Someone like him deserved to be alone for life. In this world, no one should have any connection with him...
Chang Xuyu sobbed for a while. After thinking it over, though it was his fault, she had also done wrong. She wanted to make peace with him.
But Yi Zhuo spoke before her—
“Xuyu, if you want a divorce, then let’s get divorced.”
The man’s Adam’s apple moved, and his hoarse voice was tinged with melancholy.
She was stunned.
It was the first time she had seen Yi Zhuo look like this.
The man’s palm, wide and warm, with distinct joints, often had band-aids in different places—marks from his carving.
Chang Xuyu opened her mouth but couldn’t say anything more. After all, it was she who had proposed it.
After a long while, she replied faintly, “Okay. Then this weekend, I’ll go to my parents’ house.”
“I won’t have dinner with you. I still have work,” she said calmly, without emotion.
The man hummed in response and parked the car at the entrance of the residential area. “Then let’s have a quick meal.”
Outside the window, withered branches and decaying leaves filled the view, bleak and desolate. This winter seemed endless, as if it would never pass.
He wouldn’t tell her that during the days and nights he couldn’t see her, he would carve every one of her faces from memory.
But when he did see her, he never dared to take a step forward, to pour out his surging longing and love.
There was a delicious wonton noodle shop at the bottom of the neighborhood. The two sat down, and Chang Xuyu ordered two bowls of spicy red soup wonton noodles as usual.
When they were served, there were extra sprigs of cilantro in each bowl.
Chang Xuyu looked at the two bowls of green-topped wonton noodles with consternation. Steam rose from the broth. She bit her lip slightly, picked up a pair of chopsticks, and hesitated.
She glanced at Yi Zhuo across from her. He was eating with his head down, silently.
He ate gracefully but quickly, without lingering, making people feel at ease.
Having been married to him for so long, Chang Xuyu still didn’t know what he liked to eat.
He seemed easy to please, never picky.
The man looked up, glanced at her, then reached over to pick out all the cilantro from her bowl.
Chang Xuyu was taken aback.
“You...”
Her cheeks gradually flushed pink. Watching his movements, she unconsciously poked at the bottom of the bowl with her chopsticks, a feeling she couldn’t describe in her heart.
Yi Zhuo said nothing, simply spooned the pile of cilantro into his mouth along with the soup.
A long time ago, two children had eaten beef noodles after school at the school gate. They had waited a long time only to get two bowls of beef noodles topped with cilantro and scallions. One child hated cilantro the most, so the other child picked all the cilantro from her bowl into his own.
The child who hated cilantro was very happy and laughed, saying she loved eating with him the most because he could take care of everything she didn’t like.
Memories flowed backward like sand in an hourglass, into another time.
But the child from back then no longer remembered.
“It doesn’t matter. As long as I still remember,” he said hoarsely.
Chang Xuyu didn’t catch it. “Hmm?”
At night, the streetlights and the neon of the city reflected off each other, casting brilliant colors. The cold wind cut through the street corners, lifting a strand of her black hair.
Her eyes were dark and bright, carrying a trace of confusion as she stared unblinkingly at him.
Yi Zhuo wanted to reach out and tousle her hair.
But in the end, he laughed softly, shook his head, and did nothing.
*
Weekend.
The hallway was dim and cold. Cobwebs with dust clung to the corners of the walls. Chang Xuyu had bought a bunch of things and was struggling to climb the old-fashioned stairs.
Since she started working, she had been renting an apartment outside. Her parents refused to move, saving the money for her younger brother’s future marriage.
Chang Yanyan, wearing corrective glasses, sat in the hallway engrossed in a comic book. Hearing footsteps, he looked down.
Seeing Chang Xuyu, his face lit up. He immediately ran down and took the heavy bags from her hands, shouting in a clear voice, “Sis! You’re back!”
Chang Xuyu slowly rotated her shoulder, smiled gently, and nodded.
“Where are Mom and Dad?”
Chang Yanyan struggled to carry the plastic bags containing rice, flour, and pastries. He turned to her and said, “Dad went out drinking. Mom’s cooking at home.”
Chang Xuyu frowned upon hearing this. “Out drinking again?”
Earlier, their father had gone into business with someone. It failed, and he lost a lot of money. Seeing no hope of getting rich, he spent his days numbing himself with alcohol, refusing to pull himself together.
She closed her eyes, put a hand on Chang Yanyan’s shoulder, and forced a smile. “Come on, let’s go home.”
Chang Xuyu took out her keys and opened the door. The familiar aroma of home-cooked food wafted over.