Spring was finally managing to get a foothold in Cyrus- and it had taken its sweet time this year, in most people’s minds. But finally the wind had lost the worst of its bite, and the canals lining the streets had lost their thin crust of ice, though most still chose to bundle up a bit before venturing out for any length of time. It was enough, though, to have the more determined of the outdoor vendors beginning to set up their stalls again, despite the fact that the number of customers out and about was still somewhat lacking most days.

Jiang-Chen didn’t mind that in the least- when things were busy, it was so much harder to flag the merchants away from their stalls and down to the edge of the canal to show off their wares to the water-bound boy. At that particular moment, he was negotiating with one of them over a set of three silver bangles that sparkled when they caught the light, each engraved with a different kind of leaves. Jiang himself never really saw the point in the wheedling- he had plenty of money, and wasn’t particularly shy about letting go of it- but he’d learned very quickly that while the majority of the merchants were perfectly happy to let him pay whatever exorbitant price they’d first quoted, there were some that seemed to hold the act of bartering as some sort of sacred ritual, essential to any sale. And as Jiang very much liked being on decent terms with the various purveyors of shiny items, he made a point to remember which of them required him to ‘talk the talk’, as it were, and acted accordingly.

Finally, after firing numbers back and forth for over ten minutes (Jiang didn’t allow his eyes to roll, no matter how much he wished to), the leather-faced man seemed satisfied with the price they’d come to, and took the carefully counted handful of pieces in return for the bracelets, and a small square of soft, dark colored cloth to wrap them in. Respectful nods were then exchanged, and the man returned to his stall with the few other items he’d brought over to show the boy, leaving Jiang to lean on the cobblestone edge of the canal and admire his newest acquisitions at length, turning them in the light and clattering them together to admire the pleasant sound they made.

Completely worth putting up with the still-miserable temperature of the water.