“Xiao Xiaoran, what do you mean by this?”
“I mean exactly what I’m saying!”
“You’re doing so well developing your career over there, why did you come back to the country?”
In front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, the sunlight cast a lonely shadow. Xiao Xiaoran brushed back her long hair and offered no reply, merely turning her head to leave Xia Ling with a gentle smile.
The March sunlight wasn’t harsh, yet it still stung Xia Ling’s hazy eyes.
Ring, ring, ring, ring…
“So noisy, who is it?” Gu Ming rubbed her eyes and opened the door.
“Who is so blind, still coming to disturb my sleep on a weekend?” But upon opening the door and seeing the face of the person standing there, her sleepiness vanished instantly, and she slammed the door shut again in a flash.
“Ah! Why is she back?!”
The person outside was already running out of patience, and to top it off, someone had just slammed the door in her face.
“Xiao Ming, I’ll give you three seconds. If you don’t open the door right now, I’ll have Uncle Jiang send someone to take your door apart!”
Thinking it over, Gu Ming realized she still couldn’t afford to offend this young mistress. She pulled the door open again and said with a cheeky smile, “Oh! Isn’t this Xiaoran? What brings you back?”
Xiao Xiaoran glanced at Gu Ming, ignored her completely, pushed the door open, and walked straight inside.
She made herself comfortable on the pure white sofa. Gu Ming closed the door and stood off to the side, suddenly falling into a daze as she looked at Xiao Xiaoran in her sharp suit. It had been five years. When Xiaoran went abroad back then, she was only eighteen, but now she looked every bit like a poised, elegant woman. Indeed, time was a ruthless knife! Gu Ming couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Yet, after five whole years apart, what on earth had she come back for?
Xiao Xiaoran glanced around the room. Mm, the place is decorated with quite a nice vibe. The pale green walls and curtains, the pure white fabric sofa, and a few art pieces hanging on the snow-white walls: everything was neat, simple, and not at all empty. It reminded Xiao Xiaoran of the wish she had made on her sixteenth birthday; it matched almost to the exact millimeter. Should this be called a coincidence, or the entanglements of bad karma?
She looked again at the person standing beside her: a fair face, a high bridge of the nose, thin lips, and short, tousled hair. Nothing had changed; she was still the exact image of the person she had loved so deeply back then, except that this person was much thinner than she had been five years ago.
“Xiao Ming, how have you been these past few years?” Xiao Xiaoran asked, a trace of heartache in her voice.
That single sentence of tender concern almost made Gu Ming’s eyes turn red. How have I been? Do you even care anymore? Back then, with a single phrase: “I’m going abroad”, you left so carefree and dashing without offering any explanation. And you left for five whole years! Not a single phone call in all that time. Even ordinary friends would give a heads-up beforehand, let alone… Gu Ming felt angry in her heart. She was angry at her heartlessness for leaving just like that, and angry at her indifference in never keeping in touch. But these words weren’t spoken five years ago, and they wouldn’t be spoken out loud now, either.
“Of course I’ve been doing great! See? Look at how full of life I am,” Gu Ming said, flexing her small bicep to Xiao Xiaoran.
“Across the entire universe, traded for a single red bean…” Xiao Xiaoran was just about to say something when the phone on the table suddenly rang. Chen Tian’s stern face popped up on the screen, and when she looked at the caller ID, it actually said “Husband”. Xiao Xiaoran instantly flared up. She had only been gone a few years, and already Gu Ming had hooked up with a husband?! They hadn’t even broken up yet, for goodness’ sake! Xiao Xiaoran raised her head, narrowing her eyes as she stared at Gu Ming.
Who was Gu Ming? She had been as clever as a little monkey since she was a child: a little monkey who had managed to survive all of Xiao Xiaoran’s various forms of teasing. Seeing Xiao Xiaoran’s expression, she knew immediately that this high-maintenance young lady was displeased. Subconsciously swallowing hard, she decisively hung up the phone.
“Answer it. I don’t mind.” Xiao Xiaoran habitually tossed her long hair back.
I’d have to be a ghost to believe you! But Gu Ming didn’t dare say those words to Xiao Xiaoran. “How could that be?”
“How could it not? I had no idea you were already married. Can your child call me ‘Godma’ yet? Do you think I should step up and be a godmother?” Xiao Xiaoran shifted her sitting posture.
Ugh! You’re the one who’s married! Your whole family is married! “I’m only twenty-three,” Gu Ming muttered softly.
“So?”
Seeing Xiao Xiaoran acting like this, Gu Ming instantly lost her temper. Clearly, Xiao Xiaoran was the one in the wrong, yet she was speaking in such a sarcastic, passive-aggressive tone. What gave her the right? Had Gu Ming really waited for her this long just to listen to this?
Gu Ming stopped talking and sat down angrily on the sofa. She had waited five years for her: a full five years of long, agonizing nights: all for an uncertain future. But was it worth it? She could trust her unconditionally, but what about Xiao Xiaoran?
“Across the entire universe, traded for a single red bean…” The phone rang again, right on cue. Gu Ming picked it up. “Hello, what is it?”
“Xiao Ming, hurry over to my place! Your brother has a few friends who want to meet you,” Chen Tian’s excited voice sounded exceptionally grating inside the room.
“Yeah, okay, I’m right on…” Before she could finish her sentence, the phone was snatched out of her hand.
“Sorry, Gu Ming is tied up with something right now and can’t get away,” Xiao Xiaoran snatched the phone and said coldly.
The person on the other end froze, and after a long moment, spoke up with uncertainty, “Xiao Xiaoran?”
“Mm!” With that, she hung up the phone.
On the other end of the line, Chen Tian’s face darkened. Why is that woman back again? Hasn’t she given up even after five years? Feeling uneasy and worried, he immediately got into his car and sped toward Gu Ming’s apartment.
Back in the apartment, Xiao Xiaoran’s face was as cold as if she had just stepped out of an ice cellar. Gu Ming swallowed hard, not daring to utter another word. At a time like this, silence was definitely the best choice.
Xiao Xiaoran retreated a few steps, sat down on the sofa, propped her chin in her hand, and fixed her unblinking gaze entirely on Gu Ming.
Cold sweat broke out across Gu Ming’s back in waves. She feared Xiao Xiaoran staring at her in silence more than anything else. Turns out, some habits couldn’t be broken even after five years.
“Are you together with him?”
“Uh! No, it was just a few friends joking around and messing with my phone’s contact names.” Gu Ming obediently offered an explanation.
For a long time, Xiao Xiaoran didn’t speak again. She simply stared straight at Gu Ming, wondering what she was thinking.
Knock, knock, knock… A rapid burst of knocking shattered the previous quiet, pulling both of them out of their deep thoughts.
The moment Gu Ming opened the door, Chen Tian barged in. Seeing Xiao Xiaoran sitting on the sofa and then turning to look at Gu Ming, his face twisted with anger, looking every bit like a man catching an adulterous couple in bed.
“Why are you back again?!”
“Is it illegal for me to come back?” Xiao Xiaoran retorted, “Aren’t you sticking your nose a bit too far into other people’s business, Young Master Chen?”
“What did you come back for?”
“I suppose my coming back doesn’t require asking for your permission!”
Although Gu Ming didn’t understand when the relationship between these two had gone so sour, she still wanted to protect her little childhood friend. “Brother Chen, look, Xiaoran just returned to the country, so she has a lot of things to take care of. I won’t be heading over to your place for now!” At a time like this, changing the subject was the wisest choice.
Chen Tian glanced at Xiao Xiaoran, finding her more and more irritating by the second. He said irritably to Gu Ming, “You focus on your own business; I know how to handle my own affairs.” With that, he slammed the door and stormed out.
“Brother Chen…” Gu Ming wanted to say something more, but alas, Chen Tian was already long gone.
“Well? Have your relationships been getting along that well these past few years?”
Gu Ming poured a cup of green tea for Xiao Xiaoran and casually sat down beside her. “It’s not that we’re close. It’s just that he had some minor matters these past few days and asked me to help introduce him to some connections.”
Hearing this, Xiao Xiaoran didn’t want to pursue the matter any further. Those rotten blossoms had never stopped blooming around Gu Ming since the old days anyway; she didn’t care about one or two more. Once she finished dealing with the person right in front of her, it wouldn’t be too late to clean those others up.
“Gu Ming,” Xiao Xiaoran’s tone suddenly turned gentle.
“Yeah?” Dear young mistress, can you please just use normal words when you speak?
“I’m hungry.”
“Huh?”
“I haven’t eaten a single meal since getting off the plane today.”
“Then what do you want to eat? Let’s go out.”
“I want to eat something you cook,” Xiao Xiaoran said with an expression of pure innocence.
“Alright, I’ll go buy some groceries right now.” Gu Ming picked up her jacket with good-natured resignation.
“I’m coming with you.”
It wasn’t an extravagant dinner: Gu Ming just stir-fried a few simple dishes: yet Xiao Xiaoran ate with genuine delight. For the past five years abroad, she had lacked nothing to eat or drink, yet everything had tasted utterly flavorless in her mouth.
After dinner, Gu Ming figured it was time for Xiao Xiaoran to head back. However, even after Gu Ming finished washing the dishes, the woman was still sitting comfortably on the sofa watching TV, showing zero intention of leaving.
“Uh! Xiaoran, it’s already nine o’clock.” This is a hint that you should go home.
“Oh! I forgot to tell you, I’m sleeping here tonight,” Xiao Xiaoran said with a completely justified expression.
“Won’t your father be worried?” Gu Ming asked cautiously.
“Oh! Don’t worry, he can worry once he realizes,” Xiao Xiaoran said indifferently.
Gu Ming was caught in a dilemma, not knowing what to say. Not letting her stay felt wrong, but letting her stay felt wrong too. This situation was truly hard to handle.
Xiao Xiaoran pulled her gaze away from the TV screen and put on a spooky expression. “Gu Ming, you aren’t trying to chase me away, are you?”
“W-Who, how could I?” She hastily denied it.
“Good. Since I haven’t found a place yet, I’ll be staying with you for the time being.” The young mistress’s expression brightened up instantly.
It was a completely definitive statement, without the slightest intention of consulting the homeowner.
“B-But I only have one bed here. How are we supposed to sleep?”
“Together, of course!”
“Sleep together?!” Gu Ming blurted out in disbelief.
“Why are you so shocked? Didn’t we always do that back in the day?” Xiao Xiaoran flipped the channel, speaking as if it were the most natural thing in the world.