Chapter 38
The summer air was thick and sticky, like syrup that wouldn't dissolve, soaking the whole world in a lazy yet restless atmosphere. For Li Muxue, this summer should have been filled with longing and waiting, because Xu Chen was in the small space of the examination hall, giving his all for their future. However, an unexpected invitation, like a stone thrown into a calm lake, stirred up a tidal wave in her heart.
Two days ago, she ran into Shen Haoyu by chance. Li Muxue remembered that when Shen Haoyu saw her, his eyes lit up—an undisguised light of appreciation and surprise, as if he had discovered a long-lost rare porcelain piece in a pile of scrap metal. She simply nodded hastily, then stood there dumbfounded, not saying a complete sentence to Shen Haoyu, before fleeing like a startled deer. But that gaze, like the midday sun in summer, burned her back.
She never expected that Shen Haoyu would get her home phone number through his father, Li Junsheng, and would directly, warmly, and irresistibly invite her to dinner at a Western restaurant near the French consulate that reportedly requires reservations a week in advance.
When Li Muxue heard Shen Haoyu's voice as soon as the call connected, her heart skipped a beat. She tentatively asked in a low voice, "Brother Yu, are you looking for my dad? Is there something wrong at the auto repair shop?"
"No, Muxue, nothing's wrong at the factory. I just wanted to go out for a meal with you. I was wondering if you have time?"
Shen Haoyu's voice sounded a little unsteady on the phone.
"Oh, now? It's already past six, isn't it a bit late? How about..."
Before Li Muxue could finish her refusal, a loud slam echoed. Li Junsheng, who was eating, slammed his chopsticks heavily on the table, his face ashen…
The sudden sound startled Li Muxue, and she swallowed back the words of refusal she was about to say...
At this moment, Li Muxue sat in Shen Haoyu's brand-new Passat, the air conditioning blaring, a world apart from the sweltering heat outside. She felt like a weed suddenly transplanted into a crystal greenhouse, utterly uncomfortable. Her fingers nervously twisted the hem of the floral dress she thought was her best piece, yet still seemed too plain for this occasion. The street scenes and roadside trees outside the car window rushed past, but her heart sank as if weighed down by a boulder. Xu Chen's face, with the weariness and silence characteristic of someone retaking exams, stubbornly lingered in her mind. But now, she was in another man's car, heading towards an unknown realm called "high-class," completely out of place in her life.
The French restaurant's doors were draped with crystal curtains that tinkled as they were pushed open, a crisp sound that sent a shiver down her spine. Inside, the light was an ambiguous amber hue, soothing French music filled the air, and the air conditioning mingled with a cloyingly sweet fragrance, almost suffocating her. Her restrained figure was reflected in the smooth, mirror-like marble floor. Waitstaff, impeccably dressed in uniforms and bows, led the way with elegant poise. On each table, covered with a pristine white tablecloth, stood slender pink candles, their flickering flames like probing eyes. The silver cutlery gleamed coldly in the candlelight, reflecting on her pale, uneasy face.
Shen Haoyu deftly pulled out a chair for her, his movements considerate. When ordering, he carefully asked Li Muxue what she wanted to eat, while Li Muxue, head down, stared at the strings of Arabic numerals on the menu, feeling her heart pounding as fast as the drumbeats of a rock concert. She could only stammer, "Although... I studied French, this is my first time actually eating French food, so I'll just eat whatever Brother Yu orders."
She saw the price of a serving of foie gras, which was almost equivalent to half a month's wages for her father working hard at the auto repair shop; the price of a dish called "Beef Stew in Burgundy Red Wine" instantly reminded her of how many days and nights of part-time work Xu Chen would have to do to earn that much. This wasn't eating; it was clearly building a phantom castle with money, every bite potentially weighing a weight she couldn't bear.
"Muxue, don't be shy. Try the cream-baked snails here; they're a specialty. Uncle Li told me you study French, so I brought you here. Do you like it?" Shen Haoyu smiled, his eyes gentle, yet carrying an innate, unquestionable sense of superiority. He looked at Li Muxue as if admiring a work of art that needed to be guided into a more "advanced" world.
The food was served on exquisite plates, the portions pitifully small, yet the presentation was as delicate as a miniature oil painting. Li Muxue picked up the heavy, intricately carved silver fork, her hand trembling slightly. She tried cutting a small piece of the supposedly incredibly delicious steak, but when she put it in her mouth, her taste buds felt as if they were coated with a layer of grease; she couldn't taste the legendary wonder at all. The expensive ingredients tasted like wax in her mouth, and every bite was accompanied by a tremendous psychological burden. She felt like a tiny person who had stumbled into a land of giants; everything around her was magnified—the clinking of cutlery sounded like thunder, the waiter's footsteps like war drums, and even Shen Haoyu's elegant chewing movements seemed like slow-motion scenes in a movie, filled with an unreal sense of oppression.
A storm raged within her, and a voice screamed, "Li Muxue! What are you doing? Xu Chen is studying hard under the lamp, while you're enjoying luxury here! How can you face him? This is blatant betrayal!" The sharp, piercing voice made her restless...
Finally, as Shen Haoyu poured her another glass of red wine, Li Muxue suddenly raised her head, mustering all her courage. Her cheeks were burning red, and her voice trembled slightly with nervousness, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet restaurant: "Yu... Brother Yu, thank you so much for your hospitality. But I must tell you, I... I have someone I like. We... we're doing very well."
She finished speaking in one breath, as if she had completed a difficult task; her heart was pounding wildly in her chest, almost leaping out. She waited, anticipating the other person's possible surprise, displeasure, or even mockery.
However, Shen Haoyu only paused slightly before revealing a gentler, even slightly pitying, smile. He gently swirled the wine glass in his hand, the red liquid shimmering alluringly in the candlelight.
"Muxue, you're overthinking it. It's just a regular dinner, normal interaction between friends. Relax, don't put so much pressure on yourself. Look, this place has really nice desserts, how about trying their crème brûlée?"
"Ordinary friends"? "Normal interaction"? Li Muxue was stunned. She looked at Shen Haoyu's nonchalant, indifferent expression, as if her earnest confession was as insignificant as saying "The weather's nice today." His condescending attitude, so easily dismissing her emotional world, exerted an invisible, immense pressure on her more than direct opposition. He seemed to be trapped in a fortress built of rules and capital that she couldn't comprehend; her rejection, her persistence, in his eyes, might just be unnecessary childish reserve, ice that could be slowly melted away by a "better" life.
For the remainder of the dinner, Li Muxue completely lost her appetite. She felt like a puppet on a lavish display stand, every movement stiff and unresponsive. Shen Haoyu, on the other hand, continued his lively conversation, recounting his experiences at the University of Finance and Economics and his future plans. His words, like glamorous soap bubbles, floated around her, yet failed to truly penetrate her world.
When she finally stepped out of the crystal curtained door and breathed in the sultry yet real summer night air again, she felt a sense of exhaustion, like a drowning person surfacing. Shen Haoyu drove her home, and when they reached the intersection near her house, she said, "I want to get out and walk around by myself..."
Walking on the street as the neon lights began to illuminate the night, the evening breeze caressed her burning cheeks, yet she felt no coolness whatsoever.
That expensive French dinner felt like a bizarre dream, heavy and clogging her stomach. Shen Haoyu's smile, the candlelight in the restaurant, the exorbitant prices on the menu, and his nonchalant "just ordinary friends"... all of these wove together into a vast, invisible net, tightly binding her. She knew things had changed. Shen Haoyu's appearance was like a crystal-clear mirror, reflecting that what stood between her and Xu Chen on their future path was not just family feuds, but a deeper chasm called "reality."
This summer, because of this dinner, suddenly felt incredibly long and heavy. Her heart, like that exquisite glass goblet filled with foie gras, seemed to be held high, but inside was filled with an unspeakable, cold, and contradictory burden…
(To be continued)
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