Cloudside Café

Chapter 17.1

The Seventeenth Cup of Coffee Part 1

Love meant being surrounded by flowers and being under the moonlight where everything was beautiful.

But marriage was not like that. In the face of reality, those feelings of love were the fastest to disappear.

“After giving birth to my brother, my mother was depressed for a long time. It wasn’t that long before they got divorced. After they went through with it, my father wanted to leave me. He said that he was planning on staying in school to teach students, and would cut down on the time he spent being away in the future. I remember my mother was very calm at that moment, and said: ‘I had so many fights with you. I just wanted you to be there for me and the children more. Why did you wait for the divorce? You could have done that so easily.’”

Jiang Ying did not know what to say to comfort him. She could only hold his hand and rub the back of his hand with her fingers.

“I don’t blame my father. He has his dreams and ambitions. He had been to many places, and every time he came back he brought different souvenirs to tell me and my brother what he saw on his journey. But he was really not ready to be a father. Since I was young, he has never been to a parent-teacher meeting. He didn’t even know which class I was in.”

Yun Xian put a pan-fried pork dumpling on Jiang Ying’s plate and said to her, “You would probably get along with my father. You both like to run around the world.”

Jiang Ying chewed on the crispy skin and said, “It’s boring to stay within my own world all the time, especially when there are so many interesting places to travel to in the real world.”

Yun Xian nodded his head to agree. “That’s true.”

“What about your mother? How is she now?”

“She’s fine. She still teaches literature at school.”

“Is she a very strict teacher? My high school Chinese teacher was really tough. I still remember how she taught us.”

Yun Xian raised an eyebrow. “As far as I know, her students are afraid of her.”

Jiang Ying made an “oh” sound and repeated, “It’s over for me.”

Yun Xian didn’t know what to say for a moment. He raised his hand and poked her forehead. “Now you’re worried about your relationship with her as mother-in-law and daughter-in-law?”

Jiang Ying covered her forehead and denied, “No way!”

“You really don’t have to worry about it. If she knew I was in love, she would probably worship you1.”

Jiang Ying glared at him as if he was joking.

But after thinking about it, she and Yun Xian had just started their relationship. It would be a long time before they met their parents. It’s really unnecessary to worry about it now.

After that brief second of worry, Jiang Ying took a bite of the red bean porridge. The sweet taste spread through her tongue.

It is more important to enjoy the moment.

——

When Li Zhicheng said that she could finally get off work, Jiang Ying felt that she had returned to being 17 years old for a second. She was in her first class of the morning: math. It was long and boring. She would fiddle with her watch to count how long it would be before the class was over.

The moment the bell rang, the whole world lit up.

“Go home, clean up, and have a good sleep. Everyone has worked hard,” Li Zhicheng yawned and sluggishly comforted his employees. “When we arrive in Shanghai, I’ll treat everyone to dinner.”

Two chapters of the main story had to be updated in order to align with the mid-summer promotion and the anime expo in June. The schedule was tight and there were many important tasks to accomplish. In addition to that, there are many things that need to be changed and adjusted according to the feedback from players. By the time everything was done by the deadline, the whole office had been squeezed dry.

Zhou Qingqing couldn’t sit straight and fell asleep at her desk. Jiang Ying covered her with a blanket and packed up her things to get off work.

It’s only ten o’clock in the morning, but after staying up the whole night, she was sleepy. She couldn’t do anything to help her fatigue, so she stayed awake.

When she reached Cloudside, Su Cheng was squatting at the door smoking.

“What are you doing here?” Jiang Ying asked him.

“Sister, why are you here?” When Su Cheng saw her, he immediately got up and took out the cigarette in his mouth. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

Jiang Ying looked at the café and answered , “I just got off work. I wanted to come by the café for something to eat.”

Su Cheng: “Oh, so it’s like that.”

Jiang Ying looked at the way he stood at the door in shock and felt amused. “What’s the matter? I’m not allowed in yet?”

“Hey, no, that, sister…” Su Cheng did not know how to explain it to her. He could only rub his stubbles and worry about it helplessly.

Jiang Ying saw his strange expression and sensed something was wrong. She put away her smile and asked him, “Where is your boss?”

“Inside, fighting…”

As Su Cheng was speaking, an angry outburst came from the room inside.

“Have you ever thought of me as a person? Have you ever treated me as an actual person? Do you know how we felt since we were little when you told me and Yun Qian that it would be better if we were never born?”

“In the past 20 years, did you think I was happy when you were sad and miserable?”

“You’re right. Giving birth to me was the worst decision you have ever made. I really believe that!”

“More than you, more than you and your ex husband, I hope I don’t exist!”