Chapter 2 Cinderella

Qing Hang’s parents and grandfather had all passed away from illness. He was still young when his parents died, and still powerless when his grandfather was seriously ill.

In the summer of 2013, he didn’t take the national college entrance examination. After passing Tsinghua University’s recommendation-based admission exam, he brought his grandfather to Beijing. It took him over two months to complete the hospital admission procedures. At that time, he had no money to rent a place, and even paying the medical bills was difficult. He worked part-time during the day and slept on a bench in the hospital corridor at night.

After school started, he became even busier. He not only had to earn money but also had to keep up with his studies. Most of the time, he could only go to the hospital in the evening. Missing the last subway was common. The benches in the corridor were cold and hard, and he couldn’t even stretch his legs. He could fall asleep from exhaustion.

Late-stage stomach cancer could only be managed with medication to reduce pain.

His grandfather grew thinner day by day. Qing Hang knew the outcome, but he couldn’t just give up. He hadn’t taken his grandfather to Tiananmen Square to see the raising of the national flag, nor had he taken him to climb the Great Wall.

One night, the doctor spoke to Qing Hang, suggesting that the old man be discharged from the hospital.

Later, he rented a very small apartment, but he only had time to take his grandfather to Tiananmen Square once.

Compared to Baicheng, winter in Beijing was very dry. It snowed in January, and that night was particularly cold. Qing Hang studied for his final exams until the early hours and only slept for a little over an hour. He rushed to the classroom for the exam in the morning, and by the time he returned at noon, his grandfather was gone.

He clearly remembered his grandfather telling him to wear more clothes before the exam. In the blink of an eye, he could only watch his grandfather be burned to ashes outside the crematorium. That was the day he missed Cheng Wanyue the most in all these years.

When he thought he couldn’t make it through, he always thought that things would get better when he grew up, when he graduated, when he successfully completed his internship, when his job was stable.

Now he had achieved all of that, and he had done very well. He had become a doctor, envied by many, but what did it matter?

The competition he had once most wanted to win had long passed, and the person he most wanted to see was still so far away.

The summers in Baicheng were humid and sweltering. The clearest memories in his mind, however, were those muddy downpours. Under a certain slab of stone or broken brick in the alley might be a ‘water bomb’. If you accidentally stepped on it, you’d get splashed with mud all over, and your trouser legs and shoes wouldn’t escape.

Several times, Cheng Wanyue had been caught right after putting on new clothes. With a sulky face, she would go to his house. He would carefully wipe her clean, but she would still be unhappy, always feeling like she smelled of dirty mud and insisting on wearing his clothes. Then she would rummage through his wardrobe, casually grab a T-shirt to change into, and run around in front of him with bare legs.

Sometimes it was intentional, sometimes unintentional.

The sound of the rain grew louder, and the water streaks on the windowpane blurred in circles. The cool breeze carried Qing Hang’s thoughts far away. He didn’t even hear the door behind him open.

“Up so early?” Zhou Heng yawned as he came out of his room.

The living room light wasn’t on. The first thing he saw was the flickering light between Qing Hang’s fingers.

The two had joined the hospital at the same time. After signing their contracts in the personnel department, they found a place together to rent. In all this time, he had only seen Qing Hang smoke once before. That night, a critically ill patient in their department had passed away. Qing Hang had been on duty and had participated in the resuscitation efforts, but they hadn’t been able to save the patient.

“Did you not sleep or are you nervous?” Zhou Heng found the light switch at the corner of the wall and turned it on. “Why are you smoking so early in the morning? It’s just a ward round with the director. Surely, it’s not that big of a deal.”

Qing Hang snapped out of his thoughts, and after pulling himself from the memories, the half-smoked cigarette in his hand suddenly became tasteless.

“I slept, but woke up early.”

“This rain is too heavy. We need to leave a bit earlier later, or we’ll be stuck in traffic,” Zhou Heng drank two sips of water and then remembered something else. “Last night, our landlord messaged me on WeChat, reminding us to pay the rent. I’ve already transferred the money to you; transfer it to him all together. By the way, our lease contract has expired. When do you have time to sign a new one with the landlord?”

The rental contract was for a year, and Qing Hang thought about it but didn’t immediately agree.

“We’ll talk about it later. I have an appointment to discuss pre-surgery matters with the patient’s family. I won’t wait for you.”

Zhou Heng knew that Qing Hang had a major surgery to assist with this afternoon. The lead surgeon was a senior and experienced colleague in the department, making it a great learning opportunity. “Alright, go ahead. I’ll wash my hair.”

Qing Hang washed up again and changed clothes only after he couldn’t smell any cigarette smoke on him. The place they lived wasn’t too far from the hospital.

It was particularly crowded on rainy days. He still remembered when he first came to Beijing and took the subway for the first time. It took him a long while just to buy a ticket. The entire carriage saw him dragging an old suitcase, making him look quite out of place.

Preparations before the surgery and care afterward kept Qing Hang busy until evening when he finally sat down to rest.

The rain outside had stopped. After finishing writing the medical records, his eyes lingered on the calendar on the desk. After a long while, he moved the mouse to open a new document.

Zhou Heng came to find Qing Hang to leave work. Two minutes ago, Qing Hang had been called to the director’s office by a nurse, so Zhou Heng waited in his seat. The computer was still on, and while closing pop-up ads, he accidentally opened a document on the desktop.

Qing Hang returned quickly, and Zhou Heng closed the document before standing up, but he still managed to catch a glimpse of its contents.

There was only a title—’Letter of Resignation’ stood out prominently.

He had already started writing the resignation letter, which meant he wasn’t hesitating but had made a decision.

“Are you under too much pressure lately?” Zhou Heng didn’t ask directly. “Sunday night you’re off, right? Let me take you somewhere to relax.”

Before Qing Hang approached, another doctor pitched in, “Dr. Zhou, what good place is this?”

“It’s the Hutongli on Xueyuan South Road. Have some food, listen to music, drink a little wine—I think it’s decent.”

“I know that place. The ambiance is nice. Isn’t there one near where you and Qing Hang live? Since it’s a chain store, each branch is similar. Why bother traveling so far?”

Zhou Heng smiled, “The dishes are the same, but the singers are different.”

“My friend went to the one on Xueyuan South Road last week. They said a new band started performing there.” He looked up and smiled at Zhou Heng. “Dr. Zhou, it seems your real intention isn’t about the drinks.”

Zhou Heng didn’t deny it. He did have some intentions.

He seemed to recall something, and the smile on his face was hard to hide.

Qing Hang understood and heard everything clearly. He wasn’t the kind of person who could play wingman for a friend. “If you want to pursue someone, go alone. My presence would just be a nuisance.”

“Not so fast, we’ve just met. Just going for a drink. My sister is the manager there.” Zhou Heng scratched his head and changed the subject, urging Qing Hang to finish work. “Don’t dawdle, it will rain heavily tonight.”

“Should we buy some groceries to cook dinner?”

“You’ve been busy all day. Don’t bother cooking. Let’s just eat something at the cafeteria.”

...

Qing Hang had half a day off on Sunday. After lunch, he took a nap. Zhou Heng made several calls to arrange a meeting and booked a spot. Standing in front of the mirror, he shaved and styled his hair, then urged Qing Hang to leave before six o’clock.

Beijing in June was already heating up.

It was still early, and the restaurant wasn’t crowded yet. The dishes were served, but Zhou Heng’s friends arrived later. Qing Hang knew them—one was Zhou Heng’s childhood friend, another was his university classmate, and the other two were roommates during Zhou Heng’s residency training. Around the same age, they had common topics to discuss.

Around 7:30 p.m., the band went on stage.

The restaurant aimed for an atmospheric vibe, with dim lighting. When the electronic screen on the stage lit up, Qing Hang’s glasses fogged up, preventing him from seeing the drummer Zhou Heng had been praising for days. His seat was towards the back, and his view was blocked by a lamp.

Xu Qian was Zhou Heng’s childhood friend. While Zhou Heng was in the restroom, she tactfully asked Qing Hang, “Why does Zhou Heng keep coming here recently? The food is average, and so is the wine. What’s so good about it?”

Qing Hang couldn’t handle very spicy food, so he mostly ate the two mild dishes, but he ended up drinking the most at the table.

“I’m not sure. Ask him yourself.”

Xu Qian didn’t believe him. “You two live together and work at the same hospital. You probably know him better than his parents.”

She kept pressing, so Qing Hang made up an excuse. “His cousin is the manager here. Anyway, eating out is eating out. Maybe he wants to support her business.”

When Zhou Heng returned, Xu Qian was touching up her makeup.

After reapplying her lipstick, she began to eat. “Big brother, can you stop inviting people so early next time?”

Zhou Heng glanced at the stage. “She only performs until nine o’clock. If we come late, we might miss her.”

He told Qing Hang, “That girl playing the drums on stage—see her? She’s incredibly cool, but she’s also health-conscious. She goes to bed early, gets up early, doesn’t stay up late, drinks milk and tea but no alcohol.”

After hearing this, Xu Qian sneered. “Nine o’clock? For young people, nightlife starts at nine. Is she pretending? Is she Cinderella? Does she have to rush home or the magic will disappear? Did she arrive in a pumpkin carriage?”

Zhou Heng chuckled. “Why are you being so prickly today?”

The waiter approached with drinks, and Qing Hang stepped aside to let them pass. He only glanced at the stage, and unexpectedly, a girl with short blue-purple hair came into his line of sight.

The male singer on stage was singing “A Hundred Years of Solitude,” “The silhouette is real, but the person is fake, nothing to cling to. A hundred years ago, you weren’t you, and I wasn’t me. The sorrow is real, but the tears are fake, no cause or effect. A hundred years later, there will be no you or me...”

This song didn’t need a drummer. Cheng Wanyue was getting ready to leave. She spun the drumsticks in her hand once before tossing them into the air and catching them precisely.

Momentarily, she thought she saw a familiar silhouette, but it disappeared in the next second.

Beijing was so vast, and she had only been here for a month. Not encountering that person was the norm.

“Wanyue, are you leaving?” Meng Qi was the manager here, and Cheng Wanyue was someone she had recruited. She could play the drums and sing. Occasionally, when the lead singer was delayed, Cheng Wanyue could fill in.

Following Cheng Wanyue’s gaze, Meng Qi looked over, “That handsome guy earlier, do you know him? You can go say hello first; I’ll wait for you here.”

“No,” Cheng Wanyue shook her head, “I’m not sure if it’s him. We haven’t seen each other in a very, very long time.”

Meng Qi had something to say but wasn’t in a rush. “Go take a look. He probably hasn’t gone far.”

Cheng Wanyue smiled, “No.”

Xu Qian also went outside to answer a call and saw Qing Hang lost in thought behind the door. Thinking he might be drunk, she asked, “Are you leaving? Aren’t you waiting for Zhou Heng?”

Qing Hang’s face showed little emotion as he softly said, “Something came up at the hospital. I have to rush back. Please tell him for me.”

“…Alright.”

Xu Qian answered the call while watching Qing Hang’s receding figure out of the corner of her eye. Although she had seen Qing Hang many times, there was still a significant distance between them, and they weren’t close.

The restaurant was still lively. After hearing Cheng Wanyue decline twice, Meng Qi’s intuition was sharp. The ‘him’ Cheng Wanyue mentioned was definitely more than just an ordinary friend.

“If it’s a mistake, then so be it. It’s just a greeting. What, do you hold a grudge?”

“There’s a bit,” Cheng Wanyue smiled. “I dressed too casually today. If it really is him, I’d look bad like this. He hasn’t gained weight, gone bald, developed a beer belly, nor become uglier; instead, he’s even more handsome than before. Plus, standing next to him is such a beautiful woman. I can’t afford to lose.”

Meng Qi, “...”