Bai Xiao Si dragged Mai Ding and An Zi Yan to a night market so they could keep her company while she ate. After all, she had been away for a long time. Mai Ding looked around. He had always assumed Bai Xiao Si was a spoiled rich young lady, but apparently she preferred places like this. People were packed together everywhere, everything was greasy, yet there was an enormous variety of food—and naturally, most of it was delicious. The three sat at a table waiting for the proprietress to bring over their skewers.
Mai Ding was drinking tea when Bai Xiao Si suddenly dropped a bombshell. “When are you two getting married?”
Mai Ding sprayed tea everywhere. “W-why would you suddenly say that? Besides, even if I wanted to, somebody might not be willing.” He deliberately said it that way and glanced toward the expressionless An Zi Yan.
“What, you want me to marry you?”
The question was immediately tossed back into Mai Ding’s lap. His face reddened. “Who wants you to marry me? Shameless! Xiao Si is the one who suddenly brought it up. I’m telling you, I have absolutely never thought about it before. You think I got together with you just so you’d marry me?”
Bai Xiao Si propped her chin on one hand, bored. “That one sentence just exposed everything you’re thinking.”
“I have no idea what either of you is talking about. Boss! Is our food still not ready?” Mai Ding hurriedly changed the subject.
Just then, a little girl selling flowers approached and looked at An Zi Yan. “Big brother, buy a rose for your girlfriend.”
Bai Xiao Si mischievously decided to tease the girl and irritate Mai Ding at the same time. She linked her arm through An Zi Yan’s. “That’s right, husband. Buy me one. I really want a rose.” Mai Ding’s eyes widened furiously, and he immediately grabbed An Zi Yan’s other arm. “Husband, I want one too.”
The little girl’s face went pale. The corner of her eye twitched as she stared strangely at An Zi Yan. Then she slowly backed away, still turning around to look after walking several steps. An Zi Yan stared coldly at the two people clinging to him. “Did you two overdose on something?”
“She started it.”
“You’re the one who stole my man. No matter how you explain it, you’re still the mistress.”
“Then you’re the frumpy old wife.”
Their argument attracted the attention of everyone eating nearby. An Zi Yan tapped one finger lightly against the table, and both of them instantly fell silent. “You’ve completely disgraced me.”
At last, the proprietress brought the food. Bai Xiao Si attacked it ravenously, displaying absolutely none of the manners expected of a young lady. Mai Ding gave An Zi Yan a deeply understanding look. “I finally understand why you abandoned her and chose me. Look at the way she eats, then look at me. I have such good manners. When I eat, I don’t even show my teeth, and I cover my mouth with a tissue.”
“Yes, yes. And when you’re finished, you dab the corner of your mouth with a handkerchief, tuck it into your little purse, twirl your braid around your finger, and toss it behind you.” Bai Xiao Si was dripping with sarcasm. “Let me sum you up: a woman. No—a complete woman.”
“Xiao Si, that’s going too far. You can insult me for not being handsome. You can insult me for being stupid. But you cannot insult my masculinity.”
“I believe you used to be masculine. But after more than a year, An Zi Yan has probably fucked you into a woman.”
With Bai Xiao Si shamelessly saying something like that in the middle of a crowded public place, Mai Ding could do nothing but glare and stamp his feet beneath the table. An Zi Yan spoke coldly. “If you aren’t eating, get the hell out.”
“Ex-husband, you’re biased. The second Mai Ding starts losing the argument, you say something like that.”
Mai Ding found this baffling. An Zi Yan had just told him to get out too. How exactly did that count as favoring him? What kind of logic was this?
“Say one more thing and I’ll make you take your bowl to the next table.”
“You think getting rid of me is that easy?” Bai Xiao Si was not particularly afraid of An Zi Yan either.
Mai Ding kindly picked out everything he personally thought tasted good and put it into An Zi Yan’s bowl. An Zi Yan said nothing, simply eating whatever Mai Ding gave him without any change in expression. Seriously. I’m being nice enough to give him food and he doesn’t even say thank you. This bastard just takes me for granted.
Bai Xiao Si noticed Mai Ding’s expression and shook her head. Apparently Mai Ding still lacked experience. He had always been the person who openly loved An Zi Yan first and openly gave more, but precisely because Mai Ding’s affection was so obvious, it overshadowed An Zi Yan’s. Mai Ding only ever noticed the portion of An Zi Yan’s love that An Zi Yan openly displayed.
Bai Xiao Si tapped her chopsticks against her bowl. “I strongly demand equal treatment. Ex-husband, you’re seriously unfair.”
“What stupid thing are you talking about now?”
Mai Ding looked equally confused.
Bai Xiao Si pointed toward the food Mai Ding had placed in An Zi Yan’s bowl. “Those are all things you hate eating. If I had given you that stuff back when we were together, you probably would’ve dumped the whole bowl over my head.”
An Zi Yan glared at Bai Xiao Si. “You talk too much.”
He doesn’t like these? An Zi Yan had never told Mai Ding. Come to think of it, An Zi Yan knew exactly what Mai Ding liked and disliked, while every time Mai Ding cooked something for An Zi Yan, An Zi Yan simply ate it quietly. Mai Ding had always assumed he wasn’t picky. So An Zi Yan had foods he disliked too.
Mai Ding reached out with his chopsticks to take the food back. “Why didn’t you tell me? Even Bai Xiao Si knows, but I don’t. If you don’t tell me things like that, how am I supposed to know?”
An Zi Yan knocked Mai Ding’s hand away. “Why would I bother telling you something that pointless?”
Bai Xiao Si translated from the side. “What my ex-husband means is that as long as you’re the one who puts it in his bowl, he’ll eat it.”
“I already told you that you talk too much. Do you want to die?”
Bai Xiao Si stuck out her tongue and finally stopped. Mai Ding watched An Zi Yan calmly continue eating, warmth spreading through his chest. If there had not been so many people around them, he would definitely have thrown himself at An Zi Yan and hugged him.
I thought I already understood you so well. Apparently there are still so many things about you waiting for me to discover and understand.
Bai Xiao Si patted Mai Ding’s shoulder. “Child, you still have your whole life ahead of you. Take your time understanding him. You’ll find some unexpected surprises.”
An Zi Yan stood up, picked up Bai Xiao Si’s bowl, walked out to the road, placed it directly in the middle of the street, then calmly came back. Bai Xiao Si screamed. An Zi Yan shrugged. “I already warned you, and you still wouldn’t stop gossiping.”
“Ex-husband, that’s so mean.”
Mai Ding merely snickered gleefully from the side before looking at An Zi Yan. This bastard! How am I supposed to stop loving him? I only love him more every day.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Bai Xiao Si wanted to move on to the next place. Mai Ding and An Zi Yan walked her to the bus stop. Mai Ding and Bai Xiao Si walked ahead while An Zi Yan followed behind them.
“He refuses to say these things and doesn’t want you noticing them because that’s his shy side.”
“Him? An Zi Yan? Did I hear you correctly? He gets shy?”
“You don’t understand. He’s never been good at treating people well—or rather, he simply doesn’t treat people well. But you’re the exception.”
“Why does it sound like you understand An Zi Yan better than I do?”
“He’s always been like this with you. But you can’t compare that to how awful he used to be toward me. I can. The difference between loving someone and not loving them is incredibly obvious. Mai Ding, treasure it. With An Zi Yan, don’t listen for love. Feel it.”
After saying that, Bai Xiao Si ran toward the bus stop by herself. “All right, this is far enough. Ex-husband, bye!” Then she blew An Zi Yan an enormous kiss.
Mai Ding watched Bai Xiao Si run away, then turned and walked back toward An Zi Yan. His entire face was overflowing with affection and emotion, and the sight gave An Zi Yan goosebumps. “What the hell did that woman say to you?”
“I’m not telling you. It’s our secret.” A secret about you.
“Looks like I really did fuck you into a woman.”
“Hey! Hey!”
“Stop looking at me like that.”
“Like what? I don’t feel like I’m doing anything.”
“Exactly like you are right now.” An Zi Yan pushed Mai Ding’s face away.
Mai Ding smiled, his eyes curving into crescents.
Everyone else can see how good you are to me, yet somehow I keep missing it myself.
Looks like I need to work harder too. Like a game of Spot the Difference, I’ll search through all that coldness of yours and pick out every little piece of love hiding inside.
Find five, and you kiss me once. Find ten, and you love me for the rest of my life.
Leave a Reply