Waterbound Love - Chapter 38
“Du Bai, you need to explain yourself. What exactly are you doing?” All the way here, I told myself to stay calm, stay elegant, but the moment I saw that beast, all pretense of composure and grace went out the window.
Du Bai, suffering from a headache, looked at Shao and shook her head, knowing it was a mistake to meet her in a café. “Hey, hey, hey, getting all worked up the moment you’re back in the country? Don’t tell me you just came from Africa and are looking to take it out on me.”
“Bullshit, I have no interest in playing bowling with coconuts,” Shao retorted with a roll of her eyes, settling down in a flurry. “Stop changing the subject. Tell me, why is it that everything is fine when I am around, but the moment I leave, everything falls apart?”
“You’ve finally caught on, haven’t you? I’ve been trying to hint at you that I’ve always had a crush on you. Being shy, I could only use the clumsiest method-provoking you with another woman. Once you left, they were useless, weren’t they?” Du Bai casually spoke while sipping water, honestly, maintaining this irritating demeanor had not been easy until now.
“Cut the crap. I still remember your famous line ‘I’d rather marry a sow than touch Shao, Shao is a real man,’ so come clean.”
Du Bai broke out in a cold sweat. Damn, people really can’t be trusted. “Who? Who said that? They’re just trying to slander me. My crush on you is as real as it gets, as if I had decided on you a thousand years ago, always following you, never leaving your side. How could I recognize you so easily? Is it because you carry my mark?” Du Bai said earnestly, leering at her less.
Shao sat back, arms crossed, her smile more of a grimace than anything else. “Is it a bite mark, then?” she leaned forward, giving Du Bai a flirtatious smile, “Perhaps on some hidden part of you?” Her voice was velvety deep, causing Du Bai to blush. This person was no pushover either, quickly replying, “Yes, yes, that’s right. I would have been too embarrassed to mention it myself.” Saying so, she posed shyly.
Shao shifted back, returning to her previous demeanor as if the shyness had been merely a fleeting illusion. She raised an eyebrow, “Oh, right, I seem to recall my name was Lü Dongbin at the time.”
“Aren’t you going to say it then?” Shao dropped the teasing facade.
Du Bai struggled to force a smile, “You know, don’t you? Let the past be the past. Right now, I just want to finish what needs to be done.”
“Are you still not capable? Still haven’t found it?” Shao’s concern was genuine at this moment. Finish what needs to be done, and then what?
“Let’s not talk about that now, it’s too stuffy in here. Let’s go for a walk,” Du Bai said, standing up first. This kind of pressure, like being forced to confront something, was truly unbearable for her.
Shao watched Du Bai’s retreating figure, her eyes brimming with a sour ache. Some people’s fates are sealed from the start, and the more they struggle, the closer they draw to their inevitable end. What else does this struggle bring besides powerlessness?
How long has it been since she quietly walked under the sunlight? Yet, at this moment, Du Bai felt no instant warmth or relief, her head bowed, her figure lonely.
“Du Bai, isn’t that-”
“It’s not, you’re mistaken,” Du Bai quickly walked away, afraid to hear the rest of Shao’s words.
But those words lingered on.
It was Yaoyao, with a boy.
She saw clearly, it was Little Shui.
Surely she wasn’t the only one feeling stifled-Rumor must feel it too.
Who knows if he would hate.
Seeing it, Du Bai somewhat hated herself, for she truly destroyed a girl’s pure beauty.
The sunlight was glaring, filling the air with bitterness.
She didn’t know how to make amends. If she could be happy like this, she would do as she wished, clearing the path to happiness from obstacles.
In that moment, Du Bai told herself, all that remained was indebtedness, mixed with nothing else but sharp, needle-like emotions.
The pain, once endured and tangled again, became a torment, a nightmare to anyone.
She flipped through the paintings of Wyeth (Andrew Wyeth, an American painter known for his realistic style) again and again; the room filled with Cara Dillon’s (an Irish folk singer) singing; and “Walden Pond” (a work by Henry David Thoreau, exploring simple living and natural philosophy) quietly spread on the sofa. It wasn’t about deliberately portraying sadness, but these things brought Du Bai a sense of peaceful comfort.
Du Bai turned off Somn, this meticulously crafted paradise. Without Tinna, without Shen Yan, the remaining Somn was nothing. Its decline seemed to speak of a longing for the days of its owners’ joyful laughter, a sight so sorrowful that it was better buried deep within the heart.
Having long resigned from her teaching position, Du Bai was not idle-Wei Wen became her official business. She spent her days dealing with his various appointments.
Life was like a cup of boiled water, bland and tasteless. With zeolites added, who knew if it could still burst into a boil.
Wei Wen informed Du Bai that Ji Feiling had Rumor’s support, and since the Ji Family originated from the underworld, it was not wise to act rashly for the time being. Du Bai simply smiled and did not react much. She knew that even without Rumor’s help, he wouldn’t have been so compliant with her wishes, at least not before the wedding. This was his bargaining chip, wasn’t it? Du Bai was not annoyed by such precautions, perhaps because she did not care much. But there were some details Du Bai had yet to clarify. Asking was a good method, but the answers received might not always be the truth. She decided to ignore it and wait for the truth to reveal itself in due time. However, Du Bai did not anticipate that the truth, when it did emerge, would do so with such astonishing speed and impact.
Du Bai looked at Du Ruo in the mirror, somewhat dazed. The flashy, golden hair had now been dyed a subdued and elegant deep brown. Her hair was still short but cut neatly, clean and crisp without losing the soft femininity. Du Bai lit a cigarette and exhaled a plume of smoke towards her reflection in the mirror, adding a seductive allure. In that moment, how should one put it? It felt like a lifetime had passed. Du Bai chuckled softly.
After the engagement party, Du Bai occasionally accompanied Wei Wen to important business receptions, merely to make an appearance before claiming illness and returning home. Initially, the high-society ladies gossiped about this, but Du Bai ignored them. Over time, someone concluded that she was a ‘medicine jar,’ a label that stuck. Du Bai found nothing to complain about regarding this. Consequently, the receptions requiring her presence gradually decreased. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise.
Tonight, there was an important reception, and Wei Wen seemed intent on having her attend, having sent a driver for her early. Du Bai picked a moon-white gown from her wardrobe, having no intention of competing for attention; why waste energy on dressing up meticulously? It must be said that Wei Wen was a considerate lover. The evening gowns were all custom-made by him, simplified in Greek-court style, maximally approaching androgynous design. Du Bai was quite pleased with this arrangement. At least dressing up would not be too troublesome.
Du Bai got out of the car and noticed some argument at the entrance, but since it was none of her business, she didn’t pay any attention and headed straight in.
“Senior Sister Du? Senior Sister Du!” Two urgent shouts successfully pulled Du Ruo back.
Du Bai frowned at the energetic girl in front of her, seeming somewhat familiar, “You are”
“Senior Sister, how can you not recognize me?” she said, her peach blossom eyes, similar to Du Bai’s, brimming with tears.
Du Bai smiled brightly, “Little girl, women change so much as they grow; forgive me for being dazzled by your beauty and not recognizing you.” She then ruffled Lin Mumu’s hair. She had a deep impression of Lin Mumu, her junior from her college days. Their strikingly similar, elongated, expressive eyes made Du Bai wonder if Lin Mumu could be a secret child her father had with another woman behind her mother’s back. Her father had left when Du Bai was very young, and Lin Mumu probably hadn’t been born yet. Dismissing that connection, Du Bai found herself quite fond of this lively junior and doted on her especially.
“Senior Sister, can you take me inside?” Lin Mumu pleaded with her elongated eyes.
“That’s possible, but you have to tell me what this is all about,” Du Bai said, sensing something was off with her long-unseen junior.
Lin Mumu bit her lip, promising not to mention it, but
Du Bai seemed to see through Mumu’s melancholy, narrowing her eyes, “Never mind then, I’m going in.” She made a move to leave.
“Hey, wait, won’t I do?” Lin Mumu grabbed Du Bai’s arm to stop her from leaving. “I-I want to meet someone. Someone told me they could bring me here tonight to see him, but they haven’t arrived yet, and I can’t get in.”
Du Bai laughed, “So it’s the old story of pining for someone unseen, anxious in your heart to find him. I will help you with this.” Besides, the banquet was so boring, and this drama was indeed a highlight. Don’t think this young lady is naive; she’s quite cunning and wouldn’t let herself be disadvantaged.
“Let’s go, I’ll take you in.”
“But my outfit-” See, just as she said, following Du Bai in while saying the opposite. Du Bai already anticipated the excitement to come, perhaps they could stay till the end, couldn’t they?
“Don’t worry, I’ll borrow a set from the hostess later; she’ll still grant me that favor.”
“I want the most expensive one!”
Du Bai was starting to regret it, forgetting this young girl was a money lover.
What seemed like a harmonious scene was viewed with a chilling smirk by someone hidden in the shadows. It seems the traffic jam earlier wasn’t annoying at all.
“Mr. Ji, aren’t you going in?” someone asked Ji Feiling, who was lost in thought.
Ji Feiling snapped back to reality, “Oh, it’s Mr. Wei. Shall we go together?”
“Yes.” Wei Wen nodded, and they entered the banquet side by side.
At this moment, the real protagonists and supporting characters of the banquet were all present, setting the stage for the drama to unfold. It was truly something to look forward to.
Moonlight shone on the swimming pool in the backyard of the venue, reflecting shimmering patterns. It seemed to anticipate the upcoming moments and hinted at the underlying tumult. Maybe. Who can tell the future? Even if it’s about to happen momentarily.
Footnote:
- Lü Dongbin(吕洞宾):Lü Dongbin is a famous figure in Chinese mythology, one of the Eight Immortals, often associated with the saying “a dog bites Lü Dongbin,” which means someone fails to appreciate a good person or favor.
