Chapter 27 p1
Silence spread between the two of them.
Xu Qingtang awkwardly put down the two items, feeling that she couldn’t be too passive. Otherwise, Gu Yizhi would probably think that her watching the sunrise today was fake, and that she really wanted to do it with her.
“Um… I didn’t know your friend was talking about this…”
After speaking, she picked up the clothes and said, “I’ll change first. You can blow-dry your hair.” With that, she rushed into the bathroom again.
The bathroom was foggy. When Xu Qingtang came out after changing, her face was flushed from the steam. Gu Yizhi was already blow-drying her hair. Xu Qingtang walked to the door. “I’m going out for a while. If you’re hungry, you can eat something first.”
Gu Yizhi stopped the hairdryer. “I’ll go with you.”
“No need, just for a while,” Xu Qingtang had already put on her shoes. “The hotel has umbrellas for rent. It’s fine.”
Gu Yizhi gave up and reminded her, “Your phone.”
Xu Qingtang had a sudden realization, took her phone, and walked out the door.
About ten minutes later, Xu Qingtang pushed the door open and came in, a little cold, and holding a medicine bag in her hand.
She placed the things on the table, flicked the raindrops from her hair with her fingers, and said, “Have you eaten? Take some medicine, don’t get sick again.”
Gu Yizhi looked at her and smiled.
Xu Qingtang turned around. “What are you laughing at? If it weren’t for the fact that you carried me down, I wouldn’t care if you died of illness.”
Gu Yizhi smiled and waved at her. “To repay Miss Xu’s kindness, how about I help you blow-dry your hair?”
Xu Qingtang sat down without any politeness. “I deserve this.”
Gu Yizhi parted her hair. Xu Qingtang had a good posture, her neck was like a swan’s, slender and graceful. Seeing that she hadn’t moved for a long time, Xu Qingtang asked with confusion, “What’s wrong?”
“Is this a birthmark?”
Xu Qingtang felt Gu Yizhi’s finger touch a certain spot and immediately understood. “Yes, my mom has one too. I used to think it was ugly and wanted to get a tattoo to cover it up.”
Gu Yizhi: “What did you want to tattoo?”
Xu Qingtang recalled, “Seaweed.”
Gu Yizhi turned on the hairdryer, and the cool wind blew out slowly. “Why seaweed? I thought it would be something like a butterfly.”
“I did think about that, but a lot of people have that tattoo, so I wanted to get something different.”
“Then why didn’t you get it?”
“I don’t really remember. Anyway, I didn’t get it in the end, and it’s a good thing I didn’t,” Xu Qingtang twirled her phone in her palm. “You’re not allowed to have tattoos in this line of work.”
The two of them chatted idly, and the sound of rain pattered outside.
Xu Qingtang could feel Gu Yizhi’s fingers running through her hair, and her neck and earlobes were occasionally touched, whether intentionally or not, creating a warmth in the cool wind.
Xu Qingtang couldn’t help but turn back to look, and her eyes met Gu Yizhi’s. The two of them looked at each other, and the halo of the recessed lights behind them gradually grew larger. Xu Qingtang felt that the outline in front of her was becoming more and more blurry.
In the end, it was Gu Yizhi who kissed her first.
Xu Qingtang tilted her head up to respond.
The kiss ended with Xu Qingtang gently biting Gu Yizhi.
Xu Qingtang pushed Gu Yizhi away, motioned for her to take her medicine, and then said, “I still have to go to the theater this afternoon.”
The implication was that they couldn’t do it.
Gu Yizhi put the hairdryer back in its place and looked at Xu Qingtang very seriously. “Kissing isn’t necessarily for making love.”
Xu Qingtang was stunned for a moment, and inexplicably felt a little pleased. She kicked the leg of the bed with her heel and said, “Who’s talking about that? I’m telling you to take your medicine.”
The rain gradually subsided around noon. The two of them drove back from South Mountain, and Xu Qingtang went directly to the theater. Before leaving, she turned back to look at Gu Yizhi. “Remember to take your medicine.”
Gu Yizhi first said, “Okay,” then said, “Not okay.”
Xu Qingtang held the car door. “So is it okay or not?”
Gu Yizhi: “I’m forgetful.”
Xu Qingtang narrowed her eyes. “So?”
Gu Yizhi: “You have to remind me.”
Xu Qingtang slammed the car door shut. “Take it or leave it. If you die of illness, so be it.”
Just as Xu Qingtang arrived at the theater, her senior apprentice-sister had just finished a performance. She was panting backstage, fanning herself with a fan.
She opened her phone and saw her colleagues in the group chat forming a welcoming line. She asked, “Is there a new person?”
“Yes,” her senior apprentice-sister caught her breath and whispered in Xu Qingtang’s ear, “An intern here. A little puppy, very handsome.”
Xu Qingtang wasn’t interested in whether he was a puppy or not. She symbolically welcomed him in the group chat with her colleagues. Her mind, however, was on Gu Yizhi. She should take her medicine obediently, right?
Although she said that, Xu Qingtang still sent a message to Gu Yizhi in the evening. After sending it, she added, “A good deed a day. Don’t misunderstand.”
The weekend passed. Xu Qingtang accompanied Teacher Qi to the hospital to get her medicine. She had wanted Teacher Qi to have another check-up, but Teacher Qi was not very willing. “I’m much better now. I’ve already made plans with your Auntie Zhou to go for a walk this afternoon. Maybe next month.”
Xu Qingtang couldn’t persuade her, so she had to agree.
While queuing at the window to pay, Xu Qingtang suddenly heard an argument not far away. She turned her head to see two men, one of whom looked a little familiar.
“There’s nothing between me and Xiao Wan. We’re just putting on a show for my mom. Don’t you know that?”
“Yes, now you’re putting on a show for your mom. What if she asks you to get married? Xiao Wan won’t marry you. What about someone else? You want me to watch you be with someone else? Then what am I?”
“Lower your voice. Don’t make a scene, okay? My mom is in this state. If I don’t get a girlfriend, she won’t get proper treatment. I won’t marry anyone else, that’s why I asked Xiao Wan to help me act. Otherwise, who else could I ask? Just bear with it. After this is over, I…”
The rest of the words were inaudible because Xu Qingtang had to go and get the medicine after paying.
Teacher Qi had been silent all along. She only spoke after getting the medicine. “Qingtang, I’m going up to see your Auntie Xu.”
Xu Qingtang thought for a moment, agreed, and said, “I’m going out to buy some fruit. Mom, you can go up first. I’ll be back soon.”
There were many vendors selling fruit in carts at the hospital entrance. Xu Qingtang bought some. Just as she was paying, a female voice sounded from behind her. “Qingtang?”
Xu Qingtang turned around in confusion. Jiang Wan had just gotten out of a car, dressed very sexily. She glanced at the fruit in her hand. “Do you live nearby, or are you visiting someone? Or are you sick? Why isn’t Gu Yizhi with you?”
“It’s a gift,” Xu Qingtang said, puzzled. “Why would she be with me?”
Jiang Wan was stunned for a moment, then couldn’t help but laugh. After laughing, she waved her hand and said, “It’s nothing, it’s nothing. I was just saying.”
Hearing the nasal tone in her voice, Xu Qingtang asked, “Are you sick?”
“Yes, my employee had a cold and infected me,” Jiang Wan came closer, her manner familiar. “Let’s go in together. By the way, why haven’t you guys been to the bar recently? Our bar is having an event recently, the third anniversary. Qingtang, you and Tangtang have to come and support me.”
“I’ve been a little busy recently.”
“No matter how busy you are, you have to relax. Especially her. Haven’t you noticed her dark circles are getting worse? You have to balance work and rest.”
…
