Quick sketch because of russian 2nd erha book's cover. That soul lamp makes me cry.
My headcanon is "always calm and non-conflict Shi Mei tries to punch Hua Binan in the face after he realizes how awful their plan turns out".
I guess that's the moment when his trust to an older friend broke for the first time.
Shimei made an appearance in the new 2ha extra :) (Context is that Mo Ran turned into a cat by some mishap, and Chu Wanning and Xue Meng want to get antidote for Mo Ran from Jiang Xi, so Chu Wanning went to a market sponsored by Jiang Xi to sell the machines he built - if he earned the most revenue and paid the highest taxes to Jiang Xi, he could ask Jiang Xi for the antidote he wants.)
I translated the part where Shimei appeared, see below:
In front of his stall stood a cultivator against the light.
The cultivator was dressed in plain clothes, blue gauze hanging from his bamboo hat, a bamboo walking stick in his hand, and alone he stood. It's unknown when he came, or how long he had stood in front of the stall.
The light gauze under his bamboo hat swayed softly; the silver bells by the side of the hat also swung softly, giving a tinkling sound. The silver bells are delicate pieces - a whole string of them in the shape of bamboo leaves commonly seen in Sichuan. The silver bells are very light, and you wouldn't hear the faint, delicate clinks unless you pay close attention.
Chu Wanning couldn't see his face clearly, and could only vaguely detect the silk belt covering his eyes behind the gauze and bamboo hat. Yet the gauze was too thick and heavy, layer upon layer covering the hat, as if to conceal some obscure past unwilling to be glimpsed, and some heavy pensiveness in his heart.
Chu Wanning couldn't be too sure whether he saw it right.
The two of them stayed where they were silently, both wordless for a while.
Finally, the cultivator spoke first.
His voice was hoarse, whether due to vocal damage or spells of deliberate obscuration. After all, many would want to hide their identities in busy fairs like this one.
The cultivator asked gently and hesitantly: "...I heard that the master is commissioned to sell Immortal Chu's machines."
Chu Wanning had also used spells to temporarily alter his voice before he came here, and wasn't speaking in his own voice; he uttered an "hmm".
"...If so..." For some reason - and maybe Chu Wanning wasn't hearing it right - the cultivator's voice was trembling slightly: "If so...Could I ask the master, if I'm..."
"...If I'm allowed to touch it..."
(I translated another snippet from the extra here for anyone interested)
Shi Mei watches a pearl-like tear slide down the man's moonlit cheek. Rong Jui weeps as easily as rain pours from the heavens. Sometimes his sobs are coy accompanied by flushed cheeks and a slyly lowered head. Each drop used to tug at any pity hidden in greedy hearts.
Undignified, Yet his eyes linger on those damp cheeks, the redness of those peerless eyes.
Rong Jui sobs harder, his moonlit face growing blotchy with hues of red.
Beautiful
He can almost see the interest that brute Mo-Ran has in the man. Of course, Shi Mei would never lower himself to lie with anyone that beast fucked. Even as the image of dripping tears on that lovely face flushed with pleasure springs to mind and almost causes his manhood to stir.
No! His first time will be with Shizun not some cast-off.
Watching Mo ran’s whore cry is a perfectly innocent pastime, he muses catching one of those droplets on his finger.
He gives the man before him his softest look “ Now, tell me about something else that made you sad.”