Zhao Ying shook her head helplessly and walked with Yan toward the fresh food section.

Yang Ce threw whatever caught his eye into the cart. Zhao Ying tried to stop him a few times, but he went his own way regardless, and at last she simply let him be.

Finally, when she truly could not bear to watch any longer, she said, "That's enough, Yang Ce. Buy any more and the fridge won't hold it—do you want my home to turn into a vegetable market?"

Yang Ce chuckled and finally stopped. He did a quick tally—this was enough for at least four or five meals, which meant four or five visits to Zhao Ying's place.

"Yang Ce, wait here a moment—I need to buy a few other things." Zhao Ying hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't quite get it out.

"Buying things? Let's go together—I need to pick up a few things myself." Yang Yuting nodded.

"That's fine, let's split up," Zhao Ying said.

"Why split up? It's better together. This supermarket's huge—what if we lose each other?" Yang Mo said, somewhat perplexed. "Besides, we're not in any hurry."

"But—" Zhao Ying hemmed and hawed, and after a long while still couldn't come up with a reason. At last she gave up, thinking, forget it, it's nothing so shameful after all.

The two of them walked together toward the household goods section. Yang Ce had sensed earlier that Zhao Ying wasn't saying everything, so he had been watching her closely. When her gaze lingered on the women's products aisle, understanding dawned on him all at once. She must be buying sanitary pads or something of the sort—no wonder she'd wanted to split up.

"Ying-jie, are you buying sanitary pads?" Yang Jiyan asked, utterly unabashed. His skin was thick enough by now; he was used to it.

"Ah!" Zhao Ying started, and instinctively denied it at once. "No, no—I just need to buy some feminine wash, that's all."

The moment the words left her mouth, her face flushed red—she had blurted it out without thinking. Zhao Ying bit her lip and shot Yang Puqi a glare. "You're terrible."

"What did I do?" Yang Jiyan said, all innocence. "I was just asking. Huh—Ying-jie, isn't this the same sanitary cotton I saw at your place the first time I went to your home? I didn't get a good look then before you whisked it away."

Yang Ce pointed at the box of tampons on the shelf and asked in astonishment.

Zhao Ying was instantly overcome with embarrassment. Remembering that earlier incident, she wished the floor would open up and swallow her. She hurriedly pulled Yang Ce back and whispered, "Are you really that ignorant, or just pretending? Before, you could be forgiven for not knowing, but now you—"

Zhao Ying wanted to say: You've already done that sort of thing with your girlfriend—don't you know what these things are for?

"Isn't this just medicated cotton?" Yang Ce blinked and asked in return.

"Forget it." Seeing that Yang Juehuan didn't seem to be putting on an act, Zhao Ying let it drop. Tampons weren't as commonplace as sanitary pads, so it wasn't all that strange that Yang Yongjin didn't know.

"Forget what?" Yang Jiyan pressed on. "Isn't it?"

"Go ask Chen Shutang, not me," Zhao Ying said crossly. But then she thought of Wang Yanqiu again—that sanitary cotton last time had been given to her by Wang Yanqiu. Now, Wang Yanqiu could probably make use of it herself.

At that thought, Zhao Ying sighed softly. She simply could not understand how Yang Ce and Wang Yanqiu had ended up together. Or had she really misread the two of them?

To be continued

1002. Moving House

"Yang Ce, you said Wang Yanqiu is your neighbor in the Huashang residential complex, is that right?" Zhao Ying could finally hold back no longer and spoke up to ask.

Yang Lanxu's heart jolted. So it's finally come, he thought. How am I supposed to answer? Yang Ce really did have a bit of a headache. By all rights, his relationship with Wang Yanqiu could not be exposed—both their identities were too sensitive, and besides, their relationship was mostly a partnership.

"Yeah. Don't you also live in Huashang Compound?" Yang Yanchuan said. Later, Zhao Ying's mother, Wang Guifen, had bought another apartment in Huashang Compound for Zhao Ying—and Yang Ce had paid for it—so Yang Duoran knew all about it.

"I haven't moved in yet," Zhao Ying shook her head. "I'm still living where I was before."

"Why haven't you moved over there?" Yang Puqi was taken aback. He hadn't expected Zhao Ying to still be in her old place—not living in a brand-new apartment, but renting instead. What sense did that make?

"I keep feeling it isn't real, that the apartment isn't mine," Zhao Ying sighed and shook her head. "You bought that place to keep it hidden from my mother. Now you can take it back—I can't just take your apartment for no reason."

"How is it for no reason? You're my sister, aren't you?" Yang Hengye said. "You can't deny that. What's wrong with a younger brother buying his sister an apartment?"

Yang Ce was baffled as to what was still churning and hesitating inside Zhao Ying's heart. They were only a layer of paper apart—one poke and it would tear—yet Zhao Ying still seemed unable to make up her mind, always retreating at the critical moment.

Just now, for instance: he had hinted several times in words, and every time Zhao Ying had dodged. There was nothing Yang Ce could do about it—which was exactly why Yang Yongjin dared to confess so freely.

"Let's not talk about this anymore." Zhao Ying felt her heart pounding so hard she could barely bear it. She let out a long breath. "I'm going to buy some things." With that, she hurried off at a near-run.

Yang Ce watched her retreating back and could only smile bitterly. What exactly was holding Zhao Ying back? Her own shyness? Wang Yanqiu? Or Chen Shutang?

At the thought of Chen Shutang, Yang Ce suddenly remembered that at the temple fair Chen Shutang had flown into a rage at Zhao Ying, calling her a fox spirit. Yang Ce's head began to ache. This was going to be a hard problem to solve.

Chen Shutang was a traditional sort of girl. She could tolerate Lin Yanhe and Zhou Yanning now, but she might not tolerate Zhao Ying—because Zhao Ying had been their teacher in high school, and Chen Shutang simply could not accept, from the bottom of her heart, the fact of a teacher becoming a sister. She would probably be the first to raise an outcry.

At that thought, Yang Ce's head throbbed unbearably. Perhaps Zhao Ying was agonizing over the same thing.

In the blink of an eye, Zhao Ying had finished buying the wash she needed; she had already paid at the supermarket checkout, and the things were packed in a small bag. Yang Ce could not help but smile. This was nothing to be ashamed of—why go to such lengths?

"Let's go, I'm done shopping," Zhao Ying said with a smile, looking at the dazed Yang Ce.

"Oh, right." Seeing that Zhao Ying did not want to bring up the earlier topic again, Yang Shuoxuan said no more. Anyway, he had the memory tree prepared; sooner or later Zhao Ying would understand what was in his heart.

Yang Ce and Zhao Ying pushed a cart full of groceries, looking for all the world like a young couple shopping at the supermarket. Yang Ce rather enjoyed the feeling, and Zhao Ying seemed to be enjoying it too—but neither of them said it aloud.

After paying, the two of them together carried the groceries out to the car. Yang Puqi could have managed all of it alone, but doing it together felt different: each gripping one handle, lifting a bag between them, there was a faint, unspoken understanding.

They got in, and Yang Ce started the car, driving silently toward Zhao Ying's old place. The familiar streets, the familiar compound—it was nearly a year later that he had come here again.

Yang Ce thought of the first time he had driven Zhao Ying home; the scene was still vivid before his eyes, as if it were yesterday.