The morning sunlight streamed through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a warm glow on the pure white dining table. Mi Cai and I sat opposite each other, chatting while enjoying our breakfast.

Mi Cai placed her half-eaten red bean cake onto my plate, exclaiming, “It’s too sweet!”

Even in the past, I didn’t mind eating her leftovers. Picking up the cake that had been bitten into a crescent shape, I chuckled and said, “How can you turn everything you eat into a work of art? Open your mouth and let me see, how are your teeth shaped?”

Mi Cai opened her mouth to show me her teeth.

I sighed in admiration, “They’re quite neat. How come everything you bite into turns out twisted?”

“Can you bite into something and make it straight?”

Immediately, I bit off two corners of the crescent-shaped cake, transforming it into a rectangle. I showed it to her and said, “See, isn’t this straight?”

“Maybe because your teeth are twisted, that’s why you bite into things and they turn out straight!”

I was rendered speechless by Mi Cai’s robust logic. I swallowed the remaining red bean cake and chose to remain silent.

……

As we were about to finish breakfast, I asked Mi Cai, “What do you want for lunch? I can go buy it and cook.”

Mi Cai shook her head, “I have to go to Shanghai soon. There’s a board meeting in the afternoon.”

Feeling a bit disappointed, I asked, “Will you be back tonight?”

“I’m not sure yet. If there’s a dinner party, I won’t be able to come back.”

“Oh, drive slowly on the road then. We’ll get in touch tonight.”

“Okay. Will you be lonely today?”

“Lonely? There’s no such thing as loneliness in my life…”

“Can I interpret that as your so-called pretentiousness?”

Seeing Mi Cai’s serious expression, I couldn’t help but laugh. Then I said, “Indeed, it’s a manifestation of pretentiousness. But you should stop using this term… It doesn’t suit your temperament!”

Mi Cai shook her head, “Whatever you say, I’ll learn.”

“Better learn the good stuff!”

“Good or bad, I’ll learn… Or you can stop the bad ones!”

I chuckled, “Are you setting a trap for me to jump into?”

“Are you going to jump?”

“I’ll selectively jump. I won’t jump into deep pits, afraid of breaking my legs!”

“If you break your leg, I’ll take care of you. So jump without worries!”

Without thinking, I retorted, “Who needs you to take care of me!”

Mi Cai looked at me, remained silent for a while, then picked up her plate and walked towards the kitchen. I followed her into the kitchen, stood behind her, hugged her, and laid her down on my lap. I “threatened” her, “I’m telling you, you’re not allowed to sulk at me!”

I had done similar things to Mi Cai before. Last time, she didn’t react well, but this time, she looked at me with a mix of laughter and tears, “If I sulk at you, you’ll do this to me?”

I helped her up and grinned, “If I don’t punish you a little, should I kiss you instead?”

Mi Cai dodged me, checked the time, and said, “I’m not playing with you anymore. I have to go to Shanghai. You wash the dishes.”

“Isn’t the meeting in the afternoon?”

“The roads are congested during the New Year. By the time I get there, it’ll be noon. After having lunch, it’ll be afternoon!”

“That makes sense. Then you go ahead, be careful on the road.”

Mi Cai nodded, but as she was about to leave, she suddenly kissed my cheek. I was taken aback, and before I could react, she had already grabbed her bag and got into her car.

Watching her car gradually disappear from my sight, I kept asking myself: Is it really okay for me to be a househusband and let you support me? Is it really okay?

After washing the dishes, I left Mi Cai’s place and spent the morning wandering around by myself. Just as I was wondering how to spend the afternoon, I unexpectedly received a call from Le Yao. She had returned from her vacation in Lijiang and invited me out.

I indeed needed to have a good talk with her, about the bar.

……

At two in the afternoon, in the “Sea View Coffee” next to the Zhuomei Shopping Center, Le Yao and I sat opposite each other. I was drinking tea, and she was having coffee.

We first talked about her experiences and insights in Lijiang, then the conversation shifted to the bar.

Le Yao took out a large envelope from her bag and said to me, “Zhao Yang, this is the red envelope I promised to give you a few days ago.”

I picked up the envelope and saw that it contained about a hundred thousand yuan in cash. I took out twenty thousand from it and said, “This twenty thousand is my salary for the past two months. I’ll accept this.”

Le Yao insisted on giving me the envelope again, “Take it, or I won’t feel at ease.”

“You’re the boss, you’ve paid the salary you should pay. What’s there to feel uneasy about?”

Le Yao was silent for a long time before saying, “This bar… it ruined your life in Xuzhou… I’m sorry!”

“If you want to account for my life in Xuzhou, then we really can’t settle the score!… Let’s not talk about this. I have something important to discuss with you.”

Le Yao looked at me and nodded.

“Yesterday, I announced on Weibo that The Fifth Season will operate on a membership basis. The customers are very supportive and are willing to apply for VIP cards. It’s inevitable that the bar will get back on track. So, I plan to find an experienced bar manager to manage the bar soon, and I won’t be involved anymore…”

Before I could finish, Le Yao interrupted, “I know you want to leave, but why so soon?”I smiled and replied, “For a new life…”

“What kind of new life?”

After a brief silence, I said to Le Yao, “What if I told you… I’m in love with Mi Cai… would you believe me?”

Le Yao looked surprised, but she said, “Why wouldn’t I believe it? I know she’s always liked you, CC said the same.”

But I asked Le Yao without confidence, “Do you think we’re a good match?”

“I just hope you can be happy and joyful. As for which woman you’re with, I don’t really care, so there’s no such thing as a good or bad match.”

I felt something was off about Le Yao’s words. I changed my sitting position and said, “Why do I feel like you’re mocking me for being fickle?”

“Of course not!”

“Then talk to me seriously.”

Le Yao shook her head and smiled, “Alright, let’s talk seriously… You’re feeling particularly insecure now, aren’t you?”

“You’re right.”

“Do you feel like you’re living too awkwardly, feeling like you’re her burden and hindrance?”

“Yes, that’s exactly how I feel. How great it would be if I were rich. Today she gives me an Armani suit, tomorrow I can give her a Chanel outfit in return. The day after tomorrow, if she dares to give me Versace, the day after that I’ll give her…”

Le Yao looked at me with a half-smile and asked, “Give her what?”

“Directly give her a Ferrari!”

Le Yao finally burst into laughter and asked, “Is this a love relationship or a competition?”

“It’s really not a competition. I’m just using this example to hope that we can maintain a balance between us. Really, I feel like I desperately need this balance!”

Le Yao stopped laughing and said seriously, “Zhao Yang, I think the shadow Jian Wei left on you is really too heavy. You don’t have to be like this. You should know: not all women will demand high standards from you like Jian Wei… at least I won’t.”

—————-

Let’s interact a bit. If you were Zhao Yang, how would you choose to face your love with Mi Cai? Would you be at peace, or would you be uneasy? Or perhaps you have other feelings, feel free to express them. I’ll be paying attention to the comments section these few days.