Two days later, Qian Fei received a call from Sister Jin while at work. She went outside to the corridor to take the call.
Sister Jin’s voice was full of apology, “Feifei, I heard that Xiao Hu cheated on you and you two broke up. What a mess! I thought that boy looked so clean-cut, I never imagined he was that kind of person. You must be heartbroken! Oh, this is all my fault. I didn’t introduce you to the right person!”
Qian Fei quickly said, “Sister Jin, please don’t say that! In the company, besides you, no one cares about me more! How could you have known that Hu Zining was cheating outside? Even his mother probably doesn’t know! If you insist on taking the blame for something that’s not even your fault, how can I let you introduce me to more boyfriends in the future?”
Sister Jin sighed twice, “Ah, I don’t dare to introduce anyone to you anymore! It’s good that you found out now. If you had gotten married, wouldn’t I have ruined your life?”
Qian Fei interrupted her, “That won’t do, Sister Jin! You have to get back on the horse where you fell off. If you feel you’ve wronged me, then find me an even better one!”
Sister Jin, who had been full of worry, was amused by her words and laughed. After laughing, she said with emotion, “Feifei, how is it that such a good girl like you always encounters the wrong people?”
Qian Fei was touched by the last sentence, her eyes suddenly stinging. She held back her emotions and said, “Maybe the right time hasn’t come yet!”
After hanging up, she sniffled hard and walked from the corridor towards the office.
She was looking down, rubbing her eyes, when she suddenly bumped into someone at the corner with a “bang”.
She quickly said “Sorry,” but when she looked up, she saw Li Yifei standing at the turn with his mouth twisted and his eyelids drooping, looking at her.
“Putting on a brave face, huh?” he asked lazily.
Qian Fei irritably pushed him, “You tell me, aren’t you annoying? And why were you eavesdropping on my phone call?”
Li Yifei stood there without moving an inch, “I’m warning you not to get physical. I hate it when people push me! And don’t put me in the shameless category of eavesdroppers. I was looking out for you. What if it was that Hu guy? I was afraid you wouldn’t be able to handle him.”
Qian Fei laughed, “When you start being kind, you’re quite the busybody!”
Li Yifei gave her a look, threw out the four-character idiom “ungrateful”, and turned to walk away.
Qian Fei followed him. Suddenly, she felt something flash at the corner of her eye. She stopped and looked towards the intersecting corridor.
A slender figure with long hair was walking away.
She was stunned for a moment, feeling as if that figure seemed to exude a sense of resentment.
In her daze, she heard Li Yifei suddenly say from ahead, “I won’t be home for dinner tonight.”
She snapped back to reality and replied with an “Oh”: “I wish you wouldn’t come home for dinner every day!”
That evening, Da Jun called Li Yifei to South Beauty restaurant.
As soon as Li Yifei entered, he asked, “Why such a quiet place today?”
Da Jun said, “I wanted to talk to you about something in peace.”
Li Yifei said, “It would’ve been better at my place. The tomboy’s menu tonight is fried eggplant strips, much tastier than the food here!”
Da Jun nearly choked, looking at him in horror, “Young master, your taste is getting cheaper!”
Li Yifei kicked him, “If you have something to say, say it quickly.”
Da Jun picked up his chopsticks, “Let me eat a bit first.” He put a piece of boiled fish in his mouth, “Their boiled fish is about the only edible thing here!”
Li Yifei followed suit and picked up his chopsticks to try a piece of fish.
After tasting it, he turned his head to find Da Jun staring at him with his mouth open, looking dazed, and his chopsticks had fallen from his fingers onto the table.
“I forgot to wait for you to put the food in your bowl before using my chopsticks! But the question is, big brother, what shock have you received? How come you ate from the same dish after I used my chopsticks? Didn’t you never eat food that others had touched before? What’s wrong with you? Did someone kick your brain? Quick, tell me you’re you and not an alien possessing your body!!!!”
Li Yifei was stunned by his words.
If Da Jun hadn’t mentioned it, he wouldn’t have noticed that recently at home, he seemed to have stopped putting food in his bowl and instead shared dishes directly with that tomboy, each with their chopsticks poking at the fried eggplant strips in the same plate.
When had he become so close to her, like siblings, without any reservations? He hadn’t even noticed it himself.
He composed himself, raised an eyebrow, and said, “What’s the big deal? I just forgot for a moment!” He put down his chopsticks and asked Da Jun, “Hurry up and tell me, what did you want to see me about?”
Da Jun put aside his frenzied state and became serious, “Feifei, let’s do some business together. Nowadays, money in the bank isn’t even money anymore, it’s depreciating faster than waste paper! We could have invested in real estate, but I hear they’re going to levy property taxes in the future, so even houses have become a hot potato! I figure we can’t just sit here watching the RMB irreversibly depreciate in the motherland’s embrace day by day, we’ve got to do something, right?”
Li Yifei gave him a look, “Go talk to someone else about this. The old man kicked me out, I don’t have any capital.”
Da Jun put his arm around Li Yifei’s shoulder, “Well, I’m not going to persuade you to go sweet-talk the old man for money or anything, you’d beat me up. How about this, I’ll provide the capital, you just come up with money-making ideas, and when it’s done, I’ll give you a cut. Let you earn some pocket money to mess with the old man!”
Li Yifei’s interest was piqued.
“Alright, I’ll give this some serious thought.”
Da Jun relaxed, “Now that the serious business is done, let’s talk about something even more important! So, buddy, how are things going with that girl Jin Tian?”
Li Yifei put some food in his mouth and chewed, “Not bad. She’s a soft girl, pretty, sensible, doesn’t cling.”
Da Jun squinted and asked, “How does she compare to your little true love?”
Li Yifei grunted, “She wasn’t like she is now before. She used to be a sensible, pretty, non-clingy soft girl too. Who knew she’d become so quarrelsome after coming back to the country.”
Da Jun shook his head and sighed, “You know what this is called? It’s called ‘poverty brings sorrow to a couple’! When did you ever make her do housework before? If you just hired a housekeeper to clean, wouldn’t that solve the problem? Why do you have to fight about housework every day to the point of cursing each other’s ancestors? No matter how poor you are now, you can still afford this, right?”
Li Yifei looked at him, raised an eyebrow, and said, “It’s not a big deal to hire a housekeeper, but I just want to know how much hardship a woman can endure while living with me. And what’s the result? A bit of housework drove her into another man’s bed, huh!”
Li Yifei put down his chopsticks, unable to eat anymore.
“Sometimes I hate that old fart in our family. He sees through everything so clearly. When he said Gui Lili wasn’t suitable, she wasn’t. When he said she could only share the good times with me but not struggle together, it was really like that. He even said I couldn’t make it without him! I wanted to prove that he could be wrong sometimes, but as things unfolded, every single thing proved he was right. Now the only thing left is him saying I’m not capable. I have to hold on no matter what, I absolutely can’t let him be right again! I can’t let my father look down on me!”
It had been a long time since Da Jun had seen Li Yifei so defiant and cynical yet serious. Upon careful consideration, he realized that Li Yifei’s defiance and cynicism had changed from before. In the past, his rebellious and cynical attitude was based on his inherent family background and wealth; but now, his defiance and cynicism came from an innate pride, a pride that wanted to prove he could carve out his path.
Da Jun felt that Li Yifei at this moment was cool, handsome, and awesome.
“Bro, I’m begging you, don’t put on such a serious face in front of me anymore. I’m afraid I might turn gay!”
As soon as Da Jun finished speaking, Li Yifei spat a mouthful of water on his face, “Would it kill you not to be so disgusting?”
Qian Fei suddenly felt that dining alone in the evening was a bit lonely.
After this thought flashed through her mind, she was startled. If she was developing a sense of dependence on a tenant, that could be bad.
While washing the dishes, she remembered the dirty things Hu Zining had said before.
It seemed that continuing to live alone with Li Yifei as a single woman and man was no longer appropriate.
She felt it was time to formally discuss with Li Yifei about him moving out.
As soon as Li Yifei returned home, he sensed something was off with Qian Fei.
Her hesitant and stammering manner made her look like she had done something guilty.
After changing into his pajamas, Li Yifei sat on the living room sofa watching TV.
Qian Fei wandered out of her room like a ghost, drifted to the front of the sofa, paused, gave a forced laugh, and said to him, “Oh, you’re back!” Then she fell silent, stood still, and with an expression torn between “should I say it” and “never mind”, drifted back to her room.
The second time she wandered out, Qian Fei said, “You’ve eaten, huh!” Then, with the same conflicted expression as if she was constipated, she went back.
The third time, she said, “You’re full, huh!” Conflicted, she went back.
The fourth time, after she said “Was the food good?”, just as she was about to drift back, an impatient Li Yifei grabbed her.
“Do you know how many times you’ve drifted in front of me with your hair all messy like a slipper ghost? Spill it, have you done or are you about to do something to wrong me?”
Qian Fei shuddered.
It’s better to face it now than later, sooner or later she’d have to have this confrontation to kick him out, and she decided to go for it!
She took a deep breath, like a warrior about to cut off his arm, just as she was about to speak—
“You’re not thinking of some crooked way to kick me out, are you?” Li Yifei surprisingly beat her to it and asked the question first.
Qian Fei deflated.
“How did you know what I was going to say…”
Li Yifei irritably pushed her aside, “Don’t block me from watching TV! Go look in the mirror yourself, your face clearly says ‘Li Yifei, get the hell out’, I’m not blind.”
Qian Fei stared at her arm in a daze.
He had just casually pushed her aside like it was nothing, like moving an unnecessary object, without even looking at her…
And while he was doing this, they were discussing her, as the landlord, wanting him, the tenant, to move out…
Whose home is this anyway?!
Qian Fei was furious!
“Li Yifei, when are you moving out?” She stood in front of the TV.
Li Yifei lazily reclined on the sofa, not getting up, and stretched out a long leg to hook her to the side, “I told you not to block my view of the TV! I’ll move when I’ve saved enough money to buy a villa.”
Qian Fei was hooked to the side by his foot.
She was stunned for a moment, deeply pained by her lack of stability.
She stood back in front of the TV, “Li Yifei, if you keep living here, my chastity will be ruined in the eyes of the world! Why don’t you go find another place to live, please?”
Li Yifei rolled his eyes in great displeasure, “Why do you insist on blocking the TV? You know this annoys me, right? I’m not moving! I’ve gotten used to living here!”
Qian Fei, seeing him act like a scoundrel, couldn’t contain her anger, “You might be used to it, but I’m not! I’m really troubled, big brother! People are saying I’m keeping a gigolo! No, can you stop watching TV for a moment? Li Yifei, are you forcing me to kneel before you’ll move out?”
Li Yifei rummaged in his pajama pocket and pulled out over seventy yuan. He held the money out to Qian Fei, “There, don’t say I’m not generous. After you kneel, take this to spend.”
Qian Fei was breathing heavily, “Li Yifei, what will it take for you to move out?”
Li Yifei stretched his leg to push her aside again, “Be sensible, let me watch TV in peace, and I’ll raise your rent a bit each month!”
Qian Fei shouted, “Raising the rent won’t help! You still have to move even if you raise the rent! Raising the rent… how much are we talking about?”
Li Yifei, still watching TV, said, “Nine hundred.”
Qian Fei scoffed, “For a quarter, right? I’m not interested!”
Li Yifei didn’t even look at her, “Nine hundred per month.”
Qian Fei was stunned for a moment, then asked, “So, um, tomorrow night, what do you want to eat?”
Li Yifei turned his head and gave her an annoyed look, “Not kicking me out anymore?”
Qian Fei put on a righteous face, “Why would I kick you out? The innocent have nothing to fear! Besides, having such an eye-candy of a handsome guy around every day, full of life and vigor, for me to look at for free without charging me, I’m making a fortune!”
Li Yifei squinted at her smugly, clicking his tongue repeatedly in great praise, “Look at this, whose child is this, how can she have such good taste!”