Coveted for a Long Time 26

Chapter 26

Gradually and imperceptibly, starting from some unknown day, Qiao Xi began frequently running into Fu Bei at Cafeteria One.

The middle and high school sections of Jiang City International were separated and quite far apart. There were various cafeterias scattered across the campus, so middle and high school students rarely crossed paths during meals.

At first, Fu Bei would bring one or two classmates along, but gradually, she started coming alone.

Qiao Xi didn’t ask anything. She went to the cafeteria punctually every day, got her food, and waited in her usual area. The high school teaching building area was about ten minutes away from here, so Fu Bei always arrived around 12:30.

Aside from this one change, nothing else was different. Every day after school, Chen Shuo would still come over with various snacks, but as midterms approached, he stopped giving them and no longer followed them.

At that time, Zhuang Qiyang had just met Fu Bei. Qiao Xi accidentally overheard him say, “That kid got hurt thoroughly before he even confessed. Miserable, truly miserable.”

Youthful, ignorant love often ends without a result. Sad for a while, thinking the sky is falling, but in reality, it’s just a scratch. Once the emotions settle, it passes. When Chen Shuo appeared again, he was back to his usual self, only he no longer tried to curry favor with Fu Bei.

Qiao Xi still couldn’t figure out this thing called feelings. In the car, she asked Fu Bei, “What happened between you and Chen Shuo?”

Fu Bei said lightly, “Nothing much.”

“Did he want to be with you?” The child spoke without inhibition, daring to say anything.

Actually, these words didn’t come from her but from Zhao Shihuan.

Fu Bei probably didn’t like hearing this, or perhaps it was just too strange coming from a twelve-year-old. Her dark eyes narrowed as she asked back, “Who told you that?”

“No one.”

Qiao Xi wasn’t very good at lying. She couldn’t help but look away, not daring to meet Fu Bei’s eyes.

For no reason, Fu Bei, just like Zhao Shihuan, ruffled her hair and said, “Focus on your studies; don’t let your mind wander all day.”

Qiao Xi didn’t dodge resistantly, but her back straightened, her spine stiff.

Kids nowadays matured early. Even in junior high, there were many secretly dating. They understood a lot of things, just too shy to say them out loud because of their age. Qiao Xi had long understood Chen Shuo’s feelings for Fu Bei. She felt it wasn’t her own wild imagination; it was Chen Shuo who had a problem. Being in a critical period of study, he was affecting himself and Fu Bei.

Strangely enough, after this time, similar things seemed to never happen around Fu Bei again. Most likely, Grandpa Fu had sounded a warning, forbidding involvement in such nonsense.

Later, Fu Bei chose to stay in the country for her studies. It wasn’t that she didn’t admire foreign education; studying abroad was the trend at the time. Many students at Jiang City International went abroad after finishing junior high, while some chose to go after high school. China only had a few schools ranked internationally. For better educational resources, those with the means would definitely choose stronger schools.

Qiao Xi thought this person would choose to study abroad and couldn’t figure out why not.

Fu Bei had many reasons for staying in the country: the old lady was getting old, family matters, and her own preference to stay in Jiang City. She was directly recommended for admission to the Mathematics Department of Jiang City University.

At that time, the university town had only been built for a few years. For development, the government vigorously supported education, putting full effort into promoting the construction of several universities represented by Jiang City University.

In her memory, those one or two years passed exceptionally fast, so fast that Qiao Xi didn’t have a deep impression, not even remembering if Qiao Jianliang and Mother Qiao had any fierce arguments.

Jiang University was only a ten-minute drive from Jiang City International. One day, Qiao Xi ran to Jiang University to see Fu Bei, calling her to pick her up at the school gate.

That day, after eating inside Jiang University, it was already dark. Fu Bei was walking her back. Passing by the flowerbed at the school’s back gate, a cat’s meow came from the dense bushes. The sound was very strange, vastly different from the meows usually heard.

Qiao Xi was curious and stopped to look carefully, but Fu Bei pulled her away.

“Don’t look.”

“There’s a cat there, meowing so miserably.”

Fu Bei’s expression shifted slightly. She hesitated, seemingly wanting to explain but stopped herself, pulling Qiao Xi far away.

The high-pitched, somewhat miserable meowing only lasted for a moment. Qiao Xi looked back and saw two spotted cats run out of the bushes one after another, the smaller, thinner one chasing the fat one relentlessly.

They took a taxi back to the compound. The lights in the taxi were off, making it dark. The driver didn’t talk much, focusing on driving, not saying a word after asking where they were going.

Qiao Xi sat close to Fu Bei’s arm, intentionally closing the distance.

The car was too quiet. She turned her head and asked, “You’re going back to the compound. No class tomorrow?”

Fu Bei: “Have class.”

“Then why go back?”

The person didn’t answer, perhaps finding her annoying. Leaning back against the seat and closing her eyes, they drove for a while. Streetlights stood on both sides of the road. The light fell through the lush maple trees, projecting into the car window and illuminating her distinct profile, soft and quiet.

Qiao Xi couldn’t help but take a few more looks, averting her gaze, then stealing another peek a moment later.

Fu Bei seemed unaware of her little actions. After a long while, she replied, “Only from the second period. Going back to school in the morning.”

She gave an “Oh” and turned her head to look at the street scene flashing by. Sitting in the car, she couldn’t hear the sounds from afar. The street seemed empty and lonely, but it wasn’t; countless people were coming and going, surely very lively.

Qiao Xi fidgeted uncomfortably, not staying put at all. She got closer and closer to Fu Bei. When the other party opened her eyes, she suddenly whispered, “Just now behind the banyan tree at your school gate, I saw two people hugging each other, hugging so tight.”

Fu Bei turned to look at her, listening to what she had to say.

Qiao Xi continued, “The straight-haired one was eating the curly-haired one’s mouth.”

The child’s phrasing was unusual—straight hair and curly hair, eating mouth instead of kissing or making out.

Perhaps Fu Bei didn’t understand, or perhaps she didn’t care, only replying, “Don’t look in the future.”

Actually, Qiao Xi hadn’t finished. She saw far more than that. The straight-haired one was touching the curly-haired one, just like on TV, but even more excessive than on TV. The back gate was pitch dark, with few people around at night, and those two were doing obscene things in the dark.

Lying in bed at night, her mind kept replaying the scene. In her teens, she was thirsty for knowledge, but not the kind found in books. She didn’t understand why those two people would do that, unable to find any reason no matter how much she thought.

Qiao Xi was still a blank sheet of paper, untouched by ink. Yet the first stroke in her life was so bold and colorful. Thinking about it, her heart pounded fiercely. She fell asleep in a daze, vaguely dreaming she was back at the back gate of Jiang University. She pushed aside the bushes and saw the thin spotted cat pressing on the fat spotted cat’s back, opening its mouth to bite the fat cat’s neck. Strangely, the fat cat didn’t resist.

The scene changed. The fat spotted cat ran away to the banyan tree.

The straight-haired one was there, holding the curly-haired one’s waist, the other hand climbing up…

**

Then Qiao Xi woke up.

The TV drama was so boring she actually fell asleep watching it. She gathered herself, moving her stiff and sore waist, and got up to turn off the TV.

Rubbing the space between her eyebrows, she recalled the dream just now. She couldn’t remember the specific scenes clearly, but vaguely remembered it had happened before. Maybe she was really too tired recently, coupled with messy and annoying things. Too much pressure led to such dreams.

Her phone had long run out of battery and shut down automatically. Returning to her room to charge it, she tidied up and went to bed.

After entering autumn, the weather in Jiang City fluctuated frequently, alternating between cloudy and sunny. The next two days were sunny. Tang Yi’s parents came to Jiang City, and Qiao Xi went to the dinner appointment. Tang Yi’s parents were very nice people, even bringing her a birthday gift. The couple only stayed for two days, not waiting for her birthday.

To express her gratitude, on the day Tang Yi’s parents left Jiang City, Qiao Xi bought a lot of local specialties to give them. Tang Yi was quite moved, praising, “Not bad, you’re truly loyal.”

Driving back to Qijing Street, Qiao Xi saw Fu Bei on the next street.

It was rush hour, and the road was jammed tight. The long line of cars moved slowly, barely advancing a few meters in ages. In front of the Huating Grand Hotel, Fu Bei stood with an old man wearing a Tang suit. The old man’s hair was gray, but he was spirited, his back straight, his expression serious. From his body language, he didn’t seem like a very easygoing person.

Fu Bei appeared to be standing side by side with the old man, but in reality, she was slightly behind, not walking in front, her behavior cautious yet composed.

Qiao Xi guessed the other party was the rumored Second Master Tan. She had thought he would be a vigorous middle-aged man, but he turned out to be quite old.

The traffic moved slowly forward, driving further and further away.

**

To prepare for her birthday, Qiao Xi closed the shop a day early, treating it as a holiday for herself. The sixth fell on a Thursday. On Wednesday, she went to the cemetery to visit the old lady.

Unexpectedly, she met Fu Bei, who was also alone.

Both had bought Birds of Paradise, the old lady’s favorite flower when she was alive.

In front of the old lady’s tomb, both put aside everything for the moment. Fu Bei spoke first, “What made you think of coming over?”

After all, today wasn’t a holiday or a special anniversary.

Qiao Xi bent down to place the flowers, saying, “Had time, so I came.”

The two helped each other light incense for the old lady. The cemetery was empty and silent; hardly anyone came on a workday. Looking around, the mountain was full of standing tombstones and dark green vegetation. The air was filled with the smell of incense, feeling quite desolate.

Qiao Xi was sincere, doing everything quietly and seriously. No matter how many issues lay between them, they naturally wouldn’t talk openly here. After finishing everything, Qiao Xi composed her expression and said, “I didn’t know she was leaving back then. I went to see her the day before, and she was fine, sunbathing on the balcony outside the practice room. I sat with her all afternoon. The senior sisters came too, but didn’t stay long.”

Fu Bei listened quietly, standing in front of her.

“When I was leaving in the evening, she pulled me back, shoved her phone at me, and asked if I could help make a call to you.”

The old lady saw many things clearly and understood everything. Her explanation was incredibly clumsy: “Grandma is old, eyes too blurry to see clearly. Little Xi, can you help me call Little Bei? I haven’t contacted her for a long time.”

Actually, Fu Bei called the old lady often. That speech was just an excuse to trick Qiao Xi.

Worldly affairs are hard to clarify. Fu Bei going abroad was partly due to the old lady, and later it was the old lady trying to reconcile them. Unfortunately, Fu Bei agreed, but Qiao Xi didn’t. Qiao Xi hesitated and ultimately didn’t make that call. She understood many things too. To this day, whether she regretted it or not, she herself wasn’t clear.

Perhaps the old lady had this one regret in her heart, unfulfilled until her last breath. Fu Bei going abroad was indeed advised by the old lady, but she wasn’t a bad person, never was.

When saying these words, Qiao Xi’s tone didn’t fluctuate much, and her face was bland.

She was no longer like when she was a child, readable at a glance. Fu Bei didn’t know what she was really thinking.

Before, Qiao Xi clearly acted as if she held no grudges, hooking Fu Bei into bed. The pleasure wasn’t fake, but the sudden change later, the cruelty, wasn’t fake either. It was impossible to gauge what exactly she was thinking.

Perhaps it was unwillingness, insisting on having it once. Perhaps it was too much indifference, the past no longer mattering, doing whatever she wanted. Perhaps it was just her personality, preferring to hurt herself rather than let the other person feel good…

Fu Bei could have said “I’m sorry,” but she couldn’t open her mouth. An apology wouldn’t work, nor was it needed. She couldn’t explain some things in a few words. Moreover, she made the decision herself; no one held a knife to her neck forcing her. So she had to bear the consequences.

“I should have called you,” Qiao Xi added.

Just a phone call; making it wouldn’t have killed her.

The mountain wind was gentle, blowing comfortably.

“Qiao Xi.” Fu Bei grabbed her arm, afraid she would leave, her thin lips moving. “I looked for you when I returned to the country…”

Qiao Xi remained unmoved. “When? Two years ago?”

She knew everything.

—Two years ago. What was the point of looking then?

**

Jiang City truly entered autumn overnight. The temperature plummeted, suddenly dropping to the teens. This year’s cooling came much earlier than in previous years.

The birthday party venue was set at a daily rental villa in the suburbs. Qiao Xi didn’t want to celebrate at home, too lazy to clean up, nor did she want to end it with a hasty meal. Tang Yi helped choose the place, about a forty-minute drive from Qijing Street.

She didn’t wait for Fu Bei, nor did she tell this person the address.

Friends arrived earlier than Qiao Xi, having already decorated the place. She was used to being alone but didn’t lack friends, having her own social circle.

Not many people came. Zhao Shihuan was the last to arrive; the place wasn’t easy to find.

“Qiao Qiao—” Zhao Shihuan smiled.

“Sister Huan.” Just as Qiao Xi responded, she was suddenly hugged the next moment.

Zhao Shihuan was strong, hooking her and not letting her move.

Qiao Xi was a bit unaccustomed. Before she could move, she inadvertently glanced into the distance. Next to Zhao Shihuan’s Bentley was parked a completely black Maybach.

The car was half-hidden by an old tree, and since many cars were parked there, it wasn’t easy to notice.

Seeing the person getting out of the car, she was stunned.

Zhao Shihuan raised her hand to pat her back, saying, “Twenty-three. Happy Birthday.”