Chapter 21
As long as Yoda doesn't drive, the journey goes smoothly.
Yoda led the obedient Shi Xing little by little to his residence, and said to Shi Xing, who had been following him without saying a word or causing any trouble, "I'm going in now."
Yoda had never been to Shixing's place before. Every time, he would make up some excuse to avoid it, and Yoda never felt obligated to come. They used to go to and from school together every day, do their homework together, and there was nothing between them that they needed to hide from each other. They never thought they needed to have their own space.
There was a time discrepancy between the two of them; Shi Xing needed his own private space, and Youda understood that. So even though she felt things were different from before, she respected Shi Xing's decision.
But now, as Yoda watched the door slowly open, Shi Xing behind him still smiled, showing no objection. Yoda confirmed, "You agreed to this, didn't you?"
According to basic home renovation practices, the light switch should always be within easy reach of the entrance.
As expected. Yoda, with one hand held by Shi Xing, groped along the wall with the other to find the light switch. He turned on the light as soon as he entered the room.
Huh?
Yoda turned around and looked at Shi Xing behind him, and was greatly shocked.
"Shixing, your house was burgled. Did you know that?" Shixing remained the same, only looking at Yoda. When Yoda met his gaze, he gave him a harmless smile.
"What are you laughing at? Your house was raided and you're still laughing."
Looking at the house in front of him, Yoda really wondered if he had made the right choice.
The room was empty, devoid of any furniture except for a sofa, which was clearly unusable. One armrest had collapsed, leaving a long, tilted object. In short, Yoda couldn't honestly call it a sofa; it was barely sitable.
That's not all. The most outrageous thing is that, apart from the switch panel right next to him, all the other switches and sockets that Yoda could see from the doorway were empty, and the wiring boxes left over from the renovation were directly exposed.
Even though Shi Xing had led him all the way here, and Yoda doubted that he had gone to the wrong place, he didn't dare to imagine that Shi Xing was staying here.
Shi Xing, looking at Yoda who was standing at the door, taking out his key and repeatedly confirming that it could open the door, tilted his head in confusion: Why aren't you leaving?
Yoda was even more confused. If it can be opened, then it's right? But how could it be like this?
Impatient, Shi Xing grabbed Yoda by the armpits and carried him inside. If Yoda hadn't jumped down in fright, he probably would have been carried into the empty living room.
Shi Xing didn't force him, and very naturally walked into the house, sat on the slanted, dilapidated sofa, patted it, and gestured for Yoda to sit down and rest with him. Hmm, even with all that effort, no dust flew up; it seems it's just old and still in use.
Yoda was certain—okay, even drunk, it felt so familiar, this was it. Looking closer, at least the exposed wires were somewhat wrapped in insulating cloth. Yoda could only tell himself, "Hmm, maybe this is just a unique, trendy interior design preference."
After looking around, Yoda was relieved that the bathroom was at least intact. But there was no room for it to be incomplete, since there was only one light switch and socket in the bathroom.
Never mind, Yoda was already exhausted and just wanted to get the time going so she could find an empty bed to rest.
However, there was a bed in the master bedroom, but it was completely empty, just a bare bed frame. The ceiling directly opposite the bed was also empty, with a chandelier that had been removed and left at the head of the bed. Only a section of wire was hanging from the hole.
Yoda had already considered many possibilities: a crime scene or some other supernatural story. He turned around to ask Shi Xing what had happened, but the person who had been sitting on the sofa was gone.
Yoda jolted awake, silently reciting "Science and Society." He mustered his courage and wandered around the house, finally finding Shi Xing fast asleep in a small room. The room was so small that with the bed and wardrobe, there was barely room to move.
What's wrong with him? Why doesn't he sleep in the big room and instead comes to this tiny one? Well, no need to ask anymore, Shi Xing is sound asleep and can't be woken up at all.
Yoda really didn't dare to sleep in the master bedroom bed. After thinking about it, she decided to curl up on the sofa in the living room and sleep there instead. She had initially disliked the old and worn sofa, but now, due to the wear and tear from use, it looked full of traces of human life, making her feel much more at ease on it.
The sky was just beginning to lighten.
Shi Xing woke up somewhat confused, having completely lost his memory of yesterday. He only remembered going out to socialize and discuss projects with people. Shi Xing knew his alcohol tolerance was average, but he sometimes couldn't resist for work. Fortunately, he was usually quite well-behaved when drunk, and had no memory of losing control.
Usually, I rest alone in the office at this time, on the sofa. Sometimes I sleep there if I work late. It's all the same where I am; I've been sleeping there for so long, I'm used to it.
How come I woke up at home today? That's so strange.
Could he have driven home drunk last night? The thought sent a chill down his spine. He was startled when he saw Yoda outside. It was a series of jumps.
Yoda rolled over, half-asleep on the sofa, unable to fall asleep easily. He finally managed to drift off in the middle of the night. Shi Xing, rushing out, woke Yoda, who hadn't slept soundly.
Yoda looked at Shi Xing and complained, "This sofa is really hard to sleep on. The springs inside have all collapsed, and there's no support at all." He got up and stretched vigorously, trying to loosen up his back and waist that had suffered all night.
Shi Xing frowned: "Why don't you sleep on the other bed?" Then he realized that he hadn't put anything on the bed, so sleeping on it would probably be about the same as sleeping on the sofa.
Yoda said disdainfully, "There's nothing in your master bedroom except a bed frame in the middle. I can see the light has been removed. I'm scared and I don't dare to go in."
Shi Xing continued, "Then you can sleep in my bed, and I'll sleep on the sofa."
Yoda looked Shi Xing up and down: "You? Forget it. This sofa is so crooked, even one armrest can't fit you. Sleeping on the sofa is practically the same as being thrown on the floor."
Shi Xing suddenly came to his senses. The important thing wasn't who was sleeping on the sofa, but his mind was full of questions: "But how did you get here? How did I get here?"
Yoda stretched and pulled back the curtains, saying, "Yeah, you asked me to bring you back. I lost my keys last night and asked you for help. I asked you, and you kept saying it was okay, so I came back with you. I didn't sneak off, okay?"
Shi Xing tried hard to recall, but a few fragments were blurry. However, he was relieved that both of them were safe. "I drank too much last night and have absolutely no recollection of it. You shouldn't sleep here; you should go to a hotel."
Yoda said dejectedly, "I'd like to too, but I didn't bring my ID card. These days, you can't check into a hotel without an ID card. Do you think this is still the way we used to go out and have fun?"
In the past, when the two of them went out with friends, to save money, they would use one person's ID to book a room, and then the others would pretend to visit and then sneak back to stay with them. Back then, they didn't have much money, and hotels, while not encouraging or supporting it, tacitly allowed it. Yoda remembers the record of seven people staying together at once, but that was a long, long time ago; that wouldn't be possible now!
Yoda thought of Shi Xing's strange bedroom: "Why did you take the master bedroom light off and live in the small room? It made me think there was something wrong with this house. If you hadn't already fallen asleep on the bed, I would have taken you away."
Shi Xing's smile vanished in an instant, tinged with bitterness: "I'm not used to chandeliers, and I don't like rooms that feel too empty."
Yoda fell silent for a moment. She knew that Shi Xing had endured a lot on his own after she was injured, but she never expected that even after she woke up, he would still not be able to get out of the shadow of that year.
Seeing that it was still early, Shi Xing looked at Yoda, who looked tired, and said, "Why don't you sleep a little longer?"
Yoda shook his head violently: "Forget it, I can't sleep. My back aches and I smell like hot pot, and you smell like alcohol." He hadn't noticed it last night because he was sleepy and tired, but now that he was awake, the air smelled complicated.
However, Yoda found the bathroom in Shixing, which was so simple it was practically rudimentary, inconvenient to use. Neither of them felt sleepy anymore, so they went to a bathhouse to wash up, managed a short rest, and then returned to work.
When they arrived at the company, there was hardly anyone there. Yoda couldn't help but confide in Xie Yiyi: "Shixing has been affected by my injury and can't get over it. I went to his place last night, and it was empty and there was no sense of life there."
Xie Yiyi's attention wasn't on Yoda's main point at all; she had her own concerns. "You went to his house? Things are progressing so quickly?"
Yoda knew Xie Yiyi had misunderstood, and that everyone was waiting for her and Shi Xing to get married at a normal pace, but they shouldn't expect that now. "Is that the point? It's that Shi Xing is different from before."
Having already heard the whole thing, Xie Yiyi complained, "You worry about Shi Xing, but don't you worry about me? You two are always worrying about each other. After going to the bathhouse for a shower, you each go to work. It's like an old married couple's lifestyle. No crying in the rain, no hysteria, does this look like someone with psychological trauma?"
Yoda sighed, "Okay, okay, what's wrong with you?"
Xie Yiyi deliberately made sobbing noises: "I'm so exhausted from taking care of the child, I feel hopeless about life. You've only suffered a setback in love, but I've lost my whole life!"
Yoda: "Wait a minute, you said yesterday that the baby was so cute that you weren't tired of taking care of him every day."
Xie Yiyi hesitated, then stubbornly said, "I think it might be postpartum hormones, or maybe they're only starting to take effect now. Anyway, I'm a bit depressed. The thought of you two going to take a bath behind my back yesterday makes me feel even worse. We used to be able to go out together often, eat and play, but now I have to plan my outings carefully. We can only chat when the baby is asleep."
Yoda was about to offer some comfort when he suddenly heard the game's settlement notification coming from Xie Yiyi's end. He angrily shouted, "You! You were just playing the game! You were actually acting and lying to me!"
Xie Yiyi felt her hormones kicking in again, and she became even more distressed: "Sigh, I can't talk about it anymore. You two are really something. What do you mean by arguing? You feel like nothing's different anymore. Being hurt in a relationship doesn't stop you from caring for each other. This isn't a relationship problem; your relationship is too good."
Finally, he hurriedly added, "Oh, right, don't forget about our trip together. We finally set a date, and this time, no one is allowed to postpone it for any reason. If it's postponed again, I'll get angry. My child is already so big, and I haven't gone out to play yet. You all have to cooperate with me now, otherwise, if I become depressed, every one of you will be responsible. This message must be conveyed and acted upon simultaneously."
He spoke so fast that Yoda didn't even have a chance to interrupt.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com