Always By Your Side

Chapter 19: God and Goddess

Wanyu?

Yuanyuan pressed her forehead on her work desk, her heart broken. He hadn’t seemed to realize that he’d called the wrong name at all. Or maybe he hadn’t even noticed that he’d called.

Yuanyuan thought, was she the embodiment of misery?

Was every relationship that she threw herself into without a second thought destined to end badly?

Yuanyuan abruptly got up and walked to Wang Yue’s side. “I want to find a boyfriend, a handsome one.”

Wang Yue laughed on the spot, “That Mr. Fu that’s like a beautiful jade tree.”

Yuanyuan said with despair, “I want to find a boyfriend, a handsome one, that likes me!”

Wang Yue was like a broken record, “…That Mr. Fu that’s like a beautiful jade tree.”

Yuanyuan hung her head dispiritedly and returned to her seat. At this time, her phone on the desk rang. When she looked, it turned out to be Fu Beichen calling. She rejected the call with trembling hands…

She really didn’t know how to face him right now.

After Cheng Bai finished lunch, he didn’t wait for Wang Yang who was chatting idly with their female colleagues. He leaned on his crutches and left the cafeteria first. When he entered the hospital and waited at the elevator, he ran into his colleague from the ENT department, Feng Li.

“Do you have a second?” Cheng Bai asked.

“En?” Feng Li was surprised.

“My right ear was injured a few years ago. The hearing is slightly worse than my left ear, but recently there have been times when I can’t hear any sounds at all.” Cheng Bai narrated this calmly, as if he was talking about someone else’s illness.

On the contrary, Feng Li was more nervous than he was. “After you returned from disaster relief?”

Cheng Bai thought about it and replied, “Yes.”

Quite soon, the elevator arrived. The two entered the elevator, and when they reached the third floor, Feng Li led Cheng Bai to the ENT department for a comprehensive ear examination. After the examination, Feng Li frowned and told him that he had neural deafness caused by trauma. It could be improved with treatment, but the possibility of curing it was small.

After returning to his office, Cheng Bai felt somewhat tired. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Originally, he wanted to relax, but his mind kept spinning incessantly.

At first glance, the attack that year seemed like an accident. Neither he nor Yuanyuan knew the assailant, but his intuition had told him that the matter wasn’t all that simple. For a long time after that day, he was unable to relax. He repeatedly recalled that scene in his mind and always felt that the perpetrator had come for him.

It should have been his calamity, yet she was the one who met the iron rod.

The more he thought about it, the more afraid he became. If he couldn’t protect her for the time being, then at least he couldn’t implicate her any more. So, that day in the rain, he had said those kinds of things to her.

Subsequent events confirmed his judgement. That man appeared once more and captured him. It turned out that this person was originally from Cheng Shenghua’s factory. He had been fired for stealing medicinal ingredients and reselling them at a profit. With no money and no job, his mind gave birth to wicked thoughts, and through Cheng Bai he planned to extort money from Cheng Shenghua. On the surface, Cheng Shenghua agreed to settle privately, but he secretly alerted the police. The man resisted arrest by force, so much so that his emotions went out of control and he became hysterical. Cheng Bai was hit with the iron rod several times because of this, the heaviest blow landing on his right ear. In the end, the man was forced to the top floor of the construction site by the police and jumped off. With a loud bang, he died not far from Cheng Bai. At that time, Cheng Shenghua had immediately covered Cheng Bai’s eyes, but Cheng Bai still saw it—a horribly mangled and mutilated figure. Dying turned out to be so easy. But fortunately, fortunately she had not been involved.

When Yuanyuan got off work, she received a call from Cheng Shenghua.

“Hi, Uncle.”

“En, Yuanyuan, are you busy tonight? If not, come to Uncle’s house for dinner.”

Yuanyuan’s mind turned, and in hindsight, she recalled that today was Cheng Shenghua’s birthday. “Ah, I forgot. Uncle, happy birthday, I’ll definitely come over!”

“Okay, just bring yourself, don’t buy any gifts.”

Just as Yuanyuan was about to protest, Cheng Shenghua stopped her: “A few days ago, didn’t you bring Uncle a lot of very good tea? That’ll do, that’s already a present. If you squander your money to buy something else, Uncle will be angry.”

Yuanyuan smiled: “Alright then.”

As soon as Yuanyuan arrived at the Cheng house, Cheng Shenghua told Yuanyuan that Cheng Bai’s leg had almost recovered. However, he still needed crutches for the time being.

“Previously I was so busy, I didn’t have time to take care of him. Yuanyuan, thank you very much for helping me take care of Cheng Bai.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

After saying so, Yuanyuan faintly heard a grim voice behind her. Turning her head to look, she saw Cheng Bai standing behind the armchair she was in.

His right hand was propped on an unusual black cane, his fingers hanging naturally, while his left hand was placed in the pocket of his thin grey windbreaker. Since he had just stopped, the corner of the windbreaker slowly lowered. The sense of movement in that moment made his posture even more outstanding.

Yuanyuan silently cursed: This guy, he still pretended to be graceful even when he was injured. She really didn’t know where he got such an old-fashioned looking cane.

“What are you muttering in your heart?”

Yuanyuan was startled, “What, you think too much.” Was this person the parasite in her stomach?

Cheng Bai snorted lightly.

Cheng Shenghua smiled and said, “Alright, let’s go to the table and eat.”

During the meal, Yuanyuan took the fruit juice and paid her respects to Cheng Shenghua. “Uncle, may your happiness be as immense as the East Sea, may you live as long as the Zhongnan Mountains, may you be healthy and happy, and more and more handsome!”

Cheng Shenghua laughed heartily, “Thank you!”

Cheng Bai merely said one line to his father, “Happy birthday Dad.”

“En, good!” Cheng Shenghua looked at the two children in front of him. “I’m fifty-five, and you are all grown up. Indeed, time flies by so fast.” Cheng Shenghua extended his hand and gestured as he spoke, “Yuanyuan, do you remember when you first came to Uncle’s house? You were only this tall, and Cheng Bai was not much taller than you.”

“En,” Yuanyuan nodded. She had a good memory and could remember everything. “Uncle had me drink milk every day. I managed to grow up to 1.65 metres, otherwise I would have been 1.6 metres at most. Haha, because my mother is not tall, and I remember my father was not tall either.”

Cheng Shenghua agreed, “Your dad was much shorter than me.”

A simple home-cooked meal, it was joyous and harmonious when they ate.

In the evening when Yuanyuan had to leave, Cheng Shengua said he would send her back. Cheng Shenghua went to the garage to get the car, and Yuanyuan stood at the entrance of the garden. She turned around and gazed at the person in the entrance hall. She thought it could not be denied—although Cheng Bai often said and did nasty things, he had never truly treated her badly.

Yuanyuan saw that Uncle Shenghua’s car was coming out. She couldn’t help but wave at Cheng Bai in a friendly manner, “I’m leaving, Cheng Bai!”

To her, Cheng Bai was now her family, her older brother.

Cheng Bai didn’t express anything. He turned around and left.

Yuanyuan was embarrassed. This guy…

Shen Yu was reclining on her bed in the dormitory, flipping through the copy of Chuancheng Magazine she’d borrowed from her teacher. After reading it in its entirety, she couldn’t help but praise the saying: “Let those who read it never tire of it.” Turning back to the copyright page, the editor’s phone number was at the top, and Cheng Yuanyuan’s name was listed in the editor-in-charge section.

Shen Yu remembered how she’d gone to see Cheng Bai in the hospital. She’d asked him for Cheng Yuanyuan’s phone number, but he wouldn’t give it out. Nowadays, if one was unable to find a Buddhist monk, the temple was still there. It was so easy to find her.

Shen Yu rolled over and sat up. She dialed the editorial department of Chuancheng, and without the least bit of suspense, Cheng Yuanyuan picked up.

“I’m Shen Yu, do you still remember me?”

After receiving the call from Shen Yu, Yuanyuan was a little shocked but said cheerfully, “Of course I remember, you’re such a beautiful woman.”

Shen Yu laughed, “You flatter me.”

The two chatted for a while, and they were not at all unfamiliar. Shen Yu seized the opportunity to say that she wanted to window-shop and drink tea on the weekend, but didn’t have a companion. She asked if Yuanyuan was free. Yuanyuan originally had a good impression of Shen Yu. It was just that she hadn’t contacted her much before. Since someone was taking the initiative to befriend her, however, Yuanyuan readily agreed.

The weekend soon arrived. Due to the cold rain that had poured for several days, the ground was covered with dead leaves and the wind that swept through was chilly. Still, Yuanyuan hadn’t gone shopping for a long time and she was in high spirits. Therefore, the two grappled with the cold the whole way and each reaped their own rewards. Yuanyuan purchased two different wool sweaters for Uncle Shenghua and her mother. Just as the two of them were engrossed in conversation, they happened to pass by a coffee shop called “Inception”.

“Inception.” Shen Yu was holding Yuanyuan’s arm when she saw the shop. She stopped, looked at Yuanyuan, and said, “Speaking of which, did you know that my senior brother often seems to have trouble sleeping?”

Fu Beichen? Yuanyuan’s heart could not help constricting, and then she felt a sense of loss. But even if she had a “grudge” against Fu Beichen now, she didn’t want to talk about his private matters in front of others. She replied vaguely, “Really…”

“I’m not sure about the specifics.” Shen Yu shook her head, then immediately asked with an ambiguous smile, “Don’t tell me that you’re not concerned? I think my senior brother really has his heart set on you.”

Yuanyuan smiled bitterly. “Fu Beichen treats me pretty well, but he just has a proper upbringing and treats everyone courteously. If I pretend to think that he cares about me, wouldn’t I add to his worries instead?”

Shen Yu saw that Yuanyuan didn’t seem to reject being questioned about her relationship with Fu Beichen, so she got straight to the point: “Then do you think…it’s possible for you two?”

“Ah?” Yuanyuan naturally understood what she meant, but she could only force a smile. “Fu Beichen, as far as I’m concerned, is like…a star in the sky. His existence is like a god’s. A male god that you can worship and watch from afar, but that you cannot play with.”

Shen Yu smiled. “That’s not right. In my opinion, male gods can also be collected privately.”

After hearing this, Yuanyuan gazed at Shen Yu and said half-jokingly, “Yes they can, however gods can only be matched with goddesses. Like you, for instance.”

Shen Yu looked at Cheng Yuanyuan who was only two years younger than her. She had a standard goose-egg face, snowy white skin, and incredibly bright eyes. Every time she blinked, it was like a gleaming reflection of waves in the sunlight. Shen Yu smiled, “Because you think so highly of me, I must invite you in for a drink. Moreover, looking at the food pasted on the glass door, it looks pretty good. Why don’t we have lunch here and settle this?”

“Alright.” Yuanyuan opened the door of the shop with a smile. 

The lighting in the coffee shop was a little dim, and light music was playing. There weren’t many customers, but they sat throughout the shop in twos and threes. After they found a corner by the window and sat down, they each asked for a latté.

“Yuanyuan, you said that my senior brother is a male god and I am a goddess. Then what about Cheng Bai?” Shen Yu replied to a text message and put down her phone. Taking a sip of coffee, a milky fragrance instantly spread between her lips and teeth.

“With his icy, arrogant disposition, and his unpredictable temper, he would be the eldest young master with a poisonous mouth but a good heart.”

Shen Yu laughed out loud, “Insightful!”

“Then, what about my senior brother? Aside from calling him a ‘god’, how do you feel about this person?”

Yuanyuan bit her lower lip unconsciously. She racked her brains but couldn’t find the words. In her heart, Fu Beichen couldn’t be described in a few phrases.

Shen Yu looked at Yuanyuan’s expression and understood clearly in her mind.

She liked Fu Beichen.

“Senior brother normally has an abundance of manners towards people, but he lacks enthusiasm. I think that he might even still have his first kiss.”

“Ahem!” Yuanyuan choked on a sip of coffee going down her throat. Soon after, she burst into a fit of coughs, and in the end her face turned red!

But only Yuanyuan herself knew what caused most of her blushing.

Shen Yu got up and patted Yuanyuan’s back. After Yuanyuan settled down,  Shen Yu went back to her seat. She lifted her right hand to support her chin and smiled, “Yuanyuan, I want to pursue my senior brother.”

Yuanyuan was stunned for a while before she regained her senses, “You like Fu Beichen?!”

Shen Yu smiled slightly and said, “Is it so bogus? Senior brother looks good, he’s extremely knowledgeable, and I admire him. Since I was small up until now, there aren’t many people that I admire. Do you think I’m compatible with my senior brother? If I chase him, do you think there is a high probability of success?”

Hearing Shen Yu’s words, Yuanyuan suddenly felt a little unwell in her heart. Why wouldn’t they be a good match? Yuanyuan thought, someone like Shen Yu was simply versatile. With Cheng Bai she became a jade maiden with a golden boy, and with Fu Beichen she was…a goddess with a god. She forcibly suppressed every kind of sourness in her heart and finally spit out one sentence: “You…jiayou.”1

“Jiayou?” a mild male voice said slowly.

Yuanyuan raised her head and shifted her eyes to see Fu Beichen.

Yuanyuan looked at him unexpectedly. “How did you…”

“I came to find Shen Yu,” Fu Beichen said as he sat beside Yuanyuan on the sofa. He glanced at Shen Yu who was on the opposite side. Beautiful Shen Yu smiled at him.

Alright, I am a dispensable mushroom in the corner, Yuanyuan thought.

At this time, another person ran over. It was Wang Jiayuan. Panting, he said, “It’s really hard to park here! Senior brother ah, I asked you to help keep watch while I parked, why did you just leave? That’s your car, don’t you feel sorry for it?” The novice Wang Jiayuan had an expression of lingering fears after trauma.

Fu Beichen ignored him and looked at Yuanyuan. After looking for a while, he asked, “You just bruised your forehead?”

“Ah?”

Yuanyuan recalled that when she’d gone out with Shen Yu to buy clothes at a store earlier, she’d mistakenly thought that the glass door was open and slammed into it. It hurt so much that she’d squatted on the ground for quite some time, covering her face.

Seeing that Fu Beichen was still looking at her, Yuanyuan couldn’t help feeling a little flustered. She turned her face away. As for her forehead, she naturally wouldn’t explain it to elevate her “stupidity”. She merely let out a vague “en” and pretended to look at the scenery outside the window calmly.

If Yuanyuan had paid a little more attention, she would have discovered that Fu Beichen’s question was peculiar.

Wang Jiayuan sat beside Shen Yu. He raised his chin at Beauty Shen in greeting, then said to Yuanyuan, “Cheng Yuanyuan, last time we met at Senior Brother’s. My name is Wang Jiayuan.”

Yuanyuan looked over and nodded politely. “Hello.”

Fu Beichen asked them, “Have you eaten yet?”

Shen Yu replied, “We were just waiting for you to come and treat us.”

Fu Beichen’s features stayed the same. “Then shall we order here, or change restaurants?”

Shen Yu grinned. “My lower back is sore from walking. I don’t feel like changing restaurants, let’s just eat here.”

Yuanyuan saw that Fu Beichen was sitting awfully close to her. The corners of his clothes even touched hers. She couldn’t help but feel ashamed again, and she moved away subtly.

“What do you want to eat?”

“What?” Yuanyuan raised her head.

Fu Beichen spread the menu in front of her, his arm touching hers. “Take a look, what do you feel like eating?”

Yuanyuan’s heart skipped a beat. She simply ordered the sizzling beef rice from the top of the menu even though she had no appetite.

“Why were you with our senior brother?” Shen Yu asked Wang Jiayuan.

“Senior brother wants to buy a computer, and I’m a computer expert, so…” Wang Jiayuan spread his hands.

“So you have this skill.” Shen Yu shook her head and glanced over at Fu Beichen. “Senior brother, why are you replacing your computer again? I still remember, didn’t you just get one in the first half of the year?” Fu Beichen didn’t usually indulge in extravagancies.

Fu Beichen said flatly, “Two days ago I wasn’t careful and dropped it.”

Yuanyuan secretly observed beautiful Shen Yu and found that her attitude towards Fu Beichen was no different from that towards Wang Jiayuan. Yuanyuan couldn’t help but lament: It was a profound mystery how a beautiful woman had to chase someone…

It didn’t take long for the waiter to bring Yuanyuan’s sizzling beef rice. It was still smoking. Yuanyuan absently-mindedly reached for the chopsticks when a drop of hot oil splashed on the back of her hand. She let out a hiss. In the next instant, Fu Beichen grabbed her hand and quickly wiped the oil off with a napkin. Yuanyuan felt embarrassed and wanted to break free. He held onto her hand and didn’t allow her to move. Soon after, he took a new napkin, dipped it in a glass of cool water, and placed it over the back of her hand.

“Senior brother, it’s not even a small burn, you don’t have to be so nervous, right?” Wang Jiayuan was stupefied, he had really never seen his senior brother like this.

Fu Beichen finally let go of Yuanyuan’s hand. He didn’t care about Wang Jiayuan’s words and only said, “Professor Fu should have frequently taught you not to overlook the details.”

Wang Jiayuan, Shen Yu, Yuanyuan: “……”

Yuanyuan took off the wet napkin and held it in her hand. In her heart there were the heavy feelings of fire and ice, both happiness and sadness.

Fu Beichen’s cell phone on the table suddenly rang. He picked it up and took a look. It was a text message from Shen Yu: Senior brother, I know now. You were so distressed when you saw the photo I sent you earlier, you even immediately texted me to ask where we were.

Fu Beichen put his phone down and looked at Shen Yu. “Have you been very idle lately?”

Beauty Shen Yu grinned and replied, “I’m busy ah, but nevertheless, you have to balance work and rest, right? So I looked for Yuanyuan to play.” As she said so, she looked at Cheng Yuanyuan. “I think Yuanyuan and I have a lot of common topics, the things we like are nearly the same.”

Yuanyuan called to mind how she had talked to Shen Yu about film and television dramas, literary works, and so on. The things they liked were indeed quite similar. Even the person they liked was the same…

She was in a complicated mood as she nodded in agreement.

Fu Beichen glanced at Cheng Yuanyuan, raised his hand, and pressed his forehead with a little frustration.

This was the most unendurable meal Cheng Yuanyuan had ever had. After they finished eating, Fu Beichen said he wanted to send her back, but she didn’t even look at him. She lowered her head and said “no”, then issued a “goodbye” to everyone present and immediately escaped towards the bus stop.

Wang Jiayuan watched Cheng Yuanyuan in the distance and said suspiciously, “Senior brother, why does she seem to be a little afraid of you?”

Fu Beichen looked at Shen Yu and asked mildly, “What did you two do today? Can you tell me?”

“We just went window-shopping and bought some clothes.”

Fu Beichen sighed and said to the two people in front of him: “She is the person I like. I hope that in the future, she will agree to be the person I love. Shen Yu, you and her have become friends. I won’t say too much, but I hope that you are being sincere with her.”

 

I feel so bad for Cheng Bai. I don’t think he should be with Yuanyuan, but I wish he liked someone who liked him back.

加油: Jiayou, which literally translates to add oil. It’s an expression of encouragement/support/cheering. So Yuanyuan is cheering Shen Yu on in her pursuit (reluctantly though). The Japanese equivalent is ganbatte, or in Korean it’s hwaiting. Return.