My Miao Sweetheart - Chapter 2

The beautiful young man from the Miao village left with red-rimmed eyes.

His betrothal gifts had become apology gifts, and his bride-to-be thought he was her enemy.

It had never occurred to him that what he’d meant as a confession by stepping on my foot had looked to me like a deliberate provocation.

He’d thought I’d returned his feelings over and over, making him blush and run away. I’d thought my retaliation had made him turn red.

I apologized sincerely to Lan An.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know that stepping on someone’s shoe at a Miao village festival meant confessing your love.

“Those times I stomped back on yours…” I paused, then admitted honestly, “I was getting you back for stepping on my shoe. I wasn’t trying to return your feelings.”

I hadn’t known anything about the courtship customs here.

After a long silence, Lan An turned his head away, pretending to be composed. His voice was a little choked.

“I understand. May I ask your name?”

“Jiang Man.”

He nodded.

The little silver earring on one side swung with the movement.

The sob he’d swallowed wouldn’t stay down any longer. His voice grew hoarse.

“I’m sorry. I need a little time to collect myself. I’ll come back tomorrow and apologize properly.

“I made a fool of myself in front of the girl I like, and I brought all these people here and caused you trouble. I’m really sorry.”

He looked as though he were about to shatter.

I stayed quiet, afraid to say anything.

I was worried that one word of comfort would make him decide I ought to be his wife.

I didn’t know what he’d told his family in Miao, but they still smiled kindly at me as they left.

The looks they gave Lan An, though, held a touch of exasperation at his failure.

Once they were gone, my guide was even more nervous than I was.

“Dark Miao clothing. He’s probably from the rear village.

“Oh, no. This is bad.

“I’ve lost a tourist to them. How am I supposed to explain this to the coordinator?”

She told me to leave the Miao village the next day.

She said this village was different from other Miao communities. It had lots of customs, and lots of taboos too.

She’d only taken her eyes off me for a moment and this misunderstanding had happened. To prevent any bigger trouble, she wanted to deal with the problem at its source: have me leave.

“I can’t keep taking care of your booking. I’ll refund all the fees in a moment.”

I clung to a little hope.

“I’m from out of town. He’s only met me once. He doesn’t have my contact details or know where I live. Surely he won’t be able to find me?”

“He’s from the rear village!” my guide blurted. “If you don’t believe me, don’t pack.”

Her words scared me badly.

Realizing how they might sound, she was silent for a while before adding,

“I mean, we’re all from the same village. All he has to do is ask around.”

Nothing would persuade her to let me stay.

She not only refunded my guesthouse payment, she gave me an extra thousand yuan as compensation.

“I dislike the people from the rear village. You’ve had contact with them now. I don’t dislike you, but I can’t bring myself to keep you here.

“Find another guesthouse or hotel. I won’t be hosting you anymore.”

There was nothing I could do. The next day, I clattered downstairs with my suitcase.

By the time I reached the bottom, I was feeling weak.

I set down my luggage and straightened, and my vision went dark.

Remembering that I hadn’t eaten breakfast, I worried all that exertion had set off my low blood sugar.

I sensed someone beside me and grabbed hold of them.

“Excuse me, do you have any candy?”

The familiar dizzy, heavy-headed feeling hit me as soon as I spoke.

Oh, no. It really was my blood sugar this time!

Through the haze, I heard the rustle of a wrapper being torn open.

A moment later, a small, square piece of candy pressed against my lips.

“Open your mouth.”

When I recovered, the young man was staring blankly down at his fingertips, his ears a little red.

So soft…

Lan An was particular about his clothes. He wasn’t like the boys online, decked out in pretty, jingling silver ornaments.

He wore the local dark Miao outfit, with a blue cloth wrapped around his head.

A plain neck ring rested at his throat, and a belt patterned with silver circled his waist.

Compared with yesterday, today’s outfit was fairly simple.

“Feeling better?”

I instinctively put some distance between us.

“Much better. Thank you.”

Lan An’s apology was sincere.

The village did have a custom of stepping on someone’s foot at a festival to confess your feelings.

“But if you step on someone’s foot, what you should say is ‘I’m sorry,’ not ‘Let’s be together.’”

He spoke with a perfectly serious expression. A beat later, his ears turned red.

Turning his face away, he looked at my suitcase.

“I didn’t expect to arrive just as you were leaving.

“Is it because of what I did yesterday? Did I make you uncomfortable?”

He looked terribly guilty and full of self-reproach.

I waved my hands, explaining that it wasn’t because of him.

But I couldn’t very well say that my guide had refused to host me because I’d been in contact with someone from the rear village.

I had to find a tactful excuse.

“I didn’t like my old guesthouse, so I’m going to try another one.”

His eyes lit up.

“My family runs guesthouses. Hotels too. What kind would you like, Sister? I can give you a discount!”