A Misty Night, With A Crystal-Clear Moon - Chapter 2
Chapter 2: The First Encounter
As soon as they entered the bustling flow of people in Shanghai, Cui Xin could no longer contain the heart that had been strictly confined for two days. The novelty overwhelmed her eyes and nerves; she kept looking around, behaving exactly like a country girl who had just arrived in the city.
“Miss, I never thought Shanghai was this prosperous! I always thought London was the most splendid and beautiful city in the world, but Shanghai isn’t far behind.”
“You’ve been excited ever since we arrived in Shanghai. You’re someone who has been abroad and seen the world, yet you can’t contain yourself.”
“Miss, that wasn’t really being abroad! Following you to England for three years meant little more than dropping you off at school and picking you up. My English didn’t get any more fluent; all I learned was how to cook.”
“Oh? Are you saying it’s my fault then? That I buried your talent?”
“Miss just loves to twist my words and pick on me.”
“Alright, I won’t tease you anymore. Regardless, you did learn their unique cooking techniques thoroughly. If one day, you and I end up somewhere penniless, you’ll definitely be the one to survive.”
“Why?”
“Because you can cook! All sorts of delicious things—Chinese and Western food—you know them all. You could start by setting up a stall, and once you earn enough money, you can rent a shop and open a small restaurant. When the business gets even better, you can open a few more branches. Goodness, Cui Xin, it turns out the person who’s been by my side all along is a future small millionaire!”
“It really sounds like that! Why didn’t I think of it? I can actually survive with my own hands!” Cui Xin said delightedly, her heart practically leaping out of her chest.
“Yes, you have always survived using your own hands. Alright, we need to find a shop and buy some things for my uncle and aunt.”
Cui Xin nodded and obediently hurried along.
Since returning from England, Yu Linglong had grown fond of wearing Western dresses. At that time, not many women could afford to wear Western dresses; while common in Shanghai, they were rare in Suzhou. When she returned to Suzhou in a Western dress, she attracted a considerable crowd. It wasn’t that people had never seen one, but the dress looked exceptionally elegant on Yu Linglong. She had a long neck, a beautiful oval face, and a high nose bridge rarely seen on an Oriental woman. Combined with her fair skin and the beret—a staple of English attire—she looked like a princess returned from overseas.
She also wore Chinese clothing while in Suzhou, favoring white silk Qipao with embroidery, which perfectly accentuated her graceful figure without seeming vulgar. Her hairstyle was always simple; previously, she had long, black, straight hair, tied simply with a ribbon that bundled the hair from her temples to the crown. She had many colors of ribbons to match different outfits, a habit she maintained even after returning from England, despite having permed her hair.
Among her ribbons, she particularly loved the purple one inlaid with lace. Purple is an odd color that not everyone can pull off, but she alone could wear that color with its unique flair.
Today, she was wearing the white Western-style long dress she had worn while traveling to Hangzhou, topped with a white beret featuring a veil net. Even walking on the bustling streets of Shanghai, she still looked highly fashionable.
They entered a silk fabric shop. The owner, seeing their sophisticated attire, quickly came to greet them.
“What kind of fabric are the two young ladies looking for? This is the best silk shop in all of Shanghai. You have an excellent eye, Miss; this design just arrived yesterday. All the ladies in Shanghai love this pattern recently.”
Yu Linglong smiled faintly, carefully scanning the shop, finally stopping at the area the owner referred to as “new arrivals.” She picked out three designs and handed them to the owner. “Don’t include these three pieces; please wrap up all the others for me.”
The owner initially thought Linglong wanted the three pieces and was already happy, but he was ecstatic when he realized the young lady was this generous. He quickly bowed and nodded, laughing, “Excellent, I’ll wrap them up for you right away.”
“Please wrap them well,” Linglong instructed.
“Yes, I understand the young lady is buying them as gifts.”
The owner was quite astute. Linglong glanced at him without saying anything. Cui Xin immediately felt the owner was snobbish and disliked him intensely.
As the two were paying, several men in short jackets with thuggish appearances swaggered in. The leader slammed his hand on the counter, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, and sneered, “Where’s the money?”
The owner looked troubled. “Gentlemen, wasn’t the protection money just paid the day before yesterday?”
The leader said, “That was for the Azure Cloud Gang. We are the Qilin Gang, and this place belongs to us starting today. Hurry up and hand over the money!”
“Oh dear, sirs, this… this isn’t possible! You people are fighting all the time. Today you subdue them, but tomorrow someone else might beat you. We are just running a small business; where would we get that much money?”
“What? What do you mean? What do you mean someone else might beat us tomorrow? I’m telling you, either you pay up now, or…” The leader looked around the shop. “…or we’ll trash your shop, and then let’s see how you do business! Do it! Everyone move!”
With that, the two men behind him lunged forward, grabbing bolts of fabric to toss them down. However, they were stopped by Cui Xin.
The leader glared at Cui Xin, thinking this little servant girl dared to challenge him. He yelled, “What’s the matter, little girl? Are you tired of living?”
Cui Xin scoffed. “Hmph, I’m happy to be alive. I just can’t stand thugs like you!”
“Oho, quite bold.” Saying this, he grabbed Cui Xin with one hand and roared, “I’ll show you what a real thug is!”
“Is it glorious for a big man like you to openly bully a young woman?”
The leader looked toward Linglong, who had spoken, and studied her closely.
“Your collecting protection fees here is a matter between you and the owner. I am merely a customer and shouldn’t interfere, but you moved the fabric I just bought. I have a quirk: I cannot stand other people’s hands touching my things, especially dirty hands like yours. My maid was simply defending me. You’d better let her go.”
Hearing this, the man found the woman composed and possessing considerable presence. “Oho, judging by your accent, you’re not from Shanghai, are you, little lady?”
Linglong snorted softly. “Hmph, so what if you are from Shanghai?”
The leader became furious. “I’ve met my match today! I never expected it to be a b1tch. If I don’t take care of you, how will I be able to hold my head up in the future?”
He moved to attack without warning. The full-force punch he threw was about to land on Yu Linglong’s head when it was suddenly stopped in mid-air. Before Yu Linglong could even close her eyes, she heard: “It’s the truly shameful thing when several grown men bully two young girls.”
The leader’s arm was firmly clamped in the other man’s hand. He stood in front, blocking Linglong’s view of the voice’s owner. The leader turned his head and cursed, “It’s you again?”
“It is me. Who told you to swagger around and commit evil in the name of collecting protection fees?”
The grip on his arm tightened, causing the man to cry out in pain. As he spun around, Linglong finally saw the person who had saved her. Linglong’s eyes instantly lit up. He was a young man, perhaps only two or three years older than her, with handsome, clear features, a close-cropped haircut, a white shirt, and a fair complexion rare for a man.
And the young man clearly noticed the woman hidden behind the thug. His eyes were as if he had spotted a rare treasure; he was utterly mesmerized, staring at her raptly for a long time.
Though his attention was on Linglong, the strength in his hand did not diminish in the slightest. The thug howled in pain and tried to punch him when he wasn’t looking, but was instead knocked down to the ground by a returning punch. The other two youths who came with the thug also had decent fighting skills, but the young man managed to subdue them both, one in each hand.
“A-Nuo, what should we do with them?” the other man asked.
“We just had a conflict; it’s best not to invite more trouble.” He stared at the leader. “I’ll spare you today. Don’t let me catch you again. Also, this area is still under the jurisdiction of the Azure Cloud Gang. You’d better stay where you belong.”
He released his hand and gave the leader a shove. The thug stumbled a few times, stood at the doorway, and yelled, “Hmph! Sikong Nuo, you just wait!”
Sikong Nuo put his hands on his hips and laughed, “Don’t worry, I’ll be waiting for you anytime.”