“Are you not sleepy?” Henry Carter groggily turned over, noticing that the bed felt much emptier than usual tonight. He half-opened one eye and glanced toward the light, mumbling a follow-up question.

　　“Not sleepy. You go ahead and sleep, sir. I’ll blow out the candle now!” Violet turned her head, gazing affectionately at Henry Carter’s sharply defined face, and replied softly.

　　“What’s wrong?” Having grown up together since childhood, even if it were just a cat, feelings would have developed. Henry Carter vaguely sensed that Violet was acting a bit off tonight. He opened his eyes a little wider and asked with concern.

　　“It’s nothing. It’s just Violet being muddle-headed. I shouldn’t have disturbed your rest.” Violet gently shook her head, used her fan to extinguish the candle, then climbed onto the bed in the moonlight streaming through the window, lying down beside Henry Carter without moving.

　　“You silly girl, who bullied you?” Henry Carter felt a pang in his heart. He stretched out his arm and pulled her stiff body close. After being out in the night wind for so long, Violet’s body was as cold as jade. The moment they touched, a chill seeped slowly through Henry Carter’s skin and into his heart.

　　“In this courtyard, who would dare bully me now?” Violet’s nose was a bit stuffy; she sniffled and replied in a low voice.

　　“Then what’s wrong?” Henry Carter reached out to feel her forehead, but his fingers touched something wet. He turned over and looked at her face in the moonlight.

　　Bathed in watery moonlight, he saw a sea of tears. “It’s really nothing, sir, go to sleep! It’s just Violet being silly!” Unable to hide her inner fear, Violet simply opened her arms and hugged Henry Carter tightly, as if letting go would mean losing everything.

　　“You stubborn girl!” Henry Carter chuckled, lay on his back, and held Violet to his chest, slowly warming her up. “If something’s wrong, just say it, will you? Since we were kids, when have I ever made things hard for you? Even if I can’t do what you ask right away, there’s still Aunt May at home. For my sake, she’ll find a way to help you too!”

　　“It’s really nothing. Young master has already treated me well enough!” The more gently Henry Carter comforted her, the more Violet’s tears fell, “plop, plop.” Unable to guess a young girl’s thoughts, Henry Carter could only hold her with one arm, freeing the other hand to gently stroke her back like petting a kitten.

　　This was his usual trick, and it never failed. After a while, Violet indeed calmed down like a kitten. Yet she refused to sleep, half her body still pressed against Henry Carter’s chest, listening to his heartbeat with her ear.

　　Henry Carter had lost his mother at a young age. His stepmother, Aunt May, took good care of him, but there was always a layer of distance, not as attentive as a real mother. So for Violet, who had grown up with him, his feelings were deep and complicated. He glared at her for a while, then reached out to pinch her nose and said with a smile, “Have you heard enough? If you have, get off me. If you don’t, you’ll squash me flat!”

　　“Alright!” Violet stuck out her little pink tongue mischievously, then rolled off and curled up into a small ball under Henry Carter’s arm.

　　“Look at you!” Henry Carter scolded with a laugh, then turned to the side and gently sniffed her hair. “Can you tell me now? If you don’t, I really am going to sleep!”

　　“It’s really nothing. Just me being silly.” Violet gave an embarrassed smile and curled up even tighter. But after a moment, before Henry Carter could drift back to sleep, she lifted her head and timidly asked, “Young master, am I already old?”

　　“Nonsense! You’re only two years older than me. If you’re old now, what does that make me?” Henry Carter finally guessed the reason for Violet’s odd behavior tonight. He gave her a playful slap on the butt and scolded with a laugh.

　　“Ah!” Violet let out a soft cry at the slap, but didn’t move away, instead pressing herself even closer like a plaster. “How could I compare to you, sir? You’re a man—even at seventy, you could still draw a three-stone bow and eat a whole dou of rice in one sitting. I’m just a peach blossom on a branch—no matter how beautiful, it only lasts for a fleeting moment.”

　　“Where did you learn all this nonsense?” Henry Carter was so annoyed he gave her another slap, but this time even more gently. “That’s just people with too much time on their hands whining for no reason. Why take it seriously? If you have that much free time, you might as well take Xueyan out for a walk in the market, see if there’s anything rare from the Southern Seas, buy a few things for yourself, and get a few for me to give to Aunt May!”

　　“The merchants from Guangzhou say the sea ships only make the round trip once a year.” At the mention of shopping, Violet’s eyes lit up for a moment, but soon dimmed again. (Note 1)

　　“The sea ships from Guangzhou are gone. But from the Western Regions, there are always Hu merchants coming, right?” Henry Carter yawned and suggested with a smile.

　　“The jewelry and jade from over there are all about weight, but the workmanship is so rough!” Violet looked down on the precious goods from the Western Regions. In recent years, the Tang Empire had enjoyed peace and prosperity, and craftsmen had plenty of time to create new and exquisite things. The hairpins, rings, and pendants they made were masterpieces, far superior to those brought by the Hu merchants. Nowadays, only a few nouveau riche would buy those ornaments made by foreigners. In Chang’an, any respectable family would be embarrassed to be seen by acquaintances wearing a clump of gold dirt from the Western Regions.