33. Taboo
Deng Shilang goes to Hong Kong Airport very often. Apart from business trips and travel, he also goes to security check to see people off, or like now, to pick up his girlfriend.
The year he had just broken up with Yao Ling, whenever he went through security check, he would think of the night she sent him off. She had put down the bear and hugged him, then let go and told him to forget her.
Within five years, he was very familiar with the route to the airport. He drove from Sham Shui Po to Kwai Tsing and then to Lantau Island. He drove for a while on the outlying islands before crossing the Tsing Ma Bridge and heading to downtown Hong Kong.
He memorized the route and slowly forgot about her. She had been so cruel to him back then, and now that they met again she still remembered him. He found it funny just thinking about it.
The car drove a few kilometers away from Hong Kong Airport but was still stuck in the outlying island area.
After driving for twenty minutes on the return journey, Deng Shilang finally got on the Tsing Ma Bridge, but had to stop halfway and was stuck in traffic for a while.
There was a heavy flow of traffic ahead, all heading from the airport and Disneyland to downtown Hong Kong. He parked behind a few cars, opened the window for some fresh air, held the window with one hand, and the other on the steering wheel, patiently waiting.
It’s not boring to be stuck in traffic here. In the past, I would roll down the roof to enjoy the view at dusk and sunset. Now it’s dark, and Central and Ma Wan are both within sight. It gets brighter as the night goes on, and I can kill time by watching the lights in the bay and across the river.
Chen Li'er reclined her chair and watched the scenery with him. She chose the car's playlist and bought the aromatherapy. If the landing was nearing, she'd flick through the screens, jumping from media outlets to the observatory, checking tide tables and sunrise and sunset times. Her presence was everywhere.
During his absence, she drove around, occasionally running into Liang Litong and riding in his car. Now he was picking her up, and she was quite content. She would take a picture of him waiting, open Instagram, add the English caption "I'm going back to Hong Kong after work," locate it, mention it, and post it.
Chen Li'er enlarged his photo and asked, "Why are you staring at it so intently?"
Deng Shilang discovered that she had taken a picture of herself, so he took out his phone from the storage compartment to look at her Instagram story. The first post was not about him, but about her behind-the-scenes footage in Japan, and the latest post was about him.
He returned to her Japanese photo bts, with the studio in the background and her lunch box on the lower right corner of the table, containing a boiled egg and an apple. He saw it and said, "You're not eating properly while working."
Chen Lier was not happy that he asked after getting in the car, "You should have seen it long ago, but you only care about it now."
"I haven't been checking WhatsApp or Instagram much today. I just saw your first post." Deng Shilang scrolled through her Instagram stories. He hadn't done that in a while, and his style remained the same, even with a smaller appetite. The traffic was clearing, so he had to hit the gas to keep up. He glanced in the rearview mirror, handed his phone to Chen Li'er, and asked her to put it in the storage compartment. He casually said, "I don't know if you're deliberately not eating to show me, or if you're really busy."
Chen Li'er took his phone and put it back. She didn't check his WhatsApp or Instagram because just now, when he was scrolling, he found that he had more messages than ever before, all of which were unread. He really didn't read them much.
Deng Shilang drove off the Tsing Ma Bridge. The lights of the bay were reflected back, alternating between light and darkness. He was actually used to Chen Li'er taking photos, but for a moment he remembered Yao Ling taking photos of him at Lin Zhe's house.
He was slightly dissatisfied with his own thoughts, but fortunately it was Sunday night and many people were traveling to and from the city, so he had to concentrate on driving and soon returned to reality.
Passing by the Bank of China Tower, Hong Kong's most modern building, it was a short drive to Chen Li'er's apartment. Having not seen her for several days, Deng Shilang stayed to keep her company until he went to work on Monday.
Chen Li'er returned to the apartment and opened her suitcase. He helped her put her luggage back in place, then sat on the sofa and read messages.
He forgot something, opened WeChat, and left Xiaoyu's group. After processing it, he returned to WhatsApp and received many links and screenshots. During the day, they were about Hong Kong stocks, and at night, they were about US stocks across time zones.
It took a long time before Liang Litang's information came, which was all a review of recent events.
【LLT】: During the time you were not in Hong Kong, I dropped by to give Gigi a ride one or two days.
【LLT】: Also, I had dinner with Tracy last Wednesday, and she said she couldn't find you. I said you were on a business trip. She wanted to ask Aunty about the auction house.
Deng Shilang read out the various changes he mentioned, memorized them, and prepared to do what needed to be done in the next few days. Unexpectedly, he slid down and saw Liang Litang mention Yao Ling again.
Deng Shilang didn't want to know, so he switched to the chat box and read the messages sent by other IDs.
After a few days, Yao Ling finally recovered. She went to the bathroom in the morning to check her hands and neck in the mirror, and the marks had faded.
There are only a few effervescent tablets left on the table, and I eat a lot of fruits. At first, my parents took me to the old place to eat and drink, and to visit my uncles and aunts. Occasionally, I had to put on foundation to cover my neck and hands, but now I don’t need to, and they are as good as new.
The time to come to Hong Kong was flexible. Yao Shenhe received a call from Qiuping, saying her husband's mother was celebrating her 80th birthday and invited them to attend. Chen Yu had almost finished her work in mainland China, so they spent two days packing up. Yao Ling met Xiaoyu for dinner and said goodbye.
As soon as she arrived in Hong Kong that evening, Yao Ling received a message from Danika. Perhaps because they felt a sense of sympathy, she opened her chat history with Danika last time and saw a conversation going on.
Danika asked her if she had met her former classmates, and she said yes, and she also met her ex, the person she mentioned in A1.
Danika posted a surprised emoji and shared about her trip to Spain. Yao Ling saw the chill photos and smiled, saying that if she hadn't been coming to Hong Kong, she would have gone to Spain with Danika to bask in the sun.
When they arrived in Hong Kong this time, Liang Litang was there to pick them up again. He hadn't seen Yao Ling for a few days and thought she had become cold and aloof again. But she put a bag of beautifully wrapped gifts in the back seat of the car. Yao Shenhe said it was a dessert specialty she had bought. He dropped them off in Tsim Sha Tsui. The three of them had become quite adept at this, so after packing up, they prepared to rest.
Before Liang Litang left, at the entrance of the B&B, Yao Ling said to him, "Although I didn't include you, I used the camera your company gave me in mainland China."
Liang Litang gave a thumbs-up. Giving something away meant it was valuable if it was used. Suddenly, he remembered something and became interested, so he asked, "Do you know Steven?"
"I don't know him."
"That's what Hayden revealed. The fact that I'm MK is only known to you, him, and me."
Yao Ling smiled and said, "Maybe your middle school classmate said that."
Suddenly, Liang Litang's cell phone rang. It happened to be Deng Shilang calling.
"Where is it? I broke down in Tsuen Wan and need to be sent for repairs. Please come and pick me up."
"It's so miserable. I'm here with Rosalie."
Deng Shilang didn't say anything at first, then he said, "Okay, that's okay."
When Yao Ling heard Deng Shilang's voice, she felt pain all over her body again after only a week, and even her eyebrows wrinkled subconsciously.
He told her to let him go and not to pursue sex. She sensed that he had gone from being open to being very shy, a situation they had created in mainland China. She decided to go in first, saying, "I'm going to go in and pack my things."
Liang Litang nodded and closed the door. Deng Shilang didn't even want to hear her voice, but he didn't hang up Liang Litang's phone, repeatedly confirming that he didn't need to come.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
