Chapter 34: Alright
You Ruxu hadn’t expected Zhou Tianzui to also be going to Yuhai, and even less expected to be on the same flight, sitting next to her. No wonder she had asked about her ticket and seat number. She had thought Zhou Tianzui was just being thorough, but now she realized she hadn’t been perceptive enough. People always said she was meticulous and could see through others, but when it came to Zhou Tianzui, she seemed to have no answers. Three years, and she thought she understood Zhou Tianzui, yet it was only recently that she felt she was starting to truly know her.
Zhou Tianzui sat beside her, eyes closed, and asked, “Did you go to university in Yuhai?”
“Yes.” Yuhai had several of the best universities in the country. She had wanted to go to university in Jindu before the college entrance exams, but her mother had said, “I have no objections to you working in Jindu after graduation, but I want you to make that decision when you’re mature enough.”
She had thought about it all night, finally deciding to attend university in Yuhai.
Zhou Tianzui said, “I’ve never been to Yuhai.”
She had always attended schools nearby, because of Yu Qiao. In high school, her teacher had recommended another school. She did a lot of research and found that the local environment and food wouldn’t suit Yu Qiao, so she gave up on the idea and chose her second choice. When Yu Qiao found out, she was furious.
Yu Qiao rarely lost her temper. She had often had outbursts after her husband passed away, and then would hug Zhou Tianzui and say, “Xiao Tian, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it.”
Sometimes, when she wasn’t clear-headed, she would say, “Xiao Tian, if Mom’s gone, just pretend you never had a mother.”
“Xiao Tian, I really can’t take it anymore.”
Zhou Tianzui had simply accepted all of Yu Qiao’s emotions calmly. Finally, Yu Qiao recovered. They moved, those turbulent emotions gradually fading into the past, and Yu Qiao slowly began to accept her new life.
Yu Qiao’s outburst during high school was expected. She had said, “Knowing this, I might as well be dead.”
Zhou Tianzui didn’t speak, just looked at her.
Yu Qiao’s eyes reddened under her gaze, and she said, “Xiao Tian, will you blame me?”
No, she wouldn’t have before, and she wouldn’t now.
In the future—
She looked at You Ruxu.
Would Yu Qiao be angry again in the future?
Zhou Tianzui closed her eyes, her head tilting against You Ruxu’s shoulder. You Ruxu turned. Zhou Tianzui’s skin was fair, her bangs covering her eyebrows, her eyes closed. You Ruxu asked, “Are you going to sleep?”
“Not sleepy.” Zhou Tianzui snuggled against You Ruxu’s shoulder, her hair brushing against You Ruxu’s neck. You Ruxu played with a strand of hair with her fingertip. Zhou Tianzui asked, “Who else is in your family?”
You Ruxu lowered her hand: “My dad, my mom. My paternal grandparents passed away a long time ago, and my maternal grandparents are abroad.” She saw them less than twice a year and wasn’t very close to them. She said, “I also have an aunt.”
Zhou Tianzui asked, “Is she good to you?”
You Ruxu said, “She’s quite good to me.”
She repeated, “My family is very good to me.”
It had been half a year since she last went home. She hadn’t even gone back for her birthday. Her mother had said she wanted to visit Jindu, but You Ruxu was busy filming in the countryside and told her not to come.
Her mother had mentioned visiting several times in the past few years, but the timing was never right. Once, her aunt came to Jindu for a conference, but You Ruxu was out of town. Her aunt messaged her: [Xu Xu, are you in a relationship? Let Auntie meet them, I won’t tell your mother!]
You Ruxu replied: [No.]
Her aunt didn’t believe her: [Really? Then what are you doing in Jindu? I thought you came here for love.]
Her imagination running wild.
You Ruxu didn’t know how to explain.
Perhaps sensing she wouldn’t lie, her aunt didn’t ask further, and You Ruxu breathed a sigh of relief. She had come to Jindu initially just for work, never expecting to meet Zhou Tianzui.
Zhou Tianzui said, “That’s good.”
Then, her voice cool, “There’s no one else in my family, just my mom.”
They had lost contact with their relatives long ago, their relationship not even as close as their neighbors. You Ruxu nodded. She could tell that they were casually chatting about things, past, present, family. You Ruxu thought, it seemed like the first time she and Zhou Tianzui had talked about these things. Previously, their conversations were mostly about work. Even when they had free time for a walk, they would avoid these personal topics.
Yes, avoid.
They had both, consciously or unconsciously, avoided these topics. One didn’t speak, the other didn’t dare to.
You Ruxu thought for a moment and said, “Auntie is very gentle.”
“Is she?” Zhou Tianzui’s voice held a hint of amusement, “She’ll be very happy to hear you say that.”
Would she?
You Ruxu clenched her hand, her palm sweating.
She remembered the last time she brought fruit over, and after a moment of thought, asked, “What does Auntie like to do usually?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Dancing, cooking, chatting.”
You Ruxu was silent.
All things she wasn’t good at.
Zhou Tianzui asked, “What’s wrong?”
You Ruxu said, “I want to bring her a gift when I go back.”
It felt like a test, doing something she hadn’t done before. Once a certain balance was broken, it would either tip over or find a new equilibrium. She was now trying to find a new equilibrium.
Zhou Tianzui seemed surprised by her words. She opened her eyes, her gaze, having been resting on You Ruxu’s shoulder, now meeting hers, her eyelashes brushing against You Ruxu’s jaw, a ticklish sensation, like a feather. She heard Zhou Tianzui say, “Just some local specialties will do, my mom’s not picky.”
You Ruxu hummed in agreement.
She then heard Zhou Tianzui ask, “What about me?”
You Ruxu was slightly surprised, lowering her eyes. She saw Zhou Tianzui sit up straight and ask, “Why don’t you ask what kind of gifts I like?”
Zhou Tianzui.
She really didn’t know what kind of gifts such a picky person would like.
You Ruxu asked, “What do you like?”
Zhou Tianzui chuckled, “I’m not picky either, daily necessities are fine.”
You Ruxu was suspicious, “Daily necessities?”
Zhou Tianzui took her hand and wrote something on her palm. The ticklish sensation traveled from her fingertips to her palm, tracing the lines of her hand, the word taking shape in You Ruxu’s mind. Before Zhou Tianzui could finish, she instinctively clenched her hand, her movement so quick that she even caught Zhou Tianzui’s fingers in her grip.
You Ruxu glanced at her, her voice slightly lower, “That’s not a daily necessity.”
Zhou Tianzui said, “Isn’t it?”
Just as You Ruxu was about to speak, Zhou Tianzui said, “I suppose not. Teacher You uses it more often, so Teacher You gets to decide.”
This person—
You Ruxu turned her head, the urge to cover Zhou Tianzui’s mouth growing stronger.
In the end, she held back.
She looked down at her magazine. Zhou Tianzui closed her eyes again, seemingly resting, her head tilting slightly. You Ruxu, seeing this, straightened up and gently placed Zhou Tianzui’s head on her shoulder, even adjusting the fabric of her shirt to make it more comfortable, only realizing afterwards that she, who always maintained a perfect image in public, never allowing any wrinkles on her clothes, was now deliberately creating “wrinkles.”
You Ruxu pursed her lips and looked back at the magazine, but she couldn’t focus on a single word.
It had been over six months since she last went home. Winter had arrived in Yuhai. Although the average temperature was higher than in Jindu, it had been raining frequently, each rainfall bringing a chill, making it even colder than Jindu. Before You Ruxu left, Wu Xiulian reminded her to wear more clothes. She had worn a jacket, but stepping off the plane, she was still hit by a blast of cold air.
Shivering slightly, You Ruxu pulled her suitcase, walking beside Zhou Tianzui.
“Which hotel are you staying at?” This summit was organized by the city hospital and held nearby. There were three hotels in the vicinity, and You Ruxu didn’t know which one Zhou Tianzui was staying at.
Zhou Tianzui looked at a message on her phone and said, “Hanmo.”
You Ruxu nodded, “My mom will be here soon, I’ll ask her to take you to the hotel first.”
Zhou Tianzui looked at her backpack, “What about your things?”
You Ruxu said, “I’ll take them home first…”
“Leave them in my room.” Zhou Tianzui said, “I’m staying near the summit venue anyway.”
You Ruxu thought for a moment and nodded, “Okay.”
She walked out with Zhou Tianzui. Wu Xiulian spotted her immediately and called out, “Xu Xu!”
You Ruxu looked up and saw her aunt standing at the exit, smiling. She said to Zhou Tianzui, “This is my aunt.”
Zhou Tianzui nodded.
Wu Xiulian walked over to You Ruxu. She was wearing a light red trench coat over a professional suit, a smart and capable look. The fabric of her clothes was expensive, giving her an air of authority, although her smile was quite friendly. She said, “Xu Xu, it’s been a while.”
You Ruxu called out, “Aunt.”
Wu Xiulian acknowledged her, then looked at the person beside her. Zhou Tianzui called out politely, “Aunt.”
“And this is?” Wu Xiulian asked You Ruxu, “Your friend?”
You Ruxu said, “This is Zhou Tianzui, she’s attending the medical summit.”
“Oh—” Wu Xiulian extended her hand, “Hello.” Then she smiled, “Zhou Tianzui, Dr. Zhou? Are you the Dr. Zhou who lives with our Xu Xu?”
Zhou Tianzui, composed, replied, “Yes, that’s me.”
“Oh my!” Wu Xiulian looked at You Ruxu, “You didn’t even tell me you were bringing Dr. Zhou. Your mom’s going to scold you again.”
She gestured towards Zhou Tianzui, “Let’s go to the car.”
Zhou Tianzui glanced at You Ruxu, took her suitcase, and placed it in the trunk. Wu Xiulian was driving a mid-size SUV, a seven-seater, with plenty of space. You Ruxu placed the equipment in the back row and sat in the second row with Zhou Tianzui. There were three seats in the second row. You Ruxu sat by the window, Zhou Tianzui beside her.
After getting into the car, Wu Xiulian said, “Xu Xu, you’re a celebrity now, you’ve made us work overtime for days. You have to treat me well this time you’re back.”
Wu Xiulian was a non-marriage advocate, young at heart, so there wasn’t much distance between her and You Ruxu.
You Ruxu asked, “Overtime?”
Wu Xiulian said, “Three days of overtime. I only managed to sneak out today because I knew you were coming home. That explosion case in Jindu had quite an impact.”
Mainly because of the stricter regulations on public opinion control. There had been meeting after meeting, and they were only given time off after drafting a new control plan.
You Ruxu understood and said, “Then I’ll treat you to dinner tomorrow.”
“Don’t rush.” Wu Xiulian said, “I heard from your mom that you’ll be back for a week?”
You Ruxu said, “Yes.”
Wu Xiulian smiled, “Such a long vacation, you should enjoy yourself.” She looked at Zhou Tianzui through the rearview mirror and asked, “Dr. Zhou, have you been to Yuhai before?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “No.”
Wu Xiulian said, “Then Xu Xu, you should show Dr. Zhou around, take good care of her. It’s her first time here, take her to see the sights.”
Zhou Tianzui turned to You Ruxu: “Is that alright?”
Her polite and humble demeanor was completely different from the Zhou Tianzui You Ruxu knew. You Ruxu said, “Alright.”
Wu Xiulian beamed, “Then Dr. Zhou, do you have anything else to do?”
Zhou Tianzui said, “I was planning to go back to the hotel.”
“Going back to the hotel before even having lunch?” Wu Xiulian said, “If you don’t mind, come to our place, let’s have lunch together.”
Zhou Tianzui glanced at You Ruxu.
You Ruxu’s back was straight, her lips pursed. Zhou Tianzui said, “I don’t mind.” She turned to You Ruxu, “Is that okay?”
Silence fell over the car for two seconds.
You Ruxu said, “Alright.”
Zhou Tianzui: Show me around?
You Ruxu: Alright.
Zhou Tianzui: Have dinner at your place?
You Ruxu: Alright.
Zhou Tianzui: Buy some…daily necessities?
You Ruxu: …
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