The Early Spring - Chapter 89

Chapter 89 - Old Times

Shang Zhitao found herself struggling to recall what Xin Zhaozhou looked like the last time she saw him.

She could only vaguely remember his sports jersey smelling of sunshine, his sun-bronzed face, and the flash of snow-white teeth whenever he smiled. He, too, had been a male student fondly remembered by many female classmates.

As she led Luan Nian to find Lee, she heard someone behind her call her name: "Shang Zhitao." Turning around, she saw the twenty-year-old Xin Zhaozhou and the twenty-five-year-old Xin Zhaozhou merge together in a bizarre fashion, forming a new person—someone who felt a bit unfamiliar, yet intimately dear to her.

"Xin Zhaozhou." She smiled.

Luan Nian turned around and stood there, one hand shoved in his pocket and the other resting on his suitcase handle, with no intention of speaking. Xin Zhaozhou, however, was polite and said to Shang Zhitao, "Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Oh, right."

"This is my boss, Luke. And this is my... friend, Xin Zhaozhou."

"Isn't he your ex-boyfriend?" Luan Nian exposed her on the spot, intentionally putting her on the spot.

Xin Zhaozhou was a bit taken aback, but he still nodded: "Yes, her ex-boyfriend."

"Go catch up with your ex-boyfriend then. I'll find Lee myself." Noddng to Xin Zhaozhou, Luan Nian turned and walked away. Shang Zhitao's ex-boyfriend isn't bad—in his mid-twenties, the prime of his life. What the fuck does that have to do with me?

Lee picked up Luan Nian. Seeing his gloomy expression, Lee assumed he was dissatisfied with the work of the Guangzhou branch, so he said, "Luke, the issues with those clients in the first half of this year were not within our expectations. There were market shifts this year, and the clients' product lines changed as well, giving us no time to prepare. But we bear responsibility too; we will make more advance predictions moving forward to prevent this."

"Alright." Luan Nian offered only this single response. As they left the airport, he noticed the driver of the car alongside them was Shang Zhitao's ex-boyfriend. The car wasn't bad. What was her ex-boyfriend's name again? Xin Zhaozhou.

Lee's car paid the parking fee and exited first. Luan Nian glanced back; Shang Zhitao was sitting in her ex-boyfriend's passenger seat, looking not particularly at ease. The two appeared awkward with each other, looking as if they still harbored a lingering spark of old affection.

Shang Zhitao couldn't quite articulate her feelings toward Xin Zhaozhou. Did other people act like this when meeting their exes? Terrified that Xin Zhaozhou might bring up the past. Secretly, she sent a message to Lumi: Zhang Qing counts as your ex-boyfriend now. If you were to meet him one day, what would you chat about? Would you be nervous?

Lumi replied: I don't know about seeing Zhang Qing, but I do know I just ran into Will at a nightclub. Fucking wild! The bastard is dressed like a monk, buttons done all the way up to his collar. I feel suffocated just looking at him.

A moment later, Lumi sent another message: Fuck, Will saw me. He grabbed me by the collar and asked if my family member wasn't sick, so why was I at a nightclub? I explained to him that my dad was supposed to be discharged tomorrow, but ran home by himself today. And guess what he said? He said I was spouting pure nonsense!

When the fuck have I ever taken this kind of bullshit? I told him if he grabbed my collar again I'd lose my temper. Turned out the guy actually knows martial arts or something—he threw me out of the nightclub!

Waaah. I just wanted to go clubbing.

I went back in, and he kicked me out again. He even told me to explain to him at the office tomorrow why I lied to take leave. What the fuck did I lie about?

Reading Lumi's stream of messages, Shang Zhitao burst out laughing with a snort. Hearing her laughter, Xin Zhaozhou looked over at her, seeing her just as she was back in their school days, her eyes sparkling brightly when she smiled. A giant boulder crashed down into his heart with a thud, splashing water in all directions within the deep pool of his mind.

"It's my colleague," Shang Zhitao said to him.

"Are the colleagues you met after entering the workforce nice?" Xin Zhaozhou asked her.

"Aside from a few who are hard to get along with, most people are great."

"That Boss Luke back there didn't seem easy to get along with," Xin Zhaozhou noted.

Recalling Luan Nian's glare that could kill, Shang Zhitao offered an "Mm" in agreement: "He's alright. As long as you don't provoke him." If you cross him, flaying your skin and pulling out your tendons wouldn't satisfy his grudge—he'd want to scatter your ashes to the wind too.

"Have you ever provoked him?"

"No."

Xin Zhaozhou smiled: "Looks like my Taozi is doing quite well at the company." Back when they were dating, he would always say, My Taozi is amazing, my Taozi is so cute, my Taozi is so smart.

Their classmates used to say Xin Zhaozhou possessed the handsome face of a heartbreaker, eyed by countlessly many younger female students, and that he would inevitably cheat sooner or later. Yet Xin Zhaozhou had been whole-heartedly devoted to her, wasting his good looks.

Only after a long pause did Shang Zhitao reply to his previous question, saying, "Actually, it's been very hard."

Over these past few years, she had pulled countless all-nighters, weathered numerous setbacks, suffered endless grievances, and cried in secret time and again. On a few occasions, she felt as if she couldn't hold on any longer.

"I know," Xin Zhaozhou said. "You're all alone in Beijing, with Sister Yao Bei as your only old acquaintance. It wasn't easy to make it to where you are today."

"Sometimes I wonder, if I hadn't come to Shenzhen back then, but gone to Beijing with you instead, would I have been able to hold on until today just like you?"

"I heard from Sister Yao Bei that your colleagues like you, that you've made many new friends, that your work goes smoothly, and that you haven't missed a promotion or a pay raise every single year. She said you managed a large project independently, taking charge and strategizing. Whenever Sister Yao Bei mentioned these things, I would think to myself that the girl I once held in the palm of my hand has grown up. I was the one who pushed her away, forcing her to face all this hardship alone."

Xin Zhaozhou pulled the car over to the side of the road and rolled down the window. He didn't want Shang Zhitao to see the moisture at the bottom of his eyes, because he knew they could never go back. Xin Zhaozhou felt deeply apologetic toward Shang Zhitao. He was sorry for not being resolute enough, choosing to return to his parents' side upon graduation. At that time, he lacked confidence and the courage to throw caution to the wind. Even though he claimed Shang Zhitao was the greatest love of his life, when she was lost and confused, he chose to let her fight alone.

He was a selfish bastard.

"Let's not bring up past matters anymore." Shang Zhitao looked out the car window. "Coming to Shenzhen for the first time, I realized there's a reason you chose to come back here. This city is really nice. Is buying cosmetics convenient here? Do you go to Hong Kong often?"

"I used to go once a week. Now that the company has more employees, I go once a month. Have you applied for an Exit-Entry Permit for Hong Kong and Macao? I can take you there for a look."

"To Wing Lee Street? I heard Echoes of the Rainbow was filmed there. When I watched the movie, I really wanted to go see it. I loved that movie for a while. Once on a business trip to Guangzhou, I even specifically went to Lin Heung Tea House to buy double-yolk lotus seed paste mooncakes to mail to Old Shang and Da Zhai."

"Sure. If you want to go."

"Just kidding, I don't have a permit."

She wanted to go, but she couldn't go with him.

Shang Zhitao had her bottom line. Old friends meeting up, sharing a meal, taking a short stroll, and chatting casually about whatever—that was enough. She asked for nothing more.

Anything beyond that, she couldn't afford to give, nor could she afford to accept.

Looking at Shang Zhitao, Xin Zhaozhou smiled: "You still can't lie, just like before. When you lie, you don't dare to look at me."

"Why wouldn't I dare!" Shang Zhitao looked at him, met a pair of eyes filled with laughter, and turned her head away again.

"Your permit is right in your backpack. I know. But as for me, I would never force Shang Zhitao to do anything."

Shang Zhitao smiled.

She had indeed planned to go to Hong Kong for the weekend after finishing her work on Friday; Grace had even asked her to help bring back two cans of infant formula.

Xin Zhaozhou brought Shang Zhitao to the Mangrove Nature Reserve to view the sea. It wasn't a long drive, and the scenery was rather lovely. He said to Shang Zhitao, "On weekends I bring my parents here. We bought a two-bedroom apartment near here. In the morning my parents go to the morning market, and in the evening they watch the sunset."

"That's lovely. This is the life you wanted back then. Experiencing your wish come true must feel wonderful, right?"

Xin Zhaozhou nodded: "Actually, those first two years were tough for me. The foreign trade business was hard to do. Although my parents had some connections, we only got small orders. Later, my parents sold a larger apartment to help me cover inventory costs, giving me new opportunities. After the Spring Festival last year, I secured my first large order, and things started picking up."

"Did you return the house to your aunt and uncle then?" Shang Zhitao asked.

"I did. Last month."

"That's really wonderful."

Shang Zhitao was genuinely happy for Xin Zhaozhou. When chatting with Sun Yu before, Sun Yu said she wished her ex-boyfriend would die without heirs, but Shang Zhitao held no such thoughts. This was because she and Xin Zhaozhou hadn't ended due to betrayal, but due to a choice. Both had chosen the lives they wanted, so there wasn't that much resentment. It was only right after the breakup that Shang Zhitao felt Xin Zhaozhou hadn't loved her enough.

Xin Zhaozhou bought her an popsicle, picking her old favorite flavor—red bean. He still remembered all of Shang Zhitao's preferences: crayfish, red bean popsicles, milk bread, cherries, strawberries.

Shang Zhitao took it and thanked him. Xin Zhaozhou's popsicle dispelled the muggy heat of the Shenzhen summer night; sweet and refreshing, it felt truly wonderful.

"Are you still going to the class reunion tomorrow?" Shang Zhitao asked him.

"Yes. To settle the bill."

"Understood, President Xin."

"Please don't. I'm far behind your company's clients. I hope that through unremitting efforts, I can become your client one day. Then I'll designate you to serve me."

"I don't think that day is too far off."

The two deliberately avoided many events from back then, both feeling that this beautiful night should not be ruined.

Shang Zhitao felt Xin Zhaozhou was like an old friend to her—a different kind of old friend. This old friend shared an intimately close past with her, yet currently stood in a perfectly appropriate position. No matter what, that past could not be erased.

At the hotel entrance, Shang Zhitao said to Xin Zhaozhou, "Xin Zhaozhou, I know everyone will bring up the past at tomorrow's class reunion. What I want to tell you is that I have never regretted dating you, but I did resent you for why you couldn't come to Beijing with me. Back then, I was too young, too naive."

Xin Zhaozhou nodded and patted her head: "I know. What's past is past."

"Can I give you a hug today? I'm afraid if I drink too much tomorrow, I won't be able to hug you," Xin Zhaozhou said. He knew that after tomorrow, Shang Zhitao would not see him again. This was a meeting he had exhausted every effort to seek out, simply because he missed so terribly that simple, happy, and slow-witted girl from back then. Since then, no girl seemed to resemble her, yet every girl seemed to carry a shadow of her.

Shang Zhitao didn't answer him, but reached out to pinch his shirt. Look, the boy who wore sports T-shirts back then was now wearing leather shoes and a collared shirt. People ultimately had to grow up, didn't they?

Taking a step forward, she drew closer to Xin Zhaozhou, resting her head against his chest.

Shang Zhitao was not a stone-hearted person; this was someone she had loved. Even if that love, whether then or now, wasn't fiercely intense enough to pierce through the clouds and sun, it was a love that trickled slowly, seeping deep into the heart.

Only after a long pause did Xin Zhaozhou reach out his arms and hold her tight.

He remembered in particular when they shared their very first hug, neither of them knowing where to put their hands. In the blink of an eye, seven or eight years had passed.

Using all his strength, he held Shang Zhitao in his arms and said to her, "Shang Zhitao, no matter when, no matter what difficulties you run into, as long as you ask, I will help you."

"Alright, thank you."

Shang Zhitao watched Xin Zhaozhou get into his car, then turned and entered the hotel. A familiar figure stepped into the elevator—who else could it be but Luan Nian?

Shang Zhitao stood waiting in the elevator lobby for a while. She could bid farewell to Xin Zhaozhou in broad daylight, yet she lacked even the courage to ride in the same elevator as Luan Nian.

Luan Nian felt he had truly hit a hornet's nest of Shang Zhitao's men lately: roommate, sports guy, ex-boyfriend—it was fucking hilarious. Returning to his room and finishing his emails, he suddenly didn't know what to do.

He turned on the speaker to listen to music, playing retro Cantonese songs.

Luan Nian could be romantic on occasion, finding different inspirations in different places. For instance, right now, he called room service for ice, opened a bottle of liquor from the mini-fridge, lit a cigar, and filled the air with a classic Hong Kong aura.

George Lam's Dare to Love, Dare to Do suited his current mood best. Holding the cigar between his fingers, he swayed gently across the floor, singing along loudly to the music, amusing himself. When the doorbell rang, he went to open it with his head swaying to the beat, reaching out his hand to take the ice, only to see a somewhat bewildered Shang Zhitao.

The surroundings turned quiet.

Having spent several years with Luan Nian, Shang Zhitao had never seen him like this. Oh, wait—in his first year after being appointed, when he sang on stage, he had looked just like this: unrestrained and dashing. It was also on that day, in Luan Nian's home, that Shang Zhitao suffered a total emotional breakdown.

Luan Nian hadn't expected it to be Shang Zhitao; he had assumed it was the waiter delivering ice. Conveniently pulling the door shut, he opened it again after a few seconds, everything restored to order: "What's wrong, Flora?"

"Didn't you say we needed to do another dry run before meeting the client?"

"When did I say that?"

"Last Friday."

"Will the client not survive until tomorrow?"

"No, Lee just notified me that the client moved our meeting time up to tomorrow morning. In the afternoon, the client wants to take us on a tour of their factory."

Luan Nian stepped to the side, leaving the door wide open: "Come in."

The music hadn't been turned off yet, with George Lam still singing: Wildly embracing, kisses that need no rest, needing no air to breathe...

Shang Zhitao could neither retreat nor enter.

"What's wrong, Flora? Not rehearsing anymore?"

"Oh."

Placing her hand on the door handle, she heard Luan Nian say: "Leave the door open."

He spoke with the grand air of being open, aboveboard, and having a clear conscience. Shang Zhitao nodded and followed him inside. His accommodation standards were different; his secretary had booked him a suite. Luan Nian went over to turn off the music, then sat down on the sofa, in front of which stood a coffee table. He gestured with his hand: "Find a spot where you feel comfortable to sit."

His cigar wasn't finished yet. Taking a puff, he put it out and rested it on the ashtray. The faint scent of cigar drifted through the room. Shang Zhitao didn't dare breathe too heavily, afraid the smoke might be toxic. No—she was afraid she wouldn't be able to resist tearing Luan Nian's clothes off.

People spending time together was much like taming a pet; as time went on, they would come to resemble each other. Take Shang Zhitao, for instance—her mind was filled with thoughts of tearing Luan Nian to pieces or biting him viciously. She was the spitting image of Luan Nian.

The waiter delivering the ice shattered Shang Zhitao's dangerous thoughts. Luan Nian stood up to take the ice, dumping it into a glass. Even on business trips, his mysophobia remained unchanged, so he brought his own glass. A while back, Chen Kuannian had gifted him a skull-shaped whiskey glass to drink spirits with, and he had casually shoved it into his suitcase while packing.

Dumping the ice in, he poured the liquor over it, pinched the upper rim of the glass between his thumb and index finger, tilted his head back, and took a big gulp, crunching on a piece of ice he casually bit off.

The crisp crunch of the breaking ice and Luan Nian's wickedly rogue demeanor made Shang Zhitao mistakenly believe she had walked into a mobster's lair, where a mafia boss was preparing to slowly slice apart a traitor who had switched sides. A surge of inexplicable nervousness hit her; her knees pressed tightly together, and something welled up inside her body.

Fuck. Shang Zhitao copied Lumi's inner monologue. How the fuck am I so useless?

Despite thinking this, she refused to admit defeat. I have a fighting cock inside my heart; I cannot lose! Opening her laptop, she stared at the screen: "Shall I begin then?"

"Suit yourself."

Luan Nian set the glass onto the coffee table with a thud. He sat back onto the sofa, causing it to sink downward; Shang Zhitao almost lost her balance on her seat. Turning to look at him, she saw he was already leaning back against the sofa cushions: "Begin."

"Flora, hurry up. Don't ruin my night life."

"What night life?"

"A colorful, enchanting night life. Hurry up."

Staring at the PPT, Shang Zhitao racked her brain to remember: How was I supposed to present this again?

Only after a long while did she open her mouth to speak: "Slide one..."

Luan Nian's phone rang. Shang Zhitao heard a female voice: "I'm downstairs at your hotel."

"Okay. I'm coming down now." Luan Nian stood up, finished the remaining drink in his glass in one gulp, and stood tall: "Rehearse by yourself. If tomorrow's presentation goes poorly, you can pack up and leave the Planning Department."

Sitting there, Shang Zhitao slammed her laptop shut, her temper flaring up.

Striding toward the door, she walked out. Luan Nian followed behind her, closed the door, and went to the elevator lobby together with her. Shang Zhitao's face was flushed red with anger, which actually looked quite pretty. Looking at her face flushed red with rage, Luan Nian suddenly spoke: "Flora, why didn't you catch up properly with your ex-boyfriend?"

"What do you mean by 'catch up properly'?"

"Relive old dreams? Sleep together once?"

Shang Zhitao thought about it: "I'm nervous about presenting the plan tomorrow, so I'm not in the mood. After tomorrow's dinner banquet, we have a date."

She spoke with total seriousness, looking straight at Luan Nian. She wasn't lying either—they were originally supposed to meet tomorrow anyway.

The corners of Luan Nian's mouth twitched into a fake, insincere smile as he stepped into the elevator.

Shang Zhitao stepped into the elevator as well. Her key card had malfunctioned, preventing her from accessing her floor, so she stared at Luan Nian.

"Beg me."

Shang Zhitao refused to do so. She went to the first floor, heading to the front desk to verify her information and make a new card. She saw a woman walking toward Luan Nian. The woman was about 178 cm tall, wearing a thin camisole with delicate straps, a pair of light denim pants, and exaggerated earrings. She looked wildly fierce and extraordinarily beautiful.

As Luan Nian walked out with her, he suddenly turned his head, catching Shang Zhitao's peeking eyes red-handed. Raising his eyebrows at her, he pulled out his phone and asked her: How is my ex-girlfriend?

...

Stepping out of the hotel, the girl said to Luan Nian, "Where do you want to go, little brother?"

"Don't call me little brother." Luan Nian glared at her.

"If I don't call you little brother, what should I call you?" Luan Siyuan scoffed. "Don't put on airs with me. If you push me too far, I'll tell my uncle! It's not your first time in Shenzhen—why should I treat you to late-night snacks? Can't you afford to eat yourself? I'm someone paid by the hour, yet I still have to wait on you. Are you going to compensate me for my losses?"

Listening to her nag, Luan Nian didn't utter a word.

He was in a foul mood, his mind completely consumed with thoughts of killing Shang Zhitao. Yet he felt he ought to restrain himself—a perfectly fine girl like her could date whoever she wanted, so why on earth should she remain hung up on him?

Seeing him stay silent, Luan Siyuan asked him, "Did you turn mute?"

...

Luan Nian had never been able to win an argument against her since childhood; her tongue was even more venomous than his. The elders in the Luan family were every bit refined and elegant, but when it came to their generation, each was more rebellious than the last.

Seeing Luan Nian looking like a defeated rooster with his head slumping, Luan Siyuan found it quite amusing. She said, "Where is my head-held-high, chest-puffed-out little brother?"

"Where is my fearless, reckless little brother?"

"Where is my arrogant, disdainful little brother?"

"Where is my self-important, high-and-mighty little brother?"

"Where is my—"

"Sister!" Luan Nian finally opened his mouth to call her. He knew that if he didn't speak up now, Luan Siyuan would rattle off every single negative idiom she knew in this exact manner—relentless, endless, and insufferably noisy.

Luan Siyuan burst into a hearty laugh: "Ayy! Good boy! Big sister will take you to have some congee!"

What's so good about eating lousy congee? Luan Nian cursed her in his heart for being stingy. His phone lit up; opening it, he saw a message from Shang Zhitao:

Your ex-girlfriend is really pretty, and she has a great figure too. But I have my advantages as well, for instance...

I have big breasts.

Fuck! Luan Nian finally cursed out loud!