As my wedding day with Mi Cai drew closer, we found ourselves constantly overwhelmed with preparations. Today, for instance, I spent the entire morning until noon at the hotel arranging rooms for our friends traveling from afar to attend the wedding. In fact, most of our friends are concentrated in Suzhou and Shanghai, while very few are from Xuzhou itself. Consequently, the hotel booking expenses became a significant financial burden. For most of the day, I had been haggling with the hotel manager, and finally, after persistent negotiation, I managed to get a 66% discount for all the rooms. Even so, I still ended up spending nearly 20,000 yuan on hotel bookings alone.
After leaving the hotel, I met Mi Cai in the underground parking lot. She had also completed some minor tasks like ordering cigarettes, alcohol, and wedding candy. For the rest of the day, we still needed to have our final rehearsal with the wedding host. In short, our day was packed. This busyness somewhat diluted the joy of getting married, making me long to escape these formalities. I wished for a simple banquet followed by a destination-free trip, starting our wedding journey on this trip. It could be passionate or calm, allowing us to appreciate the scenery along the way and let those breathtaking memories blend into our wedding sentiments. Wouldn’t such an experience be a nourishment for life itself?
On the way back, Mi Cai asked me, “Zhaoyang, how long will the rehearsal with the host take later?”
“Is there something urgent you need to do?”
Mi Cai nodded and replied, “Yes, An Zong and Zhang Yixi will arrive in Xuzhou around five o’clock, and I need to arrange accommodations for them.”
“Are they arriving today already?”
“Yes, An Zong still has some business to handle in Xuzhou, so they came a day earlier.”
“I see… By the way, after the rehearsal, I also need to pick up Luo Ben and A Ye. They’re arriving this afternoon too. Since we’ll be in the same place, let’s have dinner together tonight.”
“Great, we can just meet at the hotel.”
…
Since both Mi Cai and I had other tasks to attend to, we merely reviewed the wedding ceremony process with the host, made some adjustments to the script based on our preferences, and the host was confident in our ability to handle improvisation during the informal wedding setting, so the planned rehearsal was omitted.
Before long, it was already four o’clock in the afternoon. I went home to get Ban Die’s car, preparing to pick up Luo Ben and Xia Fanye from the train station, when I unexpectedly received a call from Leyao. After answering, she said to me, “Zhaoyang, come to the Xuzhou airport in two hours to pick me and Cao Jinfei up. We’re about to board the plane!”
I asked in confusion, “Is there a flight from Beijing to Xuzhou today?”
“Don’t you know there’s such a service as private charter flights?”
“Oh… I thought Cao Jinfei had bought a private jet! So it’s just a charter flight. I heard you need to apply three days in advance… Seriously, I suggest you don’t be so low-key. Don’t you see that nowadays, successful young celebrities are buying private jets? Let alone a young master from a well-known group!”
“I really hate your nonsense. We just like being low-key… If there were a direct flight from Beijing to Xuzhou today, we’d have taken economy class instead. Who asked you to care anyway!”
“You could also fly to Nanjing first and then take the bullet train to Xuzhou, even lower-key… Why don’t you give that a try?” I rambled on in our usual conversational rhythm.
Leyao was momentarily speechless before she spoke again, “The plane is about to take off. I don’t have time to chat nonsense with you… Oh, by the way, Luo Ben, Xia Fanye, and his girlfriend are also on this flight. We’re coming together.”
“But didn’t they say they were coming from Suzhou? I was already preparing to pick them up at the train station. How come they ended up in Beijing?”
Leyao replied, “Luo Ben flew directly to Beijing from the U.S. this time. Since he broke up with Wei Manwen, this ungrateful son hasn’t visited home at all. I insisted he come to Beijing first. As for Xia Fanye, he’s currently holding an art exhibition in Beijing. Yesterday, Luo Ben contacted him and told him that Jinfei and I were chartering a plane to Xuzhou, so he and his girlfriend decided to stay with us for convenience. I’m calling you to let you know so you don’t make a wasted trip to the train station!”
“Oh…”
Seeing that I had nothing more to say, Leyao was about to hang up, but I suddenly remembered something and called her back before she could hang up, “Wait… I want to ask you something!”
“What is it?”
“Uh… Is CC with Luo Ben?”
Leyao replied in surprise, “Have you taken the wrong medicine?… How could CC be with Luo Ben!”
My mood immediately dropped. After a moment of silence, I replied, “I just really hope she could come to my wedding with Mi Cai, but I haven’t been able to contact her at all, so I could only hope that she might surprise us by coming with Luo Ben… Looks like it’s just wishful thinking!”
Leyao was affected by my mood. She sighed softly and said, “I really don’t know where she went. These days, I’ve asked many people to look for her, but I couldn’t even get in touch with her family. It’s like she’s vanished from the face of the earth!”
“Yeah, that’s right. So, someone who deliberately wants to leave will never let others find her!”
Leyao acknowledged, and we both fell into a silence filled with the same sadness. Finally, Leyao broke the silence, reminding me again to pick them up at the airport on time before hanging up.
…
After calculating the number of people, I realized that a regular car definitely wouldn’t be enough, so I borrowed a minivan from Li Xiaoyun’s company. After this hassle, it was just about time to head to the airport to pick them up. Meanwhile, Mi Cai had already checked in the red-clad woman and her fiancé at the hotel. I heard they also brought a little boy, and I guessed he was probably the child of Zhang Yixi and his ex-girlfriend. It was precisely because of this child that he had gone through so much with the red-clad woman. However, she eventually chose to forgive him. Although there was some regret, it was still a happy ending that outsiders could only envy.
Half an hour later, I arrived at Xuzhou’s Guanyin Airport. After waiting for about 15 minutes, I saw Leyao and Cao Jinfei at the exit, followed by Luo Ben, Xia Fanye, and others behind them.
Among the group, only Leyao and Cao Jinfei wore sunglasses. Luo Ben, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time, had cut off his long hair that he used to keep for rock music. He wore a black suit, looking more like a businessperson and no longer exuding that rebellious personality. But he seemed to be in a good mood, chatting with Xia Fanye beside him the whole time!… However, CC was truly absent from the group. I knew that my and Mi Cai’s final hope had already been shattered. Although this hope had been so unrealistic, a sense of disappointment still surged from my heart.
After meeting up, I briefly greeted Leyao and Cao Jinfei before hugging Luo Ben. To me, he was an irreplaceable brother in life, and I believed he felt the same, which was why he had traveled all the way from the United States to attend my wedding with Mi Cai.
Luo Ben and I walked at the front of the group. Taking the opportunity before getting into the car, I asked him, “How long are you planning to stay in China this time?”
“I’ll leave right after your wedding.”
“You came all this way, do you really have to rush back so soon?”
“There’s just a lot going on in the U.S., I really can’t afford to stay any longer.”
I looked at him in confusion and said, “Not long ago, it seemed like you were just idling away your time, and now you say you’re busy. This contrast is a bit hard for me to accept!”
If he had been questioned like this in the past, he would have angrily responded, but this time he just smiled without explaining what he was busy with. However, his craving for cigarettes remained strong. As soon as we left the terminal, he lit a cigarette against the wind and refused to put it out even when we reached the car, making Leyao, Cao Jinfei, and others wait helplessly in the car while he indulged in his smoking.
I also lit a cigarette to keep him company. Suddenly, he asked me, “Zhaoyang, how is Manwen doing?… Will she and Zhou Hang come to your wedding with Mi Cai?”
I was immediately stunned, unsure how to respond. My hesitation seemed to provoke Luo Ben, and he asked me seriously, “What’s wrong? Why do you look so hesitant?”
Under his pressure, I suddenly found a way to respond and said, “I’m not being evasive. I just think it’s unnecessary for you to ask this question.”
Luo Ben lowered his head and looked elsewhere, saying, “I didn’t mean anything else. I just wanted to know how she’s been lately… No one said that just because we couldn’t be a couple anymore, I couldn’t care about her.”
I really couldn’t bring myself to tell Luo Ben the truth about Zhou Hang’s serious illness and how Wei Manwen had given up everything to stay by his side. After a moment of silence, I replied lightly, “I heard they’re doing fine… They should be married by now!”
Luo Ben looked up at the sky scattered with sunlight, exhaling the smoke lingering in his mouth. He didn’t seem to be in pain outwardly, but the pain was hidden deep within his heart… He finally nodded with a smile and took another deep puff of his cigarette.
Seeing his pained expression without an outlet, I felt a surge of discomfort inside, but I still decided to keep this secret for Wei Manwen, because Mi Cai and I truly believed that Wei Manwen’s return to Zhou Hang’s side wasn’t just out of sympathy. Deep in her heart, she loved Zhou Hang, and this love was no less than the love she once gave Luo Ben. Even if Luo Ben knew the truth, it wouldn’t change her determination to stay with Zhou Hang. So whether I told him or not, it wouldn’t make any difference!
…
On the way back to the city center, my conversation with Luo Ben continued. I asked him again, “Luo Ben, tell me the truth, have you heard anything about CC during all the time you’ve been in the U.S.?… Hasn’t she reached out to you again?”
Luo Ben shook his head and replied, “This is already the third time you’ve asked me this… I need to ask you, if I really had any news about her, why would I hide it from you?”
Le Yao, sitting in the backseat, answered for me, “He just placed his only hope of finding CC on you. You have to understand how much he wanted to hear the answer he wished for from you!”
Luo Ben finally became somewhat impatient. He frowned tightly and after a long pause, managed to control his emotions before saying, “You both have known CC for no shorter time than I have. Don’t you know her personality?… When has she ever done anything indecisive or dragged out?”
As soon as he said this, both Le Yao and I were left speechless, especially me… At this moment, I could even more clearly feel the determination women show in handling their emotions. I even thought about Mi Cai. She is a woman with an even stronger sense of self than CC. If one day, she also decided to forget everything in her life by choosing to leave, would there still be a chance for us to meet again?
I was somewhat pained by this thought and silently cursed myself for being foolish… At this moment, my wedding with Mi Cai was about to happen, and how could she possibly choose to leave my life in such a painful way like CC did? After all, we loved each other!
…
As the sky gradually darkened, I finally brought the group to the prearranged hotel. After settling them in, I went to find Mi Cai. We met in the hotel lobby, and she asked me, “Did you pick up Luo Ben and the others?”
“Yeah, not only Luo Ben, but Le Yao and Cao Jinfei came together… I just sent them to the prearranged rooms. They’re going to rest for a while before having dinner… So maybe we can treat An Zong and the others first!”
“That’s fine. An Zong just got the naughty son of Zhang Yixi’s family to sleep, so he probably won’t wake up for a while…”
A mischievous child immediately came to mind, and I instinctively smiled as I asked Mi Cai, “How is the kid getting along with An Zong?… I feel like with her temper, she probably isn’t very popular with kids!”
“Don’t talk nonsense. If An Zong hears this, she’ll be furious!”
“Come on, I’m just saying she doesn’t have a natural affinity with children!”
“Don’t you know? At that time, Zhang Yixi also thought so, and worried about An Zong’s parents’ disapproval, so he left An Zong and married the female host Chen Qingyi… As a result, he hurt so many people! I heard that until now, Chen Qingyi hasn’t recovered from the shadow of her divorce with him… I really think: men shouldn’t be too self-righteous!”
“I can actually understand him quite well… At that time, choosing to marry Chen Qingyi was probably an instinctive reaction after losing his ability to think clearly… After all, under those circumstances, marriage really couldn’t compare to the happiness of his son in the future… You know, his first love, the child’s mother, had already died in a car accident, and the child left behind was his greatest responsibility for the rest of his life… Do you believe me, if An Zong really couldn’t fulfill her role as a stepmother, his resolve might waver again!”
“I believe that… But An Zong truly treats this child as her own. That maternal love she shows is absolutely genuine from the bottom of her heart!”
At this point, the previously heavy topic suddenly became lighter. I hugged Mi Cai’s shoulder and smiled, saying, “So their relationship is now complete… I really hope that while we’re blessing and envying them, we can do even better!”
“Then you need to work hard…”
“And what about you? Are you just going to sit back and enjoy the fruits of my labor while watching me work hard?”
Mi Cai naturally hugged my waist and smiled slightly, saying, “Let’s work hard together!”
I nodded, suddenly very eager to meet the red-clad woman and the man I had never seen before. I felt instinctively that their experiences were a kind of guidance for Mi Cai and me… I subconsciously checked my watch and said to Mi Cai, “Let’s go, take me to see An Zong and the others, and meet that man who’s only existed in legends!”
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