Chapter 9 The night was as bright as day, with towering buildings everywhere...
The night is as bright as day, with towering buildings and colorful lights evenly illuminating the city.
Below the building, the eyes of office workers passing by all turned to one place, but only for a moment before they silently looked away, as if taking another look would be a waste of time.
"Put these on, it's quite cold."
Xiang Zhinan, who was about to roll upwards by pulling his legs back, heard a very soft voice beside him. He paused for a moment, and after confirming that it was being spoken to, he immediately pulled his legs back, stood up straight, and stared straight ahead at some building he couldn't see. Fireworks were exploding in his mind.
"I'm not cold. I'm exercising. Have you heard of Tai Chi? It's good for your health, but it only works if you practice without clothes on." The confidence was clearly lacking, but it had to be emphasized.
"I saw it all just now. It's normal for young couples to bicker and tease each other."
"You can also choose to go naked unless you have an exhibitionist fetish, but this is normal in Shanghai, where everyone is open-minded."
Shanghai is called the "Magic City" for a reason. It is very inclusive. No one will care about your personality, physical condition, orientation, or even your unusual or unconventional attire, as long as it is legal and compliant.
Xiang Zhinan finally turned his head this time. After seeing the other person's face clearly, his pupils suddenly contracted. The building lights shone on the person in front of him in a lukewarm way through the glass, making him look unreal. A pair of big eyes lazily stared at him, as bright as the half-moon in the sky. No, it should be said that it was like moonlight shining through the forest and autumn wind blowing across the hills.
At that moment, the beat of his heart was crystal clear.
Xiang Zhinan's gaze fell on the coat handed to him, and he recalled what she had just said. He felt a slow, uncontrollable heat rising on his face.
He scratched his head sheepishly, "Sorry for the embarrassing situation, thank you."
Huang Shiyu watched him put on the clothes and smiled, "It's okay, you look quite good in them."
Previously, she had a package that required her signature, and she happened to be planning to go downstairs to buy a cup of coffee. The coffee in the break room was certainly good and could also be refreshing, but she preferred the handmade coffee from the shop downstairs.
It's not that she's picky, it's just that she can't shake her nostalgic habit. If she doesn't drink a cup of coffee downstairs every day, she always feels like she hasn't done anything and there's an empty corner in her heart.
Then, she witnessed the scene from the TV series. She glanced at the shirtless man, then at the jacket the fencing club had given her, hesitated for a moment, and finally decided to step forward.
It wasn't that she was particularly kind, but rather that the man was standing right next to a new advertisement for Speed Technology, which was seriously damaging to their company's reputation.
“I didn’t expect you to be a member of this fencing club too. I have one of these clothes as well.” Xiang Zhinan’s face was still flushed.
Huang Shiyu smiled and said, "That's fate."
Xiang Zhinan looked at the other person, and because of that one sentence, he felt all the irritation that had been building up in his chest disappear.
However, before the embarrassment on his face had subsided, a rare hint of shyness and timidity appeared on his face, typical of a young man. After a slight hesitation, he asked, "So, we're quite destined to meet today. Can we add each other on WeChat?"
Fearing that the other party might think he had ulterior motives, he quickly changed his tune, saying, "I'm a regular at this club; we can have a match sometime."
"My fencing skills are all highly regarded by my friends. You can give it a try."
Feeling that the more I talked, the more wrong I made, I simply shut up and carefully observed whether the other person showed any signs of annoyance.
Huang Shiyu showed no hesitation or doubt on his face. Instead, he readily took out his phone, raised his chin, and said, "Sure."
She stared at the other person for a moment, as if she hadn't expected her to be so agreeable.
Normally, Huang Shiyu would never add a stranger on WeChat, but based on her past experience, the man's watch was quite expensive, and it happened to be a brand she recognized, because Song Chaoye was a Vic customer of that brand.
She had been influenced by what she saw and heard, and while she could afford to buy it, she couldn't bear to part with it.
She wouldn't even be willing to choose a good location for her place to live, let alone spend money on expensive luxury goods.
There's nothing she can do; she's been poor to the core, and even if she had money, she wouldn't know how to treat herself well. She feels a strong sense of disconnect even when she's decked out in luxury goods.
Moreover, the man's fingers were as white as soft clouds, clearly indicating that he came from a wealthy family. Someone like her, who studied finance, could tell at a glance whether a person was rich or not, let alone run a company that was about to go public. If she didn't have the eye to judge people, she might as well give up.
"That's it? You've already fallen for her?" Li Xingzhou was speechless after listening to Xiang Zhinan's rambling for a while.
Xiang Zhinan seemed not to hear his teasing, her tone full of excitement, "You don't understand, being moved is like two stones constantly rubbing against each other. Sometimes it only takes a moment, and it's like lightning and sparks flying. You can't resist that feeling."
Li Xingzhou leaned back in his chair, his eyelashes fluttering slightly as he glanced at him. "Aren't you afraid that someone will take your clothes off again?"
Xiang Zhinan was pretty from a young age, with an androgynous beauty. In kindergarten, girls liked to surround him and play house with him. In elementary school, it changed to another mode, with girls liking to be his deskmate. In middle and high school, he was a frequent user of social media. He only started dating seriously in college.
It's strange, but after each breakup, I always seem to run into them at the same time, and then I have to ask them to return my clothes, which they obediently do, even being forced to hand them over.
Then, he never learned his lesson and always got exposed.
Xiang Zhinan turned his head away, clearly not wanting to answer his question.
“You never learn. If someone posts this online and the stock price drops, see if your dad doesn’t beat you.”
Li Xingzhou and Xiang Zhinan's families have been friends for generations. However, in their generation, Xiang Zhinan's family business gradually expanded overseas, and the whole family immigrated to the United States when they were in junior high school. But their relationship with Li Xingzhou remained as good as ever.
Since he had sold all his properties before immigrating, he decided to stay with Li Xingzhou temporarily until the property he bought was renovated.
"No, she's an angel. You'll know once you meet her. For the first time, I've realized how fitting the phrase 'beautiful inside and out' is to describe her."
Li Xingzhou couldn't stand his foolish look and said, "I think you're more like someone who's mentally unstable."
"After you broke up, didn't she ask you for the items you gave her after the breakup?" Xiang Zhinan turned to look at him, as if she was just curious.
Li Xingzhou's expression remained calm and unwavering, but Xiang Zhinan's words stirred his thoughts.
This forced him to recall that six years ago, after Huang Shiyu broke off their relationship for no reason, he waited for her outside the shop where she worked until she got off work in the evening.
The door was pushed open, and Li Xingzhou raised his eyelids to see Huang Shiyu coming out of the door.
The two stared at each other for a long time before Huang Shiyu reacted first and took off running. Li Xingzhou immediately chased after him.
Boys develop quickly during puberty, and Li Xingzhou was tall with long legs, so Huang Shiyu couldn't outrun him and was quickly caught up.
"Didn't I tell you not to come looking for me at my workplace?" Huang Shiyu had no choice but to stop, and her first words were a rebuke.
"Because I want to see you." Li Xingzhou's dark pupils seemed to dim and lose their light for a moment, blending into the black sky around him.
Huang Shiyu seemed oblivious to his dejected expression, and her words were like a sharpened sword, ready to strike until blood was drawn.
"We have nothing to do with each other anymore. Please don't come looking for me again."
The black sky seemed to be connected to the nerves in his head, constantly being torn apart. Floating in the air, a wind came from an unknown direction, and he seemed to see the emotions surging in his chest falling softly.
Under the dim streetlights, the boy's long eyelashes trembled, his nostrils flared, and his fair skin was now a mix of red and white. The water in his eyes resembled melting white mist.
"What about these things? Are they okay too?" Li Xingzhou asked, his eyes red.
Huang Shiyu merely glanced at it casually, "Didn't I make it very clear to you? You can just throw it away."
"Am I just like these items, destined to be thrown away by you, Shiyu?" Li Xingzhou took a deep breath. Although it was a question, his voice was very low, and his eyes lowered as he stared blankly at the cardboard box in his hand.
The items inside were all handmade trinkets made by the two of them, none of them valuables, but Li Xingzhou had covered each item with a small safe.
The way it was treated with such care made one think it contained some kind of collectible.
Huang Shiyu just looked at him quietly for a while, then said, "I'll help you throw it away." She reached out and took a step forward. Just as she touched the edge of the cardboard box, Li Xingzhou took a step back, and Huang Shiyu missed.
"I was wrong, I don't want to break up with you." Li Xingzhou said in a hoarse voice, his long eyelashes fluttering, a tear resting on his full lower lip, about to fall.
This is generally how a beautiful woman sheds tears.
Huang Shiyu withdrew his hands, put them in his pockets, and looked at him, "Li Xingzhou, don't do this. We could have parted amicably."
"It's all my fault. I didn't take this box to throw it away. I just don't want to break up with you. Please don't be so heartless."
Li Xingzhou seemed oblivious to the coldness on Huang Shiyu's face, continuing to talk to himself, but his heart could clearly feel the emotions he was witnessing, throbbing and tearing with pain.
"What about the cat? Don't you want it anymore? It finally ended its life of wandering, it has a home, and people who love it..."
"It was found, so if you're prepared to keep it, then keep it. If not, then find it a good home."
Li Xingzhou was so taken aback by her answer that the color drained from his face instantly, leaving him much paler than before. "Huang Shiyu... how could you be so heartless..."
Huang Shiyu remained unmoved and interrupted him, giving him an ultimatum: "I think I've made myself clear enough. Li Xingzhou, don't make me hate you."
He looked at the girl's pretty face and rosy lips. Her features were all beautiful, but the words she uttered were all incredibly cold and unapproachable.
He slowly lowered his head, his smile desolate and dejected. "Huang Shiyu, there will be people who love you in the future, but no one will love you more than I do."
He threw the box into the rushing river behind them, right in front of Huang Shiyu.
All that remained for Huang Shiyu was desolation, his frail figure appearing even more so as the wind blew against him.
Nineteen-year-old Huang Shiyu never had the chance to hear the melancholy words spoken by eighteen-year-old Li Xingzhou after he turned away.
"But I hope that someone will love you more than I do in the future."
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
