SM Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Happy New Year’s Eve

In the end, Sheng Mingqian didn’t smile at Ye Lai. Ye Lai didn’t get what he wanted and went downstairs like a walking corpse. As he went out, the hat he was holding in his hand was blown away by the wind, flying into the treetops.

Ye Lai spent a long time underneath before finally retrieving it. The hat was covered in snow and felt icy to the touch. Before long, the snow melted, leaving his palm wet.

He sat in the car for a long time, waiting until his body regained some warmth before driving away.

Back home, he didn’t even take off his clothes before falling asleep wrapped in a blanket. When he woke up the next morning, the once-smooth clothes were creased with wrinkles that couldn’t be hidden.

No matter how glamorous something is, it eventually withers.

That was its destination, Ye Lai thought, his destination.

The next morning, Ye Lai arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau at eight o’clock sharp and waited in the car.

Sheng Mingqian was over an hour late. From afar, he saw Ye Lai’s car at the intersection. There happened to be an empty parking space to the left of Ye Lai’s car, and Sheng Mingqian drove straight over and parked.

Sheng Mingqian parked too close, leaving only a few centimeters of space between the rearview mirrors of the two cars. They were almost touching. Ye Lai couldn’t open the car door, so he had to adjust his seat back, unbuckle his seatbelt, and squeeze into the passenger seat to get out of the car from the passenger side.

Ye Lai was fully equipped with a mask and hat, leaving only a pair of eyes that had been moistened by the wind.

“Director Sheng, we agreed on eight o’clock last night, you’re late…” After waiting for a while and seeing that Sheng Mingqian hadn’t gotten out of the car, Ye Lai took a few steps forward and knocked on Sheng Mingqian’s car window.

The glass window was covered with a black reflective film, reflecting his own image, so Ye Lai couldn’t see Sheng Mingqian inside.

Sheng Mingqian got out of the car two minutes later, carrying the divorce papers. He was still wearing the same clothes from last night, but with a jacket added on top. The smell of smoke from the study last night seemed to still linger. Ye Lai smelled the thick scent of tobacco on Sheng Mingqian as soon as he got out of the car. Sheng Mingqian hadn’t shaved, and there was a layer of stubble on his chin. His eyes were bloodshot, and he couldn’t hide his exhaustion.

“Are you in such a hurry?” Sheng Mingqian asked, looking down.

Ye Lai blinked, avoiding Sheng Mingqian’s cold gaze. He kicked Sheng Mingqian’s tire and changed the subject, “Director Sheng, you’ve parked so close. It’ll be troublesome if I bump your car later. My driving skills aren’t very good.”

Sheng Mingqian expressionlessly assessed the distance between the two cars and said casually, “If you need to move the car later, you can find me.”

“That would be a lot of trouble for Director Sheng,” Ye Lai took out his cell phone to check the time and urged him, “There’s less than an hour left before they close, let’s go in.”

It was almost the New Year, and there weren’t many people at the Civil Affairs Bureau. There was no need to wait in line at the divorce window; they were the only couple there.

Marriage certificate, divorce agreement, ID card, household registration book, all the procedures were complete…

The staff at the divorce window asked a few symbolic questions and finally asked them if they had thought it over carefully, whether it was irreversible and they were sure they wanted a divorce. Ye Lai answered first, saying that he had thought it over. After Ye Lai spoke, Sheng Mingqian gave the same answer as Ye Lai.

The staff didn’t ask any further questions. With a “thud,” a steel stamp was applied, and the red marriage certificate became a divorce certificate. The original photo of the two of them together now became a solo photo in hand.

Ye Lai was smiling in the marriage certificate photo, and he was also smiling in the solo photo on the divorce certificate.

Ye Lai had chosen that ID photo on the divorce certificate a few days ago. His appearance hadn’t changed much in recent years, and he had deliberately chosen a solo photo from the same year he married Sheng Mingqian, perhaps to tell the foolish self from five years ago in this way—

This is the ending for you and Sheng Mingqian, so don’t have any more illusions.

These ten years are over, just like that.

After all, both of them were public figures, and the staff at the Civil Affairs Bureau recognized them. Several people turned their heads and whispered.

Ye Lai was still wearing a mask and smiled at the staff, “Please keep it a secret for us.”

“We will,” the staff responded dryly.

Ye Lai didn’t ask Sheng Mingqian to help him move the car. Standing in the space between the two car fronts, he thought of the ending of Sheng Mingqian’s revised script. Only that one was consistent with reality, wasn’t it?

How could there be so much perfection in this world? Ye Lai still remembered the last line in the new script, and he used that line as a farewell.

“Mingqian, see you later…”

–

–

On New Year’s Eve, Ye Lai had a business New Year’s gala. Ning Yuan had introduced it to him, and the appearance fee for one night was not low, hosting the first half and then singing a few songs in the second half.

In the evening, Zhang Yihao finished his New Year’s Eve dinner at home. Estimating that the time was about right, he brought some cooked dumplings to Ye Lai.

Ye Lai was taking a break in the middle of the show. He hadn’t eaten much since the rehearsal at noon, and the box lunch in the evening was too greasy. The organizers had also prepared dumplings, but he didn’t like them. Now he was so hungry that his eyes were blurry.

“Brother Hao, you’ve come at the perfect time, I’m starving,” Ye Lai rubbed his hands and opened the lunchbox, “Dumplings, what kind of filling?”

“I made them, two kinds of filling,” Zhang Yihao pointed, “The ones in this lunchbox are beef, and these are mackerel.”

Ye Lai swallowed hard just hearing that. Before he could even sit down, he picked up his chopsticks and ate three or four in a row, stuffing his mouth full. He was also shaking his toes while he ate, “I still like pork and cabbage filling.”

Zhang Yihao looked at him wolfing it down and scolded him, “It’s good enough that you have something to eat, still picky.”

Ye Lai laughed. In the past, he spent New Year’s Eve in the orphanage. Later, he went to Zhang Yihao’s house to freeload. In the first two years of his marriage with Sheng Mingqian, he waited for him to come home in Sheng Mingqian’s house, but he never came back on New Year’s Eve. Later, he stopped waiting. Every year, he would first go to the orphanage and then go to Zhang Yihao’s house for a meal.

Come to think of it, he and Sheng Mingqian had never spent a complete New Year together.

The dumplings that Zhang Yihao brought were certainly delicious, but he still liked pork and cabbage filling. He only started liking it when he was nineteen, and later he missed that taste for ten years.

He’ll never taste that flavor again…

Ye Lai was almost finished with the dumplings when he suddenly heard a voice outside the door.

“Director Sheng, is that really you? Happy New Year, Director Sheng. What brings you here?” The staff at the gala looked at him for a few moments before confirming that it was Sheng Mingqian and chased after him, “It’s New Year’s Eve, why didn’t you give us a heads up before you came? I’ll take you to the backstage lounge, I’ll go get the director.”

“Happy New Year,” Sheng Mingqian turned around and walked toward the corridor, waving his hand, “No need, no need to get the director…”

“Did Director Sheng have dumplings yet?”

“Not yet.”

Although the door was closed, Ye Lai still heard the increasingly distant conversation in the hallway outside. He was still too sensitive to the word “Director Sheng,” able to catch even the faintest trace of it.

Zhang Yihao also heard it, glanced at Ye Lai, and asked, “Did you come with Director Sheng tonight?”

Ye Lai picked up the last dumpling on the plate, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it, “Not together, we’re done.”

“Done? What do you mean by done?” Zhang Yihao didn’t understand for a moment, “What do you mean by done?”

Ye Lai lowered his head, “He and I are over, we broke up.”

Zhang Yihao knew that Ye Lai had been in a bad mood recently and thought it was just a quarrel between lovers, fighting at the head of the bed and making up at the foot of the bed. He didn’t expect it to escalate to a breakup.

“How did you break up? Weren’t you two doing fine before? He even took you to Finland to see his parents, how could you break up just like that, what’s the reason?” Zhang Yihao became more and more suspicious, “Did he bully you?”

After he said that, he remembered the news that had broken out a few days ago. He hadn’t paid attention to it at the time, thinking it was fake. He suddenly stood up, knocking over the chair behind him, which fell to the ground with a bang.

“Sheng Mingqian cheated on you? Did he have an affair? Did he bully you?” Zhang Yihao’s tone changed.

Ye Lai stood up and quickly covered Zhang Yihao’s mouth, “My brother, lower your voice, do you want the whole world to know? Our relationship can’t be seen in the light.”

“Can’t be seen in the light? What kind of love is that if it can’t be seen in the light?” Zhang Yihao defended Ye Lai, barely suppressing his voice, “Although you’re both in the industry, you’re both single. Sheng Mingqian is a director and not in front of the camera, and you’re not an idol. What can’t be seen in the light?”

Ye Lai couldn’t tell him the details. He held back most of the words, finally choosing the most common reason for breaking up.

“He and I, we’re not compatible.”

As he said that, Ye Lai’s cell phone rang. He didn’t expect it to be a video call from Yuan Ling. He held the phone and thought for a long time. It was New Year’s Eve, and he couldn’t help but press the answer button.

“Xiao Lai, it’s Xiao Lai, Dehui, come quickly,” Yuan Ling’s softly laughing voice came over as soon as the video connected, before the picture had stabilized, “Can you see us? Xiao Lai, Happy New Year…”

Ye Lai found an empty seat in the corner, sniffled, and held back the wave of sadness, “Uncle and Aunty, Happy New Year…”

“Xiao Lai, we just called Mingqian, but he didn’t answer, so we called you. What are you busy with? Aren’t you at home?”

Ye Lai turned the phone around, facing the dressing mirror and changing room, “There’s a New Year’s business gala tonight.”

“You have to work on New Year’s Eve? Have Mingqian pick you up tonight,” Yuan Ling said.

Ye Lai didn’t answer. He and Sheng Mingqian were already divorced, but he couldn’t tell the two old people on the other side of the phone at the moment. Sheng Mingqian would have to be the one to bring it up. He mumbled a vague response, not saying anything else.

“Then we won’t disturb you, don’t forget to eat dumplings tonight.”

“Okay, I remember.”

After hanging up the phone, Ye Lai leaned back in his chair and sighed. Zhang Yihao tapped him with his cigarette-holding finger, and finally left without saying anything.

The staff came in to call for people, it was Ye Lai’s turn to go on stage.

Ye Lai practiced his smile in the mirror, straightened his expression and clothes, grabbed the microphone, and strode out.

The gala ended at half past eleven. It was snowing outside, and the roads were empty. He couldn’t see a single car passing by for a long time.

Ye Lai stood on high and looked into the distance. Thousands of homes were brightly lit, and the streets were filled with the joy of the New Year. Red lanterns shone on the roadside one by one, and if he looked up, snowflakes were falling slowly.

Fireworks and firecrackers continued to sound, and occasionally he could hear voices saying “Happy New Year” and the sounds of children playing.

So much festivity, but none of it was related to him.

It was so cold, the whistling wind carrying snow poured into Ye Lai’s neck. He pulled the down jacket zipper to the top, tightened his collar to cover his neck, and hunched over, walking against the wind towards the parking lot.

Ye Lai, Happy New Year’s Eve, he said to himself in his heart.

It was too cold, after this New Year, just forget Sheng Mingqian…