Chapter 17: A Dream of Yellow Millet in Shanghai

The Cinderella dress didn’t immediately make her shine. Instead, Ji Zhen Tang felt particularly embarrassed as she pondered how to arrange it. Sending it to her aunt’s place would lead to many questions; keeping it in the dormitory would require hiding it and take up a lot of space. She couldn’t guarantee that her roommates wouldn’t notice.

This dress wasn’t an ordinary store-bought item. Just the brand’s gift box alone felt as heavy as a pile of bricks.

It was a weight she couldn’t bear.

The sudden appearance of Xiao Gao interrupted her emotional turmoil caused by Zhao Siqi.

When Ji Zhen Tang was alone in the dormitory, she felt a bit uneasy, her mood fluctuating, unsure of where to focus her thoughts.

She didn’t rush to unpack the dress.

She simply stopped thinking about anything, turned on the TV, and watched some variety shows for a while.

Soon, her roommates began to return.

“Tang, I heard you had a fight with Zhao Siqi?” Zhou Zhi opened the door first.

Ji Zhen Tang sighed, “News travels fast. You’ve heard about it too?”

Su Yunli followed, asking what happened.

Ji Zhen Tang briefly explained the situation.

Su Yunli murmured, “He actually resorted to violence? This kind of man is too scary.”

Then she asked, “Where are you injured? I have some pain numbing spray.”

Handing over the medicine, she opened her coat, revealing the bruised area. One look was enough to shock her. The impact of the tennis ball was not small, leaving a large bruise near her left shoulder and clavicle. Ji Zhen Tang was getting angrier, “It seems like I didn’t hit the ball hard enough today. I should have smashed his face in, broken his nose, and shattered his teeth!”

Lin Guixue tried to calm her fighting spirit, “Alright, alright, don’t be impulsive.” She came over and patted her head, “I’m thinking, what if he causes trouble again?”

Zhou Zhi said, “Is telling the counselor useful? This is obviously bullying.”

Su Yunli appeared calmer and asked, “What grudge do you have against him?”

Ji Zhen Tang said, “It’s about the voting thing, he definitely thinks I reported him.”

Zhou Zhi asked, “Reported what?”

“Him soliciting prostitutes.”

Everyone fell silent for a few seconds.

Su Yunli said, “I guess telling the teacher won’t help much. Zhao Siqi’s dad is quite influential. My aunt doesn’t dare to offend their family. Not to mention, even in our college, he can easily dominate. After all, those who graduate from here and want to step into the jewelry industry will have to look at the Zhao family’s stance.”

Su Yunli’s aunt was the vice president of a fashion group and had considerable status in the industry.

“The industry his family has built allows him to stand at the top of the food chain. The college leaders, if not flattering him, at least have to tolerate him.”

There was silence in the dormitory again.

Zhou Zhi continued to suggest, “Then why don’t we expose him to the media? On Weibo.”

Ji Zhen Tang interrupted, “It’s better not to. Making a big fuss about this won’t benefit me.”

After some thought, she calmed down a bit more, “In broad daylight, I don’t believe he can harass me.”

Zhou Zhi said, “If he does anything next time, you tell us. Or you can record a video and post it online, solid evidence, let him be publicly criticized.”

Ji Zhen Tang nodded, “I know.”

And so, this matter was temporarily put to rest.

By the next weekend, Ji Zhen Tang struggled to transport the dress sent by Zhong Yu Bai back to Luotang Pavilion on her bike. It drizzled a bit on the way, adding to her exhaustion. Upon unloading the gift box, her first instinct wasn’t to tidy herself up but to wipe off the raindrops on the box. Luckily, the packaging was sturdy and undamaged. She quietly opened the box.

Inside lay a dress named “Spring of Cinderella.”

It was a seasonal haute couture dress, so exquisite that not even a single flower could be borrowed.

The deep, serene azure chiffon skirt was as quiet as the deep sea, exuding a sense of tranquility. Yet, the skirt’s surface was adorned with starry spots like fireflies, retaining a romantic aura. The neckline was designed in a halter style, eliminating the need for her to consider how to match accessories, but such a design greatly tested the proportion of her head and neck to her shoulders and the softness of her bone structure.

It would be difficult to achieve a perfect effect without the right taste.

Fortunately, as she admired herself in the mirror, Ji Zhen Tang modestly felt that her figure was adequate.

What’s more, the design of the dress perfectly concealed the bruise on her shoulder.

It was indeed tailor-made.

While her aunt was still not home, she indulged in admiring herself in the mirror for a while, which often led to strange thoughts.

It had been a long time since she had played the game of cosplay.

“As the clock strikes twelve, I should go back. Farewell, my prince—”

Ji Zhen Tang looked back at the mirror in a trance, slowly moving her steps as if to exit: “Oops, I’ve lost my glass slipper, oh no!”

Continuing, she added her own narration: “At this moment, the prince found Cinderella’s glass slipper behind him, so he shouted, and his soldiers came running.”

She lowered her voice, imitating the prince with a determined expression: “Quickly, go door-to-door and find her for me. I will definitely find the owner of this shoe!”

Before she could finish, Ji Xinhe’s voice came from downstairs: “Huh? What shoe did you lose? Did you leave it outside to dry and someone took it by mistake?”

“…!!”

Ji Zhen Tang swiftly closed the door like lightning before Ji Xinhe went upstairs. She quickly took off the skirt before her aunt arrived, put on a smile, straightened the T-shirt she had just put on, and calmly said, “No, just watching TV.”

Ji Xinhe said, “Oh, you scared me. I thought you went to someone else’s territory to dry it.”

“No, no, everything’s fine.”

With a sigh of relief, Ji Zhen Tang lay down on the bed.

She opened her phone and found a message from “Frontline” a few minutes ago.

Zhou Zhi: Everyone, I heard Zhao Siqi got dealt with.

Seeing the message in the group chat, Ji Zhen Tang sat up urgently.

Lin Guixue: Is it true? Who did it?

Zhou Zhi: I don’t know, my friend from another school told me someone wrecked his place. It’s behind Henglong, that bar street. His shop, apparently, got hit hard, they smashed even the signboard. The shop has been closed these past few days.

Lin Guixue: Huh? Did anyone see who did it?

Zhou Zhi: They hired professional thugs, the mastermind behind the scenes hasn’t shown up.

Lin Guixue: What a modern-day philanthropist Lei Feng.

Zhou Zhi: Did our Tang Tang send someone to do it?

Ji Zhen Tang chimed in: I don’t have that ability.

Zhou Zhi: Then he probably offended some big shot, always bragging and boasting, bumped into something hard this time, it’s hilarious.

Zhou Zhi: I wonder if Zhao Siqi will cry from anger, just thinking about it is funny.

A few minutes later, Zhou Zhi sent another link from a forum: [Did Zhao’s young master hit a snag?]

Ji Zhen Tang clicked to see, and the main post was a photo of Zhao Siqi’s bar sign lying on the ground.

1L: Oh my, this sign is smashed to pieces, what a grudge?

2L: There aren’t many who dare to mess with him like this, I think I probably know who it is.

3L: I seem to have guessed too, do they have a feud?

4L: Who? Waiting.

5L: [Reply to 3L] Is it related to a girl?

6L: Solving riddles, saying names will get you killed.

7L: [Reply to 6L] Another young master from Yicun, don’t mention names here, posts will get deleted.

8L: If you don’t know, go find out for yourself, how many people dare to mess with Zhao Siqi?

During those few minutes of contemplation, Ji Zhen Tang had a vague idea of who it might be.

The next few days passed without incident, and Zhao Siqi didn’t do anything to her.

She also didn’t hear much gossip related to him.

A few days later, after Ji Zhen Tang finished class and had dinner with Su Yunli, they walked back to their dorm together. The sky was gray and moldy, with signs of rain, and just as the gloomy weather persisted all day, when she saw Zhong Heng, the rain finally poured down heavily, washing away the dust on the ground.

She closed her umbrella and stood in the corridor of the women’s dormitory. Beyond the bustling crowd, she saw Zhong Heng standing at the corner. He still liked to wear all black, looking cold and dangerous.

He held a cigarette, the tip flickering in the mist of rain.

Their eyes met for a moment.

Ji Zhen Tang glanced at Su Yunli, wanting to ask her to go ahead, but seeing Su Yunli’s pained expression, uglier than the weather, as if she were the tragic heroine of this love story, Ji Zhen Tang seemed overly calm. She moved her lips but ultimately said nothing.

Zhong Heng didn’t come over. She walked past a few people to him, habitually confronting him: “Are you here to show off?”

He chuckled, squinting at her: “Do you have to guess like this?”

Ji Zhen Tang said, “I’ll take your intentions, but it doesn’t mean I approve of what you’re doing.”

Zhong Heng remained indifferent, asking her, “Where are you injured? Let me see.”

“On my shoulder. Do you want me to take it off for you to see?”

He said, “Can you stop being so sarcastic?”

“No, I hate it when people tell me how to behave.”

Glancing at the faint smoke from his fingertips, she added, “Secondly, I hate men who smoke.”

“…”

Zhong Heng was somewhat disheartened. Leaning against the wall, he lit a cigarette in front of her and smoked it leisurely.

Since he had provided some help, she softened her attitude. “What do you want from me?”

“Reconciliation,” he said with a futile romantic gesture, “I’m waiting for you.”

“Reconciliation? Will you marry me?” she asked directly and sharply.

“No,” he replied succinctly and decisively.

The subtle difference lay only in the change from “will not” to “cannot.”

The essence remained unchanged; Zhong Heng was still emotionally indifferent.

But it didn’t matter.

Ji Zhen Tang smiled.

She looked at Zhong Heng and said slowly, “Thank you for standing up for me. You don’t need to do it again in the future.”

And partly due to his kindness, she ultimately held back the words “birds of a feather.”

Zhong Heng didn’t argue today.

His normally proud and sharp eyes, when looking at her at this moment, showed a subtle desolation, as if harboring many emotions. Was it reluctance? Or perhaps, the loneliness of finally saying goodbye? She didn’t want to judge, so she turned and walked towards the dormitory building.

Shortly after, Zhong Heng withdrew his gaze from her, extinguished the cigarette, and walked into the rain.

Unexpected concern emerged at this moment, with a soft voice: “Senior, it’s raining heavily outside, would you like an umbrella…”

Zhong Heng turned back, glanced at Su Yunli.

He raised his hand, and she thought he was going to take the umbrella handle, so she let go, letting him take it.

However, the next second, the umbrella handle, left unheld, fell straight to the ground in panic.

Zhong Heng grabbed her hand.

Su Yunli’s pupils contracted. “You…”

Before she could react, she was pulled into the rain by him.

The destination was his car not far away.

Ji Zhen Tang only realized in the elevator that someone hadn’t followed. She peeked out, but Zhong Heng’s car was already drenched in rainwater, swiftly driving away.

At the top of the food chain.

This night, she inexplicably thought of the term Su Yunli had mentioned.

Ji Zhen Tang held a pen and paper, listening to the pouring rain outside. Thinking about Su Yunli’s aunt, Zhao Siqi’s father, and Zhong Heng’s actions, she wrote on a piece of draft paper:

Su → Zhao → Zhong Heng → Zhong…

The two omitted words in the ellipsis at the end didn’t need to be written down, yet they already held a daunting power, as if tearing through the paper, giving her an inexplicable support.

The ink from the pen melted onto the final punctuation mark, and she stared at it for a long time.

Then, she crossed it out hastily, with three sloppy strokes, erasing all traces.

Su Yunli returned before class the next day, already past lunchtime. She entered the classroom hurriedly, found the seat her dormitory mate had saved for her. Ji Zhen Tang remembered she had her hair tied up when she left, but now, her hair tie was wrapped around her wrist.

Ji Zhen Tang suddenly felt quite relieved, a sense of relief arising inexplicably from her heart.

The play of false affection had finally come to an end.

—

When the sunny days returned, there was a refreshing chill in the air. Members of the Qingcheng Sailing Association were out on the water practicing, while Ji Zhen Tang rented a small sailboat alone, lying on the shimmering water surface, gazing up at the sky. It was a small training lake; lying there, she didn’t think about where she was, feeling like she was back at sea.

When she was young, she often sat by the flowing waves of Xingzhou’s Luk Bay, on clear days, enjoying a coconut without a care in the world.

Thinking of this, Ji Zhen Tang licked her lips hungrily.

She called Zhong Yu Bai and then closed her eyes, basking in the sunlight on her thin eyelids.

When he answered, Ji Zhen Tang skipped the pleasantries and said, “I returned the clothes you sent me a few days ago. You can’t imagine how disheveled I looked on the way back. I didn’t resemble the owner of this dress at all, looked like a delivery girl. It felt like a stark contrast.”

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t quite understand. After pondering for a moment, he sounded puzzled and asked, “He delivered it to your dorm?”

“Yes, Xiao Gao.”

Soon after, the man chuckled, softly and soothingly, “He’s very straightforward, doesn’t know how to beat around the bush.”

Implicit in his words was a hint: Don’t bother with him.

The description was interesting and restrained. Ji Zhen Tang laughed at that, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, just lying there, looking at the sky.

“Scared?” Zhong Yu Bai seemed concerned about her emotions, asking softly.

Ji Zhen Tang said, “No, as long as my classmates didn’t see it, it’s fine.”

“Which one did you pick?”

“Guess.”

Zhong Yu Bai hardly hesitated, didn’t bother to “guess,” and said without thinking, “Blue.”

Ji Zhen Tang sat up in surprise, “Since you can read minds, hurry up and guess what I want now and find a way to bring it to me.”

Her joke was getting a bit out of hand.

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t mind, his voice calm and unruffled, with a hint of a smile, “On the way, your glass slipper.”

Ji Zhen Tang jumped up in shock, then stood there helplessly for a moment, spinning around, unable to go mad. Then, she sat down in frustration, saying, “Heavens!! Zhong Yu Bai, you’re really scary!”

It was the first time she had called him by his full name, without any respect intended. At that moment, she shed her armor, had no defenses, wasn’t afraid, and didn’t have any desires. She just wanted to call him by his name, this name taken from poetry.

He lazily smiled, his intentions not too clear as he asked casually, “Afraid of me?”

After a moment, she calmed down, without answering.

“Do you know? It’s like I’m dreaming every day.”

As she spoke, Ji Zhen Tang lay back down and began to mutter as if in a dream, “Waking up to face countless trivial matters, endless bickering, surrounded by all sorts of men I dislike, causing me stress, making it hard for me to see the future in my studies. But in my dreams, it’s all the gifts you give me, so beautiful, that’s why I know it doesn’t belong to me, it’s the part I can’t handle.”

Zhong Yu Bai listened quietly, keenly sensing her despondent signal, and asked her, “What’s wrong?”

She replied, “Nothing much, I just wanted to vent a bit.”

After a moment of silence, she continued, “I wish I were a bird, soaring high and seeing the vast world, finding a place where I truly belong.”

“Unfortunately, I’m not. I’m trapped here, unable to go anywhere.”

“I don’t know how to make life better, or how to make my dreams feel more real.”

Zhong Yu Bai gave her a response, “Then don’t wake up.”

Ji Zhen Tang murmured in agreement, “Mm.”

Then she added, “In today’s society, there are too many people who want to complain, but too few who are willing to listen. Regardless of your intentions, you’ve always been patient with me, and no matter how you see me, I appreciate your listening. I feel much better now.”

He might have had something to say, but there was a stern silence from the other end, indicating that he was at work.

Ji Zhen Tang was startled, then suddenly felt a bit ashamed. It seemed like it wasn’t the first time she had interrupted him while he was working. But the fact remained that even though they weren’t on the same wavelength, if someone was willing, they would make time to try to understand your pain.

She wanted to apologize, but Zhong Yu Bai never mentioned being disturbed, just restrained his voice and smiled gently, “There’s nothing wrong with beautiful dreams. Since you’re in them, enjoy them.”

Ji Zhen Tang smiled faintly, “Okay.”

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