Chapter 58
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Chapter 58: We shouldn’t delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?
After the photoshoot, the group let out a sigh of relief, shook hands, and thanked each other, saying “Great work everyone”. Wu Fan was responsible for escorting the doctors out.
At five o’clock in the afternoon, the setting sun slanted down at a corner of the base wall, taking on a pale orange color. Xu Sui packed her things and followed them out.
“Xu Sui.” Zhou Jingze called out to her abruptly.
Xu Sui stopped and looked back at him. Zhou Jingze raised his hand and tugged on the tie, revealing a part of his throat, and looked at her with a loose expression on his cold face:
“Hair tie.”
This person has always spoken in a lazy and brief manner, so Xu Sui immediately understood that he was asking her to return the hair tie to him. Xu Sui pursed her lips:
“Didn’t you say you picked it up on the street? Since I used it, it’s mine.”
After Xu Sui finished speaking, she turned her head and left. Zhou Jingze stepped forward with his long legs and stood in front of her. He lowered his head and locked his dark eyes on her tightly:
“Yi Yi, that’s mine.”
Xu Sui didn’t understand why he was so attached to an ordinary hair tie, but before she was about to speak, a voice interrupted them. A student pilot ran over, panting and wiping the sweat off his forehead:
“Instructor Zhou, not good, something bad happened to a student!”
Taking advantage of Zhou Jingze’s distraction to deal with the matter, Xu Sui ran away.
When Zhou Jingze finished handling the issue, the base had already resumed its intense training, and there wasn’t a shadow of a doctor. Only Da Long was left staying in the office to look at the photos he took.
Zhou Jingze took two cans of carbonated drinks from the fridge and threw one to Da Long. He sat down brazenly and clasped the ring with his index finger. With a “zi”, bubbles came rushing out.
He took a sip and asked, “Are you picking photos?”
“What the leader instructed, of course I’d have to do my best.” Da Long said in a bureaucratic and roundabout tone.
Zhou Jingze put down his drink and lifted his palm: “Let me see.”
Da Long handed him the camera, and Zhou Jingze took it, his eyelashes drooping, and his thumb continually pressed the fast forward button, taking a quick look and passing them one by one.
When he saw the group photo, his gaze stopped: “Send this photo to me.”
Da Long took it over and saw that it was the group photo of the doctors just now. He gave an “ok” gesture and turned on the bluetooth to share it with Zhou Jingze’s phone.
“Instructor Zhou, what do you need this photo for?” Da Long was a little puzzled.
Zhou Jingze clicked “accept” and stared at the group photo in front of him. He pressed his thumb and captured Xu Sui’s smiling photo, and as if talking to himself, he snorted:
“Don’t I need a little compensation?”
On the way back, Xu Sui had the foresight to buy a pack of dried plums at the base convenience store. The car drove along the Huanxing Road out, and the sunset on the opposite side of the mountain had completely sunk, leaving only a little lingering afterglow.
Her colleague Han Mei happened to be sitting next to her. She nudged Xu Sui’s arm and asked, “Hey, Doctor Xu, what’s your relationship with that captain?”
“I—”
“When we were taking the photo before, I was standing next to you, and I felt like there’s something between you two. There was this atmosphere that I couldn’t describe,” Han Mei said clearly, “Don’t tell me nothing is going on between you two. You can fool anyone, but not this married woman.”
Xu Sui touched the dried plum on her right cheek with the tip of her tongue, and the plum rolled to the other side. Her cheeks were sore: “Ex-boyfriend.”
“I told you so, he looked at you a little differently, like carrying entanglement and desire.” Han Mei watched too many soap operas and said these kinds of terms.
Xu Sui twitched the corner of her mouth and didn’t reply. Seeing that she didn’t want to continue talking, Han Mei turned to watch her television series. The car drove forward slowly. She looked out the window, and in a while, she raised her hand and pulled off the hair tie behind her head.
She held the hair tie and stared at it for a while. This hair tie was a little old, and the beige satin had a pearly luster under the sun.
If she remembered correctly, this was her hair tie. It should be the one Xu Sui left behind at his house when they were still together.
It’s been five or six years, what was the use to keep it?
Xu Sui turned her head and looked out the window. The rows of trees outside the car window quickly flashed by and lost in a daze, she thought of it as his habit to collect old things.
——
Xu Sui thought after going to the AVIC flight training base to teach and cooperate with the promotion, the matter would be over. Unexpectedly, the deputy director came to the door again and asked her to go to the base once a week to teach the pilot students for two months.
“Director, I really can’t leave. Why don’t you find someone else?” Xu Sui declined.
The deputy director put his hands behind his back and said with a smile: “It’s set every Friday afternoon, and you can arrange it according to your schedule. Silly child, I’m trying to help you lighten your burden so you don’t have to do all the work yourself. It’s good for young people to go out and take classes.”
Xu Sui was unable to speak out about her suffering, and her tone was helpless: “I still really don’t want to—”
“It’s decided.” The deputy director waved his hand, signaling her to stop talking.
Xu Sui had no choice but to bite the bullet and take on this task. That’s how life is; the more you want to escape something, the more you will encounter it. Xu Sui finally added Zhou Jingze’s WeChat.
After all, he was the instructor and the person in charge of the base. If something happens, Xu Sui has to communicate with him as soon as possible.
After adding Zhou Jingze’s WeChat, he didn’t take the initiative to bother or anything but just lay quietly on her list. After work on Friday, Xu Sui and her colleagues had dinner together, and she didn’t get home until after ten o’clock at night.
After washing up, Xu Sui lay in bed with a warm-colored lamp on the bedside. She lay sideways and had a habit of checking her Moments before going to bed. Suddenly, she saw Zhou Jingze post a video with one word: Anxious.
Xu Sui clicked to open it, and it turned out to be 1017 lying on a white table. In the video, Zhou Jingze teased it with a cat tease stick, but it didn’t move.
Instead, it lay there limply; its entire body was very tired, and its eyes were slack as if there was no strength.
Xu Sui noticed that it had lost one of its teeth, and the orange fur around its lips and nose had also turned white. Zhou Jingze kept stroking it with his hands, and 1017 lay there with his eyes closed.
1017 has really become an old cat.
It was rare for Zhou Jingze to post, and many people exploded. Xu Sui looked at the comments one by one, and her heart gradually became sour.
Hu Qianxi: 【1017 is so pitiful, woo woo woo, when I come back from the African savanna, it will be the first one I visit! 】
Z replied: 【Heh. 】
Da Liu:【It’s so pitiful. After I finish this flight, I will buy 1017 its favorite canned cat food, the most expensive one. 】
Z replied:【Don’t, it can’t eat now. 】
Xu Sui was concerned about 1017’s situation and asked: 【Is it sick? 】
Zhou Jingze replied quickly: 【En, it’s getting old and developed a heart problem. 】
Li Yang also appeared in the comments and said: 【Aiya, you also raise cats ah? My friend has a blue and white cat, extremely cute, and it seems that she gave birth to cubs recently. Do you want one? It can be a good companion for your cat. 】
Xu Sui’s original gloomy mood was suddenly diluted, and Zhou Jingze didn’t reply to him. If the other party was someone he knew well, he would definitely reply with the word “stupid”.
She still couldn’t accept the fact that 1017 became sick, and it lingered in her heart that after tossing and turning, she still couldn’t fall asleep. Suddenly, the screen of the phone on the bedside table lit up.
Xu Sui stretched out her hand and took her phone, turning on the screen. It was Zhou Jingze who sent a message: 【Video call? 】
In the next second, he added another sentence:【To look at the cat. 】
Xu Sui thought for a while and typed out a word:【Okay. 】
The other party sent a video request. Xu Sui clicked to accept, and Zhou Jingze’s jaw flicked past before 1017 appeared in front of the camera, facing Xu Sui sideways and staring blankly straight ahead.
“1017, look at who this is?”
A voice sounded from the video off-screen, and a hand with clear bones and veins brushed the back of its neck, signaling 1017 to look at the camera.
1017 reluctantly turned his head back, and seeing Xu Sui on the screen, it became blank for a second. Xu Sui called out tentatively: “1017.”
The old cat was awakened by a familiar voice, and 1017 “meow” at her, like a loud grieving cry from the chest. The originally slack pupils were illuminated. It kept clawing at the iPad with its paws, constantly calling at the screen.
It has always remembered her.
Xu Sui had a sore nose and almost shed tears. In the beginning, she was too decisive to leave. To break it clean with Zhou Jingze, she didn’t even want 1017.
Actually, it has always been her who was cruel the entire time.
When she first saw it in the abandoned back garden of the campus, it was still a small kitten, meowing at her with a milky sound. Whenever it saw her, the cat would lick her palm from time to time.
Xu Sui and 1017 were on a video call for half an hour, and finally, the cat couldn’t hold it any longer and fell asleep on the table with droopy eyelids. After the cat fell asleep, Xu Sui also hung up the call.
The next day, when Xu Sui woke up, the sun happened to shine on the bedside. She got up and threw the clothes in the laundry basket before putting them in the washing machine. Afterward, she cleaned the house from the inside out.
Xu Sui put on the slippers and walked onto the balcony, grabbing a watering can to water the rows of succulents and green plants on the balcony. While pouring, her phone made a “ding” sound, indicating that a WeChat message came in.
Xu Sui put the watering can aside and opened WeChat. It was a message from Zhou Jingze.
Z: 【I’m going to bring 1017 to see a vet this afternoon. Do you want to come? 】
She wanted to see 1017; after all, it was very old.
Xu Sui typed in the chat box and then deleted it. But the phone kept showing that the other party was typing. Zhou Jingze seemed to have sensed her hesitation, and his tone carried a lazy ruffian vigor:
【In broad daylight, you’re not thinking I’ll do anything to you in broad daylight right? Even if I did, it would be at night. 】
The other party is typing:【Only watching the cat. 】
Xu Sui finally replied:【Okay, I will also bring anti-wolf spray. 】
Zhou Jingze replied six dots:【……】
At four o’clock in the afternoon, Zhou Jingze appeared in front of Xu Sui’s house on time. With the car window half down, he saw Xu Sui at a glance. He raised his head and honked the horn.
In the distance, Xu Sui wore a hazy blue shirtwaist dress, revealing a pair of fair and smooth calves. The striped hair scarf tied the hair behind her head. With light makeup, thin eyebrows, and red lips, her temperament was very charming.
When Xu Sui opened the car door, a faint fragrance wafted in. Zhou Jingze stared at her blankly. For a moment, his throat dried up.
“Where’s the cat?” Xu Sui frowned when she saw that he was lost in thought.
Zhou Jingze coughed lightly and raised his chin at her: “In the pet bag carrier.”
Seeing this, Xu Sui took the cat out of the bag and carried it to the back seat. 1017 was not used to lying on Xu Sui’s lap at first, but afterward, not sure if it recognized Xu Sui, the cat licked her palm vigorously, and it became more lively.
Zhou Jingze started the car, and the whole time after Xu Sui picked up the cat, she was teasing and playing with it, treating him like air, as if forgetting his existence.
She didn’t look over the whole time.
He, Zhou Jingze, also had a day of being ignored.
Not long after playing, 1017 fell asleep after a while because of its age. Xu Sui held it, and after the cat fell asleep, she realized that the car was eerily quiet.
An awkward atmosphere crept into the air.
Xu Sui found out that Zhou Jingze was still driving this big G, and it seemed that he finished repairing the car. She said to follow the procedures before, but no one came to her, and Zhou Jingze didn’t settle this with her.
Thinking about it, she felt a little apologetic.
Xu Sui thought about paying for the cost and asked, “How much did you spend on repairing the car—”
Zhou Jingze drove the car, slowly holding out a number.
Xu Sui immediately fell silent. Zhou Jingze put his sharp fingers on the steering wheel, stepped on the accelerator, and turned left. He spoke again in a slack and unruly tone:
“Tsk, repairing the car has overdrawn all the money I’ve saved to marry a wife.”
“It’s like indirectly losing a wife.”
It didn’t feel right for Xu Sui to reply but also not reply. After thinking for a long time, she said sincerely: “How about I introduce you to a girlfriend?”
As soon as the words fell, Zhou Jingze stepped on the accelerator suddenly, and the tires quickly rubbed against the ground. With a sound of “zi—”, the car made a sharp emergency brake sound, which was very ear-piercing.
Xu Sui was impacted by impulse and held the cat’s head before bumping into the front seat. 1017 was so scared that it almost jumped off.
The car stopped. Xu Sui rubbed her head and looked out. They’ve arrived at the pet hospital. She raised her hand to open the door but found that Zhou Jingze had locked the door and remained motionless.
Zhou Jingze picked up a cigarette pack from the center console, took out a cigarette, and bit it in his mouth. He lowered his head and lit the cigarette. The orange-red fireworks were extinguished, and a mouthful of gray smoke came out from his thin lips, exuding low pressure and downcast all over his body.
Xu Sui held the cat and said, “Open the door.”
With a “beep”, the car lock was unlocked. Xu Sui reached out to open the door and got down. When she was about to close the car door, Zhou Jingze wasn’t looking at her but straight ahead, smoking a cigarette with a gloomy face, he bit his back molars and smiled: “Xu Sui, you are really good.”
Introducing a girlfriend to your ex-boyfriend, she was the only one.
There was silence in response to Zhou Jingze, and Xu Sui closed the car door with a “bang”.
Zhou Jingze got out of the car after smoking a cigarette. The two went up the steps side by side. Zhou Jingze opened the glass door to let her in first, and the front desk staff came to welcome her immediately: “Hello, do you have an appointment?”
“Yes.” Zhou Jingze responded.
“Please provide the appointment number.” The staff member said.
Zhou Jingze took out his phone and murmured a series of numbers. The staff entered the phone number in front of the computer, checked the appointment information, and said, “Ah, the two are parents of 1017, please go straight and turn right to the second floor. The vet is inside.”
After speaking, the staff handed over a number tag.
Xu Sui explained subconsciously: “I’m not—”
“Go in now, or it’ll be too late later.” Zhou Jingze took the number tag, glanced to the left, and interrupted her.
A nurse came out to lead them upstairs. Xu Sui had no choice but to hold back her explanation and followed behind.
Xu Sui walked into the veterinarian’s office with 1017 in her arms. The vet first checked the cat’s heartbeat and other physical conditions and then gave it an infusion.
When the needle was on the cat’s neck, it screamed and struggled continuously, clearly trying to resist the infusion. Xu Sui could only comfort it in a gentle voice: “Good girl.”
“Does it hurt, 1017, I’ll blow the pain away for you later.”
Zhou Jingze raised his eyes and looked over. He happened to catch Xu Sui’s quiet side profile with strands of hair falling on her forehead, speaking softly. His heart suddenly tugged.
It was a scene he had not seen in a long time.
1017 gradually relaxed under her comfort and was extremely obedient in Xu Sui’s arms. After the infusion, Xu Sui carefully asked about 1017’s dietary restriction and how to take good care of it.
The doctor touched 1017’s head and said, “Cats are like this when they get old and have a lot of problems and pain. You should both accompany it more.”
Zhou Jingze came over, stretched out a finger to play with its whiskers, and said, “Yes.”
The nurse wiped 1017’s paws and some dirty places on its face with wet paper towels and chatted with them while cleaning up: “You must be 1017’s parents right? You two look really compatible, it’s great, or this cat won’t be raised by both of you for so long…”
Xu Sui knew it was impolite to interrupt someone, but she couldn’t continue to listen, so she interrupted: “We are not in a romantic relationship. He raised this cat by himself.”
The nurse paused, and with a look of embarrassment, Zhou Jingze looked at her steadfastly. Xu Sui ignored the gaze that fell on her and smiled at the nurse, and said softly, “We shouldn’t delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?”
This was the first time, after their encounter, Xu Sui officially expressed her stance, frankly and straightforwardly.
Also, drawing the lines between the two.
Only then did the nurse feel the tension between the two of them. She looked awkwardly at the tall man beside her. Zhou Jingze put his hands in his trouser pockets, his eyelashes drooped to cover up his emotions, and he smiled casually:
“Listen to her.”
After treating the cat, the two walked out. Zhou Jingze pointed to the bench in the corridor, and a magnetic voice sounded: “Sit for a while, I’m going to smoke two cigarettes.”
Xu Sui nodded and sat down with the cat in her arms. She raised her eyes and saw Zhou Jingze walking to the smoking area in the hallway and standing by the window to smoke. His back looked stern and silent, unclear what he was thinking.
He smoked a little fiercely, one after another, with a sharp profile, like a piece of ice that was cut completely. Suddenly, a violent wind blew, causing Zhou Jingze to bow his waist slightly, choking, and then coughed loudly.
Zhou Jingze lifted his hand to close the window. The sound of the wind stopped, and the cigarette butt was pressed against the lid of the stainless steel trash bin. With a “zi”, it was burnt completely black.
He turned around and walked towards Xu Sui, coming in front of her, and said, “Let’s go.”
When the two came out of the hospital, it was already dark. The sidewalks were crowded, and the lights were lit. Zhou Jingze glanced at the time and asked, “Want to have a meal?”
“No, I still have some materials to go back and organize.” Xu Sui shook her head.
Zhou Jingze twitched the corners of his mouth and said nothing; anyone could tell that this was Xu Sui’s excuse. He didn’t say anything more but took out the car key from his trouser pocket and raised his chin:
“Let’s go.”
This time Xu Sui sat in the front passenger seat because she would get out of the car first, and 1017 had to stay beside Zhou Jingze so that he could watch it.
The car moved forward smoothly. Zhou Jingze didn’t take the initiative to talk. Instead, he put his hands on the steering wheel and looked straight ahead in silence. Xu Sui didn’t know what to say and was speechless the entire ride. Later, she felt bored, so she raised her hand and turned on the music.
Finally, breaking the silence.
After driving for about forty minutes, the car arrived at Xu Sui’s house. She let out a long breath as they finally arrived. The atmosphere in the car was too depressing.
Xu Sui unbuckled her seat belt and said, “I’ll go back first, then. You should also rest earlier.”
“Xu Sui.” Zhou Jingze called her suddenly.
“Huh?” Xu Sui was unfastening her seat belt. Looking up at him, her clear eyes were full of hesitations.
Zhou Jingze was playing with a silver lighter in his hand. With a “snap” from the lighter, the flames shot up, and the black mole between the thumb and index finger was ascetic and seductive.
The flames flickered, and he lowered his eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.
The sound in the car was turned up loud, and Stefanie Sun sang:
“Self-esteem often drags people down and turns love into twists and turns.”
With a “pa”, the flame went out, and he put the lighter back into the center console. The surrounding cars whizzed by one after another. The car tail lights blinked, flickering on and off.
Zhou Jingze’s face was half-sunken in the shadows, and the car was completely dark. Xu Sui couldn’t see his expression clearly, but could only hear him coughing. Because he had smoked a few cigarettes before, his voice was a little hoarse when he spoke. Twitching the corners of his mouth, he closed his eyes, and as if compromising:
“I missed you, for a very long time.”
Xu Sui froze, and her black eyelashes trembled. She leaned back on the seat and looked out the window at the one-way street across. Cars drove one after another, fading into the night as if never looking back.
With such an arrogant personality, Zhou Jingze actually said that he missed her one day after they met again. Was it true? After all, when they were together, her love for him was sincere and wholehearted, and the doting in his eyes was also true.
Xu Sui looked ahead and asked him: “Do you still remember the game we bet on, where I randomly bet on someone, and in the end, he won against Neymar, who was always number one?”
Zhou Jingze remembered. After he lost, he changed his personalized signature in his Moments to a dash. His voice was hoarse: ” I remembered.”
Xu Sui turned her head and looked at him: “Number 16 won. At that time, I said where there is a will, there is a way.”
“Where there is a will, there’s a way, but love is not.”
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Chapter 58: We shouldn’t delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?
After the photoshoot, the group let out a sigh of relief, shook hands, and thanked each other, saying “Great work everyone”. Wu Fan was responsible for escorting the doctors out.
At five o’clock in the afternoon, the setting sun slanted down at a corner of the base wall, taking on a pale orange color. Xu Sui packed her things and followed them out.
“Xu Sui.” Zhou Jingze called out to her abruptly.
Xu Sui stopped and looked back at him. Zhou Jingze raised his hand and tugged on the tie, revealing a part of his throat, and looked at her with a loose expression on his cold face:
“Hair tie.”
This person has always spoken in a lazy and brief manner, so Xu Sui immediately understood that he was asking her to return the hair tie to him. Xu Sui pursed her lips:
“Didn’t you say you picked it up on the street? Since I used it, it’s mine.”
After Xu Sui finished speaking, she turned her head and left. Zhou Jingze stepped forward with his long legs and stood in front of her. He lowered his head and locked his dark eyes on her tightly:
“Yi Yi, that’s mine.”
Xu Sui didn’t understand why he was so attached to an ordinary hair tie, but before she was about to speak, a voice interrupted them. A student pilot ran over, panting and wiping the sweat off his forehead:
“Instructor Zhou, not good, something bad happened to a student!”
Taking advantage of Zhou Jingze’s distraction to deal with the matter, Xu Sui ran away.
When Zhou Jingze finished handling the issue, the base had already resumed its intense training, and there wasn’t a shadow of a doctor. Only Da Long was left staying in the office to look at the photos he took.
Zhou Jingze took two cans of carbonated drinks from the fridge and threw one to Da Long. He sat down brazenly and clasped the ring with his index finger. With a “zi”, bubbles came rushing out.
He took a sip and asked, “Are you picking photos?”
“What the leader instructed, of course I’d have to do my best.” Da Long said in a bureaucratic and roundabout tone.
Zhou Jingze put down his drink and lifted his palm: “Let me see.”
Da Long handed him the camera, and Zhou Jingze took it, his eyelashes drooping, and his thumb continually pressed the fast forward button, taking a quick look and passing them one by one.
When he saw the group photo, his gaze stopped: “Send this photo to me.”
Da Long took it over and saw that it was the group photo of the doctors just now. He gave an “ok” gesture and turned on the bluetooth to share it with Zhou Jingze’s phone.
“Instructor Zhou, what do you need this photo for?” Da Long was a little puzzled.
Zhou Jingze clicked “accept” and stared at the group photo in front of him. He pressed his thumb and captured Xu Sui’s smiling photo, and as if talking to himself, he snorted:
“Don’t I need a little compensation?”
On the way back, Xu Sui had the foresight to buy a pack of dried plums at the base convenience store. The car drove along the Huanxing Road out, and the sunset on the opposite side of the mountain had completely sunk, leaving only a little lingering afterglow.
Her colleague Han Mei happened to be sitting next to her. She nudged Xu Sui’s arm and asked, “Hey, Doctor Xu, what’s your relationship with that captain?”
“I—”
“When we were taking the photo before, I was standing next to you, and I felt like there’s something between you two. There was this atmosphere that I couldn’t describe,” Han Mei said clearly, “Don’t tell me nothing is going on between you two. You can fool anyone, but not this married woman.”
Xu Sui touched the dried plum on her right cheek with the tip of her tongue, and the plum rolled to the other side. Her cheeks were sore: “Ex-boyfriend.”
“I told you so, he looked at you a little differently, like carrying entanglement and desire.” Han Mei watched too many soap operas and said these kinds of terms.
Xu Sui twitched the corner of her mouth and didn’t reply. Seeing that she didn’t want to continue talking, Han Mei turned to watch her television series. The car drove forward slowly. She looked out the window, and in a while, she raised her hand and pulled off the hair tie behind her head.
She held the hair tie and stared at it for a while. This hair tie was a little old, and the beige satin had a pearly luster under the sun.
If she remembered correctly, this was her hair tie. It should be the one Xu Sui left behind at his house when they were still together.
It’s been five or six years, what was the use to keep it?
Xu Sui turned her head and looked out the window. The rows of trees outside the car window quickly flashed by and lost in a daze, she thought of it as his habit to collect old things.
——
Xu Sui thought after going to the AVIC flight training base to teach and cooperate with the promotion, the matter would be over. Unexpectedly, the deputy director came to the door again and asked her to go to the base once a week to teach the pilot students for two months.
“Director, I really can’t leave. Why don’t you find someone else?” Xu Sui declined.
The deputy director put his hands behind his back and said with a smile: “It’s set every Friday afternoon, and you can arrange it according to your schedule. Silly child, I’m trying to help you lighten your burden so you don’t have to do all the work yourself. It’s good for young people to go out and take classes.”
Xu Sui was unable to speak out about her suffering, and her tone was helpless: “I still really don’t want to—”
“It’s decided.” The deputy director waved his hand, signaling her to stop talking.
Xu Sui had no choice but to bite the bullet and take on this task. That’s how life is; the more you want to escape something, the more you will encounter it. Xu Sui finally added Zhou Jingze’s WeChat.
After all, he was the instructor and the person in charge of the base. If something happens, Xu Sui has to communicate with him as soon as possible.
After adding Zhou Jingze’s WeChat, he didn’t take the initiative to bother or anything but just lay quietly on her list. After work on Friday, Xu Sui and her colleagues had dinner together, and she didn’t get home until after ten o’clock at night.
After washing up, Xu Sui lay in bed with a warm-colored lamp on the bedside. She lay sideways and had a habit of checking her Moments before going to bed. Suddenly, she saw Zhou Jingze post a video with one word: Anxious.
Xu Sui clicked to open it, and it turned out to be 1017 lying on a white table. In the video, Zhou Jingze teased it with a cat tease stick, but it didn’t move.
Instead, it lay there limply; its entire body was very tired, and its eyes were slack as if there was no strength.
Xu Sui noticed that it had lost one of its teeth, and the orange fur around its lips and nose had also turned white. Zhou Jingze kept stroking it with his hands, and 1017 lay there with his eyes closed.
1017 has really become an old cat.
It was rare for Zhou Jingze to post, and many people exploded. Xu Sui looked at the comments one by one, and her heart gradually became sour.
Hu Qianxi: 【1017 is so pitiful, woo woo woo, when I come back from the African savanna, it will be the first one I visit! 】
Z replied: 【Heh. 】
Da Liu:【It’s so pitiful. After I finish this flight, I will buy 1017 its favorite canned cat food, the most expensive one. 】
Z replied:【Don’t, it can’t eat now. 】
Xu Sui was concerned about 1017’s situation and asked: 【Is it sick? 】
Zhou Jingze replied quickly: 【En, it’s getting old and developed a heart problem. 】
Li Yang also appeared in the comments and said: 【Aiya, you also raise cats ah? My friend has a blue and white cat, extremely cute, and it seems that she gave birth to cubs recently. Do you want one? It can be a good companion for your cat. 】
Xu Sui’s original gloomy mood was suddenly diluted, and Zhou Jingze didn’t reply to him. If the other party was someone he knew well, he would definitely reply with the word “stupid”.
She still couldn’t accept the fact that 1017 became sick, and it lingered in her heart that after tossing and turning, she still couldn’t fall asleep. Suddenly, the screen of the phone on the bedside table lit up.
Xu Sui stretched out her hand and took her phone, turning on the screen. It was Zhou Jingze who sent a message: 【Video call? 】
In the next second, he added another sentence:【To look at the cat. 】
Xu Sui thought for a while and typed out a word:【Okay. 】
The other party sent a video request. Xu Sui clicked to accept, and Zhou Jingze’s jaw flicked past before 1017 appeared in front of the camera, facing Xu Sui sideways and staring blankly straight ahead.
“1017, look at who this is?”
A voice sounded from the video off-screen, and a hand with clear bones and veins brushed the back of its neck, signaling 1017 to look at the camera.
1017 reluctantly turned his head back, and seeing Xu Sui on the screen, it became blank for a second. Xu Sui called out tentatively: “1017.”
The old cat was awakened by a familiar voice, and 1017 “meow” at her, like a loud grieving cry from the chest. The originally slack pupils were illuminated. It kept clawing at the iPad with its paws, constantly calling at the screen.
It has always remembered her.
Xu Sui had a sore nose and almost shed tears. In the beginning, she was too decisive to leave. To break it clean with Zhou Jingze, she didn’t even want 1017.
Actually, it has always been her who was cruel the entire time.
When she first saw it in the abandoned back garden of the campus, it was still a small kitten, meowing at her with a milky sound. Whenever it saw her, the cat would lick her palm from time to time.
Xu Sui and 1017 were on a video call for half an hour, and finally, the cat couldn’t hold it any longer and fell asleep on the table with droopy eyelids. After the cat fell asleep, Xu Sui also hung up the call.
The next day, when Xu Sui woke up, the sun happened to shine on the bedside. She got up and threw the clothes in the laundry basket before putting them in the washing machine. Afterward, she cleaned the house from the inside out.
Xu Sui put on the slippers and walked onto the balcony, grabbing a watering can to water the rows of succulents and green plants on the balcony. While pouring, her phone made a “ding” sound, indicating that a WeChat message came in.
Xu Sui put the watering can aside and opened WeChat. It was a message from Zhou Jingze.
Z: 【I’m going to bring 1017 to see a vet this afternoon. Do you want to come? 】
She wanted to see 1017; after all, it was very old.
Xu Sui typed in the chat box and then deleted it. But the phone kept showing that the other party was typing. Zhou Jingze seemed to have sensed her hesitation, and his tone carried a lazy ruffian vigor:
【In broad daylight, you’re not thinking I’ll do anything to you in broad daylight right? Even if I did, it would be at night. 】
The other party is typing:【Only watching the cat. 】
Xu Sui finally replied:【Okay, I will also bring anti-wolf spray. 】
Zhou Jingze replied six dots:【……】
At four o’clock in the afternoon, Zhou Jingze appeared in front of Xu Sui’s house on time. With the car window half down, he saw Xu Sui at a glance. He raised his head and honked the horn.
In the distance, Xu Sui wore a hazy blue shirtwaist dress, revealing a pair of fair and smooth calves. The striped hair scarf tied the hair behind her head. With light makeup, thin eyebrows, and red lips, her temperament was very charming.
When Xu Sui opened the car door, a faint fragrance wafted in. Zhou Jingze stared at her blankly. For a moment, his throat dried up.
“Where’s the cat?” Xu Sui frowned when she saw that he was lost in thought.
Zhou Jingze coughed lightly and raised his chin at her: “In the pet bag carrier.”
Seeing this, Xu Sui took the cat out of the bag and carried it to the back seat. 1017 was not used to lying on Xu Sui’s lap at first, but afterward, not sure if it recognized Xu Sui, the cat licked her palm vigorously, and it became more lively.
Zhou Jingze started the car, and the whole time after Xu Sui picked up the cat, she was teasing and playing with it, treating him like air, as if forgetting his existence.
She didn’t look over the whole time.
He, Zhou Jingze, also had a day of being ignored.
Not long after playing, 1017 fell asleep after a while because of its age. Xu Sui held it, and after the cat fell asleep, she realized that the car was eerily quiet.
An awkward atmosphere crept into the air.
Xu Sui found out that Zhou Jingze was still driving this big G, and it seemed that he finished repairing the car. She said to follow the procedures before, but no one came to her, and Zhou Jingze didn’t settle this with her.
Thinking about it, she felt a little apologetic.
Xu Sui thought about paying for the cost and asked, “How much did you spend on repairing the car—”
Zhou Jingze drove the car, slowly holding out a number.
Xu Sui immediately fell silent. Zhou Jingze put his sharp fingers on the steering wheel, stepped on the accelerator, and turned left. He spoke again in a slack and unruly tone:
“Tsk, repairing the car has overdrawn all the money I’ve saved to marry a wife.”
“It’s like indirectly losing a wife.”
It didn’t feel right for Xu Sui to reply but also not reply. After thinking for a long time, she said sincerely: “How about I introduce you to a girlfriend?”
As soon as the words fell, Zhou Jingze stepped on the accelerator suddenly, and the tires quickly rubbed against the ground. With a sound of “zi—”, the car made a sharp emergency brake sound, which was very ear-piercing.
Xu Sui was impacted by impulse and held the cat’s head before bumping into the front seat. 1017 was so scared that it almost jumped off.
The car stopped. Xu Sui rubbed her head and looked out. They’ve arrived at the pet hospital. She raised her hand to open the door but found that Zhou Jingze had locked the door and remained motionless.
Zhou Jingze picked up a cigarette pack from the center console, took out a cigarette, and bit it in his mouth. He lowered his head and lit the cigarette. The orange-red fireworks were extinguished, and a mouthful of gray smoke came out from his thin lips, exuding low pressure and downcast all over his body.
Xu Sui held the cat and said, “Open the door.”
With a “beep”, the car lock was unlocked. Xu Sui reached out to open the door and got down. When she was about to close the car door, Zhou Jingze wasn’t looking at her but straight ahead, smoking a cigarette with a gloomy face, he bit his back molars and smiled: “Xu Sui, you are really good.”
Introducing a girlfriend to your ex-boyfriend, she was the only one.
There was silence in response to Zhou Jingze, and Xu Sui closed the car door with a “bang”.
Zhou Jingze got out of the car after smoking a cigarette. The two went up the steps side by side. Zhou Jingze opened the glass door to let her in first, and the front desk staff came to welcome her immediately: “Hello, do you have an appointment?”
“Yes.” Zhou Jingze responded.
“Please provide the appointment number.” The staff member said.
Zhou Jingze took out his phone and murmured a series of numbers. The staff entered the phone number in front of the computer, checked the appointment information, and said, “Ah, the two are parents of 1017, please go straight and turn right to the second floor. The vet is inside.”
After speaking, the staff handed over a number tag.
Xu Sui explained subconsciously: “I’m not—”
“Go in now, or it’ll be too late later.” Zhou Jingze took the number tag, glanced to the left, and interrupted her.
A nurse came out to lead them upstairs. Xu Sui had no choice but to hold back her explanation and followed behind.
Xu Sui walked into the veterinarian’s office with 1017 in her arms. The vet first checked the cat’s heartbeat and other physical conditions and then gave it an infusion.
When the needle was on the cat’s neck, it screamed and struggled continuously, clearly trying to resist the infusion. Xu Sui could only comfort it in a gentle voice: “Good girl.”
“Does it hurt, 1017, I’ll blow the pain away for you later.”
Zhou Jingze raised his eyes and looked over. He happened to catch Xu Sui’s quiet side profile with strands of hair falling on her forehead, speaking softly. His heart suddenly tugged.
It was a scene he had not seen in a long time.
1017 gradually relaxed under her comfort and was extremely obedient in Xu Sui’s arms. After the infusion, Xu Sui carefully asked about 1017’s dietary restriction and how to take good care of it.
The doctor touched 1017’s head and said, “Cats are like this when they get old and have a lot of problems and pain. You should both accompany it more.”
Zhou Jingze came over, stretched out a finger to play with its whiskers, and said, “Yes.”
The nurse wiped 1017’s paws and some dirty places on its face with wet paper towels and chatted with them while cleaning up: “You must be 1017’s parents right? You two look really compatible, it’s great, or this cat won’t be raised by both of you for so long…”
Xu Sui knew it was impolite to interrupt someone, but she couldn’t continue to listen, so she interrupted: “We are not in a romantic relationship. He raised this cat by himself.”
The nurse paused, and with a look of embarrassment, Zhou Jingze looked at her steadfastly. Xu Sui ignored the gaze that fell on her and smiled at the nurse, and said softly, “We shouldn’t delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?”
This was the first time, after their encounter, Xu Sui officially expressed her stance, frankly and straightforwardly.
Also, drawing the lines between the two.
Only then did the nurse feel the tension between the two of them. She looked awkwardly at the tall man beside her. Zhou Jingze put his hands in his trouser pockets, his eyelashes drooped to cover up his emotions, and he smiled casually:
“Listen to her.”
After treating the cat, the two walked out. Zhou Jingze pointed to the bench in the corridor, and a magnetic voice sounded: “Sit for a while, I’m going to smoke two cigarettes.”
Xu Sui nodded and sat down with the cat in her arms. She raised her eyes and saw Zhou Jingze walking to the smoking area in the hallway and standing by the window to smoke. His back looked stern and silent, unclear what he was thinking.
He smoked a little fiercely, one after another, with a sharp profile, like a piece of ice that was cut completely. Suddenly, a violent wind blew, causing Zhou Jingze to bow his waist slightly, choking, and then coughed loudly.
Zhou Jingze lifted his hand to close the window. The sound of the wind stopped, and the cigarette butt was pressed against the lid of the stainless steel trash bin. With a “zi”, it was burnt completely black.
He turned around and walked towards Xu Sui, coming in front of her, and said, “Let’s go.”
When the two came out of the hospital, it was already dark. The sidewalks were crowded, and the lights were lit. Zhou Jingze glanced at the time and asked, “Want to have a meal?”
“No, I still have some materials to go back and organize.” Xu Sui shook her head.
Zhou Jingze twitched the corners of his mouth and said nothing; anyone could tell that this was Xu Sui’s excuse. He didn’t say anything more but took out the car key from his trouser pocket and raised his chin:
“Let’s go.”
This time Xu Sui sat in the front passenger seat because she would get out of the car first, and 1017 had to stay beside Zhou Jingze so that he could watch it.
The car moved forward smoothly. Zhou Jingze didn’t take the initiative to talk. Instead, he put his hands on the steering wheel and looked straight ahead in silence. Xu Sui didn’t know what to say and was speechless the entire ride. Later, she felt bored, so she raised her hand and turned on the music.
Finally, breaking the silence.
After driving for about forty minutes, the car arrived at Xu Sui’s house. She let out a long breath as they finally arrived. The atmosphere in the car was too depressing.
Xu Sui unbuckled her seat belt and said, “I’ll go back first, then. You should also rest earlier.”
“Xu Sui.” Zhou Jingze called her suddenly.
“Huh?” Xu Sui was unfastening her seat belt. Looking up at him, her clear eyes were full of hesitations.
Zhou Jingze was playing with a silver lighter in his hand. With a “snap” from the lighter, the flames shot up, and the black mole between the thumb and index finger was ascetic and seductive.
The flames flickered, and he lowered his eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.
The sound in the car was turned up loud, and Stefanie Sun sang:
“Self-esteem often drags people down and turns love into twists and turns.”
With a “pa”, the flame went out, and he put the lighter back into the center console. The surrounding cars whizzed by one after another. The car tail lights blinked, flickering on and off.
Zhou Jingze’s face was half-sunken in the shadows, and the car was completely dark. Xu Sui couldn’t see his expression clearly, but could only hear him coughing. Because he had smoked a few cigarettes before, his voice was a little hoarse when he spoke. Twitching the corners of his mouth, he closed his eyes, and as if compromising:
“I missed you, for a very long time.”
Xu Sui froze, and her black eyelashes trembled. She leaned back on the seat and looked out the window at the one-way street across. Cars drove one after another, fading into the night as if never looking back.
With such an arrogant personality, Zhou Jingze actually said that he missed her one day after they met again. Was it true? After all, when they were together, her love for him was sincere and wholehearted, and the doting in his eyes was also true.
Xu Sui looked ahead and asked him: “Do you still remember the game we bet on, where I randomly bet on someone, and in the end, he won against Neymar, who was always number one?”
Zhou Jingze remembered. After he lost, he changed his personalized signature in his Moments to a dash. His voice was hoarse: ” I remembered.”
Xu Sui turned her head and looked at him: “Number 16 won. At that time, I said where there is a will, there is a way.”
“Where there is a will, there’s a way, but love is not.”
Chapter 58: We shouldn't delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?After the photoshoot, the group let out a sigh of relief, shook hands, and thanked each other, saying Great work everyone. Wu Fan was responsible for escorting the doctors out.At five o'clock in the afternoon, the setting sun slanted down at a corner of the base wall, taking on a pale orange color. Xu Sui packed her things and followed them out.Xu Sui. Zhou Jingze called out to her abruptly.Xu Sui stopped and looked back at him. Zhou Jingze raised his hand and tugged on the tie, revealing a part of his throat, and looked at her with a loose expression on his cold face:Hair tie.This person has always spoken in a lazy and brief manner, so Xu Sui immediately understood that he was asking her to return the hair tie to him. Xu Sui pursed her lips:Didn't you say you picked it up on the street? Since I used it, it's mine.After Xu Sui finished speaking, she turned her head and left. Zhou Jingze stepped forward with his long legs and stood in front of her. He lowered his head and locked his dark eyes on her tightly:Yi Yi, that's mine.Xu Sui didn't understand why he was so attached to an ordinary hair tie, but before she was about to speak, a voice interrupted them. A student pilot ran over, panting and wiping the sweat off his forehead:Instructor Zhou, not good, something bad happened to a student!Taking advantage of Zhou Jingze's distraction to deal with the matter, Xu Sui ran away.When Zhou Jingze finished handling the issue, the base had already resumed its intense training, and there wasn't a shadow of a doctor. Only Da Long was left staying in the office to look at the photos he took.Zhou Jingze took two cans of carbonated drinks from the fridge and threw one to Da Long. He sat down brazenly and clasped the ring with his index finger. With a zi, bubbles came rushing out.He took a sip and asked, Are you picking photos?What the leader instructed, of course I'd have to do my best. Da Long said in a bureaucratic and roundabout tone.Zhou Jingze put down his drink and lifted his palm: Let me see.Da Long handed him the camera, and Zhou Jingze took it, his eyelashes drooping, and his thumb continually pressed the fast forward button, taking a quick look and passing them one by one.When he saw the group photo, his gaze stopped: Send this photo to me.Da Long took it over and saw that it was the group photo of the doctors just now. He gave an ok gesture and turned on the bluetooth to share it with Zhou Jingze's phone.Instructor Zhou, what do you need this photo for? Da Long was a little puzzled.Zhou Jingze clicked accept and stared at the group photo in front of him. He pressed his thumb and captured Xu Sui's smiling photo, and as if talking to himself, he snorted:Don't I need a little compensation?On the way back, Xu Sui had the foresight to buy a pack of dried plums at the base convenience store. The car drove along the Huanxing Road out, and the sunset on the opposite side of the mountain had completely sunk, leaving only a little lingering afterglow.Her colleague Han Mei happened to be sitting next to her. She nudged Xu Sui's arm and asked, Hey, Doctor Xu, what's your relationship with that captain?IWhen we were taking the photo before, I was standing next to you, and I felt like there's something between you two. There was this atmosphere that I couldn't describe, Han Mei said clearly, Don't tell me nothing is going on between you two. You can fool anyone, but not this married woman.Xu Sui touched the dried plum on her right cheek with the tip of her tongue, and the plum rolled to the other side. Her cheeks were sore: Ex-boyfriend.I told you so, he looked at you a little differently, like carrying entanglement and desire. Han Mei watched too many soap operas and said these kinds of terms.Xu Sui twitched the corner of her mouth and didn't reply. Seeing that she didn't want to continue talking, Han Mei turned to watch her television series. The car drove forward slowly. She looked out the window, and in a while, she raised her hand and pulled off the hair tie behind her head.She held the hair tie and stared at it for a while. This hair tie was a little old, and the beige satin had a pearly luster under the sun.If she remembered correctly, this was her hair tie. It should be the one Xu Sui left behind at his house when they were still together.It's been five or six years, what was the use to keep it?Xu Sui turned her head and looked out the window. The rows of trees outside the car window quickly flashed by and lost in a daze, she thought of it as his habit to collect old things.Xu Sui thought after going to the AVIC flight training base to teach and cooperate with the promotion, the matter would be over. Unexpectedly, the deputy director came to the door again and asked her to go to the base once a week to teach the pilot students for two months.Director, I really can't leave. Why don't you find someone else? Xu Sui declined.The deputy director put his hands behind his back and said with a smile: It's set every Friday afternoon, and you can arrange it according to your schedule. Silly child, I'm trying to help you lighten your burden so you don't have to do all the work yourself. It's good for young people to go out and take classes.Xu Sui was unable to speak out about her suffering, and her tone was helpless: I still really don't want toIt's decided. The deputy director waved his hand, signaling her to stop talking.Xu Sui had no choice but to bite the bullet and take on this task. That's how life is; the more you want to escape something, the more you will encounter it. Xu Sui finally added Zhou Jingze's WeChat.After all, he was the instructor and the person in charge of the base. If something happens, Xu Sui has to communicate with him as soon as possible.After adding Zhou Jingze's WeChat, he didn't take the initiative to bother or anything but just lay quietly on her list. After work on Friday, Xu Sui and her colleagues had dinner together, and she didn't get home until after ten o'clock at night.After washing up, Xu Sui lay in bed with a warm-colored lamp on the bedside. She lay sideways and had a habit of checking her Moments before going to bed. Suddenly, she saw Zhou Jingze post a video with one word: Anxious.Xu Sui clicked to open it, and it turned out to be 1017 lying on a white table. In the video, Zhou Jingze teased it with a cat tease stick, but it didn't move.Instead, it lay there limply; its entire body was very tired, and its eyes were slack as if there was no strength.Xu Sui noticed that it had lost one of its teeth, and the orange fur around its lips and nose had also turned white. Zhou Jingze kept stroking it with his hands, and 1017 lay there with his eyes closed.1017 has really become an old cat.It was rare for Zhou Jingze to post, and many people exploded. Xu Sui looked at the comments one by one, and her heart gradually became sour.Hu Qianxi: 1017 is so pitiful, woo woo woo, when I come back from the African savanna, it will be the first one I visit! Z replied: Heh. Da Liu:It's so pitiful. After I finish this flight, I will buy 1017 its favorite canned cat food, the most expensive one. Z replied:Don't, it can't eat now. Xu Sui was concerned about 1017's situation and asked: Is it sick? Zhou Jingze replied quickly: En, it's getting old and developed a heart problem. Li Yang also appeared in the comments and said: Aiya, you also raise cats ah? My friend has a blue and white cat, extremely cute, and it seems that she gave birth to cubs recently. Do you want one? It can be a good companion for your cat. Xu Sui's original gloomy mood was suddenly diluted, and Zhou Jingze didn't reply to him. If the other party was someone he knew well, he would definitely reply with the word stupid.She still couldn't accept the fact that 1017 became sick, and it lingered in her heart that after tossing and turning, she still couldn't fall asleep. Suddenly, the screen of the phone on the bedside table lit up.Xu Sui stretched out her hand and took her phone, turning on the screen. It was Zhou Jingze who sent a message: Video call? In the next second, he added another sentence:To look at the cat. Xu Sui thought for a while and typed out a word:Okay. The other party sent a video request. Xu Sui clicked to accept, and Zhou Jingze's jaw flicked past before 1017 appeared in front of the camera, facing Xu Sui sideways and staring blankly straight ahead.1017, look at who this is?A voice sounded from the video off-screen, and a hand with clear bones and veins brushed the back of its neck, signaling 1017 to look at the camera.1017 reluctantly turned his head back, and seeing Xu Sui on the screen, it became blank for a second. Xu Sui called out tentatively: 1017.The old cat was awakened by a familiar voice, and 1017 meow at her, like a loud grieving cry from the chest. The originally slack pupils were illuminated. It kept clawing at the iPad with its paws, constantly calling at the screen.It has always remembered her.Xu Sui had a sore nose and almost shed tears. In the beginning, she was too decisive to leave. To break it clean with Zhou Jingze, she didn't even want 1017.Actually, it has always been her who was cruel the entire time.When she first saw it in the abandoned back garden of the campus, it was still a small kitten, meowing at her with a milky sound. Whenever it saw her, the cat would lick her palm from time to time.Xu Sui and 1017 were on a video call for half an hour, and finally, the cat couldn't hold it any longer and fell asleep on the table with droopy eyelids. After the cat fell asleep, Xu Sui also hung up the call.The next day, when Xu Sui woke up, the sun happened to shine on the bedside. She got up and threw the clothes in the laundry basket before putting them in the washing machine. Afterward, she cleaned the house from the inside out.Xu Sui put on the slippers and walked onto the balcony, grabbing a watering can to water the rows of succulents and green plants on the balcony. While pouring, her phone made a ding sound, indicating that a WeChat message came in.Xu Sui put the watering can aside and opened WeChat. It was a message from Zhou Jingze.Z: I'm going to bring 1017 to see a vet this afternoon. Do you want to come? She wanted to see 1017; after all, it was very old.Xu Sui typed in the chat box and then deleted it. But the phone kept showing that the other party was typing. Zhou Jingze seemed to have sensed her hesitation, and his tone carried a lazy ruffian vigor:In broad daylight, you're not thinking I'll do anything to you in broad daylight right? Even if I did, it would be at night. The other party is typing:Only watching the cat. Xu Sui finally replied:Okay, I will also bring anti-wolf spray. Zhou Jingze replied six dots:At four o'clock in the afternoon, Zhou Jingze appeared in front of Xu Sui's house on time. With the car window half down, he saw Xu Sui at a glance. He raised his head and honked the horn.In the distance, Xu Sui wore a hazy blue shirtwaist dress, revealing a pair of fair and smooth calves. The striped hair scarf tied the hair behind her head. With light makeup, thin eyebrows, and red lips, her temperament was very charming.When Xu Sui opened the car door, a faint fragrance wafted in. Zhou Jingze stared at her blankly. For a moment, his throat dried up.Where's the cat? Xu Sui frowned when she saw that he was lost in thought.Zhou Jingze coughed lightly and raised his chin at her: In the pet bag carrier.Seeing this, Xu Sui took the cat out of the bag and carried it to the back seat. 1017 was not used to lying on Xu Sui's lap at first, but afterward, not sure if it recognized Xu Sui, the cat licked her palm vigorously, and it became more lively.Zhou Jingze started the car, and the whole time after Xu Sui picked up the cat, she was teasing and playing with it, treating him like air, as if forgetting his existence.She didn't look over the whole time.He, Zhou Jingze, also had a day of being ignored.Not long after playing, 1017 fell asleep after a while because of its age. Xu Sui held it, and after the cat fell asleep, she realized that the car was eerily quiet.An awkward atmosphere crept into the air.Xu Sui found out that Zhou Jingze was still driving this big G, and it seemed that he finished repairing the car. She said to follow the procedures before, but no one came to her, and Zhou Jingze didn't settle this with her.Thinking about it, she felt a little apologetic.Xu Sui thought about paying for the cost and asked, How much did you spend on repairing the carZhou Jingze drove the car, slowly holding out a number.Xu Sui immediately fell silent. Zhou Jingze put his sharp fingers on the steering wheel, stepped on the accelerator, and turned left. He spoke again in a slack and unruly tone:Tsk, repairing the car has overdrawn all the money I've saved to marry a wife.It's like indirectly losing a wife.It didn't feel right for Xu Sui to reply but also not reply. After thinking for a long time, she said sincerely: How about I introduce you to a girlfriend?As soon as the words fell, Zhou Jingze stepped on the accelerator suddenly, and the tires quickly rubbed against the ground. With a sound of zi, the car made a sharp emergency brake sound, which was very ear-piercing.Xu Sui was impacted by impulse and held the cat's head before bumping into the front seat. 1017 was so scared that it almost jumped off.The car stopped. Xu Sui rubbed her head and looked out. They've arrived at the pet hospital. She raised her hand to open the door but found that Zhou Jingze had locked the door and remained motionless.Zhou Jingze picked up a cigarette pack from the center console, took out a cigarette, and bit it in his mouth. He lowered his head and lit the cigarette. The orange-red fireworks were extinguished, and a mouthful of gray smoke came out from his thin lips, exuding low pressure and downcast all over his body.Xu Sui held the cat and said, Open the door.With a beep, the car lock was unlocked. Xu Sui reached out to open the door and got down. When she was about to close the car door, Zhou Jingze wasn't looking at her but straight ahead, smoking a cigarette with a gloomy face, he bit his back molars and smiled: Xu Sui, you are really good.Introducing a girlfriend to your ex-boyfriend, she was the only one.There was silence in response to Zhou Jingze, and Xu Sui closed the car door with a bang.Zhou Jingze got out of the car after smoking a cigarette. The two went up the steps side by side. Zhou Jingze opened the glass door to let her in first, and the front desk staff came to welcome her immediately: Hello, do you have an appointment?Yes. Zhou Jingze responded.Please provide the appointment number. The staff member said.Zhou Jingze took out his phone and murmured a series of numbers. The staff entered the phone number in front of the computer, checked the appointment information, and said, Ah, the two are parents of 1017, please go straight and turn right to the second floor. The vet is inside.After speaking, the staff handed over a number tag.Xu Sui explained subconsciously: I'm notGo in now, or it'll be too late later. Zhou Jingze took the number tag, glanced to the left, and interrupted her.A nurse came out to lead them upstairs. Xu Sui had no choice but to hold back her explanation and followed behind.Xu Sui walked into the veterinarian's office with 1017 in her arms. The vet first checked the cat's heartbeat and other physical conditions and then gave it an infusion.When the needle was on the cat's neck, it screamed and struggled continuously, clearly trying to resist the infusion. Xu Sui could only comfort it in a gentle voice: Good girl.Does it hurt, 1017, I'll blow the pain away for you later.Zhou Jingze raised his eyes and looked over. He happened to catch Xu Sui's quiet side profile with strands of hair falling on her forehead, speaking softly. His heart suddenly tugged.It was a scene he had not seen in a long time.1017 gradually relaxed under her comfort and was extremely obedient in Xu Sui's arms. After the infusion, Xu Sui carefully asked about 1017's dietary restriction and how to take good care of it.The doctor touched 1017's head and said, Cats are like this when they get old and have a lot of problems and pain. You should both accompany it more.Zhou Jingze came over, stretched out a finger to play with its whiskers, and said, Yes.The nurse wiped 1017's paws and some dirty places on its face with wet paper towels and chatted with them while cleaning up: You must be 1017's parents right? You two look really compatible, it's great, or this cat won't be raised by both of you for so longXu Sui knew it was impolite to interrupt someone, but she couldn't continue to listen, so she interrupted: We are not in a romantic relationship. He raised this cat by himself.The nurse paused, and with a look of embarrassment, Zhou Jingze looked at her steadfastly. Xu Sui ignored the gaze that fell on her and smiled at the nurse, and said softly, We shouldn't delay the two of us looking for a partner, right?This was the first time, after their encounter, Xu Sui officially expressed her stance, frankly and straightforwardly.Also, drawing the lines between the two.Only then did the nurse feel the tension between the two of them. She looked awkwardly at the tall man beside her. Zhou Jingze put his hands in his trouser pockets, his eyelashes drooped to cover up his emotions, and he smiled casually:Listen to her.After treating the cat, the two walked out. Zhou Jingze pointed to the bench in the corridor, and a magnetic voice sounded: Sit for a while, I'm going to smoke two cigarettes.Xu Sui nodded and sat down with the cat in her arms. She raised her eyes and saw Zhou Jingze walking to the smoking area in the hallway and standing by the window to smoke. His back looked stern and silent, unclear what he was thinking.He smoked a little fiercely, one after another, with a sharp profile, like a piece of ice that was cut completely. Suddenly, a violent wind blew, causing Zhou Jingze to bow his waist slightly, choking, and then coughed loudly.Zhou Jingze lifted his hand to close the window. The sound of the wind stopped, and the cigarette butt was pressed against the lid of the stainless steel trash bin. With a zi, it was burnt completely black.He turned around and walked towards Xu Sui, coming in front of her, and said, Let's go.When the two came out of the hospital, it was already dark. The sidewalks were crowded, and the lights were lit. Zhou Jingze glanced at the time and asked, Want to have a meal?No, I still have some materials to go back and organize. Xu Sui shook her head.Zhou Jingze twitched the corners of his mouth and said nothing; anyone could tell that this was Xu Sui's excuse. He didn't say anything more but took out the car key from his trouser pocket and raised his chin:Let's go.This time Xu Sui sat in the front passenger seat because she would get out of the car first, and 1017 had to stay beside Zhou Jingze so that he could watch it.The car moved forward smoothly. Zhou Jingze didn't take the initiative to talk. Instead, he put his hands on the steering wheel and looked straight ahead in silence. Xu Sui didn't know what to say and was speechless the entire ride. Later, she felt bored, so she raised her hand and turned on the music.Finally, breaking the silence.After driving for about forty minutes, the car arrived at Xu Sui's house. She let out a long breath as they finally arrived. The atmosphere in the car was too depressing.Xu Sui unbuckled her seat belt and said, I'll go back first, then. You should also rest earlier.Xu Sui. Zhou Jingze called her suddenly.Huh? Xu Sui was unfastening her seat belt. Looking up at him, her clear eyes were full of hesitations.Zhou Jingze was playing with a silver lighter in his hand. With a snap from the lighter, the flames shot up, and the black mole between the thumb and index finger was ascetic and seductive.The flames flickered, and he lowered his eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.The sound in the car was turned up loud, and Stefanie Sun sang:Self-esteem often drags people down and turns love into twists and turns.With a pa, the flame went out, and he put the lighter back into the center console. The surrounding cars whizzed by one after another. The car tail lights blinked, flickering on and off.Zhou Jingze's face was half-sunken in the shadows, and the car was completely dark. Xu Sui couldn't see his expression clearly, but could only hear him coughing. Because he had smoked a few cigarettes before, his voice was a little hoarse when he spoke. Twitching the corners of his mouth, he closed his eyes, and as if compromising:I missed you, for a very long time.Xu Sui froze, and her black eyelashes trembled. She leaned back on the seat and looked out the window at the one-way street across. Cars drove one after another, fading into the night as if never looking back.With such an arrogant personality, Zhou Jingze actually said that he missed her one day after they met again. Was it true? After all, when they were together, her love for him was sincere and wholehearted, and the doting in his eyes was also true.Xu Sui looked ahead and asked him: Do you still remember the game we bet on, where I randomly bet on someone, and in the end, he won against Neymar, who was always number one?Zhou Jingze remembered. After he lost, he changed his personalized signature in his Moments to a dash. His voice was hoarse: I remembered.Xu Sui turned her head and looked at him: Number 16 won. At that time, I said where there is a will, there is a way.Where there is a will, there's a way, but love is not.
