Chapter 22

The night sky was beautiful, with countless stars scattered overhead, twinkling endlessly.

“If this were back then, I never would’ve imagined the two of us would ever meet again.”

Song Shiyuan leaned back in the rocking chair and tipped her head to look at Jiang Lai, who was seated beside her.

Jiang Lai lowered her gaze and smiled faintly. “Why would you think that? We ended things pretty peacefully back then.”

Song Shiyuan seemed to drift back into memory. “Tell me—why did we break up all those years ago?”

Jiang Lai tugged the blanket tighter around herself, her voice gentle. “Because of your career.”

“Looking back at who I was then, I really do think I was terrible.”

Jiang Lai let out a soft sigh. “I was the one who wanted to break up with you back then. Don’t put all the blame on yourself. It was all my fault.”

Song Shiyuan closed her eyes. “A-Lai, if I could go back, I definitely wouldn’t agree to break up with you.”

“Then you never would’ve gotten where you are now. How could you possibly balance love and work? I used to feel so sorry for you; I wouldn’t have let you keep suffering like that. Even if you hadn’t brought up the breakup, I would have.”

“You always do this, which is why the two of us can still sit here like this, talking so calmly—even about the person you like...”

Jiang Lai looked toward the brightly lit high-rises in the distance; her heart was tangled with complicated feelings.

“What about Qin Huaicheng? What do you feel about Qin Huaicheng?”

“What do I feel?”

Jiang Lai lowered her eyes and thought for a moment. “I guess... I wanted to marry him. But that’s impossible now; he doesn’t want me anymore.”

“What about Cheng Shuyang?”

Song Shiyuan suddenly changed the subject.

Jiang Lai hesitated. “I don’t know, A-Yuan. What I feel for her is completely different from what I felt for you all...”

“That doesn’t sound like the Jiang Lai I knew. The Jiang Lai I knew was always decisive when it came to love. Now you’re so hesitant; that’s not your style.”

“Maybe I’m just getting older.”

Song Shiyuan rolled her eyes at her, her tone teasing. “Are you talking about me? I’m a year older than you.”

Jiang Lai gave a helpless laugh. “You’re twisting my words again.”

“Are you going to confess to Cheng Shuyang?”

“No.”

Jiang Lai shook her head. “I’m not sure I can give her a better life than she has now, so I’m not going to confess to her. Besides...”

She drew in a deep breath before continuing, “She’s my friend’s mother, my aunt, and my elder. I have such filthy thoughts about her; I... ”

The saying that one generation plants the trees while the next enjoys the shade was exactly right. Only now did Song Shiyuan truly understand what it meant. She had thought she could say Cheng Shuyang’s name with complete composure, but it seemed that wasn’t possible after all...

Her heart stung; her eyes turned red. Afraid that staying any longer would make her lose her composure, she stood up in a fluster and left, leaving only one sentence behind: “A-Lai, it’s late. Go back and rest...”

Jiang Lai didn’t move. She still sat quietly there, letting the cold night wind brush over her. After a while, she slowly stood up and gave a bitter smile. “Yeah, it’s time to rest...”

The next morning, she was woken by a burning gaze fixed on her. Opening her eyes with resignation, she found an enlarged version of Xia Wanwan’s face right in front of her.

After a two-second pause, she grabbed the pillow beside her and flung it at Xia Wanwan before lying back down again.

“Hey!”

Catching the pillow as it flew toward her, Xia Wanwan bounced onto the bed. “Why didn’t you scream?”

“Why would I scream?”

“It was early in the morning; somebody just shows up in your room out of nowhere. Aren’t you scared?”

“Childish.”

Jiang Lai sat up and glanced at her. “Who let you in?”

“Of course it was Senior.”

Xia Wanwan flashed a sly grin. “Be honest—did you get back together with Senior?”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“I don’t believe you!”

Xia Wanwan chased after her into the bathroom. “Then why did you come to Senior’s concert? And don’t say you’re not still hung up on her!”

Jiang Lai’s hand paused with the toothpaste. “No. I just promised her before that I’d watch one of her concerts.”

Xia Wanwan leaned against the doorframe, looking exasperated. “Honestly, I just don’t get you. Qin Huaicheng aside—we won’t even talk about him; I never liked that guy to begin with—but Senior? She’s beautiful, her personality is great, and now she’s the one chasing after you. Why wouldn’t you want her?”

Jiang Lai lowered her head. “If I don’t like someone, how can I be with them?”

“Then what are you going to do in the future?”

“Living alone is fine too.”

Xia Wanwan sat down on the sofa, huffing in frustration. “I really... can’t communicate with you.”

Jiang Lai didn’t mind. She simply finished packing her things and came out with her suitcase. “Hey, come with me to check out.”

Xia Wanwan slung her bag over her shoulder and resignedly went with Jiang Lai to check out. Only after they got into the car did Jiang Lai remember to ask, “Why did you come here?”

“I was bored at home, and A-Zheng wasn’t around either. I originally wanted to visit you and Mom on set and give you guys a surprise, but then I saw online that you’d come to the concert first, so I chased you here.”

Having said that, Xia Wanwan seemed to perk up again. “A-Lai.”

“What?”

“What did you do to my mom?”

Jiang Lai looked confused. “What?”

Xia Wanwan leaned back against the seat. “Yesterday I called Mom, and she kept asking about you. So I was like, what’s going on between the two of you?”

Jiang Lai’s heart jolted, but she didn’t show it. “Nothing. I just didn’t say goodbye to Aunt Cheng when I left; she probably got a little worried.”

“Really?”

Something still felt off, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was.

“Wanwan.”

“What is it?”

Jiang Lai pressed her lips together, but still didn’t say it. “Nothing... ”

Before she could think it through any further, Xia Wanwan suddenly cried out, “Hey, my mom’s calling!”

She immediately answered, her voice turning a little spoiled. “Mom!”

The person on the other end said something; Xia Wanwan nodded repeatedly. “Mm, I know.”

“A-Lai?”

Xia Wanwan glanced at Jiang Lai and answered, “Okay, I’ll hand her the phone.”

Jiang Lai waved to show she didn’t want to take it, but Xia Wanwan directly stuffed the phone into her hand. “My mom says she doesn’t have your contact info, so she doesn’t know how to reach you. I was wondering about that—weren’t the two of you together for so long? You didn’t even leave each other’s contact info?”

Jiang Lai shook her head. Xia Wanwan looked a little helpless too. “Fine, take the call.”

Putting the phone to her ear, Jiang Lai answered softly, “Aunt Cheng.”

“Is that A-Lai?”

The voice on the other end sounded uncertain, tentative.

“It’s me, Aunt Cheng.”

She faintly heard the other side let out a breath. “...Why did you leave without telling me when you took leave?”

“You were busy then, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“Jiang Lai, why do I feel like you’re avoiding me?”

Jiang Lai tightened her grip on the phone little by little. “No, Aunt Cheng, you’re overthinking it.”

Thankfully, Cheng Shuyang didn’t linger on that topic and instead asked something else. “When are you coming back?”

“I don’t have a specific time yet. I’ll go back when I feel like it. You don’t need to worry about me, Aunt Cheng.”

“Then... did you enjoy the concert?”

“It was great. I liked it a lot.”

Cheng Shuyang stayed silent for a long moment before speaking again. “Jiang Lai, when we meet again next time, let’s have a proper talk.”

“Okay... ”

After hanging up, Xia Wanwan immediately leaned in. “What did my mom say?”

“She told me to keep an eye on you and not let you run wild.”

“I don’t believe it!”

Xia Wanwan raised an eyebrow. “It was definitely you; you made my mom angry, and she called to question you, didn’t she?”

“You’re making things up again.”

“I’m not. My mom doesn’t usually care about this stuff. You’re the first one, you know!”

“Really?”

Jiang Lai smiled faintly, her eyes on the scenery constantly shifting outside the car window. “I’d rather she wasn’t so good to me... ”

Author’s Note:

Xia Wanwan: “Something’s off between those two. Very off.”