One Life, One Incarnation, Beautiful Bones

10

Chapter 3.3 - The Zhenjiang of Old (3)

Although this place, Zhenjiang, was the ancestral hometown of Shi Yi's father, they did not come here often.

Like most of the other cities south of the Yangtze River, there was a lake and temples, mountains and hills of varying heights, and stories to tell. Their car drove beside the lake, and off in the distance Jinshan [Golden Mountain] Temple could be seen, misty and indistinct through a curtain of rain.

That morning, it had still only been cloudy but now, there were already signs that the rain would turn to a downpour.

Would they be stopping near here? Or would they continue driving?

Every few minutes, she would guess whether the car would be coming to a halt at any time now.

Unfortunately, they continued travelling south until the vehicle had entered into the mountains, and still there were no signs of stopping.

The mountain road seemed as if it had been painted by the misty rain and was very enchanting.

"My mother," Zhousheng Chen suddenly spoke up, "she may behave somewhat coolly towards you."

Hearing the seriousness in his tone, Shi Yi again could not hold back her anxiousness. "Because my family is too ordinary?"

"It's not you. It is because my family is somewhat different."

That was very evident.

Shi Yi unconsciously twirled the gold-inlaid jade bangle on her wrist. "Are there any sort of taboos I should be aware of? For example, your mother doesn't like people talking about certain things? Or when we meet, is there anything I should pay special attention to?"

"There are no taboos of any sort," he replied. "My family members are not like ferocious tigers or wild beasts. It is just that, you are not a girl that she knows. She might need some time to get to know you."

She responded with an "oh."

Recalling what he had once said, she asked, "You said, you have very complete information on me and even my family?"

"Yes, very detailed," he said simply. "So detailed that it contains information for each year of your life, ever since you were young."

Shi Yi could not really believe this.

"Our --" He seemed to be recalling the day they first met, and with a smile, he explained slowly, "-- first meeting was too unique and so, there were some necessary procedures that needed to be undertaken to understand who you are."

She had not thought that such a romantic encounter could be described by him as if she had intentionally tried to get close to him.

However, after a few seconds, she relaxed again. She really had deliberately tried to meet him. If she were to say that it was unintentional, even she would not believe herself.

His elbow was resting on a wooden armrest that was on one side. He leaned forward slightly, and it seemed as if he wanted to remove his jacket. Because of his tall figure, there was not quite enough space in the vehicle interior for him to stretch out, and his movements seemed awkward and uncomfortable. Shi Yi casually pulled on one of his sleeves for him and helped him take it off.

Two people, one who had removed his jacket because he had felt constrained, the other just lending a helping hand in passing.

Because of her assistance, the garment was now in her hands.

It still had a little warmth on it, and as she hugged it in her arms, she suddenly felt lightheaded.

"I will hold it." While Zhousheng Chen said this, he had already taken the jacket and placed it across his lap.