Chased by My Heartless Ex - Chapter 9

Xu You stared in disbelief at Zhou Siyu, who was chatting and laughing with Zhang Qin, then lowered her head to look at the single word she had sent on her phone.

Her hand went limp, and the phone slipped from her fingers, landing on the unyielding stone pavement with a dull thud. Her soul felt as if it had fled her body, leaving her with no will to bend down and retrieve it.

The chilly air seeped through her pores, invading every part of her limbs. Witnessing the birth of a lie firsthand sent shivers down her spine. They were indeed in a sugar daddy-sugar baby relationship, but they had also promised each other not to engage in two such relationships simultaneously.

Had Zhou Siyu broken her promise?

Impossible. She wasn’t the kind of person to go back on her word.

Two conflicting voices battled in her mind, the emotional one insisted that as a company owner, Zhou Siyu valued contractual integrity, while the rational one argued that businesspeople were profit-driven, caring only about the quality of their partners, and that the monetary aspect of their relationship was the least of her concerns.

For a moment, Xu You couldn’t tell whether it was her heart or her head that ached. She took deep, ragged breaths, forcing herself to calm down.

A kind-hearted elderly woman out for a stroll noticed the phone on the ground and came around the easel to check on her. Seeing Xu You’s pained expression, she inquired about her well-being while pulling out her own simple button-operated phone, ready to call an ambulance.

The basic device loudly announced each command as she pressed the buttons.

[Unlocked. Dialing. One. Two…]

In the quiet park, the mechanical female voice was unnervingly clear, startling birds perched on the withered trees above, sending them screeching into the distance.

Xu You shook her head and gently placed her hand on the old woman’s wrist, feeling a momentary chill. “Grandma, there’s no need. It’s an old issue, I just need to rest for a bit.”

Before Xu You could finish, the elderly woman’s finger accidentally pressed the center button on the bottom row, and a loud “Zero” echoed. She glanced at Xu You, who now held her head high and looked relatively composed. “Dear, health is the foundation of everything. Don’t think you can push yourself just because you’re young. When you have time, you should go to the hospital for a check-up.”

The old woman’s concern reminded Xu You of her grandfather. If he were still alive, he would never have let her come to Beicheng. Then she would never have met Zhou Siyu, nor would she have become this timid, shrinking violet.

Xu You nodded earnestly. “I’ll go for a health check-up tomorrow. Please take care of yourself too.”

“I’m perfectly fine,” the old woman chuckled, tucking her phone back into her padded coat pocket. “I’m seventy-eight, but you wouldn’t guess it, would you?”

“You look no older than fifty-eight.”

Xu You’s chubby-cheeked face and sweet words delighted the old woman, making her laugh heartily.

The commotion they were making worried Xu You that Zhou Siyu might notice her presence. She discreetly leaned to the side, peeking through the gap between the easel and the old woman toward where they had been.

The bench was still there, but it was empty.

Her long, thick eyelashes fluttered as she let out a self-mocking laugh. When she looked up again, she was the picture of a cheerful young girl. “Grandma, I’m an art student. I originally came here to sketch the scenery. If you have time, could I invite you to be my model?”

“I can show you my student ID or even my ID card, I’m not a bad person,” she added hastily.

The old woman was taken aback. This girl was worried she’d be mistaken for a troublemaker, yet she seemed completely unaware that the old woman might be one herself, a genuine, guileless fool.

“An old woman like me can be a model?”

“What are you saying? There’s no age limit for models. Besides, you’re so youthful, I shouldn’t even call you Grandma; calling you Auntie wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”

Xu You smiled ingratiatingly. Though it was a spur-of-the-moment idea, she recalled that the entry for the national competition her mentor had signed her up for had been stalled because she couldn’t find a suitable theme or model. After spending just a short while with the elderly woman, she had some ideas and wanted to seize this hard-won inspiration.

“Alright then, where should I stand?” The old lady agreed readily, raising her hands to fix her hair.

“I have a chair here. You might need to sit for a while, so please tell me right away if you get tired.”

After adjusting the old lady’s position and the easel, Xu You removed the previous drawing paper and replaced it with a fresh sheet to start sketching. Holding the charcoal pencil between her fingers, her lips pursed beneath her delicate, upturned nose. The childishness faded from her expression when she was focused, replaced by an elegant, cool aura.

Yes, only art could save her.

Sitting before the easel, everything Zhou Siyu had brought her, good or bad, dissipated like smoke. She immersed herself purely and freely, enjoying the process.

Xu You sketched quickly, her handling of points, lines, and planes so practiced that she never faltered. This time, she planned to create a realistic oil painting, meticulously controlling the details and colors. Lost in her work, she lost track of time. It wasn’t until Aunt Zhang called to ask why she hadn’t returned home for lunch, as it was almost one o’clock, that she finally put down her brush.

The old lady had agreed to be her model and sat upright for hours, hardly moving from her pose the entire time. The moment she had a break, she stood up, stretching her arms and rubbing her back.

“You must be tired.” After hanging up the phone, Xu You quickly took a bottle of mineral water from her backpack, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to the old lady.

Pointing to her stomach, the old lady waved her hand. “Old age.”

Xu You froze, then rummaged through her bag but couldn’t find the thermos Aunt Zhang always prepared for her. She felt a pang of regret, she really hadn’t been considerate enough. She had inconvenienced the old lady for hours without even offering a drink and had made her miss mealtime.

“Grandma, I’m really sorry. I didn’t notice the time and kept you from going home for lunch. How about this…”

After apologizing, Xu You explained that completing this work would take more time and she hoped the old lady could continue as her model. She offered to pay an hourly rate higher than the market standard and, to make up for today’s oversight, insisted on calling a car to take her home and apologize to her family in person.

The old lady had already moved beside Xu You, carefully examining the blurred image of herself on the canvas. Her moist eyes briefly flashed with displeasure. “What do you take me for, an old woman?”

“I’m just worried your family might be concerned, and I really did waste your time.”

The old lady reached out and stroked Xu You’s glossy black hair. “I’m happy to be friends with you. What’s this talk of wasting time? “Unless you dislike this old woman?”” she retorted, hiding the loneliness in her eyes.

Xu You’s voice rose, and she almost sprang up to hug the old lady’s arm. “Of course not! How could I ever dislike you?”

The faint scent of soap from the old lady’s clothes lingered in the air, reminding Xu You of the countless times she had clung to her grandfather’s arm like this, acting spoiled. Memories washed over her like a tide. She took a deep breath, feeling the steady beat of her heart.

She lingered a little longer in the warm embrace. The old lady insisted on not accepting any payment, and though Xu You finally persuaded her to let her treat her to a meal, she ended up being taken to a small noodle shop tucked away in a hutong.

It was mealtime, and the place was filled with longtime neighbors, all familiar faces with no young people in sight. They greeted each other from across the room. The shop was small, and the owner had stored Xu You’s art supplies in the back room. Soon, two bowls of zhajiangmian were placed on the table in front of them.

Unlike the adapted versions found in neighboring small countries, the authentic method of making Northern City’s fried sauce noodles is meticulous, nutritious, and tailored to suit the local palate, making it one of the city’s most iconic dishes.

The people of Northern City are accustomed to eating hand-pulled or cut noodles. Chewy, slender white noodles fill the bottom of the bowl, topped generously with dark fried sauce. The large chunks of meat are a testament to the generous portions. Regulars who come for the noodles don’t fuss over the variety of toppings, seasonal vegetables are simply shredded and scattered on top. With a quick stir of chopsticks, the aroma bursts forth right under your nose.

After mixing the noodles in her own bowl, the elderly woman swapped it with Xu You’s. Her mixed noodles glistened with oil, with minced meat and vegetable shreds evenly distributed throughout the bowl.

Since coming to Northern City for school, Xu You had applied to live off-campus. Most of her classmates were mere acquaintances, and thanks to certain rumors, people kept their distance. She had no friends and had never shared a meal with anyone at a local eatery. The elderly woman was one of the few people she felt close to, aside from Zhou Siyu and Aunt Zhang.

A bowl of noodles could fill her stomach.
But a story could leave her heart feeling hollow.

The elderly woman’s home was at the end of the alley. As they walked back, chatting casually, Xu You learned why the woman had been so concerned when she saw Xu You feeling unwell and why she was willing to be her unpaid model.

The woman had lost her parents, had no children, and her husband had passed away twenty years ago, gasping for breath right before her eyes.

She was profoundly lonely.

Xu You was likely the first stranger to visit the small house in years. Excitedly, the elderly woman gave her a tour and seated her on the small couch, barely big enough for two, before heading to the outdoor kitchen to boil water for tea.

Looking around, Xu You saw that the dining area, bedroom, and study were all combined into one room, which was even smaller than the studio Zhou Siyu had set up for her. Yet every corner was clean and tidy. On the windowsill by the desk stood what could barely be called a vase, a canned yellow peach jar, holding a slanting branch of wintersweet. The buds were still closed, with only one or two tinged with yellow. On the desk lay an open book with yellowed pages, basking in the sunlight.

As the elderly woman busied herself outside, Xu You quietly took all the cash from her wallet and, with the quickest movements of her life, tucked it under the jar before sitting back down properly.

When the woman returned with two cups of tea, she found Xu You sitting upright and pushed a cup toward her before taking a sip of her own hot tea.

“I live alone, so the place is a bit small. There’s hardly any room for you to settle in.”

“Not at all, it’s lovely.”

…

Xu You didn’t know what emotions she carried with her when she left and returned to the empty villa.

The elderly woman walked her to the end of the alley and, before parting, held her hand to ask if she could have a photo printed at the studio from the painting Xu You was working on, to use as her funeral portrait someday. Xu You didn’t say yes or no, but her face remained wet with tears the entire way home.

From that day on, the old woman and the young one met at the park for three consecutive days.

Xu You accompanied her for meals and walks, while the elderly woman posed as her model.

The stack of cash on the windowsill mysteriously found its way back into Xu You’s art supply bag, along with a small dried wintersweet flower.

Xu You was gradually getting used to life without Zhou Siyu. She no longer obsessed over whether Zhou had dressed warmly enough in the cold, eaten on time, or missed her.

The routine check-in messages stopped, and her daily trivialities were now shared with her new friend.

It wasn’t until Thursday, when her phone calendar reminded her of the interview the next day, that she belatedly realized before bed, they hadn’t seen each other for nearly two weeks.

Opening her phone to revisit Zhou Siyu’s deception, she felt nothing but relief.