Chapter 75 Can I go home?
There has been a clothing wholesale market in the south city for decades. High-rise buildings have just started to be built, but there are only a few old four- or five-story brown-glass buildings.
The last time I came here was during the day and there were few people on the streets. This time, Su Xia came here at night and only then did she realize the scale of the so-called largest night market in Jiangcheng.
As soon as I got up the escalator from the subway station, I saw scattered pushcart stalls selling clothes with lights on the street. When I reached the intersection near the construction site, I looked up and saw that the passers-by were as dense as a school of fish, and the light bulbs and colorful LED light boxes were very bright.
The smell of oil smoke and powder.
All I see is the hustle and bustle of life, as if it stretches as far as the eye can see.
Su Xia had never been to such a place in her two lifetimes.
Girls' Generation and Su Xiaojuan went shopping at Hang Lung together. With their mother around, they never looked at the prices when it came to the clothes or shoes they liked.
After getting married, she was welcomed into a new circle of wealthy ladies, and countless people were willing to make Mrs. Xu happy.
No matter what snacks she wanted to eat, she could take a special plane to Hong Kong the next morning. If she liked a necklace or a gem, someone would immediately accompany her to the London auction and she would be the final winner.
After getting used to that kind of life, Su Xia felt like a tourist when she returned to such days, and everything she saw was new to her.
This sense of freshness has nothing to do with praise or criticism, it only has to do with a person's background.
This is where Xu Jiqing lives, nothing more.
The night market was very lively at night. The fried noodle stall was submerged in a sea of similar food carts. Su Xia had to rely on the tree to find the spot.
She didn't go closer, but looked across at the alley entrance diagonally opposite.
Xu Jiqing's stall has a good location and does pretty good business. It was probably Lin Yuezhen's idea to replace the light bulbs in the small shed with some warm lights, and at first glance you can see quite a few customers.
At this moment, Lin Yuezhen was holding two empty disposable paper bowls and bent down to come out from under the plastic curtain.
She was smiling a little more than the last time I saw her, her hair was combed neatly, and she wore a string of obviously fake pearls around her neck.
It was that circle of light that made Su Xia look towards the stall next to her.
The person in front of the stove is not Xu Jiqing.
The man was in his forties and his face was not very clear, but in the dim light of the fire, his narrow face and long eyebrows and eyes looked a bit like Xu Jiqing.
Su Xia's heart skipped a beat and she subconsciously stepped back.
She took out her cell phone and sent a location-sharing message to the number that she couldn't reach.
[I'm at the Nancheng Night Market now, and I don't see you.]
【Aren’t you here today? 】
After being ignored all night, she was used to coming and going without a reply. Just as she was about to turn off the screen and put her phone back in her pocket as she had done on the way here, her phone suddenly vibrated.
It’s Xu Jiqing’s call.
Press the Connect button.
Su Xia just said "Hello" when the other party's voice came from the receiver, "Go back to the subway station."
The boy's tone was cold, harder than usual.
She didn't react immediately, "What?"
Xu Jiqing paused, as if stopping to take a breath.
"Now go back to the subway station," he repeated.
"If you came here by taxi, get in a crowded place, don't look up, and go home now."
"Did you hear that clearly?"
Listening to him seemed to have become an instinct.
Su Xia said "Oh", moved out of the alley, passed by the barbecue stall where sparks were flying, lowered his head and walked in small steps along the way he came.
If he's not here, then he's not here.
Why are you angry with her...
The person on the other end of the line didn't hang up, and his breathing wasn't steady.
Hearing the background noise beside Su Xia for a while without changing, he urged coldly, "Where are you?"
Su Xia felt a pang of pain in her heart, and for the first time she didn't answer his question, "I skipped class to come see you."
"Teacher Ding changed your seat. I went to the competition class to look for you, but you weren't there. I was very worried about you."
She felt more and more aggrieved as she spoke, her voice soft and almost crying, "I just wanted to see you, why are you so angry?"
Xu Jiqing was silent for a few seconds and said, "Go to the subway station first."
"Can I see you at the subway station?"
Xu Jiqing was silent for another two seconds.
Then he said, "Wait at Gate One, I'll come over."
If you are waiting for someone at the subway station, the other person must have also taken the subway. This logic is natural.
It was completely dark outside, and the white light from the escalator entrance sprinkled on the floor tiles, making the boundary between light and shadow dim and unclear.
Su Xia was standing facing the escalator, leaning on the railing, aimlessly checking the map on her phone.
When Xu Jiqing's family moved into a new house, the first person they would take care of would definitely be Xu Jiaojiao, which would probably not be too far from the affiliated primary school.
It’s so far from the affiliated primary school to the Nancheng Night Market.
It's even more roundabout than the way she came from No. 1 Middle School. If she takes a taxi, it's Jiangcheng's evening rush hour now, so the route will be slow, not fast.
Su Xia felt a little tired after standing for a while.
Thinking that she would have to wait here for a long time, she took out a piece of handkerchief, flattened it and spread it on the corner, then sat down, forcing herself to concentrate on doing her homework.
The test paper on his knees changed from English to physics. He struggled to finish the multiple-choice questions, but before he could turn the page, there was a squeak and an old bicycle braked to a stop in front of the steps.
Su Xia looked up.
Surprisingly, Xu Jiqing was not wearing school uniform today.
The temperature was over 10 degrees and the wind had not yet lost the chill of early spring, but he didn't even bother to put on a coat.
The only dark grey short-sleeved shirt he had on seemed to have been hastily put on. Even in the dark of night, it was noticeably damp, half from lingering moisture and half from the sweat he had sweated from the long journey.
Xu Jiqing had very fair skin, with sweat dripping down his distinct Adam's apple. His eyebrows, eyes, and hair were all dark, and his features were so cold and hard that they could not be dissolved, like the thickest ink.
The subway takes a full hour and a half.
Xu Jiqing could barely use one of his hands, and it only took him forty-five minutes to ride the bike.
Even if you get on the cross-river bridge and take shortcuts, this is still an almost impossible speed.
Su Xia stood up in surprise, looked at him for a while, and forgot what she wanted to say.
Xu Jiqing locked his eyes on her, checking her up and down several times, "Did he see you?"
This "he" refers to his father.
Su Xia reacted for a moment, "Probably not. He was busy frying noodles and didn't even bother to look up..."
Xu Jiqing didn't say anything else.
His face was still cold, but a little more relaxed than the moment he saw her.
Su Xia opened the outer compartment of her schoolbag, pursed her lips, took out a handkerchief, stood in front of Xu Jiqing on the third step, and wanted to wipe his sweat.
The hand cream she uses is strawberry-scented.
At such a close distance, the milky scent is soft and warm, as if it still carries her body temperature.
As soon as he stretched out his hand, Xu Jiqing quickly turned his face away.
The tissue flew in the wind, brushing against the dry corners of the boy's lips. He lowered his eyes, his jaw tense, and took the paper himself, wiping it across his face.
"Now you see me."
He said, "Can I go home now?"
I was just about to say hello to him, why did he start chasing me away again?
Su Xia stood there in a daze, clenching her hands, "No."
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