Three Years and Three Years

Chapter 75: Nostalgia and Novelty

On a day with vast blue skies and widespread clouds, Zhou Mushi’s mood was somewhat depressed.

Jin Yang drove to pick him up, and the car parked in front of a café across the street. The black car was only worth between 600,000 and 800,000 yuan, which was not considered expensive and was not the target of the beautiful women who relied on this business to make a living.

It’s unclear whether it was because the man in the car was too high-quality, or because the girl in the red dress had the ability to identify wealthy people, but she immediately spotted Jin Yang’s wealth when he emerged from the car.

When he walked to the side of the café, the girl in the red dress and black hair was chatting with Jin Yang. She was pretty, with fair skin and thick eyebrows and big eyes, but unfortunately, her temperament was far behind the woman who was walking with him just now.

Zhou Mushi looked at the girl standing in the sunlight, smiling like a flower, and her clothes alone, if they weren’t fake, must have been worth at least a hundred thousand yuan. But if she only pursued big names and didn’t know the ins and outs, the situation would be a bit troublesome.

He took out a chain from his jacket pocket, which he didn’t know when he put it in there, and tied it to his wrist. Then, with one hand in his pocket, he walked lightly to the car and said to Jin Yang with the air of a rightful wife, smiling, “Oh, a new friend we just met?”

The girl saw that Zhou Mushi was dressed simply, from head to toe in affordable and common clothes. Although she looked slightly better than average, what was the use of having just a pretty face without money? So she gave up on getting to know Zhou Mushi.

She said to Jin Yang, “I won’t disturb you and your friend. I’m sorry about the car scratching yours just now. Let’s exchange contact information. When the car is fixed, I’ll pay you back.”

Jin Yang was about to take out his phone, but Zhou Mushi stopped his hand and glanced at the slight scratches on the car, saying, “It’s okay. We just drove this car casually to buy groceries. You don’t need to compensate us.”

The girl thought to herself that maybe this was a big deal and smiled even more elegantly. “This… won’t do, I’ll still pay. Otherwise, I won’t feel at ease. What’s your WeChat? I’ll add you.”

Zhou Mushi lightly laughed and opened the car door, pushing Jin Yang into the driver’s seat. He smiled at the girl and said, “We don’t lack those two bucks. Besides, I don’t like my boyfriend adding other people’s WeChat. Goodbye.”

He then bypassed the red-dressed girl who looked shocked and got into the passenger seat, saying to Jin Yang without expression, “Drive.”

Jin Yang naturally obeyed.

The vehicle drove through the quiet street and into the bustling crowd.

Zhou Mushi remained silent, his lips tightened into a straight line.

Jin Yang thought that Zhou Mushi was unhappy because of his conversation with the young girl earlier, so he quickly said, “It was my fault. I won’t get involved like that next time.”

Zhou Mushi moved the passenger seat back slightly and sighed, “It’s not because of you. It’s my father. He seems to have a love child and is now involved with a girl who is about the same age as me.”

Jin Yang: “……”

“I don’t think I’ve ever told you about my family situation.” Zhou Mushi thought for a moment and said.

“Mm-hmm,” Jin Yang nodded.

“Our family situation is quite unique and cannot be measured by normal marital standards. My parents had a business marriage and didn’t have much affection for each other. After my older brother and I were born, they just got by. I remember when I was very young, they seemed to have had some affairs, but it didn’t seem to matter much to either of them. They just got by like that for decades, and now that my mom has been gone for a few years, this is what it’s become.”

Jin Yang didn’t know what to say for a moment. He knew how much Zhou Qingshen cared for his son, but he wasn’t involved in that marriage, so he couldn’t say anything about it.

Zhou Mushi continued, “I’m not surprised that it’s come to this point, but it’s still not very comfortable. But when I saw my brother’s reaction earlier, it seemed like he was very surprised and couldn’t accept it. He always thought that our parents had a good relationship and were invincible.”

Jin Yang handed him the bottle of orange juice he had bought earlier and said, “Maybe in your brother’s childhood, your parents were really affectionate.”

Zhou Mushi shook his head, “I’m not sure. Although I feel a little upset, I always feel that my brother’s attitude towards this matter is very unpredictable.”

He took a sip of the slightly sour orange juice and said with his head down, “Jin Yang, do you think someone like me who can easily accept the fact that my father has a child outside is mentally twisted?”

“Everyone grows up in different environments. If you only saw your parents as a ‘compromise’ and ‘forced’ binding from the beginning, then your reaction to this matter is not surprising,” Jin Yang replied.

Zhou Mushi closed his eyes and started talking about his childhood incoherently.

“At that time, I was probably in the senior class of kindergarten and my brother was in the same school. Kindergarten finishes one class earlier than elementary school, so usually I would sit in front of the small fence after school, waiting for my brother to finish school so that we could go home together.

My older brother would always come quickly to pick me up after school. One day, all the elementary school students had been dismissed, and I sat by the small fence for a long time. I watched as everyone on the playground left, but my brother hadn’t arrived yet, so I carried my small backpack and went to his classroom to find him. As a result, his friend told me that my mom had taken him away early.

Later, I found out that it was because of the problems between my parents. My mom went back to her parent’s home in a fit of anger, but she took my brother with her and left me behind. It was said that they had discussed that if they were to divorce, the children would be separated.

In the end, this matter was never resolved, like a line drawn on the beach that disappears when the sea washes it away. I still have a healthy family, and my dad, mom, and brother all love me very much. We live a happy life.

I often wonder why this forced marriage was necessary. Was it for money? In fact, my dad and mom were not short of money, and their quality of life wouldn’t have changed much if they separated.

Do you know? My dad, who always liked novelty, now maintains the same layout in our home as my mom did when she was alive. What is this, deep nostalgia? But he found another woman.”

Jin Yang pulled over in front of a convenience store and really wanted to light a cigarette. But he remembered that Zhou Mushi didn’t like the smell of smoke, so he gave up and instead opened a bottle and took a few big gulps.

“I can’t answer the first question for you, and as for the second… I’ve been thinking about it for almost ten years now, and I still haven’t figured it out.”

“Hmm?” Zhou Mushi looked puzzled.

Jin Yang looked at a couple coming out of the convenience store, blinked a few times and said, “Isn’t Chen Sheng the same way with my brother?”