I thought that Cao Xiaobei would say something since he took the initiative to add me on WeChat, but he didn't say a single word. Like most ordinary friends, he just quietly lay in my friend list, and I don't know what the point of his existence is.
Nicole was still singing on stage. Perhaps to find a topic of conversation, Sun Jiwei broke the silence and said to me, "This girl on stage sings with a lot of emotion, like someone with a story."
I nodded.
"You know her?"
"I guess we know each other. I used to come here often, so I've chatted with her once or twice."
"Is she having relationship troubles?"
When Sun Jiwei asked this question, I thought of Nicole's experience again and couldn't help but sigh. Then I said to Sun Jiwei, "It was very difficult... She is from Jiangsu. Her father is the president of the court. She originally had a respectable job. She wasn't rich, but she came from a prestigious family in the local area... But everything changed after she started dating a boyfriend."
"Her boyfriend is not a good match for her in terms of social status?"
I continued, "It wasn't exactly a mismatch in social standing. Her boyfriend's father was a famous painter... but later he contracted an incurable disease. Her boyfriend spent all his savings and borrowed a lot of money to pay for his father's treatment, but he still couldn't keep him... To help him pay off his debts, Nicole started working during the day and singing at bars at night to earn extra money... In the end, the money was paid off, but Nicole's parents suddenly denied their previous engagement and used a lot of tricks to 'force' them to break up."
"It's only human nature."
"Yes, but Nicole treats love like a faith, so she eloped with this man to Dali; but later, the man still left, for reasons unknown... Nicole stayed here by herself and made a living by singing."
Sun Jiwei glanced subconsciously at Nicole, who was singing on stage. He smiled and said, "It's rare to see such a loyal and compassionate woman these days, what a pity..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but instead called over a waiter, took out 1,000 yuan from his wallet and handed it over, saying, "Your singer sang with great emotion. This is just a small token of my appreciation. Please pass it on to her."
"Okay, sir, what's your name? I'll pass it on to her later."
Sun Jiwei smiled and replied, "I'm just an ordinary listener, maybe I can understand the emotions in her songs better than others... As for the name, it doesn't really matter, right?"
The waiter was taken aback because Sun Jiwei's behavior was not in line with usual practice. In fact, in bars, customers often give singers a small tip when they are having a good time, but giving such a large tip usually means that the singer has ulterior motives and is afraid that the singer will not know who gave it to them... But Sun Jiwei did not have any such intention.
As soon as the waiter left, Sun Jiwei raised his hand to check his watch, and then said to me, "Brother, it's almost Chinese New Year, and I promised your sister-in-law that I wouldn't be going out for business dinners lately and would try to spend more time with her and the kids... So let's stop drinking here. Do you want to leave together, or stay a little longer?"
"I'll sit here a little longer; it'll be boring to go back alone."
Sun Jiwei stood up, patted my shoulder, and reminded me, "Cao Jinbo has offered you good terms this time. It's an opportunity. You should consider it carefully."
"Um."
...
Not long after Sun Jiwei left, I finished the rest of my drinks and didn't stay in the bar for long. Instead, I wandered around the old city alone... I didn't set a destination. Sometimes I would squeeze into the bustling Renmin Road with a group of people, and sometimes I would find a relatively quiet alley, light a cigarette, and sit for a while.
This is the charm of Dali; it can amplify a person's loneliness, or it can drown you in the crowd, making you lose sight of your own existence... So, whenever I sit down and light a cigarette, I become an observer of this ancient city, watching the footsteps passing by, like watching a black and white movie, where the plot changes with every gust of wind... But I can't experience the joys and sorrows of everyone... They are still just passersby, and I am still just an audience member.
I walked into another inconspicuous alley and stopped in front of a coffee shop... The coffee shop was small, but its name caught my eye.
I stood across from the coffee shop, looking up...
"Sheep Cafe"
A long-forgotten scene suddenly surfaced in my mind... I finally remembered that on the way to Dali, Yang Sisi mentioned during her self-introduction that her friends were used to calling her "Yangyang." I didn't take it to heart at the time, so I never called her that... But Cao Xiaobei took this nickname as a memento and opened this coffee shop in this alley.
I took out my phone and checked the time. It was almost 10 o'clock. If what Cao Xiaobei said in his WeChat Moments was true, then if I went in at this time, he would give me a free cup of pudding milk tea.
I hesitated whether to drink the free pudding "milk" tea... and in this brief moment of hesitation, I thought of all the good things about Yang Sisi, of that night when I was going through the lowest point in my life and didn't know what to do, and how she rushed from Shanghai to Kunming to stand by me, and of the words she cried to me at the airport on the day she left Dali.
That's just how people are. When she's around, all we see is her annoying side, but when she's really gone, we start to remember her good qualities.
Don't misunderstand, this feeling of remembering her is actually very simple, without too many complicated emotions... In my life, she is like a canary, chirping incessantly, but also possessing the most beautiful feathers.
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