I'm in Wuha, and the whole internet is shipping me and Song Yuqi as a couple.

The bamboo shadows in the courtyard swayed gently in the breeze.

After Chen He and Deng Chao ran away noisily, the courtyard became quiet again.

Jiang Che rolled up the cuffs of his white shirt to his elbows, his arm lines slightly tense as the bamboo strips were neatly split into thin slices.

Song Yuqi sat on the small bamboo chair next to him, resting her chin on her hand and watching his movements.

"Chef Jiang, it's a real shame you're not a bamboo craftsman with such skills."

Jiang Che slightly turned the blade in his hand, smoothing out the burrs on the edge of the bamboo strip.

"I'll make umbrellas just for you, no payment required."

Song Yuqi's lips curved into a beautiful smile.

She picked up the embroidery hoop on the table, preparing to add two tender green leaves to the crabapple blossoms on the umbrella.

The fine needles left behind by the old embroiderer gleamed in the sunlight.

Song Yuqi held the needle and thread, breathing softly as she fed it into the silk.

"hiss."

A very soft gasp broke the tranquility of the courtyard.

Song Yuqi twitched her fingers.

The needle tip was off by half an inch and pierced directly into the pad of the left index finger.

A drop of bright red blood quickly seeped out.

The bamboo cleaver on the cutting board stopped abruptly.

Jiang Che didn't even put down the bamboo in his hand. He took long strides to Song Yuqi, knelt on one knee, and reached out to grab her wrist.

His palms were warm from the bamboo, and his fingers were clenched tightly.

Seeing the blood droplets that appeared, Jiang Che frowned slightly, lowered his head and put her fingertip into his mouth.

The warm, moist sensation felt on my fingertips.

Song Yuqi's breath hitched.

She stood ramrod straight, frozen on the bamboo chair, unable to move, the heat spreading from her ears all the way to her neck.

Jiang Che looked up at her, his gaze deep and undisguised.

He sucked away the blood before releasing her fingers.

"Clumsy."

Jiang Che pulled a disinfectant wipe from his pocket and gently wiped away the traces on her fingers.

Song Yuqi's fingers felt hot, her heart was racing, and she instinctively wanted to pull her hand back.

"It's just a little scratch, why are you doing this?"

Jiang Che didn't let go. He pressed his thumb next to the wound to make sure it stopped bleeding before pulling her up.

"I'll stop embroidering, I'll do the rest."

Song Yuqi looked at his well-defined jawline and muttered softly.

"The crabapple trees are all bare; they look so ugly."

Jiang Che raised his hand and rubbed the back of his fingers against her burning cheek.

"Everything you embroider looks good."

Song Yuqi bit her lip, but couldn't help but smile as she handed the embroidery frame to him.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate.

The assistant director walked in, holding a megaphone and peering in, while the production assistant behind him carried a heavy mahogany box.

"Ahem, just a quick announcement about a new rule!"

The assistant director cleared his throat, avoiding Jiang Che's gaze.

"Due to issues with the sponsor's material allocation, the town is completely cut off from supplying high-grade silk umbrella fabric!"

"Please make your own umbrellas using the special paper provided by the production team!"

Song Yuqi quickly stepped forward to look through the pages, her brows furrowed.

"This paper is full of holes, how can I make an umbrella out of it? I clearly chose Shu embroidery silk!"

The assistant director coughed twice and turned his face away.

"Director Wu's temporary instructions constitute force majeure."

Inside the monitoring room of the ancient town's clock tower.

Wu Zheng, with his legs crossed, munched on peanuts and laughed out loud while watching the monitor.

"You raided my base just now and took all the good stuff. Let's see what you'll bring to the Thousand Lanterns Grand Ceremony tonight to compete for first place."

He took a sip of hot tea with relish.

"You're still too green to mess with me."

Inside the small courtyard in the west wing, the assistant director was about to lead the production crew away.

Jiang Che didn't say a single unnecessary word.

He raised his hand and patted Song Yuqi's head.

"Wait two minutes."

Jiang Che turned around and walked to the table, reaching out to pick up the two money bags he had previously seized.

The heavy Shu Tong Bao coin made a crisp sound as it bumped against the bag.

The assistant director paused, somewhat stunned.

"Jiang Che, what are you going to do with the money?"

Jiang Che held the money bag in his palm, grabbed Song Yuqi's wrist with his other hand, and glanced at the camera following them.

"Director Wu probably forgot that the shops in the ancient town accept Shu Tong Bao coins."

He pulled Song Yuqi along and strode out of the umbrella shop.

The ancient town's streets are lined with shops, and right next door is Jinxiuzhuang, the largest century-old brand.

The lobby was filled with dazzling, high-quality brocade.

The shopkeeper was fiddling with his abacus when he saw someone come in. He smiled and spoke according to the script.

"Sir, our finest Shu brocade is worth a fortune..."

With a crisp, clattering sound.

Jiang Che remained calm as he raised his hand and slammed the two money bags filled with copper coins firmly onto the counter.

The cloth bag was opened, and the gleaming copper coins rolled all over the table, several of them hitting the abacus frame directly.

The shopkeeper's brush fell onto the ledger with a thud, and he was stunned.

The assistant director and cameraman behind them held their breath.

Jiang Che rested his elbows on the counter, his posture slightly slumped, and his tone was flat.

"Bring out all the best Shu brocade and cloud-patterned silk in the store."

The shopkeeper swallowed hard, his finger trembling as he pointed at the copper coins.

"Well... sir, you wouldn't need this many for just one horse..."

Jiang Che turned his head and glanced at Song Yuqi, who was somewhat lost in thought.

He raised his hand, casually brushing the stray hairs behind her ear, then turned back, his voice clearly echoing in the lobby.

"If the show won't give my wife what she wants, I'll buy up this whole street."

Song Yuqi's chest heaved slightly.

Those two words fell into her ears without warning, making her ears go numb.

She instinctively gripped the fabric of his long robe, her cheeks burning.

The live stream paused briefly, and then the screen was flooded with comments.

In the clock tower monitoring room, Wu Zheng sprayed the tea he had just swallowed all over the screen.

Wu Zheng coughed violently, his wrist trembling as he pointed at the screen.

"Who is he calling?! Where did he get so many coins?!"

The director next to him lowered his voice.

"Director Wu... this morning at the Bell Tower, he confiscated all the coins from your pocket..."

Wu Zheng raised his hand to cover his face and slumped into a chair.

"I'm using my own money to set up a stage for him to act in an idol drama!"

Inside Jinxiu Manor.

Before long, the shopkeeper brought out two large red Shu brocades with flowing cloud and gold patterns.

The silk was smooth and draped, its fine sheen shimmering in the light.

Jiang Che stroked the fabric, confirming its soft texture, and looked at Song Yuqi.

Do you like it?

Song Yuqi's eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously.

"like!"

Jiang Che gathered the fabric into his arms and casually grabbed most of the remaining copper coins from the counter, stuffing them into her hand.

"Take this, buy whatever catches your eye on the way."

Song Yuqi held the heavy copper coin, looked up at him, and leaned close to his ear with a smile on her face.

"Boss Jiang is really impressive today."

Jiang Che tilted his head slightly, using the Shu brocade in his arms as cover, his nose brushing past her ear, his voice extremely low.

"His imposing manner was also to please Madam Jiang."

Song Yuqi's ears turned red, and she pinched his waist lightly with her fingers.

"Stop talking nonsense, go back and make an umbrella!"

The two men carried the brocade out of the main hall.

The assistant director stood at the door, pressing the walkie-talkie with a helpless expression.

"Director Wu, we can't stop him, he's bought out the entire fabric shop."

Only a weak string of static remained on the walkie-talkie.

"Stop talking, let me catch my breath."

Back at the courtyard of the Umbrella Manor.

Jiang Che cut the red Shu brocade neatly and laid it flat on the cutting board.

Song Yuqi sat to the side, picked up a silver needle, and began to insert the needle again along the lines.

Jiang Che pulled up a chair and sat down next to her.

His large hand covered the back of her slightly cool hand, guiding the silver needles through the fine silk fabric.

"Slow down, follow the subtle lines with your stitches."

His chest pressed against her back, his steady breathing brushing against the top of her head.

Song Yuqi leaned against him, enveloped by his familiar presence. Her tense fingers gradually relaxed, and she steadily stitched along with his rhythm.

Bamboo shadows sway in the courtyard, and sunlight filters through the bamboo leaves, casting dappled patterns of light on the overlapping shadows.

Song Yuqi turned her head to look at his focused profile.

Jiang Che.

"Um?"

"Can we win first place at tonight's grand lantern festival?"

Jiang Che stopped what he was doing, glanced at the glint in her eyes, clenched his fist, and smiled clearly.

"With you here, when have we ever lost?"