Lend Me Your Shoulder - Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Xu Yeyu hadn’t gone far when Lu Wanyi came in through the door.

She came empty-handed and complained to Lu Yanbai.

“Yakult is sold out again… I didn’t manage to buy any!”

“The first few stores didn’t have any, that’s understandable—they were out of stock. But the last store said they originally had two rows, but two girls in red clothes bought them all, just an hour before I got there. Brother, I’m so unlucky.”

After recalling Xu Yeyu and Xiang Wei’s red clothes, Lu Yanbai suddenly fell silent: “…”

Lu Wanyi pointed at what he was holding: “Where did you get that? How come you have it?”

“Maybe…” He paused, “someone had a guilty conscience.”

After returning, Xiang Wei also tried to “grab” one of Xu Yeyu’s stuffed toys: “Give me one, please?”

Xu Yeyu shook her head decisively: “No, my husband gave it to me, I can’t give it to anyone else.”

“Husband??” Xiang Wei frowned. “Don’t tell me you’ve been brainwashed by that claw machine? Weren’t you just calling him your boyfriend before?”

“Upgraded,” Xu Yeyu smiled slightly, recalling how Lu handed her the toy earlier today, “My Lu was too charming today, so I unilaterally declared we’re married.”

“…Upgraded? Your Lu?”

“Games can level up; I just upgraded Professor Lu from boyfriend to husband.” Xu Yeyu hugged the stuffed toy and went into the bedroom. “I’m going to sleep, good night.”

Xiang Wei snorted: “Look at you acting all lovey-dovey.”

A few days later, the editor informed Xu Yeyu that the issue of Zero Wind magazine featuring her short story had been published and asked her to forward the book news.

After forwarding it, she stopped by a bookstore and bought the magazine back to her apartment.

She placed the magazine right in the center of the coffee table and sat on the sofa, sipping some water. As she set the glass down, her peripheral vision caught the magazine cover.

The cover had the big title of her short story for that issue, along with a classic quote excerpt, and an editor’s recommendation:

“Long-awaited return! The popular author Ye Xixi returns after half a year with a powerful new short story!”

She sat cross-legged, leaning sideways on the sofa, staring at those words as if trying to see through them.

Inside was a page with a note from Wanwan, complaining about how slowly Xu Yeyu submitted her manuscripts, her own hard work urging Xu, readers’ anticipation for Xu’s work, and even a nudge about her long novel.

When Xiang Wei came back, Xu Yeyu was still sitting on the sofa, lost in thought.

“What’s wrong?” Xiang Wei waved her hand in front of her. “What are you daydreaming about?”

Before Xu Yeyu could answer, Xiang Wei followed her gaze to the table and was surprised: “Wow, you actually wrote a short story? Is this some old stash from a couple of years ago?”

“…”

Xiang Wei picked up the magazine: “So touching, seeing you pick up the pen again in your lifetime. I get why you’re spacing out on the sofa. Writing is tough; you deserve a rest.”

Xu Yeyu finally spoke: “Writing isn’t that hard. It’s not tiring. It’s just that ‘coming down to earth’ is too exhausting.”

Xiang Wei frowned in disdain.

After about fifteen minutes of reading, Xiang Wei raised an eyebrow satisfied: “Not bad. Who says you’re in a writer’s block? I think you’re just well-fed and warm and now thinking all day about fooling around with your professor.”

“I’m not even a mid-length story,” Xu Yeyu hugged her knees. “If I couldn’t even write mid-length stories, how would I make money to support myself? You’re just a spendthrift.”

Xiang Wei: ???

“Your family’s not with me, Xu Shimu.”

The sudden title made Xu Yeyu pause for a moment, then she nodded: “Good one, I’ll send you a red envelope tonight.”

“Seriously,” Xiang Wei put the magazine down, “It’s been almost two years. You might get stuck on mid-length stories, but at least you can still submit something. When it comes to long novels, you totally crash. Damn, two years and you wrote only 22 characters, and that was last month. If I weren’t your reader, I’d be suffocated. Do you have some grudge with the long novel’s male and female leads?”

“I’m writing it, though.”

Xiang Wei laughed: “Writing? I can type with my toes and write a whole book in two years.”

Xu Yeyu stood up.

“What are you going to do?” Xiang Wei asked.

“I want to see if your toes really can type.”

“……..”

Xiang Wei seized the chance: “Since you’re up, go grab the notebook in your room where you write the plot.”

“I saw it last time; you wrote several pages and even overturned your plan a few times.”

Actually, Xu Yeyu had a rough direction for the story.

She had been thinking hard about how to fill enough inspiring content into the big picture.

Simply put — inspiration.

“Inspiration doesn’t come that easily,” Xu Yeyu said seriously. “I’m a professional writer.”

After a while, Xiang Wei grabbed some melon seeds and glanced at her: “Is it just because inspiration hasn’t come? Even then, two years without any progress? Like you’re cursed, as if some seal stops your hands and you lose your soul every time you open the long novel file?”

Accompanied by birds chirping outside the window, Xiang Wei casually yet carefully asked: “You’re not that kind of person, I think there’s another reason.”

That question had been in Xiang Wei’s heart for a long time. What used to be jokes, now was the right atmosphere, so she wanted to care about her best friend.

Xu Yeyu sat beside her and grabbed a handful of melon seeds: “Caramel flavor? I want caramel.”

“Hey, don’t dodge my question.”

“Okay,” Xu Yeyu shrugged, “It’s because I like the male lead in my long novel too much. I don’t want to give the female lead to him, so I always want to kill off the heroine and be with him myself. But that’s impossible, so I restrain myself and don’t write.”

Xiang Wei: “………”

“Xu Yeyu, do you think I’m an idiot?”

Xu Yeyu nodded awkwardly: “Do you want the truth?”

The two bickered for a while. The atmosphere fell silent; they were both lost in thought.

After a while, Xu Yeyu decided to come clean: “Well… something happened before.”

Xiang Wei looked at her: “Did someone break your tendons?”

“Have you been reading too many rebirth revenge novels,” Xu Yeyu gave a black line, “This is a civilized society with laws, Xiang Wei, I’m healthy.”

Xiang Wei smiled and looked at Xu Yeyu: “Alright, if you don’t want to say, I won’t force you.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to say it, it’s just not solved yet,” Xu Yeyu said. “Once it’s resolved, I’ll be much better and will tell you first thing.”

Xiang Wei nodded: “I knew you weren’t just dragging your feet.”

Xu Yeyu wanted to say, “See, you understand me.”

Xiang Wei added: “After all, long novels pay so much money. Who wouldn’t want it?”

“…”

After their chat, Xiang Wei went to take a shower.

Xu Yeyu spaced out for a while and then remembered she hadn’t contacted her family for a few days, so she opened WeChat to ask her mother, Chen Zhi, what she was doing.

Soon, Chen Zhi called: “You still remember to call Mom?”

Xu Yeyu touched her nose: “It hasn’t been that long. Don’t we often message each other? I sent you lots of middle-aged women’s favorite emojis a few days ago.”

Chen Zhi laughed: “We’re having dinner. Grandpa said he hadn’t seen us for a long time and wanted us all to eat together. Too bad you’re not here, everyone else came.”

“Is Grandpa still in good health?”

“Strong as ever. How about you? Are you used to living there?”

“Pretty good. You all take care of yourselves too.”

“It’s just that, Mom says, it’s better to live locally. We can meet whenever we want, and also…” Chen Zhi paused here.

Being the only daughter and having succeeded early, Chen Zhi and Xu Yuan dote on and care for her in every way. Now that she lived alone away from home, naturally, they were worried.

Xu Yeyu comforted her mother: “I know what you mean, but you also know I didn’t move here on a whim. I have something to do here. Things are going well, I’m used to living here. Don’t worry.”

Regarding what happened back then, she firmly believed she could find the truth and would never give up easily.

Only by unlocking this knot in her heart could she pick up the pen again and give a rebuttal to all doubts.

She’s never one to admit defeat, and she never has.

“Are you talking with my sister on the phone?”

Xu Yeyu was pouring water and stopped after hearing her cousin Jiang Zhou’s voice, setting the kettle aside.

“Mom, give the phone to Ah Zhou, we haven’t chatted in a long time.”

Jiang Zhou answered, and the darkness and heaviness in his tone gradually lifted: “Hey, sis.”

He then quietly complained: “Since you’re not here, no one’s picking books with me.”

Xu Yeyu smiled: “How old are you? Still need your sister to pick books with you? Since I’m not here for a while, have you been behaving?”

“Just the same, no fun, I stay in my room.”

Avoiding sensitive topics carefully, Xu Yeyu said: “There’s a lot of fun. You should go out for a walk. The outside world is wonderful. There are all kinds of beauties around you. You just need eyes that know how to discover.”

The siblings were close, both authors with many common topics. They talked for quite a while before hanging up because Jiang Zhou’s mother called him to eat.

After hanging up, Xu Yeyu reminded him to eat well.

Jiang Zhou has depression. That’s why Xu Yeyu was so cautious chatting with him. It was better a few years ago; some creatives have mild depression, but his worsened suddenly two years ago. The family avoids the topic; he himself refuses to see a psychologist, just enduring it like that.

Helping him get better was one reason Xu Yeyu chose to study psychology.

On Saturday afternoon, Xu Yeyu went to Lu Yanbai’s office and heard he was still on the phone.

“I know. Psychological counseling is part of it, but don’t forget to take medicine. This illness can relapse, so you don’t need to worry too much. He’s much better than last year.”

“If you’re free these nights, and everyone’s home, I’ll find time to come by.”

Xu Yeyu pushed open the door and heard the gratitude on the other end: “We really appreciate you. We know you’re busy, but you still care about our little Fu. We are deeply grateful.”

Lu Yanbai said calmly: “It’s nothing. After all, I took the case last year, and following up is my responsibility.”

…

Xu Yeyu sat at her seat.

This must be the patient Lu Yanbai took earlier whose condition had relapsed and whose family had found him again, prompting him to resume treatment.

He’s been especially busy lately. Every time she enters his office, he’s on the phone, looking tired and sleep-deprived. Once, waiting for her to finish some exercises, he even fell asleep on the sofa.

She had wondered why he still took cases when he supposedly stopped.

Now it seemed it was the same case as before, and he had been busy with it from then till now.

Since he wasn’t completely off cases, asking him for help with Jiang Zhou’s depression might have a good chance.

Rules are strict, but people are flexible.

If she could get Lu Yanbai to help treat Jiang Zhou, his situation would definitely improve.

Lu Yanbai just lifted his cup, water sliding down his throat, when he heard Xu Yeyu’s voice.

She licked her lips and softly tested with a breathy voice, like scratching with sound: “Professor, can I ask you for one night… is it very expensive?”

She didn’t think much about the question when she asked, but with the atmosphere and her tone, it seemed to carry some ambiguous meaning…

Lu Yanbai’s fingers paused; the water abruptly stuck in his throat, causing him to choke.

The cup fell back on the table, accompanied by a slight cough: “Cough, cough cough…”