To our relief and hers, Yao Meng has finally found someone she can lean on. A happy ending at last for Yao Meng, and no serial killer in sight! Hurrah! I love the quiet moment she shares with Shu Hang, and that she cherishes it because it is so ordinary. Ding Mo owes her for having put her through the wringer with some extraordinary ‘coincidences’, all right! How do you feel about Yao Meng’s ‘ending’?
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Yao Meng & Shu Hang Short Story Part 2.2
I"m sorry, Shu Hang.
After half a year, this was what she said to him.
The next day, as Shu Hang flew back to Beijing, he felt an extremely deep sense of suffocation. He thought he"d had it in the bag, he thought her every smile and frown had indicated she had similar feelings for him. Who knew that once the situation came out into the open, she would stop feigning innocence and bluntly reject him.
It was nothing more than her depending on him. There was no love involved.
This thought grieved him terribly.
——
This time, Shu Hang stayed away for a long time.
Yao Meng thought that perhaps any man would have a bottom line and patience. These days, Yao Meng definitely thought about him, thought about the faint smile that was always on his face, thought about how handsome he was as he unhurriedly explained those head-splitting economic theories and problems to her.
But, she was still not ready to start a relationship. She also had no idea if she"d ever be ready.
Later on, a lot of things happened. Lin City was yet again rocked by a serial murder case. Without knowing why, the first thought Yao Meng had was of Feng Ye. Perhaps it was a case of "once bitten, twice shy"*, but the little bit of oddness about the case was enough for Yao Meng to tremble with fear. And, when she told Xu Xu about her intuition, Xu Xu was also stumped for words.
*一朝被蛇咬十年怕井绳 (yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo shí nián pà jĭng shéng) – lit. once bitten by a snake, afraid of a well rope for the next 10 years (I love this idiom! So graphic, and true! shl)
After that, it was time to probe, to see if they could lure the snake out of the hole. Yao Meng never knew where she gained the courage to meet up with Feng Ye and endure his kisses despite trembling, and even to steal one of the life-like dolls from his home.
Perhaps it was for the sake of the deceased Lin Qingyan.
The night that the police captured Feng Ye, Yao Meng sat in the bedroom in her villa. She was surrounded by successive rings of bodyguards, as well as the police officers that had been delegated to watch over her. However, when she looked at the quiet night, she was suddenly very frightened. She knew very well that Feng Ye would not be able to break through all the layers of security to revenge himself on her, but she was still fearful that, in the very next second, Feng Ye would appear out of the darkness.
Time ticked past slowly. As the night grew deeper, the dread in her heart correspondingly fermented and swelled. While her nerves were stretched taut to the point where she was senseless of anything around her, her handphone rang. She glanced at it. It was Feng Ye. She was so startled that she tossed her handphone away, and it landed in the toilet.
The phone rang persistently for a long time before finally stopping. She heaved a long sigh, and huddled in the corner of the bed.
(T/N: We realise that this scenario is different from what went down in Ch 68. Our suspicion is that Ding Mo wrote one ending for the web novel, and another for the print novel. Our translation for Ch 68 is based on the print novel, as we couldn"t find the online version. Alternatively, Ding Mo wrote these short stories before deciding on the ending.)
Who knew that at this time, the house phone would suddenly ring. Yao Meng almost screamed. She looked at the phone on the sofa, both scared and furious. The phone did not stop ringing, and her anger was aroused. In a state of extreme agitation, she leapt off the bed in one swift move and stormed across to pick up the phone. "You beast! I don"t have anything to say to you!"
The person on the other end paused for a second before saying, "Beast? Why on earth are you condemning me like this?"
It was Shu Hang.
Yao Meng immediately calmed down. "You? How can it be? I thought it was . . ."
"Who did you think it was?"
"It"s nothing."
Shu Hang was once again silent for a moment. Then, he asked, "What are you busy with? I called your handphone, but it was off, so I was worried that something had happened. I heard that there"s another psychopathic killer in Lin City."
"I"m all right. I"m at home. The handphone fell into the toilet." Yao Meng hesitated, then asked, "How . . . have you been?"
That night, the two of them talked until 2 a.m. without realising it, until the police officers standing guard outside knocked on the door with great excitement in their eyes. A heavy stone was lifted off Yao Meng"s heart, yet there was also a faint sense of disappointment and frustration. (T/N probably because her conversation with Shu Hang has been interrupted)
Feng Ye had been captured.
This was the longest phone conversation the two of them had ever shared. Shu Hang never realised that it was entirely due to his rival, the psychopathic serial killer.
It was only much later that Shu Hang heard the news of the psychopathic killer called Feng Ye, and also indirectly discovered that Yao Meng had been mixed up in the affair, and had even helped the police to capture him. This immediately underlined for him the fact that she really was not afraid of death.
He immediately booked a flight for Lin City.
The two of them finally settled their relationship on the night of Xu Jun"s company banquet. That night, Yao Meng had sprained her ankle. Shu Hang had taken advantage of the situation and swept her off to the hotel sick bay, where he applied medication, ma.s.saged her foot and held her, finally kissing her teary face.
Yao Meng did not utter a word.
She did not know if this was truly love. However, she did know that she never wanted to be without Shu Hang by her side.
Shu Hang suggested that the best medicine would be for him to take her home, and thus left their a.s.sistants, managers and whatnots behind. Who knew, the car followed the ring road, but did not head for her home. Instead, it headed for the riverside.
Yao Meng asked, suspiciously, "What are you doing?"
Shu Hang kissed her red eyes repeatedly. "I"ve finally achieved my goal after an expedition of a hundred thousand miles. You must permit me to play at being romantic, and to express my sincerity."
In truth, there wasn"t a whole lot of romance. Night, starlight, gra.s.s, his car parked on the riverbank, holding her while sitting on the gra.s.s, gazing at the myriad lights on the river bank, the murmuring of the water.
Yet, this was the first time in several years that Yao Meng had experienced such calm, and was able to view the night with peace of mind. No strange dream, no sweat and heartache. Just another man, laughing as he sat by her side, ma.s.saging her swollen foot, pointing out the constellations to her.
Just like an ordinary man and an ordinary woman, just like the love and life of ordinary people.
When the sky brightened, Yao Meng discovered that they had fallen asleep on the gra.s.s by the riverside. He was sprawled on the ground, and she had slept in his arms. Moreover, his suit was draped over her body.
Yao Meng snuggled deeper into his embrace.
"Thank you, Shu Hang."
——
Two years later, they began to talk about marriage.
Yao Meng"s parents were ordinary workers. Although they had some initial reservations about their ill.u.s.trious potential son-in-law, they came to see his steady and reliable character, and were therefore satisfied.
On the other hand, Yao Meng had never met Shu Hang"s family.
As the Spring Festival approached, Shu Hang took it upon himself to book plane tickets for the both of them, and helped Yao Meng prepare suitable presents for his parents.
Yao Meng was naturally anxious, and asked, "Will your parents . . ."
Shu Hang did not wait for her to finish talking. He said, simply and clearly, "They won"t. When I, your man, am at home, I have absolute authority to speak. Don"t worry. My mum is muddle-headed, and knows nothing at all about your history – she"s not at all like Ji Bai"s overbearing and shrewd mother. As for my dad, he"s such a simple man, why would he bother about such matters? Our Shu family is also more sound than substance. We may have risen to prominence as esteemed members of the revolutionary army, but that"s of no significance. Nowadays, we depend entirely on my business undertakings. Just relax, don"t stress yourself."
As Yao Meng listened to him talk, the corners of her mouth slowly lifted.
It looked like the winter wouldn"t be too cold, after all.
(T/N the final two lines are found in the print version, but not the web version)
Translator: shl
TL Checker:
Proofreader: Librismuse, Calculusfanatic