Chapter 1120: She Naturally Wasn't Stupid

Tong Nianyi had thought Mister Chen would always teach her.

But then came a day.

She woke up bright and early, but despite her long wait, Mister Chen never appeared.

She sat at the stone table beneath the withered tree, waiting all the way until noon.

Until Aunt Ruyi finally woke up.

Seeing Tong Nianyi out there all alone, Ruyi paused in surprise. "Xiao Nianyi, where's Uncle Chen?"

Tong Nianyi shook her head. "I don't know. I've been waiting here since early morning but haven't seen Mister Chen. Maybe Mister went down the mountain..."

Ruyi froze at those words.

A brief daze washed over her before she hurried toward the temple gates.

After glancing around, she made straight for Uncle Chen's room.

Everything inside was arranged in perfect order and completely spotless. Every item had been returned to its original place, and the bedding lay perfectly flat and smooth.

For a fleeting moment, Ruyi simply stood there in a daze.

Tong Nianyi, who had trailed after her, spoke up. "What's wrong, Aunt Ruyi?"

Ruyi snapped back to her senses at Tong Nianyi's voice. She let out a breath and said to her, "Xiao Nianyi, it's time for you to head down the mountain..."

Tong Nianyi blinked, not quite understanding.

Ruyi said, "Auntie is going to sleep for a bit longer, alright...?"

Taken aback, Tong Nianyi asked, "Aunt Ruyi, it's almost noon. You're still going to sleep?"

Ruyi merely nodded, saying nothing.

It was as if by going back to sleep, she wouldn't know Uncle Chen had left, and he would be able to stay by her side just a little bit longer.

Tong Nianyi sighed, ultimately feeling resigned.

She had thought Mister would come back, but it was just her own assumption, and she had waited the entire morning in vain.

In the end, it was Dong Chiyu who took her down the mountain.

When Tong Nianyi returned home, Tong Zhihuan and Tao'er seemed to understand what had happened.

Tong Nianyi asked, "Is Mister not going to teach me anymore?"

Tao'er gently stroked her head and said, "Mister has more important things to do. Be a good girl, Nianyi."

"Will we see him again?"

"We will. Definitely."

Having slept for a day, Lihua woke up.

It let out a yawn, only to see that Tong Nianyi was already back.

"Why are you back?" Lihua asked, blinking.

Looking somewhat unhappy, Tong Nianyi sat on a stool and rested her chin in her hands, saying, "Mister seems to have left."

Lihua froze, its eyes suddenly widening. "L-left? He left?"

"Yeah."

"He left?"

"Yeah."

Lihua opened its mouth, unable to wrap its head around it. It paced a couple of steps across the floor, muttering, "How could Chen the Good Man just leave..."

"Why did he leave..."

"Why..."

Tong Nianyi blinked and asked, "Are you going to miss Mister Chen too, Big Cat?"

Lihua turned its head and said, "Last time, he promised to bring Lihua dried fish!"

"Huh?"

"He forgot again."

Tong Nianyi said, "Maybe Mister was just too busy."

Lihua hung its head and smacked its lips, saying, "It's not the first time Chen the Good Man has forgotten, anyway. He's always like this, never keeping his word."

It smacked its lips again, whiskers twitching, and said, "Why didn't Chen the Good Man come look for me..."

Tong Nianyi blinked and said, "Weren't you the one hiding from Mister Chen, Big Cat?"

"Chen the Good Man didn't look for me..."

"You were the one hiding."

"Chen the Good Man didn't look for me..."

"Didn't look for me..."

Lihua seemed incredibly disappointed. Seeing its pitiful, wronged expression, Tong Nianyi couldn't help but feel a bit sad herself.

"Don't be sad, Big Cat. If you're sad, I'll be sad too."

"I want to eat dried fish."

"..."

Tong Nianyi suddenly couldn't feel sad anymore.

She suddenly realized that she was understanding Big Cat's thoughts less and less. It was as though she had been constantly growing up, but Big Cat wasn't.

Lihua suddenly let out a sigh.

It was talking about dried fish, but deep down, it was genuinely a bit sad.

"Lihua won't hide next time."

Murmuring that to itself, it curled up on the bed and didn't say another word.

Tong Nianyi could tell that Big Cat really liked this Mister Chen. After all, for so many years, Big Cat had always talked about him, rarely ever stopping.

She couldn't help but think that if it were her, she would be sad too.

Vaguely, she felt she finally understood why Aunt Ruyi had gone back to sleep.

To her, these were supposed to be incredibly difficult things to understand, yet all of a sudden, it all made sense.

Ruyi slept straight through to the afternoon.

By the time she woke up, the sky had already begun to dim.

Dong Chiyu was leaning over the edge of the bed; the movement of Ruyi waking up stirred her awake as well.

Ruyi let out a breath and said, "Blockhead, why didn't you sleep on the bed?"

"I was afraid of waking you."

"Huh?"

"Yeah."

Ruyi said, "You're stupid."

Dong Chiyu blinked, then said to her, "Hurry up and get up. I'll go warm up the food."

Watching Dong Chiyu's retreating figure, Ruyi couldn't help but press her lips together.

In the next moment, she thought again of how Uncle Chen had already left.

An irrepressible loneliness filled her heart once more.

A sigh drifted through the room. Ruyi then put on her clothes and stepped out the door.

The two of them sat at the table; the dishes in front of them were relatively simple.

Tong Nianyi had gone down the mountain, and Uncle Chen had left.

This meal just didn't seem as lively anymore.

Seeing her like this, Dong Chiyu offered some comfort. "Uncle Chen will come back. You need to eat more, don't starve to death."

Hearing this, Ruyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What are you talking about? How could I starve to death?"

Dong Chiyu glanced at her and didn't say a word.

Ruyi waved her hand helplessly and said, "Alright, alright, I know, I know..."

Only then did Dong Chiyu nod.

The meal was finished.

The two of them then made their way down the mountain.

Looking back at the Daoist temple behind them, Ruyi couldn't help but think. This Daoist temple was supposed to be a place of quiet serenity, yet Uncle Chen's arrival always made it lively.

She let out a breath and called out, "Blockhead."

"Yeah?"

"How about we live in Qiuyue Fang from now on?"

Dong Chiyu stared at her for a long time.

Ruyi said, "If you aren't used to it, forget it. We can just go back to Qingshan City. Didn't you really like the courtyard at home?"

Dong Chiyu said, "I'll follow you."

Ruyi let out a sound of amusement, stepped forward, and slung an arm around Dong Chiyu's shoulders. "Blockhead, stop acting like a dutiful wife following her husband. I'm a woman, and you're a woman—we can't have that."

Dong Chiyu shoved her off and said, somewhat angrily, "What nonsense are you saying?"

With that, she quickened her pace, breaking away from Ruyi.

"Why are you getting mad?"

"Hey, Blockhead, I was joking."

Ruyi chased after her, walking by her side, but no matter what she said, Dong Chiyu ignored her.

Dong Chiyu kept her head down, her face flushed red, not wanting Ruyi to see.

Ruyi caught a sidelong glimpse of that red flush. She wanted to say something, but ultimately closed her mouth.

She decided to act as if she hadn't noticed a thing.

She naturally wasn't stupid.