Chapter 112 Gu Ci, this person, however…
Gu Ci was neither overly enthusiastic nor overly indifferent; he handled everything perfectly, like a cup of jasmine tea that had been steeped for three and a half minutes, where the bitterness and fragrance complemented each other beautifully.
It's relaxing, yet it retains a sense of mystery, making people hesitant to approach. This sense of distance is what makes Ye Yuying feel comfortable.
A gust of wind blew, and the seashell wind chimes jingled. Ye Yuying looked towards the door and found that the shop was empty, with the owner and his assistant tidying up the bar.
We'll be making the sample in ten minutes.
The shop owner smiled and said, "It's alright, we'll be tidying up for a while."
Even so, Ye Yuying quickly took out her wallet to pay the bill.
The shop owner said the payment had already been made.
Ye Yuying looked at Gu Ci suspiciously, and quickly said, "I'll transfer it to you."
He had already stood up, looking gentle and refined, and nodded slightly, "It's alright."
She emphasized, "I don't like owing people favors."
“Then please come back next time,” Gu Ci added thoughtfully, “if there’s another chance.”
She was taken aback for a moment, then smiled.
"You should be starting school soon too."
Just as Gu Ci was about to speak, her phone vibrated on the desktop.
The screen displayed a message from Cheng Mingdu.
Should I pick you up?
Ye Yuying's fingertips tightened slightly.
Gu Ci noticed the change in her expression and turned his head to ask, "Are you going home?"
"Yes." She lowered her eyes. "My brother is here to pick me up."
I don't know why, but the emotions I had just managed to calm down were disrupted again by these few simple words.
Gu Ci nodded without giving it much thought.
"I'll take you to the street corner; it's easier to park there."
Take a leisurely stroll to the street corner, and Cheng Mingdu should arrive by now.
She didn't refuse, a fleeting thought flashing through her mind.
A gust of wind rose again, and the dust particles under the streetlights shone brightly in the light, looking just like fine snowflakes floating in the air.
A few minutes later, a black car slowly drove up from the street corner.
The car headlights swept across the two people's shadows, then stopped a short distance away with the hazard lights flashing.
Cheng Mingdu got off the bus.
He wasn't wearing a coat, and the cuffs of his shirt were neatly buttoned up, so he must have just finished a meeting.
The darkness settled between his brows and eyes, concealing his slightly paused gaze.
Gu Ci paused for a moment, not because of the other person's aura, but because of that strange feeling of familiarity and unfamiliarity intertwined intuitively.
He instinctively felt that the man's face, bathed in the night, carried a sense of familiarity—not the familiarity of acquaintance, but the familiarity of someone who had weathered storms.
Unlike a cold photograph, the other person's temperament was clearly quiet and reserved, which made the air seem somewhat gloomy.
"What is this?" Gu Ci asked, his voice low.
“My brother,” Ye Yuying answered naturally.
His tone was so calm that there was almost no flaw in his composure.
Gu Ci only showed surprise when he saw Cheng Mingdu's face clearly.
This person is clearly... but he was a little unsure, after all, he had only seen a few photos and heard rumors, but had never met him in person, and they were five years apart, so it was even more impossible for them to have any connection.
Cheng Mingdu simply stood in front of the car and watched them quietly, his expression indifferent, but maintaining the politeness and composure that was inherent in him.
Gu Ci politely extended his hand: "Hello, I am Gu Ci, a friend of Ye."
"Cheng Mingdu." Cheng Mingdu nodded slightly. The moment his palm touched Cheng Mingdu's, the temperature was extremely low, as if covered by a layer of air.
"Thank you for taking her." His voice was low, and he spoke the most polite words, but there was always a sense of distance between them.
Ye Yuying was not surprised, because it was determined by Cheng Mingdu's own characteristics.
"It's nothing." Gu Ci's suspicions were confirmed. He withdrew his hand and smiled gently. "It just so happened to be on the way."
"Then we'll be going now." Cheng Mingdu turned around to open the car door for Ye Yuying, looked at Gu Ci, and said indifferently, "Goodbye."
Gu Ci responded with a smile.
After driving off, Ye Yuying quickly glanced at Gu Ci in the rearview mirror. His expression was still gentle, with his usual faint smile on his lips, but under the lamplight, he appeared somewhat aloof and quiet.
Gu Ci turned around and walked straight to the underground parking garage, raising an eyebrow slightly as he did so.
Her surname was Ye, and his surname was Cheng, but they were siblings. However... in a family like the Cheng family, any family structure could make sense, so he didn't ask any further questions.
When the green light came on, Cheng Mingdu started the engine but didn't speak immediately.
Only the low hum of the engine remained in the carriage.
After a long pause, he finally asked, "A new friend?"
Ye Yuying looked out the window, her voice so soft it sounded like she was talking in her sleep: "A senior, I met him at the event tonight."
"Hmm," he simply replied, his tone devoid of emotion.
Ye Yuying rolled down the car window, and the night, like thick ink, quickly poured into the car.
The car continued on its way, and Ye Yuying, sitting in the passenger seat, tilted her head slightly, looking out the window at the streetlights receding into the distance.
She suddenly remembered the lyrics Gu Ci had mentioned, the melody flashed through her mind, and she unconsciously hummed it softly.
"All good dreamers will pass this way someday."
The wind whistled past the window, and she smiled with relief. She glanced at Cheng Mingdu again, compressing all the surging thoughts in her heart into this farewell look.
She made up her mind that from this point on, she would let go of everything and become his true brother and sister from the bottom of her heart.
That way, you won't have to worry anymore.
As her older brother, perhaps he would still be by her side, just like he is now, picking her up from school in the middle of the night and giving her some indifferent yet warm care—how wonderful that would be.
*
From that day on, Gu Ci's name, like a gentle rain, quietly seeped into Ye Yuying's life.
They didn't contact each other intentionally, nor did either of them speak first. But after that night, they seemed to tacitly acknowledge that the other was a special presence in their lives that summer.
He would occasionally send a greeting on social media: "Has the rain stopped today?"
She replied: "Aren't we in the same city? We should be working at the same time."
Gu Ci replied after a few seconds.
[Not necessarily synchronized.]
Ye Yuying stared at the screen, stunned for a moment, and before she could reply, his next message popped up.
[Airflow and terrain differences between different urban areas can cause variations in localized rainfall. For example, in my area, located in the north of the city, the rain clouds are blocked by mountains, causing the rain clouds to dissipate more slowly; in your area, which is further south, the air pressure is lower, and the wind direction is different.]
She looked at those lines of text and couldn't help but laugh.
Is this your college major?
Gu Ci: [I guess so. I'm studying meteorological and environmental modeling.]
She casually remarked, "No wonder she's a professionally trained actress."
Gu Ci sent a photo.
Under the dim sky outside the window, the streetlights were blurred into a golden halo by the rain and mist at dusk, and raindrops were falling one by one from the window.
"The rain is still falling," he wrote. "But it's quite beautiful."
Ye Yuying looked at the photo and heard the sound of rain at Qizhi Xiaozhu.
A tacit understanding, unspoken yet mutually understood, flows between the two through the internet.
The sound of a car came from downstairs. A sedan had already driven steadily through the iron gate on the private road, and Cheng Mingdu got out of the back seat.
Startled by the noise, Ye Yuying reflexively ran to the window and, as usual, propped her head up to look out.
She tried to be aware of the feelings in her heart, attempting to discern whether she was truly unmoved.
She hoped her "illness" could be cured, or at least improved, if not cured, so as not to get worse.
The wind outside the window rustled the leaves, and the lamplight was stretched into a thin line by the rain.
Ye Yuying stood by the window, staring intently at the light and shadow.
Cheng Mingdu walked into the house, took off his coat as usual and handed it to the aunt, then pressed the elevator button. After entering the elevator, he calmly reached out and loosened his tie a few inches.
And then, she could no longer see.
But... she discovered that the waters in her heart hadn't dried up at all.
When she picked up her phone, somewhat absentmindedly, she noticed a small red dot quietly appearing at the top of WeChat.
Gu Ci said, "Would you like to go for a walk?"
She asked, "It's evening, where can we go?"
Walking in the rain, and it felt like an adventure.
She stared at the words for a long time, her fingertips hesitatingly pausing on the screen, her heart pounding unsteadily.
It wasn't because of Gu Ci, but because she thought of Cheng Mingdu upstairs...
【good. 】
After typing the word, she didn't send it, but instead turned around to change her clothes.
When I came out of the room, Cheng Mingdu had already changed his clothes and was sitting on the sofa downstairs. His slender fingers were turning the pages of a book he had recently started reading. Everything was as usual.
She saw this scene on the stairs, and many thoughts and fantasies flashed through her mind.
I've imagined it countless times in my mind, wondering what it would feel like to lean on his shoulder... It must be the safest place imaginable.
If she were to disappear in the future, what kind of person would be able to rely on him? That person must be incredibly lucky... She was insanely envious.
Ye Yuying dawdled as she went downstairs.
When he looked up at her, she subconsciously tensed her shoulders, and his gaze lingered on her for a few seconds.
She changed into a light gray trench coat, her hair was neatly combed and draped over her shoulders, and she had a faint citrus scent from her shower gel.
"Going out?" he asked.
His tone was calm, revealing no emotion.
"Hmm," she tried to sound relaxed, "...I want to go for a walk."
"He Gu Ci." She hesitated for a long time before finally deciding to say that name.
Cheng Mingdu hummed in agreement, his gaze sweeping over her coat before settling on the phone she was holding.
"...Didn't we just meet last time?" He spoke slowly, his gaze returning to the pages of the book.
Ye Yuying hesitated for a second, then shook her head: "We're not really familiar with each other, but... we get along well."
Do you want me to go?
She didn't ask it aloud...
Cheng Mingdu didn't ask any further questions, turned a page in the book, and spoke:
Come back soon.
Ye Yuying was stunned. She thought she would hear a word of protest, but all she got was this sentence.
She nodded and replied softly, "Okay."
Is this the benefit of becoming an adult? Unparalleled freedom.
As she walked toward the door and passed by him, she suddenly felt her feet sink into the air.
It was a strange feeling. She should have been glad that she could go out with someone openly and honestly, and that he hadn't asked her anything.
Yet, it felt like a piece of my heart was missing.
She took the umbrella from the entrance and, as she passed by him, she caught a glimpse of him reopening the book.
But his fingers never turned the page.
Just before leaving, he asked, "What time do I need to pick you up?"
"No need, he brought me back." The door closed as soon as she finished speaking, her voice very polite.
Cheng Mingdu lowered his eyes without showing any emotion and found that the English words he was usually so familiar with were now floating on the pages like tadpoles. The pages remained in place, the light was soft, and he didn't read a single page.
Cheng Mingdu chuckled softly, a faint smile, devoid of any warmth.
He got up and walked to the window.
There is almost no public transportation within walking distance of Qizhi Xiaozhu, so people rely entirely on cars for transportation.
Gu Ci drove directly to pick her up. The road outside was washed clean by the rain, and the two shadows moved side by side.
The umbrella is not at a high angle.
She tilted her head slightly as she spoke, while Gu Ci lowered his head slightly, listening patiently and gently.
Cheng Mingdu stared at the shadow for a long time, until the lights gradually dimmed as they walked away.
*
That night, she didn't come home too late. Her aunt prepared some late-night snacks for her in the kitchen, but most of the lights in the living room were off.
The aunt even changed into silent slippers to walk.
I later found out that Cheng Mingdu had already gone to bed early.
Ye Yuying felt a brief moment of disappointment upon hearing the news. All the way back, she wanted to know his expression, whatever it was, even if it was just a little anger.
But nothing happened.
*
Ye Yuying carefully formed a comprehensive model of Gu Ci in her mind: he was gentle, intelligent, and good-looking. He was quite tall, but seemed to be three centimeters shorter than Cheng Mingdu, though still just 185 cm.
Lin Manyin also said that someone like Gu Ci is a rare find, and if she becomes someone's first love, the memories will only be beautiful years later.
She vaguely sensed that something was subtly changing, but neither Gu Ci nor she took it any further.
They chatted restrainedly about topics that interested them, occasionally sending pictures of their dinners.
Each conversation was short, yet never awkward. The distance and frequency of contact actually made her feel comfortable.
They would meet occasionally. Not in a pre-arranged way, but rather by chance.
For example, Ye Yuying liked to stroll around the city library near the school gate, where the school was located.
That shop was especially quiet in the summer. The proprietress would always sit on a small stool by the door, fanning herself, seemingly dozing off.
On the shelf were some beverage bottles that were about to fade, and the soda in the freezer was occasionally covered with a thin layer of frost.
Every time I went there, the convenience store was almost empty.
After their chance encounter, they would often go there and each buy a bottle of Fanta, then go next door to eat at a not-so-authentic Crossing-the-Bridge Rice Noodles shop. As the "only two customers," they would listen to the shop owner complain that business was terrible during the summer vacation when students were on holiday.
After they finished eating, they sat down on the bench by the door. The wind swirled from the old electric fan, making the tissues tremble slightly.
“This place is especially deserted every summer,” Gu Ci said with a smile.
"Yeah, it'll be better once school starts, but I quite like this quiet time." She looked down and unscrewed the cap of her soda bottle, the bubbles bursting and splashing onto her fingertips.
“I also like quiet,” he said.
The atmosphere was always gentle.
They talked about movies, music, and other trivial things.
Occasionally, Gu Ci would bring a book and sit there flipping through it.
Sunlight streamed in obliquely from the doorway, falling on the back of his hand.
That summer was so peaceful it was almost like an illusion, except... she had some ulterior motives.
Ye Yuying sometimes thinks that perhaps the process of "getting better" is always long, but at least she has taken the first step towards treatment.
I will no longer speculate on the boundaries of emotions, nor will I expect a response.
Simply sitting side by side with a gentle person, listening to the sound of a soda bottle being opened, and watching the wind rustle through the leaves of the banyan tree.
This is perhaps what a normal life should be like.
She initially thought that this kind of summer would dilute the secret in her heart.
But when the night is deep, dreams will still quietly spill out.
She dreamed of stairs, of dim wall lamps, of the mottled reflections on old record covers.
She started to waltz to the music, even though she clearly didn't know how to waltz. But in her dreams, she was always omnipotent. Someone's hand was on her waist, guiding her to change her steps with the music, like a small boat swaying on a sea of music.
She couldn't see who was in front of her, and when she tried to ask a question, her throat was dry and she couldn't speak.
The night in her dream was exceptionally long. She swayed from the dance floor into the bedroom and was slowly placed on the soft bed. Her back was pressed against the silk quilt, and her short skirt slid down to her thighs. A hand gently and slowly pressed her flat stomach.
She waited anxiously for his next move, clutching his clothes in a panic, but her hand touched a familiar cufflink on his sleeve, bearing a pattern she had only ever seen at the Cheng family home.
It's Cheng Mingdu!
She suddenly awoke from her dream; the sky was gray.
She had been enduring it for a long time. Even though the desires in her heart were growing like weeds, she still restrained the occasional urge to clench her legs.
She knew she couldn't let Cheng Mingdu achieve any satisfaction while he was in her mind, otherwise she would feel so guilty that she would want to disappear.
But...but...
She slowly closed her eyes, facing for the first time the instinctive longing she felt for him, recalling what his scent must have been like in the bedroom—a light, refreshing, and slightly bitter tea fragrance with an elegant ebony note.
His eyebrows and eyes, his slowly lowered gaze, stared directly at her without any concealment, at close range, or even at zero distance...
Or, in a negative distance, she couldn't think of anything; her limited imagination meant she only dared to touch upon the subject of y·y.
The air still held the lingering warmth of the dream.
She curled up in the blanket, her forehead damp with sweat, and her breathing shallow and rapid.
Those indistinct fragments of faces—the outline of hands, the low breathing, the cold texture of cuffs—all instantly transformed into a chaotic light, crashing into her heart.
She started to tremble; she didn't know what would happen next, but she stopped.
That's enough for our exploration so far.
She told herself, "Let it go quickly."
She tried to calm her breathing, went into the bathroom, and washed her face with cold water.
She dried her face with a towel, went back to her room, and drew back the curtains.
The sky is unusually clear today, without a single cloud.
She picked up her phone; a message from Gu Ci appeared on the screen: 【Good morning.】
She replied with a good morning message and suddenly realized that she was indeed making progress.
The dining table was filled with a very faint sandalwood scent in the morning, and the aunt came over to take away the ashes of the burnt incense.
Cheng Mingdu had already completed his highly efficient morning as usual, with a cup of coffee in front of him.
He looked up when Ye Yuying came downstairs.
“I’ve been coming home very late lately,” he said.
"Mmm," she replied softly, "I had a late-night snack with some friends."
"Gu Ci?"
His tone was calm, as if he were asking casually, but it suddenly made her a little nervous.
“...Yes.” she said softly, her expression unreadable.
How's it going?
That sentence came without warning.
"What?" She looked up, her tone slightly surprised.
He explained casually, "Haven't you been in contact all along?"
Ye Yuying gripped the cup tightly, causing the water to slosh.
There was no progress, and the words were on the tip of his tongue but he didn't say them, instead simply saying, "It'll be soon."
"Let's go to the movies together tonight, and I'll observe the situation further."
Cheng Mingdu remained silent for a moment, his eyes seemingly veiled by a layer of water.
"Just think it over," he said calmly.
Ye Yuying pursed her lips and looked at him, "Brother... will my future partner also be like my family?"
Cheng Mingdu paused slightly with his knuckles holding the coffee cup.
"There are still some differences between the two, but there is some element of kinship involved."
Ye Yuying lowered her head, organized her thoughts, paused for a moment, and then slowly said, "I hope that someone will accompany me in the future and give me a certain sense of security. I know you may think that what I like at my age may not be true liking, but... I may need someone to teach me."
As soon as she finished speaking, the air pressure around her dropped so low it seemed to swallow her whole.
He lowered his eyes, pursed his lips slightly, his expression still calm, but the light in his eyes slowly dimmed. "Then what do you think... Gu Ci gave you?"
"Perhaps a little bit of both," she finally whispered.
"That's good." He finally softened his tone, a slight curve at the corners of his mouth, his smile polite and just right. "People like this are worth cherishing."
Ye Yuying looked up at him.
That smile was so perfect, so perfect that it suddenly made her feel a little cold.
She almost wanted to explain something, but his composure silenced her.
That impeccable rationality left her with a sense of hidden frustration.
"Brother," she asked softly, "do you really want me to be in a relationship?"
Cheng Mingdu loosened his grip on the magazine and looked up at her.
“I hope you can distinguish between dependence and love,” he said.
Ye Yuying stared at him blankly, her throat seemingly filled with a thousand words, yet she couldn't utter a single one.
The air was so still you could hear the ticking of the second hand.
Cheng Mingdu finished the last sip of coffee, put down the cup, and his expression returned to normal.
"I have a meeting this afternoon. You don't need to let me know before you leave. Remember not to be too late when you get back."
*
This relationship, in its ambiguity and vagueness, gradually developed a dangerous temperature.
That evening, they went to see a movie together.
In the dimly lit theater, the light from the screen shone on his profile, making the lines of his nose appear both soft and clear in the shadows.
She suddenly felt a pang of panic, as if she were caught up in an emotional frenzy.
There is an extremely romantic scene in the movie, where many couples in the theater looked at each other and kissed.
When she looked at Gu Ci, she tried to overcome her inner resistance, but in the end, she resolutely turned her head away under Gu Ci's gaze.
As the movie ended, it was already dark, and the wind was blowing very lightly, as if afraid of disturbing a beautiful dream.
"actually……"
He suddenly spoke, his tone as calm as if he were talking about something unimportant.
"I really like you."
She had made full mental preparations, and was even prepared to bite the bullet and agree, but before she could even open her mouth, Gu Ci continued speaking.
“You don’t need to answer,” he added with a smile, his voice so soft it almost disappeared into the night. “I just wanted you to know.”
Ye Yuying lowered her head, looking at the tips of her shoes, feeling ashamed.
A voice inside her was advising her that Gu Ci had no flaws, and perhaps agreeing wouldn't hurt.
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
This mouth seems to be incapable of lying.
"Gu Ci..." she finally spoke, her voice hoarse, "I don't know if I am..."
"You like me?" he asked for her.
She neither denied nor nodded.
The night breeze brushed against her hair. She looked at him, her eyes filled with a helpless confusion.
Gu Ci gazed at her quietly for a long time, then smiled gently.
"Actually, I sensed it a long time ago."
His voice was gentle, yet it carried a certainty that seemed to see through everything.
“Ye Yuying, you’re not looking at me.” He paused, a bitter smile curving his lips. “You’re looking at someone through me.”
"Otherwise, you wouldn't sometimes look at me with a sad expression in your eyes."
Her breath caught in her guilt.
He didn't continue speaking, but simply raised his hand and touched her hair. The gesture was still gentle, but it carried a sense of farewell.
“I understand,” he said, “it’s just a little disappointing.”
Ye Yuying opened her mouth to explain, but found her throat tight and she couldn't even utter a complete sentence.
Gu Ci withdrew his hand, his tone so soft it sounded like a sigh: "Actually... I'm just like you, I don't want to be the second choice either."
After saying this, he smiled and said goodbye to her, then turned and left.
Ye Yuying stood there, a dull pain shooting through her chest.
The feeling wasn't like heartbreak; it was more like the wound in her heart had been gently reopened, and after the pain subsided, it didn't hurt as much as before.
He walked towards the subway, she walked in the opposite direction, and neither of them looked back.
As I walked, I couldn't help but laugh out loud.
At that moment, she became more accepting of herself.
She happily walked into the mall at night, and guessed what was going on when she arrived.
The last lights gradually dimmed as she walked along the floor-to-ceiling shop windows on the street corner, where mannequins in summer dresses were on display.
Her own reflection was shown in the glass, lonely yet lighthearted.
She bought herself a cup of warm milk, sat on the stone steps at the entrance of the mall, and slowly finished it.
Insects swirl around the light under the streetlights, and the sounds of the city are enveloped in a soft, quiet atmosphere.
When she looked down, she noticed that her phone battery was down to only two percent.
She smiled, opened WeChat, and sent her location to Cheng Mingdu.
I was about to call him to pick me up after sending the message, but before I could even dial, the screen flashed and the phone went black.
Signal, light, and time all stood still at that moment.
She didn't panic; she knew he would come.
She stood there, gazing intently at the night sky. The sky was exceptionally clear that night; the distant clouds had been carried away by the wind, even revealing a few sparse stars.
Half an hour later, the familiar headlights slowly swept across the street corner.
The car stopped in front of her, and he got out, walking a little faster than usual, his brows furrowed with barely concealed anxiety.
"Why is it off?" he asked, his voice low but filled with suppressed emotion.
"The power's out." She looked up at him, her eyes clear.
Where is Gu Ci?
She shook her head and said softly, "We've finished talking."
He stared at her, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes for a moment. "He abandoned you?"
"No." She smiled, a soft smile, yet tinged with a hint of weariness. "I said goodbye to him properly."
He was about to say something.
"Brother," she interrupted him, her tone soft but surprisingly firm, "I've thought about how to celebrate my coming-of-age ceremony."
A breeze blew from the street, ruffling her hair. She tilted her head slightly, her gaze passing over him, looking towards the end of the night sky.
She said softly, "If I could, I would also like to see a heavy snowfall at sea in the Southern Hemisphere."
Cheng Mingdu's Adam's apple bobbed slightly. He remained silent for a long while before finally whispering, "Okay..."
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