Chapter 49 Is Your Pampered Arrogance Really an Illusion?!
After winter set in, the temperature in Jingzhao plummeted. The second week after Xie Qingci returned, the weather forecast showed that it was going to snow soon.
In the school group chat, there are students from the south who are the most excited every year when it snows. They say they have already ordered the tools to build a snowman and everything is ready except for the first snow.
Ke Meng couldn't understand their excitement. With the cold wind and strong snow, it seemed even worse for them who had to get up early for class.
"Even a real-life version of 'Sending Off Ma Sheng of Dongyang' is no better than this." As she said this, Ke Meng was wrapped in her small blanket next to the radiator, reciting art history.
As the end of the semester approaches, some subjects have already begun their assessments.
Duan Siyu poked her head out of the bed and retorted, "No, at least other people have maids to serve them soup, but we're just unlucky."
Ke Meng looked up at the sky and smiled bitterly, then lifted his mask, took out a tissue, and blew his nose. "That's even worse."
As he spoke, he threw the crumpled paper in his hand into the trash can next to him, which was already more than half full of tiny white clouds.
A few days ago, the temperature dropped, and Ke Meng, quite oblivious to her surroundings, wore a short skirt, thus catching her first cold of the winter.
"Others wear four-piece bedding sets for winter, but I need a whole set for a cold in winter."
This looks like an even worse situation.
Duan Siyu got out of bed to get a drink of water. "You've been like this for days. You should take some medicine. Otherwise, you'll infect me and Aci too."
As he spoke, he pretended to be frightened and stepped aside.
Ke Meng chuckled, "It's heartbreaking that three years of relationship were destroyed by a cold! I was even wearing a mask! Aci is so kind; she still sits at the same table with me even in this situation."
Xie Qingci, who was sitting to the side reading a book, chuckled upon hearing this and joked, "No, I'm a little scared too."
As soon as she finished speaking, Duan Siyu laughed. Ke Meng snorted and reached for her small medicine box. "After I take my medicine, I can show you all tomorrow!"
"Hey? It's snowing!" Duan Siyu poured some water and was about to sit down at the table when she looked up and saw snowflakes falling outside the balcony window.
The heating was on in the dormitory, and the windows were fogged up. She went over and wiped away the hazy view through the window.
The sky was overcast, the cold wind howled, and white snowflakes drifted down from the sky.
Although as a northerner I am used to such scenery, I can't help but be delighted by this timely first snow.
Hearing the sound, Xie Qingci looked up from her book and turned to look at the source of the sound.
Wiping away the fog from the window, the condensed water droplets meandered down, casting a mottled and distorted reflection of the snowy light through the window.
The snow was falling heavier and heavier.
Ke Meng stuffed two wads of tissues into his nose, exhaled through his mouth, and said in a muffled voice, "Quick! Get the tablet, I'm going to watch 'Goblin' a million times!"
He showed none of the disdain he had just displayed when criticizing those unsophisticated southern classmates.
Duan Siyu stood by the bed watching the snow for a while, then turned around and came back. "It's Friday today, shall we go out for a meal?"
Ke Meng stopped searching for a tablet in the messy pile of books, raised his hand and said, "Okay, I agree, let's go eat barbecue! And drink some soju, perfect!"
As a seasoned K-drama fan, I may have some complaints, but I still feel the need to create some kind of ritual for these seasons that are given a romantic hue by TV dramas.
Duan Siyu gave an "OK" sign. "I'll book a table right now."
After saying that, she suddenly remembered a rather special person present, looked up at him, and asked, "Aci, did your husband come to see you today?"
If I remember correctly, she used to come over on weekends, but recently I haven't seen Xie Qingci go out much on weekends.
Xie Qingci smiled and shook her head, "He's on a business trip and won't be coming anytime soon."
The day after she left Hong Kong Island last time, Leung King-chuk went on a business trip to Europe, saying that there were some problems with the European part of the project and the exact end time was still uncertain, but it was estimated that it would not be too soon.
Ke Meng let out a disappointed "Ha~", "Is this the trouble of marrying an older, mature man? He's either on a business trip or on his way to one, and meeting him depends on luck?"
Xie Qingci didn't feel there was anything wrong with it. In the past few days, they have maintained a frequency of communication, talking on the phone once every three days and exchanging a few words via text every now and then.
Although they often didn't have much to talk about because they were separated by their phones, or he would hang up after only a few words to get busy, she felt it was quite nice and harmonious.
“What if we’re talking about a project worth hundreds of billions?” Duan Siyu turned her head and uttered the truth in a low voice. Ke Meng paused for a moment, “Then that seems acceptable. Is there really such suffering? I’m willing to suffer it for thousands of girls, just punish me alone.”
"..."
Today, thanks to the first snowfall, the restaurants around the school were packed with people. Fortunately, Duan Siyu had made a reservation in advance, and they became the first lucky ones to dine in.
The Korean BBQ restaurant's speakers played one Korean drama OST after another, and the walls were covered with movie and TV posters.
In order to be able to drink shochu, Ke Meng didn't even take the cold medicine that he had already found and planned to take.
Xie Qingci doesn't drink alcohol, so she can skip it and just drink a beverage.
Ke Meng said it was just liquor, not very strong, and drinking a little wouldn't hurt.
"Don't worry, we'll carry you back to your dorm if you get drunk." Seeing Xie Qingci hesitate, Duan Siyu joined in the persuasion, "Or is it that your husband won't let you drink?"
That's not the case; Liang Jingzhuo doesn't care about such things.
Their seats were by the window, where black window panes divided the glass into small sections, filled with warm yellow light bulbs. Outside, there was a scene of falling snow, which was indeed very fitting.
Xie Qingci pushed the small glass in front of her forward. "Then I'll have a little."
The taste of shochu is quite different from that of regular liquor, and it's not very palatable. Ke Meng ordered the fruit flavor, which was slightly sweet, and it balanced out the sweetness a bit.
Xie Qingci usually gets drunk even from red wine, so after finishing her second glass, she covered the rim of the glass, indicating that she couldn't drink anymore and that she wouldn't be able to walk back if she drank any more.
She was already starting to feel dizzy.
Ke Meng and Duan Siyu glanced at her slightly flushed cheeks, but didn't try to stop her. They smiled and said she was cute, then held up one finger and asked her, "How many is this?"
Xie Qingci wasn't that drunk, and deliberately teased them, saying, "Two."
The two laughed and said, "We're doomed! Aci's drunk and out of his mind! We can't let Liang Jingzhuo find out, or he'll come after us!"
Xie Qingci smiled and asked the waiter for a pot of warm water. "Then I probably won't be able to make it back in time."
She sobered up after rushing back from Europe.
Ke Meng pondered for a moment, then nodded solemnly, "That seems to make sense. In that case, let's go to the next game later!"
Tomorrow is Saturday, and there's no curfew at school tonight, so we can stay out a little later before going back.
When we left the barbecue restaurant, it was still snowing. Ke Meng was all talk and no action, but his alcohol tolerance was actually quite low. He looked at the zebra crossing on the road and said he was going to complain to the municipal government because even the zebra crossing was painted crooked.
Even so, she still refused to go back to school, saying she wanted to go to karaoke. There would be a lot of people everywhere tonight. Duan Siyu had a friend she met during an extracurricular activity who worked part-time at a nearby karaoke bar. She said she would reserve a private room for them and that the next batch of customers would clear the room in half an hour, so they only needed to get there within an hour.
On the way to the KTV, Ke Meng swayed and said she couldn't go on and was going to throw up, which scared the driver so much that he stepped on the gas even faster.
They eventually encountered a traffic jam at an intersection about fifty meters from their destination, so the three of them got out of the car ahead of time.
Duan Siyu supported Ke Meng, half-believing, half-doubting, "Are you really going to throw up?"
Ke Meng immediately stopped acting drunk and said, "I was just trying to scare Master. Didn't you see him always talking to Aci?"
From the moment they got in the car, the driver glanced at the three of them, his gaze lingering on Xie Qingci for a moment before his eyes lit up. Then he slowly slowed down and occasionally struck up a conversation with Xie Qingci.
They asked about her age, her school, and whether she had a boyfriend.
Xie Qingci wasn't stupid. Most of her replies were a mix of truth and falsehood. Ke Meng couldn't take it anymore, so she started to writhe and pretend to vomit, urging her master to hurry up and start driving.
Surprisingly, this trick worked quite well.
"I've decided to use today's incident to make a deal with Liang Jingzhuo: I want him to invest in me opening a coconut chicken restaurant at the school. That one at the school is such a rip-off, so expensive and with so little meat. If I open one, I'll start a price war with them!"
Duan Siyu laughed from the side, "You're not drunk, and you still know how to use Aci and Liang Jingzhuo to negotiate terms."
Ke Meng clicked his tongue. "Who said I was drunk?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a chill on the back of her hand. She looked up at the sky and exclaimed, "Why is there bird droppings everywhere?"
Xie Qingci: "..."
Duan Siyu: "..."
They took the elevator upstairs and arrived at the floor where the KTV was located. The previous group of guests had just left. Duan Siyu's friend, wearing a work ID, was standing behind the bar. When she saw them, she smiled and came up to greet them.
Duan Siyu introduced her, "My roommates are Ke Meng and Xie Qingci."
The other person smiled, nodded, and said, "Hello."
Ke Meng chuckled sheepishly, and Xie Qingci replied, "Hello."
The private room was already booked, and they even got an employee discount. They could pay the bill when they came out. After giving the instructions, they asked the waiter to lead them there.
As we passed a group of people waiting in the hall, a girl standing on the side glanced at us casually at first, then suddenly turned her head to look at us.
Xie Qingci was drawn to that gaze and turned her head to take a look.
The girl looked to be around their age, with long, straight hair and a bright, cute appearance. Her gaze was somewhat uncertain and inquisitive, as if she knew them.
She pondered for a moment, unsure if she had seen him before. This often happened at school, so to avoid the awkward situation of others recognizing her but her not recognizing the other person, she smiled and nodded at the other person. Then, together with Duan Siyu, she helped Ke Meng follow the waiter to the private room.
After the microphone equipment was set up, the waiter left, but soon brought over drinks and snacks, saying they were complimentary.
Ke Meng praised Duan Siyu as a reliable friend, saying that she not only gave a discount but also gave her so many gifts.
Hsieh Ching-Tzu isn't a very good singer. She rarely listens to music, and the only song she can sing well is "I Stay in Love," which she performed at a freshman welcome party.
Ke Meng sobered up a bit and said that although it was a sad love song about heartbreak, it didn't matter. The person who could bring down the newspaper wasn't here today, so he could sing whatever he wanted.
As he spoke, he tossed the microphone to Xie Qingci and pressed the song selection button.
Xie Qingci wasn't ready when the intro started. She held the microphone, took a deep breath, and adjusted herself as the lyrics began.
Hsieh Ching-Tzu's voice is sweet and clear, and her pitch is perfect. Just the humming at the beginning of the song is enough to get you into character in a second, making the sad love song feel romantic. Ke Meng and Duan Si-Yu were practically holding up glow sticks to listen to the concert.
And I keep telling myself that you'll come back around.
"And I try and front like 'oh well'." (I pretend not to care)
"Each time you let me down."
...
After singing the last syllable, Hsieh Ching-Tzu slowly put down the microphone.
The two, who were watching the concert from the sidelines, immediately gave a warm round of applause, saying, "You're just as good as A-Ci, a top-tier singer. I've fallen in love with you after listening to you!"
Xie Qingci was actually a little nervous, worried that she would sing the wrong syllable. Fortunately, she finished smoothly. She breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Okay, I'm not singing anymore, you guys sing."
Ke Meng took the microphone, "Aci, I've always been curious, have you really never been in a relationship before? Had any ambiguous relationships? Any particular members of the opposite sex?"
This question had troubled Ke Meng for a long time. Such a charming and beautiful woman must have no shortage of suitors. She didn't believe she hadn't met one or two handsome men with good looks and character.
But she didn't want to ask directly, as it seemed a bit impolite.
Today, fueled by the alcohol, I couldn't hold back any longer and decided to find out for myself.
Xie Qingci thought for a few seconds, "I'm not in a relationship, and I didn't have that plan before."
To be precise, she hadn't thought about it in that way. She understood that her appearance provided her with many advantages, and she also understood that many people approached her probably because of this.
"Actually, I'm not that much of a looks-obsessed person."
When it comes to getting along with people, she believes that character and habits are more important.
Duan Siyu was also very interested in this topic, so she moved closer to Ke Meng and listened to what she had to say.
Only the wordless background music was playing in the room. Xie Qingci glanced at the two people who had come closer to her.
After a moment's thought, "Hmm... Did I have any senior classmates I admired in middle school? I wonder if that counts?"
She didn't think she liked it, but she thought it was amazing that he had been ranked first in his grade for a long time and had won championships in various competitions.
The two people leaning closer, their eyes widening as if they'd stumbled upon some major news, suddenly asked, "Was he handsome? What happened next? Did you manage to get in touch?"
At this point, their interest in digging deeper into the gossip had outweighed their warning from the "defendant." Anyway, Liang Jingzhuo wasn't there, so what was wrong with chatting about it?! What was wrong with it?!
Xie Qingci pondered for a moment, then nodded, "We met again in a competition later."
"And then what?"
Xie Qingci looked at the two pairs of eyes that suddenly lit up. "When he graduated from high school, he asked me where I planned to go to university. At that time, I was a junior in high school, studying in Shanghai. I hadn't thought about going anywhere else, so I said I planned to go back to Beijing to study at university. He said, 'See you at Peking University then.'"
"Holy crap!!" Ke Meng couldn't help but swear. "Isn't that someone from our school? A year older than us, meaning he's a senior now? Who?!"
Xie Qingci smiled and explained, "He's no longer in the country; he went abroad as an exchange student in his junior year of college."
After saying that, she paused for a moment and continued, "But my coming to Peking University has nothing to do with him, because Peking University's art school is already very well-known in the field."
She didn't think much about it at the time, but later she understood what "see you at Kyoto University" meant.
"Huh?" Duan Siyu couldn't understand. "That's it?"
Xie Qingci nodded, "Yes, I haven't contacted him since I came to Peking University, but we've bumped into each other on campus."
Not contacting her means there's no romantic interest, and the other person was very courteous not to bother her; it was a dignified approach.
Ke Meng let out a long "Wow!" and then tilted her head to probe for information, "How's his appearance? Is he as handsome as your husband?"
This question made Xie Qingci pause for a long time, reviewing Liang Jingzhuo's appearance in her mind, "It's not the same style."
Liang Jingzhuo's appearance has a deep, aggressive look, while that senior's is more gentle.
"A handsome guy with delicate features?" Duan Siyu asked.
Xie Qingci nodded, "Yes."
As soon as she finished speaking, Ke Meng looked shocked, then breathed a sigh of relief and tugged at Duan Siyu, saying, "Thank goodness, it's just that Aci wasn't thinking about romance at the time, otherwise President Liang would have been in serious trouble."
For someone who appreciates understated beauty, the allure of a delicate, pale-faced beauty is no less than that of an atomic bomb.
Xie Qingci corrected her, "It's just admiration, not liking."
She had never been in a relationship, but she was certain that the feeling wasn't just being in love.
Thinking of this, her thoughts drifted away for a moment.
She has only recently begun to understand and experience this subtle feeling.
Ke Meng and Duan Siyu nodded in understanding, zipped up their mouths, and promised, "We will definitely keep our mouths shut."
After all, the warning of "bankruptcy" was still fresh in their minds, so they dared not act rashly.
Xie Qingci chuckled, sat down to drink juice and eat fruit, and Ke Meng and Duan Siyu took the stage, took off their shoes and jumped onto the sofa, singing from the grand and passionate "When" to "Today You're Going to Marry Me", as if they were really getting married tomorrow.
While the two jumped off the sofa to select songs at the karaoke machine, Xie Qingci got up and went to the bathroom. When she reached for her phone, she discovered that it had run out of battery and turned off sometime during the day.
After leaving the restroom, she went to the front desk to borrow a power bank.
Duan Siyu's friend knew her and kindly lent her his power bank. She thanked him and accepted it, saying she would return it to him once it was charged enough to turn on.
The other party smiled and said it was fine, she had several spares, and told her to use them without worry.
She smiled and replied "okay," then took the power bank and walked back.
Xie Qingci was worried that Ms. Zhou and the elderly lady might be looking for her, as she didn't know when her phone had been turned off. She was concerned when she didn't receive a reply.
Her thoughts paused for a moment, as if there was another person who might also be unreachable.
She unplugged the power bank's data cable, plugged in her phone, and after confirming that there was enough battery remaining, she turned and walked towards the private room.
As I passed the rest area, the noisy crowd that had gathered earlier had already left, and out of the corner of my eye, I could only see a dark figure sitting there.
She tilted her head slightly and glanced in that direction.
Then he paused, his steps faltering.
A man in a suit sat upright on the sofa, his black coat draped over the back of the chair beside him. His gaze was fixed on her, as if he had been watching her for a long time before she looked at him.
After exchanging a silent glance for two seconds, Xie Qingci calmly looked away and continued walking forward.
I drank too much today, I even started hallucinating. How come I thought I saw Liang Jingzhuo?
The steady pace gradually slowed down as they approached the corridor where the private room was located, and stopped completely three seconds later.
She stood still, blinked, and then suddenly turned her head to look over.
He was still sitting, his expression even colder than when he had made eye contact with her. When she turned to look at him, he got up and walked over.
?
Is this not a hallucination?!
-----------------------
Author's Note:
The phrase "the maidservant held the hot water and poured it out" comes from Song Lian's "Preface to Sending Ma Sheng of Dongyang" from the Ming Dynasty.
The English lyrics are from Mariah Carey's "I Stay in Love".
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