Chapter 9 The angrier he became, the more exuberant he rose.
They were walking on a slightly downhill road. There seemed to be some kind of off-road activity today, with mountain bikes whizzing past them one after another.
The convoy flew away like migratory birds, and when it passed by parked cars on the roadside, it neatly and uniformly circled around them.
The road was narrow, and half of the Cayenne drove onto the shoulder, crossing the curb.
Xu Yuewei used to enjoy stepping on curb stones, especially when waiting for someone by the roadside.
Her rare display of childlike innocence makes these memories all the more memorable.
Jiang Shiyan remembered asking himself, "What if you're waiting for someone and you unknowingly walk too far along the curb and end up being the one who's late?"
Xu Yuewei replied, "You think I'm too stupid."
She turned 180 degrees and stood steadily on the curb, half-jokingly saying, "I turned back as soon as I got to the side, how could I have walked so far?"
How could they have gone so far?
Jiang Shiyan watched the woman's retreating figure and then followed her.
Beside the car, Zhou Xu had already put the other half of the coffee in the passenger seat. Xu Yuewei patted his shoulder and said, "You've worked hard. You can go back now."
Zhou Xu glanced at the man slowly approaching and asked in a low voice, "Can I stay?"
In desperation, Xu Yuewei threatened him: "If you don't leave, I won't have dinner with you guys tonight."
Zhou Xu scratched his head, put his hands in his pockets, and left.
The two men, one going uphill and the other downhill, passed each other without looking at each other.
Xu Yuewei checked the cup holder in the coffee bag to make sure it wasn't crooked before closing the passenger door.
As the light of twilight gradually approaches the horizon, it shines horizontally across the earth, reminiscent of the yellow of sunflowers.
She couldn't help but look back in the direction she had come from. At the street corner she had just passed, there were indeed people selling flowers, but when the light turned green, pedestrians hurried by and no one stopped.
"I have a question."
Jiang Shiyan was also looking in the direction of the flower vendor, tilting his head, the orange-yellow light dancing in his bright black eyes: "What?"
Did I pass the interview?
"My assistant will let you know later."
As expected, it was a pointless question.
Xu Yuewei lowered her eyes, put her hands in her pockets, and the sound of the plastic film crumpling and rubbing against the flower path seemed to travel through her fingertips and into her eardrums via bone conduction.
"Then I don't understand. It's not like these things can't be delivered, so why did you have to come in person?"
She asked, "Or did you come all this way just to see me make a fool of myself?"
Jiang Shiyan's eyelids fluttered as he looked her up and down frankly: "What's so funny about you?"
"...Thank you for coming. Well, we've already made up our minds about this, so let's call it a day."
She pursed her lips. "Our shop is doing quite well, so we won't need your special attention in the future."
"Really?" Jiang Shiyan raised an eyebrow, his gaze falling on the flowers tucked in her pocket. "They don't look like it. I thought you were so bored you were going to throw a party."
Xu Yuewei gave a forced smile: "Even if I open it, I'll hide it so you won't see it."
She started using honorifics again, and Jiang Shiyan's slightly furrowed brows showed a hint of annoyance. He reached out and grasped the rosebud, causing her to lean back and take a half step.
“If you keep going back and forth like that, I’ll break it.”
Xu Yuewei's heart skipped a beat.
In that instant, the raw, untamed energy within the man's bones surged forth with this movement, like an actor removing heavy makeup.
He released his grip, and one of the petals noticeably swayed outwards, seemingly about to fall.
Xu Yuewei regretted letting Zhou Xu leave. At this moment, the dangerous and aggressive aura emanating from the man was spreading vigorously. She suddenly realized that, not counting passersby, this was the first time they had been alone together since their breakup.
"You seem to be overthinking things."
Jiang Shiyan remained calm, putting his hand that had just committed the wrongdoing into his pocket, trying to smooth things over. "We're even now, and I feel good about it."
She realized that he owed her nothing after receiving large orders for tea cakes, sunflowers for roses, and the car collisions canceled each other out.
But she still owes him.
It's an old story.
As the cold air filled her chest, Xu Yuewei gradually calmed down.
She handed him the rose:
"You seem quite interested in my roses."
"Perfect timing. This flower won't survive if it stays with me. I can't take it home, so I'll have to throw it away."
"You can keep it as a gift, or you can help me throw it away, that's fine too."
Without a word, she placed the flower in his hand.
The plastic outer layer of the rose was indeed like ice, and it even felt a bit cool.
"I'll also keep the second cup half-price for you. You're welcome to bring Mengjiao over to use it."
*
The weather is getting colder day by day, and it's getting dark earlier and earlier. Around 7 p.m., the city lights are shining in the night.
In the bustling CBD, towering office buildings stand side by side, and traffic and pedestrians crisscross in the cold wind. A few blocks away, there is a neighborhood with low-rise gatehouses, which appears quiet and mysterious in the midst of the city.
Winding uphill from a forked path, there's a villa-like building with a gate and surrounded by a yard. Under a sign that flashes the words "Neon Studio," a hidden door in the black wall opens and closes.
Pan Mingxuan closed the door behind him, picked up the takeout and went to the rest area. He put his burger, which had gone cold due to the long delivery time, into the microwave and microwaved it for a bit before remembering that he had just received a message notification.
He unlocked his screen and glanced at the message; it was from his cousin: "Bro, I found a part-time job, so I won't be coming over to your place."
Pan Mingxuan frowned and replied, "What kind of part-time job is this? Is it legitimate?"
He couldn't understand why this idiot kid would just quit, offering a lucrative job where all he had to do was run errands and do odd jobs while getting free drinks and, if he was lucky, even meet celebrities. What a waste of his connections!
It was lunchtime, but there were only two people in the kitchen. Pan Mingxuan asked his brother, who was eating straight from his chopsticks, "Are Brother Jiang and the others still in the rehearsal room?"
"I don't know, I haven't seen him. By the way, what has he been up to lately? It feels like he hasn't been seriously creating anything in ages." The man slurped a couple of mouthfuls of noodles, wiped his mouth, and asked.
If it weren't for the fact that he was eating and afraid he would bite his tongue, Pan Mingxuan would have liked to slap him on the back: "You're even urging the boss to work, you're really something."
The man chuckled and answered Pan Mingxuan's previous question: "Teacher Lu is in the rehearsal room. What about you? Why aren't you off work yet?"
Pan Mingxuan: "I want to finish organizing the recording files before I leave."
"What's the point of tidying up? Most of the cases are scrapped." He reached out and patted Pan Mingxuan's shoulder. "Old Pan, you're truly a chosen one, working hard without complaint."
“But,” Pan Mingxuan slapped his hand away, speaking casually, “Brother Jiang really will put my name on the staff list.”
The man fell silent, and the only sound in the kitchen was the slurping of noodles.
Pan Mingxuan was munching on a hamburger and scrolling through his phone when he suddenly saw something shocking and almost bit his tongue: "Holy crap! What is this?"
Knock knock.
A sound came from the doorway. Pan Mingxuan looked up and saw Jiang Shiyan still tapping on the door frame with his knuckles bent.
He was holding a bowl of instant noodles in his other hand, clearly there to eat.
"What's all the noise about?"
Pan Mingxuan wiped his mouth with a tissue: "Brother, do you want to hear some gossip?"
When Jiang Shiyan arrived, his gaze fell on the screen. He explained, "The person with the anime character profile picture is my cousin. Yes, the one I told you about before. I was originally going to introduce him to our studio for part-time work, but guess what..."
He didn't need to say anything more.
On the phone screen, a newly posted WeChat Moments message was displayed.
The background of the photo looks like a restaurant, with three people crammed onto a dark green sofa, grinning at the camera.
Coincidentally, he knew all three of them.
The cousin Lao Pan mentioned, his ex-girlfriend, and his ex-girlfriend's good friend.
It seems that this is what she meant by attending the child's welcome party.
Pan Mingxuan was so surprised that he didn't notice the boss's overly indifferent expression and exclaimed, "What a small world! Isn't it?"
Jiang Shiyan swiped the screen to the right, and his droopy eyelids twitched.
Apart from the first photo which features someone else, the three photos Zhou Xu posted later included one selfie and two photos of the two of them together.
In one group photo, both the man and woman are looking down; the woman is cutting the cake, and Zhou Xu is holding a paper plate to receive it. In another photo, both are facing the camera, smiling with their eyes squinted, and neither is looking at the camera. It has a Hong Kong style filter applied, making it look like a movie still.
Welcome to Mist Café! The ladies there are all very pretty, and I'm here to be handsome :)
Looking down to the bottom, Pan Mingxuan's "like" note, labeled "Xu Yuewei of Yaming Qin Society," caught my eye.
Pan Mingxuan is very thoughtful and didn't rush to give a thumbs up, for fear of embarrassing the person involved.
Jiang Shiyan clicked on the last group photo, zoomed in with two fingers, and saw Xu Yuewei's smiling eyes fill the screen. Scrolling down, the reddish-brown lipstick on her lips slightly blurred the outline of her lips.
He mimicked the curve of her lips, revealing a smile that held no real joy.
Youyou repeated the same sentence: "Yes, it's a small world."
Jiang Shiyan handed the phone back to Pan Mingxuan, then raised his chin and pointed to the desserts and drinks Pan Mingxuan had brought back a few hours earlier: "They'll spoil by tomorrow, so you guys need to deal with them."
Pan Mingxuan couldn't help but say, "Even if you have to compensate Teacher Xu, you've bought too much."
He sighed again, "But was she ostracized by the music club, or is she having financial difficulties? Otherwise, why would she be working at a coffee shop?"
Jiang Shiyan didn't reply, but threw the instant noodle bowl on the table and said, "I'm leaving first."
After he left, Pan Mingxuan muttered to himself inexplicably:
Did I say something wrong...?
*
The city lights reflected in the night sky, weaving into strands of gold.
The autumn wind was chilly, but the two front windows of the Cayenne traveling on the road were both open.
In the densely packed red-light district, I walked and stopped, the wind rushing in like waves, carrying away or diluting the lingering smell of tobacco.
Jiang Shiyan only smoked half a cigarette before he felt choked by it. After putting it out, the smell was even more unpleasant than when he was smoking it.
Some things are best avoided, as they can lead to a more torturous post-processing experience.
The Cayenne drove into a neighborhood where taxis and buses were scarce and land was incredibly valuable. Everyone living there drove luxury cars, and the security and property management of the neighborhood were impeccable.
A single-level apartment, with only one household on each floor.
As soon as Jiang Shiyan stepped out of the elevator, he took off his coat, draped it over his arm, opened the door, changed his shoes, stepped onto the marble tile floor that the cleaning lady had just cleaned, walked into the living room, threw the flowers on the coffee table, and then fell backward into the cold leather sofa, covering his face with his arms.
After a while, he got tired of lying down, sat up, his brows and eyes looking somewhat tired, and he seemed indifferent as if he were detached from his surroundings.
Staring at the white roses on the coffee table, her indifferent face appeared in my mind, like a cold brushstroke in the night sky.
The lighter popped out a flame with a snap, and the cigarette burned for a while, the smoke rising like clouds and mist.
He pressed down on the cigarette butt and stubbed it out on the rose, burning a charred hole in it.
Flowers that wither overnight are not so lucky.
After stubbing out his cigarette, Jiang Shiyan stood up, grabbed his collar, took off his sweater, and unbuttoned his shirt one button at a time, followed by the clanking of a metal belt buckle.
The clothes that were still partially undressed were only removed once inside the bathroom, the sound of water creating a misty steam.
The angrier he became, the more arrogant he became.
Turning down the water temperature causes the water jets to concentrate in one spot, creating a burning sensation from the contrast between the hot and cold water.
The feeling gradually subsided, and he slowly recalled the calm look in her eyes when she mentioned Meng Jiao.
It was calm enough to sting him.
Two men's faces flashed through his mind: the mature one in the bar, the youthful one in the coffee shop.
Jiang Shiyan unconsciously shook his head slightly, shooing them away.
Then, another man's face appeared, with an ordinary appearance, and only his designer clothes attracted attention.
The man, holding an umbrella, embraced the woman in the light purple dress.
That dress was one he had bought for her not long ago.
...
The sound of water rushing over the bathroom floor eventually becomes quiet.
Suddenly, a wet hand slapped the wall, water droplets splashing from the junction of the palm and the surface, making a sound like a giant bubble being popped.
A note from the author:
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P.S. It will make the male lead quit smoking [dove emoji]
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