Chapter Sixteen: The Bed is Very Small

When Lin Shirong pushed open the door, Li Yaodong was getting up from the floor, his casual pants covered in fine dust at the knees. The bedside table drawer was half open, and several documents were scattered on the floor, as if he had been hurriedly searching for something.

"Brother Dong?" Lin Shirong stood at the door, his eyes slightly narrowed behind his gold-rimmed glasses.

Li Yaodong cleared his throat and patted imaginary dust off his knees: "What is it?"

Lin Shirong entered the room and closed the door behind him. "Are you... looking for something?" He glanced around the room meaningfully, his gaze lingering on the underside of the bed for a second.

"The customs documents for that shipment." Li Yaodong walked to the liquor cabinet, poured two glasses of whiskey, and said, "It needs to be sorted out by Wednesday."

Lin Shirong took the glass, not exposing the clumsy lie. He took a sip of wine and observed Li Yaodong's expression. His eyes were slightly red, and his jawline was taut—a rare display of emotion.

"Where is Cheng Yin?" Li Yaodong suddenly asked.

"On deck." Lin Shirong glanced outside. "Looks like he's chatting with Cici."

Li Yaodong paused, the ice cubes in his glass clinking softly. "What are you talking about?"

"I don't know." Lin Shirong adjusted his glasses. "However..." He carefully chose his words, "You probably can't get anything out of someone like Cheng Yin."

Li Yaodong sneered, "Is she pretending to be stupid, or is she really stupid?"

Lin Shirong recalled Cheng Yin's calm, lifeless eyes: "So naive." He paused, "So naive that it's impossible to know where to begin."

Cheng Yin remained motionless, letting her scrutinize her like a mannequin in a shop window. Her white shirt billowed in the sea breeze, like a white flag of surrender.

"What's so special about you?" Cici finally spoke, her voice saccharine, almost like it was mixed with saccharin. "Dong-ge has never cared about any woman like this before."

Cheng Yin thought for a moment: "Maybe it's because I don't know how to smile?"

Cici paused for a moment, then burst into laughter, her laughter like a string of silver bells: "You're quite humorous."

"Thank you," Cheng Yin said calmly. "You have a beautiful smile."

This blunt compliment froze Cici's smile. She blinked her eyes, which were covered in thick false eyelashes, unsure whether Cheng Yin was being sarcastic or genuinely praising her.

Cheng Yin's expression remained calm as always, showing no trace of sarcasm.

"You..." Cici tilted her head, "Do you really think I'm pretty?"

Cheng Yin nodded: "Great figure, perfect proportions."

Cici suddenly laughed, leaning closer to Cheng Yin: "Damn, it cost me 80,000 yuan, and I couldn't sleep for a month because of the pain."

Cheng Yin nodded: "That must be very hard work."

Cici was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "I'm mixed race; my mother is Siamese." She leaned against the railing, her gaze fixed on the distant sea. "I came to Haojiang when I was sixteen, and I've never been back."

Cheng Yin listened quietly, without asking any further questions about her father.

Cici seemed grateful for the silence and continued, "I met Dong Ge and the others the year I graduated from university." She smiled, "Back then, I couldn't speak Cantonese properly, which led to quite a few embarrassing situations."

As the sun began to set in the west, it cast long shadows of the two women. Cici talked a lot, and Cheng Yin listened quietly the whole time, nodding occasionally but never interrupting.

"...So you see," Cici concluded, "someone like me can only live off my looks." She glanced meaningfully at Cheng Yin's shirt and trousers, "unlike you, who has real talent."

Cheng Yin shook her head: "I'm not capable."

"Isn't it a skill that Brother Dong put you in charge of the accounts?" Cici rolled her eyes. "Those are his accounts for the entire Macau."

Cheng Yin wanted to say something, but Lin Shirong's voice came from the other end of the deck: "Dinner is ready."

Inside the restaurant, the long table was laden with seafood and various dishes. Li Yaodong gestured for Cheng Yin to sit to his right.

Cheng Yin walked over and found that her seat was not set with the same Western food as everyone else's, but with a bowl of white porridge, a few light side dishes and a cup of hot tea.

Li Yaodong was discussing business with He Jingwen and didn't even glance at her.

Cheng Yin sat down quietly and sipped her porridge.

"...Siam wants to add another 30%," Li Yaodong said in Cantonese, "because customs are checking very strictly."

He Jingwen nodded: "We can take the Mengla border crossing, but the cost will be higher."

Li Yaodong turned to Cheng Yin and suddenly asked in Mandarin, "What do you think?"

Cheng Yin put down her spoon: "I don't understand these things."

"Suppose you have a shipment of goods," Li Yaodong said in a low voice, almost a whisper, "the cost will increase by 30%, but going through formal channels is too risky. What would you do?"

Cheng Yin thought for a moment: "Finding an inside contact is more cost-effective than taking a detour."

Li Yaodong raised an eyebrow: "Why?"

"Taking a detour increases not only costs," Cheng Yin said calmly, "but also time and uncertainty. Insiders are expensive, but they are controllable."

Li Yaodong's lips curled slightly upward as he turned to He Jingwen: "Do as she says."

He Jingwen glanced at Cheng Yin in surprise, then nodded and made a note of it.

"What did you and Cici talk about just now?"

Cheng Yin reported truthfully: "She said she's of Siamese descent, came to Macau at sixteen, her mother had a very hard life, and she met you after graduating from university." She paused, "She also mentioned breast augmentation."

Li Yaodong chuckled: "What nationality do you think she's mixed with?"

Cheng Yin shook her head: "I won't watch it."

Li Yaodong suddenly raised his hand and ruffled her hair, the gesture as natural as if he had done it countless times: "Silly girl."

This intimate gesture did not escape the eyes of everyone present. Cici bit her fork, her eyes filled with mixed emotions; Lin Shirong pushed up his glasses; He Jingwen lowered his head and ate heartily, pretending not to see anything.

Li Yaodong leaned close to Cheng Yin's ear and said, "Wait for me in the room tonight."

Cheng Yin put down her chopsticks and said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, "My bed in my room is very small."

The dining table fell silent instantly. Everyone stopped moving, as if a pause button had been pressed.

Cici's fork fell onto the plate with a crisp sound; Lin Shirong's glasses slipped down to the tip of his nose; He Jingwen choked on a mouthful of red wine and coughed until his face turned red.

Li Yaodong raised an eyebrow. He had only intended to help her apply medicine to her foot injury, but Cheng Yin's words made it seem as if he had ulterior motives.

Everyone at the table pretended to be busy, but in reality, they were all listening intently for his reaction.

"It's alright," Li Yaodong said slowly, taking a sip of his drink. "It's warmer when we're huddled together."

The atmosphere at the table instantly became lively. Cici whistled; Lin Shirong shook his head and chuckled; He Jingwen winked at Li Yaodong, giving him a knowing look.

After dinner, everyone moved to the deck for drinks. Cheng Yin excused herself, citing a foot injury, and returned to her cabin.

The room was indeed small, with a single bed and a narrow porthole window, but it was clean, and the sheets smelled of sunshine. She had just sat down when there was a knock on the door.

Li Yaodong stood at the door, holding a first-aid kit in his hand.

"Feet." He came in and closed the door.

Cheng Yin sat on the edge of the bed, stretching out her injured foot. Li Yaodong knelt on one knee, gently lifting her ankle as if it were a fragile object.

Cheng Yin's foot wound has almost healed, and Li Yaodong helped her apply ointment to prevent scarring.

Cheng Yin looked at his lowered eyelashes and suddenly asked, "Why did you come to my room tonight?"

"Change the dressing." Li Yaodong said without looking up.

"You can change on the deck."

Li Yaodong looked up at her: "You don't want me to come?"

"No." Cheng Yin paused, "I just wanted to confirm."

Li Yaodong put her feet down and sat down next to her: "Confirm what?"

"Confirm what you want to do," Cheng Yin said calmly, "or are there other arrangements?"

Li Yaodong turned to look at her, their faces almost touching. Cheng Yin could smell the mixture of whiskey and cologne on him, along with the salty scent of the sea breeze.

"What if there are other arrangements?" Li Yaodong asked in a low voice.

Cheng Yin looked him straight in the eye: "I'll find out the specifics and then carry it out."

Li Yaodong's eyes became complicated. He reached out and gently stroked Cheng Yin's cheek with his thumb: "Do you know what I hate most about you?"

Cheng Yin shook her head.

"You're fucking too real," Li Yaodong said through gritted teeth, "so real that it's impossible to know where to begin."

"Is this a drawback?"

"In my world, yes." Li Yaodong stood up, looking down at her. "Go to sleep. You're going back tomorrow afternoon."

Cheng Yin nodded, watching him walk towards the door.

Li Yaodong, his hand on the doorknob, suddenly turned around: "The bed is indeed very small."

After closing the door, Cheng Yin lay down, listening to the faint music and laughter outside. She remembered what Cici had said about Siam, her mother, and life in Macau.

Cheng Yin knew nothing about Siam, except that there were temples and elephants there, as well as that sour and spicy shrimp soup.

She rolled over; the ointment on the soles of her feet felt cool and soothing.

Cheng Yin closed her eyes, listening to the sound of waves gently lapping against the hull. Footsteps and laughter came from outside the door, as people returned to their rooms to rest after the party.