She looked at the scratches on his arm.
They almost looked like flesh had been torn off.
His face showed no sign of discomfort. His clear, elegant features looked at her, as if concerned that she wouldn't be used to the light. In the dim light, Pei Dai had only turned on a single, dim hallway light.
Warm light filled the entire room.
He asked her.
"Qinqin, are you feeling any discomfort? Does it hurt?"
The gentleness of his question brought a touch of warmth back to Mei Yeqin's face. She looked at Pei Dai.
The madness of the day had dissipated.
"Pei Dai, do you love me?"
The woman's brow was soft, a faint tinge of lipstick still lingering on her lips and teeth. Her cheeks were pale, and on her smooth shoulders, a faint, almost invisible mark left by Pei Dai was visible.
Pei Dai paused, his fingers gripping the towel. His expression was so natural. He sat on the edge of the bed in his bathrobe, looking at Mei Yeqin, a breathtaking smile curling his lips.
"Yes."
No denial, no unnecessary explanation, just a faint acknowledgment, without stopping his movements.
Mei Yeqin's expression remained unusually unchanged, as she simply murmured to herself.
"What is love?"
She didn't understand.
Can love really make someone so blind? Mei Yeqin turned to look at Pei Dai, seemingly realizing something. She spoke in a perfectly natural tone and with a calm voice.
"But I don't love you."
Pei Dai's fingertips paused again.
"I know."
He knew. So he knew. He knew she didn't love him, nor anyone else.
Pei Dai, belatedly realizing Mei Yeqin's emergency response, felt a deep sense of emptiness inside him. Mei Yeqin was a doctor, after all.
Not just a surgeon, but also a psychological counselor, with her dual degrees.
Pei Dai lowered his head, his expression somewhat gloomy.
"Are you thirsty? Would you like some water?"
Mei Yeqin nodded.
Pei Dai turned and went into the living room. Luckily, he had heated up a pot of water. He took a sip and it wasn't too cold, just warm. Mei Yeqin preferred boiled water, but Pei Dai rarely allowed it. Whenever they went out to play, even when she was unhappy, he only gave her warm water.
This time was no different.
Pei Dai entered with a cup of water and, observing Mei Yeqin sipping, rarely showed any signs of temper, placing the cup beside him.
"Let's go see a movies."
Mei Yeqin loved movies, and Pei Dai knew it. When he looked out at the darkening sky, it was almost dawn, and he thought Mei Yeqin would chase him away.
Pei Dai was naturally delighted by Mei Yeqin's suggestion.
They didn't go to the living room because there was a projector in the bedroom. After selecting a movie, Mei Yeqin leaned on Pei Dai's shoulder, their eyes fixed on the screen.
A warmth gradually permeated the air.
Pei Dai held Mei Yeqin's fingers.
"Pei Dai, I don't like this male lead."
Unlike herself as usual, Mei Yeqin seemed a bit of a chatterbox when watching a movie, a stark contrast to herself as usual.
That's why Mei Yeqin never went to the cinema; she usually watched movies alone.
Only in Pei Dai's presence did she seem to let go, freely speaking whatever she wanted.
"I think he's doing something wrong. This should be the screenwriter's responsibility."
Mei Yeqin complained about the plot of the movie, stubbornly speaking with a false air of rationality.
Pei Dai reached out and touched the top of her head.
"Qinqin, this is based on a true story."
It was mentioned in the opening credits.
Listening to Pei Dai's words, Mei Yeqin turned to look at him.
It turned out it wasn't the screenwriter's fault, it was the truth.
She had seen and heard such facts many times, hadn't she?
"Pei Dai, so all men are the same? They don't like after they get. What's that?"
The movie tells the story of a girl and a boy growing up together. From having nothing in their youth to having everything, even bread, they realize there's a problem with their worldviews and values. As the conflict gradually intensifies, they break up.
The movie isn't very long, and the two end up by breaking up.
"Qinqin, there are too many things in this world that are hard to understand, so don't force yourself to understand."
Pei Dai's voice always sounded so gentle in Mei Yeqin's ears, like a gentle breeze carrying a hint of chill.
He spoke of an ordinary matter in the most ordinary terms.
So many things are incomprehensible.
Mei Yeqin's expression was a little cold.
"Pei Dai, what if I encountered something like this myself, or someone around me faced the same thing? What if I couldn't understand it?"
Yes, she was probably acting this way because she couldn't understand.
Mei Yeqin didn't know what was tangling inside her. Perhaps it was Pei Dai's warmth that made her reluctant to let go.
So, as a psychologist, she wanted to try to untie the knot for herself.
So how could she understand?
Pei Dai pursed his lips and pinched her fingers. The coldness of her fingertips made him feel a little uncomfortable. He looked at Mei Yeqin.
"Qinqin, sometimes, forgiveness is the only way to find relief."
"When we can't understand, we must try to forgive. That's the only way to find relief."
His voice was so slow, so clear, it flowed through Mei Yeqin's heart.
She stared at Pei Dai in a daze, muttering to herself.
"Forgive?"
She didn't know how to forgive, how could she forgive, her sister no longer being around.
"Pei Dai, my sister's relationship with him was very good before. It couldn't have been better, you don't know."
In a low, pained voice, Mei Yeqin finally found a way to let out some of the frustration within.
"Qinqin, if can make mistakes, that proves not good enough. Is the relationship good enough? If it was, then wouldn't make mistakes."
He didn't ask, nor did he mention it deliberately. He simply spoke from the perspective of an outsider.
Mei Yeqin looked up at Pei Dai.
"Is it really not good enough?"
She found it difficult to understand.
"My sister told me there's a boy who likes her."
Perhaps because their ages were close, Mei Yeyun always told her everything.
So, like watching a movie, she witnessed Mei Yeyun's youth, her marriage, the birth of Jiang Sui, and the breakdown of her marriage—the entire process.
In the end, she was the only one hurt. Obsession was useless.
What's the use of feelings, and the past is even more useless.