Mi Cai stepped off my back, and she and Mi Zhongde exchanged glances. Her expression was cold, but it couldn’t hide the complexity of her inner feelings. Finally, she walked slowly and heavily toward Mi Zhongde, and I followed closely behind her.
We instinctively stopped walking when we were about two meters away from Mi Zhongde. He took another step forward, leaving only a meter between us, making us appear closer.
Mi Zhongde looked around this old residential community and said, “Xiaocai, I first went to the villa, but you weren’t there. I guessed you might be here.”
Perhaps the night was too cold, but Mi Cai seemed more concerned about whether her hands were cold. She held one of my hands, which always radiated warmth throughout the year, while the other hand went into her own pocket before she replied, “Only a cunning rabbit would set up multiple homes and escape routes. As for me, having one place to live is more than enough.”
I always appreciated the way Mi Cai spoke. She often used seemingly casual words to let the other person understand who she really was, like raising her white hand to slap someone’s face—not loud, but echoing in their heart.
Mi Zhongde was first taken aback, but soon understood that he was very unwelcome in this environment. His expression became complicated as he nodded and asked Mi Cai again, “What are your plans for the future? Are you going back to the United States?”
Mi Cai looked at me and merely shook her head. At this moment, she was not very willing to converse with Mi Zhongde. I lost my patience and said to Mi Zhongde, “It’s quite cold outside, and our place isn’t big enough to invite you up for a seat. If you have anything to say, please say it quickly.”
Mi Zhongde simply looked at me, then took out a bank card from his bag and handed it to Mi Cai, saying, “This card has a deposit of 30 million. I prepared it personally for you. The password is your birthday. Uncle doesn’t want to see you suffering. If you’re willing in the future, you can call Uncle to chat. I would be even happier if you could come to Shanghai to visit me.”
Mi Cai remained expressionless and replied, “I suppose you prepared this money the day I returned from the U.S., right? Is this my severance pay?”
“Xiaocai, don’t misunderstand. You know that Uncle has always loved you as if you were my own daughter…”
Mi Cai interrupted, saying, “I’ve never doubted your love for me, and I know you’re a conflicted person… That’s why I never know what you’re thinking. You always do things that leave me standing at the front without seeing the way out, and when I’m at the back, I don’t know how to proceed… Uncle, making me feel this tired, aren’t you even more tired yourself?”
Mi Zhongde stood silently in the cold wind for a long time before saying, “Take this money. Consider it Uncle’s wedding gift to you… No matter where you go in the future, as long as you still remember that you have an uncle, I will be content.”
As Mi Zhongde said this, he extended the bank card toward Mi Cai again, but Mi Cai didn’t even look at it. Instead, she turned to me and asked, “Zhaoyang, should we accept this money? Uncle’s kindness could allow us to live comfortably for the rest of our lives!”
I pushed Mi Zhongde’s hand away on behalf of Mi Cai and said, “Chairman Mi, I want to tell you that this world is like a garbage dump—some people are busy dieting while others starve to death without food. We don’t want to be either of those people, so we’ve chosen a different lifestyle. This lifestyle provides us with not only sustenance but also peace of mind. So, for the sake of our health, please take this money back… And one last piece of advice: don’t let your desires inflate you to the point of bursting. In this world, a torn piece of clothing can be mended, and a punctured tire can be repaired, but there’s no one who can repair a soul.”
Mi Zhongde’s hand remained awkwardly in front of Mi Cai and me, holding the wealth capable of luring anyone’s soul out of their body…
In the gusts of cold wind, Mi Zhongde finally put the bank card back into his black-and-white briefcase, looked at Mi Cai once more, and turned to walk toward his car parked not far away…
“Uncle…”
Mi Zhongde turned his head, thinking Mi Cai had changed her mind, a flicker of joy appearing on his face as he was about to walk back. However, Mi Cai quietly said to him instead, “Please manage Zhuomei well. It has always been the heart and soul of our Mi family. It can only belong to the Mi family!”
Not receiving a change of heart from Mi Cai, Mi Zhongde turned his head again in disappointment and resumed walking toward his car, seemingly even forgetting to give Mi Cai a final promise.
…
Back at our place, Mi Cai was in a low mood. She returned to her room again and started packing her luggage. She couldn’t wait to leave. I sat on the bed beside her, helping her organize some small items in her suitcase.
After a while, the luggage was packed. I took out two bank cards that had been prepared in advance from the briefcase on the bed and handed them to her, saying, “This one ending in 0739 is the 3 million that Leyao donated for road construction in that small mountain village. The other one ending in 0910 is for your travel expenses. There isn’t too much money in it, but it should definitely be enough for this trip.”
“How much exactly?”
When she asked that, I felt a bit uneasy and replied after a moment, “About twenty thousand. Is that enough?… Uh, if it’s not enough, I still have more!”
“Just going to a small mountain village—why would I need so much money?… You should also learn to control your spending in the future. When we return to Xuzhou, there will be many expenses, including your dream of opening a coffee shop. We don’t even know if we can afford that yet.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem, right? I can borrow some from Ban Die first, and pay him back later when we get things running.”
Mi Cai’s expression became serious: “Zhaoyang, let’s handle this on our own, okay?… Returning to Xuzhou itself is already a burden. How can we add more trouble for them?”
“You’re right…!!”
Mi Cai nodded, placed the luggage against the wall, and went to the bathroom to get ready before me. During the time she was washing up, I used the opportunity to book her flight online. Her journey would begin tomorrow. By the time she returned, I would have mostly completed the handover of my work at Lukou. What awaited us would be a brand new beginning.
I was really looking forward to it… and I also hoped that when Mi Cai and I finally gave up everything and returned to Xuzhou, Ban Die and Mom would forgive our past and give Mi Cai the warmth of a family. I always thought Mi Cai was a great woman. Besides being reserved, she could also accompany Mom playing mahjong during her spare time. She was a woman with a talent for finding joy in ordinary life, and this was also one of the reasons why I was confident enough to bring her back to Xuzhou and start a new life.
Yet, even with so many wonderful future possibilities to look forward to, I still couldn’t completely leave the city of Suzhou behind, because I hadn’t yet seen the outcome for Jianwei and Yanyan. Of course, I hoped they would have a happy ending too!
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