Chapter 21

The company’s car drove around for several blocks before shaking off the tailing reporters.

When they returned to the villa on Taojiang Road, it was nearly dawn.

Xitang went upstairs, and Zhao Pingjin’s room was still lit.

He didn’t come out.

The next morning, Xitang got up early, only to find that Zhao Pingjin was up even earlier. When she went downstairs, he was already having breakfast.

After Xitang finished her milk, Zhao Pingjin pushed back his chair and said, “Let’s go.”

Xitang asked, “Where?”

Zhao Pingjin stood beside her, looking down at her, “Didn’t you say you were called back home temporarily? I’ll take you back.”

The highway stretched endlessly towards the horizon. Zhao Pingjin drove, and the soft morning sun shone through the car window.

He had never been to her hometown.

When Huang Xitang was studying in Beijing, she only had two vacations a year to go home. After they got together, she hadn’t started filming during the third year of her university, so she had time to go home for the New Year. Originally, Zhao Pingjin had said he would send her back, but in the end, he was too busy. Every year, it was the same. Not to mention the overseas relatives in the Shanghai branch of the family who would return to China, but even the relationships in Beijing that he needed to manage, his father and uncle were no longer suitable to handle personally, so they basically handed it over to Zhao Pingjin. He was so busy with three secretaries that he couldn’t spare a moment. In the end, Huang Xitang had gone by herself.

He had always thought there was no rush, but now it seemed like a lifetime ago.

Zhao Pingjin glanced sideways at the person beside him. She was very calm.

Xitang was very quiet.

Zhao Pingjin focused on driving the entire way. The only sound in the car was the navigation system.

Xitang had discovered after riding in his car a few times that Zhao Pingjin only listened to classical symphonies, which was quite boring.

He used to be different. He would listen to Beijing People’s Radio in his car, with a mix of traffic updates, advertisements, emotional programs, and popular music. Xitang would sit beside him and sing along loudly to the latest pop songs, often off-key. Zhao Pingjin would drive while begging her to stop, “Please, stop singing, can you?”

Sometimes, there would be cross-talk by Ma Sanli on the radio, and Zhao Pingjin would laugh out loud.

They were both people who loved the hustle and bustle. But now, things had changed.

Xitang leaned over and asked, “Can you turn on the radio?”

Zhao Pingjin replied coldly, “Sit still. I don’t listen to the radio.”

Xitang tried to break the ice. “That’s too much trouble.”

Zhao Pingjin said, “Don’t talk nonsense.”

Xitang ignored him.

When the car reached the outskirts of Xianju County, the navigation system guided them onto a main road leading to the town. The road was jammed with a market, filled with people selling chickens, pigs, and various agricultural products. Villagers on motorcycles and electric bikes clogged the road, making it bumpy and uneven.

Zhao Pingjin had to slow down and carefully navigate through the crowd of people and vehicles.

They drove like this for nearly an hour, stopping and starting. Sitting in the passenger seat, Xitang felt frustrated looking at the road conditions.

Zhao Pingjin held the steering wheel with one hand and reached for a medicine bottle in the glove compartment with the other.

Xitang asked softly, “What’s wrong?”

Zhao Pingjin replied, “Nothing, I didn’t sleep well last night and have a headache.”

Xitang didn’t know how he was doing. She remembered how badly he had been injured in the car accident and how he had gone back to work a few days after being discharged from the hospital.

She handed him a bottle of water silently.

Zhao Pingjin dropped her off in town and checked into a nearby hotel.

Seeing his pale complexion, Xitang asked, “Are you okay?”

Zhao Pingjin, looking weak, said, “I’ll be fine. Just go home and rest.”

When Xitang got home, her younger sister was helping her mother with the dishes. “Where did you go yesterday in such a hurry?” her mother asked.

Xitang smiled, “Didn’t I tell you I had something urgent to do at the company? I finished early and decided to come back.”

She volunteered to help with the dishes.

That night, Xitang called Zhao Pingjin, but his phone was turned off.

She hesitated about going to see him but decided against it.

The next morning, she got up early to help her mother open the shop. She moved the tables and chairs outside, spread blue tablecloths, and cleaned the house.

As customers started to arrive, Xitang kept herself busy, not wanting her mother to do too much work. Suddenly, her younger sister came over and whispered, “Someone is looking for you.”

Xitang’s heart skipped a beat. She knew who it was and told her sister not to say anything.

Her sister’s eyes sparkled with excitement, “He’s so handsome.”

Xitang wiped her hands and went outside.

Zhao Pingjin was sitting at a table outside, wearing a white shirt. He looked out of place amidst the early morning bustle of the market. He seemed bored, playing with his phone. The local women couldn’t help but stare at him.

When he saw Xitang, his eyes lit up.

Xitang approached him and said in a low voice, “What are you doing here?”

Zhao Pingjin replied matter-of-factly, “Eating noodles.”

Xitang handed him a menu, “What do you want?”

Zhao Pingjin pointed at something randomly.

Xitang said, “You have a weak stomach, you can’t eat that. I’ll order for you.”

Zhao Pingjin said, “Okay.”

Xitang was writing down the order when she heard Zhao Pingjin say, “Since I’m here, why don’t you show me around?”

Xitang replied, “I’m busy.”

Zhao Pingjin pouted, “Then I’ll just sit here.”

Xitang glared at him and said in a low voice, “After you finish your noodles, meet me at the video rental store at the end of the street.”

Zhao Pingjin smiled happily. “Okay, go make my noodles.”

Xitang glared at him again and turned to leave.

As she turned around, she saw her mother standing at the door, watching them with a cold expression.

Xitang quickly went back to the kitchen.

After the morning rush, Xitang found an excuse to slip out.

Zhao Pingjin was still waiting for her.

When she arrived, he had already finished his noodles and was chatting with the shop owner. As he got up to leave, he handed her a few DVDs.

Xitang was confused. “What is this?”

Zhao Pingjin said nonchalantly, “The boss sold it to me.”

Xitang looked at the titles: “Naked Housewife Series,” “Obedient Pet Candidate”...

She pushed him, “Are you crazy?”

Zhao Pingjin shrugged, “You took so long, I got bored.”

Xitang’s face turned red. “What am I supposed to do with these?”

Zhao Pingjin stuffed them into her bag. “Keep them. I’ll sell them to Lao Gao later. He’ll love them.”

They walked down the street together.

Zhao Pingjin suddenly asked, “Where is that over there?”

Xitang glanced at it, “That’s the central elementary school.”

Zhao Pingjin asked with interest, “Didn’t you study here when you were young?”

“Yeah.”

“Let’s go in and take a look.”

He walked straight inside.

Xitang followed behind him, “Hey, aren’t you going to the scenic spot? What’s so interesting about a school?”

It was a Sunday, and the school was quiet. Xitang walked around the flagpole and pushed aside a thick clump of grass on a large stone. She could still see a carving underneath the stone. Xitang smiled, “It’s still here.”

Zhao Pingjin leaned over to take a look. “Oh, did you carve a memorial when you were bullied?”

Xitang squatted down and smiled up at him, “How did you know? You must have bullied people a lot when you were young.”

Zhao Pingjin recalled his childhood as the biggest bully in the military compound and felt a little embarrassed. “Hey, don’t say that.”

Xitang stared at the stone, lost in thought. After school that day, Xiao Dizi had followed her, and she had held his hand and carved a mark on this stone. Then she had asked him, “Will you be my brother?”

Xitang still remembered the six-year-old Xiao Dizi. With a runny nose, he nodded and smiled innocently.

The two of them sat on a bench under a tree in the playground.

In the large playground, a few children were riding bicycles, and there was the sound of laughter and play in the distance. A warm summer breeze blew past. Zhao Pingjin leaned back with his hands behind his head and stretched out his legs. “It’s pretty quiet here.”

Xitang looked at the newly built plastic running track in the distance. It was bright red and green and looked very nice. She said softly, “The environment has improved a lot.”

Zhao Pingjin looked at her profile. “Is your family doing well?”

Xitang came back to her senses and replied, “They’re fine.”

She clearly didn’t want to talk much about her family.

But Zhao Pingjin knew a bit about her family situation. After they started dating, Huang Xitang had told him that her father had died when she was young, and her mother had raised her alone. She was very frugal and could wear the same white cotton dress and jeans for an entire summer. She rarely spent his money. In her senior year, because his company was developing rapidly and he was overwhelmed, she had stopped part-time jobs. Director Lin Yongchuan had paid her upfront for her role in the movie, and she had used that money to pay for her tuition that year.

Later, his mother found out about her background. When she first went to his house, she had been interrogated by the guards at the gate before finally entering the courtyard. His mother had called her over, but she had only been allowed to stand under the eaves. She stood there in the cold wind and listened to Mrs. Zhou’s harsh criticism. Mrs. Zhou had told her, through the family maid, that Huang Xitang was an illegitimate child, that her mother had never been married, and that she had started living with a man at a young age. Zhao’s family wouldn’t accept someone like her as a daughter-in-law.

Zhao Pingjin remembered that it was a few days before Chinese New Year. There were icicles hanging from the eaves. Huang Xitang had looked at him with wide, tearful eyes and her face was flushed with embarrassment. She had turned and run away, pushing him hard as she did so.

That was the first time Huang Xitang had met his mother, and it had been a complete disaster. Afterwards, Huang Xitang had become increasingly insecure and often cried over trivial matters. At first, Zhao Pingjin had tried to comfort her, but eventually, he had grown tired of it and started to snap at her. One day, he was late for a meeting and had kept her waiting for over an hour. She had been angry and ignored him, and he had shouted at her, telling her to stop being so dramatic.

Huang Xitang had looked at him with tears in her eyes. He had finally realized how annoying he was being.

About a month before they broke up, Mrs. Zhou had come to their home in Jiayuan and insisted that Huang Xitang move out. Huang Xitang had begged her to let them be together, but Mrs. Zhou was adamant. Zhao Pingjin didn’t know exactly what Mrs. Zhou had said to Huang Xitang, but he knew that Huang Xitang had endured a lot of insults from her. Although she had argued with him, she had always been respectful to her mother-in-law. She had never repeated any of the hurtful things that Mrs. Zhou had said. But later, his mother had told his grandfather that Huang Xitang had pointed at her and said, “This is my house. Get out.”

Mrs. Zhou had cried to his grandparents and complained, “What kind of girl is she? Zhouer bought this house, and she has the nerve to claim it as hers! What kind of family raises such a rude child? If she were to marry into our family, what would happen?”

During that time, Huang Xitang had been very upset, but he had been too stubborn to admit his mistakes. They had both said hurtful things to each other.

He had failed to protect her.

And he regretted it deeply.