My Weekend Lover Turned Out To Be My Boss - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Qiu Qi – “Galloping Horse”

Leaving the platform, I fiddled with my phone while walking towards the taxi stand. I was about to use Baidu to look for a good hotel when a figure heavily collided with me, sending my phone tumbling onto the ground a good distance away.

“Ah! I’m so sorry! Did I hurt you?”

The young man who bumped into me was carrying a large guitar. He apologized profusely while picking up my phone, even wiping the screen on his clothes. I took the phone, saw that it was fine, and prepared to leave: “It’s okay, it’s okay. I wasn’t looking where I was going either.”

The boy kept apologizing as he followed me. He ended up walking with me to the taxi stand and started chatting about Chengdu as if we were old friends: “You don’t look like you’re here for a business trip. You must be here to travel in Chengdu, right? I’m truly sorry about earlier. How about this, to show my apology, take this!”

The boy took out his wallet, pulled out a business card, and handed it to me. I looked at the card, then at him, puzzled: “What is this?”

“This youth hostel is run by my brother. It’s quite famous among the backpacker circles in Chengdu. To apologize, I’d like to invite you to stay for free.”

I declined, pushing his hand away: “Uh… I appreciate your kindness and apology, but I don’t need a free stay.”

The young man, however, was quite persistent, saying, “Well, if you don’t accept my kindness, paying for your stay is good too!”

Hiss. Are young people today this shameless? I ignored him. Just then, a taxi drove up. I opened the door and got in. The next moment, the young man got in after me and preemptively gave the address: “Driver… take us to Chunxi Street……”

I turned around from the passenger seat and glared at him: “You! Are you a plaster you can’t shake off?!”

The boy smiled, carefully setting down his guitar, and replied to me: “See, my bump brought our fate together. I’ll help you arrange a room later and introduce you to the food, drinks, and fun spots in Chengdu. You have to appreciate my sincere enthusiasm and apology~”

I had no choice. After getting out of the taxi, I didn’t even know the boy’s name, but I bravely followed him into an apartment building. When the “famous” youth hostel he mentioned appeared in my sight, I had to sigh inwardly—this place was actually quite good. The hostel owner was a man in his early thirties, with dark skin and a full beard, looking like someone who was permanently on the road.

He looked past his brother and addressed me directly. The boy who bumped into me slung his arm over my shoulder, chuckling: “Bro, I brought you a customer.”

The man smiled and nodded at me, then lowered his voice slightly to question, “He He, what trouble did you cause for someone else this time?”

I looked at the young man, surprised: “Your name is ‘Hehe’?”

“Not ‘Hehe’! My surname is He, and my given name is He, as in the grain!”

“Oh, oh… He He…”

While checking in, we chatted for a while. What touched me the most was something He He’s brother said: “When you can’t resolve an inner struggle, go out and travel. When you see a deer deep in the forest and a whale in the blue sea, you’ll understand that nothing is a big deal. Enjoying the moment is better than suffering. Since you’ve embarked on this journey, you should let the scenery solve everything.”

He He didn’t stay long before leaving with his guitar again. What a brief encounter. I took the key and walked toward my room. Upon opening the door, I found someone already occupying it. I stood at the doorway, feeling uneasy in the unfamiliar environment, staring blankly at the woman with her back to me. The woman stopped what she was doing at the sound, turned to look at me, and then smiled warmly, greeting me like an old friend: “Hi~”

The woman wore a baseball cap, her long hair tied in a ponytail. She was dressed in a simple gray hoodie, ripped blue jeans, and dusty canvas shoes. Her skin was a healthy tan, and her features were strikingly defined—the kind of excellent look you wouldn’t forget after the first glance. A free-spirited elf resided in her bones, radiating a casual, handsome aura. I leaned against the door, pulled out a cigarette, and cautiously asked, “Can I smoke?”

The woman tossed the item in her hand aside and smiled as she approached me: “Of course. I’ll bum one off you too.”

And so, we became acquainted over a cigarette. The way the woman held the cigarette in her mouth was unexpectedly cool. She asked curiously, “Traveling alone? By the way, my name is Qiu Qi. My dad’s surname is Qiu, and my mom’s is Qi. I don’t have a formal given name, so people in the backpacker circle call me Qiu Wuming (Qiu No-Name). What about you?”

“You Feifan, traveling alone.”

Qiu Wuming exhaled a smoke ring and teased, “Quite a Feifan (extraordinary) name.”

Then, she looked me up and down, musing: “Your outfit is very casual.”

“It’s a spur-of-the-moment trip, so I didn’t bring anything. I just brought myself.”

Amused by my words, Qiu Qi pointed to the beds: “It’s the low season for tourism now. Unless something unexpected happens, it’ll just be the two of us in this room. If you don’t mind, we can travel together. I’m also alone.”

“I’d be delighted. If you don’t mind, I hope to follow you. You look like someone who travels often.”

“Not really. It’s just that travel can be addictive. Occasionally, I just wander around… I’ll help you prepare your bed.”

Before I could refuse, Qiu Qi enthusiastically chose a bunk for me and fetched bedding from the closet. I put down my backpack and sat on a chair, chatting intermittently while watching her: “I just arrived. It’s too much trouble for you. I can do it myself.”

“When staying in a youth hostel, you should prepare a simple set of bedding yourself, after all, the external ones aren’t that clean. Chengdu has gotten cooler recently. Your outfit won’t last you a few days. I guess you just came from the station, right? I’ll go shopping with you later to buy some travel essentials.”

I raised an eyebrow and quipped, “How do you know I came from the station? I left in a hurry, so I need to buy everything now.”

“Travelers either take the train or the plane. It’s an easy guess~”

“You really tell corny jokes! You’re so outgoing, you must have made a lot of friends on the road.”

“I choose who I’m kind to. You gave me a cigarette, so I’ll give you something in return. It’s called mutual benefit.”

After tidying up, Qiu Qi and I left the hostel, laughing and talking. A surprising bonus was that Qiu Qi drove an old Beijing Jeep. The body was covered in mud, but it felt like a badge of honor. I’m not a fan of shopping, but Qiu Qi took me straight to several clothing stores, helped me choose a waterproof jacket and a down coat, and bought a suitcase along the way.

After putting the items in the trunk, we headed to Kuanzhai Alley, eating and drinking along the way. Qiu Qi was from the North, possessing the unique straightforwardness of Northern people, and her Northeastern accent was amusing. Finally, in the evening, we found an inconspicuous hot pot restaurant by the roadside. Qiu Qi slammed her hand on the table and immediately said, “Boss, bring a case of beer first to quench our thirst!”

I broke out in a sweat, staring at her exasperatedly: “You’re driving! You’re driving! And a whole case of beer!”

“What are you afraid of? We can always take a taxi back and come pick up the car tomorrow!”

So, the two of us devoured the food heartily. We didn’t even need cups for the beer, drinking straight from the bottles. Even though it was early autumn and the temperature had dropped, the ice-cold beer paired with the boiling hot pot was incredibly satisfying. In the blink of an eye, half a case of beer was gone. I hadn’t expected to meet such an interesting soul on my first day in Chengdu. It was a good start.

Qiu Qi recounted a pile of strange and interesting stories she had encountered on the road. Just as I was doubled over with laughter, my phone suddenly rang. I stared at the name on the screen, and my laughter instantly ceased. Qiu Qi followed my gaze to the phone: “Answer it!”

Watching Phoebe’s name flash furiously, my heart turned to stone this time. I hung up the call and turned off the phone. Qiu Qi looked at me teasingly: “The first time I saw you, I knew you were someone with a story.”

I raised my beer bottle and clinked it against hers, affirming with a smile, “Forget me. Your stories are definitely more exciting and numerous than mine. Where are we going next?”

Qiu Qi dipped a piece of tripe into the hot pot and answered without hesitation, “My destination is the impoverished mountainous area in Ganzi Prefecture, passing through Daocheng Yading. Do you dare to come with me? It’s all around the Kangding area anyway.”

The mention of Daocheng Yading made me pause. I remembered the movie adaptation of Zhang Jiajia’s I Belonged to You a few years ago, which was popular for a while. I had begged Phoebe for a long time before she finally found time to accompany me to the cinema. I remember Deng Chao, accompanied by the song “Radio Love Song,” saying:

‘I’ll tell you secretly, there is a place called Daocheng. I want to go there with the person I love most, to see the azure sky, to see the white snow mountains, to see the golden grasslands, to see a fairy tale of autumn. I want to tell her that if I don’t live in your heart, I’m dying in a foreign land! I want to tell her that loving someone means being together forever.’

In the dark cinema, Phoebe leaned her head on my shoulder. Our fingers were tightly interlocked. Perhaps she wasn’t paying attention to the movie’s plot, but she whispered, “Do you have a place like that in your heart? If so, when I achieve success and we grow old, can you take me there? I’ll give all my time to you.”

Just then, Qiu Qi pulled out a tissue and handed it to me. I looked up at her, puzzled. Qiu Qi smiled, then exhaled: “You’re sick.”

I laughed through my tears, refuting her: “I’m perfectly fine.”

“No, your soul is gravely ill. Perhaps your hurried departure from a certain city to come here is for the sake of saving yourself.”

I don’t know why, but Qiu Qi’s short sentence pierced the deep pain in my heart. I took the tissue and covered my face, allowing the hustle and bustle of the unfamiliar city street to cover up my heartbroken sobs.