Chapter 4: Why Does He Hate Her?

Zhou Heng noticed that Qing Hang had been absent from home frequently these past few days. He didn’t wait for him after work, nor did he call him to go to work together. When asked, he simply said he had things to do.

Qing Hang’s life was too simple. Zhou Heng often joked that a 26-year-old young man lived like a 66-year-old retiree. A person who usually had no entertainment activities outside of work suddenly behaving strangely was bound to raise suspicions.

When Qing Hang first started working at the hospital, his colleagues often joked about introducing him to potential partners. Zhou Heng guessed that maybe he went on a blind date, but after a couple of days, his routine returned to normal, showing no signs of going on a date.

Two men living together without one being meticulous would result in a messy home where one couldn’t even step. Zhou Heng disliked cleaning and could leave his socks unwashed for a week. Qing Hang was completely the opposite. The only harmony between them was that both could cook. After getting tired of the hospital cafeteria food, they agreed on the first day of cohabitation that whoever was home would cook. However, there was always a bit of disharmony. Zhou Heng, being from the south, preferred sweet flavors, while Qing Hang couldn’t handle spicy food. Yet, the dishes he excelled at were all sour and spicy.

This month, Zhou Heng started working shifts at the outpatient department, which wasn’t any easier than working in the inpatient department.

As the end of the workday approached, the leader announced a meeting in the group chat. Missing it would count as an absence. Zhou Heng was somewhat distracted, hoping the meeting would end quickly, but against his wishes, the leader seemed to have endless words to say today.

Seeing the time getting later, he took advantage of a bathroom break to call Qing Hang.

“Qing Hang? Are you still at home?”

Qing Hang was on night duty today. “Yes, I’m home. Is there something?”

“Help me out,” Zhou Heng never beat around the bush. “I promised my sister to treat her and her friends to dinner at home tonight, but the department suddenly called a meeting. By the time the meeting ends and I rush back, it’ll definitely be too late. The groceries I bought should arrive in about ten minutes. There are only three people eating, so could you prepare one meat dish and one vegetable dish, start cooking the rice, and if you have time, make a pot of soup? If you don’t have enough time, it’s fine; I’ll make it when I get back.”

Qing Hang had just woken up and needed to eat himself. “Got it.”

Hearing this, Zhou Heng felt less anxious. “Thanks. I’ll treat you to drinks next week.”

The delivery guy brought fish, vegetables, and fruits. Qing Hang glanced through them, picked out two items, started stewing the pork rib soup, and simultaneously stir-fried another dish. It took him less than an hour.

When Zhou Heng rushed back drenched in sweat, Qing Hang was washing the fruits. Zhou Heng ate a bit before changing clothes to head to the hospital, leaving the rest for Zhou Heng to finish.

There was only one elevator in the building, and it was on the first floor, so Qing Hang decided to take the stairs. As he passed the main entrance, laughter from a woman echoed from the elevator area, reverberating in the hallway. However, he didn’t even turn his head.

Meng Qi was also straightforward. She and Cheng Wanyue chatted all the way from the taxi to Zhou Heng’s apartment building. Mentioning how Zhou Heng got bitten by a goose when he was little made her laugh so hard she couldn’t straighten her back.

Hearing the knock, Zhou Heng quickly wiped his hands and opened the door. Qing Hang had almost finished preparing all the dishes. Zhou Heng only made sweet and sour fish and finally served the soup into bowls and placed them on the table.

“Welcome, ladies. I told you not to bring anything, especially since it’s so hot. You even brought fruits,” Zhou Heng warmly invited them inside. “Make yourselves comfortable, don’t be shy. I’ll go get you some drinks.”

“Not bad at all. I didn’t expect you to have such good culinary skills,” Cheng Wanyue looked at the delicious dishes on the table, quite surprised. “I thought we’d only be having takeout today.”

Zhou Heng sat down and started serving them food. “Influenced by family since childhood, a man who can cook will easily find a girlfriend. In our family, men do the cooking.”

After drinking a small bowl of soup, Meng Qi’s appetite increased. “Get me a bigger bowl. Let’s worry about losing weight tomorrow.”

Cheng Wanyue got distracted while eating. The pork rib soup had pickled radish, the stir-fried potatoes had pickled peppers and tomatoes, the vinegar-braised cabbage had chili, and the stir-fried pork with green garlic—all were her favorites except for the sweet and sour fish. These weren’t special recipes, yet somehow, she felt the taste was different from what she had in restaurants.

Claiming to pause her diet mission for the day, Meng Qi only ate half a bowl of staple food, while Cheng Wanyue had two bowls of rice. Zhou Heng noticed her preferences—she loved sour and spicy food. Spicy food made her nose tip sweat lightly, and her lips turned bright red.

Zhou Heng averted his eyes and smiled. “You’re giving me too much face. I’m starting to feel proud.”

“You deserve full marks; feel free to be proud,” Cheng Wanyue’s impression of Zhou Heng improved significantly because of this meal.

Before this, Zhou Heng was only slightly better in her eyes compared to those annoying overconfident men. Meng Qi had invited her several times, and she only agreed to come to Zhou Heng’s place for dinner today because she was off.

Zhou Heng felt delighted. “Then come again whenever you want. As long as I’m free, you can always come.”

“I’m too full. I need to stand up and walk around.”

Cheng Wanyue started eating as soon as she entered the house and only now leisurely looked around the living room—it was pretty clean.

She didn’t stay long. After going downstairs, Zhou Heng also got into the taxi, first dropping Meng Qi off. After she got out, he moved to the back seat.

He was humorous and knew how to find topics to talk about. Cheng Wanyue didn’t dislike him. After arriving home, she sent him a WeChat message to thank him.

For three consecutive days, Cheng Yanqing opened the door for her. On Friday night, Cheng Yanqing worked overtime, and she discovered she lost her keys after searching her handbag thoroughly while standing outside.

Without keys, it was inconvenient. She couldn’t find a place to duplicate them quickly, so she thought about asking Zhou Heng if she left them at his place during the meal.

Zhou Heng wasn’t the type to clean or tidy tables at home, so he naturally had no idea. After seeing Cheng Wanyue’s message, he called Qing Hang.

Qing Hang said, “There is a set of keys. I thought they were your cousin’s. I left them on the table in your room.”

“Alright, alright, I got it,” Zhou Heng hung up and immediately replied to Cheng Wanyue on WeChat.

Qing Hang had just finished his night shift, washed up, eaten something, and was about to rest. He didn’t sleep well and found it hard to fall back asleep once woken up. So, Zhou Heng asked Cheng Wanyue to come to the hospital first to pick up the house keys.

Cheng Wanyue went to bed early and woke up early. She contacted Zhou Heng at 8:30, and by the time she reached his place to retrieve the keys, it wasn’t even 10 o’clock. Zhou Heng said that his roommate was sleeping at home, and he lived in the room on the left. Seeing the bedroom door open, Cheng Wanyue took off her shoes and went in.

She was only looking for her keys and didn’t pay attention to anything else. The room wasn’t big, but with a casual glance, she could tell it was clean and neat—no dirty clothes or socks, nor any unpleasant smell. The desk was filled with medical textbooks, a few pens, and a drinking cup; there was nothing else to see at a glance.

Her keys had a red bell attached, which was very conspicuous.

Zhou Heng said they should be on the table, so why weren’t they?

Just as Cheng Wanyue was about to ask Zhou Heng, footsteps sounded behind her. Thinking that the noise from opening the door earlier might have woken up Zhou Heng’s roommate, she turned around and caught the faint scent of shower gel wafting through the air—it was very light.

It was a lime fragrance.

This bedroom was on the shady side, while the living room windows faced the sun. The off-white curtains were very thin, filtering the sunlight softly into the living room. A halo surrounded the area, making the coffee table bright, while areas untouched by the sunlight remained dim. The Tyndall effect added a layer of misty haze to the light beam, dividing the small apartment into two spaces.

Cheng Wanyue dazedly looked at Qing Hang, who stood frozen at the bathroom door. He was in the shadows, his facial features blurry, like the figure in a dream she wanted to see but couldn’t make out clearly.

For a long, long time…

“Are you wearing anything underneath?”

If Cheng Wanyue hadn’t spoken, Qing Hang might have thought that time would stop right there.

Qing Hang had just finished bathing and was only wrapped in a towel around his waist. Cheng Wanyue’s gaze followed a droplet of water sliding down from his Adam’s apple, disappearing into the towel. That was all she could see.

“That… It seems your towel is about to slip.”

It was as if someone suddenly moved the hands of a clock. The briefly paused world returned to its normal track. Air flowed, dust particles floated in the light, moisture evaporated, and various sounds from outside simultaneously entered the ear canal.

Qing Hang snapped out of his reverie and went back into the bathroom.

Cheng Wanyue didn’t know whether this was a coincidence or fate. She had imagined many scenarios of meeting Qing Hang: awkwardly or surprisedly locking eyes across a café window; bumping into each other at an intersection, unexpectedly; or on the escalator in a mall, him going down, her going up, catching a fleeting glance as they passed, later wondering for a long time if she had mistaken someone else for him. There are too many similar people in this world, and occasionally walking down the street, one could see a familiar silhouette in a stranger.

She also thought of many opening lines, such as:

“It’s such a coincidence! Long time no see.”

“Qing Hang, how have you been?”

“Wow! You’ve already become a doctor, so impressive!”

“You’ve studied for so many years, and your hair is still so thick…” and so on.

Not standing in his room and saying something flirtatious as her first line.

In the past, if she teased him like this, not only would he blush, but his neck would turn red too. He’d try to maintain composure and sternly lecture her about the differences between men and women, asking how a girl could ask a guy if he was wearing anything under his towel.

Over the past eight years, things had changed.

Just now, he hadn’t even changed his expression, acting as if being seen by her was no big deal. She wondered if he would remain as calm if he were naked when he came out.

For all these years, she had only dreamed of him once, when she thought she was about to die.

They say that the last person to appear in your mind before death is the one you most want to see. She didn’t die, but one deep night, she nearly did. For her, it was like the day after the college entrance exam when she slept soundly and couldn’t wake up no matter what.

In the dream, he didn’t ask if she was in pain, nor did he say he missed her.

He just coldly stared at her, repeatedly saying, “Cheng Wanyue, I hate you.”

Why does he hate her?