Chapter 3: Either nostalgic until old age, or hateful to tears

  On the way back to the hotel, Lin Jing's phone rang several times. He concentrated on driving and didn't answer it after glancing at it a few times. It was actually Situ Xuan who couldn't bear it anymore and said: "Answer it, it's late at night, if it's not something important, others won't keep calling. Afraid of leaking secrets? Wu Jiang and I aren't people who can't pretend to be deaf."

  Lin Jing smiled and said: "It's really nothing important about people or things."

  "Or would you like me to take it for you?" asked Situ Xin with a mischievous tone.

  Lin Jing lost her smile and said, "Spare me."

  Situ Xuan patted the back of the driver's seat, "You, you, said to have found the true monarch, but the previous mess hasn't been cleaned up yet."

  As they spoke, the phone continued to ring stubbornly, apparently the other party was also a persistent person. Lin Jing directly hung up the call. At this time, Situ Yuande's hotel was already in sight.

  Lin Jing said: "I've never been to this hotel before. It seems that good wine isn't afraid of being in a deep alley, and it's really not close to the city center."

  This is a four-star hotel that has been open for less than half a year, and its facilities seem to be quite good. However, it's located in a new development area of G City, which is quite remote. Wu Jiang was initially puzzled as to why Si Tu chose this place after not returning to the city for several years, despite the significant changes that had taken place.

  It was just Lin Jing's careless remark that suddenly gave Wu Jiang a clue to the doubts in his mind. Si Tu's parents lived in the most prosperous East City of G City, but she booked a hotel in West City, which could be said to be the best place in the farthest straight-line distance from her parents' home. With such careful consideration, how could it be a coincidence? Even her luggage was surprisingly simple, and it didn't look like she had traveled thousands of miles back to her hometown, but rather that her hometown was just a stopover. According to her, this time she would only stay for a week, after attending Wu Jiang's wedding and the medical conference, she would immediately hurry "back".

  As soon as the car stopped, Situ Xin urged them to leave quickly, especially Lin Jing, who was shocked by the sudden ringing of her phone. He didn't hurry and insisted on helping her with the check-in procedures instead. The two of them sent her off at the elevator entrance before leaving.

  Lin Jing didn't say, but Situ Xuan also knew that the other end of the phone was a waiting woman. He had always been a man who knew how to take good care of himself, even when his heart was vacant and waiting, he wouldn't let his life be lonely. What role did that woman play in Lin Jing's life, Situ Xuan didn't know, but Lin Jing refused to mention her in front of friends, and even in the midst of a phone attack that made others anxious, he could still do what he wanted to do at his own pace, it was clear that he didn't care much.

  Actually, in the US, Situ Xuan met Lin Jing before Lindsay. He was very popular among local Chinese students, especially among women. At that time, Situ Xuan and he hit it off immediately, and coincidentally, they were both single. Lin Jing also expressed her admiration for Situ at the right time, and if she was willing, there was a good chance of a romantic relationship, but unfortunately, it didn't work out in the end. Instead, they became sworn brothers, and Lindsay even met Lin Jing through Situ Xuan's introduction and became his girlfriend.

  Everyone says that Lin Jing is a pity, but Situ Xuan is fortunate that she has never fallen in love with him. Not only did she get a good friend out of it, but also because Lin Jing is the kind of man who would be wasted if you didn't love him, and hurtful if you did. His theory of "finding a travel companion for a while" is something Situ Xuan has heard many times before. The words aren't wrong, maybe being loved by him would be blissful too, but how could a woman think that she's not the one he'll end up with when she dives headfirst into it? Wouldn't she become just another "passerby" and add to her own sorrow? His rationality when pulling away is truly chilling, Lin Xi being a bloody example. Lin Jing may be a good friend and a good lover, but he's not someone who would make you dare to take out your heart and love him. And in Situ Xuan's creed, if she doesn't love, then so be it, but once she does, what she wants is too pure.

  As soon as she entered the room, Situ Xuan had just put down her luggage when she heard a knock on the door. The "Do Not Disturb" sign was already lit, so it was unlikely to be a hotel staff member. She thought of the person who had left too easily at the previous gathering, which didn't seem like his style at all. Her heart tightened involuntarily as she hesitated and looked out through the peephole, only to find that it was Wu Jiang.

  She muttered as she opened the door. "You scared me for the second time today. What's wrong, can't bear to part with me?"

  Wu Jiang handed her something with a smile, and when Cui opened it, she found that it was several pills.

  "Don't flatter yourself too much, I only remembered the medicine you asked me to bring for you when I got on the car, take one pill if you can't sleep."

  "I almost forgot." Si Tu took a closer look at the pill and protested, "Hey, I asked you to bring me something else, this is not very useful for me, and there are only two pills, aren't you being too stingy?"

  Wu Jiang frowned, "If it weren't for the time difference, I wouldn't have even brought this to you. You should take fewer of those pills, they're not good for your body."

  Situ Xuan smiled and said: "Alright, I may not be better than you at this."

  "It's precisely because you're in this line of work that you're so clear about pharmacology and toxic side effects, which makes your intentional wrongdoing all the more heinous."

  "Don't call me an addict, I know exactly how much I'm taking and it's within a reasonable range. Thanks, you can go back now, it's late." She hurried Wu Jiang away.

  Wu Jiang shook his head and was about to leave when Situ's door, which had been closed, swung open again.

  "It's just two slices, no room for negotiation." Wu Jiang had already refused before she even opened her mouth.

  Xīng Tuó Xiǎo bit his lower lip and smiled, then suddenly said: "Not... I just wanted to ask, how are they doing now?"

  Her words were incoherent, but Wu Jiang couldn't help but understand the underlying reason.

  He sighed, she finally asked out, in seven years, whether on the phone or face to face, she always avoided talking about it, this is not the best way to forget. Anyway, maybe this is a progress, at least she had the courage to face it directly.

  "They seemed to be on and off for the first year or two, but they shouldn't be together now. The girl probably has another home, you're not unaware of that, which is a lamp that saves oil. As for the boy, I haven't heard anything."

  "Oh..." Situ Xin trailed off, her voice lingering, lost in thought.

  "I thought you'd never ask in this lifetime. Listen to me, forget it, Sze-to, let them be, whether good or bad, it's not worth remembering."

  "Xī zǐ jué smiled and said: 'You don't know that women are naturally curious, they have to see the finale of a melodramatic soap opera?'"

  "That's right. I still say that it's not necessarily a bad thing for emotions to be shallow."

  "Agreed." She shook off the pills in her hand, "Life is but a dream, better to treat oneself well."

  "I'm leaving then, Lin Jing is waiting downstairs."

  "Feel free to go!" Si Tu Xin said with a farewell expression, "Hurry up and don't come back."

  Wu Jiang said with a deliberate tone: "No way, I'll come back and find you when I remember something."

  Less than five minutes after he left, he must have forgotten something and came back, knocking on the door again. Cui was just about to take a bath, having just washed her hair. She went to answer the door with an unbearable expression, thinking: Good, Wu Jiang, intentionally

  Fix me.

  She pushed open the door, with one hand on her hip and a smile all over her face.

  The story of "the wolf is coming" finally came true tonight. This time, the one standing at the door was really Yao Qiyun, whom Situ Xuan had been trying to avoid.

  He also seemed to be deeply surprised by this scene, and after being stunned for a moment, he laughed and said, "Such a warm welcome for me?"

  Situ Xuan regained his composure in time, hooked up the corner of his mouth and said along with him: "Yes, now that you're here, I've been waiting for the flowers to wilt."

  As she remembered it, Yao Qiyun's sense of humor was quite limited.

  He stood there, looking at the person in front of him, and even his smile was withdrawn, getting straight to the point.

  "Come on, follow me back."

  "Go back? Go back where?" Situ Xin asked intentionally.

  "He didn't seem to want to accompany her on a detour and said lightly: 'Go home, your parents' home.'"

  "I thought you'd say that's your home."

  "Situ Xuan, don't think it's me who wants to bother you. You've been outside for so many years and finally came back, but didn't even enter the house, do you know how sad your parents are?"

  "They can pretend I never came back. Can't they live without me all these years?"

  "Yes, so you didn't even mention a specific date for returning home."

  "I didn't tell you either, but isn't it a coincidence that we met?"

  Facing Yu Ke's sarcasm, Yao Qiyun's eyes also had a hint of anger, or rather, it was a kind of embarrassment that had been exposed. He knew that she didn't want to talk about her return trip, and the person she most wanted to avoid wasn't her parents, but him. He himself couldn't believe that until two days ago, Xiao Gen casually mentioned in front of him that he would be attending a gathering with some old friends, and Xiao Gen was the kind of introverted otaku who rarely went out to play. Yao Qiyun asked a few more questions and found Xiao Gen's nervousness suspicious, only then did he realize that she was actually coming back, and he was the last one to receive the news.

  "Your parents are getting old, you're their only daughter, your mom had a lumbar surgery last year and now she has difficulty bending down. Did you know that? Do you think you've fulfilled your duty by just making a routine phone call to them every week? And which of those calls lasted more than five minutes?"

  Situ Xuan turned his face away, "They don't want to talk to me much either. It wasn't me who said we should cut ties back then. I'll just keep my distance and spare them the trouble of getting angry when they see me, which would be bad for their health."

  She tried hard not to let the choking sound in her tone be too obvious. She couldn't forget the time when her father pointed at her nose and told her to "get out", his face red with rage, almost having a stroke. Nor could she forget the anxiety she felt this time when she passed through the airport exit. She was so conflicted, afraid that as soon as she stepped onto this land, she would have to immediately face her parents whom she hadn't seen in seven years. Yet, not seeing them made her feel relieved, but also lost inside. She'd rather deceive herself into thinking that her parents didn't know she had returned, and therefore ignored her. But Yao Qiyun reminded her that they did know, at least they didn't even think of giving their daughter a hug to let go of the past after so many years, or even just a smile.

  Yao Qiyun said expressionlessly: "You don't need to say these words to me, you can explain them to them yourself - if you still consider yourself their daughter."

  "Does it matter whether they have a daughter or not? You're still here, aren't you?"

  He slightly bowed his head, "Situ Xuan, why should I take your place in fulfilling the duties of a son, who are you to me?"

  "Situ Xuan seemed to have heard the biggest joke, 'Replace me? How interesting! They gave you food and clothes, now they've given you fame and status. Mr. Yao, I'm unfilial, but what you're doing is also your duty.'"

  He stopped talking, lowering his head to fiddle with his phone. Si Tu Jue made a "please" gesture, took a step back and was about to close the door when Yao Qi Yun raised her hand without lifting her head and pushed the door back open, then handed him her phone.

  "What's wrong?"

  Yao Qiyun finally saw Situ Xuan reveal a hint of surprise because he had guessed his intentions, which gave him a sense of satisfaction.

  "Go back or not, you tell them yourself." He looked at her hesitation with satisfaction and intentionally lowered his voice, "Or I'll say it for you, that you're here and refuse to talk to them on the phone?"

  Situ Xuan mouthed two dirty words, took over his mobile phone, took a deep breath, and turned sideways to answer the call.

  "Mom... it's me... uh..."

  From tension to excitement, from excitement to embarrassment, then to dismay and loss, and finally back to indifference. In fact, it was just a few words, but Si Tu Xuan had already gotten used to this pattern. It was just one phone call, she shouldn't have been so troubled by it.

  "Tomorrow then, it's too late today and I don't want to disturb you all. Well... that's settled then, you all get a good rest."

  She ended the sudden call with these words, and it was clear that this was not a pleasant and warm communication. Yao Qiyun just wanted to make her embarrassed, so what's wrong with letting him get his way once?

  "Alright, I was afraid of disturbing them. Your parents didn't teach you in vain, you're really well-mannered. It's indeed very late, and earlier you smiled so sweetly to answer the door, were you waiting for someone to disturb?" Yao Qiyun picked up her phone with a smile and asked.

  Situ Xuanru smiled sweetly as he wished: "Good question, what do you think?"

  "I've been standing here for so long and haven't seen that visitor yet. Since I'm idle anyway, why not let me go in and sit down too?"

  Situ picked up the "service industry" business card that had been slipped under the door from the floor, smiled and put it in his coat pocket, "Director Yao wants to 'sit for a while', don't worry about not having a good place."

  Yao Qiyun slowly pulled out the colorful business card with a seductive woman printed on it, looked at it for two seconds, "She's more attractive than you, but still not my type." He said and really turned to enter the room.

  Situ Xuan single-handedly propped up the door frame, blocking his invasion, and said coldly: "Sorry, I also have my own preferences."

  His body was blocked by her arm at the door, and he deliberately made a thoughtful expression, saying politely: "Is that so, what a pity." As he spoke, his hands moved without hesitation, pushing heavily, as if there was an unpleasant obstacle in front of him.

  Even Sito Man (who knew him very well) did not expect him to be so arrogant.

  Yao Qiyun pushed him, and Situ Xuan's feet were unstable, he immediately retreated two steps in a sorry state, his back hitting the corner of a cabinet.

  "I'm going to kill you!" In her pain and rage, Situ Xuan didn't care about losing face anymore. The long-unheard national curse was so comforting to her soul.

  Yao Qiyun had already entered the house with an air of confidence, and upon hearing this, he took a step closer to Situ Xuan, who was bent over in pain, trapping her in the corner formed by the wall and the gate.

  "Excuse me, how are you going to...?" He spoke in a strange tone, and amidst Si Tu Jue's cold laughter, he revealed a regretful expression. "What can be done? Wu Jiang has probably gone far away too. It's not very realistic for you to wait for a man who is about to get married to come back and rescue you."

  Situ Xuan gritted her teeth and took a few deep breaths before finally stretching out her toes to kick open the door that You Jiao had left ajar.

  "I don't need anyone's help. Yao Qiyun, am I afraid of you? You have the guts to come at me, who knows who'll be the one to get hurt!"

  At the moment when the door closed, it was exactly as Situ Xuan had expected. In her extremely rude language and in the enclosed space that only left him and her, Yao Qiyun, who had been pressing step by step, actually tensed up his body and showed some discomfort, even his ears turned red.

  All his enemies are paper tigers; he has never seen any of her virtues.

  Yao Qiyun didn't move, only maintaining that close distance, staring at her. Even Shi Tu Xuan could hear his "hissing" breathing sound, like a venomous snake, and in those eyes, there seemed to be resentment.

  What does he rely on?

  If it weren't for the ringing of her cell phone, Si Tu Jue thought they were going to stand there like two stone statues in this fake competition to see who would go crazy first. It was a familiar ringtone, and her phone was right on the entrance hall table within reach. She flipped through it and held it up in front of Yao Qi Yun's face, raising an eyebrow and asking, "In a hurry? Mind if I answer this call?"

  He took a step back and sat down at the edge of the large bed in the room with a cold face.

  The person who made the call was none other than Wu Jiang, who had previously mentioned in front of Yao Qiyun with ulterior motives, "the Australian accent". When Sutu Jue answered the phone, she felt a sense of great satisfaction. The caller was her new boyfriend, a young real estate agent with a charming golden head, and before returning to China, it was the most intimate period between the two. The sweet talk on the phone could go on forever. She chatted privately as if no one was around, playing with the tassel on the table lamp, scribbling unconsciously on the hotel's notebook, smiling, just like all women immersed in love. When she finished, her mobile phone was already hot, and when she looked at the call time on it, she couldn't help but take a fright - one hour and seven minutes. What was even more surprising was that Yao Qiyun sat there from start to finish without any impatience or anxiety, and even the previous slight loss of control had disappeared, looking extremely calm. Even Sutu Jue, who had three points of disgust and three points of hatred, couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.

  "Is it over?" he asked.

  Situ Xuan put down his phone and sighed: "It's not easy to be as perverted as you are."

  Yao Qiyun said calmly: "You're overpraising me, it's all thanks to you. This isn't the first time I've waited for you like this either."

  He stood up and stretched his limbs, then asked: "The new man you've found?"

  Cui Xuan smiled and said, "Let's change the subject."

  "It's time to change, just now when I was waiting for you, I thought about it for a long time. As for your enthusiasm for finding foreign men, I have summarized one reason, I don't know if you are interested in listening?"

  Although she knew that the more polite he was, the less good things he had to say, Xī Zǐ Jué was even clearer that no matter whether she had "interest" or not, he wouldn't give up if she didn't speak out, so she gladly accepted the challenge.

  "I'd like to hear more about it."

  "I've heard that men from abroad are more open-minded when it comes to relationships, so they won't mind your past experiences, such as how many men you've been with. If this were in our country, I think it would be much more difficult, what do you think?"

  His smiling face makes people want to slap him twice and then kick him once.

  Situ Xin was furious and laughed, Yao Qiyun said that the twists and turns were so careful, but in the end it was just using the method that Chinese men are best at to humiliate her, translated as reminding her that she is a double broken shoe, at least one he has worn.

  She nodded in response, "You've summarized it very well, almost to the point of truth, but I need to add something, foreign men have another advantage." She said halfway through and laughed herself, swaying beside him, leaning close to him.

  Yao Qiyun furrowed her brow, subconsciously avoiding him with a look of disgust, yet ultimately still listened to him.

  Situ Xin whispered in his ear, "They don't mind my past experiences at all, especially my first boyfriend on the other side. He said he thinks I'm new except for the front few centimeters, brand new!"

  Yao Qiyun was taken aback, and after savoring the underlying meaning of her words, she could no longer hold back in front of that naked humiliation, and suddenly stood up straight, her chest heaving violently.

  "What do you mean?" he said sternly.

  "It's exactly what you understood it to mean."

  She waited, even if he would pounce on her and tear her to shreds in the next second.

  She was already used to this situation. Haven't they always been like this? Facing each other, he and she were like the most brilliant psychologists in the world, easily seeing through each other's mental illnesses. Even at their sweetest moments, a single misstep would turn them into two mad dogs tearing at each other, neither willing to give in. They knew each other's every weakness and Achilles' heel all too well, fully exploiting their toxic potential, always managing to inflict maximum damage on each other in the shortest amount of time, with one blow that could be fatal. Every story has its own logical ending, just like Si Tu Yu and Yao Qi Yun, who were meant to be two people who should have been far, far apart, best separated by vast distances.