Chapter 47

The private room was quite close to their table; there was only one room between them, and you could get there by going out and turning the corner.

On the way back, Yu Min had barely caught sight of the familiar figure inside when the room door was pushed shut from the other side by a waiter who had just finished serving the dishes.

She didn’t know whether the people inside had noticed her, but Yu Min had seen clearly enough. She couldn’t have been mistaken.

According to what Lin Baixin had said a couple of days ago, she shouldn’t have been at a Japanese restaurant at this hour. She should have been at the shop, and it was almost noon; she ought to have been getting ready to meet a client for afternoon tea later. If she left any later, she wouldn’t make it in time.

If there wasn’t anything special arranged, then what was she doing here with someone else at a Japanese restaurant?

Yu Min kept looking back every few steps, staring at the private room door. Zhao Shiyu didn’t understand why she had suddenly gone so serious, so she craned her neck to peek too and offered helpfully, “What’s wrong? Is it really your sister? Want to go say hi?”

“...No.”

Yu Min looked again twice before denying it and shaking her head. In front of her friend, she couldn’t admit that was Lin Baixin, and she was even less likely to be impulsive enough to go push the door open. No matter what Lin Baixin and Song Chu were doing meeting privately for a meal, rationally, she shouldn’t disturb them.

Zhao Shiyu was oblivious; she believed whatever was said to her. Not only did she not suspect anything, she even scratched her head and said, “I thought so. How could it be such a coincidence? I don’t get to see your sister much either, so I probably didn’t look right. I just thought she looked a bit like her; must’ve been a mistake.”

When they got back to the main hall, most of the food had already been served. Wen Yun had ordered milk tea online and just happened to have picked it up while they were in the restroom. Zhao Shiyu loved sweet drinks, and Wen Yun had bought her favorite mango pomelo sago. The moment she saw it, she bounced over with a little “awooh” and wrapped Wen Yun in a hug, acting spoiled. “Awww, you’re the best. And it’s a large one too—wow! Did you add boba?”

Wen Yun was used to Zhao Shiyu’s sudden bursts of energy and sat there with complete composure. “I did.”

“I knew it. You definitely wouldn’t forget.”

“Mm.”

Yu Min stepped forward and sat beside Li Xue Ting, across from Zhao Shiyu and the others.

This was the first time the four of them had gotten together for a meal since starting university. It had taken so much effort to finally get everyone around one table that Li Xue Ting was extremely excited and pulled out a Polaroid camera. She ignored the food for the time being; they had to take a group photo first.

Yu Min felt restless inside, but since they were out having fun, it wasn’t a good time to show it. On the surface, she still cooperated, trying her best not to dwell on the things she shouldn’t. She forced herself not to care about that private room, and only occasionally, during lulls in the others’ conversation, did she glance over there on purpose or by accident.

The door to the private room stayed closed. Even after they had almost finished eating, there was still no movement inside; neither of the two people came out.

The Japanese food here wasn’t good. It tasted like chewing wax.

Yu Min wasn’t used to raw food, so she barely touched a lot of the dishes. Zhao Shiyu and the others weren’t picky, though; they ate whatever was served. Later, Wen Yun noticed that Yu Min had hardly touched anything and reordered two cooked dishes.

“Everything for this afternoon is already planned,” Li Xue Ting announced. “You three just need to keep me company and follow my plan. Since we’re here, we definitely have to visit all the famous places around here. First stop, the Great Wall; then Tiananmen, and the Forbidden City. Those three are a must. We can go to other places if we still have time. One day and a bit should be enough. My flight’s Sunday night, so you three aren’t allowed to ditch me halfway. You have to stay with me for the whole day and a bit, or else if you’re not around, this trip will have been for nothing.”

Zhao Shiyu and the others had no objections. They were definitely going to accompany Li Xue Ting, who had come all this way specially. Yu Min agreed too, though she was more concerned about something else at the moment. Still, facing a friend who had traveled from far away, friends had to come first.

Everyone got a Polaroid photo, and Li Xue Ting gave Yu Min two copies. She said happily, “Take them all home and stick them on your wardrobe, or buy a frame and put them in it. This is the four of us together; don’t lose it.”

Even after they left the Japanese restaurant, the private room was still closed. Before leaving, Li Xue Ting needed the restroom again, and Yu Min volunteered to go with her. Passing by the private room door, she could vaguely make out someone inside.

Still only two people. No one else.

This time, unlike before, it wasn’t something she was forced into.

Yu Min stood silently outside. In the middle of that, a server came over with a tray to deliver dishes. Worried they might be for that room, Yu Min immediately lifted a foot to move aside; fortunately, the food was for the room next door.

Her feet seemed rooted to the floor. Yu Min stood there without moving at all. After Li Xue Ting came out of the restroom and called to her a couple of times, she finally answered. Li Xue Ting looked at her in confusion. “What’s wrong with you? Is something up?”

Yu Min said, “No. I’m just full and a little bloated. Too much carb coma.”

“We didn’t even eat rice. It was all meat. What carbs are you even comatose from?” Li Xue Ting was puzzled. She could tell that Yu Min had been distracted not long after entering this restaurant, clearly because something had happened. Since she cared about Yu Min, she couldn’t help asking a few more questions.

Yu Min brushed everything off, lowered her voice, and somewhat evasively pulled Li Xue Ting along. She didn’t dare talk outside the private room door. Only once they were outside the restaurant did she answer at normal volume. “Okay, okay, weren’t we going to the Great Wall? Hurry up. It’ll get crowded later if we’re too slow. Going now is best.”

They took a cab to the Great Wall Tiandi shuttle stop and bought cable car tickets. None of them wanted to huff and puff their way up on foot; there were other places to go later, and they still had classes on Monday, so they couldn’t exhaust themselves too much.

When they came back down, Zhao Shiyu and the others went to buy ice cream, while Yu Min stayed where she was to wait. After thinking it over, she still took out her phone and messaged Lin Baixin:

- Are you done?

Lin Baixin replied after a while: - Where did you go?

Yu Min immediately sent a photo and then asked: - What are you doing?

Lin Baixin: - Resting.

Yu Min: - At the shop?

Lin Baixin was honest: - Outside.

Yu Min: - Alone?

As soon as she sent it, she felt the question was too blunt and instinctively wanted to recall it. But a recall would look even more deliberate, so she quickly added: - Went to pick up goods again?

Lin Baixin replied: - No, there’s something else.

Yu Min: - Then what?

Lin Baixin didn’t explain. She deliberately kept it vague, as if she didn’t want anyone to know she had gone out with Song Chu.

They had eaten together, and no one knew about it, not even Lin Qi. Yu Min sent Lin Qi a WeChat message, saying her pen had been left in Lin Baixin’s office. In fact, her pen was in the drawer of Lin Baixin’s desk; she hadn’t left it behind. She asked Lin Qi to help her ask Lin Baixin where it was. Lin Qi had no idea Lin Baixin had gone out to eat with Song Chu, and only replied in confusion: - Your sister isn’t here right now; I couldn’t find her. She probably went out. I’ll ask her for you when she gets back later.

Her throat suddenly felt sore, and her chest felt even more blocked up. Yu Min stared at her phone as Zhao Shiyu and the others came back with ice cream. She quickly put her phone away and tucked away the expression she shouldn’t have shown, acting as if nothing had happened.

There was a portion for her too. Even though she had said she didn’t want any, they still bought one for her. Zhao Shiyu was full of energy, happy and excited at any time of day, at any place, and always delighted by whatever she came across.

For some reason, Zhao Shiyu had bought a dog leash. She looped one end around her own hand and handed the other to Wen Yun, saying that this way they wouldn’t get separated once they got to a crowded place. Wen Yun indulged her too, actually taking the leash and going along unconditionally with Zhao Shiyu’s silly nonsense.

“Let’s not copy them. It’s too weird,” Li Xue Ting said with a laugh. “Look at them; they draw attention just by walking down the street. Wherever they go, people look at them.”

Zhao Shiyu had sharp ears and turned back to argue, “And you don’t need to copy us. You don’t even have anyone to hold hands with, so don’t be too jealous. This kind of treatment I get is one of a kind in the whole world.”

Yu Min listened to their bickering without joining in. Her mind wasn’t on that. Lin Baixin’s next message didn’t come until more than an hour later; by then she was probably back at the shop. Lin Baixin also sent a photo, one showing Yu Min’s pen in the drawer.

- I’ll bring it back to you tonight.

Yu Min didn’t reply. She put her phone in her pocket and didn’t take it out again until they got back.

Later, Lin Baixin sent another message asking if she wanted a ride home, but Yu Min only saw it after she’d gotten into a random taxi by the roadside. She still didn’t reply; she ignored it.

When she got back to the neighborhood, Lin Baixin wasn’t there. She arrived home even later than Yu Min, and there was only one cat in the house, Lu Dagun. The little thing came wobbling over and rubbed itself hard against Yu Min’s leg.

Yu Min tore open a cat treat and fed it to Lu Dagun, then gave it some freeze-dried snacks. Lu Dagun rolled around on the spot, flipping back and forth; when Yu Min reached out to pet it, it even licked her twice.

By the time Lin Baixin came in, Lu Dagun had already finished the freeze-dried treats and was lying on Yu Min’s lap. Yu Min was watching a drama without blinking, and Lin Baixin said while changing her shoes, “Why did you come back so early? Didn’t you play a little longer?”

Yu Min turned her head. “They all went back to school. Li Xue Ting went back to the hotel too.”

“I see.” Lin Baixin actually didn’t know Li Xue Ting and the others that well. “Since they’re all your friends, if there’s a chance, you can invite them over sometime.”

Yu Min answered with a hum. “Okay.”

Tonight they were both tired. They’d been out running around all day, and neither of them had the energy they usually did when they got home to sit in the living room and watch a drama for a while. Lin Baixin went into the bedroom first to remove her makeup, shower, and clean up. After she was done, she closed the door and went to sleep.

Yu Min was still on the sofa. Lu Dagun was sound asleep and wouldn’t get down, so she held the cat and pet it from time to time. Lu Dagun was so comfortable it even exposed its belly, purring softly.

On Sunday, Yu Min left even earlier than the day before. By the time she went out, Lin Baixin was still asleep. The Kyoto morning traffic was terrible, and the lights were already on. This day was even more tiring; they rushed to several places in a row. Li Xue Ting and the others had boundless energy, and young girls were always full of vitality, running here and there without even pausing to catch their breath.

Lin Baixin never mentioned the matter of eating Japanese food alone with Song Chu in front of anyone. And in the following week, Song Chu came by the shop where Lin Baixin and the others worked again, continuing to support the shop’s business.

That time, Yu Min was there too. Song Chu looked to be in a very good mood, carrying two large bags of food with her. She had blended right in with Gu Yue and the others, getting along extremely well.

The first thing Song Chu said when she saw Yu Min was, “A few days ago, at the Japanese restaurant, I think I saw you. You were with your friends.”

Yu Min lowered her head to read and didn’t answer.

Song Chu smiled. “But don’t worry, Lin Baixin didn’t see you. She didn’t notice.”

Lin Qi came over to deliver coffee and brought Yu Min a cup as well. From afar, she had already seen them chatting, and when she came closer she asked with curiosity what was going on. Song Chu wouldn’t tell Lin Qi; she took the coffee, smiled at Lin Qi, and said gently, “This is our secret. Don’t ask.”

Lin Qi was baffled. After Song Chu walked off, she turned to ask Yu Min, worried that Song Chu might have done something to her. Yu Min turned a page in her book and focused on her own business. Her expression was faint. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

TL Note:

Lu Dagun (驴打滚) = a sweet Beijing snack made from sticky rice and red bean paste; used here as the cat’s name.