Chapter Forty-Two: On the Eve of Departure

"Yihui..." Yishu stopped guessing and asked uneasily, "What on earth has happened to you? This isn't something you'd normally say!"

Yihui forced a lighthearted smile. "Nothing's wrong with me," he replied weakly. "What could possibly be wrong?"

"Stop worrying! I suppose I've grown up, that's all. My perspective on things has shifted a little."

After saying this, he sank into his memories. The experiences of these past three months—enough to change even the strongest resolve.

Yishu picked up her chopsticks and took a few bites of rice. After a busy day, her stomach was already rumbling with hunger. As for Yihui's unusual words and behavior today, she knew there would be no answers, however she asked.

He had always locked his secrets away, never opening up to anyone.

She recalled the year before their mother passed away, when Yihui had come to her room and told her he was being bullied at school for no reason. Mother had only looked down sadly and said, as a boy, he must be independent and strong, and learn to face every challenge bravely.

There was advice, but no comfort.

Whether he understood or misunderstood, she never knew. From then on, he never spoke of it again.

After their mother was gone, he became even more withdrawn.

Yishu ate without tasting the food. "Did you buy the train ticket?"

"I did," Yihui replied, sounding guilty.

"It's a morning ticket, right?" Yishu picked up some vegetables and placed them in her bowl. "It takes several hours. If you leave early, you'll arrive the same day. Otherwise, you'll have to find somewhere to stay, which will be troublesome." She set her food back in her bowl, paused, then said, "I think I'll take the day off the day after tomorrow and see you off. It's your first long trip, I really can't rest easy."

"No need, I can manage on my own."

A hint of panic flashed across Yihui's face, despite his efforts to hide it.

"At least let me take you to the high-speed rail station," Yishu negotiated, as if bargaining.

"Really, it's not necessary." Yihui emphasized firmly. "I know your job has never been easy, and taking time off is difficult. Don't do anything that will make things harder for yourself because of me."

Yishu didn't insist. She ate the rest of her rice quickly.

After washing the dishes, she headed straight to the bedroom and went to sleep.

Gazing at the faint glow of the waning moon outside her window, she drifted into dreams without realizing it. So much so, she missed the message Shixi sent.

"Yihui is leaving soon, isn't he?" Xu Shixi said, watching the traffic ahead.

"He leaves tomorrow morning at eight," Yishu replied, gazing at the branches of the camphor tree swaying in the wind.

No matter how many times she visited the gates of Xunyuan Company, the solemn, oppressive atmosphere never diminished.

After work, the well-groomed office ladies gathered in groups, arm-in-arm or shoulder-to-shoulder, hailing taxis at the intersection and heading toward Huafeng Plaza.

It was not yet five-thirty in the summer—the night was still on its way. The fiery clouds painted the western sky, echoing the dawn's morning light.

"I think I'll go see him off tomorrow," Xu Shixi stopped walking. "After all, it's his first trip far from home."

Yishu shook her head. A yellow-green leaf fell before her eyes, landing on her shoe. "There's no need, I..."

"No need to be polite," he interrupted eagerly before she finished. "I'm off tomorrow anyway, and besides, I never sleep in."

"It's not that," Yishu explained slowly. "It's Yihui, he doesn't want me to see him off." She paused. "I can tell he's changed, maybe he's really grown up."

"So you're comfortable letting him go alone?" Xu Shixi's eyes were searching, waiting for her confirmation.

To say she was at ease would be a lie, but worries must be kept inside. She nodded twice. "He has his own ideas. I respect him."

Xu Shixi seemed to understand and continued walking. Their shadows stretched endlessly in the setting sun.

The next morning at six, Su Yihui rose on time. He barely slept all night, waking over and over. Ten minutes of sleep followed by two hours awake. When the sky began to brighten at five, he gave up on sleep, washed, shouldered his backpack, dragged his suitcase, and left home.

He couldn't bear to look back—he closed the door gently and walked away without turning.

He feared that if he glanced back, tears would flood forth. After Xiangtang Village was demolished, he had never returned.

Yishu had also struggled with insomnia, only falling into a fitful sleep near four in the morning.

Opening the door, a cool breeze swept over her, as if another piece was carved from her already hollow heart.

Yihui sent Yishu a safe arrival message at three in the afternoon.

They exchanged a few trivial words, and the conversation quietly faded, lost on one end.

Guo Yamei entered her greedy mode—whenever anyone entered the shop, she made sure to be first.

She had her own methods for dealing with customers, achieving a success rate of about ten to seven.

Yishu felt dissatisfied but could only submit to fate.

Thankfully, the proportion of foreign customers was not small. Guo Yamei, though a college graduate in retail management, was hopeless in academics, especially English and math. Yishu, on the other hand, though only a high school graduate, excelled in every subject. Simple English conversation came easily.

Hence, whenever a foreign customer entered, Guo Yamei sensibly stayed silent in her black chair.

Yishu spoke fluent English, as if it were her native tongue. Her foreign customers were stunned, genuinely admiring her business ability. Her success rate was likewise ten to seven, sometimes even eight.

Tang Chao sought out Yishu again two days before reporting to university.

He said many strange things:

—When I leave, will you miss me?
—Do you hope I stay?
—If I stayed for you, would you be moved?

All these easily misunderstood, ambiguous words spilled out without thinking.

Could it be? Yishu dared not imagine further.

His eyes, like stars and sea, carried a refreshing oceanic air. She had felt this, more than once, with Shixi.

But she knew she must stop certain emotions before they could take root.

Yishu watched his awkward smile, anxious and uncertain. The quarrel months ago, the recent police station mix-up—deliberate or accidental? Regardless, they had truly happened.

Setting herself aside, Yihui's feelings always needed consideration. At the police station, his scattered gaze and rigid posture. Yishu knew some marks run too deep to ever smooth away.

Her mind wandered too far, so she reeled herself back.

"Go to university and do well. I have no reason to miss you, no right to ask you to stay, and no spare emotion to be moved. I only hope you get along with your new classmates." Yishu opened the door, lingered a moment, turned her head twenty degrees. "Safe journey."

The door closed, sealing them in separate worlds.

Yishu sat on the sofa, staring at the folding bed before her.

Perhaps he merely wanted to say goodbye, unable to resist speaking aimless words to ease his confusion.

He and she—no matter how one looked—were people from different worlds.

Tang Chao stood outside the door, lost in thought for a long time.

He had only come out to buy mixed nuts for Tang Dai, her favorite snack. The car moved forward, as if guided by invisible hands, and somehow arrived at Jinlan Community.

He didn't want Yishu and Shixi to be together, yet there was a trace of hope that they would.

"Why were you gone so long?"

Tang Dai sat at the desk in the living room, typing away as she handled project matters.

The living room was spacious, combining dining area, workspace, and guest area. Opening the brown wooden door, a wide glass wall let bright light flood in. The room was twelve meters wide. Most furnishings were light colors and transparent glass, making the space feel even more expansive.

"This brand is hard to find," Tang Chao said as he entered, changing into slippers and tossing the plastic bag onto the table.

"So clever at finding girlfriends, but a simple snack defeats you?" Tang Dai teased.

"I've never looked for a girlfriend," Tang Chao leaned back on the sofa, his strong arms draped along the back. "Sis, you don't understand me at all. I never need to search—they come to me."

"If you studied as hard as you talk, you wouldn't be stuck at a third-rate sports college." Tang Dai set aside her work and turned toward him. "You have no idea how angry Dad was."

"That's his problem," Tang Chao sat up, opened the bag of nuts, poured half into his mouth. "He's been angry every day since I was little—still alive and well. Others suffer from anger, but for him, it's not being angry that hurts."

Tang Dai snatched the remaining nuts from his hand. "You're always at odds with him."

"Those are my nuts, you can't steal them."

After so many years, clashing had become second nature.

Since he was expelled from his Shanghai school for fighting, transferred to Yuncheng high school, and finally enjoyed a quiet year. But good times never last—his first choice, Beijing, was rejected; his second, Shanghai, accepted.

Perhaps the drama of his eighteen years was about to replay.

He would never forget the slap Tang Jingguo gave him before leaving Shanghai for Yuncheng. The force was so great, he thought his eardrum had ruptured.

"One day you'll be at odds with him too!"