She was getting closer to me and Mi Cai. Finally, I could see her clearly. Her eyes and eyebrows resembled Mi Cai’s slightly, but her clothing style was quite flamboyant, and even her walk exuded a kind of arrogant sharpness. Yet I had to admit: she was a beauty, a very beautiful woman. Although compared to Mi Cai’s beauty, she lacked a bit of depth and composure, she made up for it with her pride and sharpness.
Mi Cai rolled down the window. She tucked her short hair behind her ear, smiled, and asked Mi Cai, “Sis, why are you blocking the entrance without going in?”
Before Mi Cai could answer, her gaze shifted to me, and she asked Mi Cai again, “Is he your boyfriend?”
Mi Cai looked at me and said to her, “Yes, let me introduce you both. His name is Zhaoyang.”
“Zhaoyang, this is my younger sister, Mi Lan.”
“Colorful,” I immediately associated Mi Cai with her sister’s name. It seemed that in the past, Mi Zhongxin and Mi Zhongde must have had a deep brotherly bond to have given their daughters names with such meaning.
I smiled and greeted her, “Hello, Mi Lan.”
Mi Lan looked me over again before saying, “To be my sister’s boyfriend, you must be quite outstanding!”
I felt somewhat embarrassed and didn’t know how to respond.
Mi Cai helped me out of the awkwardness by saying, “Xiao Lan, you go back to your own car first. I’ll drive in now.”
Mi Lan looked at me once more before turning and walking toward her car, while Mi Cai drove into the courtyard. I knew the family banquet that had made me so embarrassed was unavoidable.
Mi Cai and I got out of the car separately. Immediately, I was dazzled by the sight of so many luxury cars. Even among them, I spotted several government vehicles. Presumably, someone in Mi Cai’s family was involved in politics. Thinking about it, it made sense—such a large family business would be hard to maintain without official backing.
I steeled myself and followed Mi Cai toward the villa, with Mi Lan accompanying us.
…
Once inside, I was once again dazzled by the luxurious decor. In my life, I had truly never seen such an opulent villa.
I steadied my emotions and scanned the room. I saw Mi Zhongde sitting on the sofa chatting casually with a group of people of various ages, all exuding strong auras.
Mi Cai took my hand and walked to Mi Zhongde, saying, “Uncle, happy birthday.”
I was a beat late before I echoed Mi Cai, saying, “Happy birthday, Uncle Mi.”
Mi Zhongde put down the cigar in his hand, looked at the hands Mi Cai and I had clasped together, and then examined me, smiling slightly, “Young man, I think we’ve met before.”
I nodded and said, “It was at Zhuomei in Suzhou. At that time, you were in a hurry to attend a meeting.”
Mi Cai continued, “Uncle, he’s my boyfriend Zhaoyang. He specially came today to wish you a happy birthday.”
As soon as Mi Cai finished speaking, all the gazes in the room turned to me, scrutinizing.
Mi Zhongde’s face had already lost its smile. He picked up his cigar and took another puff, saying, “Is that so? Young man, since you’re Xiaocai’s boyfriend, today, with so many of her elders present, why don’t you give us a detailed self-introduction so we can fully understand you.”
The words “detailed” and “fully” from Mi Zhongde made it clear that I couldn’t just brush it off. Yet, I found it incredibly difficult to bring myself to speak. After all, I couldn’t simply fabricate a lie in front of so many experienced people just to save face.
Just as I decided to throw caution to the wind, Mi Cai tightened her grip on my hand, speaking with determination, “Uncle, he’s just an ordinary man, but we are well-suited and in love.”
Mi Cai’s brief sentence shocked me. My palm couldn’t help but sweat profusely, dampening Mi Cai’s hand, making the space between our hands wet and sticky.
Mi Zhongde frowned, speaking with authority to Mi Cai, “Xiaocai, whether or not your father is still alive, I have always treated you as my own daughter. Regarding your feelings and future marriage, I must give you my opinion.”
“You giving me advice is only right, but I also have the right to choose my own feelings… Today is your birthday, and I don’t want this to affect your mood. Please be happy and don’t spoil the fun for the relatives and friends here, okay?” Mi Cai replied to Mi Zhongde with her usual composure.
Mi Zhongde looked at the people around him and finally restrained himself from getting angry but looked at me again. Then Mi Cai pulled me to another side, and we sat down in a secluded corner where no one was.
At that moment, I couldn’t describe what I was feeling, only that I felt deeply sorry for Mi Cai. Because of my humble background and long-term inaction, she was enduring this humiliation now.
In this corner where only the two of us were, it seemed to have become a world isolated by everyone. Even though Mi Cai appeared calm, helplessness and sadness were still visible in her expression. But I didn’t know what to say—any words seemed pale in such a setting.
“Zhaoyang, I’m sorry… But we are boyfriend and girlfriend. One day, we would have to face this eventually. I hope you won’t mind me bringing you to the family banquet today.”
“It’s I who should apologize… If I had any capability at all, I wouldn’t have put you in such a difficult position!”
Tears faintly glistened in Mi Cai’s eyes, but she smiled at me and said, “I don’t care whether you have capability or not. I only care whether your feelings for me are genuine.”
My eyes felt warm, and my vision blurred. The scene I had experienced years ago at Jian Wei’s house seemed to overlap with this moment, gradually merging Mi Cai’s and Jian Wei’s faces. Yet this overlap tore me apart, making me feel as if I were walking down a path of past mistakes again.
It wasn’t until Mi Lan came to us that the overlapping images in my mind were broken, and I snapped back to reality in a panic.
Mi Lan spoke coldly to me, “Zhaoyang… I want to say something to my sister. Can you step aside for a moment?”
I looked at her. Her contemptuous tone ignited my emotions, but I desperately controlled myself and didn’t erupt. I just smiled, stood up, and walked outside under Mi Cai’s gaze, already roughly guessing what she would talk to Mi Cai about.
…
The sunlight outside was truly wonderful. The warm breeze of early spring seemed to bring vitality and hope, yet I still felt dejected.
I lit a cigarette, took a heavy puff, and forcefully exhaled. Yet even the smoke couldn’t break through the luxurious mansion and cars before me. I felt even more oppressed.
After only half the cigarette, the housemaid who had opened the door for us earlier approached me, apologized, and said, “I’m sorry, Mr. Zhaoyang. Our Miss Mi Lan asked me to ask you to leave this villa.”
I looked toward Mi Lan, who was chatting with Mi Cai inside, and the intense sense of humiliation made me laugh. After a while, I gritted my teeth and nodded, “Understood… I’ll leave.”
Without the slightest hesitation, I turned and walked out of the villa. But the maid ran after me again, took out 100 yuan from her pocket, and handed it to me, saying, “Mr. Zhaoyang, this is the taxi fare from Miss Mi Lan.”
I stopped, my eyes bloodshot, staring at the glaring red of the banknote. After a long time, I took out 200 yuan from my wallet and placed it in the maid’s hand, saying, “This 200 yuan is for Miss Mi Lan. Thank her for opening my eyes. I never knew there could be such a stupid woman in this world!”
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