Nan Xun shook his head and put on a smile. “It’s nothing. I just think that the jade stone we saw was a good one. Do you really not want it?”

Jun Huang didn’t notice that he was changing the subject. She sighed thinking that Nan Xun actually wanted the jade. “It’s not about my preferences. The stone is of second-class quality. It looks the way it does because the shop owner has treated it with solution. It’s beneath your status. If you wear it in public, you’ll get laughed at. I promise I have your best interest in mind.” She smiled and added, “What, are you unhappy with me for that?”

Her eyes and eyebrows curved like a waxing moon. The setting sun shone on her dimpled cheeks. She looked arresting.

“No, I’d like to thank you.” Nan Xun smiled back at her, putting aside the uneasy feeling that someone was watching them.

After walking for some distance, he turned around to check again,...