[Urban] My Flirtatious Wife (Complete) - 13-15

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Volume 1, Chapter 6: A Terrible Morning

"Hello?"

Still fuming about what had just happened, I answered the phone with a curt tone, just as I was stepping into the company gate.

"Hello? Is this He Shi?"

A melodious voice instantly dispelled my gloom. Before I could even guess who it was, a burly security guard stopped me at the gate. Not knowing his purpose, I had no choice but to stop at the guardhouse door.

"Yes, this is you. May I ask who you are?"

"It's Xiao Xue. Don't you have my number saved?"

The other person seemed displeased with my question.

"Xiao Xue? Who?"

I vaguely remembered hearing that name. I searched my brain, but couldn't find it. I guess even a blockhead like me wouldn't find anything without a powerful search engine like Baidu.

"Tch, you really forgot so quickly? The sauna at the Prince Hotel, number 56, remember?"

She sounded a little angry, huffing and puffing as she gave me her identity.

"Oh? It's you! I remember you, the one who slapped me. Hehe~" The Prince Hotel was such a high-class place; it was the only time I'd ever been there in my life, and I'd probably never forget it. So it's only natural that I remembered her. But why did she find me again? Could it be… that I captivated her that night? But that doesn't make sense. How could a woman like her, who's "seen it all," care about someone as poor as me, practically penniless?

"Hehe… you remember the slap I gave you? Looks like I was right. If I hadn't slapped you, you probably wouldn't remember who I am."

I was surprised that her temper had dissipated so quickly, so I said to her, "Of course, of course~ She was the first woman outside of my parents to slap me. I'll always remember her."

This sounded a bit like flattery, but it didn't matter; flattering a beautiful woman wasn't shameful.

"Hehe~~ You're smart enough to say nice things. By the way, are you free Saturday night?"

she asked. "Saturday? Today's Friday, so that's tomorrow?"

Strange, doesn't she have "business" to do? She's asking if I'm free. I really have no interest in their line of work, even though they're all pretty women.

"It's tomorrow. Are you free? I'd like to invite you out for dinner."

She paused, seemingly realizing something was off, and added, "I'll treat you."

"Dinner? Why are you treating me?"

A bit confused. Generally, I don't want to get involved in their personal lives. To be frank, I look down on people in this line of work.

"Hey! Why are you so long-winded? Do you have to have a reason to invite someone to dinner? Just tell me if you're free. I don't want to waste my breath on you, a grown man being so fussy… Humph!"

That "humph" sounded familiar; I felt like I'd heard it somewhere before.

"Uh...yes, I should have time tomorrow night."

"Great, it's settled then! 6:30 tomorrow night, wait for me at the People's Park entrance. I have to hang up now, bye~" Her tone was light and cheerful.

"Wasn't it dinner? Why is it People's Park again..."

Before I could finish, the phone went dead. Damn it, what a little devil.

I was startled, then secretly pleased, and was about to walk into the company when the security guard who had stopped me earlier blocked my way again. "Sir, who are you looking for?"

"Huh? Who am I looking for? I'm here to work, I'm not looking for anyone."

Damn! Is this security guard out of his mind? I'm such a handsome guy, passing by the company entrance every day, and he doesn't recognize me?

"Then where's your employee ID?"

Hearing my less-than-friendly tone, he squeezed his chubby face together and glared at me.

Employee ID? I looked at my chest, really nothing? I checked all my pockets, still nothing? " That's strange, I saw it when I was eating breakfast. Did I forget to take it when I left? Damn, it's almost time for work! If I don't go in now, I'll be late!

" I was sweating profusely. "I'm from the sales department. I forgot my ID today and I'm going to be late. Please let me in, and don't let it happen again, okay?"

I whispered to him. Actually, I figured he recognized me, because I'd seen this burly guy many times.

"No, I only recognize IDs, not people."

Before he finished speaking, I suddenly saw him give me a crooked salute. I turned around and saw it was the manager from the management department. He wasn't wearing his employee ID either. I immediately got angry…

"Hey! Are you deliberately making things difficult for me? He's not wearing his ID either, why did you let him in?"

Because I was so angry, my voice was several decibels louder than usual.

"Who are you cursing? Are you cursing me?"

"I'm cursing whoever's been messing with me. If you want to take it personally, that's your own business... It's strange how the company keeps useless people like you."

"Say that again? Say that again and I'll beat you up. I won't let you in today, what can you do about it?"

"Damn it, I don't believe I can't get in..."

I took out my phone and dialed J's number...

I've always looked down on these good-for-nothings who just guard the door. They're even more useless than prostitutes. Prostitutes are fair trades, but these guys who sit around all day doing nothing are good for nothing except wasting the country's food. They're good at flattering, though, and they think they're so great just because they served in the army for two years. They're always ready to roll up their sleeves and beat people up. Now that we're arguing, I'm even less inclined to back down...

Five minutes later, J came down and took me in. As we were leaving the guardhouse, his burly face was still gritting his teeth as he said to me, "Kid, you better not let me see you outside..."

Damn it, did I step in dog poop this morning? What bad luck! First, Xiaoxue, whom I shouldn't have met and shouldn't have had any relationship with, came back to life, and then this good-

for-nothing bastard started attacking me. It's really unbelievable. Anyway, Friday passed quickly, and Saturday afternoon arrived in no time. Since returning to the company yesterday morning, Xiaoli hasn't said a single extra word to me except about work. Several times I secretly glanced at her, but she didn't respond, or rather, didn't even look back. I felt a chill in my heart… When I was leaving work, I was thinking about what Xiaoxue would treat me to dinner when I suddenly heard Xiaoli calling me from her office. A strange joy welled up inside me, and I rushed into her office…

Seeing that someone was still outside, she told me to "close the door."

She gently closed the door, and I stood beside her desk. She had shed her manager's facade and looked up at me with gentle eyes. I looked back at her. Honestly, our relationship is incredibly delicate right now. I don't even know how to describe it. Standing in front of her, I always feel like a child, while outside of work, she acts more like an older sister, guiding me. The key point is that after what happened that night, we seem closer in some ways, yet further apart in others. As I was lost in thought, she broke the silence.

"I'm thinking of going out to buy some things tonight, probably a lot, and I can't carry them all by myself. Will you come with me?"

She sounded like she was pleading, yet also like she was commanding. I couldn't find a reason to refuse her, because Xiaoxue's dinner was far less important to me than her presence. I could only make one choice: push Xiaoxue aside and go with her.

I nodded vigorously, "No problem, I'll go with you."

After saying that, I regretted it a little. I agreed so quickly, completely revealing my feelings. I had already fallen for this woman who was ten years older than me. Every aspect of her was so outstanding, so deeply attractive to me.

Later, she taught me some work-related things. When we came out, it seemed like it was almost dark; the clock had already struck six. I definitely couldn't go to Xiaoxue's place. What reason could I come up with to refuse her?

I'd accompanied women shopping before, but accompanying both my boss and the woman I liked—what would that be like? That night, the moon seemed to have hidden itself. What kind of night was this?

Chapter 7 of Volume 1: Drunkenness? Heartache? Or a Body's Intoxication?

If you want to obtain something through a transaction, and the quantity or amount is small, that's called buying; conversely, if the quantity or amount is large, it's called purchasing. However, the term "purchasing" is generally only used by businesses. Private individuals don't use it. But tonight, I finally had an eye-opening experience. Xiaoli's purchases tonight, both in quantity and amount, were enough to constitute a purchasing process.

Today, I finally understand why I never felt tired when accompanying my girlfriend shopping before—because it was just buying. But after following Xiaoli around the entire mall tonight, I experienced a new term: "shopping spree

." I don't know which idiot defined women as weak and advocated for ladies first every day. In my opinion, judging from women's shopping abilities, this argument should be completely overturned, and the boundaries between men and women should be redefined.

After browsing through everything, my legs finally gave way, and I plopped down on a bench in the mall's corridor. Xiaoli looked at me and smiled knowingly. "What? Never gone shopping with a girlfriend before?"

"Yes... cough cough... but never like you, spending two and a half hours like this... cough cough..."

I was already a little short of breath, and now I felt even worse, pausing frequently as I spoke.

Indeed, in two and a half hours, Xiaoli had scoured the entire 1,000-square-meter mall from the first floor to the third, and then back down again. She spent a long time choosing items in almost every section, and always made sure to buy something. This included clothes, shoes, food, appliances, and daily necessities. I didn't mind the clothing section, even the women's underwear section, but the most embarrassing part was in the daily necessities section—she... she actually bought the things women use for a few days each month...

To be honest, Xiaoli has a great eye for shopping; the clothes and shoes she picked out were absolutely top-notch, and of course, the prices were top-notch too. After two rounds of shopping, I had over a dozen bags in my hands, filled with clothes, shoes, and her monthly necessities. What struck me as odd was that she'd also bought a men's outfit—a suit, shirt, and shoes. I was the one trying on the clothes; she's divorced, so who was she buying them for? I refrained from asking.

Finally, she calmed down, satisfied with her shopping spree, and decided to head home. I was happy to finally be free; I could just leave everything in the car. But as we exited the mall and reached the parking lot, something I'd never imagined happened. We ran into her ex-husband!

I'd never met him before, so I didn't recognize him, but I did recognize the little boy he was holding hands with—it was Xiaoli's son!

They stood less than five meters apart, facing each other. I stood next to Xiaoli, holding my spoils, staring blankly at her. From the side, I saw that Xiaoli's eyes were slightly moist, and her expression seemed a little resentful… A thought flashed through my mind: Oh no, are they going to start arguing? If they do, what right do I have to stop them?

Thankfully, they didn't argue. But then again, arguing is something vulgar people do; someone as refined as my Xiaoli wouldn't do that. Just as I was thinking this, Xiaoli suddenly called out to the little boy beside her, "Come here, Wenwen, let Mommy hug you?"

But the little boy looked at her as if she were a stranger, and didn't run to her arms as Xiaoli wished. After a while, she had no choice but to helplessly withdraw and stand up. I knew she must be upset. Imagine the pain of your own son ignoring you? But Wenwen is still young; perhaps she doesn't understand anything. I hope she can understand.

"And this is…?"

The man opposite her was very handsome, and his voice was very magnetic. Compared to him, I felt inferior. When he asked, I was about to tell him I was Xiaoli's subordinate when Xiaoli suddenly moved closer to me, took my hand, and preemptively introduced me, "This is my boyfriend, his name is He Shi."

Then she turned to me and introduced him, "He Shi, this is my ex-husband, Lin Hao."

I was stunned. I hadn't expected her to introduce me like that. I stood there, speechless. Was it sweetness? Fear? I couldn't say. It was like eating a piece of expired candy—tasteless. Actually, it wasn't unreasonable for her to say I was her boyfriend, since we already had a physical relationship.

The man across from me, Lin Hao, seemed momentarily stunned, but being mature, he quickly regained his composure and extended his hand to shake mine. "Hello."

I was about to extend my hand when I realized I was carrying a ton of bags, so I gave him an awkward smile. "Sorry, I..."

Seeing my expression, he smiled, shrugged understanding, and then, holding Wenwen's hand, walked into the mall without looking back.

Xiao Li stared blankly at Lin Hao and Wenwen as they disappeared into the mall entrance. After a long while, she turned around, took out the remote, and unlocked the car. I tossed my things into the back seat, but she tossed me the keys.

"I'm not in a good mood, you drive."

Her tone was dejected. I nodded and took the keys. I wondered: Why such a strong reaction? Could she still have feelings for her ex-husband?

"Manager, where...are we going?"

We drove out of the parking lot and turned right for a while. She remained silent in the passenger seat. I felt sullen too, but we couldn't just wander aimlessly like this, could we? Hearing my question, she turned to look at me. Her eyes, reflected in the headlights of the oncoming car, seemed to pierce my heart. She spoke, "Xiao Shi, don't call me manager after work anymore. I'm older than you, just call me sister."

"Ah? This... how can that be?"

I laughed awkwardly, still avoiding her gaze, my eyes fixed on the rear of the car in front of us.

"Why not? Do you want going home to feel like going to work? I'm so tired, Xiao Shi. Do you know why I asked you to come with me? Actually, everyone at the company wears a mask. Every day we face the same face, the same expression, the same attitude. It's incredibly annoying. Even you are the same. Everyone at the company is on edge. But you're still relatively innocent."

As she spoke, she smiled slightly. I glanced at her sideways, my heart pounding. I have to admit, she was truly beautiful.

"Hehe, okay, whatever you say, Manager."

Looking at something beautiful is a wonderful experience.

Suddenly she slapped me on the thigh. "I just said that. How could you forget again? You deserve a beating."

"Ah? Oh, sorry, I'll change it right away, I won't do it again."

Damn, I'm out of my mind.

"Hmm, that's more like it. Say it for me?"

Her smile widened, looking at me as if I were a joke.

My face turned even redder; if it weren't for the darkness, I probably would have looked as red as Guan Yu (a famous Chinese general known for his red face). Trembling, I finally managed to squeeze out a single word, "Sister..."

"Hehehe...look how flustered you are, haha! You're killing me!"

She laughed and waved her arms like a child. Just as I was about to say something to her, she added, "Okay, stop fooling around. Remember, from now on, when we're together, you call me that, understand? Now let's go home. I'm hungry, are you? I'll cook you something delicious when we get home."

"Okay, I really am hungry, it's been hours."

From now on? When we're together? Does this mean she didn't mind my offense that night and even plans to develop a long-term relationship with me? If that's the case? Then what am I? Sigh...maybe she was just saying it casually. I shouldn't think that far ahead. A swan falling for a toad is impossible in this materialistic city. I gently pressed the accelerator, and the car turned towards her house.

Xiao Li, oh no, now I should call her Sister. My sister is indeed a skilled cook. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, no one would believe that her delicate hands could create such delicious food. I was born in the countryside and was proficient in all sorts of household chores from a young age. However, cooking in the countryside is fundamentally different from cooking in the city. Even so, I could still taste the essence of my sister's dishes—color, aroma, and flavor.

"Want some wine?"

she asked.

"Wine? No, no, I'm afraid..."

I didn't dare say the rest; I wanted to say I was afraid of repeating what happened that day.

"Hehe, you're afraid you'll act like that again, right? Don't worry, I bought beer today, no brandy. I was telling you, you were weird that day too, half a glass of brandy, you just poured it all down in one go, no wonder you got drunk."

She said, taking a beer from the refrigerator.

"I didn't know that day, that's why I did that. But I'm not afraid of beer, I won't get drunk."

I took the beer, opened the bottle, and filled our glasses about eight-tenths full.

"Cheers."

"Cheers, shouldn't you say something? Don't you have anything to say to your sister?"

She raised her glass, smiling brightly as she asked me.

By then, I had already finished my glass of wine. The chilled wine was so refreshing; the sensation as it went down my throat made my hair stand on end. "What should I say? You finish your wine first, then I'll tell you."

She tilted her head, looked at me, and then smiled as she downed her drink. I only realized today that beautiful women can be so beautiful when they drink, haha. (Isn't that obvious? After she finished, I filled two more glasses, raised them, and said to her, "Sister, that last glass was to celebrate our meeting. This glass is to wish you will always be this beautiful.")

"Really? Hehe... Xiao Shi, you have such a sweet tongue, hehe... I'm glad I met you, today... I'm so happy..."

Good heavens! Why do I see signs of drunkenness in her words? Could she be a lightweight too?

She didn't care what I thought, continuing to shout, "Xiao Shi, do you men all have such heartlessness? Do you all get tired of the old and crave the new? Do you all like to keep the home fires burning while having affairs on the side?... Do you know? The man you just saw, that's... Lin Hao, he... he's like that, he... he's a bastard... he..."

Her words became increasingly incoherent, and she even stood up from her chair, about to fall. I quickly got up and ran to the other side to support her, placing my hand under her armpit. I touched something soft, and my blood rushed to one side. I restrained myself from thinking wildly. Thinking it over, I had no choice but to support her firmly to prevent her from falling, comforting her while saying, "No, sis... not every man is like this. Come on, sit down first, be careful not to fall."

After helping her sit down, I was worried she would stand up again, so I put my hand on her shoulder just in case. She seemed even more confused, picking up her wine glass and downing another glass. "I'm fine, really fine... Xiaoshi, tell me the truth, have you ever cheated on me...? I hate men like that the most... I hate him... I... Xiaoshi, don't leave tonight, stay and chat with me, okay? It's been so long since we've had a meal and chatted together like this... I'm so heartbroken!"

She sobbed, continuing incoherently, putting down her wine glass and standing up again, wrapping her arms around my neck. My chin was resting on her head, and a captivating fragrance of her hair wafted into my nose...

"Sister, don't be like this, I'm not, I'm not that kind of person. Look, I'm right here beside you, aren't I? I'm not going anywhere, I'll talk to you... Sister." Actually, this situation had already left me at a loss. What I fear most is a woman crying; when she cries, it makes me completely lose my composure.

"Hehe... Xiaoshi, am I pretty?"

I was stunned. Why was this woman crying and laughing at the same time? Had seeing her ex-husband driven her crazy? But judging from her appearance, it seemed she had been deeply hurt by that man named Lin Hao.

"Pretty, of course you're pretty, I'm the most beautiful woman in the world."

Actually, there was another one, Xiaoxue, whom I had met at the hotel last time.

"Then... do you like me?"

She looked up at me blankly, tear tracks clearly visible at the corners of her eyes. She had really cried, but she was better now.

"Yes, sister, I've liked you since the first day I joined the company, really."

After saying that, I wrapped my arms around her waist. Actually, in this kind of situation, how many men could resist? Besides, I had also genuinely fallen for the woman in front of me.

"Xiao Shi, you're still young, I'm already old... Do you really like me?"

She remained in that position, but her face seemed even closer than before. I could feel her soft breath, carrying a slight smell of alcohol, her small, bright red lips trembling. I watched for a few seconds, then couldn't resist any longer and pecked her lips. She didn't resist; instead, she responded passionately... We kissed, embracing tightly, feeling the heat between our bodies. Her hands began to restlessly unbutton my shirt...

The moon came out, shining through the spacious... The floor-to-ceiling windows shone into the bedroom, filling it with a vibrant, spring-like atmosphere. On such a night, was it the moonlight that intoxicated? Was it the wine? The heart? Or the body?

In Chapter 8 of Volume 1, happiness is the woman you love in bed.

In *A Chinese Odyssey*, Stephen Chow's classic confession has moved countless lovesick men and women to tears: "There was once a time… I hope it lasts ten thousand years." I envy someone who can tell a lie so perfectly, who can utter a falsehood so naturally. But heaven seems to be particularly kind to me; Stephen Chow's dialogue has come alive today. She's right beside me, and I'm the main character.

Last time, I was drunk and didn't get to properly savor Xiaoli's alluring body hidden beneath her skirt—that body that kept me tossing and turning for so many nights! So many times, I've been obsessed, driven mad by it. Today, the enemy has returned, and I must prepare myself properly.

I draw the curtains, ruthlessly blocking the peeping moon from view. I can't tolerate anyone sharing what's mine, not even the moon. Only a dim pink lamp is on by the bedside; it seems Xiaoli values ambiance. The moment the door opened, the entire room was enveloped in a different, more ambiguous atmosphere. My heart pounded like a bucket of water; all I could hear was my own heartbeat and her panting breaths beside me. She held me tightly with one arm, while her other hand haphazardly tried to undo my belt. After struggling for a while, she gave up and started frantically stripping off her own clothes. Soon, she was completely naked. She looked up at me with her large, watery eyes, then suddenly released me shyly. Her already flushed face turned even redder, and she darted under the covers.

~；%#*￥%#；*……She can be shy?

I chuckled inwardly, leaning over and pressing myself against her through the blanket, my eyes smiling as I looked at her, as if asking, "Why did you stop?" She kept her eyes closed, avoiding my gaze, and suddenly buried her head under the blanket. Just as I was about to pull her out, she abruptly rolled me to the side and pulled the blanket over me. She then reached for my belt again; this time, she succeeded. Damn, who's drunk here?

Nurhaci said, "A man's bravery is only manifested in two places: on the battlefield and on a woman's breasts." I once idolized him because of this saying. Is there any more profound saying? There wasn't a single word spoken throughout the entire process, because at this moment, any words would be superfluous, insufficient to prove our need for each other; they would all be pale. We intertwined, we merged into one another. I was inside her, she was inside me. Body and soul, fused together like a crimson cloud on the horizon, carrying each other toward the sunset. At that moment, we both evaporated into the blood-red sky…

A moment later, the wind and rain stopped…

I placed two pillows under myself, half-sitting on the edge of the bed, and lit a cigarette. Smoking is my hobby, and the cigarette I smoked at this time was generally called a post-coital cigarette. Xiao Li turned around and half-lay on me, one hand slowly roaming over my firm chest. I held the cigarette in one hand and gently stroked her smooth, delicate back with the other. Having just experienced the storm, a fine layer of sweat still clung to her back…

Xiao Li's figure was truly amazing, absolutely stunning. In the local dialect, it was "unbeatable!"

Except for her nipples, which were slightly enlarged from breastfeeding, the rest of her body was almost perfect: a slender waist, full hips, a flat stomach, and snow-white, smooth, and supple skin, almost translucent. I sighed, no wonder I'd always been so infatuated with her. It seemed my intuition was right; such a perfect woman, it would be a sin not to be captivated by her.

Just then, she parted her red lips and asked,

"Xiao Shi." "Hmm?

" "Am I getting old, sister?

" "No, why would you think that?"

"Then do you like me?"

She tilted her head, her eyes fixed on me, a mixture of confusion and anxiety in them.

"Yes, of course I like you! You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

Actually, I didn't know how to answer her, but I knew that any compliment would be safe.

"Hehe… really? You're so sweet-talking, you little rascal. Let me ask you again, if I were to marry you, would you dare to marry me?"

She laughed happily.

Silence, a deathly silence.

Would I dare? Would I dare to marry her? I asked myself, frantically puffing on my cigarette, the burning tobacco hissing and crackling, seemingly helping me ponder the question.

"Forget it, I asked the wrong question. You don't need an answer. Don't think about it, okay?"

She saw me not speaking and just frantically smoking, her bright eyes gradually dimming, all the passion from before gone.

The cigarette burned to the end, stinging my hand. I put it out and laughed.

"Hehe... Sister Li, don't misunderstand. Actually, being able to marry a woman like Sister Li is a blessing from one of my ancestors. Just now I was thinking, we're pretty much on different levels. You see, you live in a high-rise and drive a BMW, while what about me? I'm just a penniless proletarian. If I married you, wouldn't you have to come back to the countryside with me and live in a mud house? And, on roads like those in our countryside, your BMW wouldn't be able to drive at all. You'd probably be exhausted from washing the car every day, haha..."

What I said was true, but it sounded like I was defending my incompetence, with a hint of self-deprecation.

My words made her laugh again. "Hehe... It's okay, I'll sell the car and we'll go back to your hometown to farm. Like that old story, what was it again? The one about men plowing and women weaving?"

"The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl?"

Wow! She really has a vivid imagination.

"Yes, yes, we'll be like them. You go out to farm, and I'll stay home and cook for you."

God! She actually dreams of that kind of life. I almost fainted on the spot.

"Is that so? That sounds good, but..."

Talking around, I suddenly had a very important question. "Sis, it seems like we didn't use protection just now."

Hearing this, she lifted her head from my chest and glared at me. "You pervert, you only think of this now? You weren't concerned when we were doing something bad?"

One night, she's labeled me a bastard and a pervert. It's really unfair. It seems like she seduced me first.

"What should we do?"

I was getting a little anxious. If a divorced woman gets pregnant, the gossip will definitely bury her.

"What should I do? How should I know what to do? You caused this mess, you figure it out yourself." She completely shirked responsibility, easily dumping the task on me. I thought for a moment, "How about I go buy some medicine now?"

"Hehe, you little rascal, you're quite knowledgeable about these things, aren't you? Quite experienced, huh?"

She chuckled mischievously, starting to mock me.

"Oh my god! Sis, don't wrong me. Even if you haven't seen a pig run, you've eaten pork, right? The TV commercials are blaring every day, it's hard not to understand these things."

I replied helplessly, "Stop talking, where did you put your car keys?"

"Silly girl, it's too late now, let's go out and buy them tomorrow, it's okay."

I looked at my watch, it was almost one in the morning, it really was late.

"Then... shall we go wash up?"

I turned around, picked her up, and she hooked one arm around my neck and reached out to pinch my cheek with the other.

"You rascal, who's talking to you or us? Let go of me, go take a shower first."

Even as I was about to let go, she pulled me even tighter.

Sigh... women! Women.

After showering and returning to bed, it was already 1:15 AM. We embraced and fell into a deep sleep, without a single dream. The next day was Sunday. Waking up in the morning, the sun was shining brightly. Lying in bed, not wanting to get up, I looked at Xiaoli, who was using my left hand as a pillow, and listened to her even breathing. I understood a question I had never had an answer to before: What is happiness?

Actually, this is happiness! In life, there is a comfortable bed, and on that bed, there is a woman, a woman you love.

(Chapter 9 of Volume 1: Accompanying the Wolf)

"Xiaoshi, come and try this on. You didn't look at it carefully at the mall yesterday, let's take another look today?"

Xiaoli stood at the bedroom door, holding the outfit she had bought at the mall yesterday. I had just gotten up and finished showering.

"This...didn't we try this on last night? Who did you buy this for? Are you sure that person's figure is exactly the same as mine?"

"Who? Don't you know? I bought it for you."

Xiaoli looked surprised, as if I shouldn't have been guilty for not knowing the clothes were mine.

"For me? I...I have clothes to wear. Besides, this suit...it's a bit too high-end. I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing it, and I'm too lazy to even know how to wash it."

The suit she was holding was worth a month's salary for me. Just thinking about it made me feel like I was covered in money, and I couldn't help but shiver.

"Oh? Well, what are we going to do with this already bought? We can't exactly return it, can we? Here's what we'll do: I bought this dress for you because there's an exhibition in Shanghai at the end of this month, and you'll be going with me. But the company's boss and a lot of clients will be there, so you can't dress too badly. After the exhibition, you can do whatever you want with this dress. Come on, try it on..."

She said, pulling me in front of the mirror.

"Sister Li, I can do it myself. You...you go take a shower."

She was wearing a low-cut nightgown, and half of her snow-white breasts were exposed. I glanced at it a couple of times and felt my pants getting hard. I blushed and told her to look away for a moment.

"Haha...you rascal, you can even blush? What are you afraid of? It's not like I haven't seen it before. Put it on, let me see how it looks."

Ugh, so she's treating me like a product?

A black suit, a white shirt, and a red tie—I looked like a mainland version of Andy Lau in the mirror. The clothes suited me perfectly, almost like they were tailor-made for me. I had to admire her taste once again. They say clothes make the man, and it's absolutely true. Dressed so neatly, I shed my former boyishness and exuded the aura of a mature man. I reckon if I stood on the street like this, I'd get a 101% head-turning rate…

“Wow? I really can't believe it, you've completely transformed! Xiao Shi, don't always wear jeans to work. Dress more formally, it's not like you're selling vegetables at the market, understand?”

“Okay, I got it.”

I nodded, my initial enthusiasm completely extinguished by her. What's wrong with wearing jeans? I only wear them because I have a good figure, hehe…

She came out of the shower and said she had something to do that evening, so I went home alone. Insomnia, a whole night of insomnia. I lay in bed, shifting positions countless times, not knowing what to think, or even what I could think. Everything felt so fast, like a dream. Did I really get her so easily? Does she really love me? I'm not sure. I'm only certain I miss her terribly, I've truly fallen in love with her. Shanghai? She said she's going to Shanghai at the end of the month? I'm scared. Hearing the word "Shanghai" reminds me of my ex-girlfriend running off to Shanghai with someone else. Should I still feel heartache for her? No, I shouldn't. I have Xiaoli now. I don't need to hold on to anything for her anymore. I should let go…

On Monday night, during a business meeting, Xiaoli informed everyone about the Shanghai exhibition schedule, reminding them to maintain the department's daily operations while she was away. She even praised me for handling customer complaints well last time, telling everyone to learn from me, and said she'd take me with her to Shanghai this time.

Everyone in the department, except me, stared at me wide-eyed, including my friend J.

After the meeting, as I was leaving work, J caught up with me. "Hey bro, you're something else! I really didn't know you were so good at this. You're a hidden gem!"

He flashed a sly grin, revealing two large front teeth. I knew there was something more to his words.

"What? That's ridiculous," I replied casually, but my heart was in my throat. Did he find out about my relationship with Xiaoli?

"Hehe, what? Don't pretend. This exhibition in Shanghai happens every year, but she always goes alone. Why would she take you with her this year? If it's a rotation, I don't think it would be your turn anyway, right? Besides, there's me, the long-time employee."

He glanced at me a few times, his smile widening, looking every bit like a gossipy old woman who'd heard some international news...

Luckily, he was just guessing. I sighed inwardly, "Well... I don't know either. I just heard it from her. Actually, I don't want to go. It's so far, and I have to take a plane. What if there's some kind of accident on the plane? Wouldn't I be finished? Maybe I should talk to the manager and ask you to go instead?"

Playing hard to get, let's see if you dare to be so gossipy?

"No, no! You go, please don't tell the manager, she'll think I'm jealous of you."

Sure enough, he waved his hand nervously, "I'm going back now, my wife is waiting for me at home for dinner. See you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow."

I waved back to him, but couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Life returned to normal, seemingly peaceful on the surface, but I always felt an undercurrent pushing changes throughout the department. Since Xiaoli said she would take me to Shanghai for the exhibition on Monday, the other employees in the department seemed to have become more polite to me. They used words like "please" and "excuse me" in their words and actions. I was confused, and I hadn't been alone with Xiaoli for several days, so I felt a little uneasy and empty.

I dusted myself off; the end of the month was approaching. I was wondering if I would run into my ex-girlfriend in Shanghai when the plane gave a slight jolt and landed at Pudong Airport.

It was my first time in Shanghai, and it was indeed more luxurious than I had imagined, with towering skyscrapers dazzling me. Compared to me, Xiaoli acted as if she were at home, pointing fingers and criticizing the taxi driver. Actually, our company does have an office in Shanghai, but for some reason, she declined their offer. I thought it was fine; it was more free that way, and no one would bother us.

At the hotel check-in, we booked two rooms. I thought she would ask me to book only one, but she insisted on two. At first, I was a little annoyed, but then I thought, if we only booked one, wouldn't people suspect us when we went back to the company to report the expenses? Damn! Looks like I'm blinded by love.

After putting down my luggage, I plopped down on the snow-white bed. The bed was very bouncy, bouncing me high into the air… I thought to myself: it would be so great to have sex on this bed. …I bet I'm disgusted with myself. Why am I always thinking about such lewd things? Can't I think of anything else? I thought that after a two-hour flight, I could finally have a good afternoon nap, but then Xiaoli knocked on the door…

“Come on, come with me to the office over here. Hurry up.”

She stood at the door, reaching out to straighten my disheveled collar.

“Sis…isn’t it supposed to start tomorrow? Why are we going today?”

Her movements were so gentle, and a warm feeling welled up inside me. It felt so blissful, like a husband being reminded by his wife before leaving home.

“I just got a call saying that the chairman from Taiwan has arrived, and he brought a very important client. They insist we go. Let’s go, it’s almost closing time, and there will be a lot of traffic on the road.”

She said, pulling me outside.

“Wait…let me put my shoes on first.”

Stepping outside, I realized I was wearing hotel slippers. I quickly ran back to my room to change and caught up with Xiaoli.

The taxi wound its way around for about half an hour before finally arriving at a rather secluded place that looked like a villa community. Ugh! How could this be an office? It was clearly a residential area. I quickly dismissed that idea. It was a two-story duplex villa; the first floor was for offices, and the second floor had several bedrooms and a large living room for relaxation. When we went up, several people were already seated…

“Chairman,” Xiao Li respectfully called out to the short, plump middle-aged man on the sofa to her left. I followed suit softly.

“Ah? Xiao Li? You’re here. Come…come…come, sit here. Let me introduce you. Brother Huang, this is Xiao Li, our business manager for South China. Don’t underestimate her; she’s a powerful woman who combines beauty and intelligence, haha.” The chairman (I’d better not call him “short and plump” anymore, or I’ll lose my job!) stood up and pointed to Xiao Li (my uncle is almost sixty this year) at the old man he called “Brother Huang”. After introducing Xiao Li, the chairman turned and pointed to a man about the same age as my uncle sitting to his right, saying, “Xiao Li, this is Mr. Huang, the CEO of Dongya Group China…”

Hearing his introduction, I was truly astonished. Good heavens!

Dongya Group is our largest client and one of the world's leading electronics manufacturers, with branches and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in over fifty countries. How could a small company like ours have a president-level figure? And judging from how the chairman addressed him as a brother, their relationship seems quite close. I finally understood why our small company had an endless stream of purchase orders, with over 90% coming from Dongya. Basically, you could say our company is supported by Dongya. But then again, it's not surprising. Dongya's annual revenue exceeds hundreds of billions; giving our company a hundred million or two is as easy as plucking a hair from their leg.

"Xiao Li? Oh? So she's the capable assistant you've been talking about all this time, bro? Seeing is believing, she's both capable and beautiful."

Xiao Li smiled as she handed over her business card, and the old man took out his own card to exchange with her. However, I noticed his eyes never left Xiao Li's ample bosom.

"And this is..."

The president of Dongya glanced at me, standing behind Xiao Li. I wonder if all Taiwanese people are this annoying. Triangular eyes, a bulbous nose, and facial muscles sagging more severely than an eighty-year-old woman's breasts! Good heavens! What's that? On his face, I actually... I actually saw a tiny age spot the size of a chopstick tip! Ugh!

Just as I was about to introduce myself, Xiao Li, as if she knew what I was thinking, preemptively said, "Oh, this is He Shi, my assistant. This is his first time attending this type of exhibition, I brought him here to broaden his horizons, hehe, to broaden his horizons."

Faint... I sounded like I knew nothing.

The old man's eyes still didn't leave her. Shit! How dare my woman look at me so brazenly? I don't care who you are! I secretly cursed him a million times in my mind, hoping he'd choke on his water, but he didn't seem to want to drink, so I gave up.

We sat for a while, chatting about the general situation of tomorrow's exhibition. The bosses were all there; in this kind of situation, I could only listen. But sometimes listening is one of my hobbies, because listening to these old foxes talk often allows me to learn things I would never normally encounter.

The chairman spoke up, "Zhang Yang, everyone's here, and it's getting late. Let's go out for dinner."

The Zhang Yang he called was the business manager in charge of Shanghai, or rather, the entire East China region. He was quite good-looking, refined and polite, but his face looked a little puffy, and his dark circles were quite severe. Sigh… needless to say, probably another womanizer and drunkard.

Actually, there's not much difference between people; we all have one head and four legs—no, two legs. As for the men, the topics at the dinner table invariably revolve around women and money, especially the three slightly tipsy Taiwanese men across from me, who kept talking about lewd things, laughing and joking with each other. It was as if a woman would suddenly strip naked and dance on the table—a pack of wolves, wolves from Taiwan! I'm a man, and I didn't care about these dirty jokes. I glanced at Xiaoli, and she was equally calm, seemingly used to it all, completely oblivious. Impressive! I'm confident I'm well-mannered and know what to say and what not to say in this situation. They talked, and occasionally I'd join in with a smile, but it was a forced, insincere smile, a fawning one. After more than an hour, my face was frozen in one shape, numb.

Finally, the three men had finished their talk and it was time to get down to business. Business? A nightclub!

Knowing it was time to leave, Xiao Li stood up. "President Huang, Chairman, I'm not feeling well. I'll head back now. You guys enjoy yourselves."

"Oh? Tired? Okay, then get some rest. Remember not to be late for the exhibition tomorrow. Um... Zhang Yang, have the driver take Xiao Li back."

The Chairman chuckled as he instructed Zhang Yang, who was sitting to his left.

"No need, Chairman, I can take a taxi myself. Or, could you have Xiao Shi take me back?"

Xiao Li said, tugging at my clothes, implying that I should leave too. This suited me perfectly; staying in this place was suffocating me. It was much more comfortable to be alone with Xiao Li.

"Hmm, alright. Be careful on the road."

As soon as he finished speaking, we quickly left the private room. The fresh air in the corridor felt like returning from hell to earth. The feeling was simply indescribable.

Chapter 10 Wholesale and Retail

There were many taxis parked outside the restaurant. I found a relatively new car, opened the back door, and let Xiao Li in. (Everyone, take note: when you're with a lady, open the car door for her when she gets in; it's a matter of manners.) After she got in, I followed and sat to her right. As I settled in, my hand accidentally landed on her thigh.

I froze; time seemed to stand still. To be honest, it really was an accident, but once it was there, I couldn't take it off. First, I genuinely didn't want to move it, and second, I was afraid that if I removed it, Xiaoli would feel embarrassed. So I just left my hand there, frozen. I glanced at Xiaoli and noticed that her eyes were slightly closed, her face flushed—I didn't know if it was from the alcohol she'd been drinking or from the neon lights on the roadside buildings. Damn, how could she ignore me? Was she faking it? Soon, I realized that if I didn't remove my hand, I'd be the one feeling uncomfortable. With the car's movement and the bumps on the road, my hand involuntarily rubbed against her firm thigh, triggering a stirring in my own body. Shit, what goes around comes around.

Finally, the taxi driver came to my rescue. At the first traffic light, he slammed on the brakes. I pretended to have lost my balance and quickly grabbed the seat in front of me.

"Where are you two going?"

The taxi driver was a big, burly man, but surprisingly, his voice was quite gentle.

"To the XX Hotel,"

I replied.

"No, could you please take us to that bar on XX Road?"

Xiao Li opened her eyes and changed the route after hearing what I said.

"Huh? Sis, aren't we going back to the hotel? It's almost 10 o'clock."

I was a little confused. I rarely go to bars; they seem too noisy, and traditional beliefs tell me they're decadent places.

Xiao Li turned her head and glanced at me, then closed her eyes again, saying, "Sis wants to go sit there for a while. Are you tired?"

"No, no, I'm just worried you might be tired, hehe..."

Since she said she wanted to go, I naturally wouldn't object, and I certainly wouldn't let her go alone. Who would feel comfortable letting such a beautiful woman go alone? Although I don't like it, for her sake, let alone a mere bar, I'd go through fire and water without hesitation.

Another half hour passed, and I paid the fare. Xiao Li put her arm around me, and we walked into the bar together. Sigh… what a decadent life! The whole bar was dimly lit; apart from the occasional flash of bright colored lights, most areas were pitch black. Luckily, it was still early, and there weren't many people. Even so, I almost tripped and fell several times, and Xiao Li had to support me—we were practically upside down! After much difficulty, we reached the bar.

"Xiao Shi, what would you like to drink? It's on me."

Of course, if you don't treat me, how can I afford it? I glanced at the bottles: a small bottle of Tsingtao beer cost 50 yuan; two bottles would be my daily wage. F**k, that's outrageous.

"Um… I'll take one Tsingtao."

"Foreign liquor? No way." I ordered a Tsingtao beer, took a sip, and... damn it, it doesn't even taste as good as what you get outside. This is practically robbery! Xiao Li also ordered a beer, but her eyes were glued to me, watching my every move. Seeing my indignant expression, she chuckled, "Haha... Xiao Shi? Don't you think this is unfair?"

The music was a bit loud, making it hard to hear. After thinking for a while, I finally understood her question. "Huh? What? Hehe... Yes, a little. This beer isn't anything special, but it's dozens of times more expensive than outside."

"Xiao Shi, don't you understand? The key isn't the beer, but the place and the occasion. Yes, in restaurants or street stalls, a beer this big only costs a few dollars, but the question is, can you feel the atmosphere here, can you enjoy this kind of service?"

she explained with a smile.

I thought about it, and it was indeed true. She continued, "Xiao Shi, do you know why I come here?"

I was just about to ask her the same question, but she asked first. It seems we really are on the same wavelength?

"I don't know, why?"

We were sitting side-by-side at the bar. I turned to face her. In the soft light, she seemed even more ethereal.

"I went to university in Shanghai. When I was in school, I often came here, and..."

She suddenly stopped halfway through her sentence. I waited a while, and seeing that she was just drinking and not saying anything more, my curiosity compelled me to ask her again, "What else?"

"Hehe... nothing, you little brat, why are you asking so many questions?"... It seems like she asked first, and then I asked. How did it turn into me being the one prying? Women's thinking is really... But when I stopped asking, she continued, "Actually, it's not a big deal to tell you. What I was trying to say was that I met Lin Hao here. We were in the same school, but different classes."

I was stunned for half a second after hearing that. I let out a long "Oh..."

as my reply. I knew it; there's no smoke without fire. Why else would she be out at a bar so late at night? Turns out she's looking for some excitement. Is she still hung up on her ex-husband? Or is it because she's worried about her child? Sigh... Should I be jealous? Do I even have the right to be jealous? Thinking about it, a strong pang of jealousy welled up inside me. I didn't say anything, and neither did she. We just stared at each other, as if trying to read something from each other's faces. Silence. Only the music blared wildly in our ears, engulfing me, engulfing her, engulfing everything.

Half a bottle of beer remained, but my body was reacting. I asked for directions to the restroom, told Xiaoli I'd be right back, and headed straight for it. After relieving myself, I stood in front of the sink, silently looking at myself in the mirror, another wave of emotion washing over me.

In the mirror, I was wearing a white shirt and black trousers, the perfectly pressed cuffs emphasizing my tall, 178cm frame. My short, jet-black hair was styled upright with hair gel, making me look energetic. To be honest, outwardly, I'm no less attractive than anyone else, really. But for some reason, ever since I met Xiaoli's ex-husband, Lin Hao, and was asked by Xiaoli, "Would I marry her?", I always felt inferior in her presence. Many times, lying in bed unable to sleep, I've asked myself, if things continue like this with Xiaoli, will we have a future? In the end, who will be hurt, me or her? Or will neither of us be happy? Every time I think about these questions, I feel overwhelmed, my thoughts a jumbled mess. In the end, I can't come up with anything. Perhaps, when feelings run deep, all you can do is let things develop freely, let everything take its course, and leave it to fate. Just like in *A Chinese Odyssey*, "Marriage is decided by heaven, and heaven is the greatest." I splashed some cold water on my face, and my mind cleared considerably. I opened the door and stepped out of the restroom. Outside was a long corridor. At the entrance to the women's restroom, a stylishly dressed woman was talking on the phone with the latest Nokia N90. Normally, this would have been none of my business, but as I turned to leave, I overheard a couple of sentences and had to stop and turn back to look at her. She was beautiful, fashionable, and young—all factors that caught my eye. But most importantly, she was speaking my hometown dialect!

My hometown is a very remote small county. The only road in the entire county is National Highway 106. In our area, each county speaks its own dialect; we can't understand what people from neighboring cities or other places are saying. Within our county, there are over a dozen townships, all speaking with the same accent, except for our own township, which has its own unique accent. The beautiful stranger across from me was speaking our dialect, so I could be certain she and I were from the same township.

"Okay, I went home for the New Year, don't worry. Alright, it's getting late, you should go to sleep. I'll call home again in a while. That's all. I'm hanging up." After finishing the call, the beautiful stranger suddenly noticed me staring at her, and as if she thought I was a pervert, she glared at me and turned to walk away.

"Hey... miss, wait a minute."

I quickly called out to her. It wasn't because she was pretty; I'm not that infatuated. I just wanted to find out if she was from my hometown.

"What is it? I don't know you."

Although she seemed a little reluctant, she stopped about two meters away from me. That's when I realized her outfit was a bit shocking. She was wearing a tight black tank top, the cropped kind, with white casual pants and pink shoes—very stylish. Her pants were Armani, too. It was clear that this beautiful woman, besides being very fashionable and good at matching clothes, must have a high standard of living, at least higher than mine. (Damn, what kind of standard is this? Hehe) I held back my nosebleed and gave an awkward smile. "Um, hehe, sorry, we really don't know each other. I just wanted to ask, are you from Hunan?"

"Yes? Why?"

Her tone was a little hesitant, still quite wary.

"Then are you from xx County, xx Township, Hunan?"

Afraid she wouldn't have the patience for me to keep asking, I decided to go straight to the point.

"Yes, how did you know? Where are you from?"

Sure enough, as soon as I said that, she completely dropped her guard and asked me in surprise.

"Oh? Really? Haha, me too. Hello, my surname is He."

To increase her trust, I simply spoke the last two sentences in my hometown dialect.

"You...surname He? Wait...I feel like I've seen you somewhere before?"

She saw my outstretched hand but didn't shake it. Instead, she walked closer to examine my face.

Although I enjoy looking at beautiful women, I don't say I enjoy being looked at by them. Being stared at like this felt like being an animal in a zoo. "Um... Miss, my surname is He, but... we haven't met before. This is my first time in Shanghai."

She didn't answer, staring at me for a long time before finally speaking, "You... are you called He Shi?"

"Huh?"

This time, I was the one who screamed out loud. How did she know my name? "Yes, you've really seen me before? But I don't seem to remember you."

"You're really called He Shi? Then when you were in sixth grade, wasn't it in 1996? Wasn't the principal your uncle? Was your nickname back then 'Stone'?"

she exclaimed excitedly, her two heart-shaped earrings twitching as she moved.

"Yes, yes! How do you know all this? Who are you?" What

she said was true; "Shi" and "Shi" sound the same in our hometown dialect. Later, some mischievous classmates gave me this nickname, and I used it until I graduated from high school. I'm getting a little incoherent; maybe I'm just too excited. You know, in such a big city, to meet someone who speaks the same dialect as me and even knows my childhood nickname—how could I not be excited?

"Haha... It really is you. You stinky stone, it's me, Meizi, Li Mei, remember? The one who sat behind you. I remember you were shorter than me back then, how come you've grown so tall in the blink of an eye? Let me see, oh my god, you're a head taller than me!"

She said, patting me on the shoulder, then standing in front of me to compare heights. All these actions happened in the blink of an eye, leaving me stunned and taking a while to react.

"Li Mei? You're Li Mei? Huh? How could it be you? You look completely different from before!" As soon

as the words left my mouth, I regretted them. It seems ten years have passed since I last met Li Mei. It's normal for people to look different from before. “Now that you mention it, I remember. You used to sit behind me. Every time your math homework was handed in, I would stay and copy it before handing it in. Haha, what are you doing here?”

“Me? I’ve been here for years. What about you? What are you doing here? I…”

Before she could finish, her phone rang. She took it out of her handbag. “Hello? Oh, I’ll be right there.”

After hanging up, she seemed a little anxious and disappointed, but the look was fleeting. Soon, she regained her cheerful tone. “I’m leaving. Where do you live? How long will you stay here? Never mind, what’s your phone number? I’ll call you tomorrow.”

I was about to answer a barrage of questions when she reached into my pocket, pulled out her phone, and dialed a number. Her phone rang again. I realized she was saving my number.

“I’m really leaving. I’ll call you tomorrow,” she said, and ran out of the room as if something was chasing her. I was completely bewildered for a moment, not understanding what was going on. I started to leave when I kicked something round and pen-like. Picking it up, I saw it was a lipstick. She must have dropped it when she took out her phone. I rushed towards the exit.

Reaching the parking lot, I only saw her get into a black sedan. Looking closer, I realized it was a Mercedes S600 with the license plate "沪O*****". It was too late; the car had already driven away. I stood at the door, silently exclaiming, "Damn!"

Suddenly, a familiar female voice rang in my ears.

"Ex-lover?"

It was Xiao Li's voice. She had somehow appeared behind me without me noticing.

"Hehe," I chuckled awkwardly, "No, it's an elementary school classmate. We haven't seen each other for almost ten years. I didn't expect to run into her here. Isn't that strange?" "

Really? That's good, isn't it? It'll give you a moment of nostalgia. But this elementary school classmate of yours is quite something!"

She sighed, as if regretting something.

"What's wrong? How is she not something?"

Her words had a hidden meaning, which I understood.

"Xiao Shi, didn't you notice the car she was in?"

Xiao Li asked, looking at where the car had just stopped.

"I saw it, a Mercedes S600 VIP, I recognize it."

I replied dismissively, realizing that was all she was referring to.

"You blockhead! How come you're still so dense after all this time? Didn't you see the Mercedes' license plate was '沪O'? And the last few digits are all zeros, only the last two have a value? Tell me, what does that mean?"

Xiao Li turned and stared at me, seemingly angry.

My heart skipped a beat: "O" is the license plate for government vehicles, and the numbers after that…

"Sister Li, you mean? She was in a government car? And a Shanghai municipal government car?"

If that's true, then who is Li Mei now? Don't tell me she's the Shanghai Party Secretary, I absolutely refuse to believe it.

Xiao Li chuckled. "You're smart. Let me tell you, in my opinion, your classmate is probably working for some official. Otherwise... she's just a casual fling."

"Huh? How could that be? She's very smart in school, definitely not one of those two types."

It was true. Back in school, my math grades were terrible, so I always copied her homework. Even during mock exams, she'd pass me notes. You could say that in fifth and sixth grade, I only got any math points because of her, so we were really close back then. But I was nice to her because she let me copy her homework; I couldn't understand why she was nice to me.

"What's impossible? Do you think she's the mayor of Shanghai?"

Xiao Li seemed dismissive. "

But then again, if you're right, I'd rather she's the former." I panicked, inexplicably defending Li Mei. "Why? Why do you want her to be the former?" she asked. "At least there's a difference. The former, even if it's for money, still has some feeling involved. The latter

, like a casual fling, is something you can eat if you have money. " " Actually, in my heart, I'd rather Xiaoli was wrong. Deep down, I don't want to accept that Li Mei is someone's mistress. " "Hmph..." Xiaoli sneered twice. "Feelings? You say feelings? Money is feelings, Xiaoshi. Let me tell you, there is indeed a difference between the two, but the difference isn't what you're saying." Xiaoli paused, then said, word by word, "The difference between a mistress and a prostitute is that the former is wholesale, the latter is retail!" (02-06 Volume 1, Chapter 11, Memory) Thinking about it carefully, Xiaoli's words vividly described the two. It was undeniably classic, but I felt extremely uncomfortable. My throat felt like it was blocked with lead; I wanted to say something, but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out… After standing there for a while, a light rain suddenly started to fall. Xiaoli pulled me, who was lost in thought, "Come on, what are you daydreaming about? If you stand here any longer, it'll be dawn." " Oh," I said, hailing a taxi at the door and quickly returning to the hotel. My room and Xiaoli's room were separated by only a wall. Before entering, I deliberately paused, thinking Xiaoli would come in with me, or perhaps she would ask me to go to her room. But instead, she quickly walked to her door, took out her room card, and was about to open it… "Sis?" I called out. Hearing me call, Xiaoli turned around. "Hmm? What's wrong?" Her expression was innocent, not understanding why I had stopped her. I froze, unsure whether I should say what came next. "What's wrong? Daydreaming again? Can't you open the door?" She walked over. Holding the room card, I stared blankly at her light footsteps. "Uh… no, sis, I want to… to…" I hesitated for a long time, unable to utter the word "to sleep." Hearing this, Xiaoli understood most of it, a smile playing on her lips. "Hehe… I thought it was something serious. Hehe… silly boy, just say it sooner, how would anyone know what you're thinking if you don't tell me?" "There's no reason why you shouldn't tell anyone what you're thinking, right? And it's impossible that I wouldn't let you think it..." Damn it, I immediately thought of that scene from A Chinese Odyssey. Why is she as gossipy as that Tang Sanzang? I scratched my head and laughed awkwardly. She winked at me, as if she could see through my lustful thoughts. I didn't back down, so I simply put away the room key, wrapped my arms around her waist, and went into her room together.

I wonder if there's a more wonderful way for men and women to express their love than through intimacy in bed. But I knew this moment wouldn't. After showering, Xiaoli and I simultaneously collapsed onto the pristine white bed. Removing the towel, I held Xiaoli tightly, like reviewing a lesson, carefully examining her fiery body once more, kissing every inch of her skin, familiarizing myself with every part of her body, until the boiling lava erupted… After the passion subsided, Xiaoli traced patterns on my chest with her index finger, and soon drifted off to sleep. Looking at the woman in my arms, that dreamlike feeling resurfaced in my mind, but the woman I was holding was clearly a living, breathing woman, a very outstanding woman.

Saying Xiaoli is outstanding isn't because I love her; in fact, I can't find a reason to love her. What do I love about her? Does she love her money? Probably not. I do like money, but I'm not at the point where I need to be a gigolo. We've been together for almost a month, and I've basically never used her money. What's hers is hers, and I feel more at ease using my own money. So, what makes her so outstanding? She's elegant in public, a good cook in the kitchen, and a perfect lover in bed. That's the kind of woman I once envisioned for myself—a woman like that, someone I could spend my life with, someone who knows boundaries and right from wrong. But sometimes I feel she's too smart, which makes me feel inferior. But that's okay; people say couples complement each other… Damn, why am I thinking so far ahead? Do I really want to be with her and have a home?

A home?

Do I even think about a home? Actually, ever since I can remember, I've felt like a homeless child, like those shivering kittens curled up in alley corners. In fact, I have a complete family, a complete family in terms of numbers… The rain outside keeps pattering down. Some lights from the street faintly shine through the hotel window, flickering on the ceiling. The image in my mind sometimes transformed into my parents, sometimes into the face of my ex-girlfriend who had spent almost a year with me, but ultimately, the image settled on one person: Li Mei. Actually, Li Mei wasn't a very vivid memory for me; we were only classmates for two years. If it weren't for the fact that I often copied her homework back then, she might not have even left a trace in my mind. But what role would a fellow villager suddenly play in my life ten years later? Her appearance only stirred up my memories of the past. She was like a drop of dark ink falling onto a blank sheet of paper, and my thoughts spread and expanded with that drop of ink… As

a child, I was a typical obedient child. While other children carried inner tubes to swim in the river, I could only follow my grandfather, leading the one-horn-missing water buffalo to the hillside. My grandfather's two cloudy eyes would gaze into the distance, while I would look at his snow-white beard. Every time, I wondered the same question: Why was he always looking there? What was on the other side of the mountain? Was he also thinking about something on the other side? When I was in fourth grade, my grandfather had already passed away. One day, on my way home from school, I decided to unravel this mystery. I spent two hours climbing to the top of the mountain, only to find that there were still mountains on the other side.

From kindergarten to fourth grade, I had lived a carefree life. My older sister was two years older than me, and I was a year below her. My sister was even more well-behaved than me because she never cared about what was on the other side of the mountain. In fact, since I climbed to the top of the mountain, I hadn't cared either.

Fifth grade, which can be said to be the beginning of my memories, was when I experienced two words: "poor" and "survival." As my sister and I went to school, our family's financial situation became increasingly difficult, and from fifth grade onwards, we both started boarding school. This meant that the tuition would be more than double what it used to be. In today's terms, that's just the cost of a few meals. But living in the countryside without a stable source of income was a dead end; you can't grow gold in paddy fields.

After much persuasion, the school gave us an option: cut firewood and sell it to the school to pay for the tuition.

In our impoverished backwater, cooking and heating both relied on firewood. Besides the sun, the only resource that could generate heat was firewood! To put it more nicely, it was wood. Fortunately, the mountains here were rolling hills, some even untouched by humans, veritable primeval forests, so resources like firewood were plentiful. At the foot of these mountains, a river flowed downstream. The water was clear, and schools of fish swam about. On weekends, this river became a paradise for many—swimming, fishing, searching for crabs in the crevices of the rocks—everyone beaming with joy. But I wasn't among them. On

weekend mornings, my mother would get up around five to cook porridge. Around six, my father and I would get up and eat two bowls of porridge with the leftovers from the night before. Then we'd take a wood-chopping knife and a saw. I was only twelve then, and my father had prepared a small one for me; the gleaming blade coldly pricked my skin. We walked along a road by the river, though it wasn't really a road, more like a level path than a mountain road, passable by tractors. We called it a farm road. It took about two hours, roughly twenty kilometers by now. After two hours, we reached my father's usual "work" spot. Looking up, I saw a straight ravine leading to the mountaintop, where rows of massive trees, each as thick as a person's embrace, were the source of my sister's and my tuition fees.

There's one thing I'll never forget from those days of going up the mountain with my father to chop firewood, because it almost cost him his life. [·Ebook Download Paradise—www.qisuu.com] That summer, the weather was unbearably hot. The sky and earth seemed to merge into a giant steamer, cooking everything within. Even the water in the river looked slightly simmering. Summer vacation had begun, but my father and I couldn't stop working; the tuition fees for the next semester weighed heavily on his shoulders. After sawing down several trees as thick as bowls, my father pulled out the digital watch he'd bought for three yuan at a street stall; it showed two in the afternoon.

"Take a break, eat something first," he said, then adjusted the machete slung behind his back and plopped down on a tree trunk he'd just cut. The surrounding area was dense forest. I casually wiped my calloused hands on the leaves of a small tree and took two packets of instant noodles from a nearby burlap sack. This was our lunch. I handed him one packet, and suddenly he

cried out, "Ah!" and jumped up, clutching his backside, almost falling over. He dropped the instant noodles he'd just received. I was startled! Looking down, I saw a shiny brown snake lying motionless under the tree trunk where he had just been sitting, its head triangular, its neck flat, as if wearing sunglasses. Its Y-shaped serpent mouth hissed as it swallowed and released…

Before I could react, my father, one hand clutching his backside, grabbed the machete from his back and, with a swift stroke, sliced the meter-long venomous snake in two. Then he pulled down his pants, turned to look at the wound—not large, just two tiny spots of blood. What happened next terrified me. I saw my father, right hand holding the machete, left hand pinching the flesh around the wound and slicing it off. Unfortunately, I was too young then and didn't know what to do. I could only watch helplessly as black blood kept flowing from my father's buttocks. He would take off his shirt and wipe the blood away, but more blood would immediately flow out. This repeated for a while until the blood on the wound turned red. Only then did my father let out a long sigh of relief. His face was covered in sweat, mud, and dust, and the pain had distorted his features so badly that he was unrecognizable. The journey down the mountain took us an hour longer than usual. Fortunately, when we reached the highway, we flagged down a tractor. When we got home, my father did nothing but bandage the wound. The first thing he did was burn incense at the ancestral shrine.

It took him a full two weeks to recover from this incident. Later, when I asked him, I learned that the snake was a king cobra, the most venomous of snakes. Luckily, he had decisively cut off the piece of flesh that had been bitten, otherwise, it would have been too late. Unfortunately, I can't find the words to describe the shock that scene caused me. I only know that my heart bled the moment my father cut off his own flesh; I could never make up for it.

After recovering, my father still had to work hard to pay for our tuition. But by then, the next semester had already started, and I was in sixth grade. It was from this time that I truly became familiar with Li Mei.

In our rural area, schools were divided like this: primary school grades one through four were in their own villages, but not just one small village, but several villages belonging to an administrative village, and each administrative village had its own primary school. The central primary school only included grades five and six, while middle school included grades one through three of junior high. During the nine years of compulsory education, I graduated three times. The first time was when I went from fourth to fifth grade, which was called graduation, and I received a certificate of completion. The second time was when I went from sixth grade to junior high. There was a dividing line here: the best students could go to the key middle school in the county seat, but the prerequisite was that their families had to be rich; otherwise, it would be a waste of time if they passed the exam. But those with lower scores couldn't even get into the most basic township middle school, so they had to repeat the grade.

For some reason, before fourth grade, there was clearly no difference in the relationship between boys and girls. At that time, boys dared to take out their penises and urinate in front of girls, and girls didn't know how to avoid this. When playing, they would often run together with boys, playing tag. By fifth grade, besides the change of school address, the boys and girls had become much more confused about each other. On every red desk, a crooked straight line was carved with a pencil sharpener or other object. Everyone called it the "38th Parallel." At first, I always thought the name "38th Parallel" came from the border line between China and North Korea. Years later, I realized that the "38th Parallel" was actually meant to protect women, because boys couldn't cross it, and March 8th is women's day. In essence, the 38th Parallel became a protective shield for girls in the classroom. Thinking back to whoever defined this line, if they were a sixth-grade student, they must have been a genius!

Perhaps it was the 38th Parallel that separated boys and girls, stimulating the rapid growth of hormones in both genders. One day, I suddenly noticed that the breasts of the girls in my class, with their blonde hair and freckled faces, were springing up like mushrooms after rain. The most prominent among them was a girl sitting behind me named Li Mei. She was one of the more pleasing-to-the-eye girls in our class (back then, the concept of "pretty" didn't really exist). Tall and a bit thin, with well-defined eyes and a delicate nose, she was extremely pretty.

Because of my family background, I was very insecure. At school, I spent most of my free time in the open space behind the school kitchen. My father was there, and I would often stand beside him, watching him chop logs into small pieces. Then he would stack them neatly, and after he finished chopping a whole load, he would weigh it at the school, estimate the price, and use it as collateral for my tuition. The price of firewood was around 12 yuan per 100 kilograms.

Since it was a school, there were bound to be mischievous students, and their favorite pastime was teasing girls. Actually, the word "teasing" doesn't exist in the eyes of teenagers. Yet, they seem to find their greatest amusement in a girl's crying. One day at noon, after the second period, I walked out of the classroom and saw several tall boys instructing our homeroom teacher's five-year-old son on how to hug another girl. They were laughing and joking, guiding the boy on what to do, while the girl remained oblivious, leaning on the railing in front of the classroom, looking down. A five-year-old boy doesn't have his own thoughts. Because he's the homeroom teacher's son, some classmates like to tease him and ask him to do silly things, like throwing someone's ink in the trash can if he doesn't like them. He's like a cleaver; some use him to chop vegetables, others to attack.

As the boy got closer, his hands raised high, his target the girl's chest, just as he was about to touch her, I suddenly shouted, "Teacher Guo is coming!"

The boy panicked and pulled his hands back. Teacher Guo is our homeroom teacher, who is also his father. He's usually quite strict with him, sometimes hitting and sometimes scolding him. We all know he's most afraid of him. My shout startled everyone there. A few boys panicked for a moment, then, realizing the teacher hadn't come, they glared at me fiercely. The girl turned around, looked at me, seemed to understand, and nodded gratefully. I didn't have time to pay her any attention, because I was worried about whether those naughty boys would retaliate. Luckily, the bell rang. They walked into the classroom dejectedly.

After that, Li Mei was especially kind to me. She knew I was bad at math, and every time math class ended, she would come to the front and ask if I had any questions. But I had neither the time nor the inclination to pay attention to her. As soon as class ended, I would run towards the kitchen… Math exams were my biggest headache; I rarely passed. Naturally, the teacher would scold me severely afterward. Later, Li Mei would proactively pass me notes during exams, and I would just copy her math homework. I knew this wasn't working, and I was very distressed.

I hated myself. Knowing our family was poor, why didn't I study harder? Why? Thinking about all this makes me want to smash my head. From then on, I developed a self-destructive habit. Whenever I encounter something unpleasant or make a mistake, I clench my fists and smash myself or the wall until my hands hurt and swell up, only then do I feel better. This habit continues to this day… My environment has shaped my competitive personality. In every aspect, I don't want others to look down on me; I want to do my best. I demand perfection from myself, but in reality, this is impossible, which precisely exposes my inner inferiority complex.

I lay in bed, reminiscing for a long, long time. Xiao Li beside me was already fast asleep. The rain outside had stopped, and the sky was showing a faint white light. Dawn was approaching. I closed my eyes tightly, and suddenly two drops of liquid rolled down from the corners of my eyes. Were they tears? Maybe…

Chapter 12 of Volume 1: The Mercedes SLK

alarm clock rang. I opened my eyes and saw Xiao Li lying on top of me, looking at me with a half-smile. I sat up.

"Hey beautiful, what are you looking at? Don't I look especially handsome today?"

Even though it was only a few hours of sleep, my energy was completely different from last night.

"Handsome my foot! Get up, it's already past seven."

Xiao Li lightly patted my head.

"What's the rush? The exhibition doesn't start until nine! Tell me! What were you looking at? Were you planning something naughty while I was still asleep?"

I chuckled, grabbed her slender wrist, and kissed it. She didn't resist, but her face darkened. "Xiao Shi, do you really want me to tell you? I'm afraid you'll be upset." "

It's okay, do I look like that kind of person? Haha… My motto is: 'Even if Mount Tai collapses before me, I remain calm.' Who can possibly discourage me?"

I laughed it off, trying to sound nonsensical, but a chill ran down my spine; I had a vague feeling that something was amiss. Xiao Li sat up straight and said seriously, "Xiao Shi, I'm telling you, you really can't be angry, otherwise I won't dare to say anything to you again."

She paused, and seeing that my expression was normal, she continued, "Before you woke up, I watched you for about half an hour. You...you looked just like him when you were sleeping, like...your brows were furrowed, the corners of your mouth were turned down, as if you were thinking about something even in your sleep. I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't be like this, but when I saw you sleeping, I couldn't help but think of him. You know, he's actually in Shanghai too. I even called him yesterday, but don't misunderstand, I just wanted to see Wenwen..."

Xiao Li's face was solemn, and my heart felt heavy as well.

I knew that the "him" she was referring to was Lin Hao. It seemed that she had never forgotten him since their divorce. Perhaps Wenwen was an invisible thread connecting them, and maybe one day they would be bound together again by this thread, and there would be no place for me in it. Outside the window, sunlight streamed in, but this morning felt utterly dull.

The exhibition went very smoothly, especially the several beautiful women at the booth opposite mine. They must have been hired by some company from a modeling agency to attract attention. Each of them stood gracefully about ten meters away from me, their bodies only symbolically covered by a few shimmering silver sheets covering their vital areas; the rest of their bodies were completely bare. I wished I could turn into thin air and fill in this blank canvas, but reality was so frustrating. I could only stand opposite them, suppressing my nosebleed, and feast my eyes. Just

as I was in the middle of my fantasies, my phone rang again. I angrily pulled it out and saw it was a local Shanghai number.

"Hello?"

Out of politeness, I tried to suppress my anger at her interrupting my enjoyment of the girls, and gave a perfunctory greeting.

"You stinky stone, why are you so fierce?"

Damn! That's my hometown dialect. Who else but Li Mei would call me "stinky stone"?

"Uh...no, no, it's too noisy here. I was afraid you wouldn't hear me. Wait a minute, I'll go outside to talk."

The exhibition was too lively, so I went outside. "What's wrong? Is something the matter? Aren't you working during the day?"

"What? I can only call you if something's wrong?"

she retorted. That sounded familiar.

"Hehe, no, no, I thought something important happened. So, where are you now?"

I suddenly realized that girls these days seem quite assertive, while men seem rather weak.

"Me? I'm at home. Do you have time now? How about we go out for lunch?"

She seemed very excited about lunch, her voice suddenly rising twice as high. I quickly held my phone far away, not daring to bring it too close to my ear.

"Lunch? Probably not now, I'm still at work."

There's a restaurant on the second floor of the exhibition hall, and besides, there's no time to rest at noon.

"How about tonight?"

She seemed determined to see what would happen.

"Hmm... tonight, that should be okay."

"Ah? Great! What time are you free tonight? I'll pick you up..."

I could hear her jumping up and down on the other end of the phone. Surely it couldn't be that bad? I'm not a national leader.

"Around 5:30, you'll pick me up? Okay, I'm at the International Convention Center, call me when you get there."

"Okay, it's settled then. I'm going out to buy something, call me when I get there." She hung up before I could even say "bye-bye," sigh...annoying.

On the way from the entrance to the exhibition hall, I kept thinking about how to explain going out to dinner to Xiaoli. Should I just tell her that my elementary school classmate invited me last night? No, she'd definitely suspect we had some kind of connection, and might even resent me and ignore me. If she doesn't care, it means she doesn't care about me, and I don't want to see that happen. (Hehe~ a bit self-deceptive.) But if I don't say that, what excuse should I come up with? Go shopping in Shanghai at night? Damn! That's a huge joke. I'm a grown man, what am I supposed to do in Shanghai? Besides inhaling more car exhaust, I can't find any other good reason to go shopping... So what should I say?

Back at the booth, Xiao Li was chatting with some clients in the break room. Seeing me return through the glass window, she got up to say goodbye to them and then walked towards me. I decided! I'd just tell her the reason. Before I could speak, she spoke first.

"Xiao Shi, where did you go? I couldn't find you anywhere, and I couldn't get through to you on the phone?"

she asked. Ugh, is that a bit much? I'm not a three-year-old, do you think I'd get lost? But I knew she was genuinely concerned, so I couldn't blame her for being too nosy.

"I... I just went to the restroom. My phone was busy, so it was busy. What's wrong, Manager? Is it urgent?"

I lied.

"Yes, something's up," she turned and pointed to several clients in the break room. "I'm going out to dinner with them tonight, it might be late. After the exhibition ends this afternoon, take a taxi home by yourself. And remember to find a place to eat, okay?"

"Ah? Oh, I understand. Then come back early tonight."

I pretended to be disappointed, but inwardly I was overjoyed. This way, I wouldn't have to make an excuse to go to Li Mei's appointment.

Xiao Li saw that I looked unhappy and thought it was because I couldn't be with her. So she smiled at me, then looked around to make sure no one was watching, and whispered to me, "Hehe, don't be like that. You're supposed to stay calm even if Mount Tai collapses in front of you, right? It's just dinner, I'll be back soon. Don't go to bed too early tonight, I have something to tell you."

"Okay, I remember."

I nodded vigorously. Her expression clearly showed that she cared about my feelings. This stirred a surge of excitement within me. It turned out she wasn't just using me to fill a void; she genuinely loved and cared for me…

The exhibition ended a little earlier than expected; it was only 5:15, and most people had already left. Xiao Li, along with Zhang Yang and several clients, got into the company car and left. I packed my things and walked out of the exhibition hall. My phone rang right on time.

“Mei Zi, I’m out! Where are you?”

I walked to the parking lot, looking around, but couldn’t find her.

“Haha, where are your eyes? I’m right in front of you!”

She giggled, making me dizzy. Her voice was so beautiful, so different from when I was a child!

“In front of me? Huh?”

Good heavens! A supercar—a Mercedes SLK—was parked in front of me. The setting sun slanted across the silver car, blinding me. The enormous Mercedes logo on the hood seemed to suck me in. I looked closely and saw Li Mei sitting in the car, smiling and talking on the phone, staring at me in front of the car.

Opening the car door, I still couldn't quite believe I was actually sitting in the car I'd always dreamed of. Li Mei was still much the same as when I'd seen her last night—so beautiful. She backed the car out and drove onto the ring road. I didn't know where she was taking me, so I turned around and asked a question I'd been pondering all night: "Meizi, what do you do for a living now?"

She gripped the steering wheel, and after a moment's thought,

she replied, "Me? Hehe, I work for a foreign trade company." "Oh," I nodded with relief. It seemed my guess last night was unfounded; I shouldn't have blindly trusted others. But the next second, a question popped into my head: "Meizi, is this your car?"

"Yes, what do you think? Isn't it beautiful?"

She smiled, nodded, glanced at me, and then turned back to the road.

"If I remember correctly, this car costs over 700,000 RMB in China. Do you earn that much working for a foreign trade company?"

As soon as the words left my mouth, I regretted them. The question was too pointed; asking it meant I no longer trusted her.

Sure enough, her face turned ashen instantly. She didn't answer immediately, then said, "Let's not talk about this, okay? It's been so many years, how have you been?"

"Heh, me? I'm fine. But what about you? You used to have such good grades, but I heard you dropped out after junior high. Why?"

I chuckled awkwardly. Luckily, she didn't react too strongly to my question, otherwise it would have been difficult to handle. After all, we hadn't seen each other for so many years, and to make things difficult for a girl like this upon meeting again was hardly manly. Besides, she's not anyone to me, so why should I care so much about her private life? At least she's richer than me, isn't she?

"Why? Heh, my family's poor, otherwise who would want to? Sigh..."

As she answered my question, we arrived at a restaurant in the city center. Judging from the ambiance, this Western restaurant couldn't be very mainstream. Looking at the menu, the cheapest set meal was 200 yuan! Damn! Looks like I'm going to have to spend a fortune tonight...

Chapter 13 of Volume 1: My Heart is as Vague as Fog

The restaurant was on the second floor, and the seats Li Mei and I chose were right next to the floor-to-ceiling windows. Looking down, we could see the bustling streets, the traffic flowing by, and couples dressed in their finery glimpsed under the streetlights. I thought to myself, this is one of China's most developed cities, yet I can't bring myself to like it. It used to deter me; my ex-girlfriend ran off here with another man, and I was completely unaware until the day before she left. Now, there's another reason to be weary of this concrete jungle: Xiao Li's ex-husband is also in this city!

"What would you like to eat?"

Li Mei's clear voice snapped me out of my reverie. I had been holding the menu, my eyes fixed on the outside… Turning back, I carefully examined the menu.

I often go to Western restaurants, so I'm not bothered by them; this is thanks to my adaptability. My upbringing has instilled in me a knack for adapting to any environment; I can adjust quickly and almost never experience any aversion. I was reminded of a while ago when I took a client to a Western restaurant. It was lunchtime, and we were short on time because I had another appointment in the afternoon. So I chose the nearest Western restaurant, which was considered mid-to-high-end, but not as good as this place. I thought he would like it, but after we sat down, his eyes kept wandering over the menu, and he kept complaining that it was a fast food restaurant! I almost fainted. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Later, I found out he was from Hunan, so I had to take him to eat Hunan cuisine. As everyone knows, one of the characteristics of Hunan cuisine is spiciness! Speaking of which, I'm from Hunan myself, so this isn't a big deal for me. But I forgot I've been away from home for four years, and I rarely eat spicy food here. That meal made my stomach upset for a week; I went to the toilet five times a day, and my intestines were practically turning green…

After we ordered our food, Li Mei asked me, “Shi Tou, I really didn't expect to run into you in Shanghai! I'm so happy. What do you do for work now? Are you doing well? Are you married?”

I chuckled and said, “Please! Are you interrogating me? Asking so many questions at once? I have to answer them one by one, right? Haha.”

I took a sip of water and continued, “Right now, I work in sales for a company, but the company isn't in Shanghai. I'm here on a business trip, only for a few days. As for whether I'm doing well or not? I think there's no specific standard, or rather, whether it's good or bad depends on one's own mindset. Contentment brings happiness, doesn't it? Hehe~ As for marriage, I'm still young, I haven't thought about that yet. What about you? Tell me about yourself?”

Actually, in my mind, the question she hadn't answered was still lingering, which was exactly what Xiao Li had brought up last night.

"Oh? So you're doing pretty well? You're still so deep, haha... I remember back in school you didn't like to talk, always had a stern face, like someone owed you something. But I thought you were a really nice person, maybe you just have too many worries. Don't always act like a little old man."

She stopped, picked up her water glass to her lips, and didn't speak or drink...

"Haha..."

I realized that when she brought up the past, I no longer felt that inferiority complex I used to have. Perhaps years of social experience have taught me that facing reality is the best way to adjust. "You're still talking about the past? If you hadn't let me copy your math homework back then, I wouldn't have failed math on the graduation exam, and I wouldn't have had to repeat a year!"

"Hey!"

She put the water glass back on the table and gently patted the back of my hand. "Don't be the one to accuse me first. You were the one who wanted to copy it, so why are you blaming me? Hehe... It's funny to think about. Remember where I went wrong, and where you went wrong too? The teacher could tell right away that you copied me, haha..."

I scratched the back of my head sheepishly. "Yeah~ I corrected it later, you know. I guess I got a couple more questions wrong, haha, but I didn't expect him to stop investigating."

After a moment, I asked, "By the way, I repeated a grade. I heard you left after one semester in junior high. Why? Your grades were so good. Why didn't you continue?"

Li Mei was silent for a moment, then sighed softly. "Sigh... Stone, didn't I just tell you? It's because my family was poor. Actually..." I know your family wasn't well-off either. I also know that the man chopping wood behind the kitchen every day was your father, and you would run there as soon as school was over. But you didn't notice that I actually followed you several times, but I didn't show myself. I was afraid of hurting your confidence..."

I gave a bitter laugh. "Hehe, thank you..."

She waved her hand and continued, "And you don't know, my family's situation was actually worse than yours. I have a younger brother and a younger sister, and my father couldn't even chop wood. He was sickly all year round. After one semester of junior high, they wouldn't let me continue my studies. They even said they would find me a husband and marry me off..."

Li Mei's tone grew heavier and heavier, making my heart inexplicably heavy as well.

"But you know, I was only 15 years old then. How could I be willing to get married like that? So during the summer vacation, I came here with a girl from the same village who was working in Shanghai. And then, that's how it is..."

Li Mei said, twisting her fingers tightly. I knew she was trying to calm her unease.

Suddenly, she looked up. The restaurant lights were dim, but I still noticed her eyes were bloodshot. I picked up a tissue from the table, unfolded it, and handed it to her. She took it, gave me a grateful look, and continued,

"Shitou, what about you? Did you...go to university?"

In the countryside, university is everyone's dream, and I was no exception. But to her question, I could only manage a bitter smile.

"Heh...university? Bullshit university! I wanted to go to her, but she wouldn't let me, she accused me of rape. Haha~" I laughed self-deprecatingly. Actually, besides my family's financial situation not allowing it, the most important reason I didn't go to university was that I simply had no interest in studying. Perhaps I was just not cut out for studying; I'm just a country bumpkin, only fit to work on earth.

"Giggle..."

She laughed at my words, and I felt much better. Seeing a beautiful woman smile is a pleasing thing, and I enjoyed the warmth that filled the air at that moment. My eyes involuntarily fixed on Li Mei. Nearly ten years had passed, and she had changed drastically. I could only find a few traces of her former self on her face. The waiter had already brought our food, but I was completely oblivious, still staring at her. Big eyes, a pointed chin, a face that was fair and rosy even without makeup—a face that could make any normal man's blood boil.

She seemed to notice me looking at her, lowered her head, and put her hands under the table, doing something. After a long while, she blushed and said to me, "What are you looking at? Eat."

"Hey, Meizi, you've changed so much over the years! You've really blossomed into a beautiful young woman. I never imagined that the little blonde girl with two braids could grow up to be so pretty."

Damn! I seriously despise myself; I'm incorrigible, I can't resist trying to seduce any pretty woman I see.

Her face flushed even more, but she retorted defiantly, "Really? Haha, even if she's pretty, you don't need

to stare for so long, do you? Wait a minute..." I was just picking up my knife and fork to tackle the pork chop on my plate when she stopped, so I replied, "Wait a minute what? Don't think I'm some kind of lecherous rogue, I was just using a famous quote from Mr. Guo Moruo."

"What quote?"

Women are naturally more curious than men.

"Mr. Guo said that once you see a beautiful woman, you must look at her a few more times to commemorate it! Because beautiful things aren't always available."

I'd remembered that quote for a long time, but never knew how to use it, yet I'd said it today.

She listened, smiled, and looked at me with a questioning expression. "Hmm? Really? Did he say something like that? I don't know? You didn't make up that quote, did you? Haha." "Uh..."

Actually, I knew that not many people knew that quote, so I was too lazy to explain. "Just pretend I made it up. Anyway, that's what I think. Okay, enough talk, let's eat. It won't taste good if it gets cold."

After saying that, I threw a piece of pie into my mouth. The taste was similar to other restaurants, nothing special. But when eating in a place like this, the most important thing is the environment, the taste is secondary. Elegant style, comfortable atmosphere, listening to beautiful piano music, enjoying distinguished service, and having a beautiful woman by your side, is it worth it? It's a matter of opinion. "

Don't talk while eating, don't talk while sleeping." This has always been my principle, so we didn't talk much while eating. Occasionally she would ask a question, and I would answer. After we finished eating, while she went to the restroom, I paid the bill. Although she repeatedly said it was her treat, I couldn't bring myself to let a woman pay for a meal. Was that just male chauvinism? Whatever, having principles is a principle! Seeing her come out of the restroom, I stood up. "Let's go."

"Go? You haven't paid yet?"

Seeing my smile, her phoenix eyes widened. "Don't tell me you paid! I'll be angry. It was agreed that I'd treat you, how can you do this?"

"Oh, Miss. Forget it. I can afford to treat you to a meal, haha. Remember you owe me a meal, I'll come back to pay you next time, okay?"

Next time? Who knows if there will be a next time? I was just brushing her off.

"Okay, then remember, if you don't come next time, I'll come looking for you, haha. Let's go." After saying that, she picked up her handbag from the sofa and then did something that sent chills down my spine. She! She! She actually took my arm and snuggled up to me. To everyone else, we looked like a married couple. I could almost hear the hairs on my skin shouting "Attention!" Sweat instantly poured from my pores, soaking my back. Ugh, what kind of drama is this? Is it "The Butterfly Lovers" or "The Twin Swallows"? I stiffened my posture, staring straight ahead. I didn't dare to pay attention to her soft body leaning against me, and she led me to the parking lot.

"Stone, which hotel are you staying at? Can I come over and see?"

She asked, her voice incredibly tempting, as we sat in the SLK. I swear, those words shattered all my defenses in an instant. Ask yourself, if a beautiful woman asks to go to your hotel, would you refuse? I don't consider myself a saint, nor a boor, so what reason would I have to refuse? But immediately, I felt this was inappropriate. First, we were classmates, elementary school classmates I hadn't seen for ten years. Even on a higher level, we were at most friends and fellow townsmen. Secondly, I know absolutely nothing about her, especially what Xiaoli said last night, which hasn't been verified yet, leaving me with a slight lingering unease. Should I take her? Putting aside the possibility of her having ulterior motives, I don't care, because I'm penniless; all my possessions combined wouldn't even buy one wheel of her Mercedes. I'm just worried that with my current level of immunity, I might do something monstrous in front of such a beautiful woman.

"What? You don't welcome me? Or is there some reason?"

Seeing my hesitation, she pressed on.

"I…actually, I…I…"

I stammered for a long time, unable to find a sufficient excuse, so I simply blurted out, "I'm staying at the xx Hotel, do you know how to get there?"

"Of course, of course I know. Okay, buckle your seatbelt, let's go."

With that, the 275-horsepower SLK roared onto the road.

This damn weather! It was fine this afternoon, but now it's raining again. Perhaps because of the rain, even though it's not yet 8 pm, there aren't many cars on the road. Sitting in this two-seater luxury sports car, my thoughts suddenly became as hazy as the rain and mist outside the window. I opened my eyes wide, trying to see through the rain and mist to see clearly ahead, but it was all in vain. The road ahead remained foggy, just like my heart—I couldn't see anything clearly, it was blank, yet chaotic…

Chapter 14 of Volume 1: You Are a Gift from Heaven

The car glided slowly along the road, a melodious saxophone piece, "Going Home," playing from the CD player. I hadn't expected her to like this piece too. I had heard it many times in coffee shops before, but I never knew its name. Later, an online friend recommended it to me, and from then on, I became madly infatuated with this gentle and affectionate melody.

The rain grew heavier and heavier; as we approached the hotel, it was practically pouring down from the sky. The hotel parking lot was a distance from the entrance. She said she'd drive to the entrance so I could get out first and then park, but I wouldn't let her. I told her to park in the parking lot, then took off my shirt and tossed it to her (don't think I was naked at this point, I was wearing a vest underneath). However, the shirt seemed quite different from the umbrella. Entering the hotel lobby, we both looked like we'd just been pulled out of the water, our clothes neither quite clothes nor pants. Especially her, her white t-shirt clung tightly to her body, her pink bra faintly visible underneath. My face flushed, and I quickly turned away, leading her towards the elevator. Luckily, she didn't notice my odd behavior, or I would have been incredibly embarrassed.

"Hmm? Stone, this place is pretty nice, you seem to be enjoying yourself."

I opened the door, stomped the raindrops off my clothes, and led her into the room. As soon as we entered, she exclaimed. After walking around the room, she said, "I'm going to take a shower first."

"Ah!"

Did she have to be so direct? She went straight to the point as soon as we walked in? Anyone with common sense would know that taking a shower is a prelude to sex, but I wasn't prepared at all. How could she be so casual? Has she been doing this all these years? Sigh… I couldn't help but feel angry and annoyed. "Isn't that a bit much? We're classmates after all!"

Hearing this, she stopped walking towards the bathroom, walked up to me, and looked at me with a face full of question marks. "What? What do you mean 'classmates after all'... I don't understand. I'm soaking wet. I need a hot shower, or I'll get sick..."

Suddenly she burst out laughing twice. "Stone, you're not thinking dirty thoughts, are you? Haha! Did you think I said 'shower' and then... you know...? Haha, you're dreaming... You're such a pervert!"

Ugh! How could I not have thought that my clothes were all wet, and yet I said something like that? How embarrassing! I wished a hole would suddenly appear in the floor so I could crawl into it. My face flushed crimson to my ears in an instant. "I...I...I..."

I stammered for a long time, but this time I couldn't get it right. I could only laugh awkwardly. "I misspoke, sorry. Go take a shower, and throw your clothes out later. I have a hairdryer here, I'll help you dry them."

Li Mei seemed quite pleased with my anxious look, and pouted, "Hehe, no need, I brought another set of clothes with me."

She turned and went into the bathroom. I suddenly felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, like a thousand-pound burden had been lifted. I gave myself a bitter smile in the mirror and slumped onto the sofa behind me. My clothes felt sticky and uncomfortable.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom. I suddenly realized it was almost ten o'clock. I wondered if Xiao Li was back yet. She hadn't sent me a message or called me all night. Was she drunk? That seemed unlikely. She was very moderate with her drinks; she would never drink too much. But it was so late; even if she had eaten two meals, she should have finished by now, right? Could it be…? A terrible thought arose in my mind… I dared not continue thinking about it, afraid of creating another misunderstanding, and unwilling to let any distance grow between us. But the more I dared not think about it, the more I felt that Xiaoli held a heavier and heavier place in my heart. I almost devoted my entire heart to her; she was occupying every inch of my inner space. I had already lost her once; I couldn't bear the pain of losing another beloved. Actually, I had been thinking about her problems since then, and finally I told myself that I wanted to be with her. I didn't care that she was ten years older than me, or that she had a child. I loved her, and in the face of love, these were not problems.

Just then, the bathroom door opened, and Li Mei walked out wrapped in a bath towel. The snow-white towel contrasted with her skin, which had turned pink from being soaked in hot water. Her breasts pushed the towel high, stretching her two round shadows straight out... What a beautiful rose emerging from the water! (The Chinese characters for "lotus" have been defiled by some people, so I had to change it to "rose.") I was stunned, and before I knew it, drool was dripping from the corner of my mouth again...

"Hehe..."

She glanced at me and suddenly started giggling. "Stone, I didn't expect you to be so lewd. Look at your drool, it's flowing so long, haha." She ran to the bedside and laughed as she fell onto the bed...

Huh? I was startled and hurriedly wiped the corner of my mouth with my hand. Sure enough, it was wet. I laughed awkwardly. "Hehe... Men are all the same. Haven't you heard the saying?"

In order to save face a little, I decided to deliberately keep her in suspense.

She was indeed intrigued. "What did you hear? Not another one of your famous quotes, is it?"

I chuckled, stood up from the sofa, and prepared to take off my soaking wet clothes. "Hehe, no, it's someone else's quote, or rather, it's a quote from all men. It goes something like this: 'A man who isn't a rogue isn't normal.'" She didn't laugh, but looked at me in alarm. "What are you doing? Why are you taking your clothes off?"

I threw my vest back onto the sofa, shirtless, and asked suspiciously, "Taking a shower, why?"

She sat on the edge of the bed, patting her chest. "Oh, you scared me to death! I thought you were going to put that quote into practice. Go ahead and shower, I'm watching TV."

Without looking at me, she picked up the remote and started pressing buttons randomly.

I felt inexplicably dizzy. She was the one who dressed so revealingly first, so why was she now afraid I was being a rogue? I was about to take off my pants too, but then I thought of something else: "Didn't you say you brought clothes? Why aren't you wearing them? Where are your wet clothes? It's late now."

The implication was that I wanted her to go home. Honestly, I didn't really expect anything to happen between us.

Shifting my gaze from the TV, she replied dejectedly, "I... I checked my bag, and it turns out I didn't bring any clothes at all. But all my clothes are wet. I washed them and hung them up; they should be dry by tomorrow morning. Can I sleep here tonight?"

Damn! Why is she acting like this all of a sudden? I sighed, remembering there might be a blanket in the closet. I went over, and there it was. I took the blanket out and tossed it on the sofa. "Okay, then you sleep on the bed, I'll sleep on the sofa."

While I was showering, I heard a loud rumbling sound outside, like thunder.

After showering, she covered herself with the blanket and curled up at the head of the bed watching TV. I went to the sofa, picked up my phone, and saw no messages or missed calls. Sigh... Why isn't Xiaoli back yet? But what if she comes back looking for me? How should I tell her? Should I tell her that this is my elementary school classmate whom I met last night, and that she got caught in the rain and is spending the night here? Damn, wouldn't that be suicide? I was tormented by this dilemma and didn't know what to do. Oh well, she's my flesh and blood, I can't offend either of them, I'll just let things take their course. What's meant to happen will happen.

"Meizi, go to sleep early, it's getting late," I said, turning off the TV and sitting down on the long sofa by the bed. Li Mei obediently turned off all the lights, plunging the room into darkness, with only occasional flashes of lightning outside illuminating the room and accompanied by faint rumbles of thunder.

I'd been wandering around the exhibition hall so much today, my bones were aching, and as soon as I lay down, my thoughts started to drift away.

"Stone," it seemed, was calling me. I didn't answer. After a few seconds, she raised her voice, "Stone, are you asleep? The thunder is so loud outside. It's so dark."

I was fast asleep and didn't pay much attention. I mumbled, "Thunder, it's a natural phenomenon. If you're afraid of the dark, sleep with the light on."

"No, I can't sleep with the light on. It's raining so hard outside! Listen, it's thundering again..."

Her words faded more and more indistinctly in my ears, and my mind became increasingly foggy. I drifted off to sleep...

I didn't see the Duke of Zhou (a figure in Chinese mythology associated with dreams), but Xiao Li entered my dream. We were chasing each other across a vast grassland, her in front and me behind. The grassland looked so familiar; I remembered seeing it somewhere before. Suddenly, I remembered that time in a dream too, when I was riding a horse. So dreams can be like a TV series? I laughed happily, finally catching up with Xiaoli. I hugged her tightly, rolling onto the grass. Our breathing grew heavier, our lips drew closer, and in an instant, passion ignited, our bodies intertwined… Why was her body so hot? She was clearly wearing clothes, so why was her back so smooth to the touch?

I woke up. It wasn't a dream. I really was holding a woman in my arms. I looked around; the light was dim, but I was certain I was in my hotel room. And the woman in my arms? Oh my god! It was Li Mei. She was staring wide-eyed, her cheeks flushed, a smile on her face. I jumped in fright. Had I accidentally climbed into bed while I was asleep? Damn it! But when I turned around, I was still on the sofa. So it must be her? I frantically withdrew my hand from her hot, smooth back…

“What’s wrong? Shitou, is it not okay? You… don’t like me?”

she sighed softly, her breath sweet as orchids. The sofa was small, and the blanket had long since fallen onto the carpet. At this moment, her entire body was pressed against mine. I was shirtless, and her towel was half-undone, revealing her entire back. Luckily, she still had a towel, otherwise we would have been completely naked.

"No… Meizi, you…you get up first, okay?"

I was getting anxious. A thin towel wasn't enough to stop me from feeling her curvaceous body. If this continued, I was about to get an erection.

She showed no sign of getting up. "No, I won't get up. Answer me first, are you disgusted with me?"

She suddenly let go of her hands that had been supporting her on the sofa and hugged me tightly, making me feel even more uncomfortable. She continued, "I know you suspect me. Actually, I saw you coming out of the bar in the rearview mirror last night. And you must have seen me get into that car last night, Stone. I don't want to hide it from you. Actually, I'm not at any foreign trade company. I... I've been someone's mistress for three years."

"Ah?"

Even though these words came from her own mouth, I still stared at her, so close to me, in disbelief. I didn't know how to describe my feelings at that moment; I just felt a tightness in my chest, and wanted to find something to smash down.

"Surprised? Shi Tou, you shouldn't be surprised. You know I didn't even finish junior high school, I'm practically uneducated. After leaving home that year, I started working in a shoe factory with that girl from our village. At first, things were okay. But after six months, our section chief kept asking me out to dinner, and he'd even tried to grope me on the way. He'd also said many times that he wanted to take me to see his newly bought house. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore and left. After that, I got a job in an electronics factory through a fellow villager's introduction. But for some reason, every factory I went to had people like that, constantly harassing me. I kept changing jobs like this, and several years have passed, but I haven't saved a single penny. My family keeps calling to ask me for money. I know they have no choice; my younger siblings are still in school."

My face was wet with tears; she was crying. Perhaps when people reminisce about the past, they can only use tears to express the bitterness of life. I didn't say anything. I believed everything she said, but I didn't know how to comfort her. So I raised my hand and wiped her eyes. She took my hand, kissed it, and continued talking.

"After leaving a toy factory, I realized I had nowhere else to go. I gradually understood why I was constantly being harassed—because of my striking appearance. I decided to use my most basic asset to save money for my younger siblings' college entrance exams. Three years ago, I successfully landed a job as a hostess at a nightclub. The man who's now supporting me is my first client. You probably saw his car last night; he works for the government. He's been very good to me and has given me a lot over the years. My brother has already graduated from university, and my sister is a junior. I'm very grateful to him. Without him, my siblings might have ended up like me, so I obey him without question and never say no. But…"

She softened slightly when she mentioned her siblings, stopping her sobs. Then she continued.

"Stone, do you understand? All these years, I've been on guard against these people, never even having a chance to fall in love. I'm so tired. Actually, the person who left the deepest impression on me is you. Believe it or not, I actually fell for you a little when you stopped those bad boys from teasing me at school. Maybe I was too young then, and didn't understand what liking or loving meant. But when I saw you last night, my heart almost flew out of my chest. I really didn't expect to see you again. You know? Just now, when you were taking off your clothes, I so hoped you would rush towards me. But you didn't. You silly thing, it made me both happy and disappointed. Stone, you are truly a gift from heaven. I actually came to see you tonight on purpose. I wanted you just once, just once is enough. My life already has too many regrets, I don't want to miss out on having you again, even if it's just for one night. Stone, will you... will you despise me?"

After hearing this, I was stunned. Her story seemed like something I only saw on TV, but now it was happening right next to me. What should I do? Reject? Or accept?

Before I could make a decision, her small mouth slammed down heavily in the darkness… (02-06
Volume 1, Chapter 15: My Girlfriend is a Mistress)

My lips burned, and in my violent trembling, an overwhelming sense of guilt welled up inside me. I couldn't help but ask myself: What am I doing? Logically, Li Mei must be feeling extremely empty right now, and suddenly encountering me in a foreign land—a boy who had left a deep impression on her in her youth—has given her a reliable outlet for her pent-up emotions. But what about me? Am I really so despicable as to take advantage of someone in danger? Don't I consider myself a high-level, high-quality man? The person I love is Xiao Li, not this classmate I haven't had contact with for ten years, now someone else's plaything, right?

But it was all in vain; it was too late. My rapidly swelling lower body told me that rejecting a hot, beautiful woman was almost harder than defeating imperialism. In a flash, Li Mei and I completed the most primal act of sexual union on the sofa. After showering, I sat blankly on the edge of the bed, lit a cigarette, and burned a hole in the "No Smoking" sign.

"Shitou?"

Li Mei called softly from beside me. My mind was a jumbled mess. It turned out that the guilt in my heart could never overcome the physical urges of my senses; I had actually done something so guilty towards Xiaoli. Admittedly, after all these years of growing up, my attitude towards sex was quite open. Frankly, it was just physical contact, like a man and woman holding hands—nothing serious. But now, I had Xiaoli. Although there might be many uncertainties and barriers between us, or perhaps I didn't treat her the way she treated me, knowing even the color of my underwear, I had still completely invested my feelings for her. How could I accept that my body had betrayed Xiaoli and my own heart?

After a long pause, I finally responded with a "Hmm?"

She climbed onto my neck, took my cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled a pale blue smoke ring. Her eyes brightened as she looked at me, then dimmed again. "Stone, if only I... hadn't ended up like this, I would definitely want you to be my boyfriend."

I knew what she wanted to say, and could only offer a bitter smile as a consolation. "Hehe... Plum, everyone is born with their own path. Actually, experiencing more isn't necessarily a bad thing. With our background, it's not that I look down on ourselves, but to have gotten to where we are today is already quite an achievement. At least we're not begging on the streets. As for you... well... hehe." I paused, stubbed out the cigarette, and with a slight flick of my thumb and forefinger, the cigarette butt flew towards the trash can under the opposite table. The arc was beautiful, swirling a few times, but it missed, bouncing a few times on the table before falling to the floor with a soft thud. Li Mei was listening intently when I interrupted her. She sat up abruptly, shaking my arm vigorously. "What about me? Tell me, tell me!"

"Okay, okay~ I'll tell you, I'll tell you, stop shaking me!"

I reached behind her, letting her lean against my arm, and continued, "Actually, based on your experiences, you could write a novel. If you add some tragic love elements, it's guaranteed to be a good script." "

Really?"

"Of course, hehe." The atmosphere was a bit heavy, so I decided to tease her. "When I have time, I'll use you as a model and write a novel called 'My Girlfriend is a Mistress,' haha." "Ugh~ such a tacky title, who would read your novel? But speaking of which, your essays back then were really good."

Li Mei pouted, unconvinced.

"Meizi, you don't understand. People these days love this kind of stuff. As long as the title is catchy enough, more people will naturally watch. And I can fabricate some parts, make it a bit convoluted, and if it's made into a movie, you'll be famous! Hehe."

Actually, I was just making this up; even I didn't believe such a huge windfall would fall from the sky. "Really? Haha, then you'll be famous too?" I

'm speechless. She actually believed it. Has she been watching too much of Qiong Yao's stuff?

I chuckled and playfully flicked her nose. "Hehe, of course it's not true, just kidding. Diamonds and pies don't just fall from the sky. But seriously, Meizi..."

I straightened my expression. "Have you thought about the future? Things are fine for now, but you can't keep going like this, understand?"

Her smile froze on her face. After a long pause, she waved her hand and lay down on the bed, still clinging tightly to me. "Shitou, I... I don't know how far this can go. I..."

"Why don't you come back to the South with me?" As soon as

I said it, I regretted it. Take her back? What could I give her? Could I give her a good job? But I'm not even satisfied with my current situation, how could I give her a good job? Besides, even if I found her a job, could she, accustomed to a life of luxury, work diligently?

"Okay, okay, Shitou, I'll go back with you. You help me find a job, and we'll live together, okay?"

My words seemed to have truly ignited a spark of hope in her heart; I could see the glimmer in her eyes in the darkness.

"..."

I was speechless. I just wanted to slap myself. How could I speak without considering the consequences? Forget about the job; if I took her back, I wouldn't even get past Xiaoli first.

A moment of silence followed. After a pause, Li Mei said softly, "Hehe... I know you're joking, Shitou. Actually, I was joking too. My sister is still in school. I said I'd let her finish university without any worries. My dad's health is getting worse; they even called last night urging me to go back. I plan to go back for the Spring Festival. Besides, that person is very good to me; I won't just leave without a word."

Her words seemed to be comforting me, yet also self-comforting. A sour taste rose in my mouth.

I don't know when, but I fell asleep. In my hazy state, I could feel her turning over. The rain outside the window was still dripping down. In my dream, I was also being rained on.

When I woke up at eight o'clock at dawn, she was still asleep. Seeing her pouting lips in her sleep was truly adorable, and I couldn't resist gently pinching her little mouth. She whimpered and turned over, but didn't wake up. I simply let her sleep, put on my coat, and quickly took a taxi to the exhibition hall. There, Xiao Li was chatting happily with a client. Last night… she really didn't come back…

I put my briefcase in the storage room, came out, and sat on a chair in the lounge. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Xiao Li; she seemed to be looking at me too. I lowered my head and focused on drinking my milk. But I still couldn't stop glancing at her. I saw her leave the client and walk towards me with the clatter of her high heels…

“Xiao Shi, did you sleep well last night? Hey? What happened to your neck?”

She smiled brightly, unaware that I was seething with anger. Last night she clearly said she would come to my place, but in the end, she didn't come back all night.

"Great, thank you, Manager!"

I deliberately emphasized the word "Manager" to express my dissatisfaction with her not coming home all night, then added, "Neck? Oh, it's nothing, I accidentally cut myself while shaving this morning."

I had a band-aid on my neck near my shoulder, but there was no wound underneath. When I showered this morning, I noticed a small red patch in the mirror. Thinking about it carefully, I realized it must have been from Li Mei sucking my nipples during sex last night. It didn't hurt, but the redness looked rather unsightly. Anyone with experience would probably know where it came from at a glance, so after leaving the hotel, I bought a band-aid at a convenience store and deliberately pulled my shirt collar up high to cover it. But Xiao Li still noticed. To avoid trouble, I had to lie. Humans are just like that; on one hand, they want multiple wives and concubines, and on the other hand, they want to be everyone's only one. Simply put, they can be virtuous themselves, but they won't allow others to be prostitutes.

Xiao Li immediately looked worried and asked with concern, "How could you be so careless? Is the wound deep? Does it hurt? If the wound is deep, you should go to the hospital to get it checked out. Honestly, you're such a grown-up, and you can't even take care of yourself."

As she spoke, she reached out to touch my "wound," but I stopped her hand. I gestured to her with my lips, indicating that there were so many people around. She understood and quickly withdrew her hand as well. I felt a little guilty. She had reached out her hand, showing that she was still worried about me, but I...

"Hehe, it's nothing, just a small wound, it'll be fine in a couple of days," I said cheerfully, then smiled with relief. "Sister Li, you... didn't come back last night?"

"I was just about to tell you. Last night, they (the clients) were drinking until after 3 a.m., and I didn't get back until 4 a.m. I thought it was so late, so I didn't want to bother you." It seemed my guess was unnecessary; Xiao Li hadn't done what I had imagined.

"Why didn't you send me a message? I was so worried!"

"Oh, my phone died. Look, it's still charging there." She pointed to the socket, and sure enough, her pink V3 was lying there obediently. I sighed with relief.

The weight lifted from my shoulders, and my gloom vanished. Suddenly, the air in the bustling exhibition hall felt incredibly fresh. Even the chairman's chubby belly looked adorable, bobbing up and down like a clumsy penguin waddling in the snow.

Beautiful moments always fly by, like an F1 race car; before you can even see the car clearly, it's already roared off into the distance. The exhibition ended, and since we weren't in charge of the Shanghai side, we didn't need to worry about dismantling the booth. We left the exhibition hall shortly after 5 PM on the third day. That evening, the chairman treated all the exhibitors, including me. Everyone was happy and cheerful, and we drank quite a bit. After getting out of the car, Xiaoli and I helped each other, stumbling into my room. I slept until 11 a.m. the next day.

"You idiot, get up! We'll miss our flight!"

I was half asleep when someone slapped my bottom a few times, and I heard Xiaoli's familiar voice.

I forced my eyes open and asked, "What time is it?"

Sitting up, I realized I had fallen asleep without even taking off my clothes and shoes, and I guessed Xiaoli had done the same. Hehe. "It's 11 o'clock. Get up and take a shower,"

she said, packing her luggage. It seemed she had been up for quite a while.

"11 o'clock? Our flight is at 2:55. We have plenty of time,"

I said dismissively.

"You idiot, it takes almost two hours to get to the airport from here, even without traffic. Hurry up, I'm not waiting for you!"

She turned around, glared at me, and pretended to be angry.

"Oh, very soon, very soon, hehe." Actually, I knew she was faking it, but thinking about it this way, there really wasn't enough time.

Luckily, the taxi driver was quite skilled. I guessed he must have watched last year's F1 Shanghai Grand Prix and learned a trick or two from Schumacher. The car was like a tiger just released from its cage, speeding all the way, even starting in third gear at traffic lights—unbelievable! Did he really think he was Schumacher? But the problem was, his car wasn't a Ferrari at all, it was a Santana 3000! At 2 PM, we arrived at Pudong Airport on time.

Walking into the waiting hall, we both breathed a sigh of relief; we still had enough time. Sitting quietly in the waiting room, I suddenly felt like I hadn't finished something, but I couldn't remember what it was. Then the urge to urinate hit me, and after relieving myself in the restroom, it suddenly occurred to me that I should at least say "goodbye" to Li Mei!

I didn't dare go outside; I took out my phone in the restroom and dialed Li Mei's number. After a few rings, a deep baritone voice came from

the other end , "Who are you looking for?"

"Hello, I'm looking for Li Mei," the man's voice exuded an air of dominance and officialdom. I immediately concluded that he was the "person" Li Mei had mentioned. "Who are you?"

the person on the other end asked, sensing a hint of wariness in his tone. Perhaps men naturally become more cautious when facing the same woman.

"Me? I'm her classmate," I replied calmly and honestly.

Hearing that I was her classmate, the other person's tone softened slightly. "She's not here right now. Is there anything I can help you with? I can pass on the message."

"Oh, it's nothing, just a little family matter. Since she's not here, I'll try to contact her later."

I immediately hung up to avoid saying anything inappropriate. Actually, I wasn't lying, because I really am her classmate. But for some reason, I felt a little panicked. Maybe subconsciously, I saw myself as the other woman. I

quickly walked out of the restroom and saw Xiaoli still staring intently at the TV in the waiting area. It was almost time to board. As I sat down on a chair, my phone beeped with a message. I opened it and saw it was from Li Mei: "Shitou, did you just call me? I was taking a shower. Where are you?"

I grimaced and smiled bitterly. Taking a shower? Why would she take a shower in broad daylight? Did they just finish having sex? The thought of Li Mei's pale body being pinned down by someone made me feel a strange pang of jealousy. I texted, "Meizi, you seem to be having a great time? I'm at the airport, about to board. I just wanted to call and say goodbye."

Less than a minute later, she texted again, "Ah! You're leaving? He's been with me these past two days... I couldn't contact you, I'm sorry. He just left."

She seemed even more helpless. I typed a few times and replied, "Oh, it's okay, take care of yourself." After replying, I was about to turn off the phone, but I seemed to be hoping for a reply, so I kept the phone in my hand. Sure enough, she quickly replied again, "Why didn't you tell me you were leaving today? When... when will you come again?"

"Next time? I don't know if there will be a next time, maybe there will be, maybe there won't."

"Shitou..."

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"I miss you. You're gone, and I'll miss you so much. What should I do?"

Her words were like those of a lonely concubine, out of favor and locked away in the palace, revealing endless sorrow. It was a poignant farewell, a painful separation. I pondered for a moment, but couldn't find the words to answer. Suddenly, my phone beeped twice; the battery was dead, and it shut down automatically. Just

as I was about to change the battery and restart it, someone patted my hand. Xiaoli told me it was time to board. I grabbed my phone, hurriedly picked up our luggage, and boarded the plane. With a whoosh, the plane soared into the sky. Xiaoli seemed a little unwell, closing her eyes; I didn't know if she was asleep. I thought back to Li Mei's message, my mind a jumble of emotions. Before coming to Shanghai, what I looked forward to most, and what I feared most, was seeing my ex-girlfriend again. Although I knew the chances of seeing her in such a vast city were slim, deep down, I still couldn't shake off her image. Yet, it seemed as if everything was preordained. From the moment I met Li Mei at the bar, it was destined that I would have a lingering attachment here. I couldn't help but recall a night from early February...

It was a February night, the first month of the lunar calendar, and the air still held the strong atmosphere of the Spring Festival. Many people who made their living from the night market were still busy on both sides of the street. I counted the paving stones on the ground, strolling slowly down the cold street, aimless. Under the dim streetlights, the road ahead seemed endless. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a small stall on my right. A square white cloth, about a meter in size, was spread on the ground. In the center of the cloth was a red Bagua diagram, surrounded by dense calligraphy. Behind the cloth sat an old man. He didn't have the white hair and youthful face of those on television, nor the otherworldly air of mythical figures; he was just an ordinary old man. His purplish face was etched with deep wrinkles by time. His cheekbones were high, his eyes sunken, and his thin body was wrapped in a bulky, dirty black cotton garment. Perhaps it was the darkness of the night that made his white hair stand out so starkly.

This was a fortune-telling stall. The old man behind it immediately reminded me of my parents, toiling in the fields all day. Perhaps out of empathy for their hardships, I slowly moved closer to him.

"Sir, would you like your palm read?"

Forced by the cold, the old man tucked his hands into the sleeves of his other hand. His hoarse voice added to the biting chill of the wind. His Mandarin was quite clear; he was probably from the north.

"Yes," I replied, offering him my hand. He pulled it from his sleeve and grasped mine. The icy coldness immediately sent a shiver down my spine, but I didn't pull my hand away, letting him hold it as he looked at it.

After a moment, the old man moved his lips. "Sir," he said, "judging from your palm, your current situation isn't good. At the very least, you're very unhappy. You feel like you have no one to rely on." He held my hand in front of me, half-clenched, and pointed to the lines on my palm, continuing, "Look, the two main lines on your palm are both broken in the middle. One represents marriage, and the other represents destiny. From a marriage perspective, you're currently single. From a destiny perspective, you came from a poor background and have suffered a lot. You feel life is bleak and joyless, right?"

I was stunned. His words sounded exactly like my own. In fact, in my mind, these charlatans didn't have any real skills; they were just con artists trying to make a living. But why could he so accurately describe my situation? And why did I believe him? Is it true that when people are helpless, they can only rely on fate? Regardless, he was right, and I nodded…

“Sir, your thinking isn’t without reason. After all, you’ve truly suffered. But don’t be discouraged, because these two lines on your hand are constantly changing. Your destiny line is constantly growing. Simply put, sir, you’re the type to achieve success later in life. As long as you persevere, your future will definitely get better day by day.”

Whether from excitement or cold, his hand trembled as he held mine.

“Then… what about this one?”

I asked, pointing to the other so-called “marriage line.”

“This one… sir, please look up, let me take another look at your face.”

He looked at it for a moment. “Sir, your marriage line is a bit difficult to interpret…”

I was puzzled. Would a fortune teller say there’s a destiny they can’t predict? Isn’t that like throwing away their own livelihood? He continued, "Looking at your palm, your marriage line is very short, meaning marriage is very far away. But looking at your face, firstly, your eyes have a 'peach blossom' quality. Your eyes appear to be single eyelids, but when you blink, they become double eyelids—this is called 'hidden double eyelids.' The key point is that at the outer corner of your eyes, your double eyelids are clearly visible. This kind of eye is what people often call 'peach blossom eyes,' even more obvious from the side. Generally speaking, such a person should have a very strong marriage line, but you…"

I was even more puzzled. Aren't peach blossom eyes a term used to describe women? Can men have them too? Just as I was about to ask, he added, "Sir, I really don't understand, I'm sorry. But I can give you some advice: your marriage line clashes with your eyes. If you want marriage, you must be careful when interacting with the opposite sex, otherwise…"

He smiled awkwardly, his face wrinkled like the Loess Plateau washed by rain, revealing deep ravines.

I remained silent for a long time, finally pulling out five yuan and tossing it to him. Just a few days ago, I was about to tell her that I wanted to visit her parents. But she ran off with another man, all the way to Shanghai. Does this mean my marriage is far away? After he took the money, I turned and slowly continued walking. The dim streetlights cast long shadows on the ground.

I hadn't gone far when suddenly there was a commotion behind me. I turned around and saw two uniformed city management officers rolling up the old man's white cloth and the fortune-telling tools on it. The old man was prying at the officers' hands, crying, "Please have mercy... I haven't eaten for days."

I felt a surge of indignation. I had argued with people on the forum before, saying that city management officers made our city more beautiful. Now it seemed these bastards were indeed all like wolves. I turned around and quickened my pace. "Stop!"

I shouted.

Hearing the shouts, Wolf Tiger stopped what he was doing and yelled at me, "You fucking looking for death!"

Although I was furious, I knew there was no point in arguing with these beasts. In their eyes, money was everything. I immediately put on a smiling face and pulled out my wallet. "Brothers, he's my relative. We're all just trying to make a living, it's not easy for anyone. Look how cold it is, I'll buy what you have. You two can go home and rest early, okay?"

While I called them "brothers," in my mind I was cursing their ancestors a hundred times over.

They relaxed for a moment, glanced at each other, and seemed to agree. One of the fat guys said, "You can buy this if you want, but give me a hundred yuan. Also, don't sit here again next time, it's an eyesore. If I see you here again, I'll confiscate it." "

Okay, okay," I said, pulling out a hundred yuan and handing it to the fat guy. As if afraid I'd change my mind, he dropped the old man's things, snatched the money from my hand, and then, with the other beast on his back, swaggered away.

I picked up my things from the ground and handed them to the old man sitting blankly on the floor beside me. "Go home, sir, it's too late."

He didn't take them. He cried. It was the first time in my life I'd ever seen someone older than me cry. He choked back tears, saying "thank you" countless times.

I remained silent, took another hundred yuan from my wallet, stuffed it into the white cloth, placed it in his lap, and then turned and left…

The old man could see my fortune and misfortune from my palm, yet he couldn't see his own impending doom. Humans, is fate something to be calculated? You can calculate others' fates, but can you calculate your own? And who knows if they'll see the sun rise tomorrow after they fall asleep tonight?

The plane climbed higher and higher, long since leaving the city shrouded in clouds. A ray of golden sunlight shone through the narrow window onto me. I put down the magazine I had casually opened and looked out the window. Countless white clouds, like a thick layer of cotton, covered the sky, dazzlingly white and blindingly pure. Bathed in sunlight, they appeared even more radiant. Above the clouds, there was such a beautiful sight: an endless expanse of blue overhead and breathtaking white below. This scene must be paradise, never seen on earth. I wished I could sprout wings and soar into that boundless world, enveloped by the warm clouds. Even a moment of such tenderness would be enough to make my life complete.

Lost in thought, a flight attendant came over to demonstrate emergency procedures and to instruct passengers to turn off electronic communication devices. My phone was already dead, so there was no question of whether it was off or not. Xiao Li next to me still had her eyes slightly closed. I gently nudged her hand and softly called out, "Sister Li..."

With that one nudge, she immediately opened her eyes and looked at me. It turned out she hadn't been asleep.

"What's wrong?"

Perhaps because she'd drunk alcohol and hadn't slept well last night, her eyes were bloodshot.

"Did you turn off your phone?"

I asked, puzzled as to why she hadn't heard the notification if she wasn't asleep.

"Oh, I turned it off before boarding. Did you?"

"My battery died."

I smiled slightly. Xiao Li had been overworked these past few days, her spirits low, her face etched with fatigue. I felt a pang of heartache, blaming myself for not taking better care of her. Unfortunately, none of this was within my power to handle. She spent all her time with those Taiwanese sensible people, either eating or drinking. What could I possibly do?

"Hehe, finally out of power, huh? Serves you right," she chuckled softly, raising her right hand to brush a few strands of hair behind her ear. This small gesture, coupled with her slightly tired face, exuded an indescribable allure, and I couldn't help but stare, somewhat mesmerized.

"Serves you right? Why?"

Seeing me staring at her intently, she blushed with embarrassment and reached out as if to poke my eyes. "Still looking? I'll poke you to death, hmph! You're always on the phone flirting with girls, isn't it your right that the battery died?"

I inwardly cried out in protest. I hadn't been flirting all day, just a little bit, but of course I couldn't tell her that.

"No, I already have you, why would I flirt with anyone else? In my heart, Sister Li is the most beautiful. Other women aren't even worthy of carrying Sister Li's shoes, hehe..."

As soon as I said it, I felt goosebumps erupt all over my body. I never expected such cheesy words to come from my own mouth, He Shi.

"Haha, you're such a braggart! You say you didn't seduce any girls, then why were you texting so much in the waiting room?"

Women love compliments, right? Hearing such flattery made her much happier.

"Oh, those were from my cousin. He got married at the beginning of the year and just had a son yesterday. He asked me to come visit him sometime."

Once a lie begins, it must continue endlessly until it's exposed. Including that "band-aid" incident, I've already lied to Xiaoli twice. I felt a pang of sadness, for myself, or perhaps for Xiaoli.

Xiaoli said "Oh," and then asked, "Xiaoshi, what are your thoughts on your current job?"

Seeing her serious expression, I knew she wanted to know how well I was handling my job; after all, she was my boss. After gathering my thoughts, I replied, "Overall, I think I can handle it all. Let me break it down into two parts. First, externally, from initial contact with clients, the initial visit, to signing equipment specifications, quoting prices, negotiating, finalizing terms, and drafting contracts, I can handle all of that without any problems. Of course, if there are any issues or decisions I can't make, I'll still discuss them with you or J. As for internal company processes, from arranging production orders, developing the BOM, production management, raw material procurement, material handling and production, finished product QC, all the way to shipment, except for procurement..." "Besides being familiar with it, I understand everything else quite well..."

After listening to my long explanation, she smiled with satisfaction and nodded. "Well, considering you've only been with the company for a short time, it's quite impressive. However, regarding procurement, we generally don't handle anything except for raw materials specifically requested by clients. So you don't need to get too involved, as this part is currently managed by the production manager. If your clients have any needs, it's best to notify me or J first so we can discuss it. You know, the production manager is Taiwanese, and he's not easy to talk to, understand?"

"Yes, of course I understand." Actually, I know the personalities of everyone in the company very well; otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to understand all the company processes in such a short time.

Just then, Xiaoli said, "Xiaoshi, there's something else I need to tell you. J is currently the department head, the full-time position. The deputy position is vacant. Actually, I've been observing you for a long time, and with your abilities, you're definitely capable of handling it. It's just that you haven't been with the company long enough. If I push you up right away, there will inevitably be controversy and gossip. So you need to work hard and achieve results. As long as you achieve results, everyone will see it, and I'll promote you before the end of the year."

I was overjoyed. It seemed Xiaoli really cared about me. Hearing her say she wanted to promote me, a thought popped into my head: "Promote me? Sister Li, you...you're going too far."

Sure enough, when she heard me say that, she immediately widened her eyes and stared at me. "What's wrong? Don't you want it? You don't even want a promotion and a raise?"

I smiled mischievously. "Hehe... Of course I do, but... do I need help? When have I ever needed your help? It always gets up by itself, doesn't it?"

Xiao Li realized I had something to say, her face immediately turned red, she reached out and pinched my waist hard, then spun me around like a channel changer on a black and white TV. I yelled in pain, "Ah!"

Everyone around us was attracted by my scream and turned to look at us...

Chapter 17 of Volume 1: Reunion After

a two-hour flight, the plane landed safely at the airport. I carried both of our bags, and Xiao Li carried her coat. The company car was already waiting at the exit.

Night fell quietly on the way back, and by the time we got back to the company, it was completely dark. The company car first took Xiao Li home, and then dropped me off at my doorstep. I opened the door, threw down my luggage, and collapsed onto the bed. After a long day of running around, I could finally rest. I put one hand behind my head, closed my eyes, and enjoyed this moment of peace…

Suddenly, I remembered my phone wasn't turned on. I quickly got up, took out my phone, changed the battery, and pressed the power button. The phone immediately started beeping loudly, and a flood of messages came in, all from Li Mei…

“Shitou, why aren’t you saying anything?”

“Shitou, why is your phone off? Did you board the plane?”

“What’s wrong? Did you really board the plane? Say something!”

“Shitou, I bought a computer last month and connected to the internet. Do you have a QQ number? My QQ number, please add me, okay?”

“Shitou, are you home yet? It’s almost dark. Call me when you get home, okay?”…

The last message showed the time as 6:15. I turned on my computer, added her QQ number, and immediately got a reply; she was actually online… A moment later, the distinctive QQ sound rang out, and she sent a message: “Stone, have you arrived home?”

Perhaps she wasn’t familiar with computers yet, as she misspelled “到” (dao) as “道” (dao). I chuckled, sent a laughing emoji, and replied, “Yes, I’ve arrived home. I’ll be ascending to immortality soon!” A full minute passed before she replied, “Huh? What do you mean by ascending to immortality? You mistyped it!”

I added a smiley face and replied, "That's right, you said I'm a [Taoist], right? The highest realm of Taoism is to ascend to immortality, not to become a monk, so I won't become a Buddha. Haha..."

She realized she had mistyped and didn't say anything more, only sending a blushing, shy face. Looking at her blinking eyes, I couldn't help but recall that tender rainy night; her gentleness and the fragrance of her body seemed to still linger in my heart. We continued chatting, but she typed very slowly; it would take me ages to type a slightly longer sentence. Fortunately, I understood that these were things that come with practice, so I didn't blame her much. I just went along with her, chatting about the past and the present, except that she didn't dare to talk about the future...

Seeing that it was almost 11 pm, I told her we could chat another day, as I was quite tired today. She reluctantly agreed, and as she logged off, she sent a big kiss emoji before her avatar went dark. Looking at that kiss, I realized I'd forgotten to call Xiaoli. I usually call her around 10 PM. I took out my phone and dialed, but a cold voice came from the other end: "Sorry, your dialed number is powered off. Please try again later." Her phone was off… Hanging up, I was filled with regret.

Time is like a rushing river. When you stand on the bank, surprised by the splashes on your clothes, you never notice the river flowing away so quickly. Many people lose the right to enjoy their youth without even realizing it. Life continues, neither exciting nor dull. People come and go in the concrete jungle of the city, and I am one of them. In the blink of an eye, it's been over a month since I returned from Shanghai. During this month, Li Mei has called frequently, to the point that I've spent a third of my monthly salary on China Mobile. As for Xiaoli, aside from work-related matters, she never spent any time alone with me. A sense of disappointment welled up inside me. It must be because I hadn't done enough that she was neglecting me. I decided to make it up to her. At the end

of July, my salary came in. Overtime pay plus the bonus from the first half of the year totaled about 5,000 yuan. I thought I might as well use the bonus to buy Xiaoli a small gift. It was almost the weekend, and on Friday afternoon, I sat at my desk for a long time, thinking about what to get her. I couldn't come up with anything. Then Xiaoli passed by my desk, and I noticed a blank space on her long neck. Finally, I made up my mind: I'll buy her a necklace! Flowers are beautiful, but they also need green leaves. But what kind of necklace should I buy? Silver would be too low-class, and gold? That's for nouveau riche...

After work, when most of the others had left, I went into Xiaoli's office, looking at her expectantly, and told her that I had bought some tickets to the latest movies and that I would go to her house to watch them that night. Xiao Li stared at me for a long time, as if to say I was deliberately hiding my true intentions. My face turned as red as Guan Yu's, and just when I thought she would refuse, she suddenly smiled and nodded. I was overjoyed, but as I turned to leave her office, I bumped into the cleaning lady...

Friday evening at 7 pm, XX Jewelry City was crowded with all sorts of people. The saleswomen were very enthusiastic, each with a smiling face and eyes that curved into crescent shapes. But I knew that wasn't for me, but for the RMB in my pocket. I spent a long time choosing, and finally bought a thin platinum necklace. The chain was slightly square, and the pendant had an S-shaped curl and a slight spiral shape. It looked simple yet elegant, with a touch of allure. Xiao Li would definitely look stunning in it. The chain complements her beauty, and she is alluring to the chain. The price was also reasonable, 888, three times the price.

I picked up the wrapped necklace and put it in my handbag. The image of Xiaoli's surprised expression when she opened the gift flashed through my mind. With the bag slung across my shoulder, I walked out of the jewelry store. The summer night breeze blew against my face, and I felt a surge of comfort. Outside was a main road, with cars flowing by. Neatly trimmed green belts lined both sides, their lush greenery reflecting the yellow streetlights, dazzlingly bright.

I found a quiet spot in the green belt, intending to hail a taxi to Xiaoli's place. My phone rang. I took it out and saw it was Xiaoli calling.

As soon as I answered, her soft voice came through, "Didn't you say you were coming over tonight?"

I quickly replied, "Yes, yes."

"Then what are you doing now? The food's getting cold!"

Her voice suddenly rose several octaves; she was urging me.

A taxi with a "For hire" sign was approaching from a short distance away. I quickly waved and said, "I'm waiting for a taxi. It's here. I'll be there in twenty minutes."

I hung up the phone, and the taxi turned on its turn signal and prepared to stop. Just then, a red motorcycle sped past the taxi and headed straight for me. I didn't pay attention, assuming it was a street racer. The motorcycle was going incredibly fast, and as it got closer, I saw that there were two people on it. The one in the back was reaching out to grab the bag I was wearing across my shoulder. I tried to dodge, but it was too late. A car flashed before my eyes, and then my body was pulled by a tremendous force. I was thrown to the ground with a "bang"... I clearly heard the sound of my head hitting the concrete. I saw twinkling stars before my eyes. I struggled to sit up, but found I couldn't muster any strength. Finally, everything went black. The car, the people, the streetlights... all disappeared from my sight...

A pond, a bumpy dirt road, a bamboo grove, a tiled house, and out of the low wooden door of the tiled house came an old man with snow-white hair. Behind him, a chubby little boy of about seven or eight years old was tugging at his clothes, crying, "Grandpa, Grandpa, I want to make a slingshot, please make me a slingshot... Waaah... Waaah... Waaah..."

The old man seemed not to hear me. He walked to the earthen square in front of the tiled house, where there was a pile of unsplit firewood and a few bamboo stalks that looked like they had just been cut down. The old man walked over, broke off a bamboo branch, stripped off the leaves, leaving only the bare stalk, and swung it a couple of times, making a whooshing sound. A smile appeared on his face, seemingly quite satisfied. The old man then turned and strode confidently towards the cattle pen on the other side of the earthen platform. It turned out he was breaking off a whip for herding cattle.

The little boy was still tugging at the old man's clothes, following behind, still sobbing, seemingly saddened that the old man hadn't made him a slingshot, but also helpless... The old man opened the gate of the cattle pen, and two black water buffalo, one large and one small, slowly walked out. The larger buffalo in front glanced at its master, then turned and walked towards a grassy path on the other side of the pen. The calf behind seemed to have encountered something happy; unlike its mother, which was leisurely grazing and walking, it ran off joyfully, then turned back after running a short distance.

The boy, amused by the bounding calf, burst into laughter, his tears turning to smiles, two remaining teardrops

falling softly. The old man turned and saw the boy smile, his purplish face breaking into a smile as well. The boy released the old man's clothes and ran past the calf that had stopped to graze, trying to grab its tiny horns, but failing. This caused the calf to moo loudly. Hearing the moo, the mother cow's eyes reddened, she lowered her head and charged. The boy turned and saw the massive creature hurtling towards him; he couldn't dodge or avoid it, and could only scream, "Ah!..."

"Ah!..."

I woke with a start, and before me stood a pretty face. I looked closely, feeling like I'd seen it somewhere before, but I couldn't remember. A sharp pain shot through the back of my head, and I recalled the robbery I'd experienced standing on the street. The scene of herding cattle was simply a childhood memory. The old man was my grandfather, and the little boy was myself.

"You're awake? Your sister just left."

The voice belonged to the person whose face I'd just seen. I turned my eyes and saw her—a nurse in a white coat. I really did recognize her face. But I had never met anyone who worked in a hospital before, let alone such a charming nurse.

My sister? She must be talking about Xiaoli, right? I moved my lips, about to ask, but found that only a low, hoarse "ah" came out of my throat. Seeing this, the nurse tilted my bed up into a semi-reclining position, picked up a glass of water and brought it to my lips. I took a small sip and felt much better. I rolled my eyes to observe my surroundings: it was a single room, all white, with my bed in the middle, a door opposite, and a window on the right. Looking out the window, it was pitch black; it must be nighttime. To the right of my bed, next to the headboard, was a small cabinet filled with bottles and jars of medicine. In front of the cabinet was a white stool, and the pretty nurse was sitting on it, her eyes fixed on me. Seemingly finding my constant eye-rolling amusing, she couldn't help but chuckle...

I glared at her and asked in a slightly hoarse voice, "What are you laughing at? What time is it?"

"8:30 PM,"

she replied seriously, her smile fading. Actually, I quite like her smile; her two shallow dimples are very alluring when she smiles, but this smile also seems familiar.

"8:30? Oh, that's good."

I felt a surge of relief; I'd only been unconscious for a little over an hour, so it seemed I was alright.

The nurse tilted her head, reached out and touched my forehead, saying, "Good? Good? You were unconscious for a whole day, and this is considered good? Did you hurt your head?"

Saying this, the nurse held up her hand. "How many is this?"

"One,"

I answered.

"Oh no, oh no, this is five. It seems you really hurt your head. No, I'll go call Dr. Wang. You, you lie down and don't move."

She withdrew her hand and stood up to leave.

I quickly called out, "Hey! Hey! I meant one palm, you didn't ask if I was counting palms or fingers."

"Haha..."

She laughed again, sat back down on the stool, her dimples appearing and disappearing.

"You just said I was dizzy all day? What day is it today?"

"Saturday. You thought it was Friday?"

"Oh, you mean my sister? Has she come?"

"Yes, she has. She paid your hospital bills. Your sister is quite pretty, but... she doesn't seem to look like you."

She said thoughtfully. ...I broke out in a cold sweat. That's not my sister, it would be strange if she looked like her. After chatting for a while, I roughly understood what had happened after I collapsed and fainted.

Last night, a taxi driver (the one I hailed) took me to the hospital. After arriving at the emergency room, they found a small amount of bleeding in the back of my head. Although it wasn't life-threatening, the bruising wouldn't dissipate in the short term. That's why my head was hurting so much. Because my bag was slung across my body, and there were many people around, the robber didn't dare to linger after pulling me down, so I wasn't robbed. The driver who brought me here took me to the hospital, and just then Xiaoli called. He told her what had happened, and she immediately drove to the hospital to pay my hospital fees… I've been unconscious ever since, only recently waking up. Sigh… it seems I wasn't destined to die; in this cold society, I actually met a kind taxi driver. I must find him and thank him properly when I get out.

Suddenly, I remembered the nurse next to me looked familiar, but since I couldn't move my body or head, I could only turn my eyes to her. “Miss, haven't I seen you before?”

She rolled her eyes at me. “Hmph! You finally remember?”

“Really?”

I couldn't believe it.

“Can't remember? Then do you remember a few months ago someone slapped you, and someone asked you out to dinner but you stood them up, making that person wait for half an hour at the park entrance?”

She became increasingly angry, finally turning her head away and refusing to look at me anymore, as if I were a sinner condemned by millions.

I closed my eyes. Please! I'm a patient now! My mind raced, and a minute later, I opened my eyes. "Oh! I know, you're the one I called at the Prince Hotel last time..." I

started to say, but then I met her angry gaze, and I had to swallow the rest of the word "lady."

"Then... what... what are you doing here? And wearing a nurse's uniform?"

I asked cautiously. Actually, I really wanted to ask if she was filming an AV series called "Uniform Temptation." She rolled her eyes at me again and replied angrily, "Working, what did you think I was doing?"

"Working? Oh, you changed careers?"

Oh, I see. My mood improved. She's so beautiful; it's a waste for her to be a prostitute.

"Changed careers? I've always worked here. Last time... last time... it was purely an accident."

Her expression softened considerably, and then it even turned pink.

"Accident? What do you mean?"

I was even more confused.

“It’s nothing, I’ll tell you after you’re discharged. I have to go now, it’s long past my shift end time. If I weren’t here watching over you, I would have gone home long ago.”

She said, shaking my bed back to its original position, and I lay flat on the hospital bed again. She stood up, walked to the door, then turned back. “Your name is He Shi, right? Do you remember my name?”

I thought for a moment, then answered, “Um…is it Xiaoxue?”

“Hehe…you’re smart. I’m leaving. See you tomorrow.”

A dimple appeared on her face, then she disappeared through the door…

A wave of melancholy washed over me. A series of events had erupted like wildfire in autumn, unstoppable. First, I was robbed; I managed to keep my belongings but ended up in the hospital. Then, in the hospital, a woman I’d met at the hotel reappeared. Most unbelievably, this beautiful woman claimed she wasn’t a prostitute at all, and that the “prostitute” incident was an accident. What kind of accident? My head was spinning, and my thoughts were starting to blur…

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