Last night, the final night of the old year.
Xi Shi watched a free-spirited, passionate, song-and-dance-filled collective revelry in the bustling university auditorium without paying particularly close attention, and after the show ended, she hitched a ride in Lin Youhe's car back to Jinyue Jingyuan No. 1.
Lin Youhe had been consumed by guilt over losing the sticky note, so today he came to Xi Shi's place early, bearing three insulated food containers.
He stood at the door with a gentle, unobtrusive tenderness, humbly saying that the only way he could make amends was through his cooking, and even furrowed his brow as he hesitated, muttering to himself, "Otherwise, I could ask someone to pull the surveillance footage?"
Xi Shi smiled with an alluring charm: "Teacher Lin's cooking is far more tempting than a sticky note."
Lin Youhe smiled along with her: "Happy New Year."
"Happy New Year to you too, Teacher Lin."
Xi Shi used the motion of turning her head to look at the floor-to-ceiling window to conceal the strange glint in her eyes: "Looks like another overcast day—there might be snow. Teacher Lin, do drive carefully on your way out."
Lin Youhe replied with a smile: "Alright."
After Lin Youhe left, Xi Shi opened the lids of the insulated containers one by one: steaming millet and pumpkin porridge dotted with three plump red dates, shrimp patties wrapped in corn kernels fried to a golden crisp, and a box of assorted fruits cut into pieces.
The phalaenopsis orchid Lin Youhe had bought sat in the living room, hung with over a dozen cards bearing auspicious wishes, which together with the pale pink blossoms gave the place a festive, lively New Year's atmosphere.
Just like last night's New Year's Eve gala—no matter how lively the performance, there always comes a time when the curtain falls and the crowd disperses.
Xi Shi snapped the lids back onto the containers, put them in the refrigerator, threw a coat over her nightgown, and headed out with the key fob that had a label stuck to it.
She had gone out in the early hours to pick up the rental car she'd ordered, parking it not far from the building downstairs.
The car didn't smell great—there was a lingering cigarette odor from the previous renter, and once the heater started blowing, it was practically enough to give you a headache.
It certainly wasn't like Lin Youhe's car—clean, tidy, always carrying a faint fragrance.
Xi Shi frowned and rolled the window down a crack, shifting her ankles uncomfortably in the cold air—she couldn't drive in high heels, and it just didn't feel right.
A few minutes later, Lin Youhe emerged from the building entrance and got into his own car.
Xi Shi put on a mask and, through the hazy mist, followed the taillights of Lin Youhe's car out through the main gate of the residential complex.
The sky was dim, with leaden clouds hanging low—indeed, just as Xi Shi had said, there were signs of snow.
Lin Youhe glanced at the rearview mirror.
An unremarkable silver-gray sedan had been quietly following him for three intersections now.
Lin Youhe smiled to himself, thinking: not bad driving skills.
The red light at the intersection was long, and the silver-gray sedan got held up.
Lin Youhe pulled over to the side of the road, got out without putting on his coat, and strolled unhurriedly into a convenience store.
When he came back out, sure enough, he spotted the silver-gray sedan with the familiar license plate parked two spaces away.
Lin Youhe went to visit two elders he respected. He didn't linger in pleasantries upon entering, and timed his departure carefully. As he was about to head to a third place, he noticed that the little silver-gray tail following him had disappeared.
Worried about the trailing car's safety in traffic, Lin Youhe had deliberately avoided the downtown streets, sticking mostly to expressways and roads in the new district where shops hadn't fully filled in yet.
This stretch of road was especially empty—there was no way they should have lost him this easily.
Lin Youhe decisively changed lanes, turned the wheel at the intersection to make a U-turn, and drove back a few hundred meters. At a glance, he spotted the silver-gray sedan parked in a roadside spot.
The person was still sitting in the driver's seat.
Lin Youhe continued driving, parked at a distance from the silver-gray sedan, then walked back and stood across the street, watching Xi Shi from the opposite side.
From this distance, he couldn't actually make out her expression, but he still sensed that she was different from the barely-concealed sharpness she'd had that morning when she accepted the insulated containers.
Xi Shi sat motionless, staring straight ahead, as if lost in thought.
A light snow was drifting down, the cold biting to the bone. Lin Youhe stood across the street, deep in contemplation.
He was thinking about the reason.
Both times he'd gotten out of the car earlier, he'd been clearly carrying gift bags in his hands.
Xi Shi had helped him pick out those items—she should have easily been able to tell that those weren't Chen Lintian's residential addresses.
What had suddenly unsettled her so?
When he saw Xi Shi suddenly rest her forehead against the steering wheel, Lin Youhe almost instinctively furrowed his brow, wanting to go over and check if she was feeling unwell.
But he regained his composure in an instant and stopped in his tracks. There were many things he still couldn't explain to Xi Shi right now.
Lin Youhe narrowed his eyes with a frown, calculating the time—Shen Meiyan's Criminal Judgment should be coming down around now, shouldn't it?
The snow fell faster and faster.
Lin Youhe stayed quietly across the street, keeping Xi Shi company for a long time.
The notebook on the passenger seat was open to a page with two addresses written down.
Xi Shi had seen the gift bags Lin Youhe was carrying. She knew they weren't what she was looking for, but she'd written them down anyway—better safe than sorry.
Xi Shi received the prosecutor's call while she was following someone. She was so surprised when she saw the caller ID that she almost held her breath, pulling over to the side of the road before daring to answer.
Normally, the prosecutor's office wouldn't proactively inform a whistleblower of the final sentencing outcome, but Xi Shi's former lawyer, whom she had paid by the hour, had helped make it happen.
Xi Shi's breathing was a little rapid: "Prosecutor, hello."
"Hello."
The prosecutor's tone was serious and calm. "Shen Meiyan's criminal sentencing document has come down. I've been busy and finally got some time off, so I thought I should let you know…"
The windshield wipers kept sweeping away the light snow that fell on the glass. The snowflakes were light and landed without a sound, but Xi Shi's ears rang with a chaotic buzz. The polite thanks before hanging up were just a routine completed on autopilot.
Shen Meiyan was sentenced to seven years in prison.
This result was better than she had expected.
Xi Shi's hands were trembling. The thrill of successful revenge should have made her burst into laughter.
But her nose stung with bitterness.
The snow kept falling, heavier and heavier.
Xi Shi stared blankly at the wide, straight street ahead, suddenly not knowing where she should go.
Uncontrollably, many images surfaced before her eyes:
The summer afternoon a few years ago when Shen Meiyan suddenly appeared in the classroom, aggressive and overbearing;
Herself carrying her professional textbooks to ask questions of the elderly accounting professor, who, after explaining a few points, smiled kindly and held his teacup while waiting for her to figure out the answer on her own;
Shen Meiyan's accountant Qiu Nan, drunk, lying by the toilet, crying and vomiting.
When the blade of punishment she had personally handed over finally fell, severing the carefree life of the wicked.
Did she become happy?
Shen Meiyan and Chen Lintian were Xi Shi's enemies, but they were also the reason Xi Shi kept living.
Getting revenge on Shen Meiyan;
Getting revenge on Chen Lintian;
When the goal was finally achieved, what followed was not joy, but endless emptiness and exhaustion.
Xi Shi wanted to drive back.
But she had no strength.
Her phone rang again.
Xi Shi looked at the screen showing "Target," and it took her trembling fingers a few swipes across the screen before she could answer.
Lin Youhe was silent for a moment before speaking: "Are you out?"
Xi Shi hummed in acknowledgment.
Lin Youhe continued gently: "The weather really isn't good. I've finished everything on my end. Where are you? Do you want me to come pick you up and take you home?"
Xi Shi's mind was a mess: "I'm practicing driving…"
Lin Youhe laughed: "Why practice driving in this weather? Let me pick you up."
Yes, this weather…
So cold, it really was too cold.
Xi Shi really wanted to sit in Lin Youhe's clean, tidy car and ride back with the fresh, warm air blowing, but she couldn't let him come pick her up.
She couldn't explain why she was standing in front of a new building plastered with storefront leasing hotline posters.
Xi Shi said, "No need, I'll take a cab myself."
Lin Youhe reminded her carefully: "I checked the real-time weather forecast page, and it shows the snow will get heavier soon. Miss Xi should head home early. It's warmer at home, and the doctor said you can't afford to catch another chill."
Xi Shi repeated: "Go home?"
Lin Youhe said, "If you're practicing in your newly bought car, get a designated driver. If not, just take a cab back."
Following Lin Youhe's suggestion, Xi Shi had a designated driver return the rental car to the pickup location, then took a cab alone.
It was New Year's Day, and everywhere outside the mall was bustling. Through the glass windows of popular restaurants, crowds of heads were packed together. Xi Shi stood outside for a long time before a taxi finally arrived.
The driver said apologetically, "Sorry about that, the intersection was just too congested."
Xi Shi said nothing.
When Xi Shi got home, she let her coat fall to the floor. As if all her strength had been drained, she walked unsteadily to the spare bedroom, took out her grandmother's urn, and collapsed with it into the living room sofa.
She remembered the conversation between Shen Meiyan and Chen Lintian—
"Should have called the parents long ago."
Shen Meiyan pursed her lips arrogantly: "If Teacher Chen had called the parents earlier, this might have been resolved long ago. Look how much time was wasted."
Chen Lintian waved his hand irritably: "No father, no mother. Just an uneducated old woman at home."
Shen Meiyan said contemptuously: "No wonder. Missing a father, missing a mother, short on education. This matter will require more effort from Teacher Chen. I'll be going now."
……
Xi Shi curled up on the sofa holding her phone until midnight.
The plan was already more than half successful.
Shen Meiyan would go to prison and eat prison food, but Xi Shi's grandmother would never come back.
They said that after death, people become ghosts—invisible and intangible—unwilling to leave, lingering day and night beside the ones they cherish.
Was her grandmother really there?
Her grandmother wasn't there.
So tired.
So painful.
The longer she held the urn, the colder it became, and that feeling of her blood nearly freezing solid returned.
Xi Shi thought of that slightly erotic dream she'd had. She desperately wanted to embrace another body with warm, living temperature at a moment like this. An inexplicable craving drove her, unable to bear it any longer, to pick up her phone and scroll through her contacts.
Before Xi Shi could even hear the dial tone, Lin Youhe had already answered.
Like a drowning person grasping at a piece of driftwood, she said, "Where are you?"
Lin Youhe said, "In bed."
Xi Shi, as if bewitched, dropped her still-connected phone and hurried out through her own security door, almost throwing herself at the door of Lin Youhe's apartment.
She entered the passcode, then in the darkness made her way through the night, walking all the way to the master bedroom door.
Xi Shi stood in the dim halo of the bedside lamp, gazing urgently at Lin Youhe, who was propped up in bed.
Lin Youhe took out one earbud and offered it over: "Want it?"
And Xi Shi read the silent permission in Lin Youhe's eyes, so she knelt at the edge of the mattress, climbed onto the bed, slipped into the blanket that was wrapped in Lin Youhe's body heat, and put the earbud into her own ear.
The cello piece stretched the night into something mellow and lingering.
Xi Shi thought, despicably, that in front of Lin Youhe, she had a tragic background that could win her anything.
She could be permitted.
Xi Shi breathed in the crisp, faint fragrance, curled her body up, buried her head into the blanket, pressed tightly against Lin Youhe's waist, and closed her eyes.