Chapter 71 Side Story 3

Chapter 71: Side Story 3

After that meeting at the hotel, Shen Gali never saw Nan Liujing again. Sometimes, even when he purposely searched online, there was very little information about him.

But just like in his dream, he was born into a wealthy family. And unlike in his dream, he had been the center of attention since childhood, the sole heir to a business conglomerate.

That was all the information he could find—it seemed his family protected him well. If he tried to search for a photo of him, every link he clicked gave a 404 error.

If he hadn't seen this man after waking from the dream, perhaps he would have forgotten him over time. But when he appeared before him alive and real, his restless heart began to stir again.

Shen Gali had never felt such pain. His longing to see this man grew almost mad. He even went to Nan Liujing's company under the pretense of delivering flowers, but was stopped by the security guard, who refused to let him in.

The wheel of time rolled on. The cold winter dissipated, and spring returned to the land.

Shen Gali got out a glass wind chime and hung it by the door. This was a habit his mother had when she was alive—every spring, she would hang a wind chime at the entrance, saying that it would let them hear the happy tidings brought by the spring breeze.

But the entrance to his flower shop faced west. The spring southeast wind never seemed to blow this way. The wind chime had been hanging for over half a month, and aside from being accidentally touched, it never once rang.

On a sunny day, Shen Gali sat in the darkest corner of the shop, where the sun never reached. It was dim and cramped, but it gave him a strong sense of security.

He stared blankly at the wind chime by the door. One second, two minutes, an hour passed. He gazed without blinking. After a long time, he started to hear things.

"Ding-ling—" A small jade bead struck the glass cover, producing an ethereal, crisp sound.

Shen Gali sat up straight, dazed. He watched the small tag hanging from the jade bead sway in the wind, and finally realized it wasn't an auditory hallucination.

Whether it was the vibrant spring or the unseasonable west wind, he had no interest. But the wind chime, silent for so long, suddenly rang. He felt as if some magic were pushing him to stand, and his feet moved involuntarily toward the door.

Through the spotless glass door, he saw a car parked by the curb right next to his shop, its hazard lights flashing.

And beside the car stood a man—tall, strong, and fit. A light-colored long trench coat outlined his tall, straight figure. A length of white shirt cuff was visible under the sleeve, adorned with an exquisite gemstone cufflink. He held a phone in one hand and opened the hood with the other.

Shen Gali's heart suddenly surged with joy. Even though he only saw the man's profile, he recognized him immediately—Nan Liujing.

The person he had been thinking about all this time suddenly appeared before him, so unreal it felt like a dream.

Without a second thought, he pulled open the door and rushed out. He heard Nan Liujing on the phone, apparently calling a tow truck because his car had broken down. Whatever the person on the other end said, Nan Liujing replied:

"Got it. As soon as possible."

With that, he hung up.

When he looked up, his eyes suddenly lit up, making him open them wide.

Shen Gali accidentally met his gaze. He had a thousand words to say, but the moment he saw him, he couldn't utter a single one. He tried to open his mouth, but no sound came out, like a comedian in a silent film.

"Shen Gali?" It was Nan Liujing who spoke first.

Shen Gali nodded vigorously. When the joy in his heart reached its peak, it inexplicably turned into a wave of bitterness.

He was actually so thrilled that Nan Liujing remembered his name that he wanted to cry. Once, in his dream, Nan Liujing had searched through vegetable greenhouses for a pumpkin just for him, and folded ten thousand paper cranes because of a casual remark.

Oh, he forgot—that wasn't reality. It was just a dream.

A bucket of cold water doused him. Shen Gali calmed himself. The tears in his eyes hadn't had time to recede, but he pretended to be calm. "Car trouble?"

"Yeah. Called the tow truck company. They said there's a pile-up under the bridge and traffic is jammed. It might take a while." Nan Liujing lowered the hood, glancing at Shen Gali.

Just like when they first met, his eyes were filled with inexplicable, emotional tears, as if he had so much to say but didn't know where to start.

Even though they had only met once before, every time he saw that longing look in Shen Gali's eyes, a strange ache stirred in his own heart.

Shen Gali said, "If you're in a hurry, you could take a cab or the subway."

Hearing this, Nan Liujing was silent for a moment, then said, "Nothing urgent. I don't mind waiting."

Shen Gali's Adam's apple moved. His voice was unnatural. "Then... would you like to wait in my shop?"

Almost as if compelled, Nan Liujing said softly, "Sorry to bother you."

He followed Shen Gali into the flower shop. His tall figure filled the tiny flower room, and the low ceiling forced him to slightly bow his head.

The shop was small but neat. Most of the flowers were roses, with pink roses making up the majority.

Nan Liujing looked around curiously. "You like pink roses?"

Shen Gali's hands, trimming flower stems, suddenly froze. With his back to Nan Liujing, his expression was unreadable, and he only said flatly, "I like Lisianthus."

But he couldn't say why the shop was filled with pink roses. On the night of his graduation ceremony, Nan Liujing had somehow gotten a huge bouquet of pink roses. That was the first time Nan Liujing had given him flowers, even though Shen Gali didn't want them and wouldn't even look at them.

But late that night, Nan Liujing had stubbornly placed the roses by Shen Gali's bedside, as if it were his heartfelt offering, and he hoped Shen Gali would accept it.

The flower language of pink roses is: eternal and beautiful first love.

Nan Liujing stared for a long time, then said, almost unintentionally, "I don't know much about the flower business, but a single product structure can't meet the maximum market demand. It only retains regular customers, and the risk management scope is narrow. It's hard to achieve much growth."

Shen Gali: ...

If I said I didn't mind the monotony, but instead hoped to solidify you as a customer...

At that moment, Shen Gali finally understood—this was not the Nan Liujing from his dream. Their relationship now was nothing more than two strangers who had met twice. How could he remember that bouquet full of heartfelt meaning?

He knew it was his own wishful thinking, but Shen Gali couldn't help feeling sad.

As soon as Nan Liujing said that, he realized he had overstepped. He sighed inwardly, waiting for Shen Gali to retort. But in the end, all he saw from behind were tears falling onto the roses.

His heart suddenly ached unbearably. Nan Liujing himself didn't know why he had such a strange reaction to a stranger's tears. He quickly apologized, "I'm sorry. I was out of line."

Shen Gali shook his head and wiped his eyes discreetly.

"By the way, I actually wanted to buy a bouquet. Would you mind recommending some to me?" Nan Liujing felt he had intruded and said something inappropriate, so he hoped to make it up to him a little.

But Shen Gali's tears fell even harder, like beads off a broken string.

"Who is it for?"

"A friend." Nan Liujing looked at the delicate pink roses in Shen Gali's hands. "Let's go with pink roses as the theme. You can decide on the rest."

The moment he said that, Shen Gali suddenly burst into sobs. The sound shocked Nan Liujing, leaving him frozen.

"Why pink roses? Out of all the flowers, why pink roses? Don't you know pink roses mean first love!" Shen Gali, still with his back turned, wept loudly. His voice was like a sharp blade, full of anger and resentment.

Nan Liujing was too stunned to think. He blurted out, "But you don't have any other flowers..."

As soon as he said it, he regretted it instantly.

Shen Gali: ...

Quickly and skillfully, he wrapped up the pink roses, tied a messy bow, shoved the bouquet into Nan Liujing's arms, and held out his hand with his head down. "Eighty-eight yuan. The tow truck is here outside. You can leave now."

Nan Liujing pulled out a hundred-yuan note and handed it to him: "Keep the change, no need to make change."

"Why wouldn't I make change? You think I'm so stupid I can't even do basic arithmetic, right?" Shen Gali quickly fished out a ten-yuan bill and two coins, stuffing them into his hand. "It's just eleven yuan, here you go."

Nan Liujing: ... Well, actually, it should be eleven.

The tow truck crew had arrived but couldn't find Nan Liujing, and their relentless calls bombarded his phone. Amid the constant buzzing of his phone, Nan Liujing held the large bouquet of pink roses, glancing from the flowers to Shen Gali.

He was still wiping his tears, looking so wronged, his moist eyes like brown glass soaked in water, occasionally sneaking a glance in Nan Liujing's direction.

Mm...

So cute.

Nan Liujing nodded to him: "The tow truck is here. I'll head over now."

Shen Gali turned away, gritting his teeth.

Nan Liujing, you're so heartless!

He listened to the scuffing sound of leather shoes on the tiles—graceful and steady—but it suddenly stopped mid-stride.

Then, when the footsteps started again, they got closer and closer, finally stopping right behind him.

"What did you say the flower language of pink roses was?" Nan Liujing's deep voice sounded above his head.

Shen Gali's anger flared. He didn't care at all about his own words.

"I don't remember," Shen Gali replied coldly.

Nan Liujing: "I don't remember either."

The next second, a large hand suddenly grabbed Shen Gali's and shoved the ugly bouquet of pink roses into his hand.

Shen Gali pushed back, his voice whining: "No returns after the sale."

Nan Liujing chuckled softly, his eyes curving into a handsome smile: "Too bad. I've forgotten, so I can't just give them to anyone. Since that's the case, why don't you take them for that friend?"

Shen Gali froze.

After a long moment, when he came to his senses and tried to catch sight of that figure, he found that it had already disappeared from view.

He still gave the flowers—pink roses, just like before.

As Nan Liujing strode away, he inexplicably looked back at the tiny flower shop.

So pink roses mean first love.

The tear-streaked face came clearly to mind.

Outside, besides the tow truck crew, there was also Special Assistant Lin, who had arrived after receiving a call.

When Special Assistant Lin saw Nan Liujing, he asked curiously: "Boss Nan, you always used to take Xicheng Avenue to the office; it's fast and convenient. Why did you take the side streets today? It was so winding, it took me forever to find you."

Nan Liujing got into the car, turned his head to look at the modest little flower shop, and said distractedly:

"I don't know. I just wanted to go this way."