Chapter 25: Never Without Attachment (1)
Now that Zhou Shengchen had officially returned, Shi Yi had to formally bring him home once.
Without an official wedding banquet, Shi Yi tactfully explained that the two had decided to be together, but due to the complicated traditions of his family, the wedding banquet would have to be postponed. As for their status as a legally married couple, she truly didn’t dare to disclose that—otherwise, her parents would surely be furious. Being legally married without either side’s elders having met… even she knew that was truly excessive.
Though her parents weren’t entirely pleased, seeing Shi Yi so insistent, they reluctantly accepted that the two were "together."
"A grown daughter can’t be kept at home forever," her mother murmured softly while standing behind Shi Yi as she washed her face. "Fortunately, Xiao Zhou seems like a decent and reliable young man, otherwise I’d really—"
Shi Yi dried her face and picked up a wooden comb. "Mm, I think he’s decent… and reliable too."
"But mutual affection alone isn’t enough—there needs to be legal protection," her mother took the comb and tied Shi Yi’s hair into a simple ponytail. "Also, don’t move in together too soon."
Shi Yi unexpectedly stayed silent.
Her mother noticed something amiss, took one look at her awkward expression, and immediately understood.
She patted the back of Shi Yi’s head and frowned. "Never mind. You young people… you’re different from our generation."
Shi Yi took the comb back and placed it in its spot, murmuring, "Anyway, in this lifetime, I’ll only be with him. That won’t change."
"A lifetime? A lifetime is very long—"
Before her mother could say more, Shi Yi sidestepped with a smile, deftly avoiding the topic.
At home, it was her father’s habit to cook. When she walked out, she found Zhou Shengchen in the kitchen as well and hurried in. He was chatting leisurely with her father, and as she entered, she saw him handing over a bunch of peeled and washed scallions. She gave him a small smile. "You can go out. I’ll help here."
He looked at her, brushing the back of his hand against her tied-up ponytail. "It’s fine."
It was the first time he’d seen her wear her hair like this, so he naturally took a few extra glances.
Standing behind the elderly man cooking, the two exchanged looks. Shi Yi blushed slightly under his gaze and reached out to roll up the cuffs of his shirt. Then, quietly rising on her tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek.
The moment her father turned around, she took two steps back. "Well… I’ll leave then. Do your best."
"Xiao Zhou, come, pass me the scallions."
Zhou Shengchen, still holding the scallions, reacted a beat too late before handing them over.
Meanwhile, she had already fled the scene.
A peaceful, homely lunch.
Zhou Shengchen and Shi Yi sat side by side, eating quietly in perfect harmony. Even her mother, who had initially been critical, had to admit they were exceptionally well-suited. Before leaving, he was pulled aside to chat with Shi Yi’s parents.
Mostly, it was her parents asking questions, and he answered each one thoroughly—holding nothing back, leaving nothing unsaid.Her mother’s aunt had once been a wealthy young lady in old Shanghai. Having seen such women before, her mother naturally used that as a reference to speculate about Zhou Shengchen’s mother. Tentatively, she asked if he had been raised by nannies since childhood, with little care from his mother. Zhou Shengchen didn’t deny it. Shi Yi’s mother smiled, somewhat relieved, and before Shi Yi left, she softly advised, “Her mother’s family was probably just a well-off household from the past. People from such families aren’t very close to their children and can be a bit temperamental.”
Though not entirely accurate, there were some similarities.
Shi Yi agreed, saying she would get along well with his mother.
Her parents’ home was about half an hour’s drive from where she lived.
The two got off at the intersection and walked side by side along the small road toward the residential area. Remembering his earlier conversation with her parents, she casually asked, “When you were little, you weren’t raised by your mother?”
“Yes and no,” Zhou Shengchen chuckled. “How did you hold back until now to ask?”
Caught off guard, she pursed her lips and thought for a moment before replying, “I was afraid you’d get angry if I asked directly…”
“It’s similar to what your parents thought. My mother didn’t raise us herself. My siblings and I were all brought up by outsiders, and each of us had a different wet nurse.”
“Oh,” she said. “No wonder I felt like you and your brother… seem quite distant.”
He didn’t deny it. “We’re not very close. I left home too early and only interacted more when he was about to get married.”
As they talked, two small poodles circled around her and suddenly started barking fiercely.
Zhou Shengchen quickly pulled her into his arms to shield her. Only when the dogs’ owner rushed over, scolded them, and apologized did he relax. At first, she had been startled but not truly frightened—his protectiveness surprised her more.
He squeezed her hand, both their palms slightly sweaty.
She was sweating from the scare, while he was nervous because of her.
“I’m not that scared of dogs,” Shi Yi murmured softly as he released her.
He seemed to hum in acknowledgment, pausing briefly before saying, “I am.”
“Huh?” Shi Yi looked at him.
He met her gaze calmly, but after a few seconds, he suddenly smiled and touched her ponytail. “Afraid they’d bite you.”
A faint, intimate feeling.
Just like that, her heart melted, and she reached out to hold his hand.
He was protecting her, afraid she’d get hurt.
When they got home, Shi Yi tidied up the study for him, placing the books and computer he had brought with him. His belongings were surprisingly few—just some essentials for men, books, two computers, and clothes. Nothing more. One computer seemed to be for lab work, the other for personal use.
Normally, she only needed her laptop and a desk lamp in the study, with the simplest type of power strip.
Now, with two computers set up, she worried the outlets might not be enough.
“Do you use both computers at the same time?” she asked.
“Yes,” Zhou Shengchen answered from the living room.
“Then the power strip might not be enough,” she mused. “Sit tight for a bit. I’ll go downstairs to the convenience store and buy a bigger one.”
“The convenience store downstairs?” He appeared at the study door.
“Yeah, otherwise there won’t be space for the desk lamp…”
“Alright, got it.”
With that, he turned and left.Only after he closed the door did Shi Yi realize she had still been treating him as a guest just moments ago.
Yet he had clearly already assumed the role of the man of the house.
Leaning against the desk, she felt an almost surreal happiness. Since returning from Wuzhen, subtle but unmistakable changes had taken place. It wasn’t just the physical intimacy between a man and a woman—it was more than that. She could sense his growing care for her.
Like the care he had once shown her.
Even though he no longer remembered.
This man, who was passionate only about scientific research and economics and indifferent to nearly everything else, had begun to protect her. He had started acting like an ordinary man, naturally following her lead to buy daily necessities… Holding a white cloth, she wiped every corner of the study. After a while, she slowly crouched down, looking at the row of history books on the bottom shelf.
Most were beautifully bound and appeared untouched.
Truthfully, many had only been flipped through once after purchase.
Seeing these, she remembered the papers tucked between the magazines in her bag. She retrieved them and carefully placed them in a new folder, storing it atop those books. She didn’t know how long it would take to write about these memories, but she hoped she wouldn’t forget too much—she wanted to record them as thoroughly as possible.
Those things about him that only she knew.
For dinner, they casually ate some cold dishes and scallion oil noodles before he retreated to the study.
Shi Yi sat at the small table on the balcony with a few sheets of paper, outlining the timeline for her book. Several hours passed quickly. Her usual working hours stretched from afternoon to late at night, so even past eleven, she didn’t feel sleepy. Seeing the study was still quiet, she arranged some pastries on a porcelain plate, knocked, and pushed the door open.
Zhou Shengchen, accustomed to solitude, turned and looked at her for a few seconds before snapping out of his work. “Tired?”
“No,” she walked in and placed the pastries and a cup of hot milk in front of him. “I thought you might be hungry. If you are, have some. If not, just drink the milk?”
He smiled, picked up the cup, and took a sip.
Setting it down, he pulled over the empty chair beside him. “Sit here. I’ll keep you company for a while.”
She hummed in agreement and sat down.
Though his phrasing was a little odd, his meaning was clear—he wanted to spend time with her, likely feeling he had neglected her all evening.
As they chatted idly, he casually opened his personal email.
It was impeccably organized.
Among the dozens of names, she spotted a folder labeled “Shi Yi” and immediately recalled the days when they had exchanged emails. For over half a year, they had no other means of communication, and back then, she had been utterly disheartened. But now that she understood him, she realized this was simply his preferred way of corresponding—direct, with the freedom to reply at his own pace.
Especially efficient for managing personal relationships…
Zhou Shengchen suddenly asked her, “Can you think of something similar to this line?”
Shi Yi glanced at his computer. On the Word document was a single line:
One Red Calyx, Two-Colored Lotus, Three-Step Joy, Four-Garden Bamboo, Five-Watch Order, Six-Tune Order, Seventh Maiden, Eight-Beat Barbarian, Nine-Loom Pattern, Tenth-Month Peach, Hundredfold Charm, Thousand-Year Melody.
She understood and laughed. “These are the names of lyric meters. Whoever listed them must have quite the sense of humor.”
“Can you come up with something similar?”Shi Yi thought for a moment before listing some Chinese medicinal herbs: "Yidianhong, Eryelü, Sanjiaocao, Sijiqing, Wulianzi, Liuhequ... Qiyelian, Bajiaofeng, Jiulixiang, Shihuisan... Hmm, Baicaoshuang, Qianrihong."
"All medicinal herbs?" He hadn't expected her to answer with traditional Chinese medicine.
She nodded.
He quickly wrote down her answers and pasted them into the email reply. Then he typed another line: These answers are from Shi Yi.
"Who are you sending it to?" She saw him write her name and asked curiously.
"Mei Hang," he smiled. "He always likes to mass-send these things for entertainment."
She thought of that man—yes, it did fit his temperament.
Zhou Shengchen finished his milk and closed his laptop. "I'll leave at four in the morning. Do you have work tomorrow, or will you rest at home?"
"No work..." She picked up the empty glass. "I told Meilin... I'm on my honeymoon."
"Honeymoon," he murmured thoughtfully, then chuckled to himself. "It really is a honeymoon, isn't it?"
The night was deep and quiet.
He made the simple affirmation, while she glanced at him, inexplicably feeling her face grow warm.
The seventh month of the lunar calendar was Ghost Month.
Because of the month's significance, the Zhou family had a nighttime curfew, making it inconvenient for Zhou Shengchen to travel between Zhenjiang and Shanghai late at night. So Shi Yi had taken a month's leave to stay at the old family residence in Zhenjiang. Meilin couldn't help but tease her, saying she might as well embrace the life of a young mistress and stop staying in Shanghai—after all, the flashy, glamorous big city wasn't suited for her scholarly young man.
She laughed but said nothing.
Though she had spent weekends with him there before, eating and staying together, she still felt like air.
Perhaps his family truly valued formalities—even Xiao Ren, who got along well with her, only addressed her politely as "Miss Shi Yi" in public. The only consolation was that his mother wasn't in the country during this time.
The mobile signal was weak there, so she only went online in her room at night, using the landline to contact family and friends.
During the day, when she grew tired of reading or writing and Zhou Shengchen wasn't around, she would sit and gaze outside absentmindedly.
The books on the table were quite rare.
Most were out-of-print editions from the family's library collection, many in traditional vertical script, and some were even handwritten copies. She felt some reluctance toward the library, so he always accompanied her to pick out books, which she would exchange for new ones after finishing.
It wasn't until about ten days later, when some younger family members arrived, that the atmosphere became more relaxed.
That afternoon, Zhou Wenxing and Mei Hang arrived at the same time. At the moment, Zhou Shengchen and Shi Yi were leisurely walking down the stone steps from the mountain. Thick foliage blocked most of the sunlight, and with the water and breeze, it didn't feel hot at all.
When she grew tired, she stopped.
In the stream were tiny fish—not many, but a small group had gathered right at the bend.
Above the water, a few dragonflies flitted back and forth.
She watched them, sitting on a large rock to rest, her mind empty. Zhou Shengchen stood beside her in silence for a moment before checking his watch. "Wenxing and Mei Hang should be arriving soon."
If he said they should be arriving, they would definitely appear within two minutes.
Someone with such a strong sense of time naturally influenced those around them—including her, who had now developed a habit of punctuality.Sure enough, a black sedan soon appeared winding up the mountain road and pulled over near the two of them. The door opened, and Mei Hang stepped out first, followed by Wen Xing. The two walked beneath the towering trees and stopped on the other side of the stream. Wen Xing tilted her head and smiled, "Sister-in-law."
Shi Yi chuckled, "He just said you should be arriving soon, and here you are."
"My eldest brother is very strict about time," Wen Xing sighed playfully. "It makes the driver nervous too—no one dares to be late."
Was this a complaint? Or just playful whining?
Every time Shi Yi met Zhou Wenxing, the girl seemed particularly affectionate toward her—one of the few in the family who treated her kindly. She nodded slightly at Mei Hang in greeting before joining Wen Xing in their lighthearted mockery of Zhou Shengchen's rigid punctuality.
The accused, however, remained entirely unbothered.
"There are so many dragonflies and fireflies here," Wen Xing said, noticing Shi Yi watching the dragonflies. She crouched halfway down, reaching out to pinch a dragonfly's wings. "When I came back occasionally as a child, I used to catch them for fun."
Her hands were very thin—likely due to her congenital heart condition, which made her appear somewhat frail overall.
Last time they met, it hadn’t been noticeable, but this time, her energy seemed significantly worse.
"My little beauty, you shouldn’t catch dragonflies during Ghost Month," Mei Hang teased with a smile.
"Why not?" Wen Xing asked, puzzled.
Mei Hang smirked mysteriously, deliberately withholding an explanation.
Wen Xing bit her lip and grumbled under her breath, "Bullying me for growing up abroad, making fun of me for not knowing your superstitions."
Shi Yi couldn’t help laughing. "It’s just a folk taboo. People usually believe dragonflies and katydids are incarnations of spirits, so during Ghost Month… it’s best not to bring them home, lest some 'friendly visitors' come along."
She only remembered this clearly because some aunties had lectured her about it during tomb-sweeping visits as a child.
"Ah?" Wen Xing immediately withdrew her hand. "Usually when I come back here, it's either for Qingming tomb-sweeping or Ghost Month… and I’ve caught plenty of them to play with before…" She shuddered slightly and pressed, "What’s a katydid?"
Before Shi Yi could answer, Mei Hang told her, "It’s a kind of grasshopper. I remember you used to play with those too as a child."
Wen Xing’s face paled further.
Shi Yi, genuinely worried she’d scared her, laughed softly. "Don’t worry, it’s all just talk."
Truthfully, she was also wary of these folk tales and understood the girl’s unease.
Just as she was about to offer more reassurance, Zhou Shengchen shook his head slightly and sighed. "Dragonflies, also known as dengqing , fulao , cong , or qingting , belong to the order Odonata, suborder Anisoptera. They often fly near water. After mating, the female lays eggs in aquatic plants. They have no connection whatsoever to spirits."
This was the explanation of an atheist.
Pure science.
Mei Hang couldn’t resist teasing him. "Oh great scientist, existence implies reason. Personally, I believe in Buddhism and reincarnation."
Zhou Shengchen crouched down as well, deftly pinching the dragonfly’s wings. With a faint smile, he countered with logic: "Right now, it’s laying eggs. After that comes the nymph stage, then metamorphosis into an adult, followed by another cycle of reproduction—a rigorous and complete process. Correct?"
Mei Hang mocked him a little more, but the two had known each other since childhood and were long accustomed to this back-and-forth.
(End of Chapter)
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