Upon arriving at KFC, I found a seat and sat down, while Wei Xiao went to order food. After a while, he came back with a tray of food and returned the unused 30-plus yuan to me.
It wasn’t mealtime yet, and given my complicated emotions, I didn’t feel like eating. So, I started chatting with Wei Xiao.
During our conversation, I learned that Wei Xiao was now living with his grandfather, and their daily life was maintained by his uncles. Their life was hard and difficult.
After hearing his story, my mood became heavier. I felt more sympathy for Wei Xiao’s painful fate. He himself didn’t have the ability to fight against his destiny. The only consolation was that he was still a cheerful child, not closing off his childhood due to the unfairness of fate.
I gave my portion of food to Wei Xiao and bought him a family bucket. I told him, “I’m leaving first. You eat slowly, and go home after you finish. Don’t play too much, understand?”
“Oh, okay… Zhao Yang, you’re a good person. I lost to you, and you still treat me to food.”
I smiled and said, “Call me uncle in the future, don’t call me by my name, it’s impolite!”
“I’m already in fourth grade, I’m not a kid. I’ll call you big brother in the future.”
I had to rush to supervise the bar renovation and didn’t have time to continue the conversation. I nodded and said, “Calling me big brother is fine.”
“Can I race with you next time?”
“Forget about racing, but if you want to eat KFC or McDonald’s in the future, you can call me, I’ll treat you.” I said, taking out a piece of paper and a pen from my bag and leaving my phone number for Wei Xiao.
Wei Xiao took the note from my hand and said to me seriously, “When I have money, I will also treat you and that referee sister to KFC.”
I just smiled at Wei Xiao’s promise and didn’t take it to heart. After reminding him not to play too much, I left KFC.
…
Thanks to my daily supervision, the renovation of the bar was progressing quickly. At the current pace, it would be ready to reopen in less than a week. Therefore, efficiently conveying the information about the bar’s reopening to potential customers became an urgent matter.
Amid the noise of the renovation, I kept thinking. One plan after another formed in my mind, only to be abandoned due to the difficulty of implementation. Time passed in this way, and soon it was 7:30 in the evening. According to the gathering time given by Mi Cai, it was time for me to go to CC’s “Empty City” restaurant.
I took a taxi to CC’s restaurant. On the way, my mind was immersed in guessing the gender of Mi Cai’s friend. The more I thought about it, the more uncomfortable I felt, because my intuition told me that her friend must be a male. There is a rule that women who are beautiful to a certain extent often have few female friends around them, but many male friends, because the same sex will be jealous, while the opposite sex will be irresistibly attracted.
Take Robben as an example, such a proud man, such a thoughtful folk singer, even agreed to sing a nauseating love song with Mi Cai at her invitation.
Lost in thought, the taxi had already brought me to my destination. I got out of the car and checked the time. It was just 7:50, so I assumed Mi Cai hadn’t arrived yet. I walked alone through the dark alley to the “Empty City” music restaurant.
Upon entering, CC was still singing on the stage for the customers, with Robben accompanying her in the background. Seeing this, I felt happy for CC. Since Le Yao’s bar needed help, her time with Robben had greatly increased. This made me believe that subtle changes would eventually lead to a qualitative change. If one day they could become husband and wife, it would make many people believe in the purity of love again, because they, being unique, would never measure love and marriage with material things.
I found an empty seat and sat down, watching Robben and CC on the stage. I couldn’t help but think of my other friends in Suzhou. It seemed that Circle and Xiang Chen symbolized the reality of society, while CC and Robben represented a kind of idealism. Finally, I thought of Le Yao, who was far away in Beijing. I could see the reality of society and the longing for sentimentality in her. She seemed like a combination of the two. These three types of friends showed me the many facets of survival. They influenced me in various ways, which made me even more confused about what kind of person I was. But one thing was certain: I hadn’t been living happily these years!
After CC and Robben finished a song, they came and sat down next to me. CC smiled at me and said, “Zhao Yang, you came quite early. Are you eager to meet Mi’s friend?”
“Not really.” I paused and then asked, “Do you know anything about her friend?”
CC smiled meaningfully and said, “Mi and I are best friends who share everything. She tells me everything, including some things you don’t know.”
“Really?”CC looked at me with a playful smile and asked, “Don’t you want to know whether her friend is a male or a female?”
“What difference does it make if they’re just friends?”
Ignoring my response, CC turned to Robben and asked, “Did you pick up anything from Zhao Yang’s words?”
Robben glanced at me, flicked the ash off his cigarette, and succinctly said, “Guilty.”
“What are you two playing at? Are you ganging up on me? …Both of you are crazy, who’s feeling guilty!” I tried to flick the ash off my cigarette but ended up missing the ashtray.
This action made Robben and CC exchange a smile. In their eyes, my guilt was already a foregone conclusion.
I didn’t bother to engage with them anymore, just silently smoking my cigarette. As time passed, I became more and more concerned about the so-called “male or female” issue, but I was too embarrassed to ask CC for confirmation. I felt so uncomfortable, as if every second was dragging on forever.
CC deliberately avoided talking about Mi Cai and her friend, instead, she started talking about Le Yao. She asked me, “Zhao Yang, has Le Yao been in touch with you recently?”
“We didn’t chat much, just exchanged a few text messages.”
“What did she say?”
I thought for a moment and replied, “She mentioned that her new drama will be broadcast on various TV stations after the New Year.”
“Satellite TV?”
I shook my head, “She didn’t say, but palace dramas are usually big productions, so the platform shouldn’t be too bad, especially since there are several big names involved.”
CC sighed, “I really hope she can prove herself with this drama. She’s had a tough time! There was a scene where she had to jump into a lake at night. To ensure the effect, she refused to use a stunt double and ended up with a high fever for several days. She’s really pushing herself!”
“When did this happen? Why didn’t I know?”
Robben took over the conversation, “I know about this. It happened when she first joined the crew.”
“Just joined the crew!” I exclaimed, then suddenly remembered that she had just had an abortion less than a month ago. She was really playing with her own health! …I suddenly understood why she was so keen on opening a bar. She was just looking for another safety net for her life because her struggle in the entertainment industry was too hard.
I fell silent because of Le Yao’s pain. In the midst of my silence, the restaurant door was opened. CC nudged me and said, “Zhao Yang, Mi Cai and her friend are here!”