After ending the conversation with Leyao, I could not fall asleep no matter what I did. Strangely, the rumbling sound of a road roller echoed in my mind, along with the image of rows of rusty fences beneath an overpass.
I tried to recall, and finally realized why this scene appeared in my mind—it wasn’t without reason. Years ago, Luo Ben and I had actually lived under that overpass for a period of time. That was the darkest phase of our lives. Each day was accompanied by the strong smell of engine oil and the roaring noise of the road roller, while we cast dull gazes toward an endless and uncertain future.
The reason this memory resurfaced was because I had a strong premonition that Luo Ben’s life was about to face an unprecedented impact, one that might possibly drag him back into that dark period.
Barefoot, I walked to the window, pulled aside the curtain, and opened it. A warm breeze blew in, and on the horizon, the outline of a rising sun faintly emerged. Thus arrived a spring morning… yet I felt increasingly tired.
Finally, my long-silent phone rang. I didn’t even need to guess to know it was a message from Mi Cai.
I walked back to the bed, half-lying on it, before opening the phone message: “It’s almost morning there. Why aren’t you resting yet?”
“Can’t sleep… Why did you reply so late?”
“I met with a financial expert earlier and kept my phone on silent mode.”
“Oh, so you’ve finished work for today already?”
“Yeah… I’m really exhausted.”
This was the first time Mi Cai had ever complained to me about her work, and I found it a bit hard to adapt. Deep down, I had always believed she could effortlessly manage her career. It turned out she, too, sometimes felt overwhelmed.
“If you’re tired, you should rest early.”
“You misunderstood me. The tiredness I mentioned isn’t physical or mental exhaustion—it’s more like a sense of dullness lately in life.”
“Why do you feel that way?”
“Sigh!… Recently, there’s been no go-karting, no carousel rides, and not even a home-cooked meal waiting after I return home… Isn’t that pretty boring?”
On a whim, I added for her: “You’re also missing a guy who constantly drives you crazy.”
“And just so happens, this guy who always drives me crazy, would you mind taking me for carousel rides and go-karting after I come back?”
Instantly, an image emerged in my mind: On a free weekend, we would go to a plaza far away from industrial machinery, play go-karting, and when tired, she would rest her head on my shoulder until dusk. Then we’d buy some vegetables from the market, stop by the convenience store at the entrance of our residential compound, swing on the carousel for a while, and finally return to our old house to cook a simple but warm dinner together…
This seemed like an extremely simple lifestyle, yet it was precisely what I had always longed for. I was so immersed in this imagined scenario that I felt somewhat dazed. After a while, I finally replied to Mi Cai: “When you come back, let’s live like this.”
“Okay.”
“I also plan to save some money to renovate the old house so we can live more comfortably.”
“No renovation. If you find it uncomfortable to live there, you can just move here (to my villa).”
Although surprised by her attitude, I didn’t ask further. I figured she would eventually tell me the reason one day. Our conversation ended there, and finally, as the first rays of morning sunlight poured into the room, I drifted into sleep.
…
Despite a sleepless night, I didn’t dare to sleep for long. Just past noon, I got up and met with the merchants involved in the “Perfect Travel Plan” to discuss specific promotional strategies. It wasn’t until evening that we preliminarily finalized a promotion plan.
The streetlights had already turned on when I dragged my exhausted body back to my inn. Suddenly, as I walked listlessly, my phone rang. I struggled to pull it out from my pocket and saw it was a call from Leyao. I immediately answered.
I spoke to her in an exaggeratedly polite tone, saying, “Hello.”
On the other end, Leyao sounded confused: “Did I dial the wrong number?… Are you Zhaoyang?”
“Yep.”
“When did you become so formal?”
“Well, I’m technically working in the service industry now. It’s necessary to be a bit nicer to people.”
Leyao was momentarily speechless before saying, “Hurry up and come to Xitang Station to pick me up. I’m already here.”
I exclaimed, “How come you, a public figure who draws so much attention, dared to take a bus here?”
“I removed my makeup, wore a hat, sunglasses, and a mask. Who would recognize me? Don’t talk nonsense. Hurry up and come pick me up. I’ve almost suffocated wearing this mask the whole way.”
“Okay, wait for me at the station platform outside. I’ll immediately turn into a gust of wind to come pick you up.”
…
Driving the white CC Mi Cai had left for me, I rushed like the wind toward the station. Sure enough, I spotted Leyao fully equipped with her disguise at the platform. I turned the car around and pulled up beside her. I rolled down the window and honked to signal her to get on.
Leyao didn’t immediately get in. Instead, she stared at the car for a while and asked me, “Where did you strike it rich to afford a CC?”
“It’s Mi Cai’s.”
“She drives this car!”
I was speechless again. It seemed people were indeed divided into different classes. If it were my car, she would assume I had suddenly struck gold. But if it belonged to Mi Cai, she would instead express surprise that she drove such an average car.
Finally, I asked Leyao, “What, is this car really that bad?”
“The car itself is okay, but for Mi Cai to drive it, it’s just a bit beneath her.”
“How superficial, always trying to rank people and cars into different classes.”
Leyao ignored my complaint, walked to the other side of the car, opened the front passenger door, sat down beside me, rolled up the window, took off her sunglasses and mask, let out a long sigh, and urged me to drive off quickly.
Seeing her eagerness, I smiled and said, “Being a public figure isn’t easy, right?”
“You get what you pay for. I’m used to it.”
“You have a good mindset.”
Leyao didn’t reply, but instead looked sideways at the streetlights along the road. After the car had left the noisy crowd behind, she finally rolled down the window and enjoyed the natural breeze of late spring. As we approached our destination, she finally asked me, “Has the inn business improved lately?”
I shook my head and said, “I’m temporarily facing some difficulties, but it will get better after they’re resolved.”
“What kind of problems?”
I pressed hard on the accelerator, overtook a car ahead, and then said, “You’d better focus on acting. You don’t understand business matters.”
“You’re right. I don’t understand business, nor do I possess Mi Cai’s strategic wisdom…”
Seeing Leyao hesitate as if she had more to say, I smiled helplessly and said, “Why compare yourself to her? She’s actually one of your fans. Not long ago, she insisted on watching your entire drama series from start to finish.”
Leyao glared at me: “Stop teasing me.”
Once again, I sighed helplessly: “I really don’t understand women’s logic. How should I communicate with you?”
Leyao ignored me, and soon the car finally arrived at the inn with us inside.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage