Nanke Yifu Chapter 16
byChapter 16: Seeking Chi Fu’s Whereabouts (XVI)
The bladder is a truly annoying organ, always forcing its owner to stand up precisely when they least want to move. This is especially true when sleepiness is just setting in, or when one is half-awake and still groggy.
Chi Fu tossed and turned in bed for five minutes, enslaved by the urge to urinate and tormented by drowsiness. He got out of bed with his eyes closed, only to find that even the bedroom door was causing him trouble.
His eyelids were forced to separate. Chi Fu saw the paper and writing on the door, and the diary hanging on the doorknob, but he had to pee now! When did all this happen? Did he develop a habit of sleepwalking in the middle of the night?
Unlocking the door, Chi Fu casually tossed the diary aside, planning to read it after using the restroom. After returning, however, he was defeated by sleepiness, collapsing onto the bed and thinking he would read it when he woke up. When he did wake up, he predictably forgot about the whole thing.
His second sleep was light, and he still woke up much earlier than usual. Unable to fall back asleep, and feeling it was too early to go straight to work, Chi Fu suddenly thought of the steamed pear cake stall at the intersection. He hadn’t had it in a long time and missed it a little.
Speaking of which, part of the reason he moved here was because of that steamed pear cake stall. Unlike the traditional steamed pear cake, where various jams are added after steaming, this stall sprinkled sugar powder or similar ingredients into the center before steaming. Once cooked, a sugar crust formed where the jam would normally go. A serving consisted of six cakes, one in the center and five around it, placed on a round wafer sheet. After eating the cakes, you could eat the packaging too.
Compared to the jam version… Chi Fu actually thought they were about the same. He probably just had decision paralysis back then and randomly pulled out this extra reason.
If he wanted to eat it, he should go. The weather outside was nice today, clear skies, perfect for a stroll.
“Xiao Chi is here?” The owner greeted Chi Fu warmly as soon as he entered the shop.
He didn’t actually come here very often to buy the cakes, but he was very familiar with the owner, a friendly middle-aged woman who always added two or three extra wafer sheets for him to snack on. As for why they were so familiar despite his infrequent visits, first, Chi Fu had been buying from her since she pushed a small cart on the roadside, and second, because Chi Fu’s request was somewhat unique.
“Still six with milk powder?” the owner asked routinely.
Chi Fu didn’t know why, but even though he found every flavor delicious in its own way, he had always only ordered the milk powder flavor before. Didn’t he ever get tired of it?
“No,” Chi Fu said, surprising her. “The normal six flavors, one of each, please. Time for a change.”
The owner looked a little surprised and asked jokingly, “You didn’t hear something, did you?”
Chi Fu: “Hear what?”
“No? I thought you wanted to try them all while you had the last chance,” the owner said. “I’m moving, and the shop is closing. You won’t be able to eat them here anymore.”
Just like every time before, she packed the order and handed it to him. Chi Fu noticed there were seven cakes inside, with two of the milky white ones in the center.
Chi Fu walked home, initially considering going straight to work after buying the cakes, but he had underestimated the cold outside.
It felt like more than just physical coldness; there was regret, and not just the regret of no longer being able to eat a familiar delicacy.
It was an indescribable feeling, as if he had lost something very important.
Chi Fu didn’t know what he had lost, but he knew he was about to lose something very important right now—his heart was flying away on its own.
It was a person walking toward him from the opposite direction. Even bundled up in thick winter clothes, his figure still looked somewhat slender. He carried a bag, contents unknown, and was too far away to see clearly at first. As he got closer, Chi Fu realized his heart was a Face-Con, flying off to find the pretty young man.
The man glanced at him, his expression cold, and turned the corner at the intersection, leaving only his back view. Chi Fu’s rationality told him the person was just walking normally, expressionless, as any normal person would. Chi Fu’s consciousness told him that this aloof demeanor, paired with that stunning face, had a unique charm.
It was just that the handsome young man had a unique aesthetic; his makeup made him look like he hadn’t slept in half a month, yet even that couldn’t hide his perfect features.
If he didn’t rush over to strike up a conversation and find a way to get acquainted, then Chi Fu deserved to be lonely for the rest of his life. Face? What was that? Could it be eaten?
He scrutinized the other person from head to toe, struggling to find a reason, and it was a good thing he was sharp-eyed.
“Gege.” The handsome man looked about his age; whether he was older or younger, calling him gege wouldn’t be wrong.
“Excuse me,” Chi Fu said, quickly taking two steps to reach the man’s side. “May I ask where you bought your ear clip?”
The handsome man saw him approach, remaining cool and indifferent, showing no reaction. After hearing the question, he touched the silver ear clip on his lobe, then looked at Chi Fu, said nothing, and simply walked away quickly.
It was a very impolite and abrupt response. Chi Fu was not discouraged; in fact, he was a little happy. At least the man had looked at him. Next time they met, he could go over and say, “What a coincidence, running into you again.” The rest would be up to fate. Chi Fu had a strong intuition that they would meet again.
It would be great if the person lived nearby; the probability of meeting would be much higher. In just a few steps, Chi Fu had already formulated a complete walking plan for himself. No matter where the person lived, they definitely wouldn’t meet if he didn’t go out.
As he walked, Chi Fu realized something was wrong. His plan might not be necessary.
He swore to the heavens that he wasn’t intentionally following the person; he was walking the shortest route back to his own home. Fortunately, the handsome man was aloof enough, completely uninterested in him, and disdained to give him any attention. This prevented the awkward situation of “Stop following me!” and Chi Fu didn’t have to deliberately take a detour to reassure the other person.
But he should still be careful in this situation, Chi Fu silently advised himself. It wouldn’t be good if the other person thought he was a stalker or someone who wouldn’t take no for an answer.
As he continued walking, an even more astonishing scene unfolded.
The two of them entered the same building one after the other and stood in front of the same elevator. This time, Chi Fu genuinely didn’t dare to approach. This was no longer a matter of losing face. He stood by the elevator entrance, intending to wait for the next one, only to receive a look from the handsome young man inside the elevator that clearly said, “Don’t be idle and act crazy.”
Chi Fu didn’t know why he could decipher the meaning of the other person’s look so accurately, but he was certain he understood correctly. So, he darted into the elevator in one step, moved to the corner in two steps, and turned to lean against the wall in three steps, trying his best to minimize his presence. Then, he was stunned when he saw the illuminated floor button.
Chi Fu felt he should be ecstatic right now because the handsome young man seemed to be his neighbor, but he also felt like crawling into a hole because, from the other person’s perspective, he had been accosted by a lunatic who was ignored, and now the lunatic was following him home.
If he pressed another floor now, he could claim he was visiting someone else if they ran into each other at the door later. But if he went straight home now, he risked being labeled a pervert before he could rush to his door, unlock it, and prove his innocence.
Chi Fu decided to go up one floor.
He stood still, leaning out and stretching his arm to press the floor button, and then heard the handsome young man finally speak to him.
It was a very strange sentence.
The person asked him, “Do you have business downstairs?”
“Huh?”
The handsome man was not only aloof but also seemed to have a bad temper, speaking sarcastically: “You don’t even remember which floor you live on?”
Whether his temper was good or bad, it didn’t matter as long as he wasn’t angered. Whether his words were sarcastic didn’t matter as long as they didn’t kill him. The problem was, how did he know which floor Chi Fu lived on? Had they met before? It was impossible they had met before! With his looks, Chi Fu couldn’t have failed to remember him even with a quick glance from far away!
The elevator doors opened for the first time. The handsome young man reached out and pressed the close button directly, and Chi Fu didn’t move. The elevator doors opened for the second time, and Chi Fu felt like the other person rolled his eyes at him before stepping out quickly.
They walked one after the other. Chi Fu had originally intended to secretly note which apartment the other person lived in, but he realized he didn’t need to.
Because the person stopped right in front of Chi Fu’s own door.
This was a little scary.
Chi Fu stood a meter behind him, eyes wide, confirming three times that this was indeed his home before taking a step forward and leaning in to watch the man open the door.
The door opened more smoothly for him than it did for Chi Fu, the actual resident.
Wait, why could he open it?!
Chi Fu stood frozen in the doorway, bewildered. However, there was no wind today, so he couldn’t achieve the effect of being utterly lost in the wind whether he stood inside or outside the door. So, he chose to enter, close the door, and then be bewildered.
Opening the door was smooth, and entering was even smoother. The time it took from pressing the doorknob to having the diary thrown in his face was exactly equal to the time it took Chi Fu to step inside, close the door, and turn around.
Humans are fickle creatures. The person who thought this morning that his bedroom door didn’t need a lock now felt that the most urgent task was to upgrade the bedroom door lock to one that wouldn’t let him out until he finished reading the diary.
The bag Yan Laixi was holding must be the photos he had asked for earlier.
Indifferent? Aloof? Unique aesthetic? Bad temper? Why didn’t Yan Laixi just slap him and drag him home by the ear?
“I…”
“Chi Fu.”
His intended words were cut off by Yan Laixi calling his name. Chi Fu instinctively straightened his posture, almost standing at attention.
“Do you like me now too? The kind of liking where you want to be in a Romantic Relationship with me and spend the rest of your life with me,” Yan Laixi asked.
Chi Fu nodded without hesitation. Yan Laixi asked if he wanted to, so he didn’t need to consider any other factors.
“Why do you like me?”
Chi Fu’s intuition told him that this question absolutely could not be answered incorrectly. Yan Laixi wasn’t throwing a tantrum. He was seriously seeking an answer, and this answer might influence a very important choice he was about to make.
Why did he like Yan Laixi? His pre-amnesia self could probably answer this easily, but his current self…
Chi Fu had an answer, but he didn’t dare to say it.
There was no why, no reason. I just like you, uncontrollably. Every part of my body, every cell, told me the instant I saw you that I had fallen in love with that person.
Chi Fu was willing to say such an answer, but the current Yan Laixi would not accept it.
In the silence, Yan Laixi asked the second question: “Then what exactly do you like about me?”
What could he say? Say he liked his face, liked his voice? That was too shallow. Say he liked his personality, liked him as a person? As someone whose memory of the other person only spanned the last ten-odd minutes?
“Why do you always trust me so easily?”
Four questions, and Yan Laixi ultimately didn’t receive a verbal answer.
Four questions, three chances, and Chi Fu didn’t seize a single one.
Yan Laixi walked near the apartment and saw Chi Fu walking toward him, carrying a bag of something. Judging by the direction he came from, Yan Laixi guessed it was steamed pear cakes.
It was indeed steamed pear cakes, only this time they were multicolored.
That’s right, it was only Yan Laixi who liked the milk powder flavor all along. For Chi Fu, whether it was jam or some kind of powder on top, it was all the same, all delicious.
When Chi Fu first brought home a serving of six all-milk-powder cakes, he joked that he chose this apartment specifically for this taste, so it would be a waste not to eat more.
Suddenly looking up, his eyes met Chi Fu’s face.
Ah, that annoying expression again.
Right, those were all memories only he knew.
For a moment, Yan Laixi felt that since he was only thinking it, it was okay to be a little malicious. Since he was only thinking it, could he make the person who had selfishly forgotten bear this heartache too?
He was incredibly frustrated right now. Why did he know Chi Fu so well? Facing an amnesiac Chi Fu, he could tell from the slightest changes in his expression that Chi Fu didn’t know about his existence.
Not that he didn’t remember, or didn’t recognize him—he didn’t know. Yan Laixi didn’t know if the diary or the door lock was the problem, but Chi Fu definitely hadn’t read the diary yet today.
And precisely at this moment, Chi Fu approached him, called him gege, and struck up a conversation, the content of which was about his ear clip.
Yan Laixi subconsciously touched the item on his ear. He didn’t usually wear accessories, and he almost never wore this pair out, afraid of losing them. He had suddenly wanted to wear them this morning when he was alone and then forgot to take them off.
Where did he buy them?
Heh.
Yan Laixi knew he was sulking and throwing a fit at an amnesiac, but he felt Qiu Ye was right now.
Chi Fu was just taking advantage of the fact that he couldn’t bear to leave.
Worrying about being misunderstood, planning to wait for the next elevator, trying to reassure him by getting off a floor early—every action was within his expectations, every action was something Chi Fu would do, something Chi Fu would do toward a stranger.
Yan Laixi also vented his dissatisfaction through his actions. He even had a slight expectation, hoping Chi Fu would be provoked by his attitude, maybe argue loudly with him, or even get into a fight. Unfortunately, this person’s temper was so good he probably needed to have his head checked. A stranger tried to open his front door right in front of him, and he actually stood close by and watched.
Qiu Ye’s other statement was also correct: he agreed to celebrate his birthday, so he only needed to return on that day. Chi Fu wouldn’t remember him anyway, so what difference did his presence or absence make to Chi Fu during this month and a few days?
But Yan Laixi truly couldn’t bear to leave.
“Chi Fu.”
The other person stood straight in front of him.
“Do you like me now too? The kind of liking where you want to be in a Romantic Relationship with me and spend the rest of your life with me.”
An unhesitating, affirmative answer.
Three chances.
Yan Laixi thought, just three chances, no more, no less. As long as Chi Fu said something that could soften his heart, as long as Chi Fu said something that would make him unable to leave.
As long as Chi Fu said something.
“Why do you like me?”
“Then what exactly do you like about me?”
“Why do you always trust me so easily?”
He had answers when he asked before.