Chapter 21 Chapter 21 "I dreamed of you, so I might as well not come back. ...
In the end, Jiang Mian still hadn't decided which school to apply to.
He left early, a few months before the college entrance examination and one night after a big fight with Yu Qiaoyu.
The screen door was pushed open but not closed, and the bearings were dry, making a harsh creaking sound.
Qiao Yu had just finished saying those harsh words, but she didn't expect Jiang Mian to go out directly at the time when he was supposed to go to bed. She stood there for a while, and when she didn't see him coming back, she thought of chasing after him, but Jiang Mian was no longer in the corridor.
He was a little worried at first, but was soon overwhelmed by the anger that followed.
Ignoring grandma's dissuasion, he slammed the door shut.
If you're leaving, don't come back.
No one can survive without the other.
One day, two days, three days.
A week passed and there was no news from Jiang Mian.
Grandma had been looking for him outside for several days, and the school teachers also joined in. Finally, they called the police.
The police did find the person, but they only gave an address. Jiang Mian returned to his father's place in Beijing six days ago and has now gone abroad.
This is a very ironic thing.
But a month ago, Jiang Mian still responded to this with disdain.
No matter how much money that old man has, why should Jiang Mian have any business? If you can't control your lower body, you're not worthy of being a father, let alone a human being.
Qiao Yu nodded repeatedly: "Don't let money go to your head, we must have backbone."
At the age of seventeen or eighteen, one has a clear distinction between love and hate, and the hardest part of the body is the bones.
The Jiang family members tried to persuade Jiang Mian several times, but Jiang Mian ignored them all and refused to be persuaded.
"I only have you and grandma." Jiang Mian liked to hug Qiao Yu, close his eyes and bury his face in his neck and shoulders, whispering some sweet words at night, "I want to watch you study, graduate, and work, and then we can honor grandma together and see her off to the end of her life."
Jiang Mian planned his entire life into just a few sentences. The future that could be seen at a glance was plain and reassuring.
Qiao Yu couldn't believe that Jiang Mian would leave without saying goodbye just because of a quarrel, abandoning him and his grandmother, and go away so quietly.
"He went abroad?" He couldn't believe it. "Jiang Mian? He went abroad?"
Jiang Mian, who could only recognize 26 letters of the English alphabet, was actually willing to go abroad.
"As long as he has money, that's enough," the policeman glanced at Qiao Yu, "It's not surprising for a rich second-generation to go abroad."
Qiao Yu never thought that one day Jiang Mian would be associated with the term "rich second generation".
He stayed at home for two days but still couldn't accept the fact, so he decided to find Jiang Mian and ask him face to face.
If Jiang Mian admits it himself, he will come back.
Nothing much to say, nothing to regret.
He just wanted to hear Jiang Mian say it himself.
I just wanted to look at Jiang Mian and say something.
It’s a way to give myself an explanation.
Qiao Yu only took the round-trip fare and went to Beijing alone.
He made preparations in advance and found the Jiang family's real estate company and several private residences.
He met a lot of people, some insignificant people, some who were just taking advantage of others and looked down on him.
But he didn't see Jiang Mian, nor did he see Jiang Mian's father who showed up halfway.
He stayed in Beijing for three days until he was penniless.
In the end, all that was seen was a confused "Third Uncle", who was pinned down on the table by the other party with a knife against his eyes.
The blood flowed from the corner of the eye into the ear, and the sharp touch pierced the eyeball.
Qiao Yu was trembling all over, but his fingers were tightly gripping the edge of the table, unwilling to compromise.
"You are guilty," Qiao Yu said, "The more you don't let me see him, the more wrong it is."
Uncle San smiled: "He feels guilty and doesn't want to see you."
Qiao Yu's face turned pale: "Impossible."
"Impossible?" Uncle San patted Qiao Yu's face with the back of his finger, "Little friend, don't trust human nature too much."
-
There seemed to be blood in the corners of his eyes, which flowed across his temples and into his ears.
The mark was sucked gently, feeling the moist touch and the warm breath brushing against the face.
"What did you dream about? You cried even in your sleep."
Qiao Yu opened his eyes and saw nothing but darkness.
He slowly adjusted to the darkness, feeling the softness and warmth as well.
Jiang Mian's arms were wrapped around his neck, and a familiar scent surrounded him.
This feeling reminded Qiao Yu of the time when he and Jiang Mian shared a small bed of 1.2 meters. When he slept, he liked to cover his head with the quilt so that he could nestle in Jiang Mian's arms.
Those who like it are too young and the promises are not worth mentioning.
Now when I think back to the past, it’s a mess, and the expired candy only tastes bitter when I eat it.
"I dreamed about you." Qiao Yu's voice was hoarse.
"Did you dream about me?" Jiang Mian moved closer, rubbing his nose against Qiao Yu's earlobe, intimately and gently, "What did you dream about me?"
But Qiao Yu closed her eyes: "If I dream about you, I might as well not come back."
-
The next day, Qiao Yu was woken up by the alarm clock.
He got up, took his phone, sat on the bed, and tore off the sticky note stuck on the screen.
[I will be away for a few days for work. There is breakfast on the table. Please keep warm. ——6:30 a.m.】
He stared at that AM for a long time.
It’s not that Qiao Yu didn’t understand, he just subconsciously felt that Jiang Mian couldn’t write this thing, and wondered if it was some kind of weird talisman.
But he soon realized that perhaps he should look at Jiang Mian from a different perspective. The other party seemed to be much stronger than himself now.
Qiao Yu put the sticky note back on the bedside table.
He threw off the quilt and got out of bed. The floor heating in the room was on, so it was not difficult to get up even in winter.
The living room is very large, with north-south ventilation. The curtains are drawn, with a veil hanging inside. The decoration style is simple and warm, and the beige main color looks very homey.
Although Qiao Yu had discussed the word "home" with Jiang Mian a long time ago, when it comes to being specific, it is still a vague concept.
But now that I see the real thing, I suddenly feel that after what I said before is put into practice, it seems that it is just like many ordinary families, just having a place to shelter from the wind and rain.
——“It’s our home.”
Qiao Yu thought of what Jiang Mian said last night, and felt mixed emotions that were hard to describe.
There was breakfast on the dining table, probably made by Jiang Mian himself, but Qiao Yu didn't touch it.
He did not touch anything in the room and left quickly like an outsider who didn't fit in.
-
Jiang Mian bought a house next to Qiao Yu University. It only takes ten minutes to walk downstairs to reach the school gate.
Qiao Yu stood at the fork in the road, thought about it, and went to school.
Zhou Shuhe was packing his luggage in the dormitory. When he saw Qiao Yu, his eyes widened: "Wa Qu, why are you here?"
Qiao Yu had a lot of questions in his head: "What's wrong?"
"Shouldn't you be flirting with your first love so early in the morning?"
Qiao Yu's face darkened.
"Is it your first love?" Zhou Shuhe asked again, "When I heard it was a man, I guessed it was him."
"Heard?" Qiao Yu asked, "Did many people hear it?"
Although he didn't think there was anything wrong with him saying that he liked men, it would bring him a lot of trouble.
After all, girls are quite polite when expressing their affection, but guys... that's another matter.
"No, it's just me. It involves privacy, so she only asked me."
Qiao Yu nodded and walked to the table and sat down.
There was a pile of draft papers in the corner. He seemed to remember something and rummaged through them, finding the draft he had written the day Jiang Mian sent him back to the dormitory.
Jiang Mian has always been very smart and learns things quickly.
He just didn't want to study, and even his grandma couldn't beat him into the classroom with a broom.
So it turned out like this?
Qiao Yu's fingers slid across the edge of the paper, but eventually he looked away.
Zhou Shuhe left school today, and Qiao Yu walked him out of the school gate.
"Happy New Year in advance." Zhou Shuhe said to him with a smile.
"Happy New Year." Qiao Yu curled his lips for a rare moment.
They said goodbye at the station. Qiao Yu watched the taxi go away and his mood became depressed again.
Parting is sad, no matter who it is with.
At that time, Qiao Yu still thought that Jiang Mian’s message about “leaving for a few days due to work reasons” really meant that he was leaving for a few days.
But since then, Jiang Mian seemed to have disappeared and there has been no news of him.
It snowed again and lanterns were hung along the long street.
The atmosphere of the New Year is everywhere, with lights and decorations everywhere.
Qiao Yu is surrounded by joy every day, and is occasionally moved by the people around her and feels happy for the upcoming New Year.
However, when he returned home, he saw his grandmother waiting in the corridor and was chased by people asking, "Where is Xiao Mian?" and "Why hasn't Xiao Mian come back yet?"
At that moment, it seemed like there was nothing to be happy about.
At first, Qiao Yu made up all kinds of excuses to get away with it.
But later when grandma asked again, I also thought: Yes, where did Jiang Mian go?
No messages, no calls.
If it weren't for the clothes in the closet and the supplements in the refrigerator, Qiao Yu would really doubt whether she had a dream about Jiang Mian.
Later, grandma asked Jiang Mian if he would come back to celebrate the New Year.
Qiao Yu shook his head: "I don't know."
The snow outside had melted and a light rain was dripping from the eaves.
Qiao Yu opened the dialog box with Jiang Mian, deleted and reduced some words in the input field, and finally sent out a question, but it fell on deaf ears and no one responded.
He recalled his time with Jiang Mian, trying to find some reasons.
However, it’s better not to think about it. Once you think about it, there will be problems everywhere.
Is Jiang Mian angry with him?
Qiao Yu turned off his phone in annoyance.
Just give birth, it’s up to you whether you want to or not.
In the evening, he received the New Year bonus from Brother Wang.
Qiao Yu felt quite guilty about taking this money.
[Brother Wang: Young man, don’t be so impulsive. There's a lot going on in the store these days. If you have nothing to do, come back and help. 】
After finishing, he added: If you still want.
Qiao Yu felt that this statement was not right at all.
But there is nothing I am unwilling to do.
He planned to go back and spend New Year's Eve with his grandmother, and then go back to the bar to help on New Year's Day.
Unfortunately, when I was halfway home, I received a call from Aunt Sun saying that grandma was missing.
Qiao Yu was confused and didn't react for a long time.
"Gone," he repeated, then corrected himself, "Lost."
Is lost.
Qiao Yu suppressed his emotions and reacted calmly. This kind of thing happened once three years ago, and that was why Qiao Yu asked Aunt Sun to take care of him at home.
After that, Aunt Sun took good care of grandma. Qiao Yu came back to take over in the evening and watched over her every step of the way, and nothing went wrong.
And grandma was also very obedient. If she wasn't allowed to go out, she never ran out on her own again.
This time he suddenly got lost, there was obviously something wrong.
Qiao Yu didn't have time to think about it.
Alarm and adjust monitoring.
Grandma was last seen at a breakfast shop near the street, and disappeared after passing by.
Qiao Yu went to every place he could think of.
But I can't find it.
The streets were filled with people celebrating the New Year, and brilliant fireworks exploded in the sky from time to time, causing people to exclaim in amazement.
Qiao Yu ran until his heart ached. He knelt on the side of the road, bent his body and gasped for breath.
Ji Zhongyuan pressed his back: "Think slowly, don't be anxious."
"It's really strange," Aunt Sun wiped her tears anxiously, "She waits for Xiaoyu to come back in the corridor every night and never runs around. Today I just went out to buy a steamed bun, how come -"
Ji Zhongyuan asked: "Did grandma go to your school to look for you?"
Qiao Yu frowned, as if he suddenly remembered something, took out his cell phone and turned to Jiang Mian's number.
The person grandma was waiting for in the corridor every day was not Qiao Yu, but Jiang Mian.
On New Year's Eve, even if she had to go look for someone, she would definitely go look for Jiang Mian.
But Jiang Mian's phone was always busy.
"Answer the phone," Qiao Yu held the phone, tears falling on the screen, and said to herself, "Why don't you answer the phone?"
"Don't worry," Ji Zhongyuan held Qiao Yu's shoulders, "If grandma goes to his place, he will contact you."
Qiao Yu closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
There has been no news from Jiang Mian for nearly half a month. He couldn't even find him, so how could grandma possibly find him?
Besides, Jiang Mian is not in Huaicheng at all, so even if we try to contact him, it would be too far to reach him. My grandma has no money, so she can’t go far in a short time.
Time is running out, the longer we delay, the more dangerous it will be.
"Look for it again," Qiao Yu turned off his phone and stood up again, "Look for it again."
He followed his grandmother's thoughts and went to Jiang Mian's former middle school and places Jiang Mian often went to, and slowly searched along the way home.
But after walking back and forth several times and even searching the green belt thoroughly, Qiao Yu still couldn't find any trace of her grandma.
"Why can't I find it?" Qiao Yu said in a panic, "Why can't I find it?!"
The first time my grandma went missing, she was found on a nearby street within an hour.
She was a little old lady with a weak mental state and had no ability to walk so far, so many people had been busy for so long but still couldn't find her.
Ji Zhongyuan hesitated for a long time, but couldn't help but speak: "Could it be Jiang Mian's home?"
Qiao Yu's heart skipped a beat.
"No, no way?" He was shocked by the idea, but he didn't dare to refute it completely. "Grandma is so old, they won't do that, right?"
Ji Zhongyuan shook his head gently: "I don't know."
Qiao Yu felt dizzy for a moment, and Ji Zhongyuan supported him from behind.
He stood firm, took out his cell phone again and called Jiang Mian.
The other party still didn't answer.
"No," Qiao Yu comforted himself, "It won't be that fast."
Didn’t Jiang Mian just return to China? They had only been in Huaicheng for a few days and had just confirmed their so-called "relationship". How could the Jiang family know it so quickly?
But he really had no reason to explain why his grandma couldn't be found until now.
Some terrible memories that had been diluted by time resurfaced in his mind. Qiao Yu thought that everything he had experienced might very likely happen to his grandmother. He became so angry that he bent over and coughed up blood.
Ji Zhongyuan was startled: "Qiao Yu!"
Qiao Yu wiped his lips and said, "Look again, look again."
Maybe he shouldn't have anything to do with Jiang Mian anymore, he really can't afford the consequences.
"If you can't find it, go to Beijing," Ji Zhongyuan stroked Qiao Yu's sweaty hair, "If grandma really wants to stay at Jiang's house, she will be safe for the time being. Don't worry and don't panic."
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