"After the car crashed into the wall, I wrote my demands on the liquid crystal screen in his car, and he thought he was cursed, targeted by ghosts."
There are no ghosts in this world, but some people feel guilty.
Wu Haomin was half-understanding, "What is a brake controller?"
"It's a little gadget I made myself, nothing too technical," Wen Changling took the carrot from the rabbit doll, played with it in her hand, "But that thing can only scare cowards like Sun Zheng who only dare to act tough within their own circle." A scare was enough, she had been cautious during the installation, so as not to harm anyone's life.
"You can make that kind of thing?" It sounded difficult.
Wen Changling nodded without any intent to show off, merely stating a fact calmly, "I had very good grades when I was studying."
She could make sulfuric acid, build bombs. As long as she wanted to, she could make them.
Wu Haomin felt like he was getting to know her all over again, "You seem quite well-behaved."
Wen Changling did not respond.
She wasn't well-behaved, never had been.
"Changling, why did you come to Lotus Pond Street? What about your family?"
Wen Changling hung her head, "I don't have a family anymore."
In that moment, Wu Haomin felt a chilling gloominess on Wen Changling's body, a contradictory sense of both innocence and evil existing together.
Wu Haomin didn't pry any further, but repeatedly warned her to keep the brake controller matter a secret from everyone.
Granny Zhu must have also learned about Sun Zheng's incident, didn't say much, just stewed a pot of beef bone soup, giving most of the meaty parts to Wen Changling, and even cooked her a sweet water chicken egg.
On Monday, Wen Changling was on the day shift.
Dihong Hospital's oncology department was large, divided into medical oncology, radiation oncology, and surgical oncology. Wen Changling's ward was part of surgical oncology, which had two head nurses.
Head nurse Tu Qizhen had always taken good care of Wen Changling, finding her quiet, meticulous, and responsible. Tu Qizhen had openly praised Wen Changling more than once.
Tu Qizhen had heard her fair share of rumors about Wen Changling and Yan Cong around the hospital, and each time she heard them, she felt angry on behalf of Wen Changling. If the rumors were just about them dating, it would have been one thing, but they were always about Wen Changling gold-digging, and some were even uglier, stemming not from actual sightings but simply because the two individuals' family backgrounds and financial situations were unequal.
In the afternoon, during some downtime, Tu Qizhen pulled Wen Changling aside for a private chat.
"Changling, do you have time after work tomorrow?"
"I do."
Wen Changling didn't have much entertainment or social life on ordinary days; she had plenty of time after work.
Tu Qizhen got straight to the point, "I have a classmate, her cousin works at a law firm, he's doing well in every aspect, looks okay too, his parents are government officials, and they have their own house and car. Do you want to meet him?"
Oh, it was matchmaking.
Wen Changling was not very interested, "No, thank you."
"Come on, just meet him. It won't hurt. If you're not satisfied after meeting him, just come back and tell me, I'll help you refuse."
Wen Changling shook her head like a rattle drum.
"Please, do it as a favor to me. Just have a meal together, okay?"
Tu Qizhen was very persistent, and her kindness was hard to decline, so Wen Changling finally agreed, "Alright then."
"I'll arrange it."
*****
Wen Changling finished her shift, just past five o'clock. Granny Zhu called, asking Wen Changling to come home for dinner, telling her she made braised pork ribs and steamed fish.
The driver was unfamiliar with the route this time, and dropped Wen Changling off at a different intersection from the one she usually used. She wandered around, taking a longer route home, and by the time she arrived, it was almost dark.
The lanterns outside Ruyi Pawnshop were bright, as the temperature was high today. Xie Shang was watering the wilted Sansevieria by the doorway.
He took a break and glanced at Wen Changling, who looked disheveled from taking roundabout paths.
"Lost again?"
Wen Changling was a bit stubborn: "No."
Xie Shang casually placed the watering can aside, stood up, and positioned himself under the eaves: "Next time you can't find your way, just look up at the lanterns."
Wen Changling looked up and noticed that the street lanterns had all been replaced. The pawnshop had bunny lanterns, and Granny Zhu's clock shop also had bunny lanterns, all finely decorated with colored ink, which must have been what Xie Shang helped Grandma Lin with a few days ago.
"If you follow the lanterns with the bunnies, you won't get lost."
On Lotus Pond Street, new lanterns were hung in several streets and alleys, all adorned with images of small animals.
Xie Shang might as well not run the pawnshop anymore and become a painter instead.
Wen Changling moved a bit closer. Xie Shang was very tall, so she had to tilt her chin up to look at him: "Are you good at everything?"
He could make incense, play the zither, juggle, and even paint lanterns.
"Not really."
Wen Changling felt he was being too modest.
He shared with Wen Changling a secret that few knew: "I'm not very good with chopsticks." He stood beside the Sansevieria, peerlessly handsome, as striking as an orchid or jade tree, "The pickled long beans you ordered last time were chopped too finely; I couldn't pick them up at all."
No wonder he didn't touch the dish of pickled long beans.
Wen Changling laughed.
The lantern under the eaves danced its light into Xie Shang's eyes, which shone bright like stars. Wen Changling didn't usually smile, at least not in front of him.
The next day, the temperature continued to rise.
Xie Shang returned to the Flower Chamber Hall of the Xie Family. He had moved out after coming of age and didn't often visit.
When he returned, Aunt Wen greeted him with a smile: "Fourth brother has come back."
Aunt Wen was a distant relative of Old Lady Xie and had been working for the Xie Family for more than thirty years. Xie Shang was raised under her watch, and she was used to calling him fourth brother, a habit Old Lady Xie often had as well.
Xie Shang gave Aunt Wen the egg yolk pastries from Zhou Ji he had brought, knowing they were her favorite.
"Why bring back treats?" Aunt Wen said verbally, but she was very pleased, fetching a sanitized towel from the washing room to wipe Xie Shang's hands before shouting to the living room, "Elder, master, the fourth brother has arrived."
Xie Shang's grandfather, Mr. Xie Jingxian, had three sons and one daughter, with Xie Shang's father, Xie Liangjiang, being the eldest son.
Xie Liangjiang looked the part of a scholar-merchant, his suit impeccably tailored and crafted, with a gold-threaded brooch pinned precisely between the first and second buttons on his shirt.
"Stay for dinner,"
That was all he said, then he continued reading his electronic news.
Xie Shang replied, "I have other matters to attend to."
There was a noticeable estrangement between father and son, with almost no communication. Xie Liangjiang and Xie Shang's mother, Ms. Su Nanzhi, had divorced ten years ago, but this was not the reason for the distance between father and son; Xie Shang had never been close to Xie Liangjiang, having the best relationship with his younger uncle Xie Qingze.
Xie Jingxian was in the room next to the ground floor study. Xie Shang knocked on the door, the first tap light, the following two heavier, then he stepped back, waiting for a response from inside.
This was the etiquette of knocking.
"Come in."
Xie Shang pushed the door and entered.
The room, which used to be Xie Qingze's, was now empty except for a memorial portrait.