I tiptoed over to Yang Sisi and Zhou Sansan, then suddenly yelled, startling them both into staring at me wide-eyed. I laughed at them, feeling that my prank had succeeded.
I said to Yang Sisi, "Isn't it like a bolt from the blue, a word that wakes you from a dream?"
Yang Sisi picked up a half-eaten orange segment from the table and threw it at me. She replied with a hint of anger, "Do you feel accomplished because you scared us?"
"Of course, didn't you notice how happy I was?"
Yang Sisi looked at me very seriously, and then said, "Michael, I sincerely remind you, I have an uncle whose son was already old enough to run errands when he was your age... And you, you're still finding amusement in boredom, isn't that pathetic?"
I felt like I'd been hit hard, and all the smugness in my heart vanished instantly. Actually, even without Yang Sisi saying it, I felt a sense of crisis because many of my friends of the same age had already started families and had children... When their children called me "uncle," it hurt me a lot, and I felt that my own romantic path was very unsuccessful.
Perhaps it was based on this feeling that I made this agreement with Lu Jia back then.
I pulled a cigarette out of the pack, lit it, and then picked up the menu on the table and looked at it... I wanted to use this silence to steer the conversation away from the topic.
I said to Zhou San, "Their braised pork rice and papaya tea are their signature dishes. Would you like one?"
"I'll listen to you, bro."
I then asked Yang Sisi, "What do you want to eat? I'll order it for you."
"You really don't hold grudges... I just said that to you."
"It's not that bad. We'll have children sooner or later, and we'll get married sooner or later."
Yang Sisi glanced at me, then suddenly her expression darkened...
It's strange that such an ordinary topic caused us to hurt each other... I think the greatest tragedy of human beings is that they like to use complicated thinking to deal with simple problems. Actually, I shouldn't have thought too much about it, and neither should Yang Sisi, because these words were spoken unconsciously, and they are objective facts.
...
They were waiting for me to have a late-night snack so late, and I didn't want the atmosphere to be too dull, so I changed the subject and joked, "Don't you two seem to be quite destined for each other? Wednesday, Yang Sisi, sounds like 'four four'... Wednesday, Yang Sisi... Haha."
This time, Yang Sisi wasn't angry. She first laughed along with Zhou Sansan, then patted Zhou Sansan on the shoulder and said, "Now that you mention it, it seems like we're really destined to meet... From now on, you'll follow me around like a servant... I'll be the older brother, and you'll be the younger brother."
"You're not older than me, are you?"
"In Dali, only status in the martial arts world matters, not age... Besides, I'm number four, and you're number three... Are you really older than me?"
In terms of eloquence, Zhou San and Yang Sisi are no match.
Although he was unwilling to accept the "status" in the martial arts world, he was forced by Yang Sisi to call him "Fourth Brother," while Yang Sisi called him "Third Brother." I don't know what the joke is, but Yang Sisi seemed to enjoy it.
She then smiled and said to Zhou San, "The martial world has its big and small, and swordsmen have their high and low... Born into the martial world, we don't need to do great things, but we must have a resounding name... You quickly think of a name for us... It must be the most flashy and impractical kind, so that even without us taking action, people will think we are the top swordsmen in the martial world just by hearing our name!"
Zhou San really took it seriously, and kept frowning as he thought about it... I kept laughing because Yang Sisi's delicate female voice, which said these words that were both roguish and charlatan-like, was hilarious in itself.
After laughing a few more times, I said to Zhou Sansan, "Don't make things difficult for yourself by doing things you're not good at. I've already thought of a name for you... guaranteed to be legendary."
Yang Sisi and Zhou San looked at me together. I exhaled the smoke from my mouth and swung my legs as I said, "The third brother is called Third Brother, the fourth brother is called Fourth Brother... Three is not three, four is not four... let's just call him Neither Three Nor Four."
"Go to hell!"
...
After the three of them finished their late-night snack, they wandered back to their lodgings. Here's what I planned: Wednesday, Wednesday, will stay at my place for the night, and I'll find him a proper place to stay tomorrow.
Yang Sisi loved to play. On her way back, she went to her friend's bar, got two cloaks, and found two tablecloths. She and Zhou San each took one, using the tablecloths as capes, determined to look like knights-errant.
She was quite generous, and said that she would get up tomorrow morning and go to the ancient city to buy a genuine sword for Zhou San, to show that the fourth brother cared for the third brother.
She also said that she would find a girlfriend for Zhou San, which was a perk that the fourth brother was giving to the third brother.
...
Yang Sisi's inn was in front of my little courtyard. We dropped her off there first before returning to our own courtyard. It was quite late, as even Nicole, who was managing the bar, was already asleep.
Zhou San and I tried not to make any noise. After a quick wash, he lay on the sofa and I lay on the bed.
I have a shared room, so I can chat with Zhou San.
I asked Zhou San, "How was your trip back to Dali?"
"It's much easier now... I don't have to hide like I used to."
After a brief pause, Zhou San said to me with great emotion, "Brother, I don't know how to thank you... Anyway, in the future, if there's anything you need me to do, just ask. I'll do my best to help you, even if it means risking my life."
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