Chapter 33: Intoxicated, Not By Alcohol
“Sis, why are you drinking?”
Zou Yameng’s cheeks were flushed, her cheeks a bright red, like the overly saturated sun in a ukiyo-e painting. She pretended not to hear and pulled Lu Li down to sit with her on the cold floor, her jade-like arm casually draped around his neck. “Little Li… Can you control whether your sister drinks or not?”
“Drinking is bad for your health, especially when you’re injured!” Moreover, alcohol had a significant impact on mental health. If it weren’t for this demon called alcohol, how could his strong Sister Yameng resort to such a cowardly act as suicide? Seeing Sister Yameng bring the beer can to her lips again, Lu Li quickly grabbed her wrist. “Sister Yameng, stop drinking!”
Zou Yameng seemed a bit tipsy. “Don’t bother with me.” Was she really drunk? Lu Li looked at her hazy eyes, lost in thought. In his two lifetimes of memories, Sister Yameng had only been drunk twice. The first time was after he graduated from college in his previous life, and the second time was in Lingyue City. It seemed like she could actually get drunk, which meant he couldn’t let her continue drinking.
Zhou Wen was flipping through TV channels. “Little Li, don’t stop your sister. She’s feeling down, just let her have a drink.”
“What happened? Did something go wrong with the second team?” After thinking it over and over again, he could only come up with this possibility. It must be something related to table tennis that made Sister Yameng so depressed.
Just as Zhou Wen was about to speak, Zou Yameng suddenly crushed the beer can in her hand, making a loud clang. “Wenwen, you’re not allowed to say anything!”
Zhou Wen was scared of Zou Yameng right now. Hearing this, she could only give Lu Li a helpless look and continue changing channels.
Lu Li felt a familiar panic in his heart, a fear like standing on the edge of an abyss. He was terrified of the tragedy repeating itself, of his invincible superwoman sister taking the path of suicide again. He gripped Sister Yameng’s shoulders tightly. “Sister Yameng, no matter what happens, I’ll support you! But please don’t hide it from me.”
Zou Yameng remained silent. Not hide it from him? Could she do that? Tell her beloved brother that she loved him like a swallowtail butterfly drawn to lavender? It was taboo, it was forbidden. She was just a butterfly, unable to fly across the ocean.
Silence. Only the woman’s hot breath brushed against his neck.
“Little Li, let me have a drink with your sister. You go back and do your homework.” Zhou Wen couldn’t stand the silent tension between the siblings, a tension that was both confrontational and strangely intimate. She pushed Lu Li out the door. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of your sister, I won’t let her drink too much.”
“I…” Lu Li’s words were cut off by the slamming door. He stared blankly at the wood grain of the door, then walked back to his own apartment. Sometimes he wished he had the superpower to read minds, so he could understand what women were really thinking.
Back in his apartment, he turned on his computer, and the headline news popped up. The media was lavishly praising the new leadership team in Mulan City, praising the government’s efficiency. The webpage that was filled with tragic stories just half a month ago was now full of praise and accolades, giving Lu Li a deeper understanding of the Chu family’s power. He remembered Silly Goose mentioning that her grandfather used to be an official in the capital, and so was her great-grandfather… Tracing back generations, one of their ancestors even served as prime minister for the old empire. It was a pity that in her generation, there was only one daughter in the direct line. Her great-grandfather often lamented this when he was alive.
Lu Li logged onto the Valve platform and replied to several media outlets, then sent a message to Chen Jianing, who had a pink profile picture. “Are you back at school?”
“Three days and four hours!”
“What do you mean ‘three days and four hours’?”
“It took you three days and four hours to ask me if I’m back at school!”
“I just got home, I’ve been busy…”
“You’re always busy.” Chen Jianing typed these words with resentment. She had been looking forward to Lu Li contacting her again. After all, she was his partner, not because she liked him or anything.
“The school is very strict. They check our temperatures every morning and evening, and all classes are online.” Chen Jianing said. “I had another fight with my roommates. They said short girls have a hard time finding boyfriends…”
“Did they say that to you?”
“Not directly, but I’m a short girl too. They were clearly implying it.”
“Calm down, calm down…”
“Let me tell you, they…” Chen Jianing seemed to have found an outlet and poured out all her frustrations to Lu Li. Lu Li didn’t really understand what she was talking about, but he still sent a message every two minutes, like “How could they do that?” “That’s too much!” “Mm-hmm.” “That’s really messed up.”
He thought of Old Chen from his computer science class. Old Chen had written a program that automatically replied to his girlfriend’s messages. He used to think that kind of program was useless, but now he missed it dearly. However, he heard that Old Chen had broken up with his girlfriend because of that program. He didn’t know if they had gotten back together.
“See, I told you they’re too petty.” After typing at least a few thousand words, Chen Jianing finally ended her seemingly endless rant. “There are actually some other things, I’ll tell you next time.”
“Mm-hmm, okay, okay.” Lu Li let out a sigh of relief, finally finishing reading Chen Jianing’s messages. He realized that she was actually making a big deal out of nothing. Her roommates might be innocent. But when a girl complains to you, the worst thing you can do is try to be “logical.” She’s venting, how could she listen to reason?
“Lu Li…”
“Hmm?”
Suddenly, Chen Jianing withdrew her message and replaced it with: “Never mind.”
Lu Li twitched his lips. If only he were a drill, he could drill into these girls’ heads and see what strange and wonderful thoughts they were hiding. After chatting with Chen Jianing for a few more minutes, the sky outside the window darkened. Lu Li went to his sister’s door, worried. He knocked, but there was no response, so he called out, “Sister Yameng, don’t drink too much.”
He heard his sister respond with an “okay” through the door, followed by Zhou Wen’s slurred voice, “Xiaomeng, I really can’t drink anymore… Please spare me…”
And she said she would take care of Sister Yameng? With Zhou Wen’s low alcohol tolerance, wouldn’t she be easily overpowered by his Sister Yameng? Lu Li could only turn around helplessly. He saw An Baili peeking through the crack in her door again. “Li, can I sleep over tonight?”
Lu Li thought for a moment and then nodded. “Behave yourself in bed.”
An Baili excitedly jumped out of her apartment, wearing a white nightgown. She looked fresh and lovely, her graceful figure faintly visible beneath the loose garment. Lu Li was afraid she would catch a cold and quickly opened his door. “Come in.” She clung to his arm and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, then bounced into his apartment like a cheerful rabbit.
If Lu Li knew that Sister Yameng would drunkenly climb into his bed tonight, he wouldn’t have let An Baili in even if she begged him.
Leave a Reply