My expression started to become unnatural. Mi Cai, sitting across from me, noticed something was off. She glanced at me and then looked back, her eyes meeting with Jian Wei’s.
Mi Cai had always been somewhat cold, while Jian Wei was naturally proud. When they made direct eye contact like this, they surprisingly didn’t greet each other. Instead, Xiang Chen waved at me and said, “Zhaoyang, having dinner with your girlfriend!”
“Yeah, since you’re here, maybe we can share the table.” Although I was reluctant to meet them, I politely invited them anyway. This politeness felt awkward to me, but it was necessary.
Jian Wei held Xiang Chen’s arm and shook her head, saying, “No need to share a table. We’ll sit over there; it’ll be less crowded.”
Xiang Chen obeyed without question. After smiling at me, he led Jian Wei to another table. Watching their backs, I believed that after this unexpected encounter, Jian Wei and Xiang Chen must now absolutely believe that Mi Cai and I are a couple, because today was our private date, meant to be enjoyed only by the two of us.
…
This must have been the first time Jian Wei had come to “Skyland” since returning to China. Therefore, CC was very surprised when she suddenly saw Jian Wei. As usual, CC offered them free draft beer and cola, but she didn’t mention the past, because now, in her eyes, Jian Wei and I each had new loves. Bringing up the past would be too tactless and ruin the atmosphere.
During the meal, Xiang Chen and I exchanged a few words from a distance across several tables. I asked him why he and Jian Wei were still in Suzhou. Xiang Chen said Suzhou was where we went to university, and we hadn’t visited much in recent years. Since both of them had time, they decided to stay a few more days. However, in a few days, Jian Wei would accompany him to Nanjing.
Xiang Chen’s answer stimulated my fragile nerves. Of course, I knew that Jian Wei going to Nanjing was to meet Xiang Chen’s family. Perhaps it wouldn’t be long before I really received their wedding invitation, tearing me apart once again.
…
Throughout the meal, I was restless but never looked toward Jian Wei, nor did I drink much. I repeatedly reminded myself: our past had long been washed away by the stream of time. No matter how reluctant I was or how much I tortured myself, nothing would change.
I deeply understood: from the moment Jian Wei wore the crystal diamond necklace Xiang Chen gave her, I had already lived in an independent world, building the strongest wall around myself, sealing me in, not seeing, not thinking, not feeling pain…
I didn’t know when, but Xiang Chen and Jian Wei had already finished their dinner before us, simply saying goodbye before leaving. I kept watching them walk into that small alley, but I could no longer see the scenery of the corner where we could buy roasted chestnuts on winter nights.
It was a bit cold tonight.
Mi Cai waved her hand in front of me, bringing me back from my trance. I realized this was originally supposed to be a dinner just for Mi Cai and me. I smiled apologetically and raised my glass to Mi Cai, drinking the remaining draft beer in one go, yet I remained sober.
The dinner continued. It wasn’t that Mi Cai and I ate slowly, but Jian Wei and Xiang Chen left too quickly. I ordered another glass of draft beer, not wanting to get drunk, as this beer couldn’t really make me drunk. I just wanted to use the cold liquid to sober up a bit.
Half an hour later, Mi Cai and I ended this dinner. After saying goodbye to CC, I took Mi Cai and left.
“Zhaoyang, didn’t you forget to pay the bill?” Mi Cai said, pulling me back.
“We’re such good friends, why pay?” I said, continuing to walk forward. But it was just a joke between Mi Cai and me. Actually, throughout the entire meal, we were mostly silent, not communicating much. As we were about to leave, I teased her a bit, hoping this night at least wouldn’t seem too heavy.
Mi Cai pulled me with more force. Her face, calm all night, was now full of anger: “You really have no morals! If everyone were like you, how could your friend’s restaurant survive?”
“Are you drunk? Strange, can cola really get someone drunk?” I looked at Mi Cai half-smiling, half-serious. At this moment, her excited expression was completely different from her usual self.
Mi Cai realized she had lost her composure and stopped arguing with me. She took out her wallet and walked toward the bar. At this moment, I understood even more how much Mi Cai hated my bad behavior, even to the point of disregarding her own dignity, dragging and pulling me in public.
I quickly followed, grabbing Mi Cai and saying to her, “I promised I would treat you, how can I let you pay?”
“I don’t want to associate with someone like you. Don’t talk to me.”
“Ha ha, I was just joking with you. The cashier isn’t at the bar. It’s over there in that corner.” I turned Mi Cai around to show her the box in the corner.
Mi Cai looked at me with some confusion, as she had been sitting with her back to the box during the meal and wasn’t aware of the situation.
I smiled and explained, “Didn’t you notice that our menu didn’t have any prices? Here, you pay on your own initiative when you leave, just put the money into that box.”
“Just any amount you like?” Mi Cai looked at me in surprise.
“Exactly, no one here monitors you.”
“But this…”
I pulled Mi Cai to the corner where the box was, took out 300 yuan from my wallet, and put it into the box. Then I said to Mi Cai, “Everyone who comes to consume here once had a pure, empty city in their heart. No one would use worldly materialism to desecrate this empty city. That’s why this place has been operating for many years without losses… If there’s one clean place in this world, it must be right here!”
…
On the way back, Mi Cai drove her nimble Alto through this real city, but she still seemed interested in that “Empty City Music Themed Restaurant,” asking me again, “Zhaoyang, have all the customers who came to this restaurant over the years really followed this rule?”
“Of course not. When this restaurant first opened, there were many people who came to eat without paying or trying to skip the bill.”
Mi Cai wasn’t surprised by my answer, because the world is full of people who love to take advantage and gain without effort. She asked again, “Then why did it become a place where everyone follows the rule now?”
I recalled and answered, “At that time, we all advised CC to abandon this idealistic way of operating because it was too unrealistic, but CC insisted. Eventually, the restaurant couldn’t cover its expenses and was forced to close. One day, a notice of closure was posted on the restaurant’s bulletin board.”
“And then?”
“On the last night before closing, many people still brought their families to eat for free. Our hearts were broken, and we blamed CC for being too naive. This idealistic way of operating only revealed the ugliness of human nature.”
Mi Cai nodded thoughtfully.
I opened the car window, lit a cigarette, and continued, “We were really disappointed that night after closing, and a few of my friends and I locked the door and drank a lot, because after this night, there would no longer be the restaurant called Empty City!”
I exhaled a long puff of smoke, smiled, and continued, “Perhaps there really is a saying about finding hope in desperation. When we and CC opened the box to settle the day’s revenue, we surprisingly found 100,000 yuan in cash… We were astonished, but no one knew which customer had put it in.”
“So this restaurant continued to operate because of this 100,000 yuan?”
I nodded and said, “Yes, this 100,000 yuan gave CC the motivation to keep going, more accurately, a spiritual motivation. For the sake of that unknown customer, we couldn’t close Empty City. Later, we replaced the box with a transparent one, so everyone could clearly see how much money was put in after their meal. Those who only threw in a few coins, my friends and I would block them in the alley and beat them up… Gradually, those who loved to take advantage stopped coming. However, CC never knew about this. If she had found out, she wouldn’t have agreed with what we did… After a long time, CC replaced the transparent box with an opaque one again, but by then, the restaurant basically didn’t suffer losses anymore, although there were still some people trying to sneak in.”
After listening to my story, Mi Cai, who usually remained indifferent, surprisingly said with shared anger, “Good beating. Those immoral people deserved it… But you guys taking the law into your own hands, wouldn’t those beaten people report to the police?”
“Of course, they would report, but one of the guys who helped beat them up was a local cop, so he just turned a blind eye. Besides, we didn’t extort money, and we knew how far to go—we mainly wanted to warn them. As long as those scumbags stayed away, the restaurant could operate normally.”
Mi Cai looked at me and suddenly laughed…
I looked at her in surprise, not understanding why.
“Hearing you curse others as scumbags makes me feel inexplicably amused,” Mi Cai explained, laughing.
“…Who says scumbags can’t curse other scumbags?”
“I didn’t call you a scumbag this time.”
“You meant it, didn’t you? Do you think I’m stupid and can’t tell?”
Mi Cai burst into laughter. During the many days we had spent together, it was the first time I saw her laugh so openly. At that moment, her cheerful self became even more breathtakingly beautiful. So the small Alto drove even more briskly through the city lights, lessening the weight of reality and adding a string of beautiful laughter.
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