He trembled as he called out her name, a sudden rush of blood flooding his mind—rekindling the audacious recklessness of his teenage years spent parkouring and scaling buildings. Moving at the fastest speed he had ever mustered, he ran, leaped, slid, and lunged, sprinting desperately toward that slender figure.
Chen Yi dashed into the train carriage just as the doors were closing.
The train jolted and began to move slowly.
Without pausing to catch his breath, he hurried through the weary crowd of passengers, searching urgently until he spotted Miao Jing in the corner where two carriages connected.
His tall frame gradually closed in on her. She stood leaning against the carriage wall, gazing out at the sporadic lights flickering past in the pitch-black night and the hazy silhouette of the city. Then, catching sight of his reflection in the window, she turned and met his cold, fierce, and furious eyes.
Chen Yi stood before her, hands on his hips, chest heaving, his shadow enveloping her like an icy mountain, his eyes blazing with anger.
Her eyes suddenly sparkled like stars, as if a meteor had streaked across them, then slowly settled into calm. She pressed her lips lightly together, her long lashes fluttering, a faint shimmer of tears glistening in her gaze as she looked at him quietly.
The two stood frozen in place, neither speaking for a long while.
"What do you really want? Miao Jing, what are you thinking?" His face was ashen, his expression taut, his breath like a volcano that had just subsided. "Do you even know what you're doing?"
"I do." She seemed lost in thought, taking a long moment before moving. From her bag, she pulled out a folder and handed it to him calmly. "Here are your ID card, passport, train ticket, flight ticket to Colombia, important documents from home, and all your bank cards."
Chen Yi stared in stunned disbelief at the items in her hand.
"Chen Yi, you either choose to spend the rest of your life separated from me by thousands of miles, or you choose to come with me." Miao Jing took a deep breath. "Abroad. No one will know the Chen Yi from Tengcheng—not the Chen Yi forced to attend vocational school, not the young hustler struggling to support his family, not the informant enduring humiliation. There will only be a Chen Yi who's cool, handsome, sharp, and smart—one who can play ball, race cars, value loyalty, and thrive no matter where he is."
Her stubborn little face held an intensely serious expression. "I will work hard, earn money, and take my turn to teach you, protect you, care for you, and help you live the life you want."
His emotions shifted from shock to bewilderment, then to speechless astonishment, until finally, he let out an exasperated laugh, unable to form a complete sentence.
"Miao Jing... you... what the hell..."
He ran a hand through his hair with difficulty. "What the hell are you doing?!!!!!"
"I came back to Tengcheng only because of you, only because I wanted to be with you. Chen Yi, I love you..." Miao Jing's eyes reddened. "I want you to love me too, to love me deeply, to take the initiative to keep me, to stop pushing me away."
He stared at her, dumbfounded.
Miao Jing took a step forward, lifting her head to stand before him as tears streamed down her face. Pitifully, she pleaded in a small voice, "Brother, I really don’t want to be alone anymore..."
Those words seemed to shatter Chen Yi into dust, his heart aching to its core. He abruptly pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly against his chest.
Just like countless silent nights before, the speeding train left Tengcheng behind, casting the distant city lights far into the past as it journeyed toward a distant, unknown future.
In the small train window, two solitary travelers clung tightly to each other.
—End of Main Text—Chapter 43 You Are My Other Half Orange (Part 1)
The 1 a.m. train, followed by an early morning flight from Linjiang to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, a five-hour layover, then a connecting flight to Bogotá, the capital of Colombia. The entire journey would take forty hours.
Miao Jing's travel expenses were covered by her company, while Chen Yi's train and plane tickets were paid for by Miao Jing. The nearly forty thousand yuan in travel costs drained the last of her savings, leaving her penniless and forcing Chen Yi onto the train.
The two embraced affectionately, spending a long, quiet stretch of time together. Their bodies swayed slightly with the high-speed motion of the train, creating a subtle sense of dizziness and instability. Chen Yi, unusually gentle, caressed Miao Jing's hair and shoulders, his nose and forehead rubbing softly and slowly against her cheeks and ears. All his tenderness burst forth in that moment—his eyes aching and burning, his chest roiling with a thunderous surge of emotion, a sensation that was intensely bitter and sour before abruptly turning sweet. Since the vague "desire to possess" he had felt at nineteen, he had never again entertained the thought that he could "have" anything—especially not Miao Jing, stubborn, earnest, aloof, and proud Miao Jing. She had said she would one day go far and high, that she was completely different from him.
What did he think about during that long, tranquil moment in the corner of the train car? He wanted to carefully cradle her face and kiss her, to respond to her "I love you" with either awkward restraint or nonchalant coolness, to stay with her forever despite the pain and bitterness...
Before Chen Yi could sort out his thoughts and take the next step, Miao Jing pushed him away, cleared her dry throat, and thrust something in front of him, her mind clear and composed: "While there's still a little time left, finish your own affairs."
???
His house, car, billiards hall, personal assets, various scattered tasks, the people and matters he needed to bid farewell to and settle—all had to be dealt with in one go while others were sound asleep. Miao Jing had directly drawn up a to-do list for him. Before Chen Yi could even extricate himself from his complex emotions, he heard Miao Jing's most urgent instruction: to prepare the money in his bank card first.
Miao Jing had already tidied up the house, entrusted the keys to someone for safekeeping, arranged for the car to be sold or transferred, handled the fire insurance and follow-up matters for the billiards hall, sorted out hospital payments, and dealt with some personal relationships...
Chen Yi: ...
The more he thought about it, the more something felt off. He turned to look at her, his thick eyebrows furrowed, his gaze strange. He asked again where his passport and visa had come from. Miao Jing calmly explained that she had sought Zhou Kang'an's help. There was no need for Chen Yi to do anything now—under such dangerous circumstances, he deserved a green channel. The farther and faster he left with her, the better.
Chen Yi twitched the corner of his mouth, his expression as if a spice box had been overturned—sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, salty, and astringent, all at once, utterly spectacular.
So... she had made up her mind... confident and assured... knowing he would come after her...
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