In the novel "Joy of Life," the protagonist wakes up at Li Chengze's residence.

The wind chimes on the carriage were made of transparent glass, and each string was strung with various colored gemstones and jade.

With the wind blowing and the vibrations of the horses' hooves, the carriage swayed outside, making a "ding-dong" sound, which was quite pleasant to hear.

Tao Jingyang thought to himself, "I'll make an even bigger one to hang up tomorrow."

When they arrived at their destination and got off the carriage, Tao Jingyang realized that there was not a single person on the huge street.

Tao Jingyang glanced at Li Chengze, who stood to the side with no apparent abnormality, and knew that Li Chengze was already used to this and therefore did not notice anything amiss.

[This is really interfering with people's business.] Tao Jingyang thought to himself. He also planned to personally compensate each stall later.

But I still have to ask:

"You cleared out this street once, what, do you dislike people that much?" Tao Jingyang asked bluntly, without any euphemism.

Li Chengze shrugged awkwardly, his left hand gripping his right wrist, hanging naturally at his sides, and replied:

"I used to dislike people because crowded places are too noisy. It's one thing to be noisy, but the main problem is that no one talks to me."

Li Chengze spoke lightly, but there was always a hint of melancholy in his words.

"Before? Before, it was too noisy. What about now?" Tao Jingyang asked, following Li Chengze's words.

"Well... for a while, I felt that the streets were too dangerous with so many people. There were always some shady characters mixed in, and as you know, I don't know martial arts."

Besides, I actually rarely went out before.

Li Chengze turned to the side and patiently poured out his heart to Tao Jingyang.

"With Xie Bi'an here, and... you still have me now. You don't need to be afraid."

Tao Jingyang gave him a "relax" look.

Li Chengze listened intently to her words, his eyes involuntarily stinging with tears. The mist that slowly welled up in his eyes was secretly wiped away by the wind as he turned his head away and blinked.

However, Li Chengze's dodging movements were too obvious, and Tao Jingyang saw what he was doing at a glance.

[With such a soft heart, how did she manage in the past? Did she cry with Xie Bi'an?] But while she could think about it, she absolutely couldn't ask.

So Tao Jingyang patted Li Chengze on the back to comfort him.

But he didn't realize that when his hand touched Li Chengze's back, the former stiffened for a moment.

The streets, though bustling with life but deserted, are still worth exploring.

Li Chengze and Tao Jingyang walked side by side down the street. Whenever they saw something interesting, they would take it and then each pay the stall a full amount of silver.

Li Chengze stopped at a stall selling small sachets and picked one out at a glance.

A long string of them, each embroidered with a small pattern.

Images such as "raccoon cat chasing butterflies," "peony bushes," "swirling clouds," and "mandarin ducks playing in the water"... and so on.

[The one below the mandarin ducks playing in the water... with the embroidered gold ingots has a nice meaning, I'll choose this one.]

Li Chengze liked it, so he took it down and handed it to Tao Jingyang, who was also looking around curiously.

Here, this is for you.

Tao Jingyang took it, held it in his hands, and examined it for a moment. "Hmm...nothing special, but thank you anyway."

Out of politeness, I pointed to the sachet and praised it lavishly.

"Oh my, look at this raccoon dog, it's so well embroidered, so lifelike; and this peony, so beautiful."

"You have excellent taste, thank you, Your Highness." After praising him, he took the gift and smiled at Li Chengze.

But after taking the sachet, he looked suspiciously at the stall table and asked:

"Your Highness, did you forget to pay?"

Li Chengze looked helpless at her suspicion and just pursed his lips speechlessly.

Then he pulled out a money pouch from his pocket. At first glance, it wasn't filled with loose silver coins, but with huge chunks of silver.

He took out a piece, held it up with two fingers, waved it at Tao Jingyang, and then slammed it onto the table.

"Why wouldn't you give it to me? Look closely, I'm giving you a very generous amount." Then he put the money bag back into his sleeve.

Yes, this time Li Chengze paid for it himself.

Xie Bi'an, who was usually in charge of distributing the money, was resting near the carriage at this time, and Li Chengze did not let him follow.

Meanwhile, Xie Bi'an was sitting in the driver's seat, taking a rare moment to rest.

Xie Bi'an: Thank God, we finally have a year-round holiday.

Turning back, Tao Jingyang looked at the large piece of silver, pondered for a long time, and decided to ask Li Chengze a question:

"You could easily buy the whole stall with this. Do you not go out much and not know the prices in Kyoto?"

Seeing that Li Chengze's eyes widened upon hearing this, as if he was about to get angry, Tao Jingyang quickly tried to smooth things over:

"No, no, I was just joking, just kidding. Your Highness, please don't be angry."

But Li Chengze didn't look at her; he kept his head down, looking at the road, and slowly replied:

"I am a prince, and the last thing I lack is money. Isn't it normal to give him more?"

When Li Chengze said this, his tone should have been arrogant, but there was no trace of arrogance in his voice; it sounded like nothing but sarcasm.

How could Tao Jingyang not understand his answer?

She sighed inwardly and asked softly, "Is that really all there is to it?"

[Isn't it because of something else? Li Chengze, Li Chengze, why do you always say the opposite of what you mean?]

He paused for a moment, gazing at the small stalls passing by along the roadside, and said softly:

“It’s not easy for ordinary people to set up stalls. I went out and cleared them all out. I can’t let them not make any money.” The voice was low, for reasons unknown.

Looking at the man before him, Tao Jingyang thought for a moment, sighed inwardly, and said, "Very good, Your Highness is a good person."

[You're a walking contradiction, always in a state of flux, both good and bad.]

Upon hearing this, Li Chengze's expression was complicated. He gave a self-deprecating laugh, shook his head, and pointed to himself, saying, "Me? I don't count. Only you could say that."

Actually, I've done quite a few bad things.

Not wanting to say more, he pointed to the wonton stall on the side and said, "If I say you are, then you are. Hey, want some wontons over there?"

"...eat."