When Ye Sibei and Qin Nan fell asleep in each other's arms, Fan Jiancheng returned home humming a song.
When he opened the door, he saw the living room was brightly lit and Zhao Shuhui was sitting on the sofa, not knowing what she was thinking about.
Fan Jiancheng was stunned, feeling a little guilty: "You haven't slept yet?"
Zhao Shuhui looked up at him: "Where have you been?"
"The company is busy," Fan Jiancheng took off his coat and said nonchalantly, "I'm working overtime."
"Do you think I will believe you?"
Zhao Shuhui suddenly stood up and walked to Fan Jiancheng. She grabbed Fan Jiancheng's clothes and took them off to examine them carefully, smelling them.
Fan Jiancheng changed his shoes carelessly, untied his tie, turned around and sneered, and his wife responded to his behavior with ridicule.
Zhao Shuhui heard the laughter, she turned around, grabbed Fan Jiancheng's collar, and asked excitedly: "Where have you been? Where did you go?"
"I say you should stop now," Fan Jiancheng grabbed her hand, "I'm just going to gamble, don't be so sensitive."
"I'm too sensitive?" Zhao Shuhui looked at him in shock. "How dare you say I'm sensitive? Don't you know what you've done? You still have the nerve to go on the show. Now everyone knows that you cheated on me. Have you ever thought about Wenwen? Do you still have any shame?!"
"If I don't appear on the show, won't everyone know that I cheated?" Fan Jiancheng approached her. "I'm just trying to clear my name. Besides, I get paid to appear on TV. I've never been treated this way before."
Seeing his wife's angry and worried eyes, Fan Jiancheng comforted her: "It's okay to cheat, I don't care about it, how big a deal is it? Every man in the world cheats, and you don't pursue it, so why should others care?"
Zhao Shuhui looked at her in disbelief. She had never thought that one day, Fan Jiancheng would say such words to her.
Ever since the verdict, Fan Jiancheng seemed to have lost all his restraints and was no longer the good guy he pretended to be in front of her.
She saw his darkest side and chose to tolerate it. As for Fan Jiancheng, she knew clearly where her bottom line was.
Fan Jiancheng pulled her hand away, humming a tune softly as he went to the bedroom.
Zhao Shuhui watched him walk into the master bedroom. She suddenly couldn't bear it anymore, so she rushed to the bedroom, pounced on him, and started beating him madly with her hands.
"You son of a bitch! You son of a bitch!"
"Are you crazy?!"
Fan Jiancheng slapped Zhao Shuhui in the face, and Zhao Shuhui was thrown onto the bed. Fan Jiancheng touched his face and felt the wound Zhao Shuhui had scratched. He hissed softly, "What are you doing?"
"Transfer all the money to my account and transfer all the properties to Wenwen's name," Zhao Shuhui raised her head, covering her face with her hands, looking excited, "otherwise I will report you."
Hearing this, Fan Jiancheng didn't care at all. He put his hands on his waist, unbuttoned his clothes, raised his hand and slapped her hard. Zhao Shuhui screamed, but Fan Jiancheng held her head with his hand and pressed her to death in the pillow.
"Do you have a bump on your head?"
Zhao Shuhui felt that she couldn't breathe. She struggled desperately, but her voice was muffled by the pillow and only a "woohoo" sound could be heard.
Fan Jiancheng pressed her head and reminded her, "I am the one making money for this family. Without me, what would Wenwen and you eat and drink? Think about it carefully. What have you done for this family? I am out there, exposed to the wind and rain, and you are at home being a stable wife. I am under so much pressure, and I am out there to relieve the pressure." He grabbed her hair and pulled her up, then leaned in and asked her, "What are you doing here?"
"I have the evidence in my hands," Zhao Shuhui said, panting as she trembled. "Fan Jiancheng, don't go too far."
"You're fucking threatening me?" Fan Jiancheng couldn't help but laugh when he heard this. He gently brushed Zhao Shuhui's face and said, "Zhao Shuhui, you need to understand clearly that if you report me, you can't get away. If that happens, not only will we go to jail, but Wenwen will also lose both her parents."
Zhao Shuhui was stunned for a moment. Fan Jiancheng picked her up and let her carry him on her back. He held her in his arms. Two people were reflected on the dressing table. Her face was injured and she was in a mess. Fan Jiancheng's face was leaning against hers. He held her gently: "I am guilty, but you are not? Shut up, you have already gotten a lot. Don't ask anything like before. Let's continue to live in peace. Otherwise," Fan Jiancheng pinched her face and forced her to turn her head to look at him, "no one will have an easy life."
Zhao Shuhui was speechless. She looked at the two distorted figures in the mirror. She was trembling slightly and wanted to cry, but she didn't dare to make a sound for fear of waking up the sleeping child.
She recalled the year they got married, when Fan Jiancheng shyly told her that he would take good care of her in the future.
She wanted to ask him, he said he would be a great success to her, how come it turned out like this
Fan Jiancheng, do you remember what you said
It rained all night that night. Ye Sibei woke up in the morning on the 2nd day and saw the clear blue sky from her bed. She lay lazily on the bed, listening to the clinking sounds in the kitchen.
She paused for a moment, then got up and went to the room, where she saw Qin Nan cooking. She leaned against the door and watched for a while, then Qin Nan noticed she got up and smiled at her, "Are you up?"
"Not going to the store?"
"I'll go after I make you breakfast."
As he spoke, Qin Nan scooped the rice noodles into the bowl and sprinkled some chopped green onions on them.
The two of them were eating together, and Qin Nan seemed to be talking casually: "It's the end of the month, have you done anything?"
Ye Sibei thought for a moment and said, "It's nothing." She thought for a while, "Before that, I plan to visit grandma and other relatives, and then visit Teacher Yang."
Qin Nan paused, then took a bite of rice noodles and pretended not to know him: "Teacher Yang?"
"My high school homeroom teacher is called Yang Qiyu, and he's a very nice person."
Ye Sibei ate his noodles and casually talked about the past: "In my senior year of high school, I almost couldn't continue my studies. Then he told me that there was a donation project. He applied for a place for me and donated 20,000 yuan, so that I could continue my studies."
"That person is very nice," Qin Nan nodded, "I should go and thank him. Where is that kind person?" Qin Nan raised his eyes, "Do you know who he is?"
Ye Sibei shook his head: "I don't know."
As she said that, she thought for a moment: "Now that I know, I should thank him. However," Ye Sibei hesitated, "I'll wait until later. I have nothing now, so I can't thank him for anything."
"Then later," Qin Nan nodded, "I'll make more money and we'll go and thank them properly."
The two of them talked as they ate. After finishing the rice noodles, Ye Sibei rushed Qin Nan to the store and washed the dishes at home.
She was washing dishes while thinking in her mind.
Next Wednesday, September 20, is her best chance.
As long as Fan Jiancheng died, she would definitely be a suspect, so she had to have a perfect alibi to completely clear herself of the crime.
It would be best if she survived, so that she could fly far away with Qin Nan.
If you don't survive...
Nothing.
Ye Sibei's mind was full of these thoughts. After washing the dishes, she went to the desk and opened the page for purchasing train tickets.
She took out her notebook and kept calculating the time.
From Nancheng to City G, the slow train takes 24 hours, departing at 17:00 in the afternoon and arriving at 17:00 the next morning, but if you take the long-distance highway, it only takes 10 hours.
If she bought a ticket from Nancheng to G City, she would get on the bus from Nancheng, get off at Huaishui, the second station, at 17:30, arrive near the casino from Huaishui, meet Fan Jiancheng at 7 o'clock, and after cleaning up everything, take a 10-hour long-distance bus directly to Yunwen County, the first station before G City, enter the station at 15:30 using someone else's ticket, and finally exit from G City Railway Station at 17:00 using her own ticket.
In this way, the train stations in Nancheng and City G will have her surveillance, surveillance, and tickets. As long as they don't find the entry and exit surveillance of the Huaishui and Yunwen stations in the middle, she will have an alibi.
The risk is huge, but there is no better way.
After making the decision, Ye Sibei immediately stood up and decided to go through all the routes she had prepared.
She took the train to Huaishui, got off at Huaishui station, and found a black car driver to take her to the casino. She confirmed the time along the way and left the black car driver's phone number.
From then on, she would put on a hat and a mask and go out to make all the preparations every day when Qin Nan was not around.
Buy tickets, prepare gloves, weapons...
Sometimes she would feel tired, and at this time she would go to the entrance of Fuqiang Real Estate to see Fan Jiancheng.
Every time she looked at it, she felt that she was no longer tired.
She felt that all her attention and concern were on Fan Jiancheng.
There was only one thought in her mind: she wanted him to pay the price.
In fact, it wasn’t like this before.
In the past, she was numb and in pain. Even at the moment when the incident happened, this case did not affect her at all. She always wanted to escape and have a better life, so she fought, she begged for survival, and she begged for death in pain.
But now she didn't want to think about anything else, this was the only thing on her mind.
She wanted to finish this matter before moving on.
While she was doing these things, Qin Nan was following her all the time. She rarely paid attention to things around her now, so she didn't notice him following her.
She liked to record her thoughts in a small notebook, using some strange symbols. Qin Nan would take advantage of her sleep to look through the text. He could hardly understand it, but he could understand some of the numbers.
He didn't dare to speak, and didn't know how to start. He knew what he was going to do, and he didn't want to persuade her not to do it, but he couldn't bear to watch her do it.
Every time he saw her standing far away at the gate of Fuqiang Real Estate, staring at Fan Jiancheng coming out, he felt an endless pain.
It's like the feeling when I was young and watched my father wailing on the ground after his bones were broken.
Watching everything happen, but being unable to do anything.
On Saturday, while eating, Ye Sibei suddenly told him: "I plan to find some time to go out and play for a while."
Qin Nan paused for a moment, and at that moment, he had a premonition of something.
He pretended to know nothing and picked up some food: "Where are you going? Do you want me to get up?"
"I want to go on a journey alone, and plan to go to City G."
"when?"
"Wednesday," Ye Sibei smiled, "I've already bought the tickets, don't blame me for acting without your permission."
Qin Nan nodded without saying anything. Ye Sibei looked at him and asked, "Are you angry?"
"When are you going to see Teacher Yang?"
Qin Nan didn't show much expression. Seeing that he didn't react, Ye Sibei felt relieved and responded to him: "Do you understand? I'll give him a call and ask."
Qin Nan responded.
That night, Qin Nan got up and opened her notebook under the moonlight. She saw three train tickets, one from Nancheng to City G, one from Nancheng to Huaishui, and one from Yunwen to City G.
Qin Nan looked at the time points of the three tickets. The train from Nancheng to G City departs at 17:00 and arrives in G City at 17:05.
The train gets off one station at Huaishui and arrives at Huaishui at 17:30, goes up one station at Yunwen City and arrives at Yunwen at 15:30.
These numbers were all recorded by Ye Sibei in his notebook.
Qin Nan closed the book containing the train ticket and went into the restroom.
He sat on the toilet, covering his face and swallowing all the sounds.
He realized what Ye Sibei was going to do, but he also knew clearly that this plan was extremely risky. During the process, if Fan Jiancheng resisted beyond his expectations, or the police found the surveillance of Huaishui Yunwen, Ye Sibei would be exposed.
But Ye Sibei still chose to do it.
What should he do
Do you want to stop it or not
Even if she stops him this time, Ye Sibei will do it again. This has become her inner obsession, a thorn in her heart that will always exist if she stops.
If she doesn't stop him, will Ye Sibei succeed? Even if she succeeds, will she feel at peace in this life
he does not know.
At the beginning, he thought he could protect Ye Sibei from the wind and rain, but now, he found that he was no different from that young boy.
He couldn't protect his father, nor could he protect Ye Sibei.
On this road, he could only stand beside her and watch her go through everything. He couldn't stop people from saying things, couldn't stop the arrogance of the Fan family, couldn't stop the trial from failing, and at this moment, he couldn't stop her from heading towards this dead end.
What does he do
He doesn't know anything.
In the dark night, he clenched his fists and cried silently. After a long time, he heard Ye Sibei calling out in a daze, "Qin Nan?"
"Ah," he controlled his voice, as usual, "In the bathroom."
Ye Sibei didn't ask any questions. She seemed to have woken up in the middle of the night and closed her eyes.
Qin Nan adjusted his mood in the bathroom before returning to lie down beside Ye Sibei.
Since the second day, Ye Sibei has been arranging to take him to see Yang Qiyu. She picked clothes for him and said casually: "On Sunday, I will take you to see my grandma and her family. The old family is very nice, but they are very old-fashioned. If they say something unhappy, don't mind it. Tuesday... do you have any plans for Tuesday?"
"You're going on a trip," Qin Nan looked down at the man in front of him who was turning his collar for him, "You're not going to come back, so why do you have to arrange everything so full?"
"No." Ye Sibei looked up at him and smiled, "No, I was too impatient."
After getting dressed, Ye Sibei took Qin Nan and drove to No. 2 Middle School.
Yang Qiyu lived in the teachers' dormitory of No. 2 Middle School. Under Ye Sibei's instructions, Qin Nan parked the car outside the school and followed Ye Sibei into the school.
Ye Sibei called Yang Qiyu in advance. Yang Qiyu was already standing downstairs. When he saw Ye Sibei and Qin Nan, he greeted them happily: "Sibei, here."
"Teacher Yang."
Ye Sibei saw Yang Qiyu and happily ran over with Qin Nan. Yang Qiyu paused when he saw Qin Nan, but quickly adjusted himself and turned to look at Ye Sibei: "Is this your husband?"
Ye Sibei nodded and introduced Yang Qiyu: "His name is Qin Nan. Qin Nan, this is my teacher," Ye Sibei introduced Qin Nan, "Yang Qiyu."
Qin Nan nodded respectfully and called out, "Teacher Yang."
Yang Qiyu forced a smile and glanced at the two of them: "In the blink of an eye, you have grown into such a big kid."
As he spoke, Yang Qiyu suddenly remembered: "Oh, your master's wife has cooked the dishes, hurry upstairs."
"This is not our Master's wife," Ye Sibei teased behind Yang Qiyu, "Master's wife belongs to me."
"Once you're married, you're a family member," Yang Qiyu didn't respond to Ye Sibei's words, but instead lectured her, "Your master's wife is his master's wife."
The three of them went into the house while talking. Upon hearing the voices, Sister Yang hurried out. Seeing Ye Sibei and Qin Nan, she was stunned for a moment, then quickly greeted them, "Young man, come in and sit down."
Ye Sibei had informed Yang Qiyu in advance, and the Yang family had already made preparations. The dishes were served quickly, and the Yang couple sat down with their child and chatted with Ye Sibei.
Ye Sibei had only seen Yang Qiyu once every two years, so he didn't feel unfamiliar with him.
The Yang family didn't mention anything about what happened recently, which made Ye Sibei feel as if nothing had happened. She was unusually relaxed and spoke less. Qin Nan was watching her from the side and pouring wine for Yang Qiyu.
Yang Qiyu was less than ten years old, but he loved to drink. After Ye Sibei had two cups with him, he got drunk. After drinking too much, his eyes were red. He looked at Ye Sibei and sighed: "Why do you have such a miserable life, kid?"
Ye Sibei didn't say anything after hearing these words. Qin Nan immediately poured wine for Yang Qiyu and told him, "Teacher Yang, don't say these words. Drink more."
Yang Qiyu turned around blankly and looked at Qin Nan. After a while, he grabbed Qin Nan's hand and patted his shoulder; "You are a good boy."
As he said that, he turned his head and looked at Ye Sibei: "Qin Nan, you are a good boy, you have to live a good life with him, don't let him down, no matter what happens, you have to look forward, what has happened is not important, what has not happened is worth thinking about."
"Um."
Ye Sibei smiled and nodded: "Teacher is right."
Yang Qiyu talked about this and that for a while, then felt sleepy. Ye Sibei felt embarrassed to disturb him, so he said goodbye to Qin Nan and left.
It was still afternoon. Ye Sibei thought for a moment and turned to look at him: "You haven't been to No. 2 Middle School, have you? I'll take you around?"
Qin Nan was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Okay."
Ye Sibei pulled him and walked up to the teaching building of No. 2 Middle School. She pointed to the place for him: "That's the first teaching building, this is the second teaching building, I used to be in the second teaching building... this floor."
Ye Sibei pointed at the floor from afar, then pulled him and trotted over.
The door to the teaching building was locked. Qin Nan looked at her and said, "Is it locked?"
"I have a plan."
Ye Sibei pulled him to the back of the gate, where a window was exposed. Ye Sibei reached out and turned to look at him: "Find a stool?"
He said "find a stool", but Qin Nan understood what he meant. He smiled and simply lifted Ye Sibei up. Ye Sibei quickly used the force to climb onto the glass window which was almost as high as her and jumped over.
Qin Nan walked her in, then he grabbed the glass window and jumped in lightly.
Ye Sibei pulled him upstairs and jogged upstairs, talking about things in middle school as they went upstairs.
The teaching building had been renovated, but the overall layout remained the same. It was in the shape of a U, with long corridors running through it. Ye Sibei pointed to his class and his seat: "That's where I used to sit."
Qin Nan didn't say anything. He just looked at that spot quietly. Suddenly, he recalled the scene he saw when he opened his eyes after falling asleep for a long time in class when he was young.
The little girl was wearing a school uniform and a ponytail, and was taking notes seriously.
Amid the sound of reading aloud, the girl turned her head through the glass. She seemed to see him, but also seemed not to.
"I'm in a key class, but over there," Ye Sibei pointed to the class in front of him, "is the worst class in our school, but they are all taught by Teacher Yang, who is my Chinese teacher and their head teacher."
“You discriminate against poor students?”
Qin Nan turned to look at her, his tone seemed to be joking, but it was a little serious. Ye Sibei quickly explained: "Absolutely not. I'm just afraid that they will be unhappy with me after seeing how hard I work."
"How can that be possible?" Qin Nan laughed. Ye Sibei pulled him and said, "Come on, I'll take you to the stage."
Qin Nan followed her to the rooftop, and they went up to the stage together, overlooking the school from the rooftop.
Ye Sibei introduced the various buildings of the school to Qin Nan, telling them what they looked like before and what they look like now.
"Over there, there used to be a flag-raising platform," Ye Sibei pointed at the plastic track, "Every week, each class would select the best students to give a weekly speech. I've been there before."
"What are you talking about?" Qin Nan turned his head, "Study hard?"
"Of course I'm telling you a story," Ye Sibei said without any shyness. She recalled that time, "I wrote the manuscript myself. Teacher Yang said it was very well written. I still remember the title..."
Ye Sibei's voice faded as she spoke, but she still said the title: "The Best is Always in the Future."
The afternoon breeze blew gently, brushing against people's faces. Neither of them spoke. Qin Nan thought for a moment and asked her, "Do you really think so?"
“That’s what I thought at the time.”
"What now?"
Ye Sibei didn't say anything. She thought about it, smiled, and turned to look at him: "After Wednesday, when we go to the provincial capital, you will probably think the same."
When she's done with everything, she'll either start over or end it all.
Qin Nan stared at her. In his mind, he could see the scene that year when he looked up in the crowd and the little girl stood on a high place with her voice rising and falling.
"We struggle, we work hard, we fight, and through the darkest times, a better future is within reach."
“There is no suffering that cannot be overcome, and no despair that cannot be overcome.”
The girl at that moment was enveloped in the morning light, like light, like a deity.
When he left school that year, Teacher Yang asked him, "Why?"
He bowed his head and told him.
"Because she is my hope."
She doesn't like love.
His faith was the only ray of light he saw amidst the dark clouds.
"Sibei," he smiled, "It's my birthday on Tuesday, do you want to celebrate it with me?"
Ye Sibei's face was stiff, she was a little flustered: "I have bought the ticket."
"Then stay with me at noon?"
Ye Sibei breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed.
"Okay, I'll buy you a cake." Ye Sibei thought about it and seemed to be insincere. She gestured and said, "A big cake."
Qin Nan looked at her, and after a while, he calmly asked her: "Sibei, have you ever thought about what your life would be like without me?"
"What about you?" Ye Sibei asked back, "What would your life be like without me?"
"Still the same as before," Qin Nan said gently, "Open a car repair shop and live a good life."
"Then I'll do the same," Ye Sibei joked, "With or without you, I will live a good life in the future."
Qin Nan didn't respond. He stepped forward, opened his arms, and held her in his arms.
"That's great."
He whispered softly: "I just like not entrusting my life to just one person."
"After all, it's not a novel," Ye Sibei leaned in his arms, saying this with a bit of bitterness, but still said it with a smile, "Where can you find so many people who are willing to die for each other? This way, we can live a down-to-earth life."
Qin Nan did not respond.
He held her in his arms, feeling the warmth of the sunset being carried by the wind, and tenderness enveloping them all.
Later, Ye Sibei understood.
Those who talk about love may not necessarily be in love.
Someone who says he is heartless may actually be deeply affectionate.