After moving into Jin Fubai’s house, the season officially became autumn. For the two, the concept of living under the same roof was novel, creating a place like “home”. After having lived together, Xiang Yu discovered Jin Fubai was different from her expectations.
He didn’t spend every day in a debauched environment nor was he keen on alcohol. Perhaps his only bad hobby was smoking.
Jin Fubai’s house is far away from Xiang Yu’s company. He would get up every morning and take her to the breakfast stall outside for breakfast. Sometimes it was clear he was not used to getting up early, eating one or two wontons sluggishly and having a few spoonsful of soup. While Xiang Yu ate, he would sit across the table with a cigarette and wait quietly for her to finish eating. But even on these days he hadn’t adjusted, he still sent Xiang Yu to work every day.
One day, Xiang Yu sat in the passenger seat, squinted at Jin Fubai’s profile in the cool autumn morning, and suddenly thought: If he got married, he would probably be a good father. He would pick and drop off his child from school every day. Just like he was patient now, stuck in the rush hour traffic of Beijing, he would just light a cigarette and never speak a word of it.
But, would he stop smoking if he had children? Isn’t second-hand smoke bad for children?
She had drunk a whole cup of steaming hot red date soy milk and nestled comfortably in the car. The song on the radio was “The Brightest Star in the Night Sky” which became popular a few years ago-
“I would rather hide the sorrow in my heart,
Then to forget the look of your eyes.”
The car windows isolated them from the traffic outside and only the sound of the music lingered. The car filled with a faint fragrance and a little smell of cleaning soap from cleaning the car. Perhaps this moment was too quiet and beautiful, it gave her a chance to briefly fantasise.
When they got to the company, Xiang Yu opened the car door and felt the cool air again rousing her a drowse. She smiled at Jin Fubai when she looked over. During these moments, he would stretch out his hand to hold her neck and kiss her, “Bye, I’ll pick you up from work.”
In the company meeting before Golden Week began, Xiang Yu was promoted to Zhou Lie’s chief assistant. During this year, Zhou Lie’s small and run-down company operated smoothly and the company expanded. It used to account for only one-third of the office building, but now it covers the entire floor.
Golden Week: Labour Day but a week.
This development is an industry miracle. In an era where creators and various short videos were rapidly launched, many large paper media companies were on the verge of collapsing. The number of newsstands at street corners gradually decreased, replaced by stations for drinks and treats.
In such an environment, Zhou Lie’s company unexpectedly obtained a cooperation with a TV station, exclusively publishing all the interviews and articles of the station’s TV series and movies. Even the artists and presenters who are difficult to please were featured in their magazine.
Zhou Lie already had three assistants but he approached Xiang Yu and said, “Xiang Yu, you can be the chief assistant.”
“No, I like the front desk.”
“The chief assistant has a higher salary.”
“I want to work full-time at the front desk.”
“…… Salaries and year-end bonuses are twice those at the front desk.”
“The front desk is good.”
Zhou Lie pushed his glasses helplessly. “What is with your obsession with the front desk?”
“The front desk work is leisurely and I can also secretly play on my phone.”
“The chief assistant can also do that, it’s more relaxed than the front desk.”
Zhou Lie’s promised this and so Xiang Yu became the company’s chief assistant and he increased her salary. On the day when the salary for the position was first issued Xiang Yu took an envelope and said to Zhou Lie, in fact, you don’t have to do this, just by sitting at the front desk, your company can operate smoothly.
She knew it all. She knew why Zhou Lie would spend a lot of money to raise an idler who played snake at work and also knew why the company could operate so smoothly.
Zhou Lie smiled, it’s nothing.
When Xiang Yu got into Jin Fubai’s car with her salary she slammed the envelope and said, “What do you want to eat, I got paid!”
Jin Fubai glanced at the thickness of the envelope, his Adam’s apple slightly moved and smiled. “More?”
She was silent for a few seconds before smiling and saying, “Follow a billion to make a million, isn’t it because I followed you.”
During Golden Week in October, Xiang Yu’s parents didn’t return. They only returned once in July to have a meal with Xiang Yu and then went abroad again. During the meal, her father told her the market had been doing well recently and he was cooperating with the branch companies of a certain corporation.
Xiang Yu skewered a small piece of beef, was silent for half a second and answered with a smile, that’s great, work hard Dad.
She didn’t need to worry about it, everyone around her was reminding her of the fact:
She and Jin Fubai were people from two worlds.
Even if she wanted to be a salted fish, she got his benefits without realizing it.
But this kind of uneasy feeling just flashed past, staying beside Jin Fubai, she couldn’t help but love him. She feels his meticulous love each and every day.
Just like this morning, on the first day of this 7-day holiday, Xiang Yu suddenly opened her eyes and wanted to play tennis on a whim. As soon as she sat up Jin Fubai beside her opened his eyes and frowned, “No holiday on October 1st? Do you have to work overtime?”
Jin Fubai’s tone was not annoyed at all, it was simply an inquiry. While speaking he sat up, grabbed a nightgown and wore it. “I’ll drop you off.”
His eyes had an unresolved sleepiness and a cigarette already hung between his lips. Xiang Yu removed his cigarette and looked at him softly. “It’s not work, I want to play tennis. Don’t drop me off.”
“I’m already up.”
“Then are you going to play tennis with me?”
Jin Fubai stared at the cigarette in her hand for a few seconds, determined that it wouldn’t be returned to him and smiled helplessly. “Let’s go, I’ll go with you.”
Since Xiang Yu went to the tennis court there were more girl customers, all of whom were said to have been inspired by Xiang Yu. After Jin Fubai returned to China, some people spread rumours that Xiang Yu, they said she had special tricks and was good at seducing people. This caused Jin Fubai who had abandoned her for half a year, to go to the tennis court to find her.
Xiang Yu listened to two people bring up this matter. One is Tang Yuchi and the other is Jin Fubai.
After living together, Jin Fubai often talked with Xiang Yu without hiding anything and would tell Xiang Yu about some things in their circle. On that day he leaned on the balcony, hung up Li Chi’s call, smiled and asked Xiang Yu, I heard you are a woman with special tricks?
Xiang Yu raised her eyes in confusion. He leaned over, peeled off her nightgown and asked ambiguously, “What’s so special? Huh? Let me see?”
During that period, Xiang Yu learnt a lot about people in the circle from Jin Fubai. For example, why she never met almond-eyed girl again at the tennis court during this period.
She heard almond-eyed girl’s President Qu had more than one girl around him and it was common to cut them when he got tired.
Xiang Yu still remembered almond-eyed girl smiling brightly as she stretched out her wrist and the diamond bracelet gleaming in the sun. She said with red ears he was nice and had bought her a bracelet today.
That man! Such a scum!
She hit the tennis ball fiercely and probably because she was absent-minded, she injured her foot and could only sit on a chair next to the court to bask in the sun. Jin Fubai was in another court and while he was not there, she hopped on one leg to buy two ice creams. She ate one and put the other on her ankle to reduce the swelling.
When she finally noticed someone on the chair beside her, An Sui had already been sitting next to her for a while.
Xiang Yu didn’t expect to meet An Sui again. But it was not a surprise, she had said earlier that this circle was not that big.
Xiang Yu was not ready to speak and glanced at An Sui lightly.
But An Sui smiled lightly at her. “Xiang Yu, let’s talk.”
“What is there to talk about?”
An Sui tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and hesitated slightly before speaking, “Tang Yuchi, is he okay now?”
“Good, can’t he have fun without you? ” Xiang Yu took a bite of the ice cream, raised her eyebrows and asked amusedly, “But, does it have anything to do with you? “
An Sui has a pair of clear deer-like eyes, when she quietly looked at Xiang Yu it reminded Xiang Yu of the past.
It was when they were sophomores in high school and Tang Yuchi insisted on being a bad boy. At night he lied about make-up classes and ran out of the house to have a drink with a few boys. He had drunk too much and didn’t dare to be discovered by Xiang Yu’s godfather and godmother. The next day he laid down in the morning self-study classroom like a dead fish and sent a message to An Sui saying he hadn’t eaten breakfast yet and the hangover was uncomfortable.
Xiang Yu, the salted fish didn’t have a job for the three years she was in high school and on that day she had to substitute for her desk mate as the student on duty, with an armband on she inspected sanitation. As a result, she saw An Sui on the wall behind the school building.
An Sui was on the wall, her deer eyes hazy with liquid and her calves trembled. She whispered to her, “Xiang Yu… come and save me.”
“What are you doing on the wall?”
An Sui held a plastic bag tightly in her hands. Inside it were small wontons from outside the school that were very popular and the transparent plastic box was full of steam and hot. She blushed. “Tang Yuchi said he hadn’t had breakfast…”
The school cafeteria did not sell during class time and An Sui, a good student, piled a few bricks on the wall and went out to buy it. When she came back, she found out that the bricks had been cleared away and she couldn’t come down.
To help An Sui get down that day, the two girls had almost fallen down and An Sui barely stood firmly while holding the wontons, her feet still weak.
Because of this incident, Tang Yuchi was called out by Xiang Yu and scolded during morning studying. An Sui hopped on one leg and persuaded Xiang Yu, “Xiang Yu, Xiang Yu, I am fine. The teacher in the infirmary said that I just shouldn’t exercise vigorously, don’t be angry.”
Maybe it was because they also had some relations as friends that Xiang Yu didn’t want to see An Sui at this time. She took a deep breath, retracted her gaze, lowered her eyes, put the eaten ice cream stick on the table besides her and put on her sunglasses.
But she didn’t know why An Sui wanted to chat with her very much. “Xiang Yu, I know you look down on me, but I can’t help it. What’s the use of studying well? What’s the use of getting into a good university? I still only earn so much after graduation.” She smiled miserably, “The conditions in my family are not like you and Tang Yuchi. I have a younger brother waiting for me to get married and receive a betrothal gift so that I can buy him a wedding house.”
Xiang Yu closed her eyes.
“My mother fell ill when I graduated and I need money but I dare not tell Tang Yuchi. He is just my boyfriend and if I told him, I’m afraid he will look down on me, I can’t say it, really can’t.”
An Sui’s eyes might have teared up as her voice trembled slightly. She said that it was okay at school, at least I was a good student but when I left school, I was just an ordinary employee at a company.
Xiang Yu closed her eyes and interrupted her suddenly, “And talking to those men was precisely your means of getting out of it?”
“You people born with a silver spoon…” An Sui laughed, “Probably don’t understand.”
Xiang Yu frowned and wanted to ask her, why? No matter how bad life was there was always an open and honest path.
But Xiang Yu didn’t say anything. Perhaps in the eyes of An Sui she was also a woman who lived off a rich man, what qualifications did she have to teach others?
At this time, Jin Fubai came over from the neighbouring court with a racket and saw Xiang Yu’s slightly swollen ankle at a glance.
He stood under the big sun, clenching his jaw. “What’s happened to your foot?”
“Accidently sprained it”
Jin Fubai walked over, squatted in front of her, carefully supporting her calf, frowning and checking it, “I’ll call the doctor.”
“Don’t don’t don’t.”
Xiang Yu was really scared of him making a big fuss over a minor issue, every time she experienced period pain Jin Fubai would call the old professor to come. This time she sprained her foot, which was only a little swollen. She didn’t know if he would call the head of an orthopaedic department.
She shook her head and said, “I won’t play tennis in the upcoming days and I’ll pay close attention to it.”
Jin Fubai glanced at the ice cream stick on the table. “En, just eat ice cream, eat more and you won’t have period pain too.”
Xiang Yu turned her head with a guilty conscience.
The interaction between the two fell into An Sui’s eyes. She was surprised and puzzled:
Wasn’t Xiang Yu Jin Fubai’s lover?
Why did it seem like their relationship was not as simple as that of a lover?
Jin Fubai helped Xiang Yu with her racket and bag. “Don’t change your clothes, let’s go home.”
“Then for lunch…”
“Why are you thinking about lunch when your foot is like this?” Jin Fubai chuckled lightly, “Just say what you want and I will call the chef home to cook it.”
He turned his back to Xiang Yu, squatted down, and hooked his palm, “Come up.” Xiang Yu jumped on Jin Fubai’s back on one leg and was caught by him firmly.
“Xiang Yu.”
An Sui yelled behind her, but she didn’t expect Jin Fubai and Xiang Yu to turn their heads at the same time and look over.
A long time later Xiang Yu recalled An Sui’s expression which resembled the ragdoll raised by an elderly relative when she was a child. When the cat acted out it would rub its paws secretly trying to scratch you, but if someone found it, it would put away the sharp paws and reveal the soft pads and meow softly.
An Sui met Jin Fubai’s indifferent gaze, paused, and put on a smile again. She said to Xiang Yu, “Get well soon.”
Author: 殊娓
http://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=516328
Note: I’ve been translating 情人 as lover but the word can have a different connotation meaning people in a relationship where they aren’t official nor committed, this includes being mistress.