Qin Yue was so shocked that for a moment he could not react. When he returned to his senses, Tong Jia had already gone upstairs. He clenched his fist, his face reflecting his trail of hardships.
After Tong Jia had left, if he’d had any girlfriends, it would’ve probably been Wan Xiaoyu. After listening to Tong Jia, he figured she already knew about it.
Qin Yue's relationship with Tong Jia had always been great since before, so he’d kept in touch with Tong Jia's younger brother, Tong Ming. This time as well, it had been Tong Ming who had given him the address.
Qin Yue didn't want Tong Jia to misunderstand, so he hesitated for a moment before he going upstairs and coming to the door. He rang the doorbell while finding the right words to say to Tong Jia.
Through the peephole, Tong Jia saw Qin Yue standing at the door. She didn't even have to think about it. Tong Ming had told him. At that moment, she decided to go home this Saturday and beat that little brat who’d turned his elbow towards the wrong direction[1].
However, no matter how much she would rather not involve herself with him anymore, they had once been friends, not to mention that they used to be together. Tong Jia didn't want to quarrel with him. Qin Yue pestering her like this actually annoyed her, but she couldn't ignore him now. She knew that if she ignored him, he would stand in front of her home all night, and when the property management would come over, it would be really hard to control the rumors.
Seeing the door opened, Qin Yue's dark and gloomy eyes brightened. Tong Jia found a pair of slippers from one side and let him put them on. She went straight into the kitchen afterward, took out a bottle of green tea from the refrigerator, and handed it to him.
She spoke in a very helpless tone, “Qin Yue, it's getting late now. I have a class tomorrow. You also have to work, so let’s not make the story long, okay? ”
Qin Yue followed her to the living room, sitting on the sofa with iced green tea in his hand.
He slowly calmed down and whispered, “Whenever I called you, you hung up without saying a word. The message I sent also took you a day to reply to. Whatever I told you, you didn't seem to care.”
Tong Jia raised an eyebrow as he spoke. She had a hunch that this would be a very boring conversation.
“I was too childish back then. My roommate's girlfriend also told me to give you some space. I tried not to contact you frequently to see if you would reach out to me and ask what happened, but you never did. You didn't even bother to say that we were breaking up. I just realized then, that in fact, between us, I was the only one trying, and you never really cared about me.”
Qin Yue recalled the events of that time and had no idea how he had managed to survive.
“Wan Xiaoyu's school was very close to mine, and she often came to see me. My classmates all thought she was my girlfriend, so they often joked around. At first, I would correct them, but later on, I realized that it didn't make sense. Wan Xiaoyu misunderstood me. I did spend time with her, but we were separated soon. I felt that I couldn't be with others.”
“I contacted Tong Ming because I just wanted to know about you. Later on, I really wanted to find you, but I just couldn't let go of my face[2].”
“Tong Jia, sometimes I think you don't like me at all. That’s why you can be so calm. If I had known you were with someone else, I would have definitely rushed to you.”
Qin Yue said after unscrewing the bottle cap and taking a mouthful of green tea in. He was hoping to calm down, but couldn’t.
"Are you done?"
Tong Jia finally looked at Qin Yue. She felt particularly tired today. She just wanted to take a good bath and sleep.
After thinking about it, she replied, “Qin Yue, I'm sorry. I didn't think about your feelings before, but I was really busy at that time. I had to go to language school every day and prepare for the exam. But really, it's meaningless to say this now, don’t you think?”
“Let me make myself clear. I'm not interested in rekindling old feelings.”
Tong Jia was well aware of why Qin Yue wanted to have such a conversation. However, she was no longer the former Tong Jia. She and Qin Yue were simply impossible.
Tong Jia was so straightforward that Qin Yue's face sank. He looked at her, eager to find the reason.
Regardless, he still asked, “Is it because of Zhou Yanchen? Because I didn't tell you he liked you? But you didn't like him, did you?”
Hearing these words from Qin Yue's mouth, Tong Jia felt particularly irritated. She stood up, her face showing impatience.
“You knew I didn't like him, so why didn't you give me that letter? Qin Yue, enough, really. I don't want to fall out with you. Don't bring up Zhou Yanchen. How we’ve come to this point has nothing to do with him. This is not his issue.”
Time was like a sharp sword, cutting off the innocent and youthful years of the past. She only felt indifference when she looked at Qin Yue now.
Qin Yue abruptly stood up and looked at Tong Jia with a bitter smile.
“Tong Jia, we’ve known each other for more than ten years. I know you too well. You never get angry at anyone. You say you aren’t like this because I mentioned Zhou Yanchen? Alright, I got it. Let's not talk today. You can rest. I'll treat you to dinner[3] some other day.”
With that, he walked to the door. While changing shoes, he leaned on the wall with one hand. His face looked sad and miserable.
The Tong Jia that he knew was a person who didn’t show her emotions. Even if she hated another person, she wouldn’t show it.
But just now, he had clearly seen the disgust on her face.
It had been for a dead man. Nonetheless, it didn’t matter. Zhou Yanchen was still dead.
After Qin Yue left, Tong Jia entered the bathroom. Lying in the bathtub, head resting on its edge, she stared at the ceiling. She didn’t know about Zhou Yanchen, but she just didn't like hearing about him from Qin Yue's mouth because it was too ironic.
These days, a certain thought had been driving her crazy.
She felt that losing Zhou Yanchen would be the biggest regret of her life.
Clearly, Zhou Yanchen was not her type. She had never been tempted, so she didn't know why she had such an idea. This idea grew and grew into a forest, lush and green. Tong Jia felt bliss as well as unspeakable despair.
Even if she didn't get something, she normally wouldn't feel anything. However, once she learned about Zhou Yanchen's unwavering love for her, it made her think that in this life, would there still be a person or emotion that would move her just as much as this did?
***
Song Yancheng was discharged from the hospital after half a month. The Song Corporation couldn't survive without him. He was ready to go to the company after two days’ rest at home. In others' eyes, Song Yancheng had become more and more resilient and difficult to understand. In the past, people could tell if he was glad, from his facial expressions, but now they couldn’t seem to see any.
He had a better grasp and understanding of the current situation as well as some of the characters of the people around him these days.
Song Yancheng was drinking millet gruel. He was thinking about things. Although he hadn't recovered his memory yet, he was no longer impatient. It may be because his subconscious memories were there. So when he saw the documents and projects sent by his secretary, he found himself able to understand them. He had been a little rusty at first, but now he could handle most things, which pleased him.
At that moment, Song Chi went downstairs with his schoolbag strapped onto his back. When he passed the dining table, he respectfully greeted his big brother, then was ready to go. Just as he lifted his leg, he heard his eldest brother slowly start to talk.
"Sit down, eat breakfast, and then go to school.”
Song Chi was stunned. For as long as he could remember, the number of meals he’d had with Song Yancheng could be counted with one hand. Even the butler on the other side was surprised. Song Chi had no choice but to sit down. The housekeeper quickly ordered the servant to send a pair of chopsticks.
Although Song Yancheng didn't talk to Song Chi again during the meal, Song Chi was in a particularly good mood.
He felt that his eldest brother might be beginning to cherish his younger brother.
It was impossible to say that Song Chi really didn’t care about Song Yancheng. Some might say that the eldest brother was like a father. This was also true for Song Chi. He usually wouldn’t admit it, but Song Yancheng did give him a little warmth, and with this, Song Chi's heart could be continuously cheerful for several days.
Song Chi was naturally late and ran into Tong Jia.
"Classmate Song, good morning."
Tong Jia hugged the English textbook and greeted Song Chi with a smile.
"Good morning, teacher."
Song Chi greeted Tong Jia back then rushed to his classroom.
Tong Jia was frozen in place as she watched Song Chi's back.
Just now, had she heared wrong? Song Chi had actually greeted her? What’s more, with a smile?!
The driver politely opened the door for Song Yancheng and stood aside respectfully. He got out of the car and stood at the entrance of the Song Corporation's skyscraper. Song Yancheng had an unreal feeling for the first time.
It was as if it didn't belong to him. Subconsciously, Song Yancheng buttoned his suit skillfully and entered the building.
When the three ladies at the front desk saw Song Yancheng, they were surprised and hurriedly got up and bowed.
The secretary pressed the VIP elevator for Song Yancheng. Song Yancheng looked down at the smooth marble floor, a strange satisfaction welling up deep inside. This was a man's ambition deeply engraved in his bones.
At that moment, one side of the elevator door opened with a ding. Two people got out and Qin Yue noticed that something was wrong with the atmosphere. Sure enough, as he turned his head, he saw President Song, who should’ve been recuperating in the hospital. He quickly urged his subordinates to head upstairs, his expression solemn, and bowed slightly.
"Greetings, President Song.”
Qin Yue was one of the students who had done well in his class. He had been hired by Song Corporation as soon as he had graduated. He had just gotten promoted to deputy manager of the department some time ago and was in the most vigorous times.
He had already bought a car, and his annual salary was also the highest among his classmates. Except for his love life, Qin Yue's life was really going smoothly now.
Song Yancheng looked at Qin Yue and gave him a nod without saying anything.
The VIP elevator arrived and Song Yancheng went in. Only when the elevator door slowly closed, did Qin Yue dare to turn around and leave.
The secretary did not dare to speak on the side, and even more, did not dare to look at Song Yancheng's expression. So she did not notice that Song Yancheng was currently confused.
“Who was that man just now?"
Song Yancheng noticed that when the man had just greeted him, his secretary hadn’t answered. This basically meant that the man was by no means a senior in the company. Since he wasn’t a high-ranking officer, it wasn’t surprising that he hadn’t known as president, so Song Yancheng dared to ask with ease.
Song Yancheng was sure that he hated this person in his heart, but why?
Why did he feel irritated?
TL Note:
[1] 胳膊肘朝外拐 (gē bo zhǒu cháo wài guǎi) one's elbow turns towards the wrong side, is a Chinese idiom that means to favor an outsider instead of someone on one's own side.
[2] 面子 (mian zi) lit. face: is sometimes used to represent the meaning of respect. Here it means ego.
[3] 接风洗尘 meant to give the dinner to welcome.