Chapter 6 Part2 (2/2)
Qing smiled. ”You do need to give me a good thank you. I have short hair and never use a hair dryer. This, I went out and bought just now.”
Feeling even more apologetic, Jia He at once expressed a couple more thank yous.
Qing hastily wagged her hand. ”I just said that for fun. Don't thank me; it was Teacher Yi who told me to go out and buy it—” Before she could finish what she was going to say, Wu Zhilun had already ahemmed a couple of times from where he was, meaning that she should hurry back so they could continue.
Taking the hair dryer from her, Jia He shut the door and plugged it into the power outlet. Instantly, the whole bathroom was filled with a humming sound.
The bathroom had one entire wall that was a mirror, now coated with a thick layer of condensation. As she blew her hair, she reached out a hand and wiped a small section dry, revealing the reflection of her face, ruddied by the heat. This all felt unreal.
A simple hot shower. A boisterous mahjong battlefield. This felt like an ordinary gathering of friends. But the location was just too dumbfounding.
She gave a few pats to her face and squeezed out a slightly more natural-looking smile before tidying up everything and walking out of the bathroom.
The living room downstairs had become a mahjong and chess room.
Wu Zhilun deliberately gave a little reminder. ”Ze is upstairs.”
Going along with his words[4], Qiao Qiao said, ”Friend Jia He, could I trouble you to please go upstairs and say a thank you for me? And say that next time I'll treat everyone to dinner.”
Qing immediately added, ”Screenwriter, Teacher Yi still hasn't gone to bed yet.”
Only Wu Zhilun's a.s.sistant did not say anything, evidently having suffered a blow from his mahjong hand and not even willing to give any attention to anything else.
In this brightly illuminated living room, against the liveliness of the mahjong game, just like that, she had become the target that everyone was evicting.
Feeling sullen for a while, Jia He dawdlingly watched some mahjong. No one paid any attention to her. Fine. Since she had come here, no matter what, she should say hi to the master of the place. Giving herself a shot of courage, she rose and headed upstairs.
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The flooring was hardwood, and as her soft slippers walked up the stairs, not a sound was made. However, this served only to make the s.p.a.ce seem more stifling.
Fortunately, the layout of the second floor was open and airy. Only one room's door was half-closed, and Yi Wenze's voice could faintly be heard coming from it, eliminating the awkwardness she would have felt if she needed to search for him. As she stood in front of the door, her position happened to offer views of the balcony outside. The rain had not slackened.
She knocked on the door and greeted, ”Teacher Yi.”
Yi Wenze seemed to be on the phone, and after stating, ”Come in,” he immediately carried on speaking in low tones to the person on the other end.
After a moment's hesitation, she pushed open the door.
In that s.p.a.cious study, the several wall lights were all turned on, and the entire room was bright. Half of the wall to the right was covered by a bookcase while shelves of CDs filled the other half. He was sitting next to the balcony, his body sunken into a black couch, and as his fingers ma.s.saged between his brows, he lifted his head and glanced at Jia He.
At this moment, the music jumped to the song ”Forever,” and the low voice of the lead singer pervaded into every alcove of the study.
”Tian Chu,” Yi Wenze all of a sudden said into the phone, ”My new song is not very suitable for you. Of course, this is just my opinion. If you insist that you want it, you can discuss it with Mai Jie. There's no need to specially make a call to me.” After saying this, he listened wordlessly again for a while, still ma.s.saging between his brows. A tinge of resignation had been added to his expression. ”I've already said what I should say. I still have guests here, so I can't talk anymore.”
In awkwardness, Jia He sat on a separate single sofa chair, concentrating on listening to that song, trying to distract herself from everything else.
When Yi Wenze had at last hung up the phone, she smiled and asked, ”Do you like Stratovarius a lot?”
She had racked her brain for a long time before she had come up with this topic to divert their attention.
”I started listening to their music really early on, and gradually it became a habit.” Setting his mobile phone on the coffee table, he picked up a tea pot and poured a cup of tea for Jia He. ”Finland is a place with a dreary climate, but it is also that type of atmosphere that created such pure, unadulterated metal music.”
Jia He inquired, ”You've been to Finland before?”
Yi Wenze nodded.
Jia He broke out in a slight awkward sweat. ”The suicide rate there is really high.”
He was quiet for a moment. ”Yes. Usually, the highest incidence is in the springtime, because the winters are so hard to get through. After that long wait, many people develop deep depression.”
It seemed… there was something kind of wrong with this topic.
Jia He thought about the phone call that he had just ended and also this dialogue right now. Amid such bleak, despairing background music, a not-so-good feeling all of a sudden arose in her.
Clutching her teacup, she was silent for a long time. ”Actually, being betrayed is not such a big deal. I've been through it, too.” Of course, hers could not compare with divorce, but with the s...o...b..z circle being so open and non-conservative, likely the natures of the two matters were about the same.
Yi Wenze's brows lifted slightly. ”Editor-In-Chief Gu?”
Jia He looked down at her teacup. ”Mm-hmm.”
This was honestly a case of sacrificing herself to console her idol. Her intention was to say some comforting words, but when they were actually at her lips, they were all the type that was rotten from overuse, stuff like, ”Time will take the edge off everything.” Saying them out would not have any true, practical effect.
Right when she was unsure what she should say next, Yi Wenze suddenly spoke up. ”Jia He.”
She lifted her head, looking at him in puzzlement.
In those eyes, there were only little spangles of a smile as they gazed warmly at her. ”Are you trying to comfort me?”
Jia He could hear her own breathing. Feeling a little fl.u.s.tered, she swept her eyes haphazardly over the teapot and then immediately reached over, picked it up, and strode over to the water dispenser to add some water into it. ”No, I just suddenly thought of that.”
Yi Wenze smiled, not speaking.
She set the teapot back over the tealight candle and helped him refill some tea into his cup. When she turned around to give it to him, she discovered that they were actually very close to one another… a little too close.
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[1]Nanjing Road is a major road in Shanghai, about six kilometres long, and is well-known as a shopping street. It is divided between East and West Nanjing Road. West Nanjing Road has many large, modern, and, generally, upscale malls.
[2]捕快. In pre-modern China, a bukuai's role was similar to that of current-day police officers and hence is often translated as ”constable.”
[3]Shanghai's district of Pudong, whose name literally means ”east bank,” is on the east side of the Huangpu River. It is now considered Shanghai's financial hub and is very modern, filled with skysc.r.a.pers. Directly across from it, on the west side of the river, is the historic centre of Shanghai, including the famous Bund, with the small, narrow streets of Old Shanghai.
[4]顺水推舟”shun shui tui zhou.” This idiom literally translates as ”pus.h.i.+ng the boat with the current.” It is used to describe someone who makes use of something that is working favorably for him to easily move, without much effort, what he wants done forward.
This story was translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com only. All forms of reproduction, redistribution, or re-posting are not authorized. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the copy is unauthorized and has been taken without consent of the translator.
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