#63 (Moving into the Master Bedroom)

On Wednesday, they set off for Haitang Village, choosing a non-holiday, non-weekend day to avoid the crowds on the beach.

On the plane, Wen Di and Shen Tang sat together chatting, while Yan Heyu and Jiang Chengyu sat on the other side by the window, peeling sunflower seeds for them.

The two men seemed to be competing to see who could peel more.

Jiang Chengyu’s wrist began to ache. He glanced at Yan Heyu. “Can you not be so competitive when peeling sunflower seeds?”

Yan Heyu’s fingertips were also numb. “Why did you bring sunflower seeds on the plane? It would have been better to just buy a bag of peeled seeds. Who’s to blame now?”

He took a wet wipe to clean his hands and handed the peeled seeds to Wen Di. “Do you want some coffee? I’ll have someone brew some for you.”

Wen Di thought for a moment, nodded, and then asked, “Do you have cake?”

“Yes.” Although the flight was only a little over three hours, he had prepared everything she might need. The first two years after he bought the plane, it was almost exclusively for her use; he didn’t use it that frequently.

Wen Di and Shen Tang were bored, so they put their peeled seeds into a fruit bowl and used a toothpick to count how many seeds were in the bowl.

Yan Heyu returned to his seat and said to Jiang Chengyu, “It’s not that I want to be competitive. Look at them, they’re forcing us to be.”

While Jiang Chengyu turned to look at them, Yan Heyu took a few of the seeds Jiang Chengyu had peeled and put them in front of himself.

Then, as if nothing happened, he rolled up his sleeves and continued peeling.

In fact, half an hour earlier, Jiang Chengyu had also secretly taken some of his seeds when he wasn’t looking.

They arrived in Haitang Village in the evening. Shen Tang was staying with them at the guesthouse tonight. Her family’s house was on the first floor and didn’t have a sea view, but staying on the third floor of the guesthouse meant they could see the sunrise over the sea.

She had reserved three rooms with the guesthouse owner in advance.

When Yan Heyu heard there were three rooms, he assumed there would be one for him and one for Wen Di. But when Shen Tang said that she and Wen Di would share a room and that he and Jiang Chengyu would each have their own, he suddenly felt a sense of balance, finding it in his comparison with Jiang Chengyu.

After putting their luggage in their respective rooms, they went to a nearby seafood barbecue restaurant for dinner.

They paid extra for a table on the terrace, eating barbecue and watching the fishing boats’ lights on the sea.

Wen Di used to eat there with Shen Tang often, and she had also eaten there once with Yan Heyu.

It had been three or four years since then.

Wen Di put down her beer can and asked Shen Tang if she wanted some baijiu. “Baijiu has a stronger flavor.”

Shen Tang didn’t hesitate. “I’ll have a glass.”

Yan Heyu stopped Wen Di from drinking baijiu. “You always get drunk when you mix beer and baijiu. If you want to drink it, we’ll drink just baijiu tomorrow.”

Wen Di: “I’ll just have a little.”

Just as Yan Heyu expected, Wen Di got a little drunk, as did Shen Tang. The baijiu was strong and went to their heads quickly. Jiang Chengyu carried Shen Tang back to the guesthouse first, and Wen Di insisted on taking a walk on the beach.

At eleven o’clock at night, there were few people on the beach.

The tide was slowly receding.

Wen Di sat with her knees hugged to her chest, perched on top of Yan Heyu, with her feet on his chest.

Yan Heyu lay on the sand, not daring to move. She had forbidden him to move. She had initially wanted to dig a hole and bury him, but then she gave up, complaining that he was too long and it would take too long to dig a hole big enough.

“I’m not burying you, so you have to thank me, you know?”

Yan Heyu: “Thank you.”

This was the third time he had thanked her.

Wen Di rested her chin on her knees. She never cried or made a scene when she was drunk, but she loved to bother people.

“You know I didn’t want to take you back initially.” The sea breeze blew her loose hair, and a few seconds later, she suddenly asked him, “Do you know what category you belong to?”

“I know. Recyclable.”

“Mm.”

She nodded seriously. “I have to turn you into something useful.”

“...”

Wen Di suddenly nudged his chest. “I told you not to move.”

“I’m not moving.”

“Then why am I a little shaky?”

“...You’re a little drunk.”

“I’m not that drunk.”

Yan Heyu didn’t argue with her pointlessly. He held her shoulders with both hands.

Wen Di stared at him for a long time, her mind rambling, saying whatever came to mind. “Lift me up high.”

“How can I lift you up high?”

“Like how I lift little Lemon.”

Little Lemon was Shen Tang’s daughter.

Yan Heyu seized the opportunity. “Then get off me. I can only lift you up if I stand up.”

“Then I’ll have nowhere to sit. You figure out a way to lift me up.”

“...”

Yan Heyu had no choice but to change the subject. “Wen Di, let’s talk.”

“About what?”

“About your happy and sad moments after we broke up. You never told me, and you probably never told anyone else either. It’s not good to keep it all bottled up inside.”

“We broke up?”

Wen Di thought hard. “Yes, we did. So why did you break up with me, Yan Heyu? My stomach hurts, and my head hurts too.”

It must have been the alcohol. Her logic was clearly not as sharp as before. Yan Heyu held her with one hand and sat up, supporting himself with the other, covered in sand.

With great effort, he hugged her close. “Let’s go back to the guesthouse. I’ll get you some hangover medicine.”

“Are you leaving again?”

“No.”

Wen Di leaned against him, rubbing her forehead against his chest. Her head still hurt. “Yan Heyu.”

“Hm?”

“Do you remember my apartment password? I changed it, and then I forgot it.”

He asked her which apartment.

She mumbled something, and he heard it clearly: it was the one they had lived in for three years, which had long since been sold.

Yan Heyu asked her, “When did you change the password?”

“I changed it the day we broke up. I couldn’t get into my home.”

“How couldn’t you get in?”

He wanted to say that they didn’t live in the apartment anymore, but had moved to the villa. Before he could, Wen Di continued, intermittently, “On the third day after we broke up, I forgot the new password.”

“I didn’t have my key, and I couldn’t get home in the middle of the night. I wanted to call you and ask you for the new password.”

At this point, her mind was hazy. How could she have told him the password she changed the day they broke up? How could she have called him for it?

Wen Di’s stomach felt worse. She shifted in his arms. “You must remember my password. You used to remember all my passwords. You said that no matter what I forgot, I could just ask you. Didn’t you?”

Yan Heyu’s voice cracked. “I did.”

“So where were you that day? Why weren’t you waiting for me at home? Why didn’t you tell me the password?”

Yan Heyu gripped her shoulders. “How did you get in eventually?”

“The security guard took the lock off and put a new one on.”

After a two-second pause, she said, “I had the key, at home.”

“I know,” Yan Heyu said, kissing her forehead.

“It’s raining.” Wen Di wiped her face and looked up at the sky. “The moon is out, so why is it raining?”

Yan Heyu took a deep breath, turned his head away, and wiped his own face.

The tears on her face were his.

He had never imagined that in his thirties, he would cry for a person.

“Let’s go back.”

Yan Heyu picked up Wen Di and walked towards the guesthouse under the moonlight.

Wen Di leaned on his shoulder and didn’t know when she fell asleep.

The next day, she woke up in her and Shen Tang’s room, wearing her own pajamas, with her hair clean and neat. She had a memory gap from last night and couldn’t recall many things.

The other bed in the room was empty. Shen Tang had stayed in Jiang Chengyu’s room after drinking too much last night.

Wen Di pulled open the curtains, and the beach was slowly getting busy.

It was another sunny day.

She messaged Yan Heyu: [Did you wash my hair last night?]

[Yeah, it was full of sand. I couldn’t sleep without washing it. I gave you some hangover medicine. Does your head still hurt?]

[No, it doesn’t.]

Yan Heyu told her to change and come downstairs for breakfast. They were going fishing on a boat today.

Wen Di wasn’t interested in going out on a yacht, but she was excited to go out on a fishing boat. The boat was full of the smell of fish, but she didn’t find it unpleasant at all.

Every time the fishing net was pulled up, she and Shen Tang were even more excited than the fishermen. Opening the net was like opening a blind box, not knowing what kind of fish they would catch each time.

In the evening, the fishing boat returned fully loaded.

The tide was rising today, so they planned to go wading on the beach.

After getting off the fishing boat, their clothes were covered in fish scales and the smell of fish. They all went back to the guesthouse to change.

Shen Tang took out matching couple’s clothes with Jiang Chengyu. They had bought the clothes years ago and wore them two or three times a year, keeping them all this time.

Wen Di changed into a long camisole dress. The sun had already set, so she didn’t need a hat. They went downstairs in their flip-flops.

Yan Heyu and Jiang Chengyu were waiting for them in the guesthouse lobby. He had changed into a navy blue polo shirt, which went well with Wen Di’s long camisole dress. Her dress had a navy blue color scheme that wasn’t dominant but was very noticeable.

Wen Di glanced at him, knowing what he was thinking: he must be thinking that they were wearing something similar to couple’s outfits.

The guesthouse was only across the street from the beach. When they crossed the road, Jiang Chengyu turned and put his arm around Shen Tang, watching for cars coming from both directions. Yan Heyu also subconsciously reached out and took Wen Di’s hand, holding it tightly, with their fingers interlaced.

Wen Di had many memories in Haitang Village, and many of them were with Yan Heyu—the guesthouse and that barbecue stall. Back then, there were crowds of people and waves between them.

Today, there were only waves.

On the beach, Yan Heyu let go of her hand, took a few steps forward, and squatted down in front of her. “Come on. I’ll carry you. Jiang Chengyu and I have found our true purpose on the plane ride here.”

“What purpose?”

“Being a tool.”

“You two are very self-aware.”

She climbed onto his back.

Over there, Jiang Chengyu also picked up Shen Tang.

Initially, their conversation was normal. Wen Di and Shen Tang were talking about funny things they used to do there. Then, they started pushing each other, getting more and more forceful, laughing and playing.

The ones who suffered were Yan Heyu and Jiang Chengyu, who were standing in the water. When the waves came and the girls started messing around, their centers of gravity were unstable, causing them to wobble.

If they fell into the water, Wen Di or Shen Tang would definitely have a bone to pick with them.

Yan Heyu didn’t dare to say anything to Wen Di, but Jiang Chengyu whispered to Shen Tang, “Tangtang, be gentle when you hit each other. Don’t hurt your hands.”

Yan Heyu: “...”

What was the difference between saying that and not saying anything at all?

Shen Tang said, “It doesn’t hurt. Not at all.”

They got tired of fighting and called a truce.

Wen Di had been holding onto Yan Heyu’s neck with one hand and messing around with Shen Tang with the other. Now, she let go of his neck. “I’m going to use both hands to fight soon.”

Yan Heyu: “...Wen Di.”

“What?” The wind was strong. She leaned her face close to his. “Go ahead, I’m listening.”

Their cheeks rubbed together, and Yan Heyu suddenly didn’t want to be a spoilsport. “If you can’t beat her, push Jiang Chengyu. If he falls, Shen Tang will definitely fall too.”

Wen Di laughed. “That works.”

They weren’t talking quietly, and Jiang Chengyu could hear them.

Jiang Chengyu said to Shen Tang, “If you can’t beat her, just kick Yan Heyu. You’ll win for sure.”

Wen Di and Shen Tang ended up not hitting each other; they were tickling each other. Shen Tang was ticklish and almost laughed to tears. When she was trying to get away from Wen Di, her body kept leaning to one side. Jiang Chengyu lost his balance and fell into the water. Before he hit the water, he reached out and pulled Yan Heyu with him.

Splash, all four of them fell into the water.

There was a burst of laughter. Wen Di and Shen Tang’s faces hurt from laughing so much.

Jiang Chengyu got up from the water, and before he could stand steady, Yan Heyu pushed him down again, creating a huge splash.

“Yan Heyu, you’re shameless.”

“Who was the one who was shameless and pulled me first? You’ve been like this since we were kids. You have to drag me down with you when you fall.”

Yan Heyu came over and helped Wen Di out of the water. She was laughing so hard she couldn’t stand up. He wiped her face with the back of his hand, pulled her to the shallow water, and wrung the water from the hem of her dress.

He was also soaked. The polo shirt clung to his body, subtly outlining his muscular physique.

Wen Di asked him, “Did you and Jiang Chengyu fight when you were kids?”

“Yeah. Have you ever seen little boys who don’t fight? We fought every day and then continued playing.”

He put his arm around her, pulling her close and wringing the water from the wet parts of her back.

Yan Heyu touched her shoulder. It was cold.

He looked at Jiang Chengyu. “Tell them to go back and change. Wearing wet clothes will make them catch a cold.”

Jiang Chengyu felt the same way and was discussing it with Shen Tang.

They walked back to the guesthouse, which was only a hundred or two hundred meters away.

After changing, Shen Tang turned on the tap and splashed some water on her face. She let out a long sigh. “I haven’t been this relaxed in years.” Ever since her grandpa passed away, she hadn’t dared to return to Haitang Village. No one was waiting for her at the door anymore. Now that she was living so happily and Wen Di was slowly getting better, she knew her grandpa must be watching.

Wen Di tied her long hair into a bun on top of her head. “I feel the same way.”

Shen Tang knew how she had been doing these past few years without her saying. She reached out and playfully messed up the little bun Wen Di had just tied. The old Wen Di was back.

________________________________________

After their four-day trip to Haitang Village, they returned to Beijing on the weekend.

Right after they got off the plane, Yin Ziyu brought good news to Wen Di. She had won the role in The World Is Not as Good as You. She had received the notification from Zhou Mingqian’s team at noon.

“Boss Wen, thank you for the good luck from the flowers.”

Yin Ziyu hadn’t had high hopes, as all the people auditioning were A-list actors.

The scene partner was Tan Moxing. Ever since he had said those words that night, she felt a bit awkward around him.

Perhaps it was this awkwardness that covered up her usual cold demeanor.

Zhou Mingqian later said, “There was so much drama in your eyes.”

But what kind of drama, no one could say for sure.

Wen Di’s heart finally settled. She was happy for Yin Ziyu’s current state. Once she was busy with the crew, she wouldn’t have as much time to think about Zhang Qiaoyu. Time heals all wounds.

“When does filming start?”

Yin Ziyu: “Before the Lunar New Year. I’ll be spending the New Year with the crew again. It’s in Jiangcheng this year. Director Zhou said the filming locations are the courtyard you renovated and the ancient streets of Jiangcheng.”

Wen Di said, “Then come to my house for the New Year. My place is big enough for everyone.”

“It’s a deal then. I’ll stay at your house and never leave.” Yin Ziyu joked and then hung up.

Yan Heyu asked, “Zhou Mingqian cast Yin Ziyu as the female lead?”

“Yes.”

“You’re good at judging people.”

Wen Di put her phone in her bag, giving him a look. He was indirectly complimenting himself. She said, “I’ve also been blind before.”

Yan Heyu nodded, showing his understanding. He put the blame on Jiang Chengyu. “I also didn’t expect Jiang Chengyu to still drag people down with him when he falls. That can’t be considered you being blind.”

Wen Di: “...”

Yan Heyu smiled, stopping his teasing, and took her hand in his.

He had a high-end business reception at the end of the month. He had always gone to these events alone, but this time, he wanted to bring her. He wanted to know what she thought.

“Many investors will be there. If you’re interested, you could get to know them.”

Wen Di was interested but didn’t want to go. “From now on, it should be me bringing you, not you bringing me.”

“No problem. Evergreen Entertainment has a charity auction every year. Will you bring me then?”

“I won’t be available. I have to bring Yin Ziyu.”

Regardless of whether she would bring him that day or not, Yan Heyu first had Kang Bo clear his schedule for that night.

After returning from the airport, Wen Di went directly to the second-hand bookstore. She had brought back some flower tea for her grandparents and Mr. Zhuang from Haitang Village. She gave it to them and had dinner with the three elders there.

Wen Di told her grandparents that she might invite some people from the crew to their house for the New Year.

Her grandparents loved a lively atmosphere now and said they would prepare more New Year’s goods in advance.

Yan Heyu was working late at home tonight. When Wen Di got home at ten, he was still busy.

Wen Wen was keeping him company in the study, sticking close to his legs.

Wen Di brought a few books she had picked up from Mr. Zhuang and entered the study. Yan Heyu said to Wen Wen, “It’s no use telling me. You have to tell your mom. She’s the one in charge.”

Wen Di put the books on the bookshelf. “Tell me what?”

Yan Heyu: “Wen Wen feels that parents living apart for a long time is not good for its healthy growth.”

“...Yan Heyu, you’ll stop at nothing now.”

Yan Heyu spoke to himself. “Then I’ll move in tonight.”

Wen Di didn’t reply and went back to her own room.

Yan Heyu bent down and rubbed Wen Wen’s head. “Your mom agreed.” During their trip to Haitang Village, she had been in a good mood, and her silence just now meant she had implicitly agreed.

He finished the last email and shut down his computer.

Wen Di was packing her suitcase. Yan Heyu came in, holding his pillow, water cup, and phone charger. Wen Di’s pillow was on the right side of the bed. He placed his pillow on the left side and his charger on the left bedside table.

After that, he made multiple trips, moving his clothes from the second bedroom into the master bedroom.