A cigarette was almost burnt out when Mi Cai finally replied to my message: “You’re wrong. What I like is this: ‘The snowy winters of Hailar, the song of San Tao Che approaching, the gentle summer nights by the Yimin River, the accordion’s melody drifting in the air…’ That line!”
I wasn’t surprised by Mi Cai’s answer. Our different preferences stemmed from our contrasting experiences. That’s why I liked the lifestyle described in the lyrics while she was fascinated by the scenery depicted, but what did it matter? At least both of us gained something from this song.
I stubbed out the cigarette, ignoring the strange looks from passersby, and lay down beside a tree. I didn’t think I was acting drunk from alcohol; I was genuinely exhausted. It was fine to be tired—after all, at least while sleeping, I wouldn’t hear the loud sounds of my wounds tearing open again.
My consciousness was somewhat blurred, but the ringing of my phone awakened me once more. Struggling, I answered the call, mumbling “Hello” repeatedly.
“Zhao Yang, have you been drinking?”
Facing Mi Cai’s questioning tone, I denied it: “No, of course not.”
“Then sing that song again for me from beginning to end.”
Under the continuous influence of alcohol, my mind was already foggy, and I couldn’t even recall the lyrics. How could I possibly sing it through completely? I replied impatiently: “A good song doesn’t need to be sung twice.”
But this absurd reply only made Mi Cai even more suspicious. She asked: “Where are you now?”
“I know you’re in Shanghai right now.” I continued to ramble drunkenly.
Mi Cai seemed to hear the street noise and her tone immediately became stricter: “Come on, tell me where you are! You’ve had so much to drink and you’re still wandering around on the street!”
I finally told Mi Cai my location and immediately hung up the phone. But my remaining consciousness told me that whoever came next would definitely be CC, because Mi Cai was still in Shanghai, and she would have CC come to deal with me, the drunkard!
…
Not knowing how much time had passed, I felt someone nudging me while I slept. I was too lazy to move. Then she pinched my nose and tugged at my ear.
I slapped her hand away impatiently: “Stop it, CC!”
“So you really miss CC, huh? Even when you’re drunk, you’re calling her name!”
“You idiot, aren’t you CC yourself?” I said, covering my forehead with my hand before rolling over again, still not wanting to move.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my philtrum, and I abruptly opened my eyes to see Mi Cai’s angry face…
“Zhao Yang, who were you just calling an idiot?”
Her arrival delighted me, and I grinned foolishly at her without saying a word.
“This is how you act when you’re drunk, huh?”
“Yeah, yeah, did you bring your camera? Hurry up and take a picture.”
Mi Cai, half-laughing and half-crying, said to me: “What for? To ward off evil spirits?”
I reacted very slowly, not knowing what to say, so I just grinned foolishly at Mi Cai again.
“I don’t even know what to say about you! Get up quickly, I’ll take you home.” Mi Cai said, extending her hand to me.
Holding her warm, soft hand, my heart skipped a beat. This sudden emotion actually helped me overcome my physical dizziness and made me a bit more alert. Thus, her beautiful face became clearer and more real in my vision. It turned out this wasn’t a dream—she really was Mi Cai, not CC, whom I had expected to come.
After pulling me up from the ground, Mi Cai carefully dusted off my clothes. This gesture felt like nourishing water to my nearly dried-out soul, and I felt deeply moved because it had been a long time since any woman had been so considerate towards me.
Not sure whether it was driven by alcohol or primal instinct, I tightly embraced Mi Cai in my arms, squeezing her so hard that I could hardly breathe…
“Zhao Yang, let go… let go of me,” Mi Cai struggled violently.
But I held her even tighter, greedily savoring her warmth and breath…
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot from my foot, and I finally loosened my grip on Mi Cai due to the unbearable pain. I felt disappointed because she clearly rejected my hug.
Driven by my wounded pride, I resorted to my old tricks of making excuses: “Um… I didn’t mean anything by hugging you, I just wanted to thank you for coming to rescue me tonight… You should know that I also hug CC and Yan Yan when expressing emotions!”
“Is that so? Do you hug them so tightly they can’t breathe?”
“Uh…” I stammered for a while without being able to respond, only then realizing that in that hug just now, even I had difficulty breathing, not to mention Mi Cai, who had been tightly held in my arms.
I finally said to Mi Cai: “I’m sorry, just now I almost choked you to death!”
Mi Cai seemed to see through my disappointment and said to me: “Then give me a hug that won’t choke me… Just like how you hug CC and Yan Yan.”
Of course, I knew this was a comforting hug offered by Mi Cai, but I still very pathetically gave her a gentle hug because I liked the scent on her body and the warmth of being held together.
When I thought this hug was destined to be just a physical one without real connection, I suddenly felt a comforting sense of security around my waist—Mi Cai had gently hugged me back. At that moment, we truly embraced each other!
The world seemed to suddenly stop, without noise, panic, or disturbances… What a peaceful moment it was! So tranquil that I wanted to immerse myself in it forever, never waking up.
Greedy to preserve this moment forever, I desperately wanted to whisper in her ear: “I like you”…
In the end, I couldn’t bring myself to say it. I just stroked her beautiful hair cascading over her shoulders, trying not to fall into the dreamlike illusion I had created.
…
Back at the apartment, I staggered into my room, took off my jacket, kicked off my shoes, and collapsed onto the bed. In my drowsiness, I thought the night was over, but unexpectedly, Mi Cai stayed behind to take care of me.
She brewed a cup of tea to sober me up and brought a hot towel to wipe my face. Her almost meticulous care created an illusion in my mind, making me feel as if she were my girlfriend, or at least a close female friend like CC.
Yet I still understood that these were all illusions I had created myself. Without this room, we would always be from two different social strata, each carrying our own burdens and loneliness, never crossing paths.
I drank a couple sips of the tea, watching Mi Cai sitting by my bedside. She softly asked me: “Is your head still aching? Do you feel like throwing up?”
“A woman shouldn’t be too kind to a man,” I answered irrelevantly after a while.
Mi Cai smiled and said: “I’m kind to you because you’ve been kind to me.”
I remained silent, repeatedly savoring Mi Cai’s words. Suddenly, my thoughts were triggered by her sentence… It seemed like I had found an idea for marketing and promoting the bar.
Why must we always care about social differences? Why can’t the world be simpler? Simple enough that if you’re kind to me, I’ll be kind to you, and then the whole world becomes warm and affectionate…
Therefore, I wanted to express the bar’s essence through emotional marketing, and then promote it using social media platforms like WeChat or Weibo. I believe that combining these two marketing methods will most effectively convey the bar’s culture and essence to our target consumers.
“Zhao Yang, you’re so focused. What are you thinking about?” Mi Cai asked somewhat puzzled.
“I think I’ve found the marketing strategy for the bar…” I said excitedly because this was a marketing plan that suited the bar’s unique characteristics, was practical, and would incur almost no marketing costs.
The purpose of emotional marketing is to move consumers, making them feel a sense of belonging to the bar, and then spontaneously promoting it within their own social circles on platforms like Weibo or WeChat. I believe that customers who like our bar will likely have friends who also have artistic inclinations because birds of a feather flock together. Therefore, this kind of social circle promotion will be highly targeted and will not require any advertising costs from us, provided we execute emotional marketing effectively, truly touching their souls and giving them the motivation to promote us.
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