Before going to bed that night, Qian Fei called Yao Jingjing and recounted the whole incident. She asked Yao Jingjing, "Was I being too petty by making a fuss over him wanting to recognize a sister?"
Yao Jingjing replied bluntly, "Not at all! I don't think any woman with half a brain would be okay with that sort of thing! Silly girl, you're usually so quick with your words—how come you couldn't argue your point when it mattered? You should've given him an example. Ask him how he'd feel if you recognized Wang Ruohai as your brother, and then one day, this 'brother' begged you to attend a gathering because he wanted to use you to cozy up to some influential person. If you hid this from him and took your 'brother' along, what would he think? That would've settled it. If he said that was normal and not worth making a big deal over, I'd book a flight back right now just to kneel before him!"
Qian Fei felt slightly reassured and stopped doubting herself. Yet, she couldn't shake off a vague sense of sadness.
When Yao Jingjing asked what she planned to do next, Qian Fei said, "Let it be. After all, he and I are just not from the same world."
Yao Jingjing scoffed, "What do you mean, 'not from the same world'? Which world are you from? Which world is he from? Aren't you both just ordinary folks from poor, developing third-world countries? Besides, didn't Liu Huan sing back in 2008—'You and I, heart to heart, we live in the same global village'? Everyone in the world is part of the same village. How are you and Li Yifei so special? Is one of you an alien or something?"
Qian Fei was confused. "Can you stick to one stance? One moment you're agreeing with me, the next you're arguing against me!"
Yao Jingjing said, "What I'm really trying to say is that while Li Yifei was definitely in the wrong about this 'brother-sister' thing, you don't need to write him off completely by talking about different worlds. Men aren't born understanding everything—you have to train them. If you don't even try to guide him and just dismiss him outright, tell me honestly—won't you regret it later?"
Qian Fei paused before asking, "Then what do you think I should do? I've already said my piece—we'll just treat each other as ordinary acquaintances from now on. He even said he'd respect my wishes."
Yao Jingjing sighed. "Since it's come to this, you might as well see it through. If he's willing to swallow his pride and come back to you, then consider whether he's still worth shaping up. If he is, work on his attitude. If not, or if he never comes back at all, then just let him go completely."
Qian Fei thought for a moment. "How would I know if he's coming back to me?"
Yao Jingjing said, "If he calls you within three days. If it's past three days, don't bother with him even if he reaches out. From then on, live your life—eat, drink, go on blind dates. If you see him suffering, just happily throw more misery his way. Got it?"
Qian Fei said she understood and hung up.
She knew why Yao Jingjing had set the deadline at three days. Yao Jingjing had once told her about the time she had a falling-out with Lu Ze and why she forgave him so quickly."He came after me too quickly, catching up in just one day. Actually, I had given him three days—if he came within those three days, I would have considered giving him a chance. But after three days, all bets were off. Three days is enough time for someone to sort out their feelings. If he truly loves someone, no matter how angry he is, the longing won’t last beyond three days. After three days, even if he comes looking for you, the emotions between you will have already changed. It’s like craving a certain food so badly you feel like you’ll go crazy if you don’t get it. On the first day, if you don’t eat it, you’ll feel miserable. On the second day, still no food, and you’ll still feel miserable, but the pain won’t be as sharp as the first day. By the third day, if you still haven’t eaten it, the pain will have dulled into habit—habitual pain doesn’t hurt as much anymore; it just becomes numbness. Then, on the fourth day, you finally get to eat it, but the satisfaction you feel won’t be as intense as it would have been on the first day. You might even think, 'Is this really it? Was it worth obsessing over like that?'"
Qian Fei hadn’t fully understood Yao Jingjing’s food analogy before. But over the next three days, she experienced firsthand just how profound Yao Jingjing’s "three-day theory" really was.
The first day was the hardest for her. She spent the entire day drowning in "misery" and "despondency." Even though she and Li Yifei had agreed to just be friends, and he had said he’d respect her wishes, she didn’t know if Yao Jingjing’s words had gotten to her or if she had actually invested far more feelings into Li Yifei than she’d realized. She kept wondering if that hot-tempered brat would come looking for her.
She couldn’t stop checking her phone, making sure she hadn’t missed any messages. Every time someone called, she’d startle and snatch up the phone, only to feel a crushing wave of disappointment when she saw it wasn’t him.
On the second day, there was still no word from him. Qian Fei’s "misery" and "despondency" gradually dulled into a mix of numbness and lingering sadness.
By the third day, when he still hadn’t sent a single message, her sadness had turned completely into numbness. She didn’t even cry—she just told herself it was time to let go of this fleeting illusion for good.
And just as she had resolved to say goodbye to the past, on the morning of the fourth day, she received a text from Li Yifei.
He sent two messages. The first: "Come to our company this afternoon for a meeting. There are some project issues we need to discuss. Can you find it? If not, I’ll meet you downstairs."
The second: "Still mad?"
Reading these texts, Qian Fei deeply understood the feeling of finally getting that long-craved food on the fourth day.
This person—these two messages—was this really what she had pined over for three whole days?
●︶3︶●
On the night of their argument, Li Yifei had dragged Da Jun away from his computer desk and forced him to go drinking at a bar.The troops wailed all the way, begging Li Yifei to let him go. "Damn it, we're gonna have a gang fight today, bro! My gear is so badass, if I don't show up, our team is screwed for sure, bro! Please let me go back, okay, bro?!"
Li Yifei ignored him, pulling out his phone and pretending to call his mother. The troops sobbed and snatched the phone away.
"Li Yifei, you're such a bastard, a bastard, a huge bastard! What the hell do you want?!"
Li Yifei put his phone away and said, "Nothing much. Just thirsty."
The troops looked at him and clicked his tongue twice. "Drinking before it's even dark—either drowning your sorrows or planning to get wild later. Let me tell you, I'm pure as snow, so don't get any ideas about me!"
Li Yifei shot him a glare and said coldly, "Your family's Doberman is better-looking than you, and that dog's still alive. If I had any ideas about you, I'd have to be blind!"
The troops' face twisted. "You won't even spare animals—you're worse than an animal!"
Li Yifei smacked the back of his head. "Shut up! I'm not in the mood for your nonsense today!"
The troops asked him what was wrong. After downing three glasses of whiskey in a row, Li Yifei frowned and asked with confusion in his voice, "Tell me, is it true that no matter how special, open-minded, or tough a girl seems at first, once you get to know her, she turns into a drama queen?" He finished his fourth glass. "What's wrong with her? I've done so much for her, changed so much—can't she see any of it? One 'we're from different worlds' and she wipes it all away! Fine, if she wants to call it quits, then so be it. Let's see if I'll indulge her tantrums!"
After listening to this long rant, the troops blinked and asked slyly, "Are you talking about Qian Fei? Did you two have a fight?"
Li Yifei, annoyed by his expression, smacked the back of his head again. "Whether we fought or not, what's with that sneaky, almost gleeful look of yours?"
The troops kept blinking. "I was just wondering how bad things are between you two. Did you break up? Maybe I've got a shot now!"
Li Yifei raised his hand to hit him again, but the troops dodged.
"You got a death wish or something? Still not giving up? Haven't you heard 'don't covet your friend's girl'?"
The troops stayed on guard, ready to dodge another hit, and said, "All I've heard is 'friends don't let friends stay single'! If you think she's too dramatic and want to make her your little sister or something, I wouldn't mind becoming your brother-in-law!"
Li Yifei grabbed an empty glass and hurled it at the troops' face.
"Dream on! Drop that idea right now!"
●︶3︶●
After a while, the troops cautiously crept back and said to Li Yifei, "Look, just the thought of me making a move on her pissed you off so much you forgot all about our friendship since kindergarten and threw a weapon at me! If you care about her that much, why cling to your young master pride? Aren't you afraid she'll really run off? You think everyone's as shameless as me, putting up with your beatings and insults for half a lifetime without leaving?"
Li Yifei scowled. "Let her run. No big deal. You think I can't live without her?"
The troops looked at him weakly and said, "Judging by how you're acting now, I'd say 'can't live without her' is just around the corner, young master. You've never drowned your sorrows in alcohol over a woman before, heh!"Li Yifei swiftly raised his hand and smacked Dajun on the back of the head again, making him yelp in pain.
"I don't get it. If she's jealous, why can't she just say so? Why put on this act about being from different worlds or whatever!"
Dajun was silent for a moment before timidly saying, "But I don't think she's jealous. I think she's seriously telling you that you two aren't compatible. She strikes me as a very genuine tomboy—she's not putting on an act, she's being sincere!"
Li Yifei narrowed his eyes at him, staring long enough to make Dajun squirm before asking darkly, "Tell me the truth—you're not still hung up on my girl, are you?"
Dajun rolled his eyes. "None of your business! Just don't get too cocky. Even if I'm not interested, who's to say someone else won't be? If you won't indulge her, someone else might be more than happy to. Keep acting like a spoiled young master, and you might really lose her."
Li Yifei fell silent.
After a while, Dajun asked what he planned to do.
Li Yifei said, "Let's both cool off for a bit."
Author's Note:
Men and women will never think on the same wavelength. Sometimes, when a woman says she wants to break up, there's still a waiting period in her heart. If the man doesn't respond during that time, she'll truly give up.
What the hell has Li the Scoundrel been up to these past three days? →_→
This frustrating phase won't last too long, don't worry.
Sorry, I'm afraid I won't write it well. I'll take a break tomorrow to think carefully about what comes next ><
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