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Jak sat across from her, with high cheekbones, a straight nose, and thin lips like a blade. He had a pair of emerald green eyes that sparkled with a moist sheen.
His gaze began to drift, and the two started discussing Leo, talking about Leo's experiences in Taipei, and also mentioning Grandma Xu, occasionally touching on the subject of Yao Guanghao, whom Autumn Wind despised. During this time, Autumn Wind's phone buzzed incessantly; she knew it must be a message from Qiu Ruolan. The frequent sounds piqued Jak's curiosity, his eyes narrowing as he occasionally glanced at the buzzing phone. Autumn Wind had no choice but to pick up her phone, where a message from Qiu Ruolan popped up on the screen.
— Is he your boyfriend?
Autumn Wind took a glance but did not reply, continuing to chat and laugh with Jak. In the midst of their laughter, Jak excused himself to the toilet. When he returned, he chose to sit next to Autumn Wind's bent legs. Jak's hand rested on the sofa, almost touching Autumn Wind's foot. She instinctively pulled her foot back, but Jak raised his hand and gently held her foot, pressing it lightly a few times. This Jak was really strange, Autumn Wind thought, observing him as he seemed hesitant to speak.
Perhaps not receiving a response from Autumn Wind prompted Qiu Ruolan to send another message.
— What does he do?
Autumn Wind noticed Jak's gaze briefly scanning her phone; upon realizing she had caught him looking, he immediately turned his attention elsewhere.
This felt very familiar, like a scene replaying from years ago. Autumn Wind saw Jak's lips quivering: "Do you have something you want to ask me?"
Jak shook his head lightly. Just before he spoke, Autumn Wind's noisy ringtone sounded again—another message from Qiu Ruolan! Without hesitation, she hung up, feeling a slight thrill in her heart; she simply did not want to give Qiu Ruolan the answer to questions that interested her—she wanted to wear her down!
Of course, Qiu Ruolan didn’t need to exert much effort to find answers; she soon encountered Leo, who was coming down to look for Autumn Wind. From a distance, Autumn Wind saw Leo linking arms with Qiu Ruolan as they walked toward them against the light.
Autumn Wind pulled her foot back from Jak’s hand and indicated that someone was behind him. She stood up facing Leo while cautiously slipping her foot into her shoe as the light shone directly on Jak’s face.
Qiu Ruolan appeared with a clear purpose; she was eager to gather any information related to Autumn Wind and Jak. Autumn Wind wasn’t sure of her intentions but seeing the curiosity written all over her face made her feel that her goal had been achieved.
Leo quickly came to her aid by introducing Jak to Qiu Ruolan. Upon hearing that Jak owned a farm in England, Qiu Ruolan’s face lit up with uncontainable joy (she had always hoped that Autumn Wind’s future in-laws would have a farm).
She extended her hand and gave Jak a big hug, gently patting him on the back while facing Autumn Wind with a somewhat irritating self-satisfied smile.
Autumn Wind met her gaze with a bold smile. Leo was clever; he quickly picked up on Qiu Ruolan’s misunderstanding and smiled lightly in response.
As Qiu Ruolan prepared to leave, Leo, Jak, and Autumn Wind stood in a line and politely waved goodbye.
As Autumn Wind just reached Jak’s shoulder, the dim light fell upon him. This scene inexplicably reminded Autumn Wind of Zheng Jiakai, the man who had once lain on Leo’s bed and whom she had playfully slapped on the backside.
Zheng Jiakai was an idol actor. Years ago, Yao Guanghao was able to join a modeling agency thanks to his recommendation. However, things often did not go as planned. A month before Leo went abroad to study, Zheng Jiakai died in a car accident. At that time, the movie starring Zheng Jiakai had just been released. When the news broke, many people thought it was just another publicity stunt and did not pay much attention until the memorial service was held, at which point the news hit the entertainment industry like a bomb.
At the memorial service, the venue was open to fans. Autumn Wind and Leo hid across the street, watching the crowd come and go, each face heavy with sorrow. All the female celebrities who had been rumored to have relationships with Zheng Jiakai were present. But every time a woman's cry echoed from inside, Autumn Wind noticed Leo's hand tremble involuntarily.
Autumn Wind jumped off his motorcycle and squatted in front of him. "Why don't we go in? It's a public event anyway!"
He lowered his head, his sorrowful eyes hidden beneath his bangs, unable to conceal the immense grief. His teeth clenched tightly on his lip as a slightly trembling voice emerged, "No need!"
Autumn Wind knew he was crying, so he also lowered his head and responded softly, "Okay!"
Just then, another heart-wrenching sound came from inside, causing Leo's brow to furrow deeply. This sound acted like a key unlocking the chains binding Autumn Wind's feet; he stood up and instinctively grabbed Leo's hand, rushing toward the venue. But Autumn Wind found himself frozen mid-air; Leo remained rooted to the spot like a massive rock. After locking eyes with Autumn Wind, he crouched down like a child.
Three days later, an unexpected visitor arrived at Autumn Wind's home. The person appeared quite arrogant, exuding an air of disdain for everyone around him. A large mask covered his nose as he spoke to Grandma in a condescending tone.
Grandma had seen her fair share of people; she had even met Chiang Kai-shek back in the day. To her, this person was nothing more than a minor character.
The man in his forties, Mao Huo, peered through his brown Ray-Ban glasses with an expression of boredom. He exaggeratedly gave a thumbs-up and lifted a suitcase starting with the letter 'l' using just his index and thumb (he really admired the strength of those two fingers). "This is what Kai left for you!" What surprised Autumn Wind even more was when he suddenly turned serious and took off his sunglasses to cry bitterly. Autumn Wind and Grandma stared at him in shock as he stood up after a minute, wiped his tears, and left without saying a word.
Autumn Wind exchanged glances with Grandma, both sharing curiosity and confusion. He quickly opened the suitcase only to find five letters: le.
Autumn Wind immediately realized this might be something Zheng Jiakai left for Leo, completely ignoring Grandma's curious approach toward the suitcase. He closed it as if holding a ticking bomb and rushed out, leaving Grandma shouting behind him, "You reckless girl! Why are you in such a hurry? Someone could get hurt!"
Arriving at Leo's house, Grandma Xu was not home. After pushing open the door, Autumn Wind carried the suitcase inside and gently kicked it shut with her knee. Leo lay on the bed like a zombie. Autumn Wind deliberately lifted her foot high and nudged it against his foot sticking out from under the bed covers.
He grumbled irritably, "Did your hands fall off?"
Autumn Wind kicked him hard; he jumped up with an "Oh!" She hugged the suitcase tightly and took a step back. Leo's face flushed slightly; he looked weak and annoyed as he shot her a glare before nearly collapsing again. Autumn Wind quickly extended the suitcase forward: "Some flamboyant guy just dropped this off for me at home; I saw it was for you..." Before she could finish her sentence, Leo jumped up. When he opened the suitcase, Autumn Wind finally found an appropriate metaphor for it—it truly was a bombshell.
Leo couldn't hold back any longer and began to cry uncontrollably.
The suitcase was filled with things that Zheng Jiakai had left for him.
For a long time, Leo refused to face the reality of Zheng Jiakai's departure, sitting there dazed while hugging Grandma without saying anything. Grandma Xu thought Leo was upset about going abroad and missing her; feeling sorry for her grandson yet helpless, she kept insisting that Autumn Wind accompany him out for fun. All Autumn Wind could do was sit beside him repeatedly watching idol dramas starring Zheng Jiakai.
To be honest, even now looking back at it, Zheng Jiakai's acting skills were still commendable at that time; it was just that each drama had too many cheesy scenes that made Autumn Wind feel goosebumps all over. Leo remained in that dazed state without any energy until he went abroad to study.
It has been two or three years since then.
After coming out of the KV, Leo wanted to eat. He casually hailed a taxi, and just as they were about to reach their destination, Autumn Wind realized that Leo had already planned to eat at this hot pot restaurant on the plane as an important item. Leo is a person with strong principles, to the point where he can plan things obsessively. Autumn Wind turned back to Leo, who was sitting in the back seat: "Have you arranged the entire itinerary already?"
He snapped his fingers: "Furse, you really understand me!" His eyes squinted into a line, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, carrying a bittersweet smile along with a confident air—a kind of confidence tinged with sadness. Jak, sitting beside him, rested his right hand on the car window, looking at Leo with a hint of admiration in his eyes, which also held a feline quality—charming yet mysterious.
This atmosphere made Autumn Wind feel a bit uncomfortable, so she leaned her head against the car window, her eyes scanning the scenery they passed by. The area they drove through was filled with standalone buildings illuminated by yellow lights. Suddenly, Autumn Wind understood the source of that bittersweet confidence—it was the place where Zheng Jiakai had lived years ago.
Looking at Leo, all traces of joy had vanished from his face, replaced by an expression of deep sorrow.
Three years have passed, and he still hasn't forgotten.
The taxi had just stopped in front of the restaurant when an employee came out to greet them. This hot pot restaurant is the most famous chain in Taipei. Although they had missed the peak dining hours, the place was still bustling with customers. A quick glance around revealed several familiar faces, including Boss Lady Yao Lizhen, who was sitting behind the counter and continuously pressing buttons on her calculator.
She glanced up at Autumn Wind and the others but remained busy with her work, her expression blank and seemingly ignoring them. Autumn Wind initially intended to be polite but decided to turn away from the counter and not look at her anymore upon seeing her demeanor.
They waited for quite a while before being seated. As soon as they sat down, they noticed that the once-crowded hall had suddenly emptied as if everyone had agreed to leave at once, leaving only three or four tables occupied by diners.
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