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墨書 Inktalez
His gaze slowly shifted from her wrist to her face. After two or three seconds, he slightly moved the corners of his mouth and spoke two words.
“...Feng Ning.”
The two exchanged silent glances, and Feng Ning's mind went blank for a moment, unsure if she was hallucinating.
The person accompanying Jiang Wen looked a bit surprised. Bai Hongyi observed for a while and asked, “Ryan, is he your friend?”
Jiang Wen seemed oblivious to his words.
Feng Ning sat in her seat, feeling a bit caught off guard. However, she quickly composed herself and stood up calmly. “Jiang Wen?”
“It’s me.”
They were separated by the corner of a table, and she subtly took a step back. “When did you come back to the country?”
He replied, “Last week.”
“Oh, I see.”
This time, Jiang Wen didn’t continue the conversation.
An awkward silence spread between them, and Feng Ning seemed at a loss for what to say next. She raised her hand and pointed at Min Yueyue. “I came here to eat with a friend.”
Jiang Wen said, “Well, I’ll take my leave then.”
“Alright.”
After they left, Feng Ning sat back down.
After quite some time, she sighed and absentmindedly picked a cookie from the snack plate and popped it into her mouth. “What are you staring at me for?”
Min Yueyue's eyes sparkled with hearts as she asked dreamily, “Ning Ning, where did you meet that handsome guy? I’ve never heard you mention him before.”
"What a handsome guy."
Min Yueyue kicked her foot under the table, displeased. "What are you pretending for?"
"Oh, you mean that just now?" Feng Ning replied absently, avoiding the topic. "He's my high school classmate."
Just then, the waiter came over with a pot. "Here are the fifteen frogs you ordered, all cooked and ready to eat."
Feng Ning called out to the waiter who was about to leave.
"Hello, is there anything you need?"
Feng Ning said, "Bring some drinks."
A few bottles of Snowflake beer were placed on the table. Feng Ning picked up a bottle and, without using a bottle opener, skillfully popped the cap open against the edge of the table.
Min Yueyue's eyes widened in surprise. "Ning Ning, you're amazing."
Feng Ning poured herself a full glass and took a big gulp.
Min Yueyue wasn't great with alcohol; after a few sips alongside her, she began to battle with the frogs. After eating for a while, she looked up from her bowl and stared intently at Feng Ning. "I don't think he's just a high school classmate, right?"
The topic shifted too abruptly for Feng Ning; it took her a moment to realize Min Yueyue was talking about Jiang Wen.
Min Yueyue's face was full of gossip. "The way you two exchanged glances just now—there's definitely more to that story."
"Have you been reading too many romance novels lately?"
"Is he your ex-boyfriend?"
Feng Ning swirled the foam in her beer glass and replied leisurely, "Yeah."
"Really?!" Min Yueyue's eyes widened in disbelief. "He really is your ex-boyfriend?"
Feng Ning laughed and took another sip of her drink. "Just kidding."
"That's annoying," Min Yueyue said, feeling deflated as she tossed her chopsticks aside. "So is it true or not?"
"I told you, you wouldn't believe me anyway."
After a moment, Min Yueyue tentatively asked, "Did you really date?"
Feng Ning remained noncommittal.
"Ah!" Min Yueyue slumped back against the sofa, looking despondent. "I'm so upset."
"What are you upset about?"
"I just fell head over heels for a handsome guy at first sight, and before I could dive into love, I heard the terrible news—he's your ex-boyfriend."
Min Yueyue slammed her hand on the table in frustration. "How am I supposed to pursue him now?"
Feng Ning's initially heavy mood lightened at her antics, and she couldn't help but smile. "Alright, enough of the drama."
Before long, Min Yueyue perked up again, determined to interrogate further. "How long did you two date?"
"I don't remember."
"How can your memory be so bad?"
The words slipped out before she realized it, and Min Yueyue quickly corrected herself. "No, I mean, dating someone with that kind of looks should be unforgettable, right? This is a highlight of your life!"
Feng Ning smiled but didn't respond.
"Come on, tell me about it. I'm really curious."
"What is there to tell? It's been so long; what's the point?"
"Who chased whom? Have you kissed? Slept together?" Min Yueyue fired off like a series of cannonballs.
She adopted a persistent stance, as if she wouldn't let Feng Ning off the hook all night if she didn't answer.
Feng Ning replied, "We kissed, but we didn't sleep together."
"Then who chased whom?"
"...I chased him."
At that moment, her phone vibrated with an incoming call. Feng Ning was so focused on talking to Min Yueyue that she didn't notice.
"How did you break up with your high school classmate? Did you break up after graduation?"
Feng Ning patiently answered, "Pretty much."
"That means it's been almost ten years. It's surprising you still remember what each other looks like."
Min Yueyue sighed sadly, "Ning Ning, what should I do? I really like handsome guys too much. Why can't I date several boyfriends at the same time? What do you think I should do? Boo hoo hoo."
When the phone rang for the second time, Feng Ning finally caught sight of the screen lighting up. She picked up the phone and replied to Min Yueyue, "Just cooperate with the doctor and get timely treatment."
While speaking, she swiped to answer and said, "Hello?"
No one responded. "Why can't I hear anything?"
Feng Ning called out a couple more times and glanced at her phone; it showed that the call was still connected. She held it back to her ear and muttered, "Is my phone malfunctioning?"
Min Yueyue agreed and continued to eat frog legs. "You should really replace that old phone of yours; I've been trying to call you lately, but I can never get through."
She returned to her previous topic, her mouth full as she mumbled, "You should have slept with your ex-boyfriend one last time before breaking up. There's a saying on Weibo that goes well: the hardest thing in the world isn't a diamond; it's a high school student's... you know."
After swallowing her food, Min Yueyue exclaimed loudly, "It's such a shame you never got the chance to try out the hardest man in the world!"
“......”
Feng Ning was speechless and was about to hang up the phone when a familiar voice suddenly came through, “—Why did you stick my phone number on my car?”
The voice on the other end was Jiang Wen.
She held her phone tightly, thinking she might have misheard, and paused for a moment. “Huh?”
“Your phone number.”
Feng Ning took a while to process this absurd situation. She asked, “The car that was blocked... is it yours?”
His voice sounded confused. “What?”
She echoed, “What?”
For some reason, there was silence on Jiang Wen's end for quite a while before he finally said, “Oh... right, my car is blocked.”
After hanging up the phone, Min Yueyue casually asked, “Who was that?”
Feng Ning picked up her cup and downed the remaining drink in one go. “The toughest high school student in the world.”
Min Yueyue replied, “......”
Feng Ning stood up and grabbed her bag. “Let’s go.”
Min Yueyue turned her head. “Huh? Aren’t we eating anymore?”
“We need to move the car, sister.”
*
The parking lot was dimly lit, and Jiang Wen stood in a shadowy spot. He bit down on a cigarette, lit it, and pinched it between his fingers as a cloud of smoke dispersed around him, with a flickering red glow at his fingertips.
A few steps away, Feng Ning's footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
For some reason, in that fleeting moment, a line from Faye Wong's song "Years" suddenly popped into her mind:
"In this lifetime, when paths cross, one cannot escape."
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Feng Ning scolded herself internally for becoming so mainstream.
Jiang Wen was slightly hunched over, holding a cigarette in one hand and a phone in the other. Leaning against the door of the fire escape, his expression was obscured by the dim light, and he smoked with practiced ease.
From ten meters away, she fixed her gaze on him.
Min Yueyue, who had caught up from behind, excitedly called out, "Handsome guy!"
Seeing them approach, Jiang Wen extinguished his cigarette.
Min Yueyue skipped past Feng Ning and bounced up to him. "Hi there! Let me introduce myself. I'm Min Yueyue, and Ning Ning is my best friend."
Jiang Wen looked at her blankly for a few seconds before standing up straight. With a hint of indifference and casualness, he extended one hand. "Hello, I'm Jiang Wen."
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