The Starlight Night Market really couldn't compare to the Riverside Night Market.
There were more artisans and souvenir shops here, obviously targeting tourists' wallets. The most deceptive part was that some stall owners gave the impression that their goods were very cheap, but in fact, if you weren't used to spending while traveling, you wouldn't think they were cheap, nor would you buy them.
Zhou Li fell for it.
He bought a string of small elephant key pendants—ten in total—for ten yuan, making it one yuan each.
He thought it was a good deal and had already planned what to do with them: one for Aunt Jiang, one for Old Zhou, and one for Zhu Shuang. If his mother returned this year, she would also get one. The rest would go to his uncle, his aunt, Baozi, and his roommates.
For just ten yuan, he felt quite pleased with himself.
Luckily, Brother Nan thought so too.
And Brother Nan was quick to act. He had just paid when she snatched one from his hand, hung it on her keys, and examined it against the light.
Huai Xu also took one.
Zhou Li had no idea what Huai Xu would do with it—he didn't have keys and usually didn't carry anything when he went out.
Additionally, there were many stalls selling fruit and snacks, slightly more expensive than at the Riverside Night Market, but not by much.
Brother Nan first bought some pounded lemon chicken feet, asking for a few extra pairs of chopsticks. Then, she bought a mini pineapple, which the vendor peeled for her. She skewered the pineapple chunks with the chopsticks and handed a skewer each to Zhou Li and Huai Xu.
The Tuanzi in Zhou Li's arms was completely ignored by her.
The three of them walked and nibbled, attracting a lot of attention.
"Lord Dumpling?" Zhou Li offered the pineapple to Tuanzi's mouth.
"You're the only one who's loyal to Lord Dumpling," Tuanzi said, then twisted its head to look at the pineapple from different angles, an expression of dilemma on its face. "This thing is round and is deliberately defying Lord Dumpling."
"Bite here!"
"But you've already bitten it."
"..."
I don't even mind you, Zhou Li thought.
Eventually, Tuanzi took a bite, and Zhou Li continued nibbling on his pineapple. Brother Nan, walking beside them, glanced at them with narrowed eyes. Her very faint hum was completely drowned out by the surrounding noise.
They walked all the way to Gaozhuang Square, where the air suddenly filled with the scent of late-night snacks, and the lights over the square looked like a sky full of stars.
No wonder it was called the Starlight Night Market.
The late-night snacks here were much more expensive than at the Riverside Night Market.
Brother Nan led Zhou Li and Huai Xu on a tour, looking at each stall. In the end, they only had a bowl of cold rice noodles. In her words, it was bearable not to know about the Riverside Night Market. However, getting ripped off after knowing about it was a loss she, the Successor of Destiny, couldn't swallow.
After taking photos, checking in, and confronting a Mage who had sneakily taken their photos, they headed back the way they came.
Brother Nan couldn't tolerate even the slightest affront. On the way back, she suggested to Huai Xu that he steal the Mage's memory card that night, erase everything on it, and then return it to him. Seeing Huai Xu's eager expression, it seemed he might actually agree.
Zhou Li couldn't be bothered to intervene. Upon returning to the hotel, he took a bath and went to sleep.
「The next morning.」
Brother Nan drove Zhou Li and Huai Xu to the city to have some chicken soup with rice noodles, then bought lots of fruit for the road.
The first stop on their return journey was Chunming, another ten-plus-hour drive away.
"This is the seventh day, right?" Brother Nan asked while driving.
"Right," Zhou Li answered.
"Is it still fun?"
"It's fun."
"What's fun about it?"
"It's fun with Brother Nan guiding us," Zhou Li said. He caught a glimpse of Huai Xu grinning and, after a thought, asked, "What do you think, Huai Xu?"
"...I think so too."
"It seems we share the same view."
"Lord Dumpling's head is feeling dizzy again," Tuanzi's voice came from the back seat. "It's uncomfortable."
"Here, I'll hold you!" Zhou Li offered.
Zhou Li picked up Tuanzi and rolled down the window, letting the moist morning air hit his face. He whispered, "I'll tell Lord Dumpling a story. If you listen, you can fall asleep, okay? If you sleep, you won't feel dizzy anymore."
In a gentle and soft voice, Tuanzi answered, "Okay~~"
Brother Nan remarked from the side, "You sure are nice to her."
"Because Lord Dumpling is a great and admirable Great Demon, both formidable and cute," Zhou Li lowered his head, his tone like he was coaxing a child. "Isn't that right, Lord Dumpling?"
"It is~"
Tuanzi's voice was listless, lacking its usual firmness and self-satisfaction, and carried a hint of a whine.
Zhou Li said, "The story begins..."
The car quickly fell silent.
Zhou Li's voice was gentle and calming.
Two hours later, Tuanzi was sound asleep. Zhou Li's legs had gone numb, but he didn't dare to move. Even his movements to get a drink of water were cautious, fearing he might wake Tuanzi, who was curled up on his lap.
After drinking some water, he started to peel fruit.
One always had to find something to do on a boring trip.
Zhou Li cut the mango and offered a piece to Brother Nan on a toothpick. Judging by Brother Nan's expression, she seemed to have grown accustomed to it. She would open her mouth whenever she felt Zhou Li's hand approach, without even looking.
Clearly, she had finally understood the true meaning behind her mother's words.
Zhou Li shook his head. "No, you've applied sunscreen; you need to remove your makeup. Besides, you won't sleep well in the car, and you still have to drive tomorrow."
"Then I'll just find a hostel for the night. I'll see if there's a youth hostel; it'll only cost twenty or thirty yuan anyway," Brother Nan said, glancing at a nearby hotel with a new-looking sign and a rather nice-looking reception area on the first floor. "Anju..."
"Are you sick?" Zhou Li asked with concern.
"What are you talking about?"
"When did you become so coy?" Zhou Li asked instead.
"This isn't being coy!"
"Then why are you suddenly embarrassed? Haven't we been staying in the same room these past few days?"
"It wouldn't be good if people saw..."
"It's not like a village here; neighbors in the complex don't even know each other."
"Ugh, alright, fine..."
Brother Nan realized she couldn't outstubborn him.
Thinking this, she quickly glanced at the rearview mirror but could only see half of Zhou Li's head. Her cheeks felt hot. It was an unexplained sensation, much like her previous coyness, which made her grateful that Zhou Li was sitting in the back and couldn't see her face.
"Brother Nan, your heart is beating so fast," Huai Xu butted in.
"Shut up."
"Okay then."
"...I just saw a stray cat dart across the road in front of us; it startled me," Brother Nan explained.
"Oh."
"Zhou Li, how come you don't talk in your sleep?" Brother Nan braced herself and changed the subject. Zhou Li's nonchalant tone made her feel inexplicably uncomfortable.
"How would I know if I talk in my sleep or not?" Zhou Li said.
"Huai Xu said you don't."
"Then I probably don't," Zhou Li yawned, not feeling very alert. "What does it matter if I do or don't?"
"It doesn't matter..."
Brother Nan was just trying to shift the topic.
The residential complex was quiet at midnight. After parking the car, she followed Zhou Li and Huai Xu into the elevator. Even the advertisements in the elevator had stopped playing. It was so quiet she could almost hear her own breathing.
For some reason, she had recently felt that something was different between her and Zhou Li. It had been fine during the trip, but once the journey ended, it seemed even that last layer of pretense couldn't hold.