The most beautiful space

8 Xie Mingyuan

Although Li Li looked annoyed and impatient, she knew she couldn't just leave the young master unattended. She exchanged a glance with Zhang Shaokai and prepared to climb the stairs to serve the young master. She said to Su Tong, "Tongtong, you can play by yourself for now. There's food and drinks in the kitchen and storage room, and the computer and TV are all there. Let's go up and take a look."

Su Tong fed Kongkong a sausage and nodded to indicate that she understood.

Just then, the boy upstairs shouted anxiously again, "Oh no! Sis! Mr. Xie has come out by himself. Come on up quickly!"

Su Tong looked up and saw a tall, slender man with a wrinkled shirt and messy hair walking unsteadily from the second-floor room to the top of the stairs. He was shouting something as he tried to sway down the stairs, and the boy tried to hold him up by the waist but couldn't.

Li Li shouted, "Shao Kai! Quickly, help him up!"

Zhang Shaokai then quickly ran up to him, and he and the boy each took one of his arms and helped him back, saying, "Mr. Xie, Mr. Xie! You're drunk, let me help you back to your room to rest."

Su Tong stared at the man's flushed, yet still handsome and somewhat颓废 (颓废 is a difficult word to translate directly, but it conveys a sense of decadence, listlessness, or even a kind of颓废, decadence, or a kind of decadent charm) face, almost frozen in place. Good heavens! Wasn't this Xie Mingyuan, the president of their head office, whom she had just met the day she resigned? What was such a high-achieving man doing in this remote, impoverished place? As the president of a large corporation, shouldn't he be incredibly busy? Even a visit to a branch office of Su Tong's, which was of some size, shouldn't take him more than a few hours!

Xie Mingyuan usually looks refined and elegant like a Confucian businessman, but he was surprisingly strong. He broke free from Zhang Shaokai and his companion in one go, and then put his arm around Zhang Shaokai's shoulder like a good buddy, and said with a silly smile: "Haha, don't call me Mr. Xie, we're all friends now, just call me Mingyuan, Mingyuan is fine."

Drunk people are heavy to begin with, let alone Xie Mingyuan, who is a man over 180 cm tall. Suddenly, he put his entire weight on Zhang Shaokai, almost making Zhang Shaokai fall over. He made a mournful face at Li Li and Su Tong and said obediently, "Well, Mingyuan, we are all brothers, but you are drunk now. Brothers will take you to rest first."

Xie Mingyuan refused to listen this time. He pushed Zhang Shaokai away, shaking his head unsteadily, and said, "No rest, no rest! Did I come here to rest?" He then grabbed the boy next to him and said, "Come on, let's go drink!"

Su Tong couldn't bear to look at Xie Mingyuan's drunken antics. Afraid that Xie Mingyuan would notice her, she silently pulled the hood of her cardigan over her head. She thought to herself that a person's drinking behavior reflects their character, and President Xie's character was probably not much better.

The 18 or 19-year-old boy was Li Li's youngest brother, Li Qiang. He didn't do well in his high school graduation exams, so he came to help his sister and brother-in-law. He was obedient and hardworking, and was now a key member of the travel agency. Li Li had always been very fond of her brother. Su Tong had met Li Qiang before, but the last time she saw him was at Li Li's wedding. At that time, Li Qiang was only up to Li Li's shoulder, and Su Tong didn't recognize him at all.

Seeing that Xie Mingyuan had grabbed her younger brother, Li Li quickly went over and coaxed and persuaded Xie Mingyuan to let go, thus freeing Li Qiang. She then instructed him, "A sister has come downstairs; she's a good friend of mine. Go and sit with her for a while. Your brother-in-law and I will be fine here."

While smiling, he tried to distract the drunken Mr. Xie by saying, "So Mr. Xie didn't come here to rest? What brings you here then?"

"What am I doing here? Right, what am I actually doing here?" Xie Mingyuan chuckled to himself as he spoke, completely unlike the charming and debonair young master he was in the company. "Hehe, of course I'm here to have fun!" He put his arm around Zhang Shaokai's shoulder, reeking of alcohol, and said, "I'm just here to have some fun, right? I don't have anything else to do, and I'm not here to see anyone, right? Right!?"

His "Isn't that right!?" was raised so high that it shook Zhang Shaokai's ears. Ignoring what nonsense he was saying, he quickly replied, "Yes, yes, you're here to have fun."

Li Li chimed in, "Yes, yes, Mr. Xie, you've come to have some fun with us, but we can't really play much here on the stairwell. Why don't we go to the room? Mr. Xie, if you want to play cards or drink, we'll all play with you."

Su Tong's heart skipped a beat as she listened to Xie Mingyuan's words, and for a moment she thought: Could Xie Mingyuan be here to see her?

But then she thought again that she must be mentally unstable. She and Xie Mingyuan had only met a few times. He wasn't crazy, so why would he come looking for her? It couldn't be. Thinking this way, she calmed down a little. But she still subconsciously turned her back to the stairs and squatted down to play with Kongkong.

Kongkong was a particularly sensitive and intelligent child. It seemed to know that its owner was nervous. It didn't bark or make a fuss, but gently licked Su Tong's fingers with its tongue as if to comfort her, and looked at Su Tong with wet eyes.

Su Tong's heart was completely melted by this tiny creature. She softened her voice and said, "Kongkong, how can you be so good? I'll take you to buy some yummy treats later. This time, you can choose for yourself. I'll buy you whatever brand of dog food you choose, okay?"

Upon hearing his sister's instructions, Li Qiang obediently went downstairs to entertain Su Tong.

He used to help his sister entertain various guests, including business partners in formal attire and stylish friends from the streets. But seeing Su Tong dressed casually like a student, squatting down and quietly playing with the empty-handed Su Tong, he felt that she was a girl about his age. This made him a little uncomfortable. He took small steps to Su Tong, bent down and asked, "Sister, would you like something to drink?"

He was fair-skinned and delicate-looking, and his personality was almost the complete opposite of his sister's; he never spoke to anyone in a heated or irritable manner.

Upon hearing this, Su Tong stood up, smiled, and said, "No, Zhang Shaokai got me some juice." She then pointed to the two glasses of juice on the tray next to her.

Li Qiang stared at her blankly for a long time before saying uncertainly, "Sister Su Tong?"

Li Qiang wasn't really sure either. When he was very young, he heard his parents say that his older sister, Li Li, was able to get into the top high school thanks to a classmate. Later, when Su Tong came to their house for dinner during high school, young Li Qiang secretly remembered this beautiful older sister. He also clearly remembered how his strong-willed older sister hugged Su Tong and cried her eyes out on her wedding day.

Later, he himself, like his sister Li Li, had average grades, and he longed even more to have a friend like Su Tong by his side, but such a friend never appeared.

His own sister was working hard in society, becoming more and more successful and worldly-wise. He had heard his sister talk about how well Su Tong was doing in Shanghai. He had imagined what Su Tong would be like now, perhaps an elegant and beautiful career woman, or a decisive and capable businesswoman. But he never expected that Su Tong seemed to have defied the passage of time, instead becoming even more refined and beautiful, like a dream that one could not bear to disturb.

Su Tong was surprised that this little brother knew her, and smiled awkwardly, saying, "You are...?"

Li Qiang wasn't too shy around acquaintances. He smiled, picked up a glass of juice and handed it to Su Tong, introducing himself: "I'm Li Li's younger brother, Li Qiang. You even bought popsicles for my brother and me when you came to our house in high school, Sister Su Tong, do you remember?"

Su Tong remembered that Li Li had two younger brothers. Judging from the boy's age, he must be the younger one. She couldn't help but feel a little sentimental about how quickly time flies. She took the juice, took a sip, and said in a very elder-like tone, "Oh, it's Li Qiang. You've grown up so much in the blink of an eye. You're very handsome."

Li Qiang was originally the kind of handsome, well-mannered guy, so Su Tong's words were just a normal, polite remark, like when you see a friend's child and say, "Little friend, you're so cute!" Unexpectedly, Li Qiang blushed all the way to the roots of his neck. Su Tong never expected that there were still such shy boys these days. She certainly hadn't encountered one when she was in school, and she found it extremely amusing. She couldn't help but smile, her eyes crinkling. Seeing her smile so happily, Li Qiang's face turned even redder.

While the two were talking, Li Li and her husband went to great lengths, almost wearing themselves out, to get Xie Mingyuan back to his room. Although she was chatting with Li Qiang, she was still keeping an eye on Su Tong over there. She breathed a sigh of relief and took off her hat.

Then Li Qiang turned on the TV, and the two of them watched most of an idol drama before Li Li came downstairs, complaining, "Damn it, that ancestor is finally asleep!"

Su Tong could hardly sit still whenever she thought about Xie Mingyuan still living in Li Li's house. After chatting with Li Li for a few minutes, she said that since Li Li was so busy today, she would come to visit her another day, and then she took Kong Kong and left.

Li Qiang, who had been watching the idol drama with his head down and remaining silent, volunteered to take Su Tong home. When they arrived at the door, he even seemed to be planning to take her home. Of course, Su Tong couldn't let this kid come along, and she had to persuade him several times before he gave up the idea. He only asked, "Sister Su Tong, when will you come to my sister's house again?"

Su Tong wasn't sure either, but waved goodbye with a smile and said, "Yeah, when you're free."