For a moment, Liu Yiren didn't know whether to call Yan Shouyi romantic or a straight man.
Nevertheless, she was still captivated by the bracelet and immediately put it on her wrist.
"My mood has suddenly improved a lot!" Liu Yiren murmured to herself. "Uncle Zhong said Grandpa invited distinguished guests today. I'll go and take a look too!"
She didn't connect the distinguished guests their household was hosting with Yan Shouyi's rush to an appointment.
In her mind, Yan Shouyi's attire and demeanor would never be associated with Zui Hua Li in this lifetime, let alone with her family.
But little did she know, a huge surprise awaited her in the banquet hall.
…
Meanwhile, Yan Shouyi, who was searching for Zui Hua Li Number 1 along the small path in Zui Hua Li, was holding his arm and examining the poop pattern on the bandage.
"Strange, I feel like I've seen this pattern somewhere before…"
Carrying this doubt, with a furrowed brow, Yan Shouyi finally found the main entrance of Zui Hua Li Number 1.
It seemed to be not far from Liu Yiren's place. Perhaps their families were even neighbors.
The tall general's gate blocked Yan Shouyi's view, but the large "Liu Family" plaque hung above his head. Yan Shouyi reconfirmed the house number, then stepped forward and knocked on the golden door knocker.
Knock, knock, knock.
Three slow knocks, neither too heavy nor too light, neither hurried nor slow – this was the etiquette of knocking.
Soon, the door opened. Uncle Zhong poked his head out and surveyed Yan Shouyi, "Who are you looking for?"
"I'm looking for… uh…"
Yan Shouyi paused, realizing he didn't even know the old man's name.
So, he changed his answer, saying, "I am Yan Shouyi."
Upon hearing Yan Shouyi's name, Uncle Zhong's expression changed drastically. He quickly opened the gate wide and said respectfully,
"Mr. Yan, our master has been waiting for you for a long time. Please follow me to the banquet hall!"