Chapter 357: Past Events Can Only Be Recalled

Jin Hai nodded.

"Master Jin, you should slowly change your line of work. Try the entertainment industry, making movies or releasing records. This trade will be prosperous for decades to come," He Yuzhu said.

"But those things, I'm just a rough man, what would I know about them?" Jin Hai said.

He Yuzhu curled the corner of his mouth and glanced at Zhao Ying, "Sister Ying is an expert."

Zhao Ying shook her head and said, "Although I worked in the entertainment industry in the United States, that was all with this kid's help. However, since he said so, it means he is willing to help you."

"That would be great! Another day, we brothers will have a good chat!"

The three of them, including Jin Hai, asked quite a few questions about Si Jiu Cheng, and they really seemed to have a hard time leaving their homeland.

He Yuzhu patiently answered questions about the new people and new things happening in Si Jiu Cheng. After hearing them, Jin Hai felt a complex mix of emotions, and for a moment, he didn't know how to comment on it.

All five of them drank quite a bit of alcohol and didn't disperse until late at night. Zhao Ying insisted on having a late-night talk with He Yuzhu, but he refused her; to be honest, he was truly a bit afraid of this liberated sister.

During the days of searching for Liu Rusi, He Yuzhu did not let Zhao Ying accompany him. He was alone, looking for a needle in a haystack in the vast Hong Kong Island.

He first went to the police station, wanting to find clues by checking entry records, but he was naturally refused.

However, he didn't indulge those people either and directly stored the documents into his space. Yet, after checking every record, he didn't find the name Liu Rusi.

He also posted a missing person notice in the newspaper, but from beginning to end, no one contacted him.

In desperation, he had to entrust Jin Hai's underlings to ask around everywhere.

Yesterday, news finally came from Jin Hai's side: someone in the Temple Street area had seen a woman who looked similar to the photo of Liu Rusi.

The next day, He Yuzhu immediately rushed there.

He held the photo and asked shopkeepers in small street after small street, hoping for a miracle, but after searching for several hours, he found nothing.

Perhaps Jin Hai's brothers had lied to please him. He Yuzhu intended to give up.

He walked past a street corner when a familiar melody drifted into his ears: "... The sky is blue, waiting for the drizzle, and I am waiting for you... The cooking smoke rises, separated by thousands of miles of river..."

His heart gave a violent jolt. Very few people had ever heard this song; could it be her? He followed the singing to find her.

In a slightly wider open space at a street corner, people were sparsely gathered in a half-circle.

In the center of the circle, a delicate woman wearing a floral dress was holding a guitar, sitting on a dilapidated wooden chair, singing softly.

It was Zhang Shuying.

She sang with great focus, as if the surrounding carriages, horses, crowds, and noise had nothing to do with her.

At her feet sat an old straw hat, inside which were scattered some coins and crumpled banknotes.

He Yuzhu watched from outside the crowd. After parting in Beijing, he never expected to meet here!

After finishing a song, Zhang Shuying picked up the old straw hat and walked toward the onlookers to ask for money.

Most people casually tossed in a few coins, while those who gave banknotes often took the opportunity of shaking hands to quickly stuff them into her hand, making it look like a secret agent rendezvous.

The moment her eyes met He Yuzhu's, she was stunned.

The next second, she dropped the old straw hat, pushed through the crowd, and in full view of everyone, hugged him tightly.

He Yuzhu's body stiffened at first, then relaxed, letting her hold him.

He could feel the body in his arms trembling slightly.

"Wow! Lovers' affection!" The surrounding crowd erupted in good-natured laughter and whistles.

"Ying, is this your sweetheart?"

"Sing quickly, or we're leaving!"

Only then did Zhang Shuying let go of He Yuzhu, feeling embarrassed as she said: "Grandpas and grandmas, brothers and sisters, the 'Blue and White Porcelain' you just heard was written by him... I won't sing today; I want to accompany him."

People joked and laughed as they gradually dispersed.

Zhang Shuying squatted down and picked up the coins that had fallen on the ground.

She stood up with a smile and grabbed He Yuzhu's hand, as if afraid he would disappear immediately: "This guitar is the one you bought for me. I brought it out of Si Jiu Cheng, across the ocean, and never threw it away..."

He Yuzhu smiled, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.

The running around these past few days had given him a deep sense of powerlessness.

Since Liu Rusi was unwilling to see him, forcing it would be useless; perhaps it was time to let go.

Zhang Shuying was very happy, pulling him along and asking about this and that, as if the problems between them had long been smoothed over by time.

"He Yuzhu, can you teach me a few songs this time? You don't know, I've been making a living relying on this song!"

He Yuzhu nodded and asked, "Where do you live?"

"Just in a small attic nearby. How about I take you to see it?"

"Is it far?"

"Five or six kilometers." She flicked the braid behind her head.

"Wait for me a moment, I came by bike, I'll go get it," He Yuzhu said, turning to leave.

Zhang Shuying grabbed his sleeve, "Once you leave, you won't come back, right?"

He Yuzhu gave a wry smile, then handed her the backpack on his shoulder: "All my documents are inside, you hold them for me."

Zhang Shuying took the backpack and finally smiled, revealing shallow dimples.

He Yuzhu found a deserted corner and released a bicycle from his space. He had walked too much and really didn't want to measure this city with his feet anymore.

He rode the bike back to Zhang Shuying: "Get on, I'll give you a ride."

Zhang Shuying happily sat on the back seat, reached out to wrap her arms around He Yuzhu's waist, and pressed her cheek tightly against his back.

He Yuzhu asked: "Singing over there, how much can you earn a day?"

"Twenty-some Hong Kong Dollars, enough to live on."

"What about your parents? Why aren't you with them?"

"They... went to the island." Zhang Shuying's voice lowered, and the previous cheerfulness vanished instantly.

"I just told you, don't mention the past anymore. You don't know, He Yushui and the others still don't really talk to me even now; they always feel... that I was the one who drove you away."

"They aren't wrong, after all." Zhang Shuying suddenly became happy again, perhaps because she knew those students were thinking of her after all.

"Those little girls, I'm teaching them to sing new songs now, but they won't learn any of them."

"I want to learn; teach me to sing a song. The way I feel right now, it's like I'm dreaming. Let me make this dream last a little longer... I'm afraid that when I wake up, I'll be all alone again."

The afternoon sun was somewhat blinding, and his ears were filled with people speaking Cantonese, Chaoshan dialect, and Shanghai dialect; many of them must have left their homes to come here, right? Suddenly, a familiar melody surfaced naturally from his mind.

"Time passes and never returns, Reminiscing the Past is all that remains. Recalling Childhood, the bamboo horse and green plum, two innocent children together day and night. The spring breeze blows again, reddening the flower buds, and you have also added another year..."

This melody and these lyrics, carrying a thick air of nostalgia, were like a key that opened Zhang Shuying's long-suppressed heart.

Her cheek pressed against He Yuzhu's back, and she began to sob softly; warm tears soaked through his clothes and reached his skin.

He Yuzhu continued to sing, yet Liu Rusi's smiling face uncontrollably appeared in his mind over and over again.

His emotions also became agitated, his voice became uncontrollable, and the notes he sang all went out of tune.

The bicycle did not stop and moved slowly forward; the two of them each harbored their own thoughts, seemingly having reached a tacit understanding, with neither willing to break the silence.