Chapter 7 Chapter VII

"I like him," Lacey said, eating the last bite of pizza. Ellie stared at the ceiling and thought carefully. "You're sure to get along better when you both admit your mutual affection for each other," she said thoughtfully. "Well," Mei Qiu agreed with her, and lit another cigarette casually. "Indeed. But we also seem to have an understanding that we don't act on impulse." "That must be hard for you guys," Lacey said, looking at Mei Hagi through the glass of Coke. "I thought that since we're in that kind of place, and there's only the two of you around, it's almost impossible for you not to touch each other."

"Maybe," Meigi said. "Actually, I don't think we can do it either. That is, if we continue to be alone. The first night we lived alone in a tent, and if I didn't fall asleep as soon as I closed my eyes, I don't know. What's going to happen next. The only certainty is that I'll probably spend the night thinking about Moshi." "You said 'if we continue to be alone,'" Ellie said. "Not actually?" "Yeah. The next morning we met some Moshi friends on the stream." Mei Qiu put out her cigarette. "You know what? I think it's better to have other people present than to be alone with Mo Shi."

"Yes." Allie said. "Anyway, what happened after you met Mo Shi's friend?" Lacey hurriedly asked, to avoid Ai Li interrupting again. Mei Hagi recalled that old incident, and answered after a while. "Murth and I were kind of... well, we weren't telling the truth. When we ran into his friends on the creek, they took it for granted that I was a couple. As I was about to make my point, Mosh stopped me Later, I also thought that if Moshi told his friends that he was playing alone in the forest with a married woman, others would definitely have a lot of bad guesses. Uh, anyway, it’s not good for Moshi and me. It will be good."

Lacey said, "Meigi, what happened?" "I think, you can say that for the next two days, Moshi and I seemed to be playing house wine. At least we pretended in the real world." Meiqi took a deep breath and closed his mouth I thought about it for a while, then opened my eyes again, and lit another cigarette. "Mosh's friends thought he and I were a couple, and they treated us that way. It was a...revelation to me. You know, Applejack was the only guy I ever dated, and he My parents treat me like trash. They have money, but I..." "Bastard," Ellie said angrily.

"That's right." "You never tried to find out about your father?" Ellie asked. "At least who is he?" "He always knew where I was, and he didn't try to contact me, so why should I bother him?" Meigi said. Ellie frowned.She didn't like Mei Hagi's "why bother him" tone, as if Mei Hagi wasn't worth getting in touch with his biological father. "I want to hear you finish the story," Lacey said impatiently. "Okay," Meigi said. "Mursh and I spent the night at his friend's cabin. His friend's name was Eli, and he was with his fiancée, Carol. They were getting married in six weeks. Eli's parents and his My sister, Polly, was there too."

On the first night, although Meiqiu didn't tell the truth about her relationship with Moshi and her marital status, she told Mrs. Ba without any concealment about her background.At that time, she and Mrs. Ba were the only ones in the kitchen, picking beans together to make soup. After hearing about her life experience, Mrs. Ba just smiled slightly. "Can you cook, honey?" "I will defrost any food." Mei Hagi said with a smile. "Then, you can stay and talk with me while I'm cooking. Those boys won't come back for a while, we can take this opportunity to get to know each other better." Mrs. Ba gave Mei Hagi a careful look. "I think Moshi might be serious about you."

"I don't think so," Meigi said, ducking her head to hide the blush on her face. "He and I are separated by two worlds." "It's not that far off," said Mrs. Bart softly. "I think you have a serious side that you don't know about. Your pretty face is just a mask, huh?" Mei Qiu didn't know how to answer, at this moment, the kitchen door opened, and Mo Shi and Mr. Ba walked in, so she didn't have to answer. Mo Shi unexpectedly wrapped her arms around Mei Qiu's waist and hugged her up. "Woman, what's for dinner? I'm so hungry I could eat a bear." Mo Shi said, after putting her down on the ground, she rubbed against her neck a few more times.

Mei Qiu understood that she should push Moshi away, but his relaxed demeanor was something she had never seen before. "Green peas," Meigi said, realizing that everyone in the kitchen was watching them.She didn't know that they had never seen Mo Shi act so frivolously, even as a child he was very serious. "That's it?" Mo Shi asked, smiling at her. "Only green peas? I believe it will take hours to cook well, so why don't we go outside and catch some fireflies until the beans are cooked." Moshi's mischievous tone made everyone laugh. Mei Hagi stood on tiptoe and looked back through Moshi's head. "Which one can save me from the clutches of this pervert?"

"We were all dumbfounded and couldn't move." Mrs. Ba said with Meiqiu's usual sincerity. "Let's go, Moshi. Take her out to have a good time under the moonlight." "Honey, you've been reading too many romance novels, haven't you?" Mr. Ba smiled at his plump wife. "You may not have noticed, it's only six o'clock, it's summer again, and there's still a lot of light outside the house." "To a lover, any light is moonlight," said Mrs. Bar, looking at Mr. Bar. "Go!" Mr. Ba told Moshi, and went to his wife.

Mo Shi grabbed Mei Qiu's hand and pulled her out of the kitchen to the front porch. "Are you pretending too much?" Meigi asked nervously when they were alone.Withdrawing his hand, she retreated to the front porch railing, her back to him. "I'm not pretending," he said softly. Mei Hagi didn't look at him. "I don't think we should—" She didn't go on talking because Moshi pulled her into his arms and kissed her.That kiss was something Mei Hagi had never tasted before, it was deep, thorough and wonderful. As soon as the kiss stopped, the first thought that came to her mind was that I really missed so much in this life!

She desperately wanted to wrap his arms around his neck and kiss him back, but she finally forced herself to back away. "And why?" she asked, trying to sound exasperated.But if she was really angry, it was aimed at herself, not at him. "Just to know," Moshi said, putting his hands in his pockets. If he starts whistling, I'll pick up the chair and throw him, she thought. "Know what?" She retorted ferociously, this time the anger was real. "Do you like me as much as I like you," he said. His earnest tone made her anger evaporate in an instant. "And your answer?" she asked. "Well, you like me too." She couldn't look directly into his eyes for fear that she would reveal too much.She didn't want to be like some silly country girl faltering and telling him that no man had ever been as good to her as he was.No, that would make her look like a primitive society where men pull women's hair. Instead, she turned back, put her hands on the railing, and looked out into the forest beyond. "Then what should we do with it?" Mei Qiu asked softly. "Anything is fine," he replied, and she could hear the tension in his voice. She takes a deep breath. "You don't know me. You just know—" He didn't let her finish. "I know all I need to know about you. You have a good sense of humor. You're smart and take care of others more than yourself. That's a rare virtue. Most people—" He didn't finish speaking, just took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "You like fishing, hiking. Although I plan on getting you a pair of hiking shoes that fit and—" She turned to face him, frowning. "When are you going to carry out your plan? Before or after I go back to my husband?" "After that." Mo Shi said, not at all moved by the impulsive words she blurted out. "After you told him you were quitting." "You're assuming too much," she said, straightening her back and trying to look disdainful. "That's right, I assumed that." Moshi said softly, and then he took her hand and kissed her palm. "Oh, damn it!" Mei Hagi murmured, then she sighed heavily, and withdrew her hand and put it on the railing. "We can't do this, it's not right. You're—" "If you start to say that we are people from two worlds again, I will leave now." Mo Shi said, it was his turn to get angry.He also put his hands on the railing, looking at the forest beyond the lawn. "Look, I apologize for being so quick, it's just that I've always been used to making quick decisions." "Your first impression of me was that I was a criminal, someone from a world far from yours." "Your beauty blinds me," Moshi replied. "That's why I didn't see it clearly for a while. Also, I have to clarify that criminal characteristics are not determined by whether a person's family background is rich or not, or whether he is educated or not." "Should we look up the statistics of poor and rich people in prison?" "How did we get involved in this matter?" Mo Shi asked, turning to look at her. "Or are you just trying to distract me?" Umehagi turned his eyes away and glanced at the large front porch. "There's so much going on, too fast," she said, turning back, but still not looking at him. "Give me a moment. I've lived a normal life for several years, and now in a matter of days, I..." "Meet the man of your dreams?" Mo Shi asked with hope. Mei Hagi laughed. "I just need time." "Just think about it slowly," Moshi said, then glanced at his watch. "Is an hour enough? How about forty-five minutes?" The door of the cabin opened in good time, and Mr. Ba came out, a bottle of beer in one hand; soon Eli was on the front porch.In a few minutes they were all in the house for dinner.Since then, she has never had the chance to be alone with Moshi, and even when they said good night to each other and went back to their rooms, there were other people between them.That night, Meiqi once thought that Moshi had tried to hint to her that he would meet him outside later, but she looked at the moonlight outside the window and pretended not to understand the message Moshi secretly conveyed to her. "Mei Hagi!" Ellie sighed. "You're driving me nuts! This all happened fifteen or six years ago, and I know you didn't marry him, but why? What happened then?" Mei Hagi looked at the cigarette in his hand and didn't speak. "Child," Lacey broke the silence. "That's why, isn't it?" Meigi looked up at Lacey, and the pain in her eyes made Ellie turn her head unbearably.Sensitivity helps a writer, and Ellie can feel Meigi's pain right now, a heartache that still bleeds raw after all these years. "I see," Ellie said after a while. "I thought Ajie had a relapse and begged you to stay. Or..." Her voice was interrupted, because the truth of the matter was worse than she had guessed. "How did you tell Mo Shi?" Lai Xi asked softly. Mei Hagi's hand holding the cigarette trembled slightly. "It was Polly who brought up the subject of children. She said she wasn't going to have children, she was going to be a free man, and devote herself to breaking men's hearts. Then Mrs. Bhab said—" Mei Hagi took another big puff of the cigarette, then extinguished it, and lit another one. "Carol, Ellie, and the Babs agreed that the most important thing in life is children. Moshi said something similar. A man can work hard all his life without achieving anything, but if he has no children to continue his incense, his life will be in vain. No point. The look on his face when he said that said he wanted to have kids with me." Looking at Meiqi, thinking of her loss, neither Leixi nor Ellie could think of anything to comfort her.If she didn't go back to Ajie...if she stayed in New York...if... "Are you two sympathizing with me?" Meigi asked, trying to lighten the solemn atmosphere. But Lacie didn't smile. "What did you do then? I mean after you heard what they said, how did you hold on?" "Eli and Carol drove us back to Murray's house. I pretended nothing happened, but it didn't work out. Murray knew something was wrong. I told him I couldn't stand breaking marriage vows." "Yo!" Ellie yelled. "I can't imagine how you felt. Did you ever think about talking to Moshi—" "No!" Mei Hagi half-yelled. "I didn't think about telling Murray that I... didn't have a uterus. I couldn't make him have to make that choice! I didn't think I could tell him we could adopt. He's a whole man and I'm only half Woman. I can't punish him for what happened to me. He's a good man, and I know he can—" Mei Qiu suddenly stopped talking, trying to stabilize his emotions. "It's still so vivid when I think about it after so many years, as if the intervening years didn't exist. But it was the past." The air became silent for a while, and Mei Hagi looked down at his hands. "Moshi had to leave the next morning, and I... I hid so as not to say goodbye to him. For the rest of the holiday, I walked in the mountains all day, mile after mile, and Ajie..." She puffed on her cigarette . "I really don't know what Ajie has done." Seeing that Mei Qiu didn't continue, Lai Xi asked softly: "What happened to you and Ajie afterwards?" "About four months later, he filed for divorce. His first step, out of crutches, was going to the law office. Then he married Terry, but they were only married for three years. I think he was Tired of asking parents for money, so I thought of marrying a rich wife instead. But Terri's money is tied up in a trust fund, so Applejack can't move a dime at all." Mei Hagi smiled lightly. "I don't know for sure, but I heard that when Terry's family told him he had to get a job, he immediately filed for divorce." For a moment she looked away, but then looked back. “But in the end, things went well. Because about two years later, his parents died in a shipwreck and all the property was left to him. Ajay sold the house and took his parents’ antique collection to Sushi Bi went to auction and sold for more than one million yuan. Ajie gave the money to a friend to invest. The last news I heard was that Ajie now has several million assets, and—" She took a deep breath tone. "Married again and have three children. The youngest is only five years old this year." "Bastard!" Ellie scolded through gritted teeth. "Secondary." Lai Xi agreed, and for a moment they each thought about the harm Mei Qiu had suffered. "Where's Moshi?" Ellie asked. "What happened to him after that?" Mei Hagi just lit a cigarette, but she opened the cigarette case again and took out another one to light it.Now she smokes two cigarettes at a time, but she doesn't seem to notice. "Moshi..." Mei Qiu said slowly. "But it was not treated fairly. A few years later, after Ajie and Terry divorced, I saw Dr. Ou again. I haven't had much contact with her since Ajie broke up with me, but I happened to be with the vet owner that day. Went to a ski resort and ran into her. Initially I tried to turn away, but she insisted I stay and have dinner with her." Mei Hagi picked up the second cigarette.Now she has one cigarette in her hand and the other in her mouth. "I tried not to ask, but I couldn't help but wonder about Murthy. She told me he graduated from medical school, but didn't specialize in rehabilitation, as he said. Instead, he studied tropical diseases. . She said he decided to pursue research rather than medical treatment." Mei Hagi put out a cigarette. "I don't know if anyone in Murthy's family knew about Merthy and me—anyway, O'Doole told me that Merthy had changed since he was at the summer house that summer. He became more withdrawn and withdrawn." For a while, Meiqi concentrated on smoking, not looking at the two women sitting across from her.But she knew they were all waiting for her to speak. "It happened so many years ago," Meigi's voice was so soft that they could hardly hear it. "But I don't think any amount of time will ease the pain in my heart." She looked up at them.He gasped when he saw Umehagi's face.Mei Tho—the woman who had been so beautiful—now looks as if she is a hundred years old, as if she is a walking corpse. "Mursh was in a small plane delivering medicine to the Brazilian rainforest. Perhaps struck by lightning, the plane crashed. Three passengers died instantly." The two women who heard this were speechless. "What a pity!" Ellie said a few minutes later. "Several lives were wasted like this. And that rascal Ajie is living a prosperous life, which makes me..." She couldn't think of any strong words to describe her feelings. Mei Hagi stood up abruptly. "Shall we go to bed and rest? It's getting late and I want to sleep." Ellie wants to continue the conversation.After three years alone, without an outline in her head, she longed for more stories.But Lacey also stood up, and Ellie had to give up the idea. "Go to bed?" Ellie said, standing up from the sofa. "Who sleeps where?" Peacemaker Lacey suggested a solution, creating a schedule for the three of them to take turns sleeping on the bed and sofa.The first night Lacey slept on the sofa, and fifteen minutes later all three women were asleep.Mei Hagi's sleep was the heaviest in years.It was as if a burden had been lifted from her heart after telling her story.