The crew-cut server finally found time to take a few puffs of his cigarette in the men’s bathroom. Turning his head, he saw Li Jinyu enter and cheerfully offered him a cigarette.
At first, Li Jinyu didn’t accept it and refused.
Li Jinyu stood at the doorway wearing the same work uniform as them, immediately giving the crew cut man a sense of inferiority. Suddenly he felt that the saying “clothes make the man, the saddle makes the horse” must have been invented to deceive horses.
Thinking this, the crew cut man sheepishly tucked the cigarette behind his ear and said: “Handsome, are you a police officer?”
This was probably the funniest description Li Jinyu had ever heard. No one had ever said he looked like a police officer. Not only did he now look like a hoodlum, but even when he had been a good boy before, no one had ever said he had the demeanor of a police officer.
Most commonly, people called him naive and innocent. He used to be quite naive and sweet. Occasionally, he would call pretty girls “sisters” to make them happy.
Li Jinyu shook his head and took the cigarette tucked behind the crew cut man’s ear, “Brother, can I get a light?”
The crew-cut man smiled and lit it for him.
Li Jinyu loosely held the cigarette between his teeth, lowered his head, and gently inhaled to light it. The spark flashed slightly, and he lowered his eyes a bit.
As the tobacco slowly entered his mouth, the thousands of ants in his lungs seemed to gradually awaken, moving through his bloodstream. The feeling was too intense; he couldn’t bear it and coughed sharply.
“Never smoked before?” the crew-cut man asked, but from the corner of his eye, he noticed Li Jinyu’s habit of holding the cigarette with his distinct knuckled fingers, which had a slightly uneven shade compared to the rest of his skin—he was an old smoker.
Li Jinyu absentmindedly tapped the ash and said in a flat voice: “My lungs aren’t good. I quit. Rarely smoke now.”
The crew cut man said “oh” twice. He’d heard that people who quit smoking and then start again end up smoking even more heavily. He silently calculated that he had taken a hundred yuan from him earlier, and this cigarette would cost two yuan… The crew cut man was alarmed, feeling this business would be unprofitable. Afraid Li Jinyu might ask for another cigarette, he quickly tucked his small amount of money into his pocket and quietly found an excuse to slip away.
Li Jinyu had quit smoking to keep his grandmother company. He had stopped, but surprisingly, she hadn’t, though she had never really intended to quit—she was just humoring him.
Li Jinyu had been smoking for a long time and heavily. He started smoking in middle school in America. From that time, he understood that deep down he had never been a good boy. To please Li Lingbai and let her know he wouldn’t compete with his brother for anything, he pretended to be gentle and kind to everyone in public, as sweet as an angel. But in reality, during those years in America—fighting, smoking, drinking, nightclubs, bars—he did it all. Only he knew just how wild he truly was.
It seemed his grandmother knew as well.
That seemingly blunt and rough old lady understood him the best.
The old lady’s health wasn’t recovering well. Her hip bone hadn’t healed properly even after three months. She had probably been secretly smoking quite a bit behind his back. Yang Tianwei couldn’t keep an eye on her, and the caretaker was even less effective. When he wasn’t around, no one could control her. He was busy running around like a spinning top every day to earn money for her medical expenses, but the old lady didn’t appreciate his efforts at all.
His mood was very bad today. He had just had another argument with the old lady.
They argued almost every day, so they were used to it. But this time, the old lady was especially determined. She refused to stay in the hospital anymore, shouting that hospitalization was useless since her bone was still in this condition. She insisted on going home, come what may. But at home, he would have even less time to take care of her.
Later, the doctor found him.
That’s when he discovered why the old lady was so eager to return home.
The old lady had been coughing up blood recently. A few days ago, during a follow-up examination for her hip fracture, the doctor had also taken a CT scan of her lungs. The results weren’t good, so they immediately performed a biopsy, which had now confirmed the diagnosis. The doctor had wanted to notify him immediately, but the old lady had consistently refused, saying he was busy. Only after he had sent Ye Meng back to the hospital did they inform him of the results. It was confirmed to be lung cancer, though fortunately still in its early stages.
He had been mentally prepared for this outcome. His grandmother’s uncontrollable smoking addiction, coupled with her age, already put her in a high-risk category. He also knew that sooner or later, his grandmother would leave him, but he wanted to do everything possible to keep her for a few more years.
The treatment plan recommended by the doctor was very sensible: chemotherapy, which would cost a lot of money and time, and the patient would have to endure some suffering, but the outcome would be better than the current situation. Because it was caught early, with good recovery, she could live with the tumor for ten years or so without issue.
Abandoning treatment would save money and convenience, and the elderly person wouldn’t have to suffer, but she would have at most two years. Generally, doctors are reluctant to give patients such definitive numbers, but because it was Li Jinyu, the doctor still gave him a timeframe based on his experience, so he could make a decision.
He knew his grandmother was worried about the money. The better-off relatives in the family had cut ties with them long ago when his father married into the family, finding it disgraceful. People in this town cared a lot about face and looked down on men who married into their wives’ families.
He had barely over ten thousand yuan in his bank account, not even enough for one round of chemotherapy.
Li Jinyu bit the cigarette, not inhaling for a long time. The ash had accumulated halfway and was now falling off. He leaned against the sink, flipping his phone between two fingers, not knowing who to call.
He flipped through his contact list from top to bottom, but there wasn’t a single person he could borrow money from.
He lowered his head, dropped his eyes, and his finger slowly stopped on the name Li Lingbai.
His whole body trembled slightly as if he could barely hold the phone. His thumb quivered in the air, his entire body like a heavy piece of iron, unable to press down on the name.
“Li Jinyu?” The men’s bathroom door was unexpectedly pushed open.
Startled, he took a moment to react before hurriedly hanging up.
When he looked up, he saw Ye Meng directly pushing open the men’s bathroom door, sneaking her head in. Her face was truly beautiful, and her eyes seemed to speak, blinking curiously and shining as she looked at him and said: “Are you hiding in here smoking?”
Uncharacteristically, he stared at her, holding the cigarette to his lips. He looked at her, took a deep drag, and exhaled lazily with a smile: “It’s not like you haven’t seen me smoke before.”
Ye Meng was momentarily stunned. She looked back, then quietly squeezed in, closed the door, and leaned her back against it, looking at him and saying softly: “Cheng Kairan has finished talking with that fat monk. He wants us to find a place and meet up with him later.”
The bathroom actually had a very unpleasant smell, which was now shrouded in smoke. With his alluring appearance, one might have mistaken it for some heavenly realm, but in reality, it stank terribly.
However, the meeting place was set at Li Jinyu’s home.
Since there weren’t many places to talk near the hospital—coffee shops, tea houses, any public place wasn’t very safe—home would be safer. So, they could only go to Li Jinyu’s place. The old lady was in the hospital, so he was the only one living at home now, which was quite convenient.
Li Jinyu’s home was on Three Water Tower Old Street. Most of the residents on this street were elderly people living alone in this town. The gray, low, dilapidated buildings had weathered eaves, peeling wall paint, and walls covered with ivy and morning glories. At the entrance of the alley was a pile of kitchen waste rotted to eternity, with the dense atmosphere of daily life everywhere…
The elderly with palm-leaf fans, the elderly practicing swords, Go boards, chess stands, breakfast pancakes, and bun stalls—everything was available. Ye Meng followed Li Jinyu into the alley. Because all she could see were slowly moving elderly people, she felt that time had slowed down, but there was little vitality. It was originally a retirement neighborhood, and for young people living here, it felt somewhat depressing.
Passing through the alley, there was a lush, statuesque old phoenix tree at the entrance, which marked his home.
The door was very old, with two layers—an iron gate outside and a wooden door inside. The corners of the door were a bit moldy, and when pushed open, it creaked loudly, more effective than a doorbell.
Li Jinyu didn’t close the door, but went directly inside and moved the old lady’s wheelchair to the side. Ye Meng stood at the doorway without moving, secretly observing the layout of the old house. It was actually quite similar to her old ancestral home—three rooms and a living room. Though small, it had everything one needed. There was also a small courtyard in the back with some flowers and plants, and a small yellow dog waiting to be fed.
The inside was very dark, with the curtains closed. The layout was simple and clean. Several of his jackets were casually thrown on the sofa, including the Adidas sports jacket he had worn when they first met by the lake. It felt strange.
That night when she asked for his number, she thought it was a pity that such a handsome guy would have no connection with her. She never imagined they would later experience so much together.
There was something unusual in her heart.
Li Jinyu showed no such feelings, casually collecting the clothes on the sofa and throwing them into the inner room.
“Is that your room?” Ye Meng asked.