After Breaking the Ice-Beauty's Heart - Chapter 20
Chapter 20: Zhi Zhi Didn’t Forget Her.
Zhou Nianzhi was stunned, completely unprepared for Song Yuli’s blunt refusal. After she recovered, she became more animated. “Why?” she asked.
“Because I don’t want to,” Song Yuli replied.
“But I haven’t seen Grandma in such a long time,” Zhou Nianzhi said, trying to appeal to her emotions, her voice softening. “I just want to go see her.”
“So you know it’s been a long time,” Song Yuli said, staring ahead, her tone devoid of any emotion. “When you left, why didn’t you think about going to see her?”
Zhou Nianzhi’s nose stung, and a feeling of injustice welled up. “But I had my reasons!”
“What reasons?” Song Yuli immediately asked.
“I…” Zhou Nianzhi took a deep breath. She still couldn’t bring herself to talk about what happened that year. She closed her eyes, then turned her head to look out at the long, dark night. “It’s nothing.”
Song Yuli didn’t press her further, simply replying, “Mhm.”
“Song Yuli,” Zhou Nianzhi said softly, watching the cars passing by and listening to the sound of the wind rushing past. “You’re pretty blunt, too.”
Because you’re angry that I left without a word, so you won’t let me see Grandma.
Song Yuli turned the steering wheel, changing lanes. “We’re not far behind.”
Zhou Nianzhi froze, and just as she was about to ask what she meant, she suddenly realized that Song Yuli was probably still mad at her for selling the guitar.
She had sold it, but she had also bought it back.
After breaking up with Song Yuli, Zhou Nianzhi, with her eyes swollen from crying, sold the guitar to a classmate she had met in guitar class, hoping to completely sever their ties.
But later, after Zhou Nianzhi and Sheng Ning left home and moved north, she suddenly really wanted the guitar back. Fortunately, after adding a few hundred yuan and paying for shipping, she bought it back from her classmate.
Although the now budget-conscious Zhou Nianzhi had sworn she would never make a money-losing deal again, she willingly accepted the loss of a few hundred yuan this time.
But Zhou Nianzhi would never tell Song Yuli any of this.
When she was little, she would watch TV and complain about why the characters didn’t just talk. Couldn’t they just clear up the misunderstandings? And why didn’t they tell their family and friends when they were sick instead of suffering alone?
But now that she was older and faced with all of this herself, Zhou Nianzhi had also become one of those “uncommunicative” people from her childhood.
In Zhou Nianzhi’s mind, growing up was a process of burying your secrets deep in your heart, shattering your grievances and embedding them in your bones, enduring all hardships alone, and not even making a sound when you cried.
Having been hurt before, she no longer dared to trust anyone easily. Even those she was once closest to could betray her.
The trust that was lost also took her confidence with it. In a constant struggle against an insurmountable sense of inferiority and endless fear, she began to hate the world. At this moment, she only lived for her mom.
So, with her body covered in thorns and her mouth full of them, how could she hug the one she loved or express her affection?
Zhou Nianzhi fell asleep in the car. She had lost count of how many times she had dreamt of falling into the sea. At first, she would struggle, but the seawater would cover her mouth, and she couldn’t speak, couldn’t scream. Finally, she would drop her hands, close her eyes, and fall.
Just as she had written—
“I chase forward” “Chasing the never-ending tide” “I fall down” “Falling into endless darkness”
She was falling, and no one knew.
Splash.
Ripples appeared on the water’s surface.
She opened her eyes. The sky was already turning pale, and a faint glimmer of dawn shone through the car window and onto Zhou Nianzhi, signaling that day was about to break.
She turned her head and met those bright, clear eyes again.
“I was just about to call you, and you woke up,” Song Yuli said, standing in front of the passenger door, leaning in slightly as she looked at Zhou Nianzhi.
“Are we there?” Zhou Nianzhi rubbed her sleepy eyes and yawned.
“Not yet. It’s still a ways to go. Let’s eat something at this rest stop first,” Song Yuli said, seeing the sleepy tears in Zhou Nianzhi’s eyes. “Didn’t you sleep well?”
Zhou Nianzhi had just woken up and wasn’t very clear-headed yet. She nodded honestly. She really hadn’t slept well and had been having nightmares the whole time. A gust of wind suddenly slipped in through the door, blowing away her sleepiness and making her mind a little clearer.
She quickly changed her words. “Oh, I slept great. You’re a really good driver.”
Song Yuli replied with an “mhm” and then said, “Get out and walk around. You’ve been sitting for so long.”
“Okay,” Zhou Nianzhi unbuckled her seatbelt and stepped out. As soon as she was out, a dull ache radiated from her waist.
Song Yuli closed the car door. She turned around and saw Zhou Nianzhi crouching down. “What’s wrong?” she asked with a puzzled look.
“Nothing, I’ve just been sitting for a while, so I’ll just crouch for a bit,” Zhou Nianzhi said, secretly pinching her thigh hard to relieve the pain. But it hurt so much she felt like she was about to tear her skin off. What kind of twenty-four-year-old body was this? It was about to fall apart.
Song Yuli stared at Zhou Nianzhi for a moment, then slowly said, “I don’t think they allow urinating or defecating here.”
Zhou Nianzhi: “…”
Even with her waist in so much pain, she really wanted to yell at Song Yuli.
“Your choice of words is very precise,” Zhou Nianzhi said, her anger turning to laughter. The pain in her waist also eased a bit. She slowly stood up and pointed to the restrooms. “It should be okay for me to go use the restroom there, right?”
She deliberately emphasized the word “should” as if to echo Song Yuli’s words.
“I don’t think so,” Song Yuli replied. “That’s the men’s restroom.”
The conversation made Zhou Nianzhi so angry that her back no longer hurt and her legs weren’t sore. She just wanted to rush over, shake Song Yuli’s body, and scream, “Give me back the old Song Yuli!”
“Let’s go,” Song Yuli said, walking ahead. “We’ll go to the women’s restroom.”
Zhou Nianzhi, though speechless, followed her.
Ah, even going to the bathroom was so difficult for her now. When she went to wash her hands, she still had to support her back as she slowly walked out.
When she saw Song Yuli standing not far away, looking down at her phone, Zhou Nianzhi quickly dropped her hand from her waist, praying that Song Yuli hadn’t seen her.
She didn’t know why she was doing this. It wasn’t like Song Yuli seemed like the type to care anyway.
They ate instant noodles again, but this time Zhou Nianzhi was eating her own. She also took a drink out of her bag and gave it to Song Yuli. “You bought me one before. Since you won’t take my money, I’ll buy you an identical one.”
Song Yuli didn’t say anything, her face expressionless. She took the drink, took a few sips, and said, “It does cool you down.”
“It’s not bad,” Zhou Nianzhi said, opening her instant noodles. After she put all the seasoning packets in, she looked up and saw that Song Yuli had almost finished the entire bottle. “Are you that thirsty? I remember you didn’t really like this kind of drink.”
Oops.
She had accidentally revealed that she still remembered Song Yuli’s preferences.
Song Yuli didn’t seem to notice. She just nodded and said, “I was thirsty.”
Zhou Nianzhi’s gaze shifted from the bottle in her hand to the person’s face across from her. Putting aside her sharp jawline and fair neck, why did the usually cold and emotionless Song Yuli suddenly look a little sad?
Song Yuli lowered her head, twisting the bottle cap on with her distinctively jointed fingers. Her beautiful eyes were cast downward, staring forlornly at the water sloshing in the bottom of the bottle.
What was wrong?
Why was she drinking a soda like it was a heartbreak potion?
Zhou Nianzhi didn’t dare to ask. She changed the subject, hoping to make Song Yuli stop looking so sad. “Now that you’ve had this drink, I don’t owe you anything, right?”
Sad Song was still consistent. “You still owe me two yuan and fifty cents.”
Zhou Nianzhi: “…”
She shouldn’t have felt bad for her.
“Then I’ll pay you in cash,” Zhou Nianzhi said, reaching into her pockets for money.
“Okay,” Song Yuli uncharacteristically agreed.
Zhou Nianzhi couldn’t even find a pocket, let alone any money.
Hey, why did she forget that these pants had no pockets again?
If she weren’t so short on cash, she would never wear these pants again.
Zhou Nianzhi said, “I’ll give it to you when we get back in the car.”
Song Yuli shook her head and said, “This is your only chance to give me cash.”
Zhou Nianzhi turned and started walking toward the car. “I’ll go get it from the car for you.”
Song Yuli took another sip of her drink and said, “The car doors are locked. You can’t get in.”
Oh, for goodness sake.
Zhou Nianzhi really wanted to give Song Yuli a thumbs-up. But she didn’t dare say it to her face, afraid that Song Yuli would abandon her at the rest stop. She could only grumble to herself, “You’re so devious.”
“Song Yuli, I’m telling you,” Zhou Nianzhi said, sitting back down, her tone resolute. “I will not give up on giving you cash.”
Song Yuli didn’t say anything, just nodded in agreement.
Back in the car, Zhou Nianzhi noticed an empty drink bottle lying sideways behind the seat. “Did you put that there?” she asked with a puzzled look.
“I heard it helps with back pain,” Song Yuli replied.
Zhou Nianzhi was speechless. So Song Yuli had drunk the soda so quickly to make an empty bottle. They had thrown away almost all the empty bottles from the trip, leaving only this one.
Oh my God, this Song Yuli.
Zhou Nianzhi was truly at a loss for words. Even a simple “thank you” seemed to be stuck in her throat, unable to get out.
A few hours later, they arrived at her hometown.
After the car stopped, Zhou Nianzhi asked Song Yuli not to rush off. She then took out her wallet, counted the cash inside, and calculated the gas and toll fees for the trip, muttering, “I’ll give you the money first… Wait, it doesn’t look like I have enough.”
Hey, she couldn’t pay in cash after all.
Zhou Nianzhi turned her head, rubbing her head awkwardly. “How about I just scan your WeChat or Alipay instead?”
“Just owe me for now,” Song Yuli said, lowering her head to unbuckle her seatbelt.
“No!” Zhou Nianzhi blurted out.
The shout startled Song Yuli, who was unbuckling her seatbelt. She looked up and asked, “Why?”
Zhou Nianzhi couldn’t exactly say, “I don’t want to owe you anything,” especially since Song Yuli had given her a ride all the way to her doorstep. So she forced a smile and said, “Nothing. I just want to pay you now. I’m afraid I’ll forget later.”
“It’s fine. I’ll send you a message then,” Song Yuli replied.
Zhou Nianzhi was stunned. “How do you have my contact information?” she asked.
“You can give it to me now, and then I’ll have it,” Song Yuli said.
Zhou Nianzhi: “…”
She had been tricked by Song Yuli again.
“So you’ve been doing all this just to get my contact information?” Zhou Nianzhi asked. “Was the ‘I don’t use cash’ and ‘I can’t take QR code payments’ all for this, too?”
Faced with Zhou Nianzhi’s sudden questions, Song Yuli’s expression didn’t change. “I really don’t use cash much now,” she said.
Zhou Nianzhi heard her and thought it made sense. No one really used cash much anymore. So she said “Oh,” but then she immediately came back to her senses, frowned, and said, “Is that the point?”
Song Yuli turned off the car and took out the keys. “I don’t know what your point is. All I know is that the air conditioner is off and it’s hot in here. Just say whatever you want to say.”
Zhou Nianzhi felt the stifling heat in the car and wiped the sweat from her forehead, giving in. “Just add me. I’ll read my number, and you can find me on WeChat with my phone number.”
“It’s a little hard for me to hold my phone. I’ll read mine out to you,” Song Yuli said.
Zhou Nianzhi nodded, agreeing. “Okay.”
As Song Yuli read out the number, Zhou Nianzhi listened and typed. When she saw the familiar numbers, she muttered under her breath, “It’s still the same after all these years…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Zhou Nianzhi quickly stopped herself.
Oh my God, wasn’t she basically telling Song Yuli—
Hey, look, I still remember your number.
She could only pray in her heart that with Song Yuli’s current selective hearing, she hadn’t heard what she said.
Song Yuli didn’t react, and Zhou Nianzhi breathed a sigh of relief. She said, “I’ve saved it. I’ve also sent you a friend request. You can accept it later. I’m leaving now.”
She grabbed her few belongings, said a quick goodbye, opened the car door, and got out.
Song Yuli sat alone in the hot car, a slight smile on her face as she watched Zhou Nianzhi’s retreating figure.
She picked up her phone, which was right next to her, and clicked on the friend request from Zhou Nianzhi. She looked at the profile picture, a simple drawing of a person holding a guitar, and the username “Zhi.” She tapped on the screen for a moment, waited, then clicked to accept the friend request. They were now friends.
Soon, a transfer from “Zhi” came through.
Song Yuli hesitated for a moment, then clicked to receive it.
At least she now had Zhi Zhi’s contact information.
She leaned back in her seat, her smile growing wider.
Besides, Zhi Zhi still remembered her number.
She just hadn’t contacted her.
Zhi Zhi didn’t forget her.
“Ding dong—”
She received another message on her phone.
She came back to herself and covered her mouth, laughing at the message that had just popped up.