Love caught in a net (2)

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In order to protect the real identities of the people who provide past events, all characters appearing in this article are replaced by pseudonyms. Please do not verify.

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Chapter Two: The Blue Love (I)-The Weaving Maiden and the Cowherd on the Tear-Breaking Magpie Bridge’The Long Distance and Invisible Connection

At both ends are thoughts and love.

I asked what it could hold.

The heavy error of not being able to catch

Love Out of Reach

Quality is no match for the scale of specific gravity.

I’m always the lightest.

Love where the open eye can’t see

Deep love is no match for the curse of pressure.

You were the only one.

unique’

One Friday, at 12:30 p.m., I happened to come offline from the Lyric section. Rubbing my eyes, although the night is late, I still can’t change the habit of writing a diary. It is a record of my life, a valuable and sincere collection of secrets.

Secrets, but we girls love to talk about them. However, some things are better shared with oneself. Take advantage of the quietness of the car, the quietness of the people, the calmness of the mind, to calm down those disturbing and trivial thoughts during the day, and to get a bit of peace and quiet. Doodle in your diary – draw illustrations, do a little poetry, and let yourself completely relax.

After living in Hong Kong for a long time, everyone is forced by the rapid pace and the demand for efficiency to be like a clockwork gobbler – bursting at the seams every day. Everything is fast, fast, fast. In such an environment, if you have to spend half a day of leisure, you will sooner or later get sick from being busy.

The second day of the week off, sleep later does not matter. It was hard to get my thoughts into a compact text, and when I looked at the clock, it was almost half past one.

He, in an e-mail a few days ago, said he was going to call at this time. Shouldn’t have missed his appointment, right?

The small room instantly echoed with the ringing of the phone, international calls is to master the point of dialing and the length of time.

“Hello? Is this Zhiqing? It’s Wei, long time no see. How have you been?”

“Eh! I’m a nine-to-five pink-collar guy anyway! It’s not like I’m any good. How are you doing?” I smiled. Facing him, leaving behind the stress of the day.

Wei seems to have something on his mind, “It’s about the same, I’m still getting used to the new job I just changed.

Chinese people in Canada must work harder than Westerners in everything they do; otherwise, they will inevitably be looked down upon.”

“It’s the same here in Hong Kong – it’s all about competition. The difference is – you bully your own people.” I replied back to him, pretending to be relaxed.

His laugh was a bit dry: “Zhi Qing, you are really good at comforting people! What’s up? Are there any boys pursuing you these days?”

“No way! I’m so busy every day. I do know a lot of friends online… Well, friends are friends after all, right? But if I stay home all the time, I’m afraid I’ll get moldy!”

The boy still kept his voice containing a smile, “You can’t get moldy, boys who like you have to bring their own dehumidifiers, that look will only bring your value down.”

“Wei, don’t just talk about me,” my heart floated, uneasy, “What about you? You’re working in a foreign country, there must be a lot of girls who are attracted to you, right?”

“There is one. I’m still waiting for her…” his voice became so distant, “for her to show up and have the same kind of attachment I had when I was with you.”

I sighed softly, “Really? That kind of attachment…”

The tone is so flat. The aura of love had long since faded, falling from fiery red to tragic blue.

Dazzling colors are no longer, leaving behind, a friendship that can not be cut off.

Nowadays I recognize Wei as an ordinary friend, no more ordinary. Even though there are a million things I don’t want to do, reality has forced me to make such a painful decision.

Listening to the sultry tones that used to surprise and sadden me, I closed my eyes and lost myself in his whispering at the microphone.

He, still he; I, growing up with the wound of love. Waiting for the wound to scab over.

Bucket surprised, my thoughts drifted to the past. On the wings of memories.

So nostalgic, blazing in the warmth of the heart. Yes, the days that were his and mine together.

Whether it shines or not, I’ve captured that light and packed it in the pages of my journal.

Don’t want to forget, for the rest of your life. Canonize as much as you can.

On the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival that year. I’ve only known Wei for a while, and I like him. He said jokingly in a chat room, ‘I can’t even get a proper rice dumpling in Canada’. On a whim, I went to a traditional market to look for ingredients.

He has a special physique and cannot eat shrimps, crabs or pork. I hand-picked a few ‘unique’ ‘Zhiqing-style’ Cantonese rice dumplings for him. I hand-packed a few ‘unique’ Cantonese rice dumplings for him and sent them to Canada by DHL International Express in the most urgent way, hoping to catch up with the Dragon Boat Festival. I don’t want him to go to Mr. Qu Yuan for the dumplings.

As soon as he received my thoughts, he called me to let me know and ate it on the spot for me to ‘hear’

The dumplings are a great way to make sure the boys are eating. Imagining the boy eating the rice dumplings in his hands, I smiled at Wei’s slurps of praise, his speech slurred – he must have had a mouth full of rice grains. If I can make my favorite boy so happy, the effort of washing the rice, preparing the ingredients, wrapping the leaves, and steaming the rice dumplings was not in vain.

“It’s so delicious! Hey, Zhiqing, next year I’ll reserve five dumplings first. Don’t you forget it!

“I’m sorry,” Wei said with intent.

I nodded, “Yes. Then, do we make mooncakes for you for Mid-Autumn Festival as well?”

We laughed out loud piece by piece.

Who would have guessed that it would be the first time I made dumplings for him, and the last? In March of the same year, when I was still a simple student, I bought a computer by working and studying. At that time, the Internet was becoming popular, and I heard my classmates talking about it all the time. So I was determined to learn on my own, rather than asking for help! Every day, I stared at a black flat screen and tapped on it, drilling everywhere in the Internet. Even let me sneak into the chat room to talk with people I have never met, but also through ICQ and the rest of its online travelers to become friends.

Don’t doubt my motives for surfing the net, they are very simple. As a student, I am free, I have no money, and my class time is very flexible – even if I meet someone from abroad, I can talk as long as I want without having to worry about the time difference. Besides, there’s no pressure of being face-to-face with a screen or a line, so you can talk freely.

Even if they are very compatible, I don’t even think about whether to meet, or even have further emotional development. I have a very tight grip on love, insisting on the so-called ‘better to be in love than to be in love’.

I always feel that in the so-called relationship on the Internet, the text messages are sent to the other person’s screen through the cold hard disk and fingertips. What can be done about it?

A string of emotionless electronic signals is no match for the close connection of an actual human heart.

At that time, the idea was – online dating is not too real, unreal, not very reliable, each other have never met the two people can really be treated wholeheartedly, not to cheat on each other?

Well, if it’s that easy to find ‘the one’, why don’t we all just go online dating?

With a bit of a silly idea. It turned out that I…

Wei and I met in a chat room by chance. He also happened to be the first person I met online.

Chatroom is a website in Taiwan where most of the members are people who studied abroad and talk in English. Wei is quite popular there.

I was not used to their ‘communication style’, the speed of the chatting there was so fast that I couldn’t keep up with it, so I had to quietly ‘observe’; however, Wei actually noticed me, and I would have only found the courage to talk to him if it wasn’t for the fact that he was ‘persistent’ and desperately pestered to say ‘Hi’ to me. However, Wei actually noticed me, and if he hadn’t been so persistent in his attempts to say ‘Hi’ to me, I would have had the courage to have a conversation with him.

The boy is a native Taiwanese, living in Kaohsiung and studying in Canada.

I used to go online in the morning, which coincided with his Internet time, and we interacted more and more often – talking to each other, talking about our feelings. It was all very quiet, but I was happy.

Later on, I usually went into the chat room for him and stayed there, as it wasn’t easy to find a friend like him who I could get along with. When I saw Wei’s name pop up, I would talk more, mostly about academic problems, moods, interests, idols, hates, etc. I would not stop talking until we had completed three hours of chatting. We wouldn’t stop talking until we had talked for three hours.

After we knew each other’s ICQ numbers, we were able to chat more freely. At one point, I was stunned when Vai typed out all his basic personal information. Should I do the same? You’re kidding. That’s a girl’s top secret! How can I just leak it out?

Sometimes, though, the two of us would have a little ‘debate’ over who sang better, Lai Ming or Andy Lau. His cheerful, non-competitive personality often gave me the ‘crown’ of victory, and no matter what, Wei always gave me the benefit of the doubt.

His understanding and caring soon made us become close friends who could talk about anything – telling jokes, pouring out bitterness, pouring out emotional garbage, trivial and boring boring words, the boy listened to all of them, comforted me and cheered me up – no one had ever treated me like this before.

In three short months, he is no longer a complete stranger. I consider him a close backstage friend who has been quietly supporting me and encouraging me.

Maybe he ate the dumplings I sent him? I was thinking of you when I saw it. Wei made a request to exchange photos, and took the initiative to send me a single photo image via ICQ. There are two big ones.

Hehehe, he sent it anyway, might as well see it.

In the photo, although he is not very clear, you can vaguely see his handsome face, and he is not very tall. Wei seems to love to smile – the kind of mindless, cheerful smile in the photo, so detailed and friendly. I think there is not much difference between him and his predicted image.

Another ICQ message came in – it was the boy’s address and message. I was puzzled, but after reading the message, I realized that Wei wanted me to send him the photos as well!

I was so hesitant. I’m afraid that if he sees my true colors, he will most likely lose this precious and hard-earned friendship.

The problem is that I’m not pretty enough. In this trend of judging people by their appearance, and emphasizing on first impression and appearance packaging, it is a superficial but indisputable fact. Will Wei decide to make me his friend based on this alone?

Growing up, I was an ‘ugly duckling’, and when I went out with my family and visited guests, I heard compliments from others – ‘cute’, ‘pretty’, etc, ‘I’m going to be a beauty when I grow up’, etc. They were all said to me and to my sister next to me.

What about me? ‘Good boy’, ‘such a quiet kid’, ‘I’ll be a good teacher in the future’… What do you think I was praised for? I’m a bit short and chubby, and I’m not sweet-talking, so I don’t know how to be sweet, and my parents weren’t proud of my appearance, so I couldn’t help it.

Natural looks are not something you can control. Who can put aside the ‘skin’ beauty of the other person and fall in love with the ‘heart’? Isn’t it always the case that one first observes his or her ‘outer beauty’ and then slowly appreciates the ‘inner beauty’?

But how many of you can appreciate my inner strengths?

Ever since I was a child, I have always been immersed in romance novels, and every time I saw a scene or a scene with a sad ending, I would often warn myself that it must not happen to me! In addition, I have heard about many of my friends’ and classmates’ relationship breakups and disputes, which has made my fantasies and visions of love fewer and fewer. I had already made up my mind that it might be a late spring for me to fall in love.

Spring, it always comes, right? Even if it’s ordinary and uneventful. Maybe I’ll just be hiding in a corner somewhere, cowering and crying, looking at him from afar – for the sake of my boy crush.

Crush. The boy will never know. It hasn’t happened yet, and I’m still mentally rehearsing the progression of the tragedy over and over again – the poor heroine, the dying black swan.

What is love? I have not yet tasted it. However, I was only too simple to lose Wei and not even make friends, but I neglected the piece of love that had secretly sprouted for him a long time ago.

I picked out a few ‘blurry’ photos that I thought were pretty good, and rushed to send them by express mail to Canada, which was fair enough. Though I breathed a temporary sigh of relief, my tense heart kept telling me – think of it as a test! Let’s see what this boy is really like in the real world.

If he’s not what I think he is…

For two or three days, I waited as long as I could. As soon as he received the letter, he asked me for my home phone number, and the ‘result’ was about to be revealed.

I’ll always remember the phone ringing off the hook at exactly 9:00 a.m. that Saturday morning. It was definitely Wei. I ran to answer the phone with anticipation, nervousness, and fear of being hurt.

“Zhiqing~, it’s me, Wei.”

“Um…, you…, uh…” I really didn’t know how to speak.

The boy blurted out, “You’re cute. It’s nothing like you described.”

“Wei, are you cheating?” Hearing him ‘praised’ in this way, all girls would naturally be secretly happy in their hearts, it’s the first time someone said I was ‘kawaii’!

Wait a minute. He’s not just saying that as a courtesy, is he?

He made a stern statement, “There is no! Heaven and earth. I’d be a puppy if I lied to you.” Said the heart and mouth in unison.

“Alright! Koo and trust you once, count on your vision!” I gave him the step down.

Well, Wei’s mentality is quite healthy and pure, and all my previous misgivings were immediately dispelled. Since he graciously extended his hands in friendship, I had no more excuses to avoid it, and our first phone conversation ended in laughter.

‘If you have one, you have two, and if you don’t have three, you don’t have manners’, a fine Chinese tradition. The number of calls from the boy accumulated rapidly, ignoring the expensive cost of international calls. With phone contact, the number of hours he and I spoke was often three hours or more. Neither wanted to hang up first.

I always asked him if he would pay for the phone bill if he talked for so long every time.

He always replied to me, “It’s worth the time and money just to have you as a good friend.

Wei speaks some broken Cantonese, and I speak broken Mandarin (Mandarin), which is often the subject of hilarious conversations. Wei boasted that my Mandarin was ‘well-spoken’ and clear – haha, why don’t I feel that way?

Besides, the boys would also praise me for my openness in laughter and for being more mature and insightful than others of my age. I was deeply hypnotized by Wei’s kind words, and my self-confidence was restored and my personality got rid of a lot of depression.

Occasionally, he would suddenly come on a ‘no warning’ long distance call in order to sing a song he had just practiced to me.

So grateful for his goodness.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked to him on ICQ across the sea. The tone of Wei’s typing became very confused, as if he was trying to find out something.

“What do you think of me as a person? Zhiqing?” The words appeared sluggishly.

“Oh? Wei, what are you doing asking people such questions all of a sudden?” I don’t understand.

He paused for a while, “If… I say that I am in love with you, will you accept me as a person?”

‘Yeah? What? You like me?’ My lips, ‘What the hell?’

“Yeah? I know, it’s the kind of thing friends like, isn’t it?” That’s how I judged it, of course.

Does the boy like me?

Wei’s typing became faster, “No! Not just to the extent of being friends! I want to be more than friends!”

I pretended to be a ‘duck listening to thunder’ and continued to ‘juggle’: “What the hell are you talking about?

People still don’t get it yeah!”

At the same time, his heart was beating faster than he could control it – was he going to say that?

Wei stayed calm and collected and repeated what he had just said.

Will he talk?

After a long time, a phrase appeared in front of my eyes: “I love you! The strong feeling and throbbing for you has repeatedly eroded me! Zhiqing, I believe you feel the same, right?”

Fruity changed it to ‘love’ me.

He said it. I guessed…

Old man! You’re not going to play a bad joke on me, are you?

I was so dumbfounded that I wanted to pass out right away.

In my blank head, I pieced back my reasoning and logic abilities one by one from extreme surprise, “Wei, are you sure you meant what you said?”

“Promise to be serious. I’m not a guy who likes random people. I thought about it for a long time before saying it. Please don’t doubt my affection.”

“But you’ve never seen me. It’s not right to conclude whether I’m right for you or not just based on my voice and the content of my conversations… it’s just not right to do that!”

The boy was very sure: “I believe in my own feelings of love. You are the type of good girl I am looking for.”

“Wei, you’re imagining me too well! Don’t fantasize too much about me!”

I don’t forget to remind him three times.

Wei shows a unique persistence – he will not give up when he meets the one in his heart.

Is this an ‘online relationship’? I couldn’t help but be confused. Was he just acting on impulse?

I am quite attracted to him though, not to the point of liking him. Let’s go with the flow!

The mailbox at home often shows photos sent to me by Wei; he also let me know the situation of his family in detail. The boy’s family is simple, with his parents and two younger sisters, and he is the eldest and only son. He is the eldest and only son, and is the apple of his mother’s eye. He doesn’t have to share the household chores, so he can concentrate on what he wants to do.

Wei’s father was a businessman, with a sizeable business spanning China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, and was quite well off. He is not proud of the fact that he was born in a favorable environment and is more fortunate than others. This reassures me – at least he doesn’t judge his friends by their money and wealth, and mistakenly look down on them.

Very rare in these times of overflowing materialistic desires. I appreciate it.

Comparing it to his family’s situation brought back my frustration.

Hong Kong is a small place with high property prices, so living in a big, comfortable house was a fantasy for my family when I was a kid. As a result, my family of four (Dad, Mom, Sis and I) were all crammed into a small space with no individual rooms and no privacy.

My parents’ jobs were not very well-paid and unstable, and most of them were temporary and piece-rate, commonly known as ‘wage earners’. Being the youngest in the family and a girl, I was always criticized by my father and was the least favored, having to solve everything by myself.

There’s no way I’m using tears as a weapon.

Mom and I took care of everything in the house, and my sister and father didn’t ask questions. However, sometimes when mom was late for work and the kitchen was too busy, I had to cook for the whole family.

My parents were not happy in their marriage. They got married on the basis of a flowery matchmaker’s word, they didn’t hate each other, and they got married and had children in a confused manner. I should say ‘marriageable age, marriage for the sake of marriage’, right? There was no love involved.

Dad, although he did not read a lot of books, but he seems to be rude and unreasonable, everything is always right is their own, never bowed down and admit their mistakes; such as a word with the other side of the disagreement, disagreement, can not argue with the people on the fight, fists and feet, with violence or make people look at the small actions to deal with the problem.

As for me, when I was a child, I was once whipped by him with a belt and sent to the hospital in a panic by my tearful mother. The reason was simple – just because I ‘wouldn’t let him hold me, I was a bad boy and should be punished’.

My mommy, on the other hand, is a typical traditional woman who holds on to the notion that her husband is the best thing that ever happened to her. She adhered to the spirit of ‘marrying the chicken, marrying the dog, following the dog’, and gritted her teeth to tolerate her father’s unreasonable behavior. Even though she suffered a lot of anger and thought of divorce, she had to maintain the integrity of the family for the sake of my sister’s and my future, so she endured and bore the burden in silence.

Undoubtedly, the issue of ‘money’ was the point of contention between the parents. Dad only has money in his eyes, above all else, and he would even abandon his family for it! However, he preferred to ‘invest’ the money in his personal enjoyment rather than sacrificing a little bit of it for us who had the same need.

Failed manhood. The stereotype of my father hit me hard and I lost a lot of respect for him. Even my mother regretted marrying him! Because of this kind of man, I have little confidence in the opposite sex, to make ordinary friends is okay, further? No way!

So Lo, I have more or less an inferiority complex about my family background and appearance, lacking a bit of self-confidence. I wonder if Wei’s feelings for me are just a shooting star passing by in the sky? Or is it just that he hates being alone and wants to fall in love to get rid of it?

It will have to wait for time to answer. What can it, respond to me?

Appearance is certainly not a sufficient requisite for someone to take a liking to you, and if they only love you for your looks, the passion will be long gone by the time you’re old. The only thing we know for sure is that most people wouldn’t be happy to walk down the street with an unattractive, incompatible boyfriend or girlfriend on their arm, would they? Sooner or later, all the looks of amazement and disbelief will bury the sublime love.

“Zhi Qing, when I say I like you, I mean I like you without any conditions or reservations! I don’t care if you are fat, short or unattractive! All I like is you!

It doesn’t matter what your home situation is, I still like you!”

I was really touched by Wei’s constant instilling in my ears the belief in releasing the above. How incredible it is to be loved regardless of everything. My heart, still, ebbs and flows.

Everyone can talk about love, but how many people do it for real?

“How about this, Zhiqing. Let’s make a deal – I’ll go back to Taiwan this summer and then go to Hong Kong to look for you, what do you think?” He suggested one day. Action was taken.

I joked, “Wei, you’re a busy man, don’t you like to go home? Why do you have to come back here just for me?”

“Zhiqing, I want to see you, the real you. The sound no longer satisfies my thoughts of you. Don’t you want to see me?”

He sounded like he was taking it seriously. I immediately lightened the mood, “Well, that’s good!

Wait till then!”

Thanks to modern technology, it was possible to be far away from Wei in Canada. Originally I thought his return was just a passing remark, but once early June arrived, he really put it into action!

Wei bought a plane ticket back to Kaohsiung, and when he arrived in Taiwan, he informed me that he would be coming to Hong Kong at the end of August to look for me! Suddenly I was in a complicated state of mind. How could I have known that a boy could become so serious? In the virtual world of the Internet, he was a good friend, but it was like playing a ‘role-playing’ game; to take it to the level of ‘love’…

I shudder to think, is this real or not? Or is it just a dreamy romance? No one can tell me the answer.

Will there be a future for me and Wei? How far can it go? Internet dating, it’s really happening to me!

Sitting at his desk in a void of thought, he rested his chin on his chin and stared out the window at a line of pale gray sky.

If it is a dream, wake me up; otherwise, God of love, give me proof!

The answer, that’s what I want. Instead of waiting until Wei comes to know the truth, it is better to go and find out for myself! I’d rather go and see for myself, and experience the customs of the other side of the river.

Well, I resolutely decided to go to Taiwan first at the end of July for the ‘Ask for Love Tour’.

“You’re coming to Taiwan? That’s great! Be sure to let me know when you’re coming! Zhiqing.”

“Well, there will be a lot of trouble for you when we get to your house, so please take care of it!”

Wei smiled cheerfully, “How could it be too much trouble? I can’t wait to welcome you!”

“Then it’s a deal. You can’t back out then.” I pretended to be serious.

“Good! I’ll wait for you.” He was short on words.

My confidence was slightly shaken when the phone was disconnected. I took a deep breath in and exhaled, taking such a big step, only hoping to account for this misty love.

Whether it turns out good or bad, try to live with it.

I exchanged the pocket money I had earned through my frugality and hard work at odd jobs for a thin round-trip ticket to Taiwan and Hong Kong. I felt like I was gambling, but I couldn’t tell what I was gambling on.

The closer I got to the date I was scheduled to leave for Taiwan, the more nervous I became. Some inexplicable questions echoed in my mind: ‘What will he think of me when he sees me? and ‘Is he really that nice in person? ‘Will we become a couple?’ and ‘Will he be able to take me away from my current living situation?’

In Chinese mythology, the Cowherd and the Weaving Maid meet on the Magpie Bridge built by magpies every year on the eve of the seventh day of the seventh month. At the end of the twentieth century, are there still any romantic factors such as the Weaving Maiden, the Cowherd and the Magpie Bridge?

If the weaver were like me, she’d build herself a bridge, wouldn’t she?

I would not yet question the credibility of a boy’s words, and Wei did not seem like a liar. With simple courage, a light backpack, a suitcase, and a plane ticket in hand, I explained to my family about the trip and the scheduled return date, and then rode alone to the airport.

Having never traveled before, I didn’t have anything to do beforehand to gather information about Taiwan, nor did I know the whole process of taking a flight. When I arrived at the airport, I asked around before I found the check-in counter at China Airlines.

“Miss, when you want to check your position, it has to be done forty minutes before the plane takes off.

Once you’re late, you’ll have to take the next one.” The service lady enthusiastically informed me.

What? So that’s the rule? I looked at my wristwatch and there was only a two-minute gap. That was close!

There was still plenty of time, so I took the opportunity to dial for Wei.

“Hello? Wai? It’s me.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m at the airport. I’m scheduled to board the plane at 1:30 p.m., but I don’t know how long it will take me to get to Taiwan yeh…. Tell you what, why don’t you pick me up at the airport at four o’clock.”

“Uh… It shouldn’t take that long, right? I’ll be there to pick up the plane. And please remember, I won’t be hard to recognize with my hands bandaged.”

After a brief conversation, I walked back to the waiting room and sat in a random empty seat. Waiting, boring. I looked at the crowd of people coming and going with boredom, and was feeling like I had nothing to do when a young girl’s voice came from my left.

“Miss, are you on this flight to Taiwan?” She pointed to the schedule on the wall.

“Yeah. You too?”

“This is my mom.” The girl looked down at the middle-aged woman beside her, “We came to Hong Kong to talk about business and were just heading back to Taiwan.”

I greeted them with a kind smile, “It was my first time there and I was unfamiliar with many of the boarding procedures. It caused a lot of trouble…”

Thanks to them, I know where to board the plane, how to clear the customs and check out after getting off the plane, it’s a great learning experience!

When I got on the plane, I found my seat, and then I looked at the high shelves and gawked. Being petite, there was no way I could lift my heavy suitcase onto the shelf.

The Taiwanese man sitting next to me asked, “Miss, let me help you.” He kindly helped me put it away. I thanked him profusely.

A sixty-minute trip. The Taiwanese travelers around me, hearing that I was going to Taiwan for the first time, told me some instructions for exiting the border. My mental doubts were allayed. As the saying goes, “When you go out, you meet a valuable person”.

It’s a blessing to get help from people you don’t even know.

It is more blessed to give than to receive. I’m embarrassed to receive a lot of help for nothing.

After checking out, I followed the instructions and walked out of the airport. I realized that it was only 2:30pm, the time I agreed with Wei was 4:00pm, so I had to wait for it, right?

What should I do? Why don’t I just call him and tell him I’m here? I touched my wallet and it was full of Hong Kong dollars! It’s full of Hong Kong dollars. I forgot to exchange it for NT dollars.

After running a few steps, I turned my head to look for it, not knowing where to go. Where’s the exchange counter?

Well, ask one of the airport staff.

Suddenly, someone tapped me on the shoulder.

‘Strange, who would accost me?’ I turned back to see who it was.

A face both familiar and unfamiliar came into view. The boy smiled through his teeth.

The boy was seen wearing a blue top, dark black suit pants and black shoes, his hair color leaking slightly yellow and both hands wrapped in thick bandages.

Patrolling him from head to toe several times, ‘Huh? Wei, it’s you? You’re here?’ A kind of surprise that couldn’t be described in words.

“What, you can’t recognize me in person? Luckily, I’m not punctual and I came long ago. Otherwise, you little fool would have had to wait.” As if he was scolding me, his tone was very soft.

Wei took my travel bag with one hand and slung it over his shoulder, while his other hand gently caressed my cheek.

My face felt hot and I immediately lowered my head – is this how men greet girls in Taiwan?

“I wanted to call you, but I don’t have any change…” I shook off my earlier shyness for the moment and explained my immediate problem.

He smiled brightly again, “It’s a piece of cake, I’ll take you there, won’t I?” Wei took my hand and led me to change money.

To be continued…

Love caught in a net

Feel free to reprint this article. And the copyright belongs to the original creator. When reprinting, please do not delete this article.

In order to protect the real identities of the people who provide past events, all characters appearing in this article are replaced by pseudonyms. Please do not verify.

I am very grateful to these online friends who are eager to assist me in my creative endeavors!

The second chapter, micro-leakage blue love (2) – tears broken magpie bridge of the weaving girl Cowboy Wei quite good at taking care of people well!

The frequent traveler told me along the way what the various airport equipment was for, “Zhiqing, this is it.” The boy pointed down to the counter.

I nodded blankly and stupidly, in a dream world.

He is Wei.

When the exchange was finally completed, he converted the amount for me, nodded: “The number is correct, it’s okay.” Then he handed it over to me. I didn’t have to think about it.

“Oh, thanks.” I still didn’t know what to say more.

The boy smiled slightly, déjà vu, “Come on! I’ll take you to a cab!” Without saying a word, he took my hand and headed for the hall exit.

Not more than ten minutes after the official meeting, he treated me like a good friend who had known me for more than ten years. Everything was so natural.

But it’s so nice to float and walk on clouds.

Anyway, Wei is the host, leave it to him!

My mind woke up from a dream as soon as we got into the scheduled taxi. Huh? Why is my right hand being held? I glanced to my right, and his left hand was quietly attached to the back of my hand.

The bandages were so tight that I couldn’t feel the warmth of the boy’s palm – even so, the ‘pressure’ of closeness made my heart pound, and I could still hear the rapid ‘thump, thump, thump’ in my ears.

Rhyming sound.

“Is there something wrong with you? Zhiqing. Your face is so red…” he asked with concern, inclining his head.

You know what to ask! Who doesn’t blush when she’s in such a situation?

I purposely drifted my eyes away from the street scene outside the car window to escape the embarrassment of stealing glances at each other. The air was slightly churning and hazy from the stifling heat of southern Taiwan, so I couldn’t see very well.

Was it a dream? He was sitting right next to me, smelling of Wei. Boys give me a feeling, I can’t tell you, a little bubbly.

“Mr. Driver, please stop the car. It’s already here.” He paid the fare and helped me carry out my bulky bags.

We stationed ourselves on the downstairs sidewalk of a seven-story building, “Wei, what floor is your house on?”

“The whole building belongs to my family, Zhiqing.” Wei said rather flatly with a raised eyebrow.

I was shocked when I followed him upstairs: “Huh? Your family is so rich?”

The lowest two floors of the building are rented out to a fast-food restaurant, which is doing good business; the living room, kitchen, restrooms, and four bedrooms for the family are on the third floor. The living room, kitchen and four bedrooms for the family are on the third floor. The living room and kitchen are decorated in the old Chinese style, and the tables and chairs are made of hinoki wood, which is elegant and chic, and it is easy to see the owner’s intention and taste. The washroom and bedrooms are Japanese-style rooms, and the floor-to-ceiling rice is said to be imported from Japan.

The fourth floor of the building is a factory, the fifth floor is Wei’s father’s study, and the sixth floor has a gym and guest rooms. His family put a lot of emphasis on enjoyment and entertainment – two top-of-the-line cars for transportation, a motorcycle for the boy himself, audio-visual equipment in the living room – a brand-new large-format, ultra-wide-angle TV, stereo Dolby surround sound audio and high-powered speakers, additional DVDs, VCRs, and so on…. It was like a mini movie theater!

Compared to my family’s environment, it’s really a world of difference. I couldn’t help but lament ‘different lives for the same people’, and that unspecified feeling of inferiority returned.

The boy’s father is often away on business trips, and his mother is a flower lover who likes to pick plants and dill. He had two younger sisters – Xiao Xuan, who was a little older, and Xiao Qi, who was the youngest, one year apart. They were both younger than me.

Wei first stranded my bags in the living room and asked Xuan, who was busy cleaning the floor with a vacuum cleaner, where his mother was going before pulling me to hurry away.

The boy was in a hurry to take me to see his mother. I saw her taking care of the potted plants in the flower garden created on the balcony of the study, and her back looked very kind.

“Mom! The girl I was talking about from Hong Kong, Ms. Zhiqing, has arrived!” He walked up to her and whispered.

The hostess put down the sprinkler and sat me down, asking me why I was there, how many days I was staying, where I wanted to go, and if I was homesick. From the way she spoke and her attitude, it seemed that her mother was a kind and loving elder – however, soon after, my perception of her changed dramatically.

Wei’s mother turned to the boy and said, “Why don’t we do it this way? We don’t have time to organize the guest room yet, so please ask Ms. Zhiqing to sleep with Xuanxuan for the next few days. Also, it’s her first time in Taiwan, so be a good guide and don’t let people say we’re not treating our guests well! …”

He nodded vigorously, a little melon-dumb look of compliance.

“Then…, Ms. Zhiqing, I’m going to ask you to squeeze in with my little daughter Xuanxuan.” She looked over at me and smiled softly.

I quickly replied, “Auntie, I’m sorry to bother you for so many days! How could I be?”

“Mom, I’ll just take her downstairs to unpack.” As soon as he was on his feet, he grabbed my hand as fast as he could and rushed downstairs.

What the hell is going on? Don’t understand. And don’t dare to ask for more.

I’ll stay on the third floor for now. Kiki’s room was next door to Little Xuan, with Wei’s dorm room on the other side, and the master bedroom fronting three rooms.

Later that evening, Wei asked me, “Do you want to go out with me? I had to go to the hospital to get my hand healed.

“He held out his bandaged hands.

I nodded my head noncommittally. I nodded noncommittally, it was boring to be in the house all the time, so it was nice to get some fresh air.

Wei’s palm and wrist joints were injured in high school when he was playing basketball, and the injury never healed, and the pain often recurred. As there is no ‘good nosologist’ in Canada who specializes in treating ‘bruises’, he came back to his home country to seek treatment.

“Sit up, please.” He pulls out the motorcycle and pats the back seat, signaling me to take my place.

He handed me my helmet, “Here, let me help you put it on.” Way buckled the loop button for me and pressed the brim of the hat down.

The first time I rode a locomotive, I didn’t know how to swing my arms and legs to settle down. Wei laughs and ‘corrects’ himself.

I’m sitting in a really embarrassing position.

The boy looked back at me, “Zhi Qing, your hands have to wrap around my waist; otherwise, you’ll fall out oh.”

It’s not good, is it? Yes, it is! My ‘alternative’ is to tighten the clothes around Wei’s waist, which should have a similar effect. I’m not sure what I’m going to do.

As soon as the motorcycle started, I realized that I was wrong – the recoil was strong! As he rode faster, I naturally adjusted my protection strategy, my original grip on my shirt gradually flattened against the boy’s waist, and my arms extended forward – I automatically hugged Wei tightly!

This scene reminds me of Liu Xhua’s film ‘Heavenly Love’, which he co-produced with a new female artiste surnamed Wu a few years ago. The distance between the two has been reduced to zero.

Whenever I had to stop at a red light, the boy would move his hand to my waist and hold my palm, touching and rubbing it back and forth. It was like being reunited with a lover after a long period of time.

I couldn’t bear to take my hand away. Perhaps because of the stifling helmet, there were hot flashes on my face and my scalp tingled…

Upon arrival at the Chinese Medicine Bone-setting Clinic, Mr. Wai complained about his injuries and medical history. The doctor took off his bandage to check the condition of the injury. After a half day of looking, he wrote a prescription for him to make a decoction on the spot, and prepared to apply it to the affected area after it cooled down.

I saw Master neatly finish bandaging Wei’s palm and remembered something.

“Wei, I’m telling you. The back of my neck on both sides and my left and right shoulders occasionally ache, I wonder what’s going on yeah?” I whispered in his ear.

I didn’t expect the boys to take the initiative to tell the Master. How enthusiastic.

The physician murmured for a moment, “Let’s see, this young lady’s ‘symptom’ must be healed by ‘cupping’.”

Cupping is one of the traditional Chinese folk therapies – a sharp needle is first inserted into the painful area, and then a hot tin can is used to suck on the puncture site. Based on the principle of heat expansion and cold contraction and atmospheric pressure, the necrotic blood is extracted from the affected area.

Just hearing the instructions is painful enough.

Not many patients come to the Bonesetter’s, and I was the only girl, so my fear deepened, but I couldn’t refuse the boy’s kindness. His eyes were so gentle that I had to say yes in order to heal my wounds.

They pulled open the collar of my T-shirt and placed hot canisters on my shoulders and cervical spine. The pain of the needles and the hot canisters against my skin was really very unpleasant. I clenched my teeth and refrained from making a sound.

“Junior, this young lady is very brave. Her injuries are quite serious, they should be caused by sports injuries in the past when she was not paying attention, she did not realize it and did not pay attention to the medical treatment; over the years, the old injuries were not healed, and new injuries were added to the old injuries. As time passes, when the injury strikes, of course I feel pain.” The Master explained my condition to the boy.

Wei said nervously, “Doctor, how long will it take for her to be completely cured?”

“At least two years, too.”

When I heard it, God knows whether it was true or not.

“But that girl is from Hong Kong, and she’s only coming to Taiwan for a short stay this time, so she can’t stay that long.”

“Well, the current practice only treats the symptoms, not the cause. Relapse in the future, wama ‘mo fadu’.” The healer came toward me, bent flat on my back.

The focus of all the men in the room was on me, and the straps of my underwear were exposed, especially in front of Wei, so I was so embarrassed that I didn’t know what to do for a while.

After removing the tin can from my shoulder, Master suddenly rubbed and pinched the freshly treated injury with violent force!

I closed my eyes in pain; it wasn’t just a cutting stabbing pain, it was an unspeakably sharp pain. The doctor’s hand became more and more intense, and my left hand hung down helplessly. Suddenly, a warm current rose from the palm of my left hand, giving me light in the darkness.

I opened my eyes, and in the midst of my tears I could vaguely see Vito’s hand holding mine, silently cheering me on. He reached out with his other hand to wipe away my tears, but I stubbornly threw my head back, not wanting to look like I was admitting defeat.

Finally the master stopped the pinching, applied the herbs and prescribed me a bunch of internal medications. The boys paid the bill for me and rode away.

The light was red again, and Wei stopped his motorcycle, and as soon as his hand caught mine around his waist, he actually, actually, kissed me on the back of my hand! I hurriedly pulled my hand back to prevent him from ‘getting his way’!

I harbor an inherent reserve, a withdrawal. The boys’ concern for me only added more favor by virtue of it.

Feeling good, doesn’t mean ‘love’, does it?

Along the way, we played this game over and over again – he kissed and I ducked. He enjoyed it.

Early the next morning, he rode me to visit some of his friends, introducing me to new ones and talking about socializing. Heh~! The whole morning was boring.

On the way home, Mr. Big saw that my face was full of tiredness, so he suggested, “Zhiqing, haven’t you ever ridden a motorcycle before? Why don’t you learn how to ride a bicycle?”

“I can ride a bicycle.” I questioned, “Is it hard to believe you want to teach me to ride a motorcycle?

Wei?”

The boy smiled mysteriously: “You got it! In fact, the principle of riding a motorcycle is the same as a bicycle, only you do not have to step on the gears to drive the body, but more simple.”

He parked the car by the side of the road. We looked around, observing the road – there were no cars or people passing by, no police or traffic cops standing guard or taking pictures, so it was perfect for practicing.

We switched places, with the students sitting in front and the instructor in the back. The boy instructed and explained how to add gas, control the direction of the car, how to brake, and other precautions. After that, he immediately put the car into practice, and I went to the driving lesson with fear and trepidation.

I rode carefully for two minutes. I was going to change gears, but somehow, maybe I twisted the grip in the wrong direction and turned it into gas, and the whole body went crazy and sped forward! I panicked, and in the blink of an eye, the car hit the guardrail on the right side of the road!

Of course, both of us were immediately flipped over and fell to the ground. Since Wei was sitting in the back, he couldn’t brake the car for me in time; but within a tenth of a second before the car rolled over, the boy decisively unfolded his right arm and wrapped it around me! My upper body was attached to him.

Wei instantly lifted the car and rescued my crushed thighs, “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“OK…” I barely struggled to stand and patted the dust on my clothes.

Luckily, I was wearing jeans, and looking down – the fabric on my right leg near the knee was white, so I was lucky I didn’t scrape my pants in the accident.

“It’s really okay?”

“Uh, really.”

Although I felt a pain in my right knee, which must have been crushed by the motorcycle, I kept saying that I was fine because I was afraid that Wei would be worried.

He was relieved to see that I wasn’t hurt.

It was my turn to ask, “What about you? Wei? You should…”

“It’s just a little pain in my right shoulder…” he said with forced composure.

I scrutinized Wei’s right upper arm, eh? Why was the sleeve slightly red? Something wasn’t right, I wanted to see how badly hurt the boys were.

I called out, “Wei, let me see your wound.”

“I told you nothing matters.”

“Don’t be a hero, come on, show me!” I tenderly pulled his sleeve higher despite his objections.

Oh, my God! He’d scraped a chunk of skin off his shoulder! Blood was gurgling and oozing from the wound.

I was speechless – how could this happen? He was trying to protect me… I was the one who caused him harm… He folded up his cuffs and rode on through the pain. I hung my head in despair and just clung to his waist. I…

Along the way he kept turning around to tell me he was okay, and he kept patting and holding my hand in an attempt to make me talk. My response was silence.

I don’t know what to say. The more Wei comforted me, the more silent I became.

As soon as we arrived at his house, I took out gauze and tape from my backpack to stop the bleeding, and it took me two large pieces of tape to cover the wound completely. After I finished taking care of him, I rubbed his shoulder and said it was ready.

I don’t want to talk.

When I walked through his door, the house was empty, not a soul in sight. The odor of loneliness hit strongly. It was cold.

“Alright, Zhiqing. You don’t have to beat yourself up so much.” He turned his torso and gazed at me with both eyes so deeply that I felt on the verge of being sucked into those eyes.

The boy put his hands on both of my shoulders and embraced me, “This little injury is nothing. I get hurt all the time, don’t make a fuss.”

But… I’m the one who caused it!

I wanted to cry, but my stubborn stubbornness blocked my eye glands. Since I was a child, I knew that tears could not solve problems; no matter how much I was wronged or dissatisfied, I trained myself never to shed tears or show weakness in front of others or even my family. The only time I had to cry was at the end of the night when it was quiet, when I was under the blanket, covering my head, and squeezing out a few drops of fresh tears.

I don’t cry, I don’t laugh, I don’t nod or shake my head, I don’t give any response.

“There’s really nothing I can do about you!” He laughed and took me into his arms, “You’re still stubborn!

So…”

Wei gently leaned on my ear and murmured: “Zhi Qing, if there is anything you are sad about, if you want to cry, then cry!”

His words, bit by bit, struck my closed heart, piercing sharply through the solid shell, its low sobs slowly awakening.

The feeling of being embraced, the warmth of my body softened the calmness I had been holding on to for more than a decade, and my tear ducts, which I thought to be depleted, filled up with emotions. I wanted to vent my anxiety, my years of patience, the layers of the past buried in my heart… and my deepest apologies to Wei.

“Yes… I’m sorry..! Wei! It’s my fault..! I’m the one who caused you to get hurt…” Tears of collapse welled up in his pupils’ eyes.

I didn’t know what bawling meant. Crouching in Wei’s arms, I sobbed. He held me with a little bit of strength, further reassuring my tears.

Time, slowly fading away. I don’t know how much time passed, and the tears were almost dry. The boy lifted my upper body and wanted to see my face. I realized that after a girl cries, her face will only become ugly, how can I let him see it?

I immediately covered my face with my hands, not showing him what ‘pear blossom with rain’ meant. No matter how much he pulled my hands apart, I desperately covered my face and refused to let go.

He advised me more gently and devotedly, “That’s enough, Zhi Qing. Don’t be angry with yourself. It’s not your fault…”

I lowered my wrist, “This is clearly my fault! That’s why you…” The uncontrollable tears ran down again.

He approached me and I closed my eyes, letting Wei wipe my tears with the back of his hand; the funny thing was, the more he wiped, the more they trickled down. I wish I could tell him to just let it stop.

Huh? A hot, wet, soft, warm feeling flashed across my heart and onto my cheek – it wasn’t a boy’s hand! What’s going on? Huh? Again?

Opening my eyes, I realized that Wei was kissing away my teardrops one by one with his lips!

I gradually calmed myself down – only, my feet were numb from standing.

“Tired? Zhiqing? Sit down.” Wei took my hand and made me sit on his lap.

I was so scared, I trembled…

It’s all too surreal, too much like an act.

Did I disarm myself so easily? Is this how he came into my life?

It happened so fast!

The present tense that scares me.

You’re tired of crying, aren’t you? I moved to sit next to him and before I knew it, fell asleep.

When I woke up with a start, I noticed Wei’s head resting on my lap as he slept soundly. Looking at his sleeping face, as innocent as a baby’s, I smiled in relief.

Leaning against the back of the sofa, there was a feeling of reassurance, mixed with a little sweetness. Could… Could it be that this is the kind of love that ‘teaches one to live and die’?

Is love so simple and clear?

I ran my fingertips softly through his hair, not wanting to wake him up. Perhaps no amount of care would have helped, Wei was still awake.

He wore his signature radiant smile, “Zhiqing, in a much better mood, aren’t you?”

The innocence of a child. I found the smile on his face that I should have had. I’ve been missing it for a long time – a feeling without pretense.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I finally smiled back.

He dragged me to the restroom to wash the tear tracks off my face. Way’s family came back at just the right time.

I hope they didn’t see anything.

At dinner, however, an invisible pressure permeated the table. Wei’s mother was quite sensitive, and what was going on between me and the boys seemed to give her a hint of what was going on.

The hostess pretended not to have any intention of glancing at us sitting together, but suddenly fixed on Wei, and said carelessly: “I say Wei, you are still very young, don’t fall in love too early, your studies are important! Don’t get distracted until you get into college! After you go to college, maybe I’ll allow you to have a girlfriend.” Commanding tone.

“Oh, I know! Mom, don’t worry…” he said in a perfunctory manner.

I was so weak that I lowered my head, where was I to speak!

Thinking back on what had just happened – his embrace, his kisses, his whispers… made my heart beat wildly again.

I’m in love? Not sure.

As the movie plot depicts the story of the first love, the feelings spread under the unanticipated. Tasting the fruits of affection in secret is like stealing the unripe greenness of an orchard.

His mother’s words at the dinner table cast a thin shadow over this budding love…

I was in Kaohsiung for four days, and Vadu asked me out for a movie, dinner, and a bike ride, preferring not to stay home.

The cold air conditioning in Taiwan’s movie theaters is usually turned on so strong that I am especially afraid of the cold. The thoughtful Wei at my side wrapped his arms around me and their cheeks nestled together, bringing me warmth; he would also gently rub my arm so that it would not be cold.

When I was shopping, Wei loved to drag me by the hand and walk happily and aimlessly one after the other. Whenever he felt like giving me a gift, he would give me a hug or a kiss on the street, not caring about the gazes from the pedestrians around us.

Riding in the locomotive with him is more than indescribable. A small kiss on the hand, a wink, a heartfelt smile, represents all the words. It is silent, but it says everything in your heart.

I’m the only one in his eyes. He’s the only one for me too.

Trying to escape Kaohsiung, leaving me more time to spend with him.

The boy’s home felt as cold as a seven-story palace. Wei’s mother was the queen and master of the house; the boys became her pets and toys, deciding whether or not the next meal would be served depending on whether or not mom was in a happy mood.

The eldest sister, Xiao Xuan, is the maid who has to take care of the chores in the palace. She has to take care of all the small and big chores, and she is not allowed to make any mistakes, or have the right to refute them. Xiaoqi is the little maid who accompanies the Empress, following her every step and making sure she is there every time she passes on a message; she is also responsible for pleasing her mother, so that her family will not be harmed.

I am just a guest, and as usual, this Empress will restrict my movement by issuing edicts and will be a little more polite…. Other than that, there is no need to think about it.

Wei they are so tired of living.

The boy tried desperately to get a chance to go north, and we took a domestic flight to Taipei, where we stayed at his sister-in-law’s house. Her house is small, with only one rented floor – but it is full of warmth. Four of Wei’s cousins, one of his cousins, and a cute little cousin were crammed into the small space. Definitely not as cozy as Wei’s house.

I slept with the boy’s sister-in-law and younger cousins, but poor Wei slept on the sofa in the living room. Only my sister-in-law’s room was air-conditioned, while the rest of us only had electric fans to blow on, and the temperature in the room was over 30 degrees Celsius.

That didn’t stop Wei from spending time with me. When my sister-in-law wasn’t in the room, he used to sneak in to chat with me and tease my little cousin, who was not yet a year old. The boy was like a big kid. His smile glowed, a happy, warm light.

Well, that’s what a real family feels like, right? It’s not the size of the place that counts, it’s the love that makes it cozy.

Even if you have to hit the floor to sleep, it’s better than a big, confined space.

My sister-in-law’s family are good people, friendly and genuinely caring. My sister-in-law loves me and treats both Wei and I as if we were her own children. Of course, I couldn’t live for free, so I often volunteered to wash dishes, make breakfast, and serve cold drinks.

Remembering the beef noodles cooked by my sister-in-law and the fruits bought by my cousins, it was a wonderful taste that I would never be able to enjoy again in my life. Watching the family eating and chatting happily around the small round table, I wish I could have such a pleasant atmosphere in my home…

The time for fun is fleeting. After a week in Taipei, it was time for me to return to Kaohsiung. Before I left, the boys’ great aunt gave me quite a few gifts and I cried. Not for any reason.

After three more days in Kaohsiung, the day to return to Hong Kong arrived. A gray Saturday.

Wei, who has always been a late riser, deliberately got up early that day, knocked on my door, and took me and his big sister, Xiaoxuan, to go bowling. I was only friends with Xiaoxuan. When Xuan was bowling, the boy grabbed my hand and wouldn’t let go. We knew it would be many days before our hands were joined again.

When I returned to Wei’s house, I was surprised to find that he had an extra guest in his home – a strange-looking girl. Based on the way she was treated by the boys’ mother, it seemed at first glance that she was on friendly terms with Wei’s family. At least the ‘queen’ liked her – much more than I did.

Seeing that they were talking vigorously, I found an excuse to sneak back to my room and pack up my clothes and belongings for returning to Hong Kong.

At that moment, Wei ran in as well, closing the door of the room behind him with little force.

“Yeah? Shouldn’t you…” I almost yelled.

“Shhh..! Zhiqing, I know you’re upset.” The boy lowered his voice and said, “To tell you the truth, that girl is my ex-girlfriend named Bee.”

I raised my voice, “What did you say?”

“Zhiqing, please be quiet and hear me out, okay?”

I calmed my anger for a moment, but I wanted to hear what he had to say.

“Didn’t I tell you that I had a crush on a girl once, the daughter of my mom’s best friend. Right?”

I realized, “You mean… her?”

“Yes. She had a close boyfriend at the time, so I didn’t hold out any hope, much less confide in Bea. As a result, she ignored me too much and treated me as just a normal friend.”

I said, “And?”

“One day she told me that she liked me and was willing to consider the possibility of becoming boyfriend and girlfriend. I was so happy that I immediately started courting her – asking her out on dates, to the movies, to the countryside, to please her. At first, Bea would agree to go out; within a few weeks, the girl would say no again and again – no time, no time, no time.”

Strange, what’s she thinking?

“Finally, Bea wrote me a simple letter. It said that she had never liked me, much less fallen in love with me. The reason why she said she ‘liked me’ in the first place was because she had just fallen out of love and hadn’t found a new boyfriend yet, so she asked me to be her substitute. Now that Bee has found a new man, she no longer needs me…”

I couldn’t help but chime in, “That girl is out of line! She was just playing with your feelings! Why is she still…”

“And you had the nerve to make a house call, right?” Wei exhaled, “I can’t help it, my mom favors her! Just because of Bea, I decided to study in Canada to recharge my batteries and let my mood slowly calm down. Zhiqing, it took me a full year to forget about it. Her reappearance bothers me.”

I reached up and ruffled his hair, “Let bygones be bygones. Wei, you have me nowadays, and that’s enough.” Come to think of it, why should I be jealous?

“Zhiqing, I…” the boy’s eyes were filled with sadness, “thank you…”

I kissed him on the cheek as a small consolation.

“By the way, I’m here to call you out to dinner.” He sounded a little odd, “The seating for the meal will be moved later, and Bea will be sitting in your old chair. You’ll have to sit in the guest seat.”

Okay, okay. What can I do if I’m a guest?

It was only at the dinner table that I realized what Wei meant by his words. In addition to the unbearable low pressure, Bea not only sat next to Wei, but also used the same type of tableware as his family; whereas I was on her left side, but with different dishes!

Naturally, this was all led at the behest of Wei’s mother, and I was always an unapologetic, unaccepted outsider!

To be continued…

Love caught in a net

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In order to protect the real identities of the people who provide past events, all characters appearing in this article are replaced by pseudonyms. Please do not verify.

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Chapter 2: Love in Blue (3)-The Weaver’s Daughter and the Cowherd on the Tearful Magpie BridgeI looked at Bea with the rest of my eyes. I was completely unfamiliar with her, but she posed the biggest potential threat. The girl had shoulder-length hair, a pair of big, round, clear eyes above a small nose, a tall, thin figure, and a pair of slender thighs exposed outside a light blue mini-skirt.

Bea’s charm comes from her self-confidence, and I have to admit – she’s pretty cute; however, I can’t agree with the way she hurts Wei.

The girl kept teasing him, and the boy was not very responsive, replying intermittently; from time to time he took the opportunity to steal glances at me, anxious about my reaction.

I kept my usual silence, mechanically feeding myself a chewy dish. Vai was in between me and Sobhi, looking very frustrated…

After finishing my ‘last lunch’ in this ‘cold palace’, it was only natural that I didn’t have to join them. I walked back to Xiao Xuan’s room, picked up my luggage, and prepared to return home.

Here, there’s nothing to miss, not a trace of hard feelings in my heart. Except for Wei.

I put down my backpack and thanked the ‘Empress’ in an ‘official manner’ towards the ‘Empress’ who was still busy greeting Bea, “Auntie, thank you for your hospitality over the past many days. I’m going back to Hong Kong.”

The boy’s mother got up and replied, “Zhi Qing, please forgive me for taking care of you. Ah Wei! You go to the airport to see him off!”

She continued to chat endlessly with Bea.

Wei walked over to me, “Zhi Qing, my mom is like this, don’t blame her. I’ll see you off.

“It’s like he picked me up and still shoulders my bulky suitcase for me.

The suitcase is filled with love. We share it together.

“Thank you…” I tried to hide the unpleasantness of my departure.

I can’t do it. The corners of my eyes are wet.

Getting out of the taxi, he walked me slowly through the transit hall. Wei held my hand and never let go. Time does not stand still.

It was finally time to board the plane. We hugged each other in the waiting room – trying to hold on to something, an emotion that was too strong to be melted away, an entanglement that would last forever.

“Zhi Qing, wait for me. Stay up for another half a month and I’ll go to Hong Kong to reunite with you.” The boy recited softly.

Leaning on Wei’s shoulder I couldn’t say goodbye, a nod was the best answer.

He added, “I will miss you – in my dreams, in the water, in the wind. You’ll miss me too, won’t you?”

“Eh!” I ducked into his arms longing for this warmth.

As I took my first step away from the stage, I heard him behind me say, “Take care, Zhiqing.

I love you!” The volume was small, but it stirred up waves all over the lake.

“I’ll definitely miss you, because I love you too, Wei…” I finished with my head turned around, tears flooding my eyes as they appeared in my eyes.

Finally said it.

The path to boarding the plane was short, yet long. After the airport personnel had checked my ticket and cleared customs, I looked back repeatedly across the glass screen of the empty bridge to find Wei.

He waved more than once toward me.

His eyes were still so sad.

His eyes…

‘Why? Why didn’t you tell me to stop? Didn’t tell me to stay? But even if you stopped me, what else could I do? ‘…’It’s so contradictory.

I watched as his figure disappeared. The distance between us, on this road, is so close and so far.

“A stone’s throw away…

Back in my birthplace, Hong Kong, I look up at the sunshine and breathe in the air as I walk out of the airport. It feels so different from Taiwan, the pace of panicked passersby weaving in and out beside me. I’m back.

A place without him.

Two weeks went by. Really fast.

‘Zhiqing, my love.

I’m scheduled to arrive in Hong Kong on the 20th of this month. Don’t forget to pick me up then!

I’ll be traveling with…

I’m sorry I can’t be with you on your birthday…

Love, Wei.

yours truly

’

As soon as I received Wei’s email, a big stone in my heart finally fell to the ground. It’s a pity that the date of his arrival was not my birthday and he couldn’t be with me to spend this special day. The true love of a boy has become the most precious and treasured gift I have received this year.

However, early on the morning of his birthday, Wei made a special long-distance call from Taiwan.

“Happy Birthday! Zhiqing.” He proceeded to hum ‘Happy Birthday Song’ next to my ear.

I smiled and said, “Your memory is not bad! Know that today is my birthday.”

“Of course, how can I fake my boyfriend?” The boy was a bit of an ass, “Although I’m not on your side, my heart is always with you…”

I laughed heartily, “So you wouldn’t have flown to Hong Kong to meet me earlier?”

“Zhiqing, there are still forty-eight hours left, just bear with it for a little while longer.”

“Gee, you’re getting sweet-mouthed, you’ve been eating more candy lately, haven’t you?”

“Please! My Missy, you can’t take a sincere statement like a donkey’s liver and lungs yeah.” Wei immediately ‘refuted’ my statement.

“Yes~! Understood!” I covered my mouth and laughed.

After a pleasant chat, I looked up through the window, and a brilliant light of delight shone between the lines of sky.

Forty-eight hours is a long time, and it seems like years. He, who is so close to my heart, is coming to Hong Kong.

I was so excited that I couldn’t sleep. Early that morning, I faced the closet and picked out clothes – this one ~, no good! That one~, too plain, Wei might not like it.

Uh, yeah! A skirt! On a whim, I, who usually rarely wear skirts, decided on a long white floral, blue-bottomed halter dress. Changing into it, Si, it seemed quite nice.

Shouldn’t we put on some makeup? I smoothed the pink lipstick over the center of my lips and evened it out.

Hee hee! The color is quite pretty.

I send a satisfied smile at myself in the mirror. It was about time! In three steps, I sprinted downstairs and stopped the car to run towards the airport.

‘Looking through the eyes’, ‘looking through the waters of autumn’, ‘one day does not see, such as three autumns’, these ancient people used to describe how deep the thought of the deceased of all kinds of idioms, the original quite reasonable.

I stood at the exit of the airport lobby as waves of people kept spitting out their progress. I stood on my tiptoes, lifted my head high, and looked around again and again – to see if I could catch a glimpse of the face I wanted to kiss the most?

The crowd of people dispersed one by one, and only then did my vision clear up. I finally looked at the familiar figure.

“Hey~! Wei~! I’m here!” I ran quickly towards the boy, ignoring the stares from all around.

He was looking up at the situation around him. When he heard me yell, Wei stepped up his pace as well. We had the same goal.

The boy hugged me for a long time. Looking at him with a toothy grin, I laughed from the bottom of my heart more than he did.

“How long are you planning on staying?” I asked as I took his hand and walked.

“Two weeks. And then, I will go straight back to Canada…” He said the last few words very grimly.

I didn’t want to spoil the fun: “Since it’s two weeks, let’s enjoy ourselves! Don’t think about it.”

I gave him a kiss, no distance.

Honestly, I gave him a lot of firsts: the first time he was pampered by a man, the first time he went shopping hand in hand with a boy, the first time he fell in love, the first time he kissed a boy, and the first time he slept with a boy in the same bed….

Why are you looking at me funny?

It’s not what you think! Nothing happened – it’s really just a shared bed, because my house is small! He sleeps on his stomach, I sleep on my back; he sleeps down, I sleep up, and Wei likes to put one arm around my waist so he can sleep soundly.

How dare I resist his request?

Besides, I felt more at ease with him by my side. Gradually, I developed a bad habit – I had to hold something in my arms when I slept in order to fall asleep. When Wei was around, of course, I grabbed him; when he wasn’t around, I had to cuddle up with a cute fluffy cat doll!

I found that the boy’s shoulders are of infinite use. When riding in the car, his thick and broad shoulders are the most comfortable cushions for me, listening to Wei’s regular heartbeat, pulsation, giving me a full sense of security, the two of them leaning head to head snuggling each other; and sitting in the movie theater, Wei is a first-class pillow, the pair of large hands caressing my small hand, heat flow continues to conduct – hand is warm, heart is also warm.

He enjoyed taking photos with me, “Zhiqing, I want to leave more memorable authenticity with you. Photos are the quickest and most realistic.”

This kind of reason… Anyway, Wai loves to be on camera. Hee hee!

He is an avid shopper and never misses anything he sees, especially clothes. He is very clingy, and no matter where he goes or what he wants to do, he wants me to accompany him. When Wei picks a piece of clothing, he will first ask me if I think it looks good; after trying it on, he also asks me to be the judge as usual. Only when I was satisfied would he swipe his credit card and buy it. He is much more generous than me.

A boy’s romance doesn’t change depending on the place – Wei still loves to hug me on the street, give me an unexpected kiss, and make me feel strange and happy. He is so spontaneous.

I’m afraid to look into his eyes, which seem to contain endless deep feelings pouring out to me. I’m afraid of wallowing, I’m afraid of being intoxicated, I’m afraid of being obsessed.

How could I not love him? W…

After a short fourteen-day reunion, the boy will return to Canada, irretrievably.

It was early in the morning. Neither Wei nor I could sleep. He held me in his arms and we spent the night talking about the past and our endless love. We counted down our remaining happy moments.

Wei softly sang ‘Love you one for life’ while I murmured in agreement.

There is already a light gray glow in the east, and the sunrise is about to break through the horizon line.

“Let’s wait for the morning together! Zhiqing.” He pulled me over to the window to feel the daylight filtering in.

It was dawn, and the moment of parting was still mercilessly approaching.

“Zhiqing, I will leave Hong Kong with a smile on my face; you promise me that you must send me back with a smile on your face too.” The boy held both my hands and told me to be strong.

“Eh!” I nodded painfully as I suppressed the excitement of my grief.

I had to say goodbye to him after sending him off for thousands of miles. I waved and watched as he disappeared at the entrance to the boarding bridge, mingling with the rest of the passengers.

‘Bye, I’ll miss you.’ I kept repeating in my mind. Helplessness.

Standing by the side of the tunnel, I watched as the 747, in which Wai was traveling, taxied off the runway, retracted its landing gear and nose wheel, lifted off and disappeared into the blue sky… and into the clouds.

A whistling iron bird takes away my thoughts, but cannot carry my sorrows.

Sitting in the ‘cab’ on the way back, my heart ached – so much that it was dripping with blood and tears. I had promised not to cry, but I still…

The first month after Wei first returned to Canada, the international calls were intense and diligent.

“Zhiqing, we can’t meet again now, so we have to use a telephone line to maintain our love.” The boy said rather poignantly, “To express my love, my longing for each other, in limited words…”

My voice followed with sadness, “You just went back, are you getting used to it?”

“How can I get used to it without you by my side?” He smiled bitterly, “Zhi Qing, before the plane took off I kept looking in the direction of the air bridge, hoping to see you. The distance was too far away to do as I wished. The days of having you in these months lingered in my mind, not like it was real. youaresosweet!”

“So, thinking about it, I couldn’t restrain myself and shed tears. Only for you…” His soft accent detailed everything after the farewell. …

‘Men don’t shed tears, they just haven’t gotten to the sad part yet’. Wei has always pretended to be a real man, how could he mention teardrops? He actually cried for me.

A man’s tears are a woman’s pride, right?

I just want to get back what I had. If I can.

Time and distance are often the two super killers of love between men and women. Even the most amazing romance, can not stop the days and months of the wash, tens of thousands of kilometers of separation. It will fade, corrode, and eventually empty.

The frequency of his calls diminished from the initial three times a week, to once a week, to every two weeks B, and finally to once a month each. The decline was dramatic.

The two of us were at a stalemate, not moving forward or backward. It’s a bad time for both.

I believe that this pain should be shared by both parties. With mutual encouragement, we look forward to the day of goodbye. It will come.

Isn’t parting the beginning of reunion? But, it seems to be wishful thinking on my part.

For a year now, I’ve been trying to maintain a shaky relationship. I don’t understand what I or Wei are waiting for.

Is it an offer to end the romance? I don’t want to.

However, it turned out to be the last thing I expected – he couldn’t stand the embarrassment of his current relationship before I could!

“Let’s break up! …Zhiqing.” He spat out the words cruelly.

A wave of high voltage electricity penetrated my entire body. Perception, thought, heart and soul, the whole thing was paralyzed and paralyzed in an instant.

Break up? Those two words were written all over my head. “Break up”? …

I vaguely heard a buzzing in my cochlea. From the boy’s mouth came phrases that made me soft and sad.

I don’t want to hear it! Don’t want to hear it! I can’t hear it! No~!

However, the pain, the heartache, slowly brought me back to my senses.

I’ve seen so many TV shows, movies and novels depicting love, and when the hero and heroine declare that they will never see each other again and that their love is over, the scene is always the same – the two of them are in an agitated confrontation, the man decisively suggests that they will never see each other again, and the girl looks shocked.

Then, thunder and lightning struck, and the rain suddenly poured down, drenching the negotiating men and women in an instant.

Raindrops, along with the tears and hatred of the female protagonist, fall onto the cold pavement. The woman who can’t stand it anymore swings her arm out fiercely and slaps the hero in the face, at the same time shattering the dreamy romance.

She fled the scene in tears. The rain cuts off the path of the past and the past of the infatuation. The man stood in the rain, alone and sad. ….

Mood raindrops, probably blue? Is my love for Wei leaking blue?

I couldn’t talk to him face to face, the heavens didn’t cooperate with my state of mind with the torrential rain, and I couldn’t reward the boys heavily with a slap to wake him up.

I didn’t even have the right to leave. Holding the cold microphone in my hand, how did his voice… make my whole body tremble? The content no longer mattered, it was already slurred.

“┅I am doing this for your own good, Zhi Qing. If we keep dragging this on, it will only add to each other’s pain.

I think I may not love you as much as I used to. …and the fact that we see each other so little threatens the intimacy of the relationship…” He had so many reasons.

The only thing I heard clearly was Wei’s final request: “Zhiqing, let’s go back to being normal friends, okay?”

It took a lot of fatigue bombing to get to that ‘point’. My ability to think ‘malfunctioned’.

That it’s for my own good? Then what’s the point of holding on to this relationship? I was so tired… “Uh…” I answered stiffly, with one word. I agreed in principle.

In fact, the entanglement between Wei and me is still not over.

After the incident, he kept up his habit of calling me whenever he thought of me; and we talked about things that are not purely for friends. So I didn’t take Wei’s talk of a breakup agreement seriously – maybe he was just upset for the moment and said those hurtful things.

Within a month, the boy mentioned the breakup request again, which also hurt me and made me more and more confused about his intentions. After that, his conversations with me continued to be very intimate, and it seemed like it was over, but it wasn’t.

The same scenario played out a total of five full times! Each time, the impact and shock on me increased with each passing day. It was as if my heart had been thrown into a stone mill by Wei and churned, crushed to the point of being broken, and extracted to the point of nothingness. Over and over again.

I’m out in the world, no longer a carefree student. With the pressure of work and the race against time, I am busy working hard for the sake of the still satisfying five bucks of rice; my friends are also sprinting for their own careers. Everyone is busy.

Right. I’m too busy to heal a broken heart; I’m too blind to see where the future lies; and I’m too confused to know what I’m living for.

The wounds of the heart more than spread, bleed, inflame, septicize, and spread.

Every morning, I awoke like a wandering soul, dragging an empty shell to clock in and out of work.

I don’t want to get rid of my friends, I don’t want to go on the Internet, I don’t want to answer the phone, and my whole heart is twisted together.

Not wanting to do anything, I heart to close soon.

The only thing that makes me react is thinking of Wei. Waiting for the bus, squeezing into the subway, or even going to work – a small movement, his silhouette, smile, and voice, all appear in my mind; the kind of pain that I’m sure many of you have experienced.

Tears are the best way for me to vent my emotions.

My supervisor and colleagues often make mistakes in official matters. For this reason, I was criticized and blamed, and I did not react when he scolded me at the top of his voice.

Even as I slept, I thought of the boy, “If only he were here next to me, if only… Unfortunately, there were no more ‘what ifs’. Weak and helpless, I resorted to the old method of covering my head with a blanket and crying in secret…

He doesn’t know, he doesn’t even know what I’ve suffered…

I was like a zombie. I went to work and came back from work on time all day long, but I was not in the mood to talk, to do anything, to chat, to go shopping… I could move around because I was a person.

A number of days passed in this way. I suddenly had a feeling of self-loathing!

The whole world has abandoned me! No one cares for me! No one to pity me! No one to lean on! No one to send me a dream, to get me out of my unstable life!

No one will wipe away the teardrops that will fall for me! Will anyone ever sing me a love song again?

There’s no one! …

I was left in the corner. Waste is cleaned up and has recycling value; am I even worse than that?

I asked myself, my heart was in darkness. My confidence, my smile, my hope all turned to smoke. No one told me.

I began to isolate myself from others, ignoring no one; stopped dressing up and getting all puffy so no one would look anyway.

Closed to the world, I seal my sobbing heart tightly, I don’t want to be hurt anymore! …looking at the calendar, several more months had passed and Christmas Day was approaching. I felt much calmer, but I couldn’t help thinking about Wai. It must be snowy and cold up there in Canada. Just knit a nice long scarf for him!

I stepped up to the plate and picked a mixed arrangement of wool yarns in warmer colors in hopes that he would recall the warm feelings I had given him.

Once the scarf was knitted, I wrapped it up and sent it by courier to Canada as usual. Once the boy receives it, he will definitely call to thank me. Then, I have to tell him what I have decided in my heart.

“Zhi Qing, it’s me! I received the scarf from you, it’s very pretty and quite warm. It doesn’t look like it was bought outside, did you knit it?” Wei’s tone on the phone sounded quite happy.

I said calmly, “Yes, it’s the same as the dumplings I made – the world’s best ‘Zhi Qing’ brand.”

“I…, Zhiqing…”

“Wei, there’s something I have to tell you.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“I think, as you first mentioned, let’s just be friends…”

The boy stayed for a moment, “Are you sure this is a good idea? Are you sure you can forget our past? Do you promise you’ll be able to keep the original friendship pure? …”

He asked a long list of questions, all of which I answered with a definite ‘yes’.

“Okay, if you insist.” He promised, “I’m sorry for letting you down for nothing…”

I was furious: “Wei, you said you wanted to break up first! And now you’re saying this? That’s not nice, is it? If you really cared about me, why didn’t you try to bear the pain of longing earlier? Do you know how hard it is for me?”

“Uh… Zhiqing…”

“So let’s do this – let’s cool off for a period of time, and when I’ve dulled my feelings for you, we’ll both be in touch again.” …

I don’t allow him room to bargain. He was wrong in the first place.

A month apart, it felt like I had left this emotion behind. I picked up the phone receiver again and picked up the connection again. Only, this time, I went back to my old ways, and once again, I got involved. It was 1:30 a.m. on a Saturday at the end of July this year. I opened my eyes in the middle of the night. Suddenly, I wanted to hear Wei’s voice. Anyway, I dialed the number.

It was around nine thirty in the morning by his end’s count. The call connected and the boy’s voice rang in my ear.

“Hello? ┅Please, who is it that I’m looking for～?” Wai was still awake and lethargic.

“It’s me! Of course I’m looking for you, sleepyhead…” I said with a smile.

He paused, “Huh? It’s only 9:30 in the morning? Zhiqing, isn’t it just after 1:00 at night in Hong Kong? You’re calling in the middle of the night, trying to race an owl to stay awake?”

“Can’t I miss you?”

“Yes, yes! As long as you’re happy…” he laughed to flatter me.

This conversation took over two hours.

‘DUH… DUH…’ Wei had an interruptive phone call cut in.

“Someone’s calling in, just give me a second!” The boy prepares to cut and turn the phone.

“No! Don’t waste the phone bill, let’s talk about it later…”

I put the phone back and threw my body back on the bed, ‘It feels like Wai is a different person to me. …perhaps it’s less difficult to be friends with him…; besides, Wai doesn’t love me as much as he used to.’

I finally made the decision to go for broke – this time, this time I would be able to let go of my relationship with him completely! The weight on my chest was finally removed, and the invisible burden I had been carrying for over a year was lifted…

The first Sunday in August, the boys called long distance again. I informed him of my practiced decision and what to say with ease and zero burden.

Free from bitterness, there would be no pain of heartbreak, and Wei and I became true friends.

The result doesn’t matter, the process is what I cherish.

However, how many tears have I shed? How many times have I cried?

Tears break the bridge of magpies…

“Hello? Zhiqing, Zhiqing! What are you thinking about?” Concerned words rang out on the other end of the phone. “Do you have something on your mind?”

I then remembered that Wei was still on the line, “It’s nothing. I was just remembering things from the past, and I felt a lot of emotions.”

“In all things, ‘look forward’ and don’t hesitate.” The boy spoke impassionately.

“Yes, I know!” I smiled, still with my old innocence.

The sound of rain.

I looked out the window and blue raindrops danced deftly.

My heart is raining…

End of Chapter 2, to be continued…