In this deep night after returning to Suzhou, I finally learned everything that had once happened in this old house. It was a microcosm of an era, bearing the joys and sorrows of a family. Yet I had lived here for two years, completely unaware. Looking back now, those two years felt like a destined waiting period, through which my fate became tightly bound to this house.
It was already the latter part of the night, and my conversation with Mi Cai continued. I asked her, “Your mother will return to China the day after tomorrow. Should we wait for her in Suzhou?”
“What do you think?”
“We should meet her at some point. Besides, we really need to have an honest and open talk with her. It would be best if she could approve of us, and then we wouldn’t have to be so distressed.”
“She won’t approve. She only wants me to go to America with her and stay by her side. That’s why she hopes Uncle can take control of Zhuo Mei, and it’s also the biggest reason why Uncle is willing to follow her instructions and keep the household registration book. They share the same stance on this matter!”
“This…”
Mi Cai continued, “Even though I know she won’t approve, meeting her face-to-face is still better. After all, we can’t hide from her forever. Choosing to be together isn’t a mistake, so there’s no reason not to face her. On the contrary, there are some things that must be clearly explained to her.”
I looked at Mi Cai, knowing that her thoughts had changed since returning to Suzhou. I remembered that when we were in Xuzhou, she had strongly resisted meeting Yan Zhuomei. I wasn’t sure what had touched her heart enough to bring about this change. However, this change coincided with my own views, so I regarded it as a reflection of the traditional harmony between husband and wife.
To wait for Yan Zhuomei’s return to China, Mi Cai and I had no choice but to change our original plans. We would stay in Suzhou for at least three more days. Today would be the calmest day—we only needed to wait patiently, even staying indoors the entire day, or lazily lying in bed if we wanted. Because this was the quiet time granted to us before the storm.
…
In the morning, I indeed stayed in bed with Mi Cai in perfect harmony, reluctant to get up. This was due to the weather. Last night, the sky had been clear with a vast starry expanse, but now cold winds blew and the sky turned dark. Staying outdoors for even a second became unbearable. So we leaned back on the bed, watching familiar faces from the neighborhood pass by in a hurry, either on foot or riding electric scooters, disappearing at the eastern exit of the community.
The warmth of the quilt gradually dissipated as we woke up. I intertwined my legs with Mi Cai’s. She was reading the exam administrator’s materials brought from Xuzhou, while I held my phone habitually browsing the latest news of the past two days. Moments later, both of us fell asleep again. When we woke up once more, it was already close to noon, and the box of biscuits on the nightstand had been unknowingly finished by us…
Mi Cai pushed me slightly and asked, “Zhaoyang, what should we eat for lunch?”
“Order takeout by phone.”
“What about this afternoon? What should we do?”
“If you’re willing, I’m still happy to lie in bed with you like a pig… Anyway, the weather isn’t suitable for doing anything serious.”
“Okay, I don’t feel like going out either. Let’s just stay in bed all day.”
Curious about her past, I asked her regarding the topic of staying in bed, “Have you ever had the experience of lying in bed for a whole day and night before?”
“No, have you?” Mi Cai answered while flipping through her book, showing no signs of the emotional changes she might feel when facing Yan Zhuomei soon.
“Of course I have! I remember during college, we often stayed in bed all day playing cards with my roommates when the weather was bad, or just chatted aimlessly…”
“I can’t even imagine your college life!”
I had unconsciously mentioned my college days, but suddenly felt the weight of the topic and fell silent again. I picked up my phone, ordered two sets of takeout, and completely lay back on the bed, waiting for the food delivery…
It was predictable that in the afternoon, we would repeat the morning’s routine. As for the evening, we hadn’t even thought about how to spend it. This complete lack of thinking or action made time pass extremely quickly. Before we realized it, the sky had already darkened. Outside the window, after brewing all day, cold rain finally began to fall, hitting the eaves with a pitter-patter sound…
I said to Mi Cai, “Look at this terrible weather. I have even less desire to go out. Let’s order takeout again for dinner…”
Mi Cai finally closed the book she had been reading all day and lazily said, “To be honest, maybe we can even skip dinner. After all, we’ve been lying down all day and haven’t burned much energy anyway!”
I looked at Mi Cai in confusion and asked, “Are you being sarcastic?”
Mi Cai glanced at me and replied, “You know me so well, huh? Zhaoyang, I feel like I’m almost becoming like you. I actually stayed in bed all day!”
“I think you’re enjoying it pretty well… You’ve eaten a whole bag of biscuits, two bags of chips, and even drank a bottle of Shansuan Milk!”
I said while glancing at the packaging in the trash bin.
“I just wanted to see how lazy and messy life could get by following you. Now I’ve finally seen it for myself…”
“Hey… You’re really good at arguing! It’s clearly your own lazy genes, yet you end up blaming me.”
Mi Cai seemed to want to prove that she wasn’t lazy, grabbing my arm and saying, “Alright, let’s stop lying in bed like pigs. Get up quickly and go running with me.”
Looking at the raindrops falling heavily from the sky, I exaggerated my expression and said, “With such heavy rain and strong wind outside, isn’t running equivalent to self-harm?”
“Without experiencing storms, how can you see the rainbow? Just accompany me this once, can’t you?”
She said this, and I immediately replied without hesitation, “I’m willing to accompany you even through fire and brimstone! But you have to tell me first where the end of the rainbow is.”
Mi Cai thought for a moment and said, “At the end of the storm is Xia Fan Ye’s ‘West of the Old Town.’ We haven’t had coffee there in a long time. What do you think?”
Suddenly, I recalled that it was in the ‘West of the Old Town’ coffee shop that I had found inspiration long ago, leading me to that square that recorded our love story, where I reunited with Mi Cai… This seemed to be her way of hinting at something, or perhaps she hoped that by doing this, we could both look back and see how many twists and hardships we had experienced to be together today!
…
Leaving the warmth of the quilt, we immediately found ourselves exposed to the harsh winds and rain. The windbreaker on our bodies reflected the lights, shining even brighter than the lamps themselves. Side by side, we moved forward in unison, running toward the westernmost part of the city… all for the sake of finding that long-relocated “West of the Old Town.”
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