"Really."
He glanced at Lu Tong, a smile forming at the corners of his mouth, "But it also depends on whether Doctor Lu’s colorful ribbon ets your expectations."
Lu Tong: "..."
...
The Qiqiao Market was bustling with a never-ending flow of people, and it was said that the lamps stayed lit all night long.
Lu Tong and Pei Yunng strolled for quite a while, walking the entire length of the street under Panlou, and finally spotted Pei Yunshu and her group at a vendor’s stall.
Freshly plucked banana leaves, soaked in a dicinal mixture on their broad, oil-green surfaces—craftsn were writing poetry and painting on them, which was very elegant. Pei Yunshu was selecting attentively with her head lowered; Xiao Zhufeng stood behind her, keeping a protective distance. Upon noticing Lu Tong and her companion, Duan Xiaoyan imdiately waved, "Brother, Doctor Lu—"
Pei Yunshu turned around, smiling, "Ah Ying, Miss Lu."
Duan Xiaoyan approached excitedly, showing off the big and small packages hanging from her arms.
"We intended to wait for you at the bottom of Qiqiao Tower. Sister Pei said she wanted to see a puppet show, so we followed for a while. We were worried you would go back on your own if you couldn’t find us, but fortunately, we waited."
Fangzi said, "It’s just one street beneath Qiqiao Tower, so it’s still pretty easy to find each other if you wait."
Pei Yunshu looked at Lu Tong, "Miss Lu, how did your contest of skills go at Lanye earlier, did you win anything?"
Lu Tong took out the Peony Wooden Comb, "I won a comb."
"It’s a comb bristle brush," Pei Yunshu was surprised, "It looks quite decent." She then asked Lu Tong, "We didn’t go inside earlier, so how was the contest conducted at Lanye, what did you all do inside?"
Thinking back to the events inside Qiqiao Tower, Lu Tong pressed her lips together and kept silent, Pei Yunng glanced at her and spoke to Pei Yunshu, "Let’s talk about it when we get back ho, it’s getting late. I think we should take Doctor Lu back to West Street first."
Pei Yunshu suddenly realized her oversight and smiled apologetically at Lu Tong, "I was negligent. I rarely leave ho, and once I do, I forget the ti. Miss Lu also needs to see patients at the dical hall on normal days, so resting too late is indeed not good."
"It’s dangerous for a young lady to return late at night, we should escort you to the dical hall first."
Lu Tong nodded and did not refuse.
Pei Yunshu and her companions escorted Lu Tong back to the dical hall first, and then parted ways with Duan Xiaoyan and Xiao Zhufeng.
After returning to Pei Mansion, Pei Yunng watched Pei Yunshu enter the house, about to leave himself, when Pei Yunshu called him back: "Ah Ying."
"What is it?"
"Don’t leave just yet, I have sothing to discuss with you."
Pei Yunshu beckoned him into the house.
Treasure Bead had already been coaxed to sleep by Qiong Ying, Pei Yunshu lit a lamp, asked Pei Yunng to sit in the hall, and then she went into the inner room. After a short while, she ca out holding a silver box.
She sat beside Pei Yunng, opened the silver box, which was wrapped in layers of red cloth. Pei Yunshu unwrapped them one by one, and at the end, when the last layer was lifted, a Green Jade Carved Bracelet lay inside.
Pei Yunng was startled, "This is..."
"Our mother’s Jade Bracelet."
Under the lamplight, the bracelet shone with the warmth of a jade-green lake. Pei Yunshu looked on, her tone sowhat wistful.
"When our grandmother gave the Green Jade Carved Bracelet to our mother as part of her dowry, and when I reached the age of jieli, our mother passed this Green Jade Bracelet on to ."
"Originally there was a pair. I kept one to give to Treasure Bead, and now I’m giving this other one to you."
Pei Yunng stared at the Green Jade Bracelet, not reaching out to take it, rely asking, "Why give it to ?"
"Ah Ying," Pei Yunshu lowered her head, caressing the bracelet, "do you rember after our mother passed away, I used to cry every day, was sick at heart beyond healing, and fell seriously ill, refusing to eat. It was you who learned to make mother’s dumplings to coax into eating, and cheered up every day, until I finally recovered."
She lowered her head, then, after a while, spoke again, "Actually, looking back on it now, you were younger than at that ti. I, as your older sister, should have been taking care of you instead."
Pei Yunng just smiled, "Why bring up things from the past."
Pei Yunshu shook her head.
"After that, you left the capital, and when you returned, things were no longer the sa as before. You no longer shared everything with . Ah Ying, over these years, I don’t know what you’ve been doing. You’ve grown up, and sotis I worry, wondering if I have been neglectful as your sister."
"How could you think that way?"
Pei Yunshu looked at him, "Ah Ying, Miss Lu is a good girl."
Pei Yunng paused.
"You are my brother. Although you’ve kept it to yourself, I can see that she treats you differently than she does others," Pei Yunshu said softly, "Matters of the heart are not for outsiders to interfere with, but there’s one thing I must tell you. If you are fond of soone, don’t let yourself have regrets."
She took Pei Yunng’s hand, stuffing the Green Jade Bracelet into his palm.
Pei Yunng looked down at the bracelet in silence.
"Keep this Jade Bracelet. When you find the one you want to spend your life with, give this bracelet to her. This isn’t a bracelet from the Pei family, this is our mother’s bracelet."
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