Summer #14

Don't Turn from Summer (莫负寒夏) by Ding Mo (丁墨)

Chapter 14

The lights are bright and soft, the shelves are neatly arranged, and the floor is shiny as mirror. Every little corner in here has a feel of clean and elegant simplicity.

Mu Hanxia walks in the crowd, with a bag of lychees in her shopping basket. The newly arrived small-core lychees, only 9.9 Yuan per pound, is as cheap as Le Ya’s promotional price. Mu Hanxia decides to buy a bag and have a taste of them.

However, seeing the prosperity of Yong Zheng, her feelings are somewhat complicated. Remembering the Lin Mochen with injuries all over him that night, and then thinking about Le Ya which she regards as family, why she can’t help but think she has acted like Mr. Dongguo[1]?

[1: There is a Chinese fable that tells the story of Mr. Dongguo and a wolf -- Mr. Dongguo saved the life of a wolf, who’s being chased by a hunter, by putting him in his book sack. After the hunter passed them and the danger was over, the wolf, who was released from the book sack, wanted to gulf up Mr. Dongguo as his meal instead of showing any gratitude. The moral of this fable is same as an Easop’s fable the Farmer and the Snake -- don’t save someone who’s evil by nature. ]

She walks around a little and is just about to go home, when she comes to a shelf in the corner and sees an open door in the wall in front of her with a sign on it saying, “Employees Only.”

Mu Hanxia strolls slowly over and glances into the space beyond the door. The ceiling is very high inside. Rows and rows of racks stand there fully stacked with all kinds of merchandise. It’s a warehouse. There are people walking in there.

An idea suddenly pops out in Mu Hanxia’s mind: if she could see what is high on inventory, won’t it mean that she would know where he will target next? But she is just thinking about it in her mind and doesn’t dare to actually run inside.

After peeking for a while, she is about to leave. But then she sees the two employees coming out, one talking on the phone in his hand, “OK, we’ll be right there.”

They go farther and farther away.

There aren’t many people around. Mu Hanxia stands there for a moment and makes sure there isn’t any sound from the warehouse, then she leaves the shopping basket on the floor and puts on a puzzled look, as if having lost her way, and wobbles into the warehouse.

Success! Holding back her excitement and nervousness, she walks swiftly into the deep end. The light is a little dim in the warehouse, the cement floor is also gray dark, and the noise outside sounds a little distant. Mu Hanxia walks around inside and has reached the deepest part of the warehouse before she can find any valuable clue.

So it seems Lin Mochen hasn’t put his most important inventory here in this warehouse. She turns back and is about to retreat, when she hears a loud “clang” sound -- the roller shutter at the door is descending.

Mu Hanxia is stupefied, and then hurriedly runs over, banging on the door, “Open the door, open the door! Someone’s still in here.”

She pounds on the door for a long time but there is no answer.

She takes out her cellphone. Whom should she call? No one. Whoever comes to her rescue will surely disturb people at Yong Zheng, and then they will know she is from Le Ya. That will be a really serious trouble!

Thinking hard for a long time, she puts down her cellphone. Looking at the tightly closed shutter door, she sits down in distress.

Just wait! Wait until someone opens the door, and then she can slip out. At most tomorrow morning, the door will definitely open.

After about an hour, the supermarket closes for the day, and there isn’t any sound from outside. The battery of Mu Hanxia’s cellphone also dies, forcing her to give up for good the idea of finding help. She buries her face in her arms, trying to fall asleep. It’s a little cold in here, so she holds herself tightly together in half sleepiness. Suddenly she gives a shudder as she hears faint footsteps behind her.

At this hour, the room is gloomy, and there is dead silence around. The sound of the footsteps is just like the echo in an empty hollow. Mu Hanxia quivers in fright and feels the chills running through her body. For a second, she doesn’t even dare to look back.

The footsteps are low and steady, soft and light, and unhurried. Mu Hanxia calms down and turns around.

There, between two rows of racks, a tall and slender male figure is approaching.

Lin Mochen.

The unbuttoned suit, the casual shirt, the hands in trousers pockets, and the eye that’s deep, dark, and bright.

Eyeing her half studyingly.

All of a sudden, Mu Hanxia realizes, it’s this guy who has locked her in the warehouse!

They stand, a few steps apart, for a few seconds.

Lin Mochen’s voice is insipid and polite, “Miss. Mu Hanxia, have you enjoyed yourself here?”

Mu Hanxia curses “devious” under her breath, but puts on a smile on her face, “Not bad. There’s so much to see here, that I almost forgot to go home. Why are you here Mr. Lin? Do you come to show your solicitude? You really don’t have to. I’m doing great here. It’s cool, spacious, comfortable, not too dark, nor too stifling here, and I can make a bed on the floor. I think I’m having a good time.”

A hint of smile flickers in Lin Mochen’s eyes. He glances at her and turns around, “Let’s go.”

This is to let her leave?

Staring at his back, Mu Hanxia starts flatly, “Hey, apologize.”

Lin Mochen’s footsteps stop.

Mu Hanxia: “You’ve kept me here for more than an hour. Shouldn’t you apologize?”

He turns to look at her and smiles, “Why should I apologize for doing what I want?”

Mu Hanxia stares at him, stares at him without any courtesy or cowardice, as if hoping to kill him with her stares. Lin Mochen certainly receives the full signal.

Then, he raises his hand, pins Mu Hanxia by the shoulder against the rack behind her.

Mu Hanxia freezes with her eyes opened wide in astonishment. He also fixes his gaze down at her.

In this narrow space, the light gleams down from above their heads, covering both faces in haziness. It is extremely quiet around, so quiet that Mu Hanxia can hear her own heartbeat. She suddenly smells the faint fragrance of soaps and towels from the rack behind her. Right in front of her, is his tall and slender outline. The young and masculine face is leaning so close. Those eyes, however, are like rocks in the coldest water, fixed on her.

“I have been soft-handed enough with you.” He says, “Otherwise, right now, you have been sent to the police office.”

Mu Hanxia’s heart is pounding fast, her face getting hot from his stares. She quickly pushes him away.

He turns swiftly and walks away quickly.

Mu Hanxia is close at his heal.

She now notices an open door in a wall on the far end. She saw the door before but it was locked. Lin Mochen must have entered from this door.

They walk on for a few more steps, and suddenly hear some vague talking and laughing outside. Mu Hanxia is surprised. Lin Mochen pauses, and she bumped into his back. She hastily backs away a step and also stops.

Then they hear ‘dang’, that little door is closed from outside by someone. “Tack,” it’s also locked.

“Sss...,” very light sound of the current can be heard from overhead, and the next second, the lights are all out.

Mu Hanxia is dumbfounded, Lin Mochen doesn’t move either. The whole warehouse is lit only by the dim emergency lights in the corners. Everything becomes barely discernibly.

“Won’t you hurry up and call somebody to come open the door?” Mu Hanxia urges.

Lin Mochen stays quiet in the dark for a few seconds, and replies, “I don’t have the cellphone with me.”

“What the...you are really a timely rain.” Mu Hanxia mutters, “Then you go knock on the door, knock hard! Get someone to help us. This is your store!”

But he just replies flatly, “I won’t.”

“Why?!”

“If my people see me with a female employee of Le Ya in my warehouse in the deep night, how am I going to lead them to destroy Le Ya for good?”

Mu Hanxia is speechless.

By this time, the workers outside the door must have gone too far to be called back. She has mentally suffered a lot tonight, but still ends up staying in this gloomy warehouse for the night. Her distress is beyond description. But when she sees Lin Mochen, the culprit, ends up the same as her, she evilly feels better.

“What now?” She asks.

Then she sees Lin Mochen bends, and seats his lofty self down on the floor. “Wait.”

Mu Hanxia says nothing for a while. Then, going back a few steps, she also finds some spot and sits down.

The night is long.

At first, neither of them speaks. It’s so quiet around, only the rustling of clothes can be heard. Holding her knees, Mu Hanxia steals a glance at him from time to time. He looks very calm, with his long legs propped against his body and his hands on the knees. His face is indiscernible in the dark, and it’s hard to tell what he’s thinking.

“Hey,” Mu Hanxia starts, “Do you enjoy scheming against others in business? ”

He ignores her.

Mu Hanxia starts again, “You beat Le Ya so badly. Aren’t you afraid that we burn our boats and fight back?”

“Then fight.” He says coolly.

Mu Hanxia pauses, and turns her head the other way, not wanting to talk to this guy any more.

But after a while he speaks, “You hungry?”

Mu Hanxia replied curtly, “Yes!”

“Then behave yourself.” He says. Mu Hanxia looks up and sees him get behind the rack. In a few moments, he comes back with something in his hand.

“Bad tasting chocolate pies and sausages.” He tosses them over, which Mu Hanxia receives in her arms. She is suddenly amused, does he have to taunt the products of his own supermarket like this?

The food despised by rich people like him is unusually tasty for Mu Hanxia, who has been hungry for a whole night. She quickly eats them up. In time, he gets bottled water from somewhere and gives her a bottle.

Mu Hanxia’s throat has been dry for a while. She feels some warmth in her heart as she finally gets to drink some refreshing water.

--------

It’s deeper into the night, and the air feels even colder.

Mu Hanxia leans against the rack and dozes off. But the warehouse is so chilly. She curls up, holding her knees tightly, but is too cold to fall asleep.

Lin Mochen just sits there with folded arms.

“Are you cold?” She asks, finally with a trace of weakness in her voice.

He seems to have smiled a little, gets up, and goes behind the racks again. Mu Hanxia hears his unhurried footsteps moving between several rows of racks. After a while, he brings a pillow and a quilt, as if by magic.

Mu Hanxia blurts out, “Are you Doraemon[2]?”

[2: Doraemon is a character in a Japanese animation series. He’s a cat who can provide anything that’s needed for his friends from his pocket.]

“I’m the one who’s giving your boss nightmares. You forgot?”

Mu Hanxia: ... I’m not gonna trifle with this guy! She stares eagerly as he tosses the pillow and quilt onto the floor, and asks, “Is there another one?”

He sits back down and covers the quilt cozily over himself before answering, “Just found this one, a defective piece. Yong Zheng’s bedding has long sold out.”

Mu Hanxia is left with no word.

After a moment, he says, “Come over if you are cold.” Then he closes his eyes, ready to go to sleep.

Mu Hanxia hesitates for a while, sniffs her already congested nose, gets up and walks over to his side. Luckily the quilt is very big. She lifts a corner of it and sits down half a meter away from him.

He keeps his eyes shut and doesn’t move, as if she doesn’t exist.

The quilt is unexpectedly thick and solid, and it feels a little warm with his body heat. Mu Hanxia crawls in, closes her eyes, and murmurs, “Good night.”

“Good night.” His voice comes from somewhere very close.

--------

Mu Hanxia is woken by the sudden brightness.

Opening her eyes, first thing she sees is the light that’s all back on again. Someone has turned them on. Then she notices right in front of her nose, the white shirt and the chest of a man.

No, more precisely, the chest of a man that’s pressed underneath her face.

The warm smell, and the steady heartbeat, are right by her ear. She stares at the scene, quite stunned, --

A night has passed, and Lin Mochen is lying on the floor. So is she. Her head is resting on his chest, and hand on his body. One of his hands is holding her waist, rather tightly. His short hair is ruffled, eyes lightly shut -- he’s still asleep. The quilt, however, has been kicked aside by them.

Is it she who moves badly in sleep or neither is good?

Mu Hanxia has never been held like this by a man, so she blushes irrepressibly. She feels as if there are spikes all over her and gingerly tries to get up. But as soon as she moves, Lin Mochen slowly opens his eyes.

The two pairs of eyes, so close to each other, are locked together. His eyes deep as an abyss.

Mu Hanxia, “......”

Then he loosens the hold and stands up. Mu Hanxia also stands up quickly.

Mu Hanxia is still a little uneasy. She looks away from him and picks up a different topic, “Someone’s coming?”

“Mhm.”

At his words, the shutter door rises slowly, people’s voice vaguely heard from outside.

So it’s already daytime.

Mu Hanxia lowers her voice, “What now?”

“You stay here and I go clear up the scene.”

“Oh, OK.”

Looking at him walking past her toward the door, Mu Hanxia suddenly reaches out and grabs his arm, “You won’t...lock me inside again, right? One can be crafty, but really shouldn’t be too crafty.”

A slight smile finally comes to Lin Mochen’s eyes, “Yes, I will. Just wait.”

--------

Mu Hanxia waits a while and hears no more sound from the door. Then Lin Mochen’s clear voice comes through, “Mu Hanxia, come out.”

Reassured, Mu Hanxia walks out. Lin Mochen is standing by the shutter door, all by himself.

Mu Hanxia’s heart skips a beat at the sight of him.

Maybe it’s because his shirt is wrinkled and his hair out of order. With his hands in his trousers pockets, he looks more like a regular young man than a lofty elite.

Or maybe it’s because he cleared away the employees and waits there for her to come out.

When she passes him, Mu Hanxia says in a low voice, “Thanks.”

“That’s all right. If you do it again, I won’t let you get away.” His voice is still a little hoarse from the night’s sleep.

Mu Hanxia gives him a glance from the corner of her eye, and walks away.