"It's still early, and I hear Tianhuang City is lively at night. Shall we go out and have a look?" Xiao Tian asked with a slight smile.
He had overheard Liu Fei speaking to Xuan Yi earlier. But since they had gone to the banquet with him, they had not been able to go out. Seeing that the evening was still young, he decided to take them for a stroll.
Surprise flashed in Xuan Yi's eyes. She had not expected that the first thing Xiao Tian would do after the banquet was invite her out. He must have heard that earlier conversation. At once, her impression of him rose a good deal.
If Xuan Yi had had a "favorability" bar hovering above her head, it would certainly have gone up.
She gave a slight nod, and her lips curved into a smile so faint it was almost invisible. Then she quickly composed herself and said, as if it meant nothing, "Let's ask Xiao Meng and the others first."
"We're ready! Let's go!" Before she had even finished, two small figures popped up beside her. Both of them had already smoothed their dresses and looked ready to leave at any moment.
Xuan Yi looked down at them and could not help laughing. Seeing her smile, Xiao Tian glanced at her again. "You look lovely when you smile. You should do it more often."
Xuan Yi paused, and a faint blush seemed to bloom on her cheeks. She turned her face away, pretending to stay calm, and coughed lightly to hide her embarrassment. "Stop saying pointless things. Let's go. Xiao Ling and Xiao Meng can't wait any longer."
Hearing this, Xiao Ling and Xiao Meng whispered, "We weren't in a hurry. And Aunt Xuan's face is red..."
Xuan Yi glared at them at once. "If you talk nonsense again, I won't buy you anything delicious tonight."
The two girls clapped their hands over their mouths and nodded again and again.
Xiao Tian only smiled and shook his head. "Then let's set off."
The four of them retraced the path they had come by and headed out of the manor. Along the way, Liu Qing and Liu Fei heard that they were going out and meant to send some guards after them, so that no one would spoil their evening.
Xiao Tian refused at once. He disliked being followed by guards when he went out. It felt like dragging a crowd of chaperones behind him. Besides, the guards were not very strong, and he might end up having to protect them instead.
Liu Qing remembered Xiao Tian's strength and did not press the matter. He waved the chosen guards back to their posts. He also told Xiao Tian briefly where the best sights of Tianhuang City at night could be found, and then left with Liu Fei.
Xiao Tian and his three companions walked out of the Liu Family's manor and along the bluestone streets, toward the busiest part of the city.
Not long after they left, a figure in a guard's uniform hurried into the Cheng Family's estate in the east of the city. He knelt on one knee before a thin young man and seemed to be reporting something. The young man then led a group of guards toward the main gate.
Xiao Tian and the others reached the liveliest street in the city center. Hundreds of shops lined it, one after another, and every storefront was hung with lanterns of every kind. Some looked like blooming lotus flowers, others like birds with spread wings, a hundred varieties vying to be the loveliest.
Inside them, instead of glowing white moonstones, burned special candles. Their light shone through thin gauze and spread a soft glow across the whole street. Gauze of different colors cast candlelight of different colors, until the entire street shimmered in a rainbow of lights and looked even more beautiful.
The street itself teemed with people coming and going, filled with shouts and clamor.
"Aunt Xuan, look! It's so beautiful here!" Xiao Ling caught Xuan Yi's hand, her small face bright with excitement, her eyes darting everywhere, unable to take it all in.
"This must be the Lingsha Street Liu Qing mentioned. It's also one of the most unusual places in Tianhuang City. Let's go in and look around, and taste a little of ordinary life." Xiao Tian said it softly to Xuan Yi, pointing to a large archway not far ahead.
At the words "ordinary life," Xuan Yi realized how long it had been since she had known such a thing herself.
Xiao Ling and Xiao Meng eagerly tugged at her hand. "Aunt Xuan, let's go play! I want to eat that!"
Xiao Ling pointed at a shop where the owner was deftly turning skewers of meat over a charcoal fire. The smell of grilled meat drifted in every direction.
With that, the two girls pulled Xuan Yi toward the skewer shop. They stood on tiptoe, their big round eyes fixed on the sizzling, fragrant meat. Xiao Tian watched the three of them with an indulgent smile and followed behind.
Soon Xiao Ling and Xiao Meng were each holding a skewer, strolling down the street and looking left and right at the shops ahead, now and then taking a bite of the huge skewers, their eyes full of contentment. Xuan Yi was pulled along by the two little ones, further down the street.
Xuan Yi followed quietly half a step behind them, watching the two girls dart through the market like a pair of cheerful sparrows. Without her noticing, her gaze softened.
She seemed to have caught the little ones' joy, and a smile stayed on her face. It was lucky that she wore a veil. Otherwise, who knows how many people she would have captivated.
As for Xiao Tian, he trailed along behind them without any particular aim, playing the part of their bodyguard.
Xiao Ling skipped ahead and pointed at a sugar-painting stall, her eyes sparkling. "Meng Meng, look! That rabbit sugar painting is so pretty!"
She took Xiao Meng's hand and hurried toward the stall. "Let's buy that one! It looks so pretty and so yummy!"
"Then let's go quickly and see if there are any other shapes!" Xiao Meng's eyes shone with delight.
They chattered back and forth, their voices as clear as little bells, and squeezed laughing to the front of the stall.
Xuan Yi watched their skipping figures, and her lips curled upward without her meaning them to. She wondered when she herself had last been as carefree as they were.
After buying their sugar paintings, the two turned and ran back to her. Xiao Ling's eyes curved into crescent moons as she smiled and held up her sugar painting. "Aunt Xuan, this one is for you to eat."
Xiao Meng shook hers as well. "Yes, yes! Let's eat together!"
Xuan Yi looked at their two smiling faces, bright as blooming flowers, and felt a warmth in her heart that she could not explain. She took one small bite from each sugar painting, then stroked their heads and smiled. "All right. You two can finish the rest."
"Okay!" Seeing that Xuan Yi had no intention of eating more after a single bite, the little ones pulled their hands back and began happily enjoying their treats.
Then they skipped off ahead again. Their father had long since been forgotten. What was a father compared with shopping and good food?
Just as Xuan Yi was about to follow, a string of bright red objects suddenly appeared before her eyes...