9
That night, Zhuang Xiaodie lay in bed. The weather was getting warmer, and the sheets seemed to be covered with a thin layer of burrs, which pricked her tossing and turning. The curtains were thin, and the light from the street lamps shone through, filling the room with an ambiguous white light. There was no moon tonight, and Zhuang Xiaodie had no reason to think that tomorrow would be cloudy. She knew that Nian Jinsi was sitting in the living room, and the TV was still playing the news. The previous impulse had subsided, and now the first thing to do was to solve the problem - what could she do if Kong Yanchen followed? Shen Tu Hai had become anxious, and he could no longer hold back tonight. It was hard to guarantee that he would suddenly reveal the truth to Nian Jinsi one day.
If Nian Jinsi wasn't here—
The door knocked twice. Zhuang Xiaodie sat up suddenly and looked at the door. After a moment of silence, the door knocked twice again. Zhuang Xiaodie became impatient and asked, "Who?"
The person outside replied softly, "It's me."
Zhuang Xiaodie hesitated for a moment. She stared at the blurry door panel and got out of bed before appearing too hesitant. She suppressed her inner irritation and tried her best to open the door wider so that the other party would not see her mood.
The living room was dark, and Nian Jinsi's face became blurry. Her smile melted her features like melted wax. Zhuang Xiaodie wanted to stop her at first, but Nian Jinsi rushed in straight away, and the former had to take a step back and pretend that she wanted to welcome her into the house.
Zhuang Xiaodie followed Nian Jinsi's gaze. Instead of sitting on the bed, Nian Jinsi turned around and looked at the door. Zhuang Xiaodie stood there, pretending not to notice the hint. Nian Jinsi said nothing and walked over to close the door. Zhuang Xiaodie took a deep breath and tried to calm her tone: "Do you have anything to say?"
——Are you going to talk about Kong Yanchen?
Nian Jinsi turned around and waved her hand. Zhuang Xiaodie thought she was going to attack her and subconsciously took a step back.
Nian Jinsi said, "Why are you hiding?" He opened his palm upwards, and a small roll of money tied with an eraser lay quietly in his palm.
"—What's this for?"
"Rent, food, or whatever else, you can figure it out yourself."
Zhuang Xiaodie smiled and said, "You come to play with me and you want to pay me? I really get all the good things."
Nian Jinsi didn't smile. The light was dim, and her lips were pressed into a straight line. Zhuang Xiaodie was inexplicably reminded of the cement road by the riverbank, which had a similarly straight and sharp edge.
Zhuang Xiaodie pushed her hand away: "Didn't we agree before that if you come to play, I'll take care of everything, including food, clothing, housing and transportation. Why did you change your mind?"
"The past was the past, and the present is the present."
Zhuang Xiaodie folded her arms and said, "I won't accept it."
Nian Jinsi grabbed her arm and pushed it into the gap, but Zhuang Xiaodie dodged it repeatedly. After several tugs and pulls, the two of them almost got into a fight. Nian Jinsi suddenly pinched Zhuang Xiaodie so hard that she dropped her arm in pain, slipped and fell. The money roll fell to the ground and rolled neatly under the bed. The two watched helplessly, panting. Nian Jinsi staggered back, holding his knees to support himself, and suddenly laughed.
When I was a kid, I would shake my piggy bank gently at first to test the water. If there wasn't enough, I would give it a sudden, hard shake, making the coins rustle, just to show off my strength. Nian Jinsi laughed so hard that she fell to the ground. She covered her face, her voice rising and rising, almost laughing wildly. Zhuang Xiaodie thought she was going crazy or finally breaking down, and looked at her in surprise, until she saw Nian Jinsi fall to the ground, shaking with laughter, and suddenly she was laughing too. Her feet hurt, and her bottom felt like it was broken into three pieces. At this moment, she was homeless, threatened to kill someone by a high school student, and now she had to worry about the woman in front of her who had a career and a family. Life was so fucking ridiculous.
"Do you remember?" Zhuang Xiaodie slapped the edge of the bed, slowly stood up, and said, "When I was a child, I saw adults arguing over the bill and making it look like a fight. We said we would never do that again. I never thought this would happen."
Nian Jinsi had already climbed up, covering her face, still laughing, the sound almost crying. This laughter lasted too long, Zhuang Xiaodie came over and pulled her arm: "What else is going on? Why are you laughing so happily?"
A drop of warm water landed right on her finger. Zhuang Xiaodie froze for a moment, then grasped her wrist, which held the trembling woman before her. The moonlight was brilliant, shrouding them both. She froze. Nian Jinsi buried her face in her knees, perhaps trying to hide her tears, her own weeping face. Zhuang Xiaodie supported her trembling shoulders, unsure of what to do.
As a child, Nian Jinsi was pale, thin, and round-faced. Boys loved to tease and bully her. Her childhood curiosity often manifested in aggressive ways. Back then, Nian Jinsi cried often, and Zhuang Xiaodie served as her protector, often rushing into the storm to fight off the bullies.
Later, Nian Jinsi stopped crying and became more determined. She always set goals and then tried her best to achieve them. She was no longer the little girl who cried behind her back. Zhuang Xiaodie stared at the trembling woman in front of her who was trying her best to hold back her tears, and suddenly felt a sense of familiarity with her.
So she squatted down and said, "Is this about Kong Yanchen? Did he hit you?"
Nian Jinsi still didn't answer. Zhuang Xiaodie patted her shoulder, and she soon stopped crying. She sat cross-legged on the floor, holding a tissue box and silently wiping her face and blowing her nose. The scars on her arms had faded a lot. Zhuang Xiaodie invited her to sleep on the bed, and she didn't refuse. She fell asleep in a short while after lying on the bed. Zhuang Xiaodie leaned against the wardrobe and looked for a while, then closed the door and went out.
She spent the night on the sofa. The cushions sank like a black hole, and she felt like she was being crushed into pieces, packed into boxes, and then burned. She woke up with a start, only to find herself drenched in sweat.
She checked her phone and realized she had only slept for two hours. It was three o'clock, and in a few hours she would have to go to the dumpling shop again, doing something she absolutely didn't want to do. Shen Tu Hai's appearance and Nian Jin Si's arrival had completely disrupted her life. She should have been lying under a bridge or in an abandoned building, dying peacefully on an ordinary day, instead of now lying on someone else's sofa, stuck in a dilemma.
Zhuang Xiaodie returned to the room. Nian Jinsi was still asleep. She pushed her, but she didn't wake up. She pressed her hands on her shoulders and pushed her hard several times. Nian Jinsi trembled all over and struggled like crazy, pushing and hitting her. Zhuang Xiaodie was punched several times in the face and shoulders. The pain was numb. The anger in her heart finally couldn't be controlled, and she raised her hand and slapped her. Nian Jinsi paused and finally looked at her.
"Who do you think I am, Kong Yanchen?" Zhuang Xiaodie asked. Nian Jinsi's reaction confirmed her suspicions, which was much better than being blind.
Nian Jinsi stared at her blankly.
"Kong Yanchen hit you, didn't he?"
Nian Jinsi was silent for a while and nodded.
"He followed you?"
Nian Jinsi was silent longer this time, then shook his head.
"and you--"
"I want to divorce him, but I don't dare go out." Nian Jinsi suddenly spoke, her voice very low, her throat hoarse from suppressing her crying. She suddenly raised her face and stared at Zhuang Xiaodie, her eyes as big as two black bowls, like a monster in a horror movie that tempts people to jump off a cliff.
Zhuang Xiaodie paused.
"—Can you go back with me?"
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