Perfect Match – CH 102

Chapter 102 [Extra WHAT IF Chapter] The Young Man (2)

Teng Yue followed the “female spy” down another street.

This street led south of the city, and she seemed very familiar with it. The owner of the pancake stall asked her if she had eaten breakfast. She said she had and added, “I almost choked; I am not eating anymore!”

The stall owner laughed and asked why she ate so fast. She replied, “It’s not that I ate fast; it’s just that someone, for some reason, was halfway through his meal when suddenly, like a ghost chasing him, he stuffed a bun into his mouth and tried to leave…”

The stall owner laughed.

Teng Yue almost choked: Was she talking about him? The young man felt inexplicably embarrassed, yet he still harbored doubts about her identity.

Just then, he heard the woman who owned the dried fruit shop next door, cracking sunflower seeds, ask her a question.

“Oh, our Young Lady Deng went out early again this morning. Let me guess, did she go to see that person again…?”

Before she could finish, she quickly ran forward and stammered, “Sister, please do not say that! I… I did not go anywhere! I will treat you to some good tea tomorrow!”

The shop owner laughed, grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, and gave them to her, saying, “Then I will wait. It would be even better if I could catch the wedding feast.”

Her ears suddenly turned red, and she covered her face, turning and running away.

The young man, however, paused upon hearing this.

She ran on until she reached the entrance of a pharmacy.

The pharmacy was bustling with customers, and the staff was also busy attending to each one. But as soon as she entered, a maidservant rushed over.

“Oh dear, Young Lady is back! Master and Madam just heard there’s a large tiger outside the city, and they are anxiously searching for you. Please hurry back to the back courtyard!”

With that, she was pulled inside by the maidservant.

Teng Yue watched her emerald green skirt disappear behind the pharmacy counter, then stood there, stunned, at the entrance.

He’d heard of this pharmacy; it belonged to the Deng family, which had opened it in recent years and was doing quite well. Their homemade medicines were very popular in the city.

So she was the young lady of the Deng family, who owned this pharmacy.

Could the entire Deng family be spies?

Teng Yue immediately dismissed this thought. He was just a nobody; if the entire Deng family were spies, why would they send their young lady to him?

As for why she was with him, Teng Yue had some guesses, but he preferred to believe that this Deng family girl was just playing around.

The young man shook his head, dispelling his doubts, and returned home.

But the next day, when he went out of the city to practice his martial arts, he saw someone hiding behind the old cypress tree again.

It was her.

Teng Yue was quite surprised, but seeing that she was indeed just following him and showed no ill intent, he remained silent.

She arrived quietly shortly after dawn, accompanying him as he practiced shooting every arrow in the quiver twice. As usual, she followed him down the mountain, bought some cold rice dumplings with him, went to the steamed bun shop, and escorted him to his doorstep before running and skipping away.

Teng Yue thought she was a really strange little girl.

Could she possibly want to learn archery from him?

Before he found her under the acacia tree south of the city, he had no idea she existed, let alone knew her.

Teng Yue could not quite understand, but she came again on the third day.

Then, the fourth day, the fifth day, the sixth day… she followed him for half a month without missing a single day!

Teng Yue was somewhat bewildered, but the next day, a thick fog descended on Jinzhou at dawn.

Teng Yue was not deterred by the fog; he still went, but as he climbed the mountain, he could not help but wonder, “With such thick fog today, she probably would not come?”

He reached the mountain and, as expected, saw no movement behind the old cypress tree. But she would not come so early, he thought.

Teng Yue could not tell if he wanted her to stay, as he suspected, or if, deep down, he still harbored a sliver of hope.

He inexplicably kept glancing at the woods near the old cypress tree.

He had fired most of his arrows, but she had not emerged.

It seemed she was not coming. The fog was too thick today, and she was still just a young girl. He thought this.

Then, he suddenly caught the sound of footsteps on the leaves. He turned and saw a nimble figure, like a rabbit, dart behind the old cypress tree.

She had come after all!

Teng Yue was stunned. But as he absentmindedly drew his bow and fired, the arrow missed the target.

He was usually an accurate shooter, but this time, he thought he heard a very soft “Eh?” from behind the old cypress tree.

The young man’s heart tightened instantly, and he quickly took out his arrow again, ready to shoot carefully.

But perhaps due to his jumbled thoughts, this arrow also missed the target.

Teng Yue was slightly startled and then heard a sound from behind the old cypress tree, “Ah!”

The sound was a bit loud; she seemed to realize something was wrong and quickly fell silent.

But Teng Yue’s mind grew increasingly uneasy.

He practiced archery every day, through countless dawns, and had already missed twice in a row. If he missed again, would she laugh at him?

Or… would she stop coming?

These jumbled thoughts were like dust stirred up by a feather duster, making his mind a murky mess.

But if Teng Yue were to let these thoughts distract him, then all his archery practice would have been for nothing.

He slowly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.

He opened his eyes the next instant, drew his bow, and with a swift motion, released the arrow from his fingers.

A clang—striking the bullseye.

Teng Yue felt a sense of relief but instinctively pricked up his ears, listening behind the old cypress tree.

This time, she did not make a sound, but he vaguely heard her let out a long sigh of relief in the breeze.

Was she nervous for him, too?

Teng Yue did not know why he thought this, but hearing her sigh of relief inexplicably calmed him down. His subsequent arrows were much steadier, and he did not miss a single shot until he had fired all the remaining arrows in his basket.

He packed his things and prepared to descend the mountain. His gaze lingered behind the old cypress tree, catching a glimpse of her flowing skirt. Her feet were moving; she seemed to be leaving as well.

The boy’s lips curved slightly, unnoticed by himself.

He followed his usual path down the mountain.

The sun had risen, but the forest mist had not completely dissipated. He was a trained martial artist, so he did not care. But after only a few steps, he heard a slipping sound behind him and caught a glimpse of a figure flashing by.

Teng Yue, with his sharp ears and eyes, could not help but call out to her, “Be careful!”

But a response did not come out. She seemed even more afraid of being discovered. As soon as she steadied herself, she immediately hid behind a large tree in the woods.

Teng Yue did not utter a sound, nor did he turn his head.

She did not want him to see her, so he pretended not to notice.

He was truly afraid that if he turned around, she would become even more nervous and tumble down the hillside again!

But the young man’s heart pounded rapidly. He knew she was watching him and dared not show it. He could only calm himself and continue walking downhill.

But at the fork in the road, he decisively turned onto the slightly longer path.

The path was much gentler; he did not walk it often, but it was safer.

She trailed behind him, and seeing him reach this path, she exclaimed “Eh!” again.

Teng Yue smiled helplessly and shook his head inwardly.

He had thought she was a spy; what a dense spy!

But he did not need to say anything to her. He had no idea how long she had followed him before he found her under the mimosa tree.

That mimosa tree, rumored to be trodden by deities, its fallen emerald leaf felt like a gentle hand patting his shoulder, leading him from this solitary journey to suddenly discover the little girl hiding behind him…

As they descended the mountain and entered the city, the morning mist finally dissipated, and the streets became bustling with people, long queues forming in front of the breakfast stalls.

Teng Yue still preferred cold rice dumplings and steamed buns for breakfast, and he headed towards the cold rice dumpling stall.

Just as he turned around, he suddenly heard the person behind him mutter a few words, like a sparrow chirping casually on the eaves, but he caught the sound immediately.

“…Are we having cold rice dumplings and steamed buns again? We’ve been eating them for so many days now…”

The boy’s steps faltered as he approached the rice dumpling stall.

She…did not want to eat them anymore?

Teng Yue then realized that she ate breakfast at the same stall with him every day, eating the same things he liked. As for herself, she must have her own favorite foods, right?

But what did she like to eat?

The boy, aware of her presence, glanced back at her as someone squeezed through the crowd.

She, oblivious, stared longingly at the mutton stew stall on the other side of the road.

Teng Yue immediately turned and walked straight to the mutton restaurant.

He listened intently, hearing a gasp behind him.

He could not help but laugh, almost aloud.

He ordered a large bowl of mutton soup and a large flatbread. She, clearly having a good appetite, also ordered a large bowl and a large flatbread. The proprietress even asked her, “Can a young lady eat so much?”

She blurted out, “I cannot finish it all; I will take it home!”

This time, Teng Yue could not hold back any longer and finally burst out laughing.

The moment he laughed, he realized something was wrong—had she discovered he’d noticed her?!

The words were a little awkward, but Teng Yue’s heart skipped a beat.

She had been trying to hide from him. Although he did not understand why, what if he revealed he’d discovered her and scared her away?

He frowned slightly but saw she had not noticed him at all. Her eyes were only on the mutton soup that was about to be served, and she even told the proprietress, “Give me a fluffy flatbread; it will taste better soaked in it!”

At this moment, all she cared about was food. Seeing that she had not noticed, Teng Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The soup was scalding hot, and the flatbread burned her hands. Seeing that she was not eating quickly, Teng Yue slowed down as well, sipping his soup slowly. Only after she finished the last piece of flatbread and let out a satisfied sigh did he finish his soup and get up to go home.

She followed him as usual to his doorstep. Seeing him go inside, she turned and headed towards her family’s pharmacy in the south of the city.

But she did not know that, these past few days, Teng Yue had stood in front of the door, watching her turn at the end of the street before turning back home.

That day was no different. When he entered the house, he happened to see his younger sister going to her tutor for reading lessons.

His sister greeted him but suddenly stared at him and asked, “Did you find gold on the road, Second Brother?”

“Huh?” Teng Yue was slightly taken aback.

His sister said directly, “You’ve been smiling the whole time!”

Teng Yue was completely stunned. Just then, his mother came over and, seeing the siblings, asked, “What are you talking about?”

His sister blurted out, “Second Brother found gold.”

His mother was surprised. “Our family does not lack that kind of money. You should find the owner.”

Teng Yue: “…”

He could only explain that he had not found any gold and quickly changed the subject, saying that Shen Run and her nephew Shen Yanxing would be visiting in a few days. “Mother, should we take Ah Xiao with us?”

Before his mother could agree, his sister had already jumped up excitedly.

Seeing this, his mother hesitated, and Teng Yue could not help but say something.

“I see my little sister is tired from school; a little rest is good for her. Mother should let her relax.”

Just like that little girl. His home was already stifling enough; why not let his sister be more lively?

He did not know if his mother would agree after he spoke, but she thought for a moment, looked at the siblings, and finally nodded.

The little sister seemed surprised that her mother agreed and immediately threw herself into her arms.

“Mother, you are so good!” she said, not forgetting her brother. “Second Brother is even better!”

They both laughed, startling away the sparrows that had perched quietly on the wall.

The Teng family seemed to have been silent without laughter for a long time.

…

The next day, there was no fog; the sky was clear and crisp.

Teng Yue arrived at the mountain early to begin his training, but after practicing his fist techniques, spear skills, and even firing half a basket of arrows, she still had not arrived.

Teng Yue guessed that something might have delayed her, and his archery speed had slowed considerably.

But it was so slow; even after he had fired all his arrows, there was still no movement behind the old cypress tree.

Teng Yue could not resist any longer and finally went to the old cypress tree.

There was no one there; she had not come today.

The young man was silent for a moment.

No one would be as tireless as he was, year after year. After all, he carried the expectations of his father and brother, while she had both parents and no worries about food or clothing.

He lowered his eyes, silently packed his things, and prepared to go down the mountain when, suddenly, he heard the faint growling of a large animal coming from the forest.

Teng Yue’s heart skipped a beat.

She did not come. Could it be…?

He immediately began searching along the road but saw nothing. Unable to contain himself, he suddenly turned and headed towards the source of the tiger’s roar. However, halfway down the mountain, he was stopped by an old woodcutter hurrying down the slope. “You cannot go there! There’s a tiger on the mountain!”

“Has the tiger harmed anyone on the mountain?! I have to go and see!”

The old woodcutter replied, “No one has been harmed. I saw it from afar just now; it was clean and did not look like it would eat people.”

These words reassured Teng Yue.

But why did she not come?

The young man felt it was normal for her not to come, but after returning to the city, instead of eating breakfast at the stall, his feet unconsciously led him to the south of the city. He walked and walked until he reached the entrance of the Deng family’s pharmacy.

He hesitated, wondering how to go in and ask, whether it would be too presumptuous.

Unexpectedly, his gaze was suddenly fixed on the stone steps in front of the door.

She was sitting on the threshold, hugging her knees, crying.

The moment he looked over, his heart clenched as if gripped by something.

What was wrong?