Chapter 67

Back at school, Yan Qing found her phone overflowing with missed calls and unread messages from Shen Hanyang. She opened the WeChat chat window.

"Jiaming's mother is in a bad mood, so don't take her words seriously."

"I just went to get some signatures done, and when I came back I didn't see you."

"Xiao Bao, I'm sorry, I've made you suffer."

Where are you?

Yan Qing was passing by the laboratory building when she pressed her aching eyes and typed in the chat box: "Professor Huang is looking for me. There's something on the project. I was in a hurry and didn't notice the call." To increase credibility, she casually took a picture of the laboratory building and sent it.

There was no reply for a long time. She edited another message: "I'm fine, don't worry about me, please take good care of Jiaming."

There has still been no reply.

She put her phone back in her pocket. She completely understood; in the chaos of the hospital, it was difficult for him to focus on their problems. The only saving grace was that the doctor announced Cheng Jiaming was out of danger, which finally calmed her anxious heart a little.

Pushing open the dormitory door, a familiar scent of milk and almonds wafted out. She paused, instinctively glancing towards the window. Gu Feimeng's bed was now just a bare wooden plank, the scent of her favorite body lotion still lingering. The day after tomorrow, Yan Qing, as a graduate, would also be moving out of the dormitory. Where to move? She hadn't found a place yet, and going to Chen Hanyang's place… she couldn't go back anytime soon. She stood there blankly for a while, at a loss. She decided to leave her worries for the day after tomorrow. Right now, she was too tired and desperately needed a good night's sleep. She went into the bathroom and took a shower, letting the hot water soak her body. Climbing into bed, she quickly drifted off to sleep. Before falling asleep, she vaguely thought that she should visit Qiao Yi tomorrow. It had been a week since they last saw each other, and she had so much she wanted to say to him; she hadn't even shown him her graduation certificate yet.

However, this idea can no longer be realized.

Qiao Yi died at 1:30 a.m. that night.

When Yan Qing saw Qiao Yi's remains, she was somewhat dazed. He lay there, his face ashen, a layer of dusty grime clinging to his lips. Qiao Yi's complexion had been poor throughout the later stages of his illness. Before her, his face was peaceful, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned—this was how he usually looked when he pretended to be asleep to prank her. Yan Qing had a strange feeling, a feeling that compelled her to reach out and touch him.

Stiff and cold.

"Qiao Yi... Qiao Yi..." she murmured, trying to wake him from his deep sleep, "Stop it, open your eyes..."

Qiao Yi closed his eyes quietly.

Her voice began to tremble: "Brother... don't leave me, please don't leave me, brother... you're all I have left..." She shook Qiao Yi's arm desperately, her heart breaking. The nurse beside her couldn't help but shed tears, supporting the swaying woman, "He's gone now, you have to take care of yourself, don't let your brother rest in peace."

...

Yan Qing stayed by Qiao Yi's side without leaving for a moment. She built a wall around herself, stubbornly resisting the outside world and reality. No one could get close to her, no one could wake her, until the caregiver forcibly took Qiao Yi to the morgue. She wasn't good at heart-wrenching crying and screaming; she could only cover her mouth and tremble in a corner. The more suppressed her cries, the more heartbreaking they sounded. Only when her eyes and throat were swollen from crying did she mechanically follow the nurse to the outpatient building to obtain the death certificate.

When applying for the death certificate, Qiao Yi's household registration booklet was missing. Despite her already exhausted body, she took the last bus of the day back to Anchuan. She was the only person on the bus besides the driver. She never got carsick, but today the shaking made her feel nauseous. She opened the window a little; the cold wind dispelled the metallic taste in her throat, and then, like threads of memory, seeped into every crevice of her mind.

The car stopped, and she came to her senses a little.

Since Qiao Yi was transferred to the First Hospital of S City for treatment, she hadn't been to the Anchuan Waterworks residential compound for a long time. When she left, the soapberry tree was still lush and green, but now, summer has turned to winter, the leaves have fallen silently, leaving only withered branches shattering the cold, desolate sky. On the stone chessboard beneath the tree, an unsolvable puzzle lies scattered.

In Unit 2 of Building 3, on the seventh floor, east-facing apartment, an old Spring Festival couplet was pasted on the door: "May Heaven add years to your life and may Spring fill the universe and may blessings fill your door." The characters were now blurred. The key was inserted into the lock, and with a click, the door opened.

The house was small, but Yan Qing was always organized, so she easily found Qiao Yi's household registration booklet. The first page listed Qiao Dezheng as the head of household, the second page Jiang Xiaoman, and the third page Qiao Yi. Qiao Yi was only seven or eight years old when he was registered, so his education level was listed as "illiterate." It was unclear whether Qiao Yi had ever noticed those two words; if he knew the police had labeled him illiterate, he would definitely be furious.

For the first time in days, Yan Qing laughed out loud.

Having been away for a long time, a layer of dust had settled on the furniture. Yan Qing quickly wiped and cleaned it, pulled out her long-neglected toiletries, brushed her teeth, washed her face, and lay down on the sofa. In her dream, she returned to the time when Qiao Dezheng, Jiang Xiaoman, and Qiao Yi were all alive, and the small house regained its former vitality. She hugged them, weeping with joy, wanting to say a thousand words, but no sound came out. She woke up in the middle of the night, still trapped in the illusion, unable to distinguish between dream and reality, vaguely searching for their figures. But the room was cold and empty; the three of them were only three cold names on the household registration book, quietly folded in her hands.

The next morning, Yan Qing returned to the First Hospital of S City. The death certificate and medical insurance settlement were both in Outpatient Building No. 2. On her first trip, she went to the wrong floor and ended up in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, where she met an unexpected person outside the operating room.

She was first drawn to the nurse's shrill voice.

"This is surgery, someone must accompany you. Didn't I make that clear to you yesterday?"

A weak voice replied, "My family members are not available."

The nurse pointed behind her: "Look behind me, it's clearly written that a family member must accompany you for surgery. If you don't have a family member, you'll have to reschedule for another day!"

The girl pleaded, "My family is really having trouble, please, please make an exception for me, I can manage on my own."

"This isn't something I can make an exception for! We have rules, so please don't make things difficult for me, okay?"

"I really can't find a family member to accompany me."

"There's nothing I can do. I can't give you that green light, or I'll be the one who gets punished."

The girl lowered her head, tears streaming down her face, wetting the medical report.

The nurse was clearly a little soft-hearted, but could only shake her head: "Go back and find your family, or even your best friend. Okay, move aside, there are other people in line behind you."

The girl slowly turned around, and the moment their eyes met, both of them were stunned.

Wu Yanying looked ashen-faced, wearing an ill-fitting oversized coat, her hair disheveled, and Yan Qing almost didn't recognize her.

Upon seeing Yan Qing, Wu Yanying lowered her head and tried to walk away, but Yan Qing grabbed her arm: "What's wrong with you?"

"This has nothing to do with you, let go!"

To Yan Qing's surprise, her arms were so thin they could barely be wrapped around her, like stunted twigs. She struggled desperately, and Yan Qing hissed, "Can you even move around like that? Stop moving!"

Wu Yanying seemed startled, and indeed stopped moving.

The nurse leaned out from behind the station: "Keep quiet! What are you two doing?"

Yan Qing said, "It's okay, I'm her older sister."

The nurse said, "Oh, you have someone accompanying you, right? Come on over and line up, I'll give you a form."

Yan Qing thanked the nurse, then looked past her and landed on the wall behind her. There, a sign prominently displayed read "Painless Abortion Surgery Registration Guide."

Wu Yanying stood still, her head bowed as low as it could go, rubbing the examination report in her hand.

"What happened?" Yan Qing asked.

"It's none of your business," Wu Yanying said again, but her voice was much softer.

Yan Qing took a deep breath and asked again, "Do you need any help?"

Wu Yanying snorted: "Hypocrite... Can you please just disappear from my sight?"

Yan Qing looked at her, but she resolutely turned her face away, refusing to meet her gaze.

"Fine, whatever you want." Yan Qing let go of her and turned to leave.

"You came all this way just to see me make a fool of myself?" Wu Yanying raised her voice slightly from behind.

Yan Qing paused for a moment, then continued walking. Wu Yanying caught up, regaining some of her momentum: "Look at me like this, you're quite pleased with yourself, aren't you?"

Yan Qing ignored her and kept walking, with Wu Yanying jogging after her: "It felt great to win, didn't it? Don't think you're so great, he'll abandon you one day! I'll curse you both!"

Yan Qing suddenly stopped, and Wu Yanying almost stumbled.

Yan Qing hadn't slept well for several nights, and her eyes showed deep exhaustion. After catching her breath, she turned her head and said, "No need to bother, he and I have already broken up. I didn't come to the hospital because of you, I'm here to get my brother's death certificate."

Perhaps because it was so unexpected, Wu Yanying was speechless for a moment. She looked Yan Qing up and down suspiciously, asking with disbelief, "Your brother? Don't you only have a younger brother?"

Yan Qing was exhausted and didn't have the energy to explain. "Anything else you want to ask? If not, I'm leaving."

After taking a few steps, I heard Wu Yanying's voice: "Wait a minute!"

Wu Yanying followed, but this time she wasn't as aggressive as before: "You...you're telling the truth? I mean, you and him...you broke up?"

"Um."

"Then what should we do?"

This question seemed abrupt and left Yan Qing puzzled: "What do you mean, 'what to do'?"

Wu Yanying frowned. "Don't you want to try to salvage the situation?"

Yan Qing remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "No, thank you."

Wu Yanying said to herself, "You seem gentle, but you're actually too stubborn. Men don't like girls who are too individualistic..."

She stole glances at Yan Qing's indifferent face. Yan Qing's composure surprised her and left her bewildered. After hesitating for a long time, before Yan Qing took another step away, she said, "Do you... have time?"

At the family planning ward's nurses' station, Wu Yanying stood silently at the end of the line. When it was her turn, the nurse was no longer the same one.

"Have you brought everything?"

Wu Yanying pulled out a stack of documents: "I brought them. My ID card and medical examination report are here."

"You've come with someone, haven't you?"

Wu Yanying glanced at Yan Qing beside her, and it was Yan Qing who said, "They're here."

The nurse was registering on the computer, saying as she typed: "Go to clinic 3 to see the doctor first, then to clinic 9 for flushing, then to clinic 18 for vital signs and anesthesia assessment, and then come over to schedule your surgery."

Wu Yanying nodded silently.

The nurse swiped out a large stack of forms: "Go see the doctor."

With everything prepared, Wu Yanying changed into her surgical gown. The surgery lasted for more than ten minutes, and after an hour of observation, Yan Qing met the slightly weak Wu Yanying outside the operating room.

"Would you like to sit down for a while?"

With Yan Qing's help, Wu Yanying sat down on a soft chair in the waiting area. "I want some water," she said.

Yan Qing took out a water bottle from her bag and filled it with some warm water.

Wu Yanying then asked, "Do you have cookies or chocolate?"

Yan Qing had seen on the "Surgical Instructions" at the nurses' station that patients could eat something sweet to replenish their energy after surgery. There was a vending machine nearby; the selection of snacks was limited, so Yan Qing bought two Snickers bars.

Wu Yanying ate a little too quickly, and a piece of peanut got stuck in her throat. She coughed twice, and Yan Qing quickly handed her some water.

After eating the chocolate and drinking half a bottle of water, Wu Yanying felt better and then said, "Why didn't you ask me whose child it is?"

Do you want me to ask?

Wu Yanying glanced at her: "Let me ask you first. Why did you refuse the house that Brother Hanyang offered you for Shanshuiyin?"

Good watermark? Oh—if Wu Yanying hadn't mentioned it, Yan Qing would have almost forgotten about that house-giving incident.

Seeing her in a daze, Wu Yanying said again, "He didn't give that house away, but he gave it to me later. I guess I benefited from your help."

Yan Qing didn't know what to say. Wu Yanying gave a weak laugh: "You're really stupid. Have you ever seen Shan Shuiyin's house? It's a 370-square-meter penthouse with its own maid's apartment and driver's lounge. Haha, I was really heartbroken after he dumped me, but when I heard this, I forgot all about being heartbroken and signed the contract overnight."

Yan Qing screwed the lid on the thermos and put it in her bag: "It's good that you can still joke around."

"I heard you didn't want the house, and I thought you were just putting on an act, playing the long game. But after the breakup, you seemed pretty indifferent." Wu Yanying looked at her with a scrutinizing gaze. "Why did you break up?"

Why did they break up? The thought of it caused Yan Qing's mind to go blank. She'd been busy with Qiao Yi's funeral arrangements these past few days, trying to give herself some time to process things. But when asked the question again, she instinctively avoided it.

"If it's inconvenient to talk about it, then forget it. But you did miss out on a big fish. You're better looking and more educated than me, and he liked you too. You had a chance."

"A chance?"

"Yes. The life I've dreamed of all my life is to marry a rich man, enter high society, not have to work every day, be surrounded by luxury goods, travel the world, and be the object of other people's envy and jealousy... You were so close back then, maybe you were just one step away."

Yan Qing thought for a moment and smiled, "I don't have such high aspirations. I'd be perfectly content with a house with a flush toilet and a 24-hour convenience store downstairs."

Wu Yanying scoffed, "That's why I said you're naive, or maybe it's because you haven't tasted the power of money yet." She tilted her head back, her thoughts drifting away. "I've experienced the allure of money. Money can give you unparalleled dignity and glory. When you're wearing clothes worth tens of thousands of yuan and riding in a luxury car worth tens of millions, you'll find that people look at you differently. That feeling is so good... so good..."

Yan Qing could imagine that Shen Hanyang had shown her all of this.

Wu Yanying laughed self-deprecatingly again: "Unfortunately, these things only passed through my life briefly and never truly belonged to me. I could never have obtained any of these things by myself, even if I tried my whole life. Do you know that feeling of powerlessness and despair? That's why I desperately wanted to marry Brother Hanyang. However, things didn't go as planned. Maybe I wasn't good enough, or I wasn't attractive enough to him."

"Don't say that, you're a beautiful and well-behaved girl."

“Then you really misjudged me,” Wu Yanying said. “My well-behaved nature is all an act. In reality, I have an eccentric personality and negative thoughts always pop into my head. I am selfish and jealous, and I despise many people around me—including you at the very beginning—I think these people are vulgar and stupid, and I firmly believe that I will live a much better life than them.”

Wu Yanying spoke candidly about her personal secrets, which should have been kept hidden. Yan Qing looked at her, and a strange feeling welled up inside her. After coming out of the operating room, she seemed to have been reborn.

"It seems there are still people who can win Hanyang's heart." Wu Yanying brought the topic back again, "Why did you two break up?"

Yan Qing hadn't figured out how to explain it to her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Wu Yanying slowly stand up from her chair. She turned her head and glanced at her; the ease on Wu Yanying's face had vanished, replaced by tension and fear…

Turning around following her gaze, a sorrowful and bitter face came into view.