Holding an umbrella, I left the small apartment where I had lived for two years. In truth, I felt terrible inside. My request for cohabitation with that woman was neither a joke nor an attempt to take advantage of her. Right now, I felt like a homeless child who had lost a warm sense of belonging, and no one knew that I wanted to cry a little.
But people must learn to respect reality, right? When Old Li sold this apartment, my departure had already become inevitable.
I found an ATM nearby and, as agreed, withdrew one thousand yuan from the card. I also checked the user information and learned that the beautiful woman’s name was Mi Cai.
I really liked her name. “Mi” represents sustenance and warmth, while “cai” stands for color and vibrancy. If one’s life has both “mi” and “cai,” it would surely be a happy one. But I have neither. My current life is left with only hunger and monochrome. Therefore, Mi Cai’s appearance seemed more like an irony to me—an irony highlighting my destitution and desperate situation.
…
At a corner of the long street, there was a hostel where I stayed. After a night of wind and rain, I finally fell into a daze in the early morning and didn’t wake up until nearly noon.
I checked my phone and found over ten missed calls, all from Leyao. She really was quite persistent. When she saw that I hadn’t answered, she sent me a text: “I should have kept the baby and used this so-called child to punish you for life.”
I found it somewhat amusing. She isn’t afraid of being an unwed mother, so how could I possibly fear being a cheap, nominal father? Obviously, her complaints didn’t cause me any psychological burden…
After a quick wash-up, I hurried to the hospital. The reason I went might have been out of the last bit of kindness I had, or maybe out of sympathy between casual sex partners. Even I couldn’t clearly explain why. Often, people don’t necessarily understand themselves very well.
When I arrived at the Maternal and Child Health Hospital and got out of the taxi, I saw Leyao waiting under an umbrella at the hospital entrance.
She noticed me immediately, and her expression of insecurity finally eased a bit as she walked toward me.
I was full of anger, but thinking about her lying on the operating table here facing the cold scalpel, I still managed to hold back.
Leyao tightly held my arm with a serious expression, glancing at her own stomach, giving the impression that she deeply loved me while I didn’t care about her at all.
I pulled away and finally snapped, “What the hell! Be honest with me—whose child is growing in your belly?”
“You, Zhaoyang!”
“Do you really want me to strangle you?” I glared at Leyao.
“Beast, go ahead and strangle me! If you had done it yesterday, it would have been two deaths in one. Today you’d be the headline news, and the whole country would know what a beast you are!” Leyao narrowed her eyes at me, yet pressed her body even closer to mine.
“Have you had enough of this nonsense? We slept together two months ago, so how long have you been pregnant? Show me the ultrasound pictures!”
Ignoring my doubts, Leyao suddenly softened her tone, tightly holding my arm with deep regret and said, “Zhaoyang, if we hadn’t had the surgery yesterday and had let the child be born calling you ‘Dad,’ how happy you would have been!”
I suppressed my anger and pushed her aside, saying, “Can you stop playing games? Go get a recheck right away. Once you walk out of this hospital, pretend I’m dead and never bother me again!”
Leyao lowered her head and after a while said, “Don’t talk about death anymore. I won’t bother you again in the future.”
…
After Leyao completed the recheck, she was receiving an IV in the ward while I sat beside her like a family member, yet I remained silent, feeling rather stifled inside.
The doctor pulled me outside the ward and said, “Young man, your girlfriend has a very weak constitution and suffers from mild anemia. Post-abortion recovery must not be taken lightly, or she might develop chronic problems later in life. I’ll prescribe some recovery medicine and health supplements for you. Go to the pharmacy on the second floor to pick them up.”
I nodded without thinking much, assuming the one thousand yuan I had withdrawn yesterday from Mi Cai’s bank card should be enough to cover the medicine costs.
Following the doctor’s prescription, I went to the second floor. The staff took five minutes to bring me a full plastic bag of medicine and supplements, then casually said, “That’s 3016 yuan. Will you pay by credit card or cash?”
I was stunned and immediately shouted, “What kind of divine pill costs over three thousand? Do you think I’m rich and want to rip me off?”
Unfazed, the staff looked at the man who had just bought eight thousand yuan worth of supplements and medicine from the adjacent window and said to me, “See that guy? He just bought eight thousand yuan worth of supplements. If you don’t have money, don’t let your girlfriend get pregnant!”
“Acting so pleased about being a sucker, you idiot!” I cursed at the man’s back. Thinking about how frail and helpless Leyao looked after the abortion, I held back my anger and took out Mi Cai’s bank card from my wallet, saying, “Can you give me a discount? Or at least round it down and remove the 16 yuan?”
The staff took the bank card from my hand, gave me a cold look, and said, “How novel! Have you ever seen a hospital that offers discounts?”
Carrying the medicine from the pharmacy, my heart was bleeding. This casual relationship was indeed expensive!
…
I helped Leyao, who was weak after the IV, walk out of the hospital. The rain was still drizzling, and the air felt stuffy due to the continuous downpour, making me feel even more oppressed.
Leyao leaned on me for a while before unexpectedly asking, “Zhaoyang, next month there’s a film crew inviting me to shoot in Hengdian. Do you think I should go?”
“Is it reliable?” I asked as gently as possible, trying not to provoke her emotions, though I actually had no interest in where she went to shoot.
“I’ve already tested the makeup. The director and producer were very satisfied and think I’m quite suitable for the role.”
“Fine then. You’re a model, right? Don’t you all try your best to break into the entertainment industry? If it’s an opportunity, you should seize it. Oh, by the way, these are the post-operative health supplements the doctor prescribed. Take them regularly. I’ll send you a message later explaining how to take them.” I handed her the plastic bag I had been carrying.
Leyao didn’t take the plastic bag from me. Instead, she stared at me for a long time and softly said, “I’m only doing modeling temporarily. Actually, I graduated from the Performance Department at Shanghai Theatre Academy.”
“Wow! No wonder you were so convincing when you were scamming me. So you’re a professional! I really didn’t recognize you as a top graduate from the Shanghai Theatre Academy!” I said half sarcastically and half teasingly.
Leyao completely ignored my outburst and looked at me, asking, “Zhaoyang, do you think I’m beautiful?”
“If you weren’t beautiful, would I have slept with you?” I stared back at Leyao. Indeed, she was a beauty—natural and down-to-earth, with bright eyes, red lips, white teeth, and a touch of subtle sexiness that was quite charming.
Leyao nodded and said, “Zhaoyang, forget Jianwei. Once I become a female star, I’ll love only you!” She grabbed the plastic bag from my hand and quickly walked away.
…
I stood there for a while, then a cold wind blew, suddenly reminding me that I had agreed to meet Mi Cai before one o’clock to help move. It was already one thirty now. I immediately hailed a taxi and headed to my old residence. On the way, I thought again about the 3016 yuan I had spent on health supplements and medicine using Mi Cai’s bank card. I had promised her I would only spend one thousand, so now I owed 4016 yuan. How was I going to pay her back?
Thinking about Mi Cai’s overly serious yet extremely beautiful face, I felt completely at a loss!
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