02 "A Fool Stuck in the Past"
He Yu glared at Wen Dongyang, who had been sneering at him all the way, and his tone was not good at all.
His mind was still in a turmoil, and he casually draped his coat over the back of the chair, his eyelids slightly raised as he looked around. Perhaps because it was raining and he didn't like going out, there were no other customers in the restaurant except for a dark figure at the table in front of them.
Knowing that his funny "injury" would not be noticed by anyone, He Yu restrained his tense expression, pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Here we go! Plenty of chicken soup and chicken!"
The boss came out from the kitchen shouting and delivered the meal himself. After putting down the chicken soup, he saw the man's purple right eye and hurriedly lifted his face to check, startled.
"Oh my god! Mr. He, what happened to you? Your face is so disfigured that it's not good-looking. Your appearance will be greatly affected, to say the least. And you're a little..."
"Like a panda, right?"
Wen Dongyang changed the subject, met the man's cold gaze, and quickly lowered his head.
He suppressed a laugh and coughed lightly, then took the vinegar bottle from the corner of the table to season the chicken soup in his bowl. "Don't be so arrogant. You don't want people to say anything about the stupid things you did?"
He Yu frowned when he heard this. After being reminded, what happened half an hour ago came to his mind again.
The plane was delayed and it was already dark when we arrived in Rongcheng from Qieyang.
He walked out of the hall with his secretary, exhausted, and found a familiar piece of clothing among the crowd of people leaving.
In that instant, He Yu felt a lump in his nose and he ran forward regardless.
He quickly grabbed the other person's arm and took him aside.
The woman turned around in surprise, her facial features distorted by the hat and mask, but he was completely unaware of it and reached out his hand like a madman to take off the mask to confirm.
However, the next second, the woman's husband, who had just returned from buying coffee, saw this scene. He threw down the things out of misunderstanding and punched her.
Seeing this, the secretary who came behind him and Wen Dongyang who was late to pick him up hurriedly pulled the man away. After some adjustments, He Yu was distraught and woke up from his dream when he saw the unfamiliar face under the mask.
It was indeed a stupid thing, even more ridiculous than what happened three years ago.
After regaining his composure, He Yu put down his chopsticks in frustration, and his hands under the table began to tremble uncontrollably again.
No matter how many years passed, she always had the ability to turn him from a sane and rational person into a madman.
Tao Wanjia's back was stiff, and she could hear every word of the conversation behind her.
Her keen hearing and memory allowed her to confirm without turning around, not to mention the clear reflection of the man's face in the glass window of the food delivery area in front of her. She stole a glance, then quickly lowered her head. Uncomfortably, she dug a ten-yuan bill from her wallet and placed it on the table. She then snatched up her scarf, wrapped it tightly around her, and headed out.
"Have you enjoyed your meal?" the boss looked at her and greeted her, "Come often in the future."
Tao Wanjia ignored him and pushed the door open and left in silence.
The cold wind came in through the crack in the door. He Yu raised his eyes inadvertently and was first attracted by the black short boots that flashed across the floor.
Then I looked back and saw the man's neat back and tall figure. He was wearing all black from head to toe, making it impossible to tell his gender.
There were few young people dressed in trendy clothes in this small restaurant in the city. He Yu couldn't help but take a few more glances. Before he could figure out the strangeness, the boss who was clearing the table suddenly exclaimed.
"Oh my, girls nowadays have stomachs like birds. They only drink this little bit from such a big bowl of chicken soup."
Then, she became puzzled again and subconsciously looked outside, "That's not right. How come she left before I even gave her the change?"
He Yu was stunned. The ants summoned from the cracks in his bones once again pierced his heart. His heart felt empty and hung in the air, prompting him to run out immediately.
The rain has stopped, and there are few people on the streets at night, with only sporadic snowflakes falling from the sky.
The first snow of this winter fell unnoticed, mixed with raindrops.
Wen Dongyang was already used to his frightening reaction, but fearing something might happen again, he followed him out. He walked down the stairs and saw He Yu standing on the side of the road like a statue.
Under the dim street light, a pale face with purple scars shone. There was despair and unwillingness in the pupils, which were focused on the road that no one had passed by for a long time.
This lifeless look reminded Wen Dongyang of that summer evening many years ago when He Yu was also standing in the square outside the train station, as if he had lost his soul, his gaze fixed on the empty railway tracks for a long time.
"I've asked my classmates from police academies across the country to keep an eye on you. I'll let you know as soon as I have any news."
Wen Dongyang reached out and patted his shoulder, offering comfort but also a word of advice, "But He Yu, if someone truly doesn't want to appear, even if you turn the world upside down, it won't help. You can't be trapped in the past because of this."
He Yu didn't say anything. When he looked up, the swirling snowflakes pricked his eyelashes.
He closed his eyes in the cold wind and did not see, nor would he see, the dark shadow dodging along the wall of the alley behind him.
Tao Wanjia stood there for a while, and only crossed the road and walked home after the two got in the car and left.
The distance was not far, and it took less than ten minutes to reach the entrance of the community, but before she went in, she first went to a small wooden house without a sign on the side of the road.
The house was dark and crowded with people. A circle of customers lined up to choose from the mountains of yellow and white offerings. Tomorrow was the Cold Clothes Festival, and only the paper-making shops would be crowded at night.
"Yours is here!"
The lady at the counter saw a dark figure standing at the door in a daze, and was alerted by the familiar hat on her head. She bent down, took out several bags that had been packed on the ground and handed them to her with a loud sound.
"In quadruplicate, all made according to your specifications."
Tao Wanjia squeezed forward with the people on both sides, and his clothes were covered with static electricity from the friction.
He took the bag, scanned the code and paid, then with his hands full, he crossed the road against the wind and walked to the door of the apartment building in one breath.
The residential complex, located next to a primary school, was nearly thirty years old. While the infrastructure wasn't particularly good, its location at the intersection of three roads made it convenient for both travel and sightseeing. After careful selection, Tao Wanjia successfully rented a place and then sought a job at a nearby gas company.
There were six floors in total, and she lived on the first. Old residential complexes didn't have elevators, and the dark, narrow stairwell had only a shabby, voice-activated light overhead, filled with mosquito eggs. Tao Wanjia closed the door to her unit, saw no light, and groped her way up the steps to the door. Just as she was about to open it with her key, there was a sudden "bang" behind her.
"Damn! This is so unlucky!"
The voice-controlled light came on, and Tao Wanjia turned around and saw the girl standing at the next door with her back to her. The keys were jingling, but the door remained motionless.
Both houses belonged to the same landlord, and on her first day, Tao Wanjia heard the landlady mention that the couple next door were a young couple. She wasn't one to meddle in other people's business, and her years of solitary existence had made her indifferent to everything around her.
I closed the door and returned home, put the paper-made items in my hand in the entrance, took off my coat and went into the kitchen.
Boil water and take out the frozen dumplings from the refrigerator and put them into the pot.
While waiting for the water to boil, I found a chance to sort out the kitchen garbage. I opened the door to throw away the garbage and found that the girl next door was still standing there, cursing and kicking the door.
Being young, he only knows how to vent his anger when encountering problems.
This time, Tao Wanjia stopped on his way back and asked, "Do you need help?"
“Need, need!”
The girl turned around, as if she had been waiting for her to speak. A smile appeared on her dark and thin face. "My phone is out of battery, and my key is stuck in the keyhole and I can't open it. Can you lend me your phone? I'll call my boyfriend and ask him to come back."
Tao Wanjia looked back and found that most old-fashioned door locks had this problem. They always had to be pushed inward before opening the door.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, the other party was anxious and asked, "Are you going to lend it to me or not?"
"Is your boyfriend a locksmith?"
Tao Wanjia asked instead of answering, turned on the flashlight on his phone and looked down, then turned back.
The girl blinked, and it took her a moment to realize the meaning of her question.
The implication is that instead of looking for help from your boyfriend first, you should find a locksmith to solve the problem.
"If you don't want to lend it, then don't lend it. What are you saying? People here are..."
The girl thought Tao Wanjia had left and wanted to speak out. Halfway through her words, she saw her return with a knife and pliers and hurriedly raised her hands to cover her mouth.
Tao Wanjia ignored her and glanced at her in the dim light, then withdrew his gaze from her thick artificial eyelashes and exaggerated rhinestone nail art.
I used a utility knife to straighten the key, and then used needle-nose pliers to remove the broken key. In less than two minutes, the broken key was successfully taken out.
When she closed the door again, she heard the girl behind her say with shame, "Thank you, I'm sorry for what happened just now."
Tao Wanji smiled, locked the door from the inside, and went to the kitchen to get dumplings.
The laptop that she had not had time to put away in the morning was placed on the dining table. After hesitating for a moment, Tao Wanji unlocked the password and finally clicked on the email to read the report again.
Pei Qiang, deputy editor-in-chief and director of the in-depth investigation department of Nancheng Metropolis Daily, announced his resignation today. Regarding the recent reports that have caused a stir, Pei Qiang declined to comment.
Tao Wanji sighed softly and found the last text message on his phone from three days ago.
Lao Pei: Don’t come back yet. Wait for me to contact you after you’ve hidden away for a while.
The road ahead is unknown, and the meat dumplings with thin skin and large fillings have no fragrance at all.
Tao Wanjia ate hastily, set the alarm and went to wash up and rest.
The next morning, Tao Wanjia arrived at the cemetery at 4:30.
Although she had been away for many years, this road seemed to be engraved in her mind. Even though there was a layer of fog in the darkness and the rocks and weeds were stumbling blocks, it didn't take her long to find the two tombs, one in the south and one in the north.
Shine the flashlight on the tombstone, she reached out and wiped away the loose dirt, but the marble was spotless, only cold to the touch.
"Dad, Mom, I'm back."
Tao Wanjia said softly, "My daughter is unfilial. I waited so many years to come back to see you. I was really afraid that I would cause you as much trouble as I did."
The tombstone standing in the darkness remained motionless. Tao Wanjia put down the plate of dumplings that were still steaming in the bag and quickly moved to another tomb.
She didn't say anything, just placed the cakes on the table and knelt down to burn the paper.
Scarlet flames ignited at the edges of the paper money, circling and fluttering in the darkness. A gust of wind blew past, and the flowing flames tilted and pounced in front of her.
The fire singed the hair on his forehead. After feeling the burning pain, Tao Wanji finally raised his head and looked at the two black and white photos on the tombstone.
The wind whimpered as it passed by, blowing away the tears between her eyelashes.
Tao Wanjia choked up, "Uncle Huang, Aunt Liu, are you still blaming me?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
