Chapter 67

Mo Daoyan stepped into the Honghe Woodcarving Studio for the first time.

It's less than a kilometer from the Xicheng Daily. Tong Yufei's rental house, though on another street, is still within a two-kilometer radius. Now, her home, her workplace, and her brother's studio are all in the same area, making life much more convenient. She can drop her brother off at the studio on her way to work, and Boss Sun can always contact her at the newspaper office if she needs anything. Even after work, she can always pick her brother up. It's like killing three birds with one stone.

The Honghe Woodcarving Studio is located on the second floor. There is a pancake shop downstairs. The studio is about 60 to 70 square meters. It is nominally a classroom, but it looks more like an old paint warehouse. The ceiling is mottled and peeling, and the original white walls have long lost their base color. They are covered with paint marks, footprints, oil stains and knife marks of varying depths, interspersed with some sloppy graffiti. Buckets of paint are piled in the corners of the walls. Therefore, in addition to the smell of fried food and pancakes downstairs, the air is also mixed with the pungent smell of paint and mold.

An elderly man with unkempt hair and beard, speaking in a booming voice, was explaining woodcarving techniques to a group of forty or fifty students. He was the master and owner of the place, Sun Mingsheng. Mr. Sun was quite talented, and his lectures were both risqué and nonsensical. When his mood struck, he would recite poetry, compose prose, and tell dirty jokes. The students were mostly employed workers, mostly men, seeking further education. Some came from art galleries and museums, while others worked part-time as handicraft workers. The youngest was already an adult, and everyone was quite amused.

Ye Yimo sat alone in the last row, his head bowed in silence. He neither looked up at the teacher's demonstration nor lowered his head to take notes, but his carving knife moved smoothly across the wood. If it weren't for the fact that he was autistic, others might have thought he was a rebellious student with his own unique style.

Each carving class lasted for forty minutes, with a half-hour break in between for students to practice imitating or exchange ideas. Unable to communicate effectively, Ye Yimo poured all his energy into carving thrush birds, his skill rivaling that of a master craftsman, quickly sparking discussion among the students. Some lamented his genius, saying that geniuses are often lonely. Others scoffed, saying he was nothing more than a fool, whose exceptional talents couldn't compensate for his mental limitations and would ultimately lead to his continued destitution. Still others murmured, "That's a good thing; he can always rely on that pretty sister."

When the men gathered, they didn't talk about money, but women. If those present couldn't talk, they would talk about those absent. Because of Ye Yimo's uniqueness and Tong Yufei's striking appearance, she had become almost an "invisible member" of the studio, and being the subject of constant gossip was a common occurrence. Some asserted that with such a brother, she would never marry into a good family. A man who looked like a cadre stood up to refute the claim, saying that if she could serve her husband as well as she served her brother, he would "lower his status" and marry her. The others echoed this sentiment, discussing what kind of man she would be attracted to.

At this time, Boss Sun came out with a teacup in hand and yelled at the group, "I'm here to teach carving, not to listen to your bullshit! If you want to learn, learn. If not, get out!"

There was a cheerful girl among the students who also spat at the group of men. She had always been very protective of Ye Yimo, and whenever someone tried to take away his work or tease him with nonsense, she would drive them away without any hesitation.

At this moment, she looked at Ye Yimo who was concentrating on carving and sighed softly: "It would be great if you were a normal man, so you could protect your sister."

The class ends at five o'clock every day, but Ye Yimo has no concept of time. He often works with his master until eight o'clock in the evening or even later, until Tong Yufei comes to pick him up.

Today, Mo Daoyan attended the meeting of the China Household Electrical Appliances Association. After the meeting at four o'clock, he went directly to the studio. At five o'clock, he asked to take Ye Yimo away.

Boss Sun looked at him warily: "Who are you to Yi Mo?"

He replied, "His sister's lover."

Isn't it just my brother-in-law? Why can't I just say it directly? This awkwardness made Boss Sun very worried: "What's your wife's name?"

"How many sisters does he have?"

"You ask me? She never mentioned you."

"I never mentioned that I'm also her lover, the only one who's legal. If I were to trade in people, I'd never choose him even if I had to choose ten thousand times."

After passing the test of Boss Sun, Mo Daoyan took Ye Yi Mo out of the studio and found a nearby noodle shop. They ordered fried noodles and egg drop soup. Ye Yi Mo was quiet throughout the whole process, like an introverted boy next door. Mo Daoyan thought this was good. Socializing is a tiring thing, especially when these social interactions cannot help him sell more home appliances, he is even more lazy to deal with it. Usually, when others don't take the initiative to talk to him, he is happy to be expressionless.

Mo Daoyan opened a bottle of beer. When his eyes fell on Ye Yimo, he couldn't help but think of Tong Yufei giving him a bath. He felt irritated. He took a sip of beer and forced himself to divert his attention. This beer was supposed to celebrate their official acquaintance. Before opening the bottle, he was worried that Ye Yimo would not drink it. Unexpectedly, when he poured a glass over, Ye Yimo drank it as if it were water. He didn't even frown. He drank a bottle and wanted a second bottle.

Not only is he stupid, he's also an alcoholic. If he gets drunk, Tong Yufei's workload will double. Mo Daoyan snatched the wine back: "Do you understand the joy of drinking?"

Ye Yimo smiled foolishly and shouted: "Little Ye, my wife..."

Mo Daoyan quickly figured out the pattern. Whenever Ye Yimo was happy, this became his catchphrase. When he was wiping Ye Yimo's mouth, he yelled at him again. Just then, a bus passed by. He pointed at the bus and gestured exaggeratedly: "If you yell like that again, I'll crush you into pieces and feed you to the dogs!"

After Ye Yimo finished his noodles, he took his friends to the May Fourth Shopping Mall. He made some choices when choosing clothes, choosing athletic items for Ye Yimo. He already had enough athletic clothes at home, so he bought two suits and casual pants. When the salesperson suggested that the two brothers wear matching outfits, he looked in the mirror at their similar figures, their heights, and their deep, deep features, and felt a subtle resistance. Tong Yufei used to love buying them matching clothes, probably to save time, but after he learned about Ye Yimo's existence, those clothes all looked different. He wished he could burn them, and in the end, he just stuffed them in the bottom tier of his closet, never to wear them again.

At this moment, facing the salesperson's misunderstanding, he still shook his head and refused.

After buying clothes, he found a sauna and bathing center along the street. In coastal cities, such places have long been popular, but they are still a novelty in Xicheng. The last time Qiao Zhuocheng brought him here, he was not mentally prepared. He thought the so-called entertainment was just playing chess and cards or singing. It was not until he handed over the yellow receipt that he found out that there were many different types of entertainment here, such as dry steam, wet steam, infrared steam... You can steam yourself in all kinds of ways after taking a bath.

There are more tricks when it comes to scrubbing your back. The price varies depending on the scrubber. Old men and women are charged one price, young men are charged another price, and fair and tender young girls are charged another price. Mo Daoyan has never had the habit of letting girls scrub his back with his bare chest. It's not for anything else, but he always feels that their hands are not strong enough. Later, he found an old man and he scrubbed his whole body to feel refreshed for two yuan.

Looking at the swarm of customers, Qiao Zhuocheng said, "Just wait and see. This blue ocean market will become a red ocean in a few years, with businesses flourishing in all major cities. When it comes to enjoying life, we newly wealthy Chinese will definitely be number one in the world. You should keep up and stay ahead of the times."

Mo Daoyan didn't deny that existence was legitimate, but he wasn't a food taster, nor was he enthusiastic about anything new. He had brought Ye Yimo here today to give him a thorough cleansing. This might last a week, allowing Tong Yufei to rest for a few days. Besides, there were dedicated people here, so he didn't have to do it himself. He found a skilled bathsman and coaxed Ye Yimo into the tub. He took a quick shower himself and waited outside with a newspaper, reading the news about the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's trial operation. The thought of companies raising funds to expand production lines by issuing securities products filled his heart with excitement.

Just then, several screams suddenly came from the bathroom.

He rushed into the bathhouse and saw Ye Yimo waving a half-broken bottle around. The old man who was doing the bath was sitting by the pool, clutching his chest and panting: "Your big brother is not okay. He can't be touched at all!"

Seeing the situation was dire, the shop owner quickly called two of his employees forward to grab the bottle. Ye Yimo's resistance only intensified. Fearing he would be hurt, Mo Daoyan rushed forward to hold him down, offering soothing words. Just as he had him steady, the master's two sons rushed over again, their eyes red, shouting, "Avenge their father." He had no choice but to turn and block. In a flash, five or six men engaged in a scuffle, their fists and kicks clashing, and it was impossible to tell who was hitting whom. He knocked down several strangers and pulled Ye Yimo from the crowd. His heart suddenly tightened...

Ye Yimo's right cheek was bruised and swollen, and his nose was bleeding. The bright red blood dripped from his lips onto his collar.

----

When Tong Yufei and Tong Zhaoyang arrived at the hospital, Mo Daoyan had already bandaged Ye Yi Mo's wound and left the emergency room. Although Ye Yi Mo's bleeding looked serious, fortunately it was only a skin injury. However, the new nurse was extremely careful and wrapped Ye Yi Mo's face like a mummy, leaving only the two nostrils exposed. It was indeed shocking at first glance.

Mo Daoyan originally thought that Tong Yufei would at least scold him, after all, it was he who took her brother away without permission and injured someone. However, she just carefully checked her brother's injuries and confirmed that there were no broken bones before taking people away. She didn't even look at him from beginning to end, as if she was extremely disappointed in him.

Instead, Tong Zhaoyang came up to him and said, "Where did you take Yi Mo? He gets nervous around strangers. If he goes to an unfamiliar place, he'll have to follow him around. Next time, you should say hello first."

This seems to imply that he, the legal husband, is a "stranger", while the ex-boyfriend has become an "acquaintance" who needs to explain his whereabouts. What is his position in coming to teach him a lesson in a hypocritical manner?

Mo Daoyan sneered when he heard this: "I wanted to take him to find a railway track to kill him, but gave up because it was too far. I wanted to find a bus to cause a car accident, but it would dirty the road and trouble the sanitation workers. Finally, I thought of taking him to the bathhouse to drown, but I haven't had time to do it yet." Seeing Tong Zhaoyang stunned, he raised the corner of his mouth sarcastically, "Do you think I'm heartless? In that case, why don't you take him home and raise him? Don't you want to be Tong Yufei's brother? Isn't that Ye Yimo's younger brother? It's reasonable for a younger brother to raise an older brother, right? Tong Zhaoyang, if you don't take him home to raise him today, I will really look down on you. Are you hypocritically caring about a fool because of the fool's sister?"

Tong Zhaoyang acted calmly, as if he had done nothing wrong and was not afraid of ghosts knocking on his door: "You are getting off topic. It is not what you think at all."

"It's all I saw. Liking someone else's wife is at best a moral low point. Liking her but not daring to admit it is simply too much of a coward. What's the woman supposed to do with you wavering like this? Will the old love rekindle?"

Before Tong Zhaoyang could respond, Tong Yufei hurried over, his eyes cold as ice. "If you're so concerned about whether I'm in a relationship with someone else, why don't you just get the divorce formalities done first? I'm still young, and I definitely won't hang myself on a tree. After the divorce, you can talk to whoever you want. As long as they treat me and my brother well, it doesn't matter who they marry. It's hard to find a three-legged toad, but there are two-legged men everywhere."

Mo Daoyan half-leaned against the wall at the emergency building exit, his back slightly bent, losing his usual upright posture. Adding to the harsh words spewing from his mouth, he exuded a nonchalant air: "Are you in a hurry to get married again?"

"If a second marriage doesn't work, then a third one is a good idea. The Party doesn't care, so why should you? Things never go wrong three times over. I can't have bad luck every time."

"It's hard to say, otherwise why would there be such a thing as a jinx?"

Tong Zhaoyang was still in shock over their impending divorce. When he heard Mo Daoyan's words, he was immediately shocked: "If you don't want to talk nicely, you'd better shut up, otherwise you will regret it later."

When trying to contact Ye Yimo, Mo Daoyan had thought about communicating with Tong Yufei, but when the time came, all his preconceived rationality became a bubble. He chose the most poisonous words to hurt her, as if only by making her uncomfortable could he prove that the affection that had not yet dissipated was not his wishful thinking. He gave her a way out, but she ignored it. She did not mention divorce to Tong Zhaoyang, perhaps because she did not want him to think too much, or perhaps to leave him the last leeway, but he kicked her away.

He would rather stubbornly make mistakes than admit defeat, and just stood there with his neck stiff, watching her in grief.

But she didn't do as he wished. Instead, she raised her head with a look of disdain: "If you don't have a strong life, get out of here, or I'll kill you."

This sentence was still echoing in Mo Daoyan's mind, but Tong Yufei had already pulled Ye Yimo away.

Tong Zhaoyang's voice came through the night wind: "Let's talk another day, when you can calm down."

In the blink of an eye, Mo Daoyan was the only one left at the empty hospital entrance. He watched Tong Zhaoyang walking behind Tong Yufei, keeping a distance that was neither too far nor too close, not so far that he would not have time to lend a hand in case of an emergency, nor so close that he would cause gossip. He suddenly felt as if a piece of his chest was being gouged out, it was so damn painful.

He staggered forward, pushed Tong Zhaoyang aside, and grabbed Tong Yufei's wrist: "Let's talk."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"I want to talk."

"Is it ever going to end?"

Tong Yufei suddenly turned around and pushed, and Mo Daoyan fell heavily to the ground like a tree uprooted. But she didn't even look at him. She pulled her brother and continued to move forward until her figure was gradually swallowed up by the thick night, without looking back once.