Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan
After lunch with Le Yao and Tongzi, we headed to the nameless inn where the owner, still sitting at the front desk smoking, wore a look of desolation. He was about to bid farewell to the inn that had been his companion for five years.
Le Yao, still wearing sunglasses and a mask, stood by my side, while Tongzi lingered behind us, as if afraid of being pricked by Le Yao's starlight.
Surveying the inn, I finally said to him, "I've decided to take over the inn."
He nodded, pulled out a transfer contract from the drawer, and said to me, "Sign it if you find the terms agreeable."
I looked over the contract. It was straightforward, simply stating that I needed to pay a one-time transfer fee of 50,000 yuan.
Communication with such a person didn't require superfluous words. Understanding the contract, I immediately signed my name on it.
He handed me a copy of the contract, and Le Yao, standing behind me, paid the 50,000 yuan transfer fee. He lit another cigarette for himself and didn't even glance at the inn again. Silently, he dragged a suitcase from under the desk and walked towards the outside, stopping only in front of the guitar hanging by the door.
Approaching him with goodwill, I said, "If this guitar carries your past, you can take it with you."
He shook his head and replied, "No need. Maybe one day she will come back, and the guitar will tell her: I waited here."
"Then leave a way to contact you, in case she does come back and wants to find you!"
"The moment I decided to leave Xitang, whether she can find me or not became unimportant."
"Is this a kind of giving up?"
He didn't speak for a long time, then silently dragged his suitcase towards the Xitang River, his figure seeming to dissolve into the water.
***
The innkeeper left just like that. I only heard the bar owner, A Feng, call him Kang Kang, whether it was a nickname or a real name, I wasn't sure. But our fates had intersected because of this inn. He chose to give up, while I saw the inn as the starting point for my dreams.
The entire afternoon, Tongzi and I took inventory of Kang Kang's belongings and recorded them. Le Yao also helped with what she could. Soon, night fell.
After eating out together, Tongzi returned to the inn first, while Le Yao and I strolled by the riverside of Xitang in the evening leisure.
"Zhao Yang, are you going to stay in Xitang for the whole year?"
I nodded.
"Not bad… After all, it's close to Suzhou, just an hour's trip to get back."
"Why bring up Suzhou?"
"Because there's someone in Suzhou you can't stop thinking about."
I remained silent, unsure if the phrase 'can't stop thinking about' was an exaggeration.
"I'm curious, did you contact Mi Cai later?"
"I did."
After a pause, Le Yao smiled and asked, "What did you talk about?"
"She asked if I would return to Suzhou."
"And how did you respond?"
"I said no."
"What did she say?"
"She said she understood."
Le Yao looked at me, then nudged me, saying, "Go on, tell me more!"
"That's all there is to it, nothing more to say."
Le Yao, half-serious, half-joking, suddenly blurted out, "That's it? I thought Mi Cai was going to break up with you!"
"We've already broken up, is there any need to emphasize it again?"
"Of course, the reason neither of you wants to say those two words is that neither wants to break up. It's just that something is holding you back, leading to the situation today!"
I looked at Le Yao, wondering when the usually forthright her became so sensitive, but this sensitivity made me uncomfortable, feeling as if I were transparent in front of her, losing all depth.
Le Yao then said to me, "That day Mi Cai came to Beijing to find me. I kept a cold face and didn't want to deal with her, giving her curt responses. If it weren't for CC's sake, I would've had my agent send her away."
"Why treat her like that?"
Le Yao laughed, looking at me, "See, you still care about her, after all, the subconscious doesn't lie."
I realized Le Yao had been testing me and decided to deflect this uncomfortable topic with a joke.
"Isn't she your fan? A mature film and television star should be polite to her fans!"
"Pfft!"
Le Yao quickened her pace and walked ahead, while I continued to amble along, my mind occupied with certain thoughts.
Le Yao had found a spot with steps by the riverbank and sat down. I joined her, looking at her slender figure reflected on the water, a strange emotion rising within me, and I asked, "What about you, have you found someone?"
"Love is a luxury in our line of work."
"There is true love in the entertainment industry, like…" I stopped, suddenly remembering that the celebrity couple I was about to mention had recently divorced.
"Like who?"
"Uh… There's true love in every circle, you have to believe that."
Le Yao didn't respond to my words, her gaze lost on the river surface. At that moment, I could vaguely see a sense of bewilderment on her face, bewilderment about love.
***
After a long silence, I finally broke it, "Can I borrow your phone?"
"What for?"
"I've been out for several days, need to call my parents, let them know I'm safe."
Le Yao took out her phone from her pocket and handed it to me.
After hiding the caller ID, I dialed Mr. Ban's number, and he picked up shortly after.
"Mr. Ban, it's your son."
"Mhm, where are you now?"
"…Shenzhen, back in Shenzhen."
"What are you wandering around for? If you can't stay in Suzhou, come back to Xuzhou."
Hearing Mr. Ban's angry words, I suddenly realized that something must have happened during my absence.
"Why suddenly ask me to return to Xuzhou? You always supported me staying in Suzhou!"
Mr. Ban, ignoring my question, authoritatively asked, "Why is there no caller ID on your call? Where are you really?"
I braced myself and replied, "Uh… some phones don't show caller ID!"
"Find a phone with a caller ID and call me back." Mr. Ban hung up immediately after speaking.
Stunned by the dial tone, I suddenly felt that telling him I was in Xitang wouldn't be a problem. Why had I gone to the trouble of telling him I was going to Guangzhou?
Could it be that deep down, I hoped Mi Cai would ask Mr. Ban about me, hence the lie about Guangzhou?
Is it possible that I wasn't truly desperate about her, but left in a huff?
I didn't want to think further, as finding a phone with a Shenzhen caller ID to call Mr. Ban back was the immediate priority.