Cao Bei is truly obsessed. He came to me not for anything else, but to ask me to send him a wedding photo of Yang Sisi sometime in the future. He thought I could do it, but I felt that he had entrusted the wrong person to me. The reason for this misalignment is that there are two lies between us.
Yang Sisi lied to him, saying she was very happy with me; I lied to Yang Sisi again, saying that the woman I loved was Ye Zhi, and that it had never changed.
Those who are deceived believe it to be true, and those who deceive are also deeply distressed. So, behind this scam, who is the real winner?
There are no winners. In this emotional game, we have all lost. I am the one who has to guard the broken pieces, so I have to continue to lie to Cao Bei and continue to be a happy man in these lies. So I smiled and said to Cao Bei, "If you are not afraid of feeling bad, I will send it to you."
Cao Bei stared blankly at the spot where the red-billed gulls skimmed across the water. I didn't know what he was thinking; perhaps he was contemplating that scene.
Finally, he spoke to me, asking, "Is the food alright?"
"It tastes good. Did you buy it from that braised noodle shop on Renmin Road?"
"Hmm, if that's not enough, there's another serving in the car... I don't have an appetite."
"Let's talk after we finish eating."
Cao Bei didn't wait for me to finish eating. He gave me the braised noodles as well and then drove away from "Majiuyi"... It seemed like the afternoon arrived the moment he left. I saw the sun shining obliquely into Erhai Lake from the direction of Cangshan Mountain, creating a shimmering effect on the water.
Under the glaring sunlight, I took out the pack of Marlboro cigarettes that Zhou San had bought for me last night, then took one out and put it in my mouth. I didn't dare to light it; I just felt that even unburned tobacco had a flavor, and I had gotten used to the smell of tobacco when I was deep in thought.
...
When Ye Zhi sat down next to me, she was almost completely silent. I didn't believe it was a coincidence, so I asked her, "What brings you here?"
“I went to where you live and met Zhou San. He told me that you were by Erhai Lake… I live in Longkan and didn’t see you, so you must be in Majiuyi.”
As she spoke, Ye Zhi turned around and looked back. The "Haitu Inn" where she had stayed when she first came to Dali had also been demolished, but it must not have been too long, because the inn's signboard was still leaning against the crumbling wall.
I handed the bowl of braised noodles that Cao Bei had left to Ye Zhi and said to her, "Cao Bei just came by and brought two bowls of braised noodles. I ate one, and this one is untouched. You can have it; it's still warm."
As Ye Zhi took it from my hand, she asked me, "What does he want from you? I remember your relationship has never been very friendly."
I opened the box of braised noodles for Ye Zhi and then replied, "He thought I would marry Yang Sisi, so he asked me to send him a wedding photo of Yang Sisi on our wedding day... If things continue like this and nothing changes, I won't be able to keep up this lie... But you know what?... Yang Sisi and I really did take wedding photos!"
Ye Zhi looked at me with a very complicated expression...
I laughed for a while before saying, "When we first came to Dali, a car convoy wanted to take those promotional photos, and they subcontracted the job to Tie Nan and Instructor Ma... At the time, Yang Sisi and I were both free, so they asked us to be their models. The wedding photos were indeed taken by the two of us, but they had nothing to do with getting married..."
"Over the years, you two have really been through a lot... good and bad, and she has always been by your side."
"That's not the point. The important thing is that when necessary, I can use these photos to fool Cao Bei... Real wedding photos aren't all that great, are they?"
Ye Zhi nodded. She seemed to want to say something, but in the end, she shifted her gaze away from me... After a moment of silence, she began to eat the bowl of braised noodles in her hand; while I threw away the cigarette that was already wet with saliva, lit another one, but still didn't light it.
...
I lay completely on the rocks, using my arms as a pillow, and then changed the subject, asking Ye Zhi, who had been silent all along, "What was your heaviest weight?"
"I think it's 102."
"when?"
Why would someone ask this when you're doing your master's degree abroad?
"If I remember you are 1.68 meters tall and weigh 102 pounds... well, if I'm not mistaken, the peak of your looks and figure should have been when you were in graduate school."
Ye Zhi smiled and replied, "I didn't pay attention, but I think the temperament is different at each stage of life, so that time may not necessarily be the peak."
"Do you have any photos from that time? If so, let me see them."
"I don't like taking photos, you know that."
"Oh... then tell me, how much do you weigh now?"
"What exactly do you want to ask?"
"I'll tell you after you tell me."
Ye Zhi looked helpless, then patiently said to me, "During the last routine physical exam, I weighed 91 jin (46.5 catties)."
"Too thin, too thin... You need to eat properly."
As I spoke, I pointed to the lunchbox in Ye Zhi's hand and said, "When you eat, you can't leave anything in your bowl. What's left is always the rice scraps... My mom told me that if a pig always leaves the rice scraps uneaten, it will never gain weight... It's the same with people!"
"Michael, are you indirectly calling me a pig?"
"No, if you really had the awareness of a pig, I wouldn't have brought this up with you... You've really lost weight... When I first met you, you weren't like this... You should eat properly."
After a moment of silence, Ye Zhi whispered to me, "Only when I'm working or asleep do I forget who I am..."
She smiled and said, "But I accept your criticism... Starting today, I will definitely eat well and try to get back to 10 pounds as soon as possible."
"That's right, when people get fatter, they feel more at ease..."
"I have a suggestion... Tonight, let's go out for a nice meal... You eat as much as I want, and I'll eat as much as you want."
"Don't joke with me, I'm considered to have a really big appetite even among men."
Ye Zhi finished the remaining braised noodles in her lunchbox, and then said to me, "You ate a box of braised noodles, and I ate a box of braised noodles. At least for now, we're evenly matched... If you can be a gentleman tonight and give in a little... I'm confident I can keep you company to the end!"
"Okay, I look forward to your company to the end. What would you like to eat?"
"The higher the calories, the better."
"Then we have to go to the barbecue street opposite Dali University. I often eat there late-night snacks when I'm delivering food. There's a barbecue restaurant there called 'Bai Nian Jian Shui,' and their grilled fish is amazing! Want to chat with more like-minded people about 'My Tenant Sister'? Follow 'Hot Articles' or rd444 on WeChat to chat with more book lovers about your favorite books."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
