“Freehand, freehand, freehand…”
He repeated it one by one on the paper, writing more and more sloppily. There was a dot at the foot of the page where the word "意" from the previous page had pierced through the paper. I don't know when he wrote it, but it must have been after they separated from Germany. So, was that why he didn't let her turn his book? When Xie Yi gently stroked those words with her fingertips, it was as if he was calling her softly in her ear. That voice had become a poison that had been planted in her heart, causing her to throb from time to time.
She buried her face deeply in the book. Yes, she was lying to him, she had been lying to him, she had been lying to him from the beginning to the end, even the last sentence was a lie to him. Unfortunately, she was so weak that she couldn't even take revenge well enough, so that she once accidentally blurted out the word "Ayan" in that room. I really don't know if I was too immersed in the play, or I just didn't want to get out of it, so even Xieyi herself doubted whether she hated him and wanted to take revenge on him, or to forget the hatred and forget everything, and find a plausible excuse for herself to stay by his side.
If she was asked to recall which year was her happiest, it would definitely be when she was with him at M University. At that time, she had no family worries and only wanted to have fun, as if the greatest sadness in the world was him scolding her. With the book under her pillow, Xie Yi couldn't sleep until late at night. She got up early in the morning and asked Qiao Hanmin for leave, and booked a flight to City C as soon as possible.
She didn't bring any luggage, just a handbag, and walked around to many places in City C. Finally, Xieyi stood under the small building where they had lived together. He had lived there before because it was close to the school and very quiet. The building was a bit old. When she came here in the summer, one of the outer walls was already covered with ivy, but unfortunately the leaves had fallen off long ago, leaving only a wall of dead vines. Xieyi walked upstairs, took away the flowerpot next to her, but the key was gone. She didn't notice whether Li Zeliang put the key back before he left last time, but the key was definitely not there. So, Xieyi touched the door handle with nostalgia, and then sat down with her back against the door. She tilted her head back and leaned lightly against the door.
Many, many years ago, she was sitting like this, and just when she was almost in despair, the door suddenly opened, causing the young girl to fall on her back. Then a handsome figure came into her sight, illuminating everything like the dawn. At that age, she cried when she was extremely happy.
Now, she could only smile bitterly.
Xieyi sat for a while, and then felt cold, so she dusted herself off and left. At that time, she didn't know that Li Zeliang was actually inside, just like before.
In fact, Li Zeliang had been in City C for many days. He had always been a very responsible person. No matter what time it was, he had never let go of the responsibility of the Li family. His eldest brother died early, so all the hopes of the Li family were on him. This was the first time he was so willful to throw the mess to Xue Qigui, not caring about anything, not asking anything, and just letting himself sink. Whether the Li family collapsed or closed down, he didn't want to care about it anymore.
He had been hiding in his room with the curtains drawn for days, drinking heavily, and then watching DVDs. He had a DVD that was left over from a play performed by the club during the first-year college anniversary celebration. The DVD was shot by someone in the club with a DV, and it was very unprofessional, without a bracket, and the entire lens was shaking and intermittent.
At that time, Xieyi was so excited that she and everyone else carved a disc as a souvenir. Unfortunately, after only three or two days, the disc was thrown into the drawer of her bedroom and no one picked it up. He would come back here to stay for a few days every winter, and one time he suddenly found it. So, when he had nothing to do, he would always watch it alone in the room. In the film, Xieyi stood on the stage with a rare seriousness and stability. Occasionally, when she pursed her lips, her dimples would appear.
When Xieyi called him last night, his hands actually trembled for a moment, and then he stared at the screen for a long while, and waited for a long time before the ringing stopped. He was not sure if he still had the strength to face her. The last sentence Xieyi left on the subway almost made him collapse.
She said, no.
When she took revenge on him in the past six months, she did not hesitate from beginning to end. Those two short words turned into a sharp sword that pierced into his heart without bleeding. He got up and went to the bathroom to wash his face with cold water, then thought for a while before calling back. Even though he was so scared, he still called back. Sometimes love is really like taking opium. You know it will end like this, but you can't resist the temptation.
She said goodbye to him politely: "Goodbye."
Goodbye, or never see you again
At this moment, he was drinking and watching, replaying the show over and over again, staying up all night, staring at the TV screen, capturing that figure, his eyes were bloodshot, and he didn't move. He could remember almost every line and every expression in the show. Li Zeliang took another sip of wine. He was numb from drinking, and his tongue could no longer taste anything except that it was wine. He was so engrossed in watching that the cigarette butt burned his fingers, and it took him a while to feel the pain.
Suddenly, he heard a noise outside the door, and stood up with difficulty to open the door. When he opened the door, he saw no one. He lowered his head slightly and saw a mobile phone on the ground. The style of the mobile phone was the most familiar to him. There was also a pendant on the mobile phone, a golden bear. The two things together made him sure that this was a freehand painting, and he would recognize it even if it turned into ash.
At that moment, he was filled with joy. Then he saw Xieyi running up from below. Xieyi looked up and suddenly saw Li Zeliang standing on the stairs. She was shocked. He was also in City C, and just a wall away from her.
She had imagined many scenarios of their meeting again. After all, they were all in City A, and Tang Qiao was also involved with the Li family. It was unlikely that they would not want to meet each other. Unfortunately, she did not expect such a situation. He had not shaved for a few days, and there were many stubbles on his beard, which made his chin look very dark blue. His handsomeness revealed a kind of decadence that was different from usual.
Xie Yi pointed to the phone on the ground awkwardly and said, "I accidentally dropped my phone there."
He looked at her silently, without saying anything for a long time. She also felt that what she said was a bit silly. She ran all the way to his door, just to make a phone call and then come back to pick it up? It seemed like he deliberately chose the time to appear.
"I came to City C for vacation and stopped by here to take a look," she explained.
This is what happens whenever she has an IQ short circuit, the more she explains, the worse it gets.
Li Zeliang still kept staring at her.
"I..." She couldn't think of any logical reason to explain why her phone fell at someone's door. He bent down to pick up the thing and handed it to Xieyi. When handing over the things, she accidentally touched his fingertips.
Li Zeliang said stiffly: "Since you are here, come in and sit down." Then he turned and went back to the house. Even the invitation seemed so overbearing that he did not give her a chance to choose.
Xie Yi wanted to resist, but when she saw Li Zeliang's legs, she swallowed the words of refusal. He didn't wear a prosthesis, and the trouser leg below his right calf was empty. He was leaning on a cane when he opened the door, so she didn't notice it before. A simple action of turning around and going back to the house was so difficult for him. She didn't know how his legs were broken. The outside world only said that it was a car accident in City B. Rumors were passed back and forth, but there was no accurate information.
When she kicked him, Xieyi also knew for the first time that it was an amputation. He protected his privacy so well that she could hardly get the truth from a third person. He used to be good at running and basketball, but unfortunately he didn't like to move much and was always lazy. When playing basketball, he was the point guard. Even though he was the least diligent runner on the court, everyone liked to listen to him.
He has always been obsessed with the concept of perfection, so he wants to do everything to the best of his ability and cannot tolerate any flaws, whether it is studying or working. Therefore, she really can't imagine how he survived when he just had his leg amputated. She was not in the country at the time, and had been recuperating in Germany, and had not heard any news about him.
The room was dimly lit, with thick curtains drawn, making it impossible to tell whether it was day or night. The air was filled with a strong smell of cigarette smoke. The table was covered with wine bottles, and the TV was on, still playing the same disc.
The first thing he did was turn off the TV.
"Would you like some water?" He asked, then realized that the only drinkable thing here was wine, so he got up to boil some water.
"I'll sit for a while and leave soon." Xieyi said.
He stopped and turned his back to Xieyi.
"There is one thing I must clarify," Xie Yi said, "I will not sign the gift contract in Lawyer Qiu's hand."
His back froze.
"I never take back anything I give away." Even the wedding ring that was returned to him was eventually thrown away by him.
"You know, as long as I don't sign, it won't take effect. Besides, I don't believe that the Li family doesn't need the money now."
It would have been fine if he hadn't mentioned this. Once he did, he got furious, so he sneered, "The money was originally deposited in your name. If you don't like it, you can just take it out and burn it. Wouldn't that make you feel better?"
"Li Zeliang, you..." She felt that she was at a loss for words, and the word "you" came out of her mouth, but she didn't know how to continue.
He had been wanting to say, "Xieyi, stay. I'm giving you money because I'm afraid that if I lose everything, you'll have a hard life." Unfortunately, he was so angry that his words completely changed as soon as he opened his mouth.
"What's wrong with me? Don't you hate me to the core? Now I'm thinking of a solution for you, what else do you want?" He turned back and stared at her. The angrier he got, the more he loved to say sarcastic and mocking words. "Instead of letting you try every possible means to collude with outsiders to plot against me, why not send yourself to me, isn't it just to save you trouble and worry?"
"Or," he added, "just consider it as your reward for acting for me these past few months. Wouldn't it be extra money for sleeping with me overnight?"
Such humiliating words made Xie Yi's face pale instantly. If someone else said this to her, she would definitely step forward and slap him. Unfortunately, he is Li Zeliang, not Li Zeliang, and he used to be A Yan.