Chapter 17: Rainy Night Memories

After eating, Ye Tianhui quickly went to pay the bill, while Gu Shizhang sat at the table, calmly watching her settle the payment.  

The meal was not cheap. A typical meal at a roadside stall would cost just a few HKDs, but this meal had cost over sixty HKDs.  

Normally, a regular worker in Hong Kong would earn around two thousand HKDs a month, so this meal cost the equivalent of what a laborer at the dock would make in a day.  

Ye Tianhui couldn’t help but feel a little reflective. She realized that if one is willing to spend money, they can enjoy good food; but if one is reluctant to spend, the food at roadside stalls won’t be as tasty. So, it really comes down to having money.  

After paying, she noticed that Gu Shizhang was smiling at her, his smile filled with meaning, even carrying a hint of schadenfreude.  

Ye Tianhui raised an eyebrow, looking at him in confusion.  

Was he making her pay for the meal just to watch her pay?  

What was his intention…?  

Gu Shizhang laughed and said, “Was it too expensive? Did it cost you too much?”  

Ye Tianhui replied, “It’s fine. You’ve been good to me and helped me a lot. I’m just treating you to a meal; it’s the least I can do.”  

Gu Shizhang smiled again, “Let’s go. I’ll take you home.”  

The two of them left the restaurant.  

Once they stepped outside, they realized it had started raining. A light drizzle fell from the sky, and the asphalt road gleamed with a wet sheen. The sky had darkened, and the streetlights had come on, casting a dim and desolate glow.  

Ye Tianhui looked at the rain and thought it wasn’t too heavy. She could just run out and make it to the bus stop, which would shield her from the rain. Once she got on the bus, she wouldn’t get wet.  

However, at that moment, Gu Shizhang seemed to produce a three-fold umbrella out of nowhere.  

Ye Tianhui stared at him in surprise. “Where did that come from?”  

Gu Shizhang simply replied with two words: “Magic.”  

Ye Tianhui snorted. “You’re lying!”  

Gu Shizhang pressed his thumb lightly, and the umbrella opened steadily, large enough to shield both of them. They walked together towards the bus stop.  

At that moment, the bustling street had become much quieter, the noise dissipating. Only a few pedestrians holding umbrellas hurried by.  

In the scattered light of the streetlamps, the entire street seemed veiled with a thin mist that gave off a soft, hazy glow.  

The two of them walked side by side under the umbrella, with the faint raindrops drifting by their feet. Ye Tianhui noticed that their shoes were quite close.  

He wore leather shoes, and she wore the sneakers she had recently bought.  

As she looked down, she suddenly felt a bit dazed.

If she didn’t glance sideways at the man next to her, she might feel as if she were back in her homeland, reminiscing about the past.

She still remembered that year when the sage was still the crown prince. He had replaced the late emperor and gone to the frontier for inspection, and at that time, she had accompanied him as his bodyguard. 

It seemed to be another night like this. They had just left the post station when it started to rain. She had raised an umbrella to shield the crown prince, but to her surprise, he had taken it from her. 

In the cool, rainy night, she feared that the crown prince might catch a cold, so she took off her cloak to keep him warm. 

But the crown prince looked at her without accepting it.

Confused, she looked at him, only to see darkness and displeasure in his eyes, with a hint of coldness that seemed offended.

At that time, she didn’t understand what was going on with him. She even felt that since he had been made the crown prince, his demeanor had become particularly strange.

She could only respectfully lower her head and remain silent.

After a long while, he sighed softly and said, “Hui Hui.”

“Hui Hui” was her childhood nickname, something her family had called her since she was young. 

But after she joined the army at the age of thirteen, no one called her that except her family. 

When she heard the crown prince call her by that name, she felt a shock in her heart.

The young and dignified crown prince had finally taken the cloak she had offered and wrapped it around himself.

Afterward, he always looked at her with a cold, detached gaze.

“Miss Ye, are you cold?” A voice suddenly broke the silence, polite and casual, as though it was just a simple question.

Ye Tianhui froze for a moment, and her thoughts were pulled back to the present.

She mechanically pressed her lips together, then spoke, “I’m not cold.”

Gu Shizhang quietly studied her, as if trying to see through her. Then, he suddenly smiled.

In the cool night, when she saw him smile, her heart seemed to shrink.

Her thoughts swung between suspicion, denial, and doubt, repeatedly.

At that moment, Gu Shizhang removed his coat and handed it to her. “Put this on.”

Ye Tianhui only looked at him, not reacting.

Seeing that she didn’t move, Gu Shizhang raised his hand and draped the coat over her.

Amidst the misty rain, the fresh scent of a man’s fragrance enveloped her, like the aroma of some kind of shower gel, making her feel comfortable.

She lifted her lashes and, in the dim light of the night, looked at Gu Shizhang, only to find him looking back at her with his eyes lowered, his expression as calm as always.

Meeting his gaze, she softly asked, “Why are you giving me your coat?”

Gu Shizhang was silent for a few seconds before speaking, “Maybe I’m afraid you’ll be cold…”

His voice was deep and gentle, and Ye Tianhui immediately felt a shiver run through her.

She quickly took a step back.

The instinctive movement made her step outside the umbrella’s coverage, and the chilly rain immediately hit her face.

Through the misty rain, she looked at him under the umbrella.

Clear, distinct facial features, and slightly sharp lines—everything about him was so familiar and vivid.

When they were far apart, it didn’t matter, but now, with him so close, almost enveloping her, it stirred emotions buried deep within her soul.

Gu Shizhang moved forward, holding the large umbrella over her, his tone tinged with helplessness. “What’s wrong?”

Ye Tianhui shook her head. “Nothing.”

She instinctively gripped his coat tighter. It was his, carrying his scent and warmth—it was so comforting.

She softly murmured, “I think I won’t wear it, I’m not cold. I’ll return your coat, I don’t want to wear it.”

She was a bit incoherent, but she was clearly rejecting it.

Gu Shizhang, holding the umbrella, simply watched her, observing her stammering.

After a few seconds of silence, he suddenly smiled. “Don’t act like this.”

Ye Tianhui blushed, a bit embarrassed and annoyed. “Act like what?”

Gu Shizhang replied, “It’s just a coat. As a gentleman, I should have some decorum. I can’t just watch a woman beside me dressed so lightly. It doesn’t match my style.”

As he spoke, his eyes carried a hint of innocence. With a helpless smile, he added, “At least let me have the chance to show my gentlemanly manners, okay?”

…It did seem somewhat reasonable.

Gu Shizhang gently coaxed, “Let’s go, otherwise, if the rain gets heavier, we’ll both get soaked.”

Ye Tianhui sighed. “Fine.”

Gu Shizhang held the umbrella and walked alongside her.

Although the umbrella was larger than usual, it was still a bit cramped for two people. As they walked side by side, their shoulders were nearly pressed together.

She wore his suit jacket, and the sleeves occasionally brushed against his arm.

It felt all too delicate.

It was his suit jacket, his shirt, but now the jacket was on her, and even his shirt was still his.

She almost had the illusion that he was holding her.

At that moment, Gu Shizhang asked, “Listen to this song, do you like it?”

Ye Tianhui’s mind paused for a moment before her attention shifted from the suit sleeve to her ears, and only then did she realize that a song was playing from the café next to them.

It was a very sweet and melodious voice, ethereal like silk, and in the rainy night, it carried a unique sense of sorrow and melancholy.

She thought for a moment and then said, “It’s fine, sounds good, tender and poignant. I’ve never heard this kind of song before.”

In her past life, she was a general in armor, but in this life, she was a factory worker wrapped in blue and green clothing. Perhaps she would never be able to sing such soft and sweet melodies herself.

Gu Shizhang: “Can you understand it?”

Ye Tianhui shook her head. “I can understand most of Cantonese now, but if it’s spoken too quickly or if the lyrics aren’t clear enough, I can’t catch it.”

Gu Shizhang: “This song seems to be from a TV series a couple of years ago. It’s sung by a recently famous female singer, called 《Jing Jing》. Do you want to hear the lyrics?”

Ye Tianhui looked at him curiously. “You actually know?”

Gu Shizhang replied, “Of course. The lyrics talk about stars in the sky, the general meaning is: Jingjing, Jingjing, all alone, like a cold star at the edge of the sky, searching for her mother, lost in the vast sea of people, drifting alone.”

Ye Tianhui reflected on the melody. “No wonder it sounds so sad. Isn’t that me?”

Gu Shizhang turned his head to look at her. “How are you alone?”

Ye Tianhui thought of her biological father, the Ye family, and that “mother” on the mainland. “I’m just like a lost soul in the vast sea of people, drifting alone.”

Gu Shizhang chuckled, “Nonsense. I think you’re the luckiest person in the world.”

Ye Tianhui: “How could that be!”

At that moment, a cool breeze blew in, carrying some moisture, and Gu Shizhang slightly turned his body to block it, doing so subtly.

Then he said, “You’ve only been in Hong Kong for a few days, and you’re already calling up your friends. The one you had dinner with today, is he a friend from the mainland? You two seem close.”

Ye Tianhui: “Well, he’s a friend from the mainland, but we’re not that close. We’ve only met a few times, really.”

Gu Shizhang: “Oh, not close? Yet you still treated him to a meal.”

Ye Tianhui looked at him suspiciously, feeling that he was being a bit petty.

She replied, “That’s because he helped me with something. Besides, we’re both from the mainland, we’ve met before, so it’s just making friends and helping each other out. Isn’t that good? I treated him to a meal, and the two of us only spent ten HKDs. When I treated you to a meal, it cost sixty HKDs!”

She emphasized “sixty Hong Kong dollars” very clearly, then added, “This is completely different. The money for a meal here could pay for ten meals for him!”

Gu Shizhang laughed: “Then I’ve really made a great deal.”

Ye Tianhui: “You need to remember, for me, money is the only standard for measuring friendship.”

Gu Shizhang, seemingly thoughtful: “So, my friendship is worth sixty Hong Kong dollars?”

TN:

Happy New Year everyone. May this year bring you more blessings, joy, and success in all your endeavors. And hopefully, if you’re like me, you’ll achieve all your New Year resolutions you couldn’t last year.