Chapter 14. "Excuse Me"
The light in the bathroom was dim.
Yi Lingjia bent down, scooped up a handful of cold water, and splashed it hard on his face.
Drops of water slid down his cheeks, dripped onto his collar, and soaked his clothes.
He closed his eyes and felt a sharp awakening.
Lu Qiaoyuan.
When did it start?
Was it after he returned to China? Or even earlier?
Or maybe, it was six years before she firmly broke up with him?
He stood up, opened his eyes, and looked in the mirror.
The man in the mirror looked horribly pale.
His eyes moved down and landed on an open medicine bottle on the sink counter.
He forced a silent smile, and the pill he had just swallowed melted in his throat, and the bitter taste of the medicine seemed to spread into his heart.
He looked at himself intently.
If his hair were longer and the deep wrinkle between his eyebrows were lighter...he might look more like himself six years ago.
But even six years ago, she resolutely chose to leave.
"Yi Lingjia, I'm not going abroad anymore."
"We are not suitable, so let's just leave it at that."
What's more, what about the tired-looking man in the mirror now?
She seemed not to have changed at all.
On the day they first met at sea, when he saw the person in his memory appear under the rosy sky, his heart exploded like thunder.
From then on, the stagnant life was broken.
Since their reunion, she has appeared more and more frequently, and his fluctuating emotions have become increasingly difficult to control.
She just broke into his life again, and there was no way to avoid her.
Just like now.
On the way back to the box, he saw a figure in the corridor that he was very familiar with.
Ke Fan stood there quietly.
The man opposite had a deep frown between his brows, and his eyes were hidden behind the lenses of his gold-rimmed glasses.
Stopped half a meter away from her.
She raised her eyes and met those deep black eyes that she couldn't read.
In fact, it was the first time I looked at him so closely since we met again.
I have to admit again that Yi Lingjia is definitely a very good-looking person in the secular sense.
He has a high nose bridge, fair skin, thick eyebrows and big eyes.
The simple but high-quality dark shirt is crisp and stylish.
It was a sharp and handsome look that was different from the one he had as a student six years ago.
But now there are faint dark spots under his eyes, which make him look more haggard and haggard.
She suddenly realized that he had hardly smiled since they met again.
It wasn’t like this before.
She blinked, and the valve of memory opened instantly.
It was easy to picture the boy in my mind.
He made a three-pointer and rushed towards her through the crowd impatiently.
Her hair was wet with sweat, and when she smiled there was a small dimple on the right side of her face, filled with sunshine.
At that time, she always liked to tease him when they were alone.
"Why can't we sell desserts in a seafood restaurant? Not only should we sell them, we should also turn them into a chain! Mr. Ke will invest in you."
He always spoiled her, letting her imagination run wild, and coaxed her with a smile:
"Then let me think about what to call this future largest seafood chain in the country?"
The boy looked at him with the most gentle and serious eyes in the world.
The combined effects of ibuprofen and the red bean sweet soup made Ke Fan feel sleepy.
Falling onto the pillow, she was almost instantly swept into the dark sweet fragrance. She still remembered mumbling, "Have you decided? What's the name?"
Half asleep and half awake, warm lips touched her forehead: "Well, your name is Fengshun."
A voice said softly:
"Because I hope that Ke Fan will always have smooth sailing."
The corridor was very quiet.
The two stood opposite each other, only half a meter apart, yet seemed to be separated by the ends of the earth.
"Excuse me."
Yi Lingjia said in a cold voice.
Ke Fan felt a sudden pain in his heart. Having been calm for twenty-eight years, for the first time he felt a string in his mind getting tighter and tighter, as if it would break uncontrollably in the next second.
She didn't turn sideways.
She lowered her eyes, and when the man opposite her started to leave, she suddenly called out to him:
"Boss Yi."
"What kind of person would sell desserts in a seafood restaurant?"
Yi Lingjia stopped in his tracks immediately.
*
Two years ago.
There was a rare sound of argument in the office, and Li Jing couldn't help but prick up his ears.
It seemed like the boss's good friend was talking, the man with thick eyebrows, big eyes, a cheerful face and a fondness for laughter.
At this time, his tone was urgent, full of disapproval:
"Your fishery is doing well, why are you suddenly thinking of expanding into a seafood restaurant? The seafood market in Tsu City is so saturated right now."
There was a silence.
The boss's voice echoed, "It's not a sudden decision; I've always wanted to do this. I was overwhelmed when I first took over the fishery, but now that it's stabilized, I'm planning to put this on the agenda. As for the market, with our own fishery, we don't have to worry about raw materials or costs. If we can develop a few differentiating factors, I believe it won't be a problem. Once the first store is successful, we can even consider recruiting others to join."
"That's true, but how easy is it to start early? Will the other shareholders agree? And where can we find people willing to join?"
"I'll go talk to them one by one." Yi Lingjia's voice was low but firm.
Nie Fei put his hands in his pockets and walked around the office anxiously.
"Lingjia, I still don't understand. From the time my uncle passed away until you single-handedly built the company, I've seen how much hardship you've endured. Now that everything is finally stable, why are you so anxious to expand this new business?"
A trace of brokenness flashed between the drooping brows of the man sitting behind the desk, as if he was pierced by something cold, and his breathing instantly became stagnant.
He also wanted to know, why?
I know all this is meaningless, so why is there always an impulse roaring in my chest?
What are you insisting on?
Maybe it’s because, if this store really existed, it would be a kind of proof.
Prove that those three years really existed.
Prove that they really loved each other.
But he was too eager for this proof, even if it was just a vague one.
There was another long silence, and Yi Lingjia raised his eyes to meet Nie Fei's still worried face.
"Nie Fei, some things are not worth it, but whether you are willing to do them or not."
*
The hand that grabbed her wrist was burning hot, and it felt like magma was boiling under her calm skin.
When Yi Lingjia pulled him into the empty corridor, Ke Fan didn't show much emotion.
Instead, he breathed a sigh of relief imperceptibly when he saw his frozen shell crack again.
His incomprehensible gaze lingered on her.
Who would sell desserts in a seafood restaurant?
After a long moment, a low laugh came from his throat, the sound so faint it tasted bitter.
"Probably the most ridiculous person in the world?"
"Ke Fan, tell me, do you also think I'm ridiculous?"
Tell me, isn't it funny that I would be completely defeated and all my defenses would be destroyed when I met you?
The cold mask that he had been trying so hard to maintain since the reunion cracked.
He has always been a clumsy person.
No matter how sarcastic and cold his words were, the warmth from his hand spread to her wrist in waves.
As he held her hand, she also had his pulse.
A frantic, rapid pulse.
The two looked at each other for a long time, and their breathing could be heard in the corridor.
The brokenness in his eyes almost overflowed.
Ke Fan thought of his stubborn tears when they broke up.
"Then break up! Even without you, Ke Fan, we still have Zhang Fan, Zhao Fan, and Li Fan... Just don't regret it!"
The scene changed, and it was Nie Fei who said to her with a look of reluctance:
"After you broke up, he had a really hard time in the United States. He hasn't had a girlfriend in all these years. After that incident, he became so depressed that he started taking medication to control himself again. Recently, he even..."
The pockets of the man opposite him moved slightly, and it was obvious that his fingers were rubbing something in his pockets.
Ke Fan suddenly broke free from his hand, and at the same time, used his other hand to press down on Yi Lingjia's arm in her pocket.
He was pressed against the cold wall.
Her usually cold eyes and brows now glowed with a rare soft light, emitting extreme charm in the dim corridor.
Yi Lingjia's Adam's apple moved up and down, and he could almost hear the sound of his own heart beating.
But he stood there motionless, staring at those eyes.
Those eyes that often appear in my mind.
Ke Fan looked at him at first, but then, as if she couldn't stand the too direct look, she looked down.
But it's worse.
What caught my eye were his lips.
The lips are naturally beautiful, soft red, and slightly upturned.
The lips she had kissed countless times six years ago.
The pulse is getting faster and faster.
Is it his or hers?
I found his lips alluring when we first kissed.
It was a snowy Christmas night, and snowflakes were falling all over the sky.
They had just eaten the peace apple, and their mouths were filled with the sweetness of the apple.
At the end, his lips seemed to be covered with a thin layer of light in the night, which was so tempting that it was almost breathtaking.
At that time, his eyes were full of surprise, and his round smiling eyes looked at her with infinite joy.
*
Yi Lingjia leaned against the cold wall.
Her hands were not too strong, but for some reason, he still obeyed her.
Reason and drugs were fighting each other, and the body's energy seemed to have been exhausted, and a deep fatigue surged from the heart.
So, he just stood there, looking into her eyes.
At first he could still manage to remain calm, but when her gaze moved downwards and the heat between their bodies was transmitted to each other, he could hardly bear it anymore.
Those who had shared their bodies intertwined their breaths in the dim light.
They seemed to be trapped in this small space, unable to see the past or the future, and could only share this fleeting moment.
Although he didn't know what would happen next, he felt a faint sense of joy in his heart.
But a word in his mind made his heart sink.
future.
Her future.
She never put herself in her future plans.
Who is in her plan?
A very simple answer.
Lu Qiaoyuan.
All the brokenness came flooding back.
Ke Fan had some difficulty extricating himself from the memories of that snowy Christmas night. Those eyes filled with joy seemed to still be before his eyes.
But now, he stood there, his eyes broken and dark as frost at night.
My heart started to ache again.
The string in my mind is on the verge of breaking.
Yi Lingjia suddenly moved forward, and Ke Fan felt the muscles under his palms tense because of his movement.
His voice was hoarse:
"Ke Fan, tell me, is he... more worthy of your love than the ridiculous me?"
In the dimness, breaths intertwined, all emotions blended together, extreme love, extreme hatred, no one could remain calm anymore.
A soft sigh.
It shouldn't be.
Ke Fan thought that it would be good if the situation ended here.
But she still kissed his lips.
A long time later, Ke Fan recalled this day.
Cao Xinyu asked her: "So you had thought of everything by then?"
She thought for a long time, and the light coming in from the window made her profile glow slightly.
The black queen in your hand moves forward three squares and attacks diagonally, aiming directly at the king on the opponent's bottom square.
Her gentle yet firm voice rang out: "I don't know what will happen next, but I know that I don't want the deadlock between us to last forever."
"So anyway, I made this move first."
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