WT Chapter 50

Chapter 50: Business Card, I’m Here.

Rehearsals proceeded to the fourth day, and the school orchestra finally made a decision: if that student couldn’t return to school by the scheduled time, Wen Shixi, a graduate, would take on the piano part and attend the report performance.

Wen Shixi suddenly became busy, and for several days, he would return home late every time he finished rehearsing.

Surrounded by music, Wen Shixi was once fulfilled.

Only very occasionally, during the free time when the conductor communicated with other sections, he would look at the piano keys in front of him and wonder what Jiang Quanyu was doing now.

The steel jungle of money and power that Jiang Quanyu was in was a world he couldn’t squeeze into or even imagine.

He didn’t want to try to worry about how hard Jiang Quanyu worked every day, but he was occasionally curious why Jiang Quanyu didn’t even have time to make a phone call when there were so many people in his president’s office.

Or rather, perhaps the more important reason than not having time was that Jiang Quanyu simply had no reason to contact him.

At dusk, Wen Shixi drove home, carrying the bread he bought on the way, and took the elevator upstairs.

Then, at his doorstep, he saw an unexpected figure.

Chen Jiale, dressed in a formal suit, was leaning against his door playing a game console.

The elevator opened, attracting Chen Jiale’s attention. When he saw Wen Shixi coming back, he greeted him with a smile.

“Hello~”

Wen Shixi was very puzzled and walked towards the door: “Why are you here?”

Chen Jiale was happy: “Aren’t we friends? I came to see my good friend.”

Wen Shixi asked himself, he was really not good at dealing with people like Chen Jiale: “…If you have nothing to do, I hope you don’t come again.”

“Don’t be like that.” Chen Jiale said quickly, “Are you done with your work? Chat with me.”

Wen Shixi pressed the password to open the door, then stepped into the house, leaving the door open, and asked, “What do you want to talk about?”

In the quiet apartment, Wen Shixi walked into the living room and put the bag of bread on the table as he passed the dining table.

Chen Jiale followed him, looked into the bag, and asked, “Is this all you’re having for dinner?”

Wen Shixi: “Yeah, what’s wrong?”

Chen Jiale: “It looks delicious, can you share one with me?”

“…Okay.” Wen Shixi turned on the air conditioner, casually took off his coat, and threw it on the sofa: “What do you want to talk to me about?”

Chen Jiale took out a pink chocolate bread from the bag, unpacked it, and said, “You’ve been contacting that friend named Cheng Xuan very frequently recently, and you’re going to perform together at school?”

Wen Shixi frowned, standing in front of the sofa, looking at Chen Jiale in silence.

“I regret it.” Wen Shixi said with a straight face suddenly, “I don’t want to give you bread anymore, put down my bread.”

Chen Jiale was stunned when he heard this, his hand holding the bread stopped in place, and he asked blankly, “Why?”

“Is it really that interesting for you to monitor others?” Wen Shixi folded his arms and looked at the stalled Chen Jiale: “So Jiang Quanyu didn’t fulfill his promise to me, did he?”

Chen Jiale was silent for a moment, feeling that this matter was a bit of a (wūlóng – a silly situation).

He took out his phone with one hand, operated it, and pulled up a moment on WeChat.

Chen Jiale held the screen up to Wen Shixi: “Is it possible that my ex-boyfriend is a student at your school? He posted on WeChat, and that’s how I found out.”

In the stalemate, Wen Shixi’s eyes swept across Chen Jiale’s phone.

Wen Shixi: “…”

Wen Shixi: “Is it that coincidental?”

“What else?” Chen Jiale said, “I just have more ex-boyfriends, and they are more widely distributed, I’m not a pervert.”

Wen Shixi glanced at the phone in Chen Jiale’s hand and exhaled annoyedly.

Chen Jiale: “What about the bread?”

“Eat it, you’ve already opened it anyway.” Wen Shixi was a little annoyed, relaxed his body again, and slowly sat down on the sofa, asking, “Then why are you looking for me?”

Chen Jiale, chewing on the bread, walked towards the sofa and sat down opposite Wen Shixi: “To be honest, it’s for the Paradise project.”

“This project has nothing to do with me.” Wen Shixi said, “You should know that.”

“Of course I know, but you and my project leader have too much to do with each other.” Chen Jiale: “I have to make sure that Jiang Quanyu doesn’t have any problems so that the project can proceed smoothly and ultimately get the share I deserve.”

Wen Shixi: “Then you should be overthinking it, he hasn’t contacted me recently.”

Jiang Quanyu left a domineering kiss, and then left, almost without a trace.

Chen Jiale: “I know, he’s holding back well.”

Wen Shixi’s eyebrows moved slightly when he heard this, and he asked, “Holding back? What do you mean?”

Chen Jiale chewed the bread, and after swallowing it completely, he slowly said, “It means he’s holding back from contacting you, in case you two quarrel over some old grudges that can’t be overcome for no reason.”

Wen Shixi listened to Chen Jiale’s words with a cold expression and didn’t speak for a while.

Chen Jiale finished the bread in a few bites, carefully looked at the unhappiness on Wen Shixi’s face, and felt that Wen Shixi when he was angry was exactly like Jiang Quanyu.

Chen Jiale changed the subject and said again, “Cheng Xuan bought a direct flight ticket to Vienna next Tuesday, did you know that?”

Wen Shixi: “I know.”

Chen Jiale: “Then do you also know that he reserved a seat for a companion?”

Wen Shixi frowned slightly when he heard this.

“Anyway, whether you know it or not.” Chen Jiale asked, “Have you ever been curious why Jiang Quanyu went to Washington seven years ago?”

The sudden question was like an untimely guest, suddenly visiting without any preparation.

Wen Shixi’s fingertips curled up, and his breathing stopped imperceptibly for a moment.

The warm air of the air conditioner circulated in the air, gradually dispelling the cold and dampness, bringing out a warm and dry feeling.

Wen Shixi: “I’ve never been curious, and I don’t want to know.”

Chen Jiale looked at Wen Shixi’s motionless face and squeezed the bread bag into a small ball: “Your bread is pretty good.”

Wen Shixi: “…Do you always speak so incoherently?”

Chen Jiale shrugged: “I was just asking casually, actually, I don’t know why he left either.”

As Chen Jiale spoke, he squeezed the bread bag in his palm, raised his other hand, and took out a few business cards from the pocket of his front jacket.

He held the business cards up to his eyes, looked at them one by one, took out one of them, and placed it on the coffee table in front of him.

“You and I don’t know, but someone does. I ate your bread, so this will be given to you as a gift exchange between friends, leave it for you.” Chen Jiale’s fingertips pressed lightly on the business card, his expression was rarely serious, and he looked into Wen Shixi’s eyes: “No matter who Cheng Xuan’s companion is, I hope you can think carefully before making any decision.”

Amidst Chen Jiale’s lively voice, Wen Shixi lowered his eyes and looked at the business card.

After so many years, he had long accepted it and didn’t want to pursue why Jiang Quanyu left him.

His uncle once told him that Jiang Quanyu treated him this way because in Jiang Quanyu’s heart, there was a huge disparity in their status.

Regarding this sentence, Wen Shixi had been puzzled, suspected, resented, and confused, and finally, he could only force himself to gradually forget it and no longer pursue any meaningless reasons and causes.

But now, Chen Jiale ate his bread and suddenly left him with such a business card.

Chen Jiale had always been impetuous. After putting down the business card, he wandered around Wen Shixi’s living room, continued a few casual conversations, and soon said goodbye and left.

When he left, the clouds outside the floor-to-ceiling windows slightly dispersed, and the sunset glow was a brilliant splash of color, exceptionally rich and dazzling.

Wen Shixi got up from the sofa, walked on the red light on the floor, and slowly walked to the business card.

The reason why Jiang Quanyu left seven years ago…

Wen Shixi had no answer, and he didn’t know whether he should pick up the business card, or even just look at it in front of him.

The indecisive trance continued until the next day’s rehearsal.

“Shixi, Shixi—” Cheng Xuan’s voice broke into the chaotic thoughts, and brought a hint of doubt when Wen Shixi played the fifth wrong note that shouldn’t have appeared.

Afterwards, the conductor gave a ten-minute break. Wen Shixi sat in front of the piano and took the juice that Cheng Xuan handed over.

Cheng Xuan: “Shixi, you look like you’re not in good shape, are you feeling unwell?”

Wen Shixi shook his head, put down the juice bottle, stood up, and said in a light voice, “I’m fine, I’ll make a call.”

As Wen Shixi spoke, he stepped out of the rehearsal room.

At the end of the quiet corridor, Wen Shixi took out his phone and looked at the sea outside the window.

He still hadn’t figured out whether to go to the person on the business card.

But he knew that he couldn’t be so distracted anymore.

The call was dialed, and in just a few seconds, it was answered by the person on the other end.

There was silence in the radio waves for a while. Before long, a low voice came from a distant distance.

That voice was a little dazed, as if it was uncertain to the extreme, and could only ask a simple name.

“…Wen Shixi?”

Wen Shixi lightly pinched the edge of the phone.

“Jiang Quanyu.”

Hearing the familiar voice, the person on the other end of the radio waves paused, hesitated for a moment, and asked in a restrained, low voice.

“Is something the matter?”

Wen Shixi looked at the sea: “What are you doing now?”

At the same time, in the group conference room, a dozen people were quiet and silent, waiting for Jiang Quanyu to hang up the phone.

But Jiang Quanyu said steadily: “I’m not doing anything, you…do you have anything to do with me?”

Wen Shixi told the truth: “I don’t have anything to do with you.”

Strictly speaking, he just wanted to break free from that kind of hesitation and stop thinking about whether to get a late answer.

Wen Shixi lowered his eyes, looked at the window frame nearby, frowned slightly, and asked again, “I’ll hang up.”

“Wait.” Jiang Quanyu opened his mouth and quickly called to stop him.

Then, the two waited for a moment until Jiang Quanyu confirmed that Wen Shixi had not hung up the phone, and then paused and asked again.

“What about you, what are you doing?”

In the conference room, the assistant waved to everyone, signaling them to leave for a moment.

Wen Shixi: “Well…I was playing the piano just now, and now I’m resting.”

With his words, a hint of smile spread between the radio waves.

The people in the conference room gradually left, and the low voice was as consistent as ever, asking, “Are you tired?”

“Not tired.”

“Have you eaten lunch?”

“I’ve eaten.”

“Do you still have to practice?”

“Yeah, I’ll practice for a while.”

Wen Shixi answered, his head slightly lowered, his hand resting on the window frame, gently pinching the wooden edge.

Seeing that Jiang Quanyu’s questions came to an end, Wen Shixi took a light breath and asked, “Jiang Quanyu, are you very busy? Why don’t you call me?”

As he asked, the fingers pinching the window moved slightly forcefully, his voice colder, and he asked again, “Is it because you said last time that I’m not allowed to not answer your calls, but I didn’t answer when you called me, so you’re angry again?”

In the conference room, Jiang Quanyu held the phone, his expression slightly startled.

After a moment, Jiang Quanyu said, “No.”

Wen Shixi frowned: “Then why don’t you call me?”

His question was too willful, causing Jiang Quanyu on the other end of the phone to not speak for a moment.

Soon, Jiang Quanyu said, “I will call you.”

Wen Shixi: “What if I don’t answer? Will you still call?”

In the empty conference room, Jiang Quanyu raised his hand, pressed it against his eyebrows, gently closed his eyes, and revealed a bit of helplessness.

He slowly opened his mouth: “Wen Shixi, I said, you’re not allowed to not answer my calls.”

Wen Shixi pinched the window frame and blinked.

“Oh.”

He finally let go, releasing the innocent window frame: “I do have something to ask you, I want to ask you a question.”

“Yes.” Jiang Quanyu said, “What question?”

Wen Shixi thought for a while and handed the choice to Jiang Quanyu himself: “There’s something I don’t know whether to do or not, do you think I should go?”

The person on the other end of the phone thought for a moment, unable to guess what Wen Shixi was talking about.

Jiang Quanyu just thought that Wen Shixi had just left the Jiang family, and perhaps things would not go smoothly no matter where he went.

“This doesn’t sound like a question Wen Shixi would ask.” Jiang Quanyu’s voice was calm, quietly echoing in the large conference room: “Put away those unnecessary worries, if you want to do it, then do it, I’m here.”

The man’s voice said extremely forceful words, but it sounded ticklish.

From childhood to adulthood, Jiang Quanyu had told Wen Shixi many times that no matter what he wanted to do, and no matter what happened, as long as his brother was there, he didn’t need to be afraid or hesitate.

In the window along the reef, Wen Shixi looked at the coast.

The sparkling sea stretched all the way to the horizon, boundless.

Wen Shixi: “…Okay, I’m hanging up, I’m going to continue practicing the piano.”

Jiang Quanyu was silent for a moment and said, “Okay.”

Wen Shixi put down the phone and looked at the call interface again, tapped the screen lightly, and hung up the phone.

The prompt window for the end of the call lingered for a few seconds and soon disappeared without a trace.

Wen Shixi put the phone in his pocket, and then, with a light movement of his fingertips, took out that business card from his pocket.

The faint light pouring in from the window shone on the business card, giving the card a pearl-like texture.

His gaze lingered on the address below the business card. In the silence, Wen Shixi took a light breath.

–

Rehearsals ended as usual at dusk. Wen Shixi dropped Cheng Xuan off at the entrance to the city center, turned the car around, and drove onto the cross-city elevated road.

The southern part of the seaport city developed earlier, and there were short buildings everywhere, but the streets were very clean, looking like a simple coastal town.

Wen Shixi followed the address and arrived in front of a psychological clinic.

The clean white building stood in the cloudy dusk, coated with a layer of light purple by the night, particularly elegant and beautiful.

Wen Shixi parked the car and sat in the car for a while.

He knew that, logically, he should have made an appointment by phone first to ensure that the doctor on the business card had time to see him.

But he didn’t do that because he was still hesitating whether to see the person on the business card.

Wen Shixi thought: if he came and that person was there, and he could just happen to ask the questions he wanted to ask, then that would be considered heaven’s choice to let him know, that would be even better.

Wen Shixi pushed open the car door and got out, stepping into the building.

The private clinic closed very late. When the nurse at the front desk saw someone coming, she stood up and asked him kindly.

“Hello, do you have an appointment?”

Wen Shixi thought for a moment and took out the business card from his pocket.

“No, but I would like to ask if this doctor is in now?”

Two minutes later, Wen Shixi was invited into the consultation room.

The doctor sitting behind the desk looked very young. When she saw someone entering the room, she stopped typing, turned her chair, and looked at Wen Shixi.

Then, the doctor’s expression changed slightly.

Wen Shixi sat down opposite the desk, waited for the receptionist nurse to leave, looked at the doctor opposite, and then looked at the gilded nameplate placed on the corner of the desk.

“Shen Chuji”

When he couldn’t sleep last night, Wen Shixi had searched for this name on the search engine.

A famous domestic psychiatrist, a graduate of the Capital Medical University, and then a doctorate in medicine from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in the United States, has published articles in several well-known international journals and is the youngest leading expert in the field of psychiatry in China.

Wen Shixi: “Hello.”

Dr. Shen looked Wen Shixi up and down and asked, “Hello, have you been having any troublesome things in your life recently?”

Wen Shixi took out his phone and opened the search interface for the medicine name.

It was the medicine he had seen on Jiang Quanyu’s bedside table on the cruise ship.

“My family is taking this medicine, I want to ask, what is this for treating?”

Dr. Shen took the phone that Wen Shixi handed over, looked at the content on the screen, and thought quietly for a few seconds.

Then, Dr. Shen looked up and asked amiably.

“So, Mr. Wen came here today to ask me about Jiang Quanyu?”