Chapter 2 Part 1

1.

Today, a policeman called and asked me whether I was the owner of Villa D in Wu Tong Shu community.

I said yes. The voice on the other end of the phone was silent for two seconds before reporting softly, “It’s like this Mr. Xie, due to circuit reasons, your house caught fire last night.”

I gave him an “mn”, feeling some inexplicable pain in my heart.

He continued, “We found a corpse in your house. The initial determination of his cause of death was illness, because there were a lot of pills scattered around the body and the body had already begun to decay… My colleague looked at the identification of this gentleman. His surname is Lin, is he your friend?”

I couldn’t speak.

He kept going, “We’re contacting you right now because we want to ask you to come claim the body. We tried to contact his family, but there has been no news…”

“Sir?”

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“Gal usw zkpvldkdt?”

Tl’p elye?

Nkd Swk, ekle?

2.

R oldv vs vbl bsprkvyz vs nzykx bkp cseu vseyu.

R pvkzz… es dsv alyzzu clzklhl vbyv bl okzz ekl.

Ebld vbl esnvsa lmyxkdle vbl cseu, bl pweeldzu rywple caklqzu. Tl zssjle yv xl, vbld pyke psqvzu, “Mbkp tldvzlxyd kp yzalyeu asvvkdt yde dllep vs cl nalxyvle yp pssd yp rsppkczl.”

Tl pllxp vs cl nsxqsavkdt xl.

Lin Rui.

Lin Rui.

I repeated his name in my mind.

3.

He had a pale complexion. I’m not really brave enough to look at him, but if I don’t look at him, I will never get to see him again.

He is Lin Rui, my Ruirui.

He’s dead.

4.

The staff of the funeral home asked me to select an urn for his long-term sleep. There were ceramic, sandalwood, and jade ones.

I chose a pretty one. A rosewood box that carried a flowery fragrance. If it’s possible, I don’t want him to live in the box. I want him to come home with me.

When he came out, he was a handful of dust. He was wrapped in a brocade cloth. He was grayish-white with some traces of black. I heard he was ill. I don’t know where he went to examine it. They said that when people take too much medication, their bones would turn black.

Holding the rosewood urn, I walked out of the funeral home. The sun was bright, so dazzling that it was annoying.

I held him.

He’s so light.

5.

In the villa, only the corner where the TV cabinet is located got burnt. I asked someone to renovate it. I remembered he said he would put a Doraemon figure on the TV cabinet. It’s so that he wouldn’t have to look everywhere for the remote next time. If he had Doraemon’s 4D pocket, he could have many remote controls.

Such stupid logic.

As childish as a child.

I went downstairs to the supermarket nearby and bought a Doraemon plush. I couldn’t find a figure. The store clerk said it was sold out two days ago.

The TV cabinet hasn’t been repaired yet. I put the plush beside him.

Make do with this for now. Your husband will buy it for you later.

I smiled as I told him. I wanted to see him glare at me unhappily. I waited for a long time.

I won’t get to see it anymore.

6.

Xiao Xia came today with a handful of iris flowers. I asked him to sit down first and went to pour a glass of water for him in the kitchen. I saw a layer of dust on the juicer Lin Rui used every day. I couldn’t help but wash it. This man, really… how can he just leave the thing he uses every day like this.

Xiao Xia took the water. He looked at me sorrowfully and said, “President Xie, I didn’t know that Rui-ge lied to me… He told me that he had told you, and I thought he would treat it properly. If I knew, I would…” As he talked, the rim of his eyes turned red. He sniffed his nose, “He even made me a big table of food and told me he would be fine soon. I was thinking about treating him back next time, how could he…”

I didn’t know what to say. I turned back to look at Lin Rui.

How about I raise another pot of pretty flowers?

Ruirui, what do you want to raise?

Didn’t you always say you wanted to?

7.

After seeing off the person who came to see Ruirui, I went to the kitchen to cook.

When I opened the refrigerator, I found that the fruits inside were all droopy. They were probably kept for about a week. Other than the fruits, there were two boxes of curry and a few eggs.

I took out the fruits and threw them away. I took three eggs and was getting ready to make egg-fried rice. I asked him in the living room whether he wanted any.

Probably still angry, he ignored me.

I’m already eating egg-fried rice. Stop being angry, please?

8.

In the evening, I cleaned up the room and found a lot of empty medicine bottles in the drawer. On them were his bored doodles. Such as “a Xiao Xie on his belly”. Next to it was a picture of a little bear puckering his butt up and laying down on his belly. There was also a “the 87th day of Xiao Lin waiting for Xiao Xie”, with a kitty squatting in a corner pitifully. When I saw this, I accidentally dropped one bottle on the ground. I picked it up and looked at it. There was only a line of crooked words – he hates me.

He was probably too bored, and there were only medicine bottles to accompany him.

I didn’t feel too good. I turned around and stroked the wooden box. I told him, Ruirui, I was just acting sulky towards you.

I didn’t ask you to leave me.

9.

I went to the company today. Xiao Chen invited me for a meal. He said that the hotel I liked eating at had a new menu item.

I said there was someone waiting for me at home.

Xiao-Chen said with a smile, “President Lin, right? President Xie, you made up with him?”

Probably so.

I nodded.

Xiao Chen added, “Then when will President Lin come back to work? I’m almost tired to death without him. Next time you two argue, can you not make things so difficult for a small character like me~”

I smiled at him, “It’s been hard for you. He’s not coming back. If it’s too busy, hire a few more people.”

Xiao Chen groaned, then complained, “It’s not so easy to train newcomers. You keep showing off your love, stop torturing single dogs like us okay? By the way, President Xie, does President Lin know that I was just pretending to be your mistress? Is that why he won’t come back?”

I shook my head and said that Ruirui doesn’t know.

I want him to know.

10.

Today, I took my vacation time at home. The figure I asked someone to get also arrived. The TV cabinet was repaired to how it was originally. I placed the figure on it. Thinking that there would always be a certain person looking for the remote barefooted every summer, I couldn’t help but want to laugh.

That certain person is always so forgetful every year. Not only does he not repent, on the contrary, he’s feudal and superstitious. As if reposting two koi fish on Weibo will make it possible for him to pick up money from the ground tomorrow. Especially having all types of false reasonings. If he can’t find the remote control, he’ll repost Doraemon.

“Ruirui, call my name just once.”

“I miss you.”

11.

Had a dream.

I dreamed that he was sitting on the balcony talking to himself.

“When will Xie Min come back?”

“Probably not coming back? He seems to hate you.”

“Nonsense. He said he loves me the most.”

“But he also said he hates you the most…”

I want to say that was me lying to you, because I was angry. Just coax me, if you coax me, I would come back.

12.

The wooden boxes ignores people.

13.

There is a tree in the yard. There is a sign on the tree that says ‘Ruirui’s tree’.

I watered Ruirui’s tree, then went back to the house and slept with the wooden box in my arms.

14.

I brought a lot of fresh fruit back home after work. In the past, he always came to take over the things in my hand when I’m changing my shoes. He always left work earlier than I did because he loved the crab roe tofu and rice cake boxes at the school gate. The owner of that shop always closes the stall at 5:30.

Our company leaves work at six. He always leaves early taking advantage of the fact that he is the boss.

I like the way he leaves early with an immensely proud look every time, saying he wants to go home and wait for the young master to come back and spoil him.

So cute.

I like it when he comes to receive me at the door every day, that he calls out to me.

I took the fruits to the living room and saw him all alone on the coffee table. Suddenly, the corners of my eyes tinged.

How could someone, once angry, leave me with zero chances?

15.

I remembered that not only was I angry with him, but also shouted at him, saying that he was selfish, unreasonable, and thoughtless.

In the afternoon, when I went to get his death certificate, I visited his family.

I never thought that there would be parents in the world that would ask where the inheritance was when they found out about the news of their child’s death.

Why did I have to shout at him?

Am I dumb? Why did I have to bully him?

16.

I don’t feel good. I held him and talked to him for a while.

I asked him, have you never thought about what I would do if you left?

Later, I fell asleep. I seemed to have heard him say, then did you think about what I was supposed to do when you left?

17.

There are many building blocks at home. I was a little bored. I held him as I played with the blocks. I built a kitty. I named it Ruirui.

I said, Ruirui, do you love me?

I suddenly remembered how heartbroken he was when I questioned that he didn’t love me.

Does he love me?