[020: Looking for Someone]
“So, Qian Zhang came back for Dr Zhuang?”
“Does that mean they’re getting back together?”
Upon hearing this, Yao Mu felt a strange sensation welling up inside him. He felt a deep-seated revulsion towards Zhuang Yiyi’s promiscuity, yet the peculiar dynamic between Qian Zhang, Chen Ding, Yiyi, and Yiyi’s husband seemed to have opened a small, pitch-black door in the otherwise bright and upright path of his moral compass.
Yao Mu picked up his mobile. He told himself, “This is to uphold public order and morality.”
He rang a friend and arranged to meet for dinner near the Academy of Fine Arts that evening.
Qian Zhang’s plan to reconcile with his ex-girlfriend was simple: return to the places they’d visited together and rekindle their fond memories. As soon as he got into the car, he began recounting amusing anecdotes from their previous visits to that Japanese restaurant. Back then, Zhuang Yiyi had taken a bite of sushi with wasabi in it and coughed so hard that tears streamed down her face. Qian Zhang had laughed heartily beside her, and Zhuang Yiyi had forced him to eat another piece. The two of them had coughed and laughed together.
Recalling that scene, Qian Zhang felt both nostalgic and amused. Zhuang Yiyi, however, propped her head up with her hand, her lips slightly pursed as she endured endless irritation. She’d had a poor night’s sleep, been told off, and attended meeting after meeting; all she wanted was a moment’s rest.
Zhuang Yiyi closed her eyes as the surrounding noise gradually faded. Just as she felt the world grow still, there was a sudden, deafening crash. She was thrown forward with great force, then yanked back by her seatbelt, her head slamming against the back of the seat. Her heart was pounding with panic.
She frowned, clutching her rapidly beating heart, a surge of inexplicable anger burning within her.
The sound of a door slamming reached her ears. She saw Qian Zhang had already got out of the car, and the driver of the vehicle in front had also stepped out. He appeared quite young, dressed in garish colours, and carried himself with an air of arrogance and insolence.
As Zhuang Yiyi got out of the car, she just caught the man saying defiantly, “Name your price. Don’t waste my time.”
Hearing this, Zhuang Yiyi felt her blood boil.
Qian Zhang didn’t like his attitude either. “You were the one who ran the red light, and yet you’ve got the nerve to talk like that. You don’t look very old…”
Zhuang Yiyi knew that Qian Zhang’s ‘for the good of everyone, hoping to guide everyone’—that old, nagging habit of his—was starting up again. She didn’t want to listen to his ramblings either; she’d had enough for one day.
She tugged at Qian Zhang’s sleeve, signalling him to stop talking. “Let’s just wait for the traffic police.”
At the mention of the traffic police, the man’s tone softened slightly. He looked at Zhuang Yiyi. “Beautiful lady, you’re so pretty. How about I do you a favour? Three thousand yuan should be enough, right…?”
Zhuang Yiyi’s phone rang. She picked up the phone and glanced at the screen: Chen Ding.
She didn’t answer.
No sooner had she hung up than it rang again. At the same time, a text message popped up on the screen: “He doesn’t have a driving licence.”
Zhuang Yiyi scanned her surroundings. There were cars packed tightly all around her—front, back, left and right—making it impossible to tell which one belonged to Chen Ding.
And why on earth would Chen Ding be here?
Qian Zhang didn’t accept the three thousand yuan. Money aside, he felt the boy before him needed a good talking-to. Acting so wilfully at such a young age – what on earth would become of him in the future? The boy listened to Qian Zhang’s words and found it all rather laughable. Was he his father or something, going on and on like that?
Zhuang Yiyi was getting a headache from it all and raised her voice. “Right, that’s enough.”
She looked at Qian Zhang. “Stop talking.”
“Let’s wait for the traffic police.” ’ She added, “He doesn’t have a driving licence.”
The lad stamped his feet. “Who says I don’t have a licence?”
That reaction only served to confirm what Zhuang Yiyi had said.
Seeing the traffic police approaching, the boy grew visibly flustered. Feigning composure, he said, “Five thousand. How about five thousand? Mate, I’m still a student. That’s nearly several months’ worth of my living expenses.”
Qian Zhang’s heart softened a little at the sight of his expression. He gave him a stern talking-to, added him on WeChat, and told him to send the bill over later.
And so, the matter was settled.
Zhuang Yiyi didn’t get into the car. “I’ve just received a message; there’s something going on at home, so I’ll head back first.”
Qian Zhang seemed to only just think of Zhuang Yiyi. “Oh, are you all right? Should you go to the hospital? That boy is utterly out of line!”
Zhuang Yiyi didn’t want to say any more. “I’m heading home now. We’ll have dinner another time.”
Qian Zhang saw the exhaustion on her face and realised she really wasn’t in the mood for a meal after the accident. “Then I’ll drive you home.”
“I’ll just take a taxi.”
Zhuang Yiyi didn’t go home. She found a random hotel, put her phone on silent, didn’t even take her clothes off, and simply fell into a deep sleep.
Chen Ding sent her several WeChat messages, but received no reply.
“Has the matter been resolved?”
“Is it your group outing today? When it’s over, shall I come and pick you up?”
He was a bit worried, so he sent a WeChat to Qian Zhang: “I saw you and Dr Zhuang on Jiefang Road today. Has the traffic accident been sorted out? Do you need any help?”
While waiting for Qian Zhang’s reply, Chen Ding tried calling Zhuang Yiyi again, but the line remained unanswered.
After about ten minutes, Qian Zhang replied: “Sorry, I was just having a meal. It’s all sorted now. “How have you been feeling lately? I haven’t seen you at the hospital recently.”
“I’ve been feeling quite good.” Ever since that conversation with Yiyi at the hot springs, Chen Ding had been in a good mood. He asked, “Were you with Dr Zhuang today as part of a hospital group outing?
“No. I arranged to meet Yiyi on my own.”
On his own. Yiyi.
Chen Ding wasn’t too keen on those four words being put together. He asked, “You arranged to meet Dr Zhuang on your own?”
“Yes. We’ve been having meals together quite often lately.”
Chen Ding found himself laughing through gritted teeth. “Having meals together.”
He typed, “So, are you and Dr Zhuang…?”
“We’re in a bit of a ‘flirtatious’ phase.”
Chen Ding burst out laughing in exasperation, laughing so hard he didn’t know how to describe his current state of mind. What on earth was this? The third wheel had come knocking, and they were still in a ‘flirtatious’ phase? Did his wife know?
He flung his phone onto the sofa, strode purposefully towards the bathroom, turned on the tap, cupped his hands to catch the cold water, and splashed it viciously across his face. The icy droplets trickled down his chiselled features. Chen Ding hung his head, his face clouded with gloom.
He returned to the living room, picked up the phone from the sofa, and initiated a video call with Qian Zhang.
As soon as the call connected, Chen Ding noticed that Qian Zhang was in his own home, not a hotel. His gaze grew even colder, and Qian Zhang was startled by Chen Ding’s icy, menacing expression.
“Are you with Dr Zhuang?”
Qian Zhang replied instinctively, “No.”
Chen Ding felt a slight sense of relief. “Then where is she?”
“No,” Qian Zhang finally realised. “Is there something you need from Yiyi? “If there’s anything troubling you, you can speak to me first. I’m a doctor too; you needn’t worry that I’ll tell your grandmother.”
Chen Ding thought Qian Zhang was rather slow on the uptake. On reflection, perhaps this whole ‘ambiguous phase’ was merely his own overactive imagination. “I’m looking for Dr Zhuang.”
Seeing his persistence, Qian Zhang said, “Yiyi has family matters to attend to; she might not have time to reply to you today. Why don’t you come and see her the day after tomorrow, when she’s on her rounds?”
Chen Ding hung up the phone.
After hanging up, he still tried calling Zhuang Yiyi. Still, there was no answer.
Standing in the quiet living room, Chen Ding suddenly realised that when he couldn’t find Zhuang Yiyi, he had absolutely no idea who to contact to get hold of her.
Shortly after they’d got married, Chen Ding had taken Zhuang Yiyi to meet Fang Zhile. Afterwards, Chen Ding’d said he’d like to meet her friends too. He’d specifically asked what her friends liked and prepared gifts, but when the agreed day came, Zhuang Yiyi said her friend had a last-minute meeting and they’d have to reschedule.
Nothing came of it.
The only people Chen Ding currently knew who were in contact with Zhuang Yiyi and had her contact details were Han Rong and Zhang Zhang.
He rang Han Rong.
“Sorry to bother you so late. I need to speak to Dr Zhuang about something. Do you happen to know where she is right now?”
“I’m not entirely sure. If you can’t get hold of her, why not come by tomorrow during office hours?”
“No, thank you.”
Chen Ding recalled that Zhuang Yiyi had once mentioned her friend’s name and occupation. Relying on his memory, he found the official website of Zhejiang University’s School of Philosophy. As he was checking the profiles one by one, he received a call from his mother-in-law.
Zhuang’s mother exchanged a few pleasantries, asked about the couple’s situation and their health, before getting to the point: “Ah Ding, have you been arguing with Yiyi lately?”
“No.” Chen Ding rubbed his eyes. The website listed several young lecturers and researchers on the ‘Hundred Talents Programme’, and he couldn’t tell which one was his wife’s friend.
“You two never tell the truth. I asked Yiyi the same thing, and she said you hadn’t had a fight either. But if you haven’t had a fight, why has Yiyi been staying in hotels recently? She’s in a hotel today as well.”
“She’s at a hotel?” Chen Ding stopped rubbing his eyes and instinctively looked up. “Mum, how do you know she’s at a hotel?”
“What don’t I know? She’s been staying at hotels for quite some time now. Even if you’ve had a falling out, surely that’s long enough.”
Chen Ding went along with her. “Right. I see. Mum, which hotel is she at? I’ll go and find her.”
Listening to his mother’s words, Chen Ding located the hotel on a map.
Zhuang Yiyi slept for over two hours before waking up. She felt much better when she woke.
She opened her phone to find three missed calls from Chen Ding. She’d also received messages on WeChat from several people: Chen Ding, Han Rong, and Qian Zhang.
All the messages were about Chen Ding.
Zhuang Yiyi thought something must have happened, so she immediately climbed out of bed and rang Chen Ding.
“Has something happened?”
“Where are you?” Chen Ding’s voice sounded somewhat colder than usual, and he didn’t answer her question directly.
“What’s wrong?”
Chen Ding couldn’t be bothered to beat about the bush. “I know you’re at the hotel. I’m in the lobby. Which room are you in?”
“How do you know I’m at the hotel?”
“You should answer me: why are you at the hotel?” Chen Ding said no more. “Room number.”
Zhuang Yiyi had a nagging feeling that giving him the room number wouldn’t lead to anything good, but after hesitating, she gave it to him anyway.
Upon receiving the number, Chen Ding put the marriage certificate he’d taken out to show the receptionist back into his pocket and hurried towards the lift.
Soon, there was a knock at the door.
Zhuang Yiyi peered through the peephole. Chen Ding, standing outside, seemed to know she was watching him; his piercing, starkly defined eyes fixed on her.
Zhuang Yiyi’s heart skipped a beat. She opened the door.