TA •Chapter 49

Chapter 49

The phone call with Jiang Yuduo didn’t last very long, only a few minutes. Jiang Yuduo and Miao weren’t back at where they were staying yet, so Cheng Ke hung up.

At first, he had thought that once the call ended, he’d be able to raise a banner and shout, then get to work on some shameless business right away. But after washing his face and lying back down on the bed, he hadn’t even found a comfortable position before he lost consciousness.

He had no idea how he could have been that sleepy. Two bottles of liquor, and that was enough to make him abandon his grand cause. He hadn’t even changed his clothes, just slept straight through to noon the next day.

He was still woken by the crackle of firecrackers. Cheng Ke stood by the window for a while. Today had cleared up, and the sky was bright, but visibility was still poor, everything looked like it was covered by a layer of sand.

His phone rang once. He turned around quickly, walked to the bedside, and picked it up to look.

It was actually Cheng Yi.

That switch from anticipation to disappointment to irritability happened in just one second.

– Ge, happy new year

He stared at those words, and at the transfer notice for 60,000 yuan underneath them, utterly speechless.

After staring for nearly two minutes, Cheng Ke tapped the screen, accepted the money, then sent Cheng Yi a red envelope labeled “good luck and great fortune,” containing 18 cents.

Then he sent a [smile] emoji.

After that, he tossed the phone back onto the bedside table, then thought better of it and picked it up again. He opened Moments. Cheng Yi definitely wouldn’t have only done this privately.

Sure enough, there were two posts from Cheng Yi.

One was about family reunion.

All nine pictures showed Dad, Mom, and various relatives from the family, exactly like every New Year scene he knew well, lively and lavish. The only difference was that this time, he was alone in a hotel room, looking at it through a screen.

The other had been posted half an hour ago, and read, “A rare gathering.”

Cheng Ke even suspected that post might have been visible only to him. Every single person in the photo was familiar, all of them his former “friends.”

He didn’t know what the feeling was in his chest. He just quickly looked over every face, and only after confirming that Xu Ding wasn’t among them did he finally breathe easier.

Though he didn’t know what he would have done if Xu Ding had been in there.

Before putting down his phone, he sent Xu Ding a red envelope for twenty cents.

Xu Ding sent him one back for 1.11 yuan.

– More impressive than yours, single-dog exclusive red envelope

He laughed for a long time.

Jiang Yuduo didn’t contact him again that day, and after that either. After the third day of the Lunar New Year, Cheng Ke and Xu Ding started keeping an eye on the shop renovation. They were busy every day, but he still checked Moments several times a day.

Jiang Yuduo’s album still only had that one picture of Miao in the red vest, and beneath it was still a comment from Chen Qing.

– Isn’t that a male cat?

Cheng Ke smiled.

Under that was Jiang Yuduo’s reply.

– You’d better pull off your red underwear soon

Among all the Moments posts, Chen Qing’s advertisements were the toughest survivors, but it was obvious that Jiang Yuduo still hadn’t come back, was still with the psychologist, and Jiang Yuduo’s global support group still hadn’t posted any new photos.

How unprofessional. Didn’t they have any stock at all?

"The designer said either of these two colors would work for this wall," Xu Ding held two cards up to Cheng Ke’s eyes. "Which one do you think fits?"

Cheng Ke put his phone back in his pocket. "The cooler one. It looks cleaner."

"Okay." Xu Ding nodded. "Are you free to come by this afternoon? They’re laying the floor upstairs. I have a meeting this afternoon."

"What, being fake now?" Cheng Ke said. "Have I ever not had time?"

Xu Ding laughed. "I’m really not being fake. You’ve been looking at your phone a lot these past few days. Is something going on? If you’ve got a date or something, I can just have someone from the company come over to supervise."

"I’ll do it," Cheng Ke said. He didn’t even feel like he’d been looking at his phone that much these past few days. Had it been obvious enough for Xu Ding to notice?

There were workers downstairs sawing wood, and sawdust was flying everywhere, so the two of them escaped to the second-floor terrace.

"We can put two sets of those cement tables and chairs from your reception room here," Cheng Ke said as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "It’d match pretty well."

"Those are pretty expensive," Xu Ding said, lighting a cigarette too.

"I’ll make them," Cheng Ke said. "Just as a hobby. I’ve got time anyway."

Xu Ding glanced at him. "Then I’ll go back and take a picture for you?"

"No need, I remember what they look like," Cheng Ke said. He squatted down, took a piece of chalk the workers were using, and drew a chair on the ground. "Something like this is fine. I’ll keep it simple so it’s easier to make."

"There isn’t that lower bar under my set, right?" Xu Ding asked.

"There is," Cheng Ke said. "But it looks better without it."

"Does it?" Xu Ding looked doubtful. "I look at it every day, and I don’t think it’s there."

"Want to bet?" Cheng Ke said. "Sixty thousand."

"…How much?" Xu Ding looked at him.

"Sixty thousand," Cheng Ke said.

Xu Ding laughed. "Are you crazy? I’m not Liu Tiancheng. I’m not making a bet like that with you."

"Fair," Cheng Ke laughed. "A red envelope with one yuan between us would already be considered big."

"Are you crazy?" Xu Ding crouched down too. "What’s with the sixty thousand?"

"No reason," Cheng Ke said. "Cheng Yi sent me a sixty-thousand red envelope, direct transfer."

"Then accept it," Xu Ding said.

Cheng Ke looked at him and laughed. "Why are you like this?"

"So did you take it?" Xu Ding asked.

"I did," Cheng Ke said.

"Why are you like this," Xu Ding laughed for a long time, then took a drag of his cigarette and let the smile fade. "Honestly, if my little brother dared do that, I’d have beaten him to death already. Maybe it’s because the age gap is so big, there’s not much sense of competition."

"Competition?" Cheng Ke took a drag of his cigarette.

"I don’t know what your dad is like," Xu Ding said. "But he probably isn’t the type of parent who praises his kids easily. Strict father type, that sort of thing."

"Yeah," Cheng Ke looked out beyond the terrace railing. "For more than ten years, I never heard him say anything good about me. It was only when I agreed to go to the company and follow Cheng Yi around that he said I was finally starting to look like something."

Xu Ding let out a sigh.

Cheng Ke was a little dazed. Was it just because of that one sentence?

"No, Third Brother, it’s almost Lantern Festival already," Chen Qing’s frustration came through the receiver clearly, "you want to eat dumplings alone, and now you want to eat yuanxiao alone too? Watch the lanterns alone too?"

"You’re making it sound so miserable," Jiang Yuduo clicked his tongue. "What, you can’t find anyone to talk to?"

"…Of course that’s part of it. I miss you, okay? We’re together every day," Chen Qing said. "When’s your recovery period going to be over?"

"In a few more days," Jiang Yuduo said.

Chen Qing sighed. "Then how about you come back and I’ll take care of your recovery? Massage, oil rubs…"

"Shut up," Jiang Yuduo cut him off. "Or I’ll step on your back for you."

"I’m afraid you’d stomp me in half," Chen Qing said. "Fine, you do your recovery. There’s nothing much going on right now anyway. Try to come back before Lantern Festival, okay? My mom even packed a red envelope for you."

"Okay," Jiang Yuduo said.

After Chen Qing’s call ended, he checked the time. There were still about half an hour until the time he’d arranged to meet Sister Luo.

He lit a cigarette and watched the pedestrians passing by.

After the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, more people gradually came back to the streets, and the shops reopened. In the mornings there were places to buy breakfast again.

But the unease had also started to grow.

Jiang Yuduo hadn’t looked to the right, but he knew someone was there, over by the row of yellow rental bikes. If he turned his head, he would see them.

He had never turned his head. For more than half a month already, he had kept trying to ignore them.

Sister Luo was a very perceptive person. Any abnormality from him at all would not escape her eyes.

If he wanted to prove it, every detail had to be perfect.

Even the meeting place he chose was outdoors.

The climate here was pretty good. Even in the dead of winter, as long as you stayed in the sun, you could feel warmth.

Miao was at his feet, still wearing that red vest, lying lazily there.

Miao didn’t like this red vest very much, and would try to bite it off at any chance. So when they got back to the inn, Jiang Yuduo would help it take it off, but when they went out, he always made it wear it.

After all, there was no leash. If it ran off, it would be more noticeable. He was afraid that if he lost Miao by accident…

He didn’t want to hear again the pitiful shrieks of those stray animals in his memory when they were caught and dragged back, right before they died.

"Xiao Jiang." Sister Luo called him once.

Jiang Yuduo turned his face, picked Miao up, and stood. He smiled at her.

Sister Luo had come from the left side of the street. Jiang Yuduo had already seen her when she got out of the taxi, but it wasn’t until she came close and called to him that he turned his head.

"Sister Luo," he said with a smile.

"That’s the one, right?" Sister Luo pointed at the coffee shop ahead.

"Yeah," he walked to the coffee shop with Sister Luo, helped pull out her chair, then sat down with his back to the street. "The sun’s nice today. It feels good to sit in it."

Sister Luo glanced at him and smiled, nodding. "Yeah. Look, the cat’s even squinting from the sun."

Jiang Yuduo put Miao on the chair beside him, within the range of his peripheral vision.

Sister Luo ordered drinks and snacks, then looked at him. "I thought you’d already gone back. We only met twice, and then you never called me again."

"No, it was too cold to go back. I stayed here a few more days to warm up," Jiang Yuduo said.

"Weren’t you never afraid of the cold before?" Sister Luo asked.

"I’m afraid of the cold now," Jiang Yuduo said.

The server brought over the drinks and snacks. Jiang Yuduo pinched up a small crisp biscuit. "I’m going back in a few days, before Lantern Festival."

"Mm, how does it feel?" Sister Luo took a sip of hot cocoa.

"Pretty good," Jiang Yuduo said. "Changing environments has helped me relax a lot."

"Do you have any plans now?" Sister Luo asked again.

"Huh?" Jiang Yuduo froze for a moment.

"Your future plans," Sister Luo said. "Now that you’re fine, you should be making some small plans for yourself too, right? Like what we talked about before."

"Yeah," Jiang Yuduo nodded. "There are. I have a… friend of a friend… I might go take some pictures."

"A model?" Sister Luo smiled.

"…Yes." Jiang Yuduo hadn’t expected Sister Luo to suddenly bring this up. That feeling of being caught off guard made him a little irritated.

"That’s pretty good. Having a friend introduce you is more reliable," Sister Luo said.

Jiang Yuduo didn’t answer. He didn’t want to keep going with this sudden, completely empty topic, but he also couldn’t find a way to change the subject without it feeling abrupt, so he could only choose silence.

Sister Luo didn’t continue either. She just slowly stirred the hot cocoa in her cup with a small spoon.

After about several minutes, Jiang Yuduo saw Miao, lying on the chair in his peripheral vision, move a little. He reached out and stroked Miao’s head.

"Xiao Jiang," Sister Luo said again. Her tone had become a little more serious. "You insist that our conversation should be like that between ordinary acquaintances, right?"

"Mm." Jiang Yuduo answered.

"Why?" Sister Luo asked.

"Because I’m not a patient anymore," Jiang Yuduo answered very directly.

"Can you tell me why you came to see me?" Sister Luo asked. "We’ve met twice already, and you still won’t answer me directly."

Jiang Yuduo frowned and looked at her, a little impatient. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Xiao Jiang," Sister Luo sighed, "whether you’re better or not, whether you’re still not better, me giving a judgment in one sentence isn’t meaningful."

Jiang Yuduo tightened his brows and stayed silent.

"I believe that with a lot of tests and conversations, if they weren’t between you and me, you might very well get the answer you want," Sister Luo said. "You’re smart, and sensitive. You know how to respond in a way that makes you look like you’re ‘not a patient.’"

"What are you trying to say?" Jiang Yuduo lifted his eyes to look at her.

"You’ve also never been willing to admit that you had some abnormal behavior. It’s been like that for years," Sister Luo said. "Now you came to me just to prove yourself normal by admitting you’re abnormal. There’s a reason for that."

"There’s bullshit reason." Jiang Yuduo said.

"Maybe there isn’t," Sister Luo wasn’t displeased by his words, she only smiled. "Whether there is a reason or not, I think this may be a good thing for you."

Jiang Yuduo didn’t speak.

Maybe because Sister Luo knew him too well. Ten years? Or nine? They had known each other for too long, met too many times, and Jiang Yuduo couldn’t accurately describe his own mood right now. He only felt irritated and uneasy.

Before Sister Luo could say anything else, he picked up Miao and stood. "I’m leaving."

Today, the temperature had finally risen a little. Cheng Ke pushed the window open a crack, and the wind that came in felt gentler than it had the past few days.

He decided to go back for a while.

He hadn’t thought through what he would do when he got back, but after all, he still hadn’t turned in the apartment, and a lot of his things were still in the place… Besides, it was almost time to pay rent.

But whether to give up the apartment or not, he really couldn’t decide.

Logically, he should have given it up. When he left before, Jiang Yuduo hadn’t left him any way back, and he had only been thinking that he’d find another place after the New Year, when he’d have more breathing room.

But Jiang Yuduo’s call that day had made him a little lost. He couldn’t make sense of the situation now.

Up to now, he still hadn’t gone to look for a new place, and Jiang Yuduo still hadn’t contacted him again.

On top of that, the shop renovation was moving pretty fast, and he was busy every day. His whole head felt a little fuzzy.

After taking a taxi back to the neighborhood, just as he got out, Cheng Ke heard the security guard’s enthusiastic voice. "Mr. Cheng, you’re back?"

"Yeah," Cheng Ke answered, seeing the guard come out of the duty room.

"Why didn’t you bring any luggage?" the guard asked.

"Huh?" Cheng Ke froze.

"Aren’t you going back to your hometown for the holiday?" the guard said. "When you left, I saw you dragging two suitcases."

"…Oh, my luggage is still… at home," Cheng Ke said. "My home is right here."

"Oh!" The guard laughed. "I thought you were from out of town. I was thinking your language skills are pretty good, I couldn’t hear any accent at all…"

Cheng Ke smiled. The elevator happened to arrive then, and he hurried in. After the doors closed, he let out a breath.

There wasn’t much change in the apartment. A thin layer of dust had settled over everything, only noticeable if you touched it with your hand.

Cheng Ke wandered around inside and outside the apartment, and found that one of the power strips in the living room had been unplugged.

He had always kept that power strip plugged into the outlet. When he wasn’t using it, he only switched off the power strip itself. But now it had been unplugged. Someone must have come in.

Chen Qing?

Or… Jiang Yuduo?

Could someone just barge into a tenant’s apartment and unplug the power strip like that, and then be reported for it?

He went into the bathroom too, and when he wanted to wash his face, he found the water heater plug had also been pulled out.

Tsk.

He had specifically turned off the water heater when he left. Why did they still have to unplug it… He plugged it back in and turned the switch on.

After washing his face, there wasn’t much else to do. He stood blankly in the apartment for a while, checked the time, and decided to go get something to eat.

He’d go to Tingfoulou.

He’d only been eating two things lately, delivery food and hotel Western food. He was already sick of both.

If it weren’t a little too awkward to go eat hot pot by himself, he would’ve even wanted to have a spicy hot pot meal.

There were very few taxis at this hour. No one accepted his ride request on the app for a long time, so Cheng Ke could only wander over there on foot.

He had lived here for so long that all the roads around were pretty familiar, especially the shortcuts Jiang Yuduo had taken him through. He turned into a side street, looking around as he walked. Not taking a taxi had its benefits too. If he saw somewhere he wanted to go, he could just go there.

For example, the little street park behind that building.

Cheng Ke rarely came here. Today the place was rather lively, with kids running around wildly, chasing and screaming, and setting off a few firecrackers while they were at it.

While staying alert for which little brat might throw a firecracker at him, he crossed the passage between two buildings.

The moment a desolate winter garden unfolded before his eyes, a group of street thugs who seemed to be holding a meeting also came into view at the same time.

The sight of more than ten people all turning to stare at him made him feel as if he had instantly been sent back a few months.

And just like a few months ago, at first glance he saw Jiang Yuduo crouching by the flower bed.

"Brother Ji?" Chen Qing’s shocked voice came over.

Cheng Ke quickly swept his gaze across the crowd, didn’t see Chen Qing, and figured he must have been too thin and got blocked from view. He let his eyes fall back onto Jiang Yuduo’s face.

"You’re back?" Jiang Yuduo asked, a cigarette hanging from his lips.

"Yeah," Cheng Ke answered. "Came back to take a look."

"Planning to give up the lease?" Chen Qing’s voice came again. "There are still a few days left."

This time Cheng Ke finally saw him, and was quite surprised, because he was crouching right next to Jiang Yuduo, and Cheng Ke had actually missed him at first glance.

That kind of presence was pretty damn impressive in a group fight.

"Scatter," Jiang Yuduo said, waving a hand.

The group slowly dispersed. When they passed Cheng Ke, they were all still very polite. "Brother Ji."

Ji your ass, brother?

Cheng Ke forced a smile, the corners of his mouth twitching.

"Then I’ll head back first too," Chen Qing was the last to leave. As he went, he told Jiang Yuduo, "I’ll pick you up tomorrow afternoon."

"Mm," Jiang Yuduo nodded.

Chen Qing took a couple more steps, then turned back. "Or… call him Brother Ji too…"

"Get lost quickly," Jiang Yuduo said.

Chen Qing turned and left.

Only after everyone had gone did Cheng Ke finally feel a little relaxed. He walked up to Jiang Yuduo. "When did you get back?"

"Yesterday," Jiang Yuduo hopped down from the flower bed and stubbed out his cigarette.

Cheng Ke wanted to say why didn’t you tell me, but he also felt he had no standing to say that.

"I was going to call you," Jiang Yuduo said.

"But you didn’t," Cheng Ke said.

"I was afraid if I called, you’d say you were moving out," Jiang Yuduo frowned. "So I didn’t call."

"If I wanted to move, whether you called or not, I’d still move," Cheng Ke said.

"Move out?" Jiang Yuduo immediately picked out the key point.

"Not yet," Cheng Ke said, a little embarrassed. "I haven’t started looking for another place. I’ve been staying at the hotel."

"Oh," Jiang Yuduo nodded. "Then just keep living in that apartment. No one’s kicking you out."

Cheng Ke glanced at him, but didn’t say anything.

"Have you eaten?" Jiang Yuduo asked.

"No," Cheng Ke said. "You’re treating me?"

Jiang Yuduo frowned. "Are you living in a presidential suite or something?"

"Huh?" Cheng Ke didn’t understand.

"You don’t even have money for a meal?" Jiang Yuduo asked.

"…I’m just asking you to treat me to a meal. If you don’t want to, I’ll treat you," Cheng Ke said helplessly.

"Okay," Jiang Yuduo nodded.

"Okay what?" Cheng Ke blinked.

"You’re treating me to a meal," Jiang Yuduo thought for a moment. "Hot pot. I haven’t had hot pot in a long time."

"…Fine." Cheng Ke sighed.

As they walked toward the restaurant together, Cheng Ke kept turning his head to look at Jiang Yuduo’s face.

He didn’t want to be this obvious, but he couldn’t really control himself. After all, it had been a long time since he’d seen him, and he had thought he’d never see him again. Now that he was suddenly seeing Jiang Yuduo with no warning at all, he couldn’t even manage the most basic manners.

Jiang Yuduo had lost weight. At a glance from the side, it was obvious he’d gotten a lot thinner.

Cheng Ke had no idea what exactly Jiang Yuduo’s “trip” had involved during this period, but whatever it was, it had made him lose weight at a visibly alarming rate.

"What are you staring at?" Jiang Yuduo turned his head and asked. "You’ve been staring for a whole street."

"…Did you lose weight?" Cheng Ke hurried to ask.

"Yeah," Jiang Yuduo said, touching his own face. "That was the first thing Chen Qing said when he saw me too. I weighed myself yesterday. I probably lost around ten jin."

"How did you lose that much weight?" Cheng Ke looked at him.

"No idea," Jiang Yuduo said, glancing at him. "How much weight did you lose?"

"What?" Cheng Ke asked.

"Your chin is all sharp now," Jiang Yuduo said, reaching out to flick Cheng Ke’s chin. "Did nobody deliver food for you during the New Year?"