Cheng Yan walked up to Jiang Muping and asked, “Why…are you here?”
“Li Sizhi asked me to come and pick her up.”
Cheng Yan turned his head and looked out the window. The rain was getting heavier.
From this angle, Jiang Muping could see water droplets hanging on his chin, which fell and dripped down as Cheng Yan turned his head.
Cheng Yan’s face was still wet when Jiang Muping took out a beige handkerchief from his trouser pocket and handed it to Cheng Yan.
The color of Jiang Muping’s handkerchief was the same as his shirt. At the same time, Cheng Yan discovered that Jiang Muping had changed his tie, which was casual in style and matched his shirt today.
The moment Cheng Yan was distracted, he was thinking, How many different styles of ties does Jiang Muping have?
Cheng Yan stood still, not knowing whether to accept it or not.
Perhaps to Jiang Muping, this was just an ordinary act of kindness, even one done out of habit, but Cheng Yan solely felt a sense of ambiguity.
Cheng Yan hesitated for a moment, thinking that if he didn’t take it, it would seem insincere, so he stretched out his hand, tried to look natural, and took it.
“Thank you.” Cheng Yan gently patted his wet face with a handkerchief.
He held the handkerchief in his hand, considering whether to wash it and return it to Jiang Muping, or buy him a new one.
However, both approaches seemed awkward, so Cheng Yan gradually became a little irritated.
There are many large-format photos hanging on the walls of the studio, which are some tattoo patterns with similar styles. It is obvious that they are made by the same person.
“Did you make all these designs?” Jiang Muping asked Cheng Yan while looking at the photos on the wall.
“That’s right.”
Cheng Yan’s work has a distinctly personalized style, with a rich tapestry of geometry and lines. Jiang Muping also discovered that Cheng Yan favors the use of water as a theme. Water, in its various forms, can be seen in almost every piece, though it’s relatively subtle and doesn’t occupy much of the canvas.
The sound of the tattoo machine was incessant, and Jiang Muping heard Cheng Yan’s daily life in this “buzzing” sound.
“Where is Li Sizhi?” Jiang Muping asked Cheng Yan.
Cheng Yan still held the handkerchief in his hand and said, “In my office.”
As they were talking, Li Sizhi and her young friend walked out of the workshop.
“Muping.” Li Sizhi shouted.
Li Sizhi noticed the handkerchief in Cheng Yan’s hand, smiled secretly, and said nothing.
The sound of rain outside the window became more and more intense, and Li Sizhi urged Jiang Muping to go home quickly.
Cheng Yan seemed to have something to say. He stopped Li Sizhi who was about to leave and said, “Laoshi—”
“What’s wrong?”
Cheng Yan hesitated for a moment. Li Sizhi had an art exhibition in downtown Beijing recently, and Cheng Yan wanted to go, but he didn’t have an invitation. He wanted to ask Li Sizhi if he could get him a invitation, but he felt embarrassed. Finally, he shook his head and said, “Nothing.”
“If you have something to say, just tell me.”
“It’s okay, it’s not a big deal.”
Li Sizhi ran into the car first holding the umbrella Cheng Yan gave her.
Jiang Muping said goodbye to Cheng Yan at the door. The two stood under the eaves of the door. Jiang Muping stretched out his hand to Cheng Yan and took the initiative to ask him to return his handkerchief.
Cheng Yan held the handkerchief tightly and refused to give it to him, “It’s dirty. I’ll buy you a new one.”
“No, I like to use my old ones.”
Cheng Yan didn’t want to do something stupid like washing the handkerchief and then returning it. Was he really going to ask Jiang Muping out just for a handkerchief?
“I’ll buy you a new one.” Cheng Yan said earnestly.
“Cheng Yan.” Jiang Muping called his name.
Cheng Yan looked at Jiang Muping with an embarrassed expression.
Jiang Muping glanced at the handkerchief he was holding tightly in his hand and said as if to remind him, “Don’t you know that you can’t give handkerchiefs to others casually?”
The handkerchief suddenly became hot, and Cheng Yan let go of it quickly. The handkerchief almost fell to the ground, but fortunately he caught it quickly.
Cheng Yan immediately stuffed the handkerchief back at Jiang Muping, and, angrily, he muttered, “You’re already at this age, yet you’re still so old fashioned.”
Jiang Muping folded his handkerchief slowly and calmly, said with a half-smile, “At 35, it’s normal to have conservative thoughts.”
His name was embroidered on the handkerchief, and leaving it with Cheng Yan was indeed inappropriate and ambiguous.
Cheng Yan might not have noticed the name on the handkerchief. If he had, the handkerchief would have been even hotter in his hand.
“I’m leaving.” Jiang Muping put the folded handkerchief into his pocket.
“Don’t give your handkerchief to others casually in the future.” Cheng Yan said playfully, teasing Jiang Muping, “If you do so, they might ask you for your hand in marriage.”
Jiang Muping smiled and said nonchalantly, “Then you should be the first candidate.”
After saying that, Jiang Muping turned and walked into the rain, leaving Cheng Yan standing there in a daze.
Cheng Yan really wanted to remind Jiang Muping not to flirt casually, but Jiang Muping had already walked away.
Lately, the Jiang family’s dinnertime conversation had always revolved around Jiang Muping’s life affairs, and today was no exception. Especially after Li Sizhi had opened the conversation and introduced Jiang Muping to a potential partner, Jiang Muping’s parents’ attitude immediately changed, their usual indifferent attitude changing.
Jiang’s mother picked up some food for Jiang Muping and asked, “How’s that child Sizhi introduced you to?”
“There’s nothing.” Jiang Muping said.
“Didn’t you continue to see each other?”
Jiang Muping drank a mouthful of soup and shook his head.
Mother Jiang looked at Li Sizhi with a worried look on her face, “Didn’t you say he was a good person?”
“He’s a nice person, auntie, but your son has high standards and doesn’t like him.”
Jiang’s mother turned to look at Jiang Muping, her tone tinged with complaint, “You’re always like this. Before you even have a few words with someone, you say you can’t talk and don’t want to talk.”
Jiang Muping argued, “Mom, when did I–”
“How can you know what kind of person he is just by meeting him once?”
Jiang Muping took off his glasses and pinched his eyebrows, “Can you please stop listening to Li Sizhi’s nonsense? When did I ever say that I look down on him?”
Mother Jiang glanced at Li Sizhi, who smiled while holding the bowl of rice, “I’m exaggerating.”
“That’s called slander.” Jiang Muping said, putting on his glasses.
“But you really don’t like him.” Li Sizhi said deliberately, “Aunt, this is a matter of chemistry. If they like each other, there will be a chance. If they don’t like each other, there will be no way to get together.”
“What does the child look like?”
Li Sizhi was excited, “He’s so handsome.” She took out her phone and said, “I’ll show you his photo. He’s no worse than your son.”
Li Sizhi took out Cheng Yan’s photo and showed it to Jiang’s mother. Jiang’s mother adjusted her glasses, held up the phone and looked at it carefully, then handed it to Jiang’s father and said, “He’s handsome, take a look.”
The photo was secretly taken by Li Sizhi while he was working at Chengyan. Jiang’s father looked at the photo and asked, “How old is this child? He must be a few years younger than Mu Ping, right?”
Li Sizhi smiled and said, “Uncle, guess what.”
“Early twenties?” Jiang’s father frowned. “No, too young. He’s a generation younger than Mu Ping.”
Jiang Muping’s age was inadvertently implied, and he laughed and shook his head helplessly.
“Do I look that old?”
“It’s not that you look old,” Jiang’s father said seriously, “it’s that this child is really too young.”
“Dad, that kid is the same age as me.”
The three words “that kid” made Li Sizhi laugh.
Father Jiang looked at the photo in disbelief: “He looks so young, I thought he was a college student…”
Father Jiang returned the phone to Li Sizhi, “I heard from your aunt that this kid is a tattoo artist?”
“yes.”
“How about his life at home?”
“He has no parents, but has a younger brother who was adopted more than ten years ago.”
Jiang’s father and mother remained silent at the same time. The family situation is indeed quite complicated.
Jiang Muping glanced at Li Sizhi and subconsciously asked, “How do you know about this so clearly?”
Li Sizhi seemed to be able to sense the emotions in Jiang Muping’s words. His tone and his eyes seemed to be asking, Why do you know these things but I don’t?
Li Sizhi deliberately asked, “He didn’t tell you these things?”
Jiang Muping saw through her word game and said calmly, “He and I aren’t that close yet.”
“Yes, I know him well enough to know him that well.”
“Isn’t he your student from a long time ago? Didn’t you just meet him recently?” Jiang Muping was still arguing.
“Jiang Muping,” Li Sizhi couldn’t help laughing, “why are you so frisky?”
Jiang’s mother was a little worried, “What’s going on in his family? How did his parents die? And his younger brother…”
“Aunt, it’s hard to explain this right now, and it’s someone else’s private matter,” Li Sizhi glanced at Jiang Muping, “Muping doesn’t have any feelings for him right now, so it’s not good for us to ask so many questions.”
Mother Jiang nodded, “That’s true.”
“Show me the photo again.” Jiang’s mother asked Li Sizhi for Cheng Yan’s photo.
Li Sizhi smiled and said, “You still want to see?”
“Let me take another look… He’s really pretty…”
Before Jiang Muping left, Li Sizhi handed him something.
“What?” Jiang Muping took it and took a look – it was two invitations to an art exhibition, and the invitations were marked with Li Sizhi’s pen name “Si”.
“Your art exhibition?”
“Next Saturday.”
“Why give me two?”
Li Sizhi tapped the invitation lightly with his index finger a few times, “These are the last two. I deliberately didn’t give them to Cheng Yan.”
Jiang Muping took a moment to react, then looked up at her and said, “Can you please do something civilized for once?”
“I can give the invitation to my art exhibition to anyone I want.”
Li Sizhi’s purpose of this operation was obvious. She knew that Jiang Muping was a smart man, so she did not hide her intention to match him with Cheng Yan.
“Of course,” Li Sizhi said with a smile, “You can also choose to give the invitation directly to Cheng Yan.”
“I know.”
Jiang Muping said this and got into the car. Li Sizhi waved to him with a smile through the car window.
Jiang Muping stuffed the invitation into the car’s compartment.
Ten minutes later, the car slowly drove into the underground garage of the community. Jiang Muping parked the car in the parking space and sat quietly in the car for a while.
He picked up the two invitations, took a look at them, took out his cell phone, and dialed Cheng Yan’s number.
Cheng Yan had just finished taking a shower and walked out of the bathroom when he heard his cell phone ringing. The number on the caller ID looked familiar, so he pressed the answer button.
“Hello?”
“Are you still asleep?”
Cheng Yan was slightly startled, then he sat down on the bed, grabbing the towel and answering naturally, “Not yet.”
It turned out that he was the only one who was determined to eliminate all contact information. Jiang Muping wanted to call him, so he called him calmly.
There wasn’t even a casual greeting word.
“Li Sizhi has an art exhibition next Saturday. I have two invitations here. Do yo
u want to go?”
Cheng Yan’s brief silence made Jiang Muping feel self-doubt.
The person on the other end of the phone said hesitantly, “…I thought you liked art exhibitions.
“you……”
“You’re right.” Cheng Yan replied.
______________________________________
Today’s chapter made it seems like they will finally be moving things forward, but it seems that Cheng Yan is quite adamant about keeping his distance…
What do you think the reason might be? Feel free to share your thoughts down in the comments!
