The night deepened, and the autumn wind outside became fierce. The hotel room had temporarily become a place without danger or malice. Leyao was still leaning against me, somewhat absent-mindedly staring at the air conditioner vent, just as I was. Neither of us felt like eating.
After a while, I glanced at Leyao’s face. The bruises had finally faded slightly, and I said to her, “Let’s go out to eat. Or if you don’t want to go out, I can call to order food.”
Leyao shook her head and said, “Let’s go out to eat.”
“Okay, when I came here, my boss gave me 2000 yuan to treat you to a meal.”
Leyao finally smiled and said, “I’m so tired of the boxed meals from the production team. Let’s indulge ourselves today and have the best meal.”
I nodded firmly, “Yes, the best meal. If it’s not enough, I’ll ask the boss for more money. We’ll bankrupt him, so that he’ll be afraid when he sees us.”
“You’re so bad!” After saying that, we both shared a bitter smile, trying to find some joy amidst our troubles.
…
The night wind howled, and the streets were nearly deserted. Leyao, wearing a thick pink down jacket, walked beside me. Although we had planned to indulge in a luxurious meal, we finally decided just to have a bowl of noodles. Perhaps at that moment, we didn’t fancy extravagant delicacies, only desiring the simplicity of a bowl of noodles, forgetting the pain of reality through simplicity.
Inside the noodle shop, Leyao took off her mask and pulled out a small compact mirror to examine her face. She said to me with some concern, “The day after tomorrow we’re shooting posters. I wonder if these bruises will be gone by then.”
“There’s still tomorrow. They should fade by then,” I reassured her.
Leyao nodded, “I’ll apply an ice pack again when we get back.”
I looked at Leyao with a sense of pity but didn’t know what else to say. I just felt regret for having been impatient with her before, for resenting the troubles she had brought me. In fact, she had always been good to me, but I only realized this when I needed her help, which made me feel deeply guilty.
Sometimes, people really shouldn’t judge others one-sidedly. Although Leyao was a woman full of trouble, she also had her good points. At least she was loyal and devoted as a friend. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have chosen to help me unhesitatingly, even at the expense of her own well-being.
During the meal, Leyao and I talked about our friends. She asked me, “Zhaoyang, how are Luoben and CC lately? Are they together yet?”
“Not yet.”
“That’s a pity. CC is such a good girl. Although her personality is somewhat idealistic, Luoben is idealistic too. I think they’d be good together.”
I nodded in agreement with Leyao but then said helplessly, “You probably know that Luoben has a psychological barrier he can’t overcome. He doesn’t want to be with CC while carrying this burden. Personally, I can understand him well.”
“What about you? Have you moved past your own psychological barrier?” Leyao suddenly shifted the topic to me.
I had an answer in my heart, but I fell silent. At that moment, I truly wished someone would pass through that “Sky City,” come back, and tell me how long it would take for me to overcome all obstacles and step onto that “Sky City” again to reunite with the woman in my heart… But I knew that the woman waiting in that “Sky City” was no longer Jianwei.
Seeing that I had been silent for a long time, Leyao smiled and said, “Your silence has already given me the answer.”
I didn’t deny it, but instead spoke with some disappointment, “Eat quickly. The noodles are almost soaked through.”
Leyao lowered her head and took a bite of noodles. Suddenly remembering something, she said to me, “When we return to Suzhou this time, let’s meet at CC’s restaurant. It’s been a long time since we last ate there. I really miss it.”
“Okay, let’s go tomorrow night and invite Luoben along.”
…
After our previous agreement to be friends with Leyao, we didn’t stay together that night. In the hotel room, I lit another cigarette and immersed myself in solitude, still unable to stop thinking about Jianwei. This longing made me panic, yet I couldn’t stop myself.
I took a deep puff of the cigarette and smiled helplessly. Jianwei and I had experienced so much together, yet what we pieced together was a love that was incomplete. In the end, all those little moments transformed into a force that scattered in all directions, tearing me apart.
In this fragmented state, I seemed to see Jianwei at that moment lying in the same bed with Xiangchen, whispering sweet nothings to each other, no longer remembering all the moments we had once experienced. Thus, in this broken state, I dissolved into dust, feeling a pain so intense it numbed me.
Suddenly, a text message tone saved me. I stubbed out the cigarette and picked up my phone from the table. But this message that saved me was unexpected—it was from Mi Cai.
“Did you finish spraying the insecticide? There should be a lot of dead cockroaches in the bathroom, right?”
She was something else, afraid even of dead cockroaches! I smiled and replied, “There might be a few.”
“Then, are you free now to come help me clean up these dead cockroaches?”
“I’m on a business trip in Hengdian. Wait until I get back, or you can ask someone else for help in the meantime.”
“I’ll wait for you. I don’t want to trouble anyone else with something so disgusting.”
I looked at Mi Cai’s reply with a mixture of laughter and helplessness. She was really something—just because I hadn’t repaid some debt, she could make me do any dirty work, as if it was perfectly justified. I immediately replied to Mi Cai, “The life of a poor person is bitter, living without dignity or happiness…”
“Stop complaining! Be a good person and work hard.”
After reading Mi Cai’s reply, I couldn’t help but genuinely laugh, although I couldn’t quite explain why. It was just a very subtle feeling.
My mood gradually lightened. I quickly sent Mi Cai a “Goodnight,” pulled the curtains shut, turned off all the lights in the room, and soon fell asleep.
…
The next day, I took Leyao back to Suzhou. She had already moved out of her rented apartment there, so I arranged a hotel for her. We planned to meet again at CC’s restaurant in the evening, of course also inviting Luoben. This was something I had promised CC, and as a person of principle, I naturally kept my word.
After returning to the company and reporting to Chen Jingming, I busied myself for the rest of the afternoon. It wasn’t until nearly evening that I finally finished work, leaned back in my chair to rest for a moment, and then took out my phone to call Luoben.
Luoben answered the phone quickly, and I got straight to the point, asking, “Where are you?”
On the other end of the line, I could hear the sound of an electric shaver. Luoben said hurriedly, “I’m about to go to the bar for work soon.”
“Skip it. Come to CC’s tonight. I’m treating.”
Luoben sounded a bit impatient, “I said no. Don’t give me more trouble, okay?”
“Didn’t you say last time that if I brought Leyao, you’d come too?”
“Yeah, I did say that.”
“Are you going to keep your word?”
“Of course. But isn’t Leyao filming in Hengdian?”
I smiled and said, “If I didn’t bring her back, how else could I get you, Mr. Big Shot, to come? Don’t be so slow. Hurry up and come… Oh, and bring my guitar with you. Tonight, we’ll help CC out at the restaurant.”
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