I Am The Third Party (GL) - Chapter 6

Qi Xi, what do you want to tell me?

I rubbed the book, and the vellum rubbed off fine lint.

“So you have to love yourself even more. Don’t make those who love you sad, and don’t make yourself sad either.” I handed the book back to her.

I paused. “Take care of yourself. We won’t see each other again. Bye.”

“Qiao Xianyu—”

The next second, she chased me out, calling my name loudly.

I hurried into the elevator, pressed the button, and the elevator began to descend.

I leaned against the wall, feeling a little exhausted, and I didn’t know how to describe my current mood.

Sad? Heartbroken?

Maybe.

The lights on the elevator ceiling were bright, glaring at my eyes.

I remembered the ferocious look on Qi Xi’s face when he scolded Wei Ling at the restaurant at noon.

At that time, Qi Xi was burning, and he took me with him.

No one has ever made me feel this way.

In a life where everyone pursues stability and peace, even the slightest bit of unconventional or eccentric thinking is immediately suppressed.

They say that restless and wrong thoughts should be nipped in the bud. The minority obeys the majority; that’s fate.

Maybe what she did was wrong, violent, vulgar, but what did it matter? Wei Ling wasn’t exactly polite, was she?

She dared to resist, and she wouldn’t hesitate to carry out her will, whether it was gentle or brutal.

It all captivated me.

Qi Xi’s aura was like a chemical molecule full of allure, stimulating my cerebral cortex, urging me to bravely explore, to approach, even making me feel the more dangerous, the more exciting.

I closed my eyes, but my eyelids couldn’t block out all the light.

Through the skin, I saw a dark orange-yellow, indescribably gloomy.

I took out my phone and blacklisted Qi Xi’s number.

It was a bit presumptuous.

We just met by chance, and we’re done. There’s no need to contact each other again.

But I dreaded her coming back, even if it was just the appearance of words, symbols, or data related to her.

I missed my grandfather, a Taoist priest with a big nose. Grandpa

, do you think I should go back to the Taoist temple to burn incense to the ancestor and get some yellow talismans to ward off evil? Things

haven’t been going my way lately.

It

‘s raining.

Behind the dorm lies a river, dripping water into it.

I lie in bed, listening to the symphony of gentle rain and river, imagining myself a fish, swimming wherever I please.

The weather grows colder, and I curl up in my covers, hugging myself tightly.

I begin to long for a soft embrace, warm and secure.

I hear others openly tell her they want her to hold them, but I can’t.

I, too, long for her embrace, secretly craving that warmth, that comfort.

She says I smell good, and I’m both terrified and delighted, because every time I get close, I can smell a special scent that

belongs only to her, so delicious it captivates me.

I have a keen nose, but smell is my Achilles’ heel.

Every time I’m in her arms, surrounded by her scent, I become hypersensitive and excited, as if on steroids. I want to be melted by her warmth, to be touched by her fingers, to be kissed by her lips, and so much more.

I remember us walking in the alley, the white clouds in the sky drifting very slowly, Qi Xi’s eyes were very calm, so calm that I was afraid even the white clouds would fall into them.

She said: Do you have someone you like?

No.

She said: Have you ever liked a man?

No.

She said: Have you ever liked a woman?

I want to like you, does that count?

Qi Xi, I’m so cold, really so cold… …

————————-

“Hello, Xue Wu.”

“Boss?”

There was a bit of noise in her voice, so I raised my voice, “Xue Wu!”

“Yes, I’m here, boss, is there something?”

“Starting tomorrow I won’t be going to work in the store. You can post a job notice and hire a part-time worker.”

She was silent for a moment, then said, “Okay, how much do you want for a part-time worker?”

“Eight hundred yuan a month, just come when it’s busiest. You can teach me how to grind coffee and mix drinks.”

“Okay, got it.”

“Yes.”

“Boss.” She suddenly called me, “Will you come to work in the store in the future?”

“Not every day, just occasionally.”

“Okay.”

“Then I’ll hang up first, you’re busy.”

I checked the calendar on the bedside table. It was almost Frost’s Descent.

The wind grew colder, and the ginkgo trees behind the library turned even yellower.

Just as I was about to hang up, Xiao Xuewu’s cold voice came over the speaker again, “Xianyu.”

She’d always called me boss, never by my name.

My heart skipped a beat. “Huh?”

she said, “Xianhu Park has a few swans. Do you have time this weekend? Let’s go see them together.”

Yes, the A City Daily had reported the day before yesterday: Xianhu Park had purchased several swans and raised them in Shenxian Lake, attracting a significant number of tourists.

I suddenly remembered my teenage years, when I was still in high school.

My grandfather had a fortune-telling stall in a park, and I’d join him, fooling around nearby and reading people’s palms.

“Okay, you treat,” I smiled.

“Sure, what would you like to eat, Cantonese-style dim sum?” she asked.

I couldn’t see her, but I knew she must be squinting her eyes, her lips slightly pursed, a small mole at the corner of her mouth throbbing slightly.

“Okay, see you at the main entrance of Xianhu Park on Sunday.”

“Okay, I’ll wait.”

Whoosh—

after hanging up, I sprawled out on my bed, tossing and turning, trying to roll around. But the dorm bed was too small, and I fell to the floor.

The bed was too small.

The dorm was too small.

I got up and sat at my desk, pulling out my notebook and gel pen, and began to seriously consider my future.

I couldn’t live on campus anymore.

My cafe was on campus before, so living there was convenient for my business and my life.

But I can’t limit myself to this. The money I’ve earned over the past few years is enough for me to find a space downtown and open another cafe. Rent and other costs are higher in the city, but the income will also increase. I’ve considered opening a shop downtown for a long time, but it was put on hold for various reasons.

Now I have to move out. I’ll leave the HKUST business to Xiao Xuewu.

Starting today, I’m going to inquire about stores on the pedestrian street in the downtown commercial area and look for suitable ones.

I also need to think about the marketing plan and business strategy.

Renovation, purchasing equipment, and hiring staff will all cost a lot of money. I need to first clear out the budget, conduct an assessment, and calculate the maximum and reasonable costs…

Qi Xi knows I’m at HKUST, and I work there. As long as I stay there, there’s a chance I’ll meet her.

I can’t meet her.

———————–

Dong Dong Dong——

“Xiao Qiao, I’m coming in?”

Aunt Zhang?

What are you doing so early in the morning? I’m still in my pajamas…

“I’m here, I’m here. What’s wrong?”

I put on my windbreaker and slippers, stumbling to open the door.

“Xiao Qiao, your cousin’s been going from dormitory to dormitory looking for you. You kid, why didn’t your cousin tell her your address when she came? It’s so hard to find her.”

I stared blankly at Qi Xi, his eyes narrowed and a smile on his face as he took off his sunglasses, stunned.

“It’s okay, Auntie, I found you.”

“Auntie Zhang, she’s not my cousin, she—”

Qi Xi covered my mouth with his hand and smiled faintly at Auntie Zhang. “Auntie, she’s mad at me, just kidding.”

Auntie Zhang thought we were real sisters and just thought we were joking, chatting about family matters before leaving.

I was furious.

You’re not afraid of a tiger-like opponent, you’re afraid of a pig-like teammate!

Auntie Zhang, you’ve really screwed me this time.

———————

As Qi Xi held me in his arms, I knew it was all over.

I knew better than anyone that Qi Xi was a scumbag who was acting like a gangster and oblivious to it.

In her mind, hugging and cuddling were normal, and she could do whatever she wanted, regardless of whether others agreed or not.

I suddenly felt wronged. I didn’t want to stay alone, struggling in this embrace that had embraced countless people.

Besides, somewhere unknown to me, she had a fiancée sitting at an unknown ferry, waiting for the next boat to take her home.

“I told you, we’re even.” I think this is the coldest tone I’ve ever used in my life. I never knew I could make such a sound before.

She hugged me tighter, like a child hugging a stuffed animal.

I found it funny. No one was taking her things, and besides, there wasn’t anything of hers here to begin with.

Hot, moist breaths kept hitting the back of my neck, a numbing, itchy sensation seeping into my pores, flowing through my bl00d vessels, and into every nerve ending in my skin.

She spoke with a thick, nasal voice, “I miss you.”

I felt like I couldn’t hold it back any longer.

Every finger in my body trembled, tightening, opening, and tightening again.

I beg you to stop joking.

I can’t afford to play games, Qi Xi.

“Qi Xi,” I cried, closing my eyes and listening to the gurgling sound of the river outside the window. “I said, we’re done. You can have fun all you want, but don’t look for me. I have to work, make money, and live. I take back what I said last night. You can have as many women as you want at the same time. You still have a fiancée. You said you’ve been together for a long time. She needs your care, and she needs to take care of you.

“Qi Xi, I don’t want to see you again. I don’t want to have any contact with you.” “

Qi Xi, I beg you, please go away. I can’t hold on any longer.”

She has no idea how much I want to turn around and hug her, to tell her that I miss

her too. But she’s had so many women, and I can’t even be considered her.

We only “met.”

What I think and what she does are so abnormal.

Damn it, why can’t I stand her scent? Every part of my body is itching.

“Little fairy, I’m sorry.” She still refused to let me go. “Listen to me, I think everything you’ve seen about me these past two days has given you a misunderstanding. I’m not a playboy, and I’m not a promiscuous person. I don’t want to play with you either. I just miss you, want to see you, and want to talk to you.

My heart was about to stop beating. “Qi Xi, I want to discuss something with you. Let’s let go of each other first, okay?”

“No, you’ll run away if I let go.”

She really understood me.

I really felt powerless. No matter what I did, I couldn’t escape.

My reason told me to do this, but what I actually did was contrary to my thoughts.

Therefore, even if I knew that what she said was not true, even if I could only be played by her and would soon be thrown away, even if she had a legitimate fiancée waiting for her at home…

I still…

“I won’t run away, just keep talking.” I softened my body and leaned back against her, patting her arm. She hurriedly grabbed my hand and held it tightly in her palm.

She said, “I still want to eat the food you cook. “

Pfft…

I could cry tears just last moment, but now I can laugh tears.

Qi Xi, Qi Xi, you really can ruin the atmosphere. I surrender to you.

I turned around and hugged her neck, grinning at her, “Are you hungry? I’ll cook noodles for you.”

“If I don’t let go, you’ll run away.” She pouted.

“I’m serious. I won’t run away. I’ll cook noodles for you.”

“No. “

She leaned against me in a naughty way, and refused to let go no matter what I said.

She wouldn’t let go as long as I held her. This child must be lacking love.

Don’t say it, it’s really possible.

Who doesn’t feel warm when talking about family? Even the rebellious boy who has the worst relationship with his family can curse and complain.

But when I told Qi Xi about the family portrait, she didn’t care at all. She didn’t feel happy or sad. She was very calm, as if it didn’t exist at all.

What has she been through?

Why haven’t I seen her family in her house, nor have I heard her mention them? What’s going on between her and her fiancée? What does Wei Ling mean by the Qi family, the young master, and the king

? Qi Xi, what story do you have that makes you so handsome, so cool, and so cute?

I really want to know, can you tell me?

I moved her hand to my waist and tightened it, “Hold on tight, come with me, I’ll cook noodles, you’re not hungry, I am.”

She immediately became excited, “I’m hungry too.”

I smiled as I picked up some noodles and turned on the small electric milk cooker to boil water. “Qi Xi, you said I’ve only known you for a few days. At noon you said you were hungry, so I treated you to a rice bowl. At night you were still hungry, so I cooked for you myself. In the morning you were actually hungry too, so I made you noodles. Am I your babysitter?”

She picked up a noodle from my hand and crunched it. “I’ll ask you to be my babysitter, and you cook for me. Five thousand yuan a month, how about it?”

“I still have to go to work,” I said.

She was stunned for a moment and asked, “You’re not going to class?”

I chuckled. “Sister, you graduated three years ago and have achieved some success in your own business, okay?”

Qi Xi was a little stunned. “You’re not a science student?”

What? You still think I’m not young enough?

“I used to be, I graduated a long time ago.”

“You can’t tell, you don’t look like a member of society at all.”

“Only you do.” “Do

I look like a member of society?”

“Well, the kind who hangs out with the gang.”

Qi Xi finished chewing a noodle and smacked his lips. “Just barely. Just like you, I used to be, I graduated a long time ago.”

“Huh?” I turned around. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.” She let go of me and brushed the ash off her hands. Her long, jet-black hair brushed against my cheeks and neck, tickling me. “The throne was usurped. Otherwise, you would have been appointed head chef of the imperial kitchen.”

“Qi Xi, that Wei Ling said, you’re some kind of young master…” I covered the small pot lid and pondered for a long time before finally asking, my curiosity suffocating. “Really?”

Qi Xi asked for a rubber band. I have short, shoulder-length hair and a perm, so I rarely use hair bands.

After searching for a while, I made her a fancy hairband. As she tied her hair, she laughed at my taste for being unattractive, and I couldn’t help but feel angry again.

“Really?” She finished tying her hair, yawned, and lay down on the bed across from me, her T-shirt pulled up, revealing a tanned waist.

It wasn’t the slender waist of an ordinary woman, but rather firm and tight. If you looked closely, you could even see the faint texture of muscle.

I noticed a brown scar near the edge of her jeans, half showing through her head. It must have been there for a while.

“To restore my image in your eyes, I need to clarify my background,” she said.

“Wait,” I interrupted her quickly, “Young Master, let’s have breakfast first.”