82. Chapter 82: No

He did not expect his face to flush, because this man’s manner was so unlike that of ordinary people.

“You’re overthinking it. Do you really think I need to go there myself?”

“That may be true. There are plenty of girls ready to throw themselves at you.” She let go of her hand. He was simply too tall; holding on like that had been tiring.

He looked at her and smiled.

“You’re overthinking again.”

He could only shake his head helplessly. There were indeed quite a few who came offering themselves, but not enough to be called plenty.

“Still, will you come with me to buy a set of men’s clothes? We’ve been in Cold City for so long, and I haven’t properly looked around. Why don’t we go on a serious shopping spree today?” All at once, she was seized by an urge to shop.

Perhaps, for a woman, the best way to relieve stress was to shop madly. Of course he would not stop her, and he nodded.

He would have regretted that decision, because her way of shopping was nothing short of ferocious. She bought many sets of clothes.

Five or six sets of women’s garments, along with clothes in the style of the Western Regions. Cold City lay near the frontier and saw many caravans from the West pass through. The place had hardly been assimilated into the Han way at all.

Its local color was intensely strong. Though the city was called Cold City, it was also a turning point, a crossroads. Trade with the Western Regions had to pass through here.

Though she had not truly taken the time to understand the place before, because of certain matters, now she emptied her mind and simply reveled in the experience. Xuanyuan Juesi had changed this city greatly, making it far safer. The caravans passing through were safer as well. From the western side, a dedicated safe road had been opened, and envoys had been sent to improve relations with the Western frontier.

The Western Regions lay only a little over a hundred kilometers away.

And the Western Regions were a peaceful people, though many refugees also came out from there and ended up stranded between the two sides. To attack the Western Regions would certainly be unrealistic, so Cold City became the target instead.

With Xuanyuan Juesi’s arrival, and after their last great losses, things had finally fallen completely quiet. Though this might only be the stillness before dawn, the number of travelers and caravans had clearly begun to increase. The city was growing lively.

It was a pity Xuanyuan Juesi was not emperor, for he had more than enough wit to govern the world.

That was what she was thinking.

“Yexuan, how does this hat look?”

She lifted a fur hat edged all around with tassels and held it up toward him.

“Very nice.”

He repeated his praise countless times, yet he was genuinely happy. Rarely could he feel this way.

Happy in a way he never could at Night Manor or Bright Tower. Truly letting herself go like this—actually, it was rather nice.

“Good. Boss, how much is this?”

She asked the shopkeeper, who held up five fingers.

“Five copper coins?”

The man nodded. He looked like he could not speak, an honest old fellow. Such a small sum, hardly more than the price of three bowls of noodles.

“Yexuan, should I get this for you?”

She took a hat and placed it on his head.

“Mm, it looks pretty good. This one then!”

And so she made the decision all by herself.

Yexuan did not even have a chance to give his opinion. Soon she handed the copper coins to the shopkeeper. Then both of them wore hats. Many people on the street wore them too, so it was not strange.

The strange ones here were the Han people in their Han clothing.

Among so many ethnic groups, it was the Han who were the minority.

“Can you carry it?”

She looked at him, holding a large heap of things.

“More or less, it’s fine,” Yexuan said. It was not really heavy, only bulky and awkward to carry.

“Good. I’m going to buy some more. Haha, today I’m going to shop to my heart’s content.”

It wasn’t her money anyway, and most importantly, someone was there to carry her things for her. That mattered far more. If it had been her, how could she possibly have held so much?

In any case, Yexuan felt quite happy to have such a time with her. This should have been the happiest day of his life. He would remember this period well, even if one day they might perhaps become enemies. He would keep it in his heart for the rest of his life.

She was drawn to the hats in a little shop nearby; these were things she had only ever seen in museums in her own time. To see the real thing was too exciting. In her excitement, she bought more than twenty of them. Yexuan could only bow in defeat.

At last she grew tired from wandering, and seeing that Yexuan’s hands were already full, and that her own hands had no room left either, she decided to rest for a while.

“Hey, are you all right?”

“I’m fine, don’t worry.” He looked at her and spoke gently. The things were not heavy, only large and awkward to hold.

“Mm, all right.” Then she ran to the back and called over the two guards who had been watching them, and handed the things to them.

“You two, take these back first. Come again later to pick up the rest.”

Determined to buy a great many things, she made the guards obey and carry the goods home first. Xuanyuan Juesi happened to return just then and saw the mountains of packages.

“What is this about?”

“The princess bought them. She told us to send them back first and come again later for the rest.”

The guard reported truthfully. Xuanyuan Juesi motioned for them to go at once. Looking at all these things, had she gone mad? Still, let her do as she pleased. They were not short of money anyway. If she wanted to spend it, then spend it.

So she set off again, and Cold City was full of all sorts of odd and curious things. She even bought a fishing rod.

“Nuosan, what are you buying that for? There isn’t any river here to fish in.”

“Don’t worry. There’s a big muddy pond in his residence. I’ll fish there.” She had long since decided where she would fish, she said with a smile, as though she planned to haul every fish out of it and make him furious.

“All right.”

There was a feeling that one must never offend women. In truth, that was wrong. One must never offend a woman like Nuosan; otherwise, the one who suffered would be oneself. But Xuanyuan Juesi did not care about such things at all, and let her do as she pleased.

She even bought a bamboo hat. On this point, Yexuan found her even harder to understand. Her explanation was:

“If you’re going to do something, you should have the right clothes for it. If I’m going fishing, wouldn’t I have even more feeling with this?”

“Then do you also want to buy a rain cape?”

“Of course. I was just about to.”

And so she walked over to the side and chose a rain cape. She seemed intent on having everything in order.

Yexuan shook his head helplessly, because it looked as though she still wanted to keep shopping. The two guards had already hurried back again, so she handed over another pile of purchases. The guards then carried everything back once more, while she continued on.

“Everything you can buy on this street, you’ve already bought. What else do you still want to do?”

“What else? Don’t you think it’s getting late, and that we can go to that place now?”

She held a set of men’s clothes in her hands.

“What? You really want to go? Aren’t you afraid Xuanyuan Juesi will give you trouble?”

Yexuan looked at this woman who feared neither heaven nor earth, and truly admired her. In the face of Xuanyuan Juesi, she could actually remain so calm. It was truly impressive.