After much deliberation, I sent Mi Cai a WeChat message: “What’s your view on marriage?”

I put my phone aside, took a drag of my cigarette, and then said to Robben, “Marriage is too distant for me before my life is stable.”

Robben nodded and said, “I never thought about it before either. But this time when I returned to Beijing and saw my parents, I suddenly realized they’ve aged. I can’t describe the feeling. I should have been giving back to them all these years, but I never did…”

After finishing his sentence, Robben tilted his head back and exhaled a heavy puff of smoke. In the curling smoke, it seemed as if I could see his guilt and regret.

Robben’s compromise made sense. After all, we can’t resist the pressure of time, and love is always elusive. In the end, we just settle for someone and live with our mistakes.

In the silence between Robben and me, Mi Cai finally replied to my message. She asked me, “Why are you suddenly asking this?”

I stared at the message for a long time. The word “marriage” must be foreign to her as well, so she chose to throw the ball back in my court.

So, without getting a response, I tactfully didn’t press further. I just replied with a casual “Just asking” and told her to rest early. But I knew in my heart that on the long journey of love, we still had a long way to go to adjust to each other…

…

Time continued to move forward. Tomorrow was the day of Mi Zhongde’s birthday banquet. I spent the entire night in anxiety. In reality, I wasn’t mentally prepared to attend the banquet as Mi Cai’s boyfriend. I was sure I would inevitably be asked questions like what I do for a living, which would be awkward for both Mi Cai and me.

Unable to sleep, I made myself a cup of tea and opened my laptop to browse job postings on various websites. In the past few days, I had returned the management of the “Fifth Season” bar to Le Yao. She efficiently found a bar manager to take over, so I, temporarily free again, started preparing to find a new job.

After sending out resumes to a few companies, I finally closed my laptop. It was already midnight. I lay back in bed and habitually picked up my phone, only to find a WeChat message from Mi Cai that I hadn’t read. She asked me to get up early tomorrow to help her prepare a birthday gift for Mi Zhongde.

I replied with a “No problem”. Mi Cai quickly responded, “Why haven’t you gone to bed yet?”

“I’m not sleepy yet. Aren’t you still up too?”

“I’m working on Zhuomei’s work plan for the first quarter of this year. I’ll go to bed soon.”

“Okay, see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow.”

I sighed inexplicably, put my phone back on the bedside table, and lit my last cigarette before bed. But my suppressed emotions didn’t ease. I felt torn in half, half of me longing to complete the adjustment of love sooner, and the other half helpless about this terrible situation. It was a terrible feeling, so I had insomnia that night!

…

Even though I had insomnia, I still got up early the next day at the sound of the alarm. But due to the extreme lack of sleep, I seemed a bit listless.

After washing up, I found a decent suit in the closet to put on and then made breakfast. A moment later, Mi Cai came over.

From the moment she walked through the door, I was watching her. She didn’t make any special effort to dress up today, just wearing the professional attire she usually wears to work.

“We’re going to your uncle’s birthday banquet today. There will be many socialites there. Aren’t you going to dress up?”

Mi Cai shook her head to indicate it wasn’t necessary and said to me, “Let’s hurry up and have breakfast. We’re short on time. We need to get to Shanghai before noon.”

Of course, I knew that Mi Cai didn’t dress up to accommodate me. It wouldn’t be right for two people holding hands, one plain and the other glamorous.

My sense of burden grew heavier, and I struggled intensely. After all, she is the CEO of Zhuomei, and such attire is definitely inappropriate. But… I was having a hard time getting over it!

At this moment, I understood more deeply that no matter how perfect you imagine love to be, you can’t escape the cage of reality. Because no one can live outside of society, you have to abide by the rules of the real world.

Finally, with a forced smile, I said to Mi Cai, “Could you help me buy a suit later?”

Mi Cai was a bit surprised, but she quickly understood what I meant and nodded.

I was grateful that she didn’t ask “why”, which spared me some of the sense of loss that came with compromise. But it was only a little less, and I still felt lost inside.

…

After breakfast, Mi Cai and I went to the mall together. She bought me a Burberry suit and a gift for Mi Zhongde. Then we drove to Shanghai together.

About an hour later, we arrived at Mi Zhongde’s villa in Shanghai. The banquet at noon was a family gathering, attended by Mi Zhongde’s family members. The banquet in the evening was for friends and some core members of Zhuomei.

Mi Cai parked the car outside the gate and waited for it to open. I instinctively looked into the yard, which was filled with all kinds of luxury cars. It seemed that there were quite a few relatives attending the family banquet, so I couldn’t help but feel the pressure.After weighing the options, I finally said to Mi Cai beside me, “How about I skip the family lunch today and join everyone for the dinner tonight?”

“Why?”

I was silent for a while before honestly saying, “I’m not mentally prepared yet, and I don’t have the confidence to face your family as your boyfriend.”

Mi Cai asked somewhat displeased, “So, are you my boyfriend or not?”

“Yes, I am. That’s why I can’t let you be embarrassed. If your family asks about my job, it would be hard for me to answer. I believe they would also find it hard to accept my current jobless situation.”

“Why do you have to link our relationship with your job?”

“If you could put yourself in my shoes, I believe you would understand.”

In the midst of their argument, the nanny had already opened the gate, but Mi Cai didn’t drive in. She looked at me with a complex expression.

Suddenly, a horn sounded from behind the car. Both of them instinctively turned around to see a white R8 blocked behind them. Then, a young woman in her twenties, wearing a red coat, got out of the car.

Mi Cai said to me, “That’s my sister.”

“Mi Zhongde’s daughter!” I muttered to myself, unable to resist taking another look.