"You don't look that bad once you're all dressed up."
Liu Xinyu mentally rolled her eyes at the comment from the clingy female ghost who was too talkative. She couldn't understand what this ghost's deal was. Why was she even following her like a ghost? Oh, wait! She was indeed a ghost.
Liu Xinyu was exasperated but couldn't do anything. But once she stepped out of the ward to leave, she realized the world outside was worse than the female ghost beside her. She forgot that she was in a hospital and even if she didn't see ghosts in this place yesterday, there were too many wandering around today in the lobby.
Like the little kid with blood on his head following his mother, trying to get her attention. Or like the teenage boy who kept trying to touch the girl who was crying to comfort her but his hand kept passing through her. Or like the... Forget it! She was not gonna focus on that. Her life was messy enough, she should stop focusing on dead people.
However, there was still a hurdle that was hard to cross. She had to walk through the crowd of ghosts to get out of the hospital. She could ignore them and their voices but how to get past them? Did she have to pass through them?
Seeing her struggling, Yiyi smiled and asked, "Can you see them?"
"Who?" asked Liu Xinyu. "I don't see anything." With that said, she put on a strong front and kept walking in a straight line without a care that she was passing through ghosts. She had to just get out of there without letting any of those ghosts know that she could see them. One stalking ghost was enough to give her a headache!
Her behavior made Yiyi laugh as she commented, "She is funny. Do you really think I believe that I'm the only ghost you can see? I'm not as naive as your father to believe in whatever you say." She put her hands behind her and leisurely walked out of the hospital as she observed her surroundings.
"Let's go!"
Liu Xinyu looked at her ride and tilted her head a little with a strange expression. Then she looked back at Yi Qin. "We are riding this?"
Yi Qin patted his bicycle and nodded, "Yes! This is my precious baby."
Liu Xinyu glanced at Yi Qin's clothes carefully and she could say they were definitely not cheap. He was wearing a watch which wasn't as expensive as her own but it wasn't that cheap either. In 1998, having a phone was still a luxury but he could afford that. But he couldn't afford a car? Now, that was unbelievable!
"Can't we get a taxi?" she asked tentatively.
"We can," answered Yi Qin. "But I spent all my money on the hospital bills. I can't afford the taxi right now." He gave her an innocent smile as he went on, "Why? Haven't ridden a bike before?"
"What makes you say that?" asked Liu Xinyu.
"Just that watch, necklace, and bracelet of yours are enough to buy a villa in the city center. That means, you definitely don't come from an average family. So, you must not be used to riding a bicycle."
"Then you're wrong," said Liu Xinyu as she looked into his eyes. "The watch belongs to my mother. The necklace is a birthday gift from my father and the bracelet is a family heirloom that I am not supposed to take off. So, no matter how expensive all of that is, I'm not selling it." She walked to the bicycle and sat down on the backseat very calmly, "And I have ridden a bike plenty of times. I used to ride a bike to school." 'Well, at least until I got injured riding a bike and was banned from riding it again.' She mentally thought to herself but didn't think it was necessary to tell him that detail.
"Hey, what about me?" asked Yiyi as she saw Liu Xinyu calmly sitting on the bicycle and ignoring her again. "You are thinking of leaving me here, aren't you?"
"Hold me, don't fall off," said Yi Qin to her before he put his foot on the pedal and started riding the bike away.
Liu Xinyu waved at Yiyi playfully as she rode away, thinking that she could finally have some peace and quiet. She got rid of this ghostie! This had to be the best thing that happened to her since yesterday.
But she didn't notice that Yiyi just stood there with her arms crossed, looking calm and indifferent. She shook her head saying, "This girl didn't realize it yet. Tsk."
The sun was shining brightly and caressed Liu Xinyu's face. Since it was early spring, the sun wasn't as strong and poisonous but even felt a bit comforting, bringing some warmth with it. The slow breeze blew her hair and she closed her eyes, enjoying the touch of the wind on her face. She was feeling really relaxed as she sat on the backseat of the bicycle with her father's younger self-riding it.
Liu Xinyu kept observing the surroundings and had to say that Yuchen City was still far from what it was in the future. Even if she hadn't lived in Yuchen City, how could no one in the country know a thing or two about Yuchen City? It was the financial capital of the country and a dream city for so many people.
But looking at the city without those landmark buildings that were the face of this city in the future, she still had a complicated feeling in her heart. There weren't those skyscrapers around too. The pedestrians on the side of the road, the cars on the road, and even the trees around gave Liu Xinyu a very retro feeling. She had to say, she was in the past. How could this city that was always crowded and on fast-forward look so desolate and peaceful?
Yi Qin rode the bicycle to a newly built residential building. She didn't say anything when she looked at the building and silently followed him. They took the elevator up to the 15th floor. Yi Qin took out the keys and opened the door of the 1509 and welcomed her in.
As she walked in, Liu Xinyu again focused on the retro interior of the house. She felt like she was back on a tour of the biggest museum of Yuchen City which not only recorded the history of progress of Yuchen City but also had prototypes of the lifestyle of the people living in this era.
Anyway, she was still a tourist who was just enjoying the view.
Looking at her, Yi Qin felt like he had to say something. She looked so carefree and defenseless that he couldn't help but feel worried about her. "Liu Xinyu!"
"Huh?" Liu Xinyu turned to face him with her big eyes blinking inquisitively at him.
Yi Qin paused before saying, "You shouldn't be following just any man to his house, without any worry. I could very well be a bad guy with ulterior motives. What if I brought you here to sell you?"
"Well, are you a bad guy?" she asked.
"No," he answered.
Liu Xinyu shrugged, "Isn't that enough then?" She didn't seem like she took his words seriously at all. "If you had any ulterior motives or wanted to sell me, the best chance would be when we met and I was unconscious. Because then, I wouldn't even know who sold me."
"Not everyone is kind," said Yi Qin.
"I know that. My Baba always tells me that not everyone is kind in the world. I know how to tell if one is sincere or not. You don't have to worry. I only look easy to deceive but my father didn't raise me a fool."
Yi Qin frowned to himself and then nodded to himself, "I'd believe you. Now, do you want to make a call to your parents? I don't have a landline here. But you can use my mobile phone." She just stared at the phone he was offering to her with a dim look in her eyes. "Make the call. They'd be worried about you."
"Yes, they'd be worried," she muttered to herself but still smiled at him. "But I can't reach them right now. They are too far away."
"Why not?" asked Yi Qin. "Are they abroad? Do you not know any contact details?"
Liu Xinyu nodded along with the excuse he gave her. Because explaining that they were in another time and space would be difficult. It was easier to get away with the fact that they were just in a foreign country and she couldn't contact them.
Yi Qin had a thoughtful look before saying, "Then you should write them a letter. Once they come back home, at least, they'd know where you are." Liu Xinyu agreed with him as she hummed in response. Yi Qin opened a drawer and took out an envelope which he offered to her.
Liu Xinyu took it from him and opened it to see banknotes inside, she raised her brows at him in confusion.
"You seem to have lost your wallet in the forest. You don't have any money on you and how can one survive without money?" He looked a little awkward as he said that. He wanted to give himself the nice guy award right now. Even he never realized before today that he was such a nice guy. His pocket money was already cut, he spent whatever he had on her hospital bills and now, whatever savings that he had were also offered to her.
Why the hell was he being so nice to a stranger?! Who can explain why he was acting this way?