It's become 2:00 pm in the afternoon, the time of lunch break everyone is waiting for. I have already hidden things from Yuan, so now I won't hide anything from him that makes him worried. So before leaving the set with Yang Lulu to meet her fiancé, I just dropped a message to Yuan on WeChat. Then I put my phone back in my bag and said to Yang Lulu, "Let's go."
Her fiancé will meet us in some nearby restaurant, so she just booked a cab for both of us. The cab took us there, and within 25 minutes we reached that restaurant.
"I am a bit nervous, Zhao Shiza," Yang Lulu said.
I gently placed one hand on her back and said, "Relax, you don't need to worry. I am here with you, and when Zhao Shiza is near, no tension or worry is near."
She smiled faintly, and then we both went inside the restaurant. There, at a table, a man of around 37 to 40 years of age was sitting and watching something on his phone. This must not be her fiancé, I thought to myself. But when Yang Lulu went to that same table where that man was sitting, it shocked me. I mean, how could this man, who looks like her uncle's age, be her fiancé? How could Yang Lulu's parents let her marry this person?
But we reached that table where he was sitting. We both pulled out the chairs and sat on them. Then the man finally spoke.
"How are you doing nowadays?" he asked Yang Lulu.
She hesitated first, then said, "Pretty good. You tell me, how are you doing these days?"
The man smiled and said, "Not good."
"Why? I mean, what happened?" she asked.
"Actually, Yang Lulu, I have just invested in some new business with my friend. It's a cosmetic business. You know pretty well that cosmetics are nowadays very much in demand. In fact, you are also doing a bit of makeup artist job, so you should know this market well. My friend and I thought together to start this new venture. It has lots of possibilities for profit and very little space for loss."
"Whatever you'll do, I'll support you," Yang Lulu said.
The man smiled at her and said, "I know, Yang Lulu, that you'll support me. That's why I have called you today regarding your support."
We both went silent for a while. Then the man spoke again.
"Yang Lulu, actually I want money for that investment, and I need your help. Whatever I am doing now will build our future, and it's all for you only. In the future, I don't want my wife to work. I want her just to sit at home and live a comfortable life. You have already worked so hard, Yang Lulu. Now I want you to rest. But it's only possible when I start that business, and for that, I need money."
"How am I supposed to help you in this?" Yang Lulu asked him.
He smiled again and said, "A good wife always supports her husband in every situation. After all, whatever I am doing is just for you, for our future only."
That was enough for me. I couldn't control myself anymore and finally spoke up to that man.
"Come to the point, Mr. Whoever you are."
The man looked at my face for a while and said, "Who is she?"
"She is my friend," Yang Lulu replied.
"Look, young lady, you seem quite impulsive. I know, at this age everyone is like that only. But just because Yang Lulu brought you here, I am not saying anything. Don't you have manners, Miss? Don't you know when husband and wife are talking together, you can't interfere between them?"
"Who is husband and wife here?" I asked him. "You and her, Mr.? You didn't even marry her. She is just your fiancée, not your wife. So first, you need to come out of your dreamy land."
The man smiled again, and this time he made me feel like I would punch him and break all his teeth.
"Young lady, quite angry, isn't it? What happened? Did you fight with your boyfriend today and are taking out all your frustration on me, is that so?" he said.
I was about to answer him, but under the table Yang Lulu put her hand on my knee and slightly shook her head. When I saw her face, I understood she wanted me to stay quiet, so I did what she wanted.
"Sorry, she is quite upset today. Just ignore this. You tell me how can I help you in this new business of yours," Yang Lulu said.
He smiled again and said, "This is the quality I liked in you and chose you to be my wife. Actually, I need money. It's about 500,000 yuan. I know it's quite high, but a good wife should always support her husband."
"But it's a huge amount. How can I do all this alone? And aren't I already giving you the money you asked for before? I am already doing extra work. Now with this, I won't be able to help you. Please try to understand," Yang Lulu said sincerely.
The man smiled again, looked at her, and said, "Think about it twice, Yang Lulu. You know pretty well what else I can do."
Then he started playing with the ring on his finger, putting it out and in, out and in, making Yang Lulu feel like she was doing something wrong. That crossed all limits in my eyes. I couldn't sit there like a puppet anymore.
I slammed my hand on the table, stood up, and said, "Look, Mr. Whoever you are, you don't have the right to manipulate her. And if you do so, I'll make sure your coming seven days will be spent in prison only."
That man definitely had some problem. He held Yang Lulu's hand badly and harshly and said, "Make this girl understand the things between us."
Yang Lulu was about to say something, but I looked into her eyes and said, "Do you really want to do this, Yang Lulu? Can't you see how shameless and ridiculous this person is?"
"And you, Mr… Mr. Li Wei," he said his name.
"Whoever you are, I don't care. Just stop manipulating her. And if you really have guts, then call off the wedding. Stop giving us your useless warnings. You are going to start a new venture, and you don't even know this rule—that taking money like this from a girl's family by saying it's for our future and betterment is wrong. Don't you ever imagine what will happen if I call the police right now and tell them everything? Will you be able to live peacefully today?" I asked.
His rage kept rising. He said to her, "Make your friend understand the things between us, otherwise—"
"Otherwise what?" I asked. "You'll call off the wedding, right? Then call it off. We don't want a man like you for her."
Just then, the waiter brought soup to the table. I immediately threw it on his face and said, "Have a nice day, Mr. Li Wei."
I took Yang Lulu's hand, removed the ring from her hand, placed it on the table in front of him, and said, "Give back her ring."
He angrily took it off his finger, handed it to me, and said, "You are doing it wrong. You should pay for it."
"Whatever I need to pay for, at least it will be less than the 500,000 yuan you asked her to invest in your useless business."
I threw tissue papers on his face and said, "You have such dirty thinking that you can't clean it. So at least clean your face. And this meal is on me."
I held Yang Lulu's hand and took her out of the restaurant. Before leaving, he shouted, while wiping soup from his face, "You should pay for it, young lady. You shouldn't escape what you have done today."
I turned around and said, "Stop giving me useless warnings to make me afraid, because it's never going to happen. If you really have guts, focus on your business and find investors. And one more thing—she is not your investor."
I opened the restaurant door and went out.
I immediately took my phone out of my bag, booked a cab for us—it was arriving within five minutes—and then paid the restaurant bill on WeChat. The total was 784 yuan.
"Zhao Shiza, I'll pay you back for the meal. Give me your scanner," Yang Lulu said.
I brought my phone closer and said, "This meal is on me. I already said it earlier, so why are you doing this?"
Tears formed in her eyes, but before she could say anything, the cab arrived.
"Sit inside first," I said.
As the cab started moving, I said, "I am really sorry, Yang Lulu, for breaking your engagement. But what should I do? The amount he is asking is impossible. If you really want to arrange such a huge amount, shouldn't you use it for your own safety and future instead of giving it for a marriage like this? Marriages like this don't last long."
"Zhao Shiza, you are younger than me age-wise, but your thinking, thoughts, and decisions make you much bigger in my eyes," she said while crying.
"Stop. Don't waste your tears for such a ridiculous person. Look, a garland of flowers is waiting for you somewhere. Don't ever deny it."
She smiled slightly. "You are truly a good friend I must have earned by doing good deeds in my past life."
I smiled, wiped her tears, and said, "Now forget everything and think about the beautiful future waiting for you. And one more thing, Yang Lulu…" I hesitated.
"What happened? Say it," she said.
"How will you tell all this to your parents? Will they be able to handle it?" I asked.
"If you had the guts to stand for me today, can't I have the guts to tell the truth to my parents? I will. I'll make them understand how wrong everything was. Just because I didn't show it doesn't mean it wasn't there. Today I finally got the strength, and it's all because of you, Zhao Shiza. You were saying it was wrong from day one. I just wasn't ready to accept it. Today I learned something from you."
"Learned what from me?" I asked.
"That no matter how hard life and people are on you, you must respect yourself first. If you don't respect yourself, no one else will."
"Ooo wow, nice one. You really understand unsaid words, Yang Lulu. Good job," I said, showing thumbs up with both hands.
She smiled and said, "If I ever had a younger sister, she would be like you, Zhao Shiza."
I smiled. "Thank you."
But deep inside, I remembered Xin Xin, who is five years older than me. So much time has passed—neither Baba nor Xin Xin has called me for the past two months.
Suddenly, the cab braked and stopped right in front of our set, and my thoughts broke again, like always…