Like two frozen ice blades, Bai Luo Yin's darkened pupils scraped relentlessly at Gu Hai's heart.
"You called me out here and talked so much nonsense just so I can hear that last sentence, right?"
Gu Hai smiled rather insincerely as he looked straight at Bai Luo Yin, "You still know me so well."
"That's because you are an onion."
Somewhat curious, Gu Hai narrowed his eyes, "What do you mean?"
"You wrapped yourself up beneath such a thick layer of deviousness [1] just so that people can't help but want to dig deep for the secret that lies within your heart. But after they painstakingly hold their tears back and start to peel the layers one by one, ultimately, they discover that this onion simply has no heart."
Rather than being engulfed in rage, Gu Hai laughed instead, "Having no heart is better than having a rotten heart."
Taking a deep breath, Bai Luo Yin exclaimed, "Gu Zong, let me treat you to a meal!"
"Bai Shouzhang, this is too embarrassing."
Keeping his eyes on him, Bai Luo Yin was exceptionally courteous in his speech, "The one that should be embarrassed is me. You've shown such sincerity in wanting to collaborate with us, yet I've berated your reputation. Let this meal be an apology to you. I hope Gu Zong does not take this to heart."
Fine!
This sentence completely eradicated Gu Hai's intention to collaborate!
Not only did Gu Hai not turn hostile, he even laughed rather optimistically as he naturally placed his hand on Bai Luo Yin's shoulder.
"Once a man and a woman become husband and wife even just for one night, the love will linger for a hundred days. I will not take this small matter to my heart."
Bai Luo Yin felt the strength in Gu Hai's hand as heavy as lead as it pressed down heavily on his shoulder. It held him down to the point that he simply could not find his center of gravity.
When they arrived at the restaurant and the waiter kindly handed the menu over, Bai Luo Yin passed it directly to Gu Hai.
"There's no need to be so polite, order whatever you like."
Hearing that, an especially unctuous tone took refuge in Gu Hai's tone as he spoke, "Then, we should order some home cooked food!"
"Please don't!" Bai Luo Yin said rather magnanimously, "There's no need to eat home cooked food. Your own cooking skill is not much different from the chef here. It's better to order the food that you don't eat regularly."
"Then, I'm sorry ahead of time for inconveniencing you."
Having said those words, Gu Hai ordered more than ten famous dishes in one breath. Moreover, he ordered two portions of each dish. Once the order was placed, he expediently realized something that provoked a pretentiously regretful expression to languidly creep up his face, "Shit! I mistook this as a breakfast stall and thought the two of us still have the same appetite as before. No matter what we eat, it would be doubled. How about I call the waiter over to cancel some of the repeated orders?"
Although Bai Luo Yin smiled and merely said, 'There's no need to do that,' mentally, he really wanted to scold and curse him out.
Gu Hai, you bastard! I know you're fucking doing this on purpose!!
After all the dishes were placed on the table, Gu Hai was about to move his chopsticks when his movements abruptly came to a halt.
"Bai Shouzhang, just in case I finish eating and you suddenly change your mind, and want to collaborate with us, won't you have overcompensated?"
"That's absolutely impossible!" Bai Luo Yin's dark gaze aimed at Gu Hai, "You should eat peacefully."
After the meal, Bai Luo Yin went to settle the bill.
"Sir, altogether it's 4512 yuan [$752]. May I ask, are you going to pay with card or cash?"
Standing beside him, Gu Hai insincerely asked, "Do you have enough money? How about we use my card first?"
Those words immediately provoked Bai Luo Yin to swiftly hand his card over to the cashier. This meal truly struck a painful cord that reached to the depth of his bones.
As they made their way out of the restaurant, Bai Luo Yin suddenly stopped to look at Gu Hai, "I'm going back to the military base now. You should also make an early return as to avoid making my sister-in-law worried."
Gu Hai's heart tightened, "Aren't you going to invite me to your place?"
As Bai Luo Yin turned his head around, the solemn expression in Gu Hai's eyes could not be seen clearly in the darkness of the night.
"It's just the military dormitory. There's nothing good to see there."
Gu Hai's smile became even more unclear and insincere, "Since I've been searching for you for so many years, at the very least, let me see your hideout!"
Without saying anything else, Bai Luo Yin went straight into the car.
During the drive there, Gu Hai tailed closely behind Bai Luo Yin until they reached the military compound. Afterwards, he followed him closely again toward his one-person dormitory. It was a very ordinary dorm with only three rooms. For an average man, the room could be considered clean and tidy, but for someone like Gu Hai, who frequently went in and out of the military compound dormitory, this kind of room was a complete eyesore.
"In any case, you are at least a Deputy Commander, how can your room be so filthy like this? Why don't you find a few army orderlies and let them clean your room?" Gu Hai scanned the area with a revolting expression.
"I don't like other people entering my room."
Gu Hai opened the refrigerator and looked inside. It was practically empty inside with only a few bottles of beverage and a jar of pickled tofu. Taking out the jar, Gu Hai easily twisted the lid, but as soon as it was opened, a strong foul stench immediately assaulted his nostrils.
"When did you start to like this kind of flavor? You even eat rotten tofu!"
"That's not rotten tofu. It's fermented tofu."
Bai Luo Yin said bluntly while taking the jar back. But, as a result, the smell alone nearly caused him to tumble and turn a somersault. After taking one more look inside the jar, the contents had already gone moldy.
"I put it inside the refrigerator and forgot to eat it."
With that, Bai Luo Yin threw the jar directly into the trash can and angrily said, "You really shouldn't have come here."
"Hey, Bai Shouzhang, can you tell me why all your underpants are thrown all over the place?"
As Bai Luo Yin turned around to the sound of Gu Hai's voice, he immediately saw Gu Hai holding his underpants, swaying it around with a mocking expression. Bai Luo Yin drew closer and calmly snatched his underpants back before speaking with a face filled with disgust, "Stop touching my things!"
"Why are you making such a big deal about it? Back then, didn't I wash all your underpants for you?"
Once this sentence came out, the room immediately sank into a deathly silence. Their gazes inadvertently collided until both painstakingly shifted away in avoidance. Afterwards, neither said anything else about this topic.
The next sign of movements came when Bai Luo Yin began to collect all the underpants, piles of socks, and dirty clothes. Satisfied that he has gathered them all, he promptly threw everything into the washing machine. In less than a second, the sound of the washing machine running echoed from the bathroom.
Having been left alone, Gu Hai's eyes ran towards Bai Luo Yin's writing desk before he went over and looked beneath it. There was a box of instant cup noodles, with half of its content having already been eaten. On the desk were two packets of biscuits that had not been opened yet as well as a jar of rice congee containing a variety of ingredients……
Seeing all this, Gu Hai truly wanted to scold at him.
Bai Luo Yin, just what the fuck have you been eating? What is this fucking worn-out blanket that you cover yourself with, huh? Can't you walk a few steps outside and eat at a restaurant? Can't you take the blanket and air it out? You fucking wasted eight years of your life, and you still haven't learned how to take care of yourself. I've never seen a more useless person than you!!
When Bai Luo Yin returned to the bedroom, he discovered Gu Hai fiddling with his pillow.
"Put it down!!"
This unexpected roar reverberated throughout the entire room with a formidable aura. Before Gu Hai had a chance to take the pillowcase off, Bai Luo Yin barged in and shove him off the bed.
"Do you really need to go that far?" Gu Hai snorted coldly, "I saw that the pillowcase looked really dirty and wanted to take it off and hand it over to you so you can throw it into the washing machine. Aren't you disgusted resting your head on it every day?"
Bai Luo Yin only squeezed out three words, "I am happy to!" [2]
Gu Hai paced around the room in one full circle, then made a perfunctory expression as stopped in front of Bai Luo Yin and faintly said, "Honestly, seeing you live a life like this, it soothes the anger in my heart."
To that, Bai Luo Yin merely held a cold expression, "If you're satisfied then quickly leave here."
"I'm not satisfied yet. I want to be even more satisfied."
Having said that, Gu Hai continued to casually stroll around the room.
Giving him a quick look, Bai Luo Yin was not in the mood to acknowledge him anymore so instead he went to the bathroom to clean his shoes.
Just as Gu Hai reached the door, he suddenly heard a knock on the door. He glanced down at his watch and noticed that it was already 9:50 PM.
It's already this late and there's still someone paying him a visit. Bai Luo Yin, your private life is truly remarkable!
"Maj-"
The moment Liu Chong caught sight of Gu Hai, he stiffly swallowed the rest of the word.
"Aren't you the person who hit our Major the other day?" said Liu Chong as a ruthless expression emerged on his face.
The corner of Gu Hai's mouth perked up into a smirk, "Indeed, that person is me!" [3]
"You!…" Liu Chong bellowed in rage, "What did you do to our Major?!"
"Listen to what you're saying. Won't this make your Major lose his reputation? And, what do you mean by 'what did I do to him'? Why don't you ask, what has he done to me instead?"
The moment Bai Luo Yin heard the commotion from the other room, he immediately walked out. And, when he was met with Liu Chong standing at the doorway, his mind went blank for quite a while before he asked, "What are you doing here so late?"
Once Liu Chong saw that Bai Luo Yin was safe and sound, he felt a sense of relief and walked into the room with a bag in his hand. After placing the bag on top of the table, he cautiously said, "Major, I noticed you haven't eaten much for the past few days so I brought some dumplings for you. Since it's still warm, you should eat some while it's still hot."
"Didn't you have a mission to carry out today?" Bai Luo Yin asked.
Liu Chong awkwardly explained himself, "Yes. I just returned but I was afraid that you haven't eaten yet, so I…"
"He ate already." Gu Hai suddenly interrupted, "Give it to me!"
Naturally, Liu Chong was not going to dumbly hand over his good intentions to the enemy's hand. As a result, he tightened his hold on the bag, and without paying any attention to Gu Hai, he simply faced Bai Luo Yin and continued to say, "Major, you should put your shoes down. I can clean it for you so you can eat the dumplings first. It won't be good anymore when it cools down. Eat them quickly. They're the fennel stuffed ones."
"Your Major doesn't like eating fennel stuffed dumplings. He likes eating the zucchini and egg stuffed ones," said Gu Hai, with an overbearing tone that emphasized the meaning lying steep within his words.
"Who said I don't like eating it?" Bai Luo Yin wiped his hands clean and walked over, "My preference changed long ago."
After saying that, Bai Luo Yin took the bag from Liu Chong, opened the lunch box, and used a pair of chopsticks to pick up a piece of the dumpling before putting it into his mouth. While chewing, he looked at Liu Chong with a smile and said, "It's very delicious."
Gu Hai had never expected that even after eight years, seeing this kind of scene play out in front of him, would cause him to have a sudden impulse to take the lunch box and smash it on the floor.
In truth, after all these years, nothing has changed. It's just now, they are simply better at pretending and nothing more.
"Then, enjoy your meal. I'll leave first."
Before leaving, Gu Hai looked at Liu Chong with an intense gaze that held a deeper meaning.
Not long after Gu Hai left, Liu Chong also took his leave.
All of a sudden, Bai Luo Yin could no longer swallow the dumpling in his mouth. In reality, his preference has not changed at all. He does not like eating fennel stuffed dumplings, but instead, he loves to eat the zucchini and egg stuffed ones. The only thing was, no one cooks it for him anymore.
As for the pillowcase that Gu Hai had accidentally touched, silently resting inside was Gu Hai's school uniform from their youthful days. Eight years ago, when Bai Luo Yin left their home, he did not bring anything with him aside from that washed out uniform. Every day, whenever that pillow was beneath his head, it felt as if he was resting his head on Gu Hai's chest. And, the faintly discernible sound of that heartbeat would surely lull him into a peaceful sleep.
Translator's Note:
[1] 圆滑 – smooth/evasive/sly; 丰满 – well developed
[2] 爷乐意 – "I am (more than) happy/willing too!"- although it's three characters, it's not three words in English.
[3] 正是在下！- "Indeed, that is me!!" Gu Hai says this line in a very proud tone, that why LC was pissed.