The Ex-Wife-to-Be Is Acting Weird After Losing Her Memory - Chapter 42

Chapter 42: Symphonic Poem Five

The Qingsen Cemetery was located in the suburbs west of the city. Tall pines and cypresses lined the stone steps. Occasionally, small birds flew across the treetops, stirring a slight rustling wind.

Zhen Zhen led Lu Jiayin all the way up the mountain. Since it wasn’t the season for grave-sweeping, there were few people in the cemetery, and the atmosphere was exceptionally quiet and peaceful. Zhen Zhen stopped in front of a tombstone halfway up the hill.

This was the final resting place of her parents. It was maintained by dedicated personnel and was very clean. It was Lu Jiayin’s first visit. She stopped with Zhen Zhen and gently placed the prepared bouquet of moth orchids in front of the tombstone.

Zhen Zhen’s parents were still very young when they passed away. In the photos, both were smiling warmly. Zhen Zhen knelt at the tomb, quietly picking up a few stray fallen leaves. Lu Jiayin, knowing her mood was low, stood by her side.

So, she had been carrying such a heavy psychological burden all along. If she hadn’t had the sudden idea to rush back and give her a birthday surprise this time, Lu Jiayin would never have imagined that Zhen Zhen actually regarded her parents’ accident as her own fault, carrying it for so many years.

“For a long time, I often dreamed of the day my parents had their accident. I woke up exceptionally early that day and ran to knock on their door. It was so cold. My father picked me up and tucked me into bed. My mother was smiling next to me. The bed felt so warm in my memory…”

“Originally, we wouldn’t have driven on that road. It was because, on the way to Grandpa’s house, I suddenly insisted on buying a doll that shared my birthday. So, my father temporarily changed the route and detoured to a nearby arcade. In the dream, I try desperately to remind myself every time not to let him drive, not to take that road, but I never succeed.”

Zhen Zhen’s voice was very soft, yet it clearly reached Lu Jiayin’s ears in the silence of the cemetery. She sighed, her gaze gentle as she said: “All of this is my fault.”

It seemed that only by unequivocally punishing herself in this way could she cope with the sense of loss and move forward.

Lu Jiayin listened quietly, her chest aching with sorrow, almost unable to speak.

The wind was chilly. Her hands, exposed outside her coat, were icy cold, but she seemed completely unaware, only feeling deep empathy for the person in front of her.

Thinking of such a young Zhen Zhen having to silently endure the loneliness of losing both parents, and then turning that loss into a reason to punish herself, enduring countless cold glances and solitude—her heart ached.

“I’m sorry,” she exhaled deeply, as if apologizing for the part of herself that was never present in Zhen Zhen’s past, and also as if taking on this burden for her. “But this is not your fault.”

“That should have been a happy day. They wanted to celebrate your birthday, rushing to get to the amusement park to buy you the cutest doll. I believe that even in their last moments, your mom and dad definitely held no blame in their hearts. The only thing they wanted to leave you was not regret, but—love.”

Lu Jiayin’s voice was trembling. Even though she wasn’t consciously trying to cry, tears kept welling up and spilling over her eyelids. She had intended to say something to comfort Zhen Zhen, but what came out was only regret.

I’m sorry. For the unreached amusement park, the unfinished birthday celebration, and the solitary Zhen Zhen standing alone in her memories. She knew that even if time could be reversed, there was little chance she could have met her or comforted her at that time, yet her heart still twisted in pain.

She felt immense regret—regret that she hadn’t discovered this reason sooner, hadn’t celebrated a birthday with her before, and hadn’t been completely honest with her, allowing her to endure loneliness and sadness by herself for so long.

Seeing Lu Jiayin’s relentless tears, Zhen Zhen looked somewhat flustered. She stood up to wipe away her tears, and paused when her hand touched Lu Jiayin’s face: “Why are you so cold?”

She blamed herself for her carelessness. She knew Lu Jiayin was sensitive to the cold, but was charmed by her pouting and had relented, not bringing that large scarf. She cupped Lu Jiayin’s hands, which hung by her sides, and they were indeed icy cold.

“I’m truly fine. Please don’t cry.” The melancholy was unwittingly replaced, leaving only the person sobbing in front of her. Zhen Zhen breathed onto her hands to warm them, coaxing her with a gentle tone.

The people in the photograph silently gazed at the two figures standing before the tombstone.

“My mood usually feels quite heavy every time I come to see Mom and Dad, but this time I feel much better,” Zhen Zhen gently smoothed Lu Jiayin’s wind-tossed hair and whispered, “Thank you for coming with me.”

You finally made me no longer alone.

Lu Jiayin squeezed her hand back. Her nose was red from crying. She sniffled and offered a smile: “I’ll always be with you from now on.”

The two stayed in the cemetery for a long time. On the way back, Lu Jiayin was still driving. She gripped the steering wheel and drove the car onto a road completely opposite to the one they came on.

Looking at the bustling, colorful amusement park entrance rapidly approaching, Zhen Zhen asked in surprise: “Why are we coming here?”

Lu Jiayin, while queuing with the traffic to enter the parking lot, said: “To celebrate the birthday of seven-year-old you.”

She had conceived of this idea at the cemetery—to help Zhen Zhen re-mend the regrets of the past, so this event would no longer remain a source of distress in her heart.

The park was filled with music and laughter. It was the time of the Winter Carnival. Flashing lights from giant arcade games in the plaza caught the attention of many children.

To avoid attracting attention, Lu Jiayin bought a fluffy rabbit-ear hat for herself at the souvenir shop. The hat was large, almost covering half her face, and with a mask on, only a very close look would reveal her identity as a celebrity.

After disguising herself, she playfully picked out a round-eared bear hat for Zhen Zhen. Ignoring the look of complete resistance on her face, she smiled and helped her put it on.

“It’s no fun if only I dress up,” she said, hooking her arm around Zhen Zhen’s shoulder playfully as she put the hat on. “Let’s wear a pair.”

Hearing the word “pair,” Zhen Zhen’s resistance immediately softened, and she obediently allowed Lu Jiayin to settle the fluffy, brownish-yellow little hat on her head.

The little rabbit and the little bear walked hand-in-hand into the park. The bear was clearly overwhelmed by the dazzling array of arcade games. In the end, the little rabbit led her straight to the token counter, buying a whole basket full of game tokens.

Lu Jiayin handed the heavy red basket to Zhen Zhen and asked generously: “Which one do you want to play?”

Zhen Zhen hadn’t been to a place like this since childhood. Holding the basket in one hand and Lu Jiayin’s hand in the other, she was like the studious Alice who had stumbled into Wonderland, hesitantly looking from one game to the next, softly saying: “I haven’t played any of them…”

Lu Jiayin squeezed her hand, her voice cheerful: “That’s great! That means you’ll have tons of new experiences! And I happen to be really good at arcade games. I’ll show you how to play.”

Zhen Zhen nodded, her two fluffy round ears bobbing. She said docilely: “Okay.”

After saying this, she felt Lu Jiayin’s grip on her hand tighten. Lu Jiayin led her through various flashing arcade machines until they stopped in front of the brightly lit dance machine at the center.

The machine looked conspicuous and imposing. Zhen Zhen assessed its difficulty. Before she could even say “no,” Lu Jiayin had already pushed her onto the platform.

“Let’s warm up first.” The person next to her was lightning-fast, sliding a few tokens into the machine’s slot. The huge screen gave a booming startup sound, and a series of dazzling information screens flashed quickly past.

Zhen Zhen watched Lu Jiayin operate the machine skillfully with the tip of her toe, feeling a bit nervous: “I’ve never played this before. Can you pick an easier difficulty?”

Lu Jiayin’s sweet smile was her answer: “Wifey, do you know what this is? This is the King of the Arcade Center’s center stage. We must respect its status. Don’t worry, just leave everything to me, the Little Princess of the Arcade.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a vibrant screen flashed up, featuring a very conspicuous logo of five stars and a small crown marking the edge of the screen, looking very cool.

What does it feel like to be the center of attention? This was the first question Zhen Zhen had when she learned about Lu Jiayin’s profession. For someone accustomed to keeping a low profile, she often felt uncomfortable in situations surrounded by others’ gazes.

But now, she couldn’t worry about being uncomfortable. Accompanied by the thunderous burst of electronic music, countless arrows indicating up, down, left, and right directions rapidly streamed across the screen. Coupled with the changing colorful lights under her feet, she was instantly flustered.

She experienced for the first time what it felt like for her body not to keep up with her brain’s command. After struggling through a short musical segment, a large crowd of spectators had already gathered around the dance machine, accompanied by the children’s quiet gasps of amazement.

Despite her continuous efforts, the “MISS” notifications rained down on Zhen Zhen’s side of the screen. In contrast, Lu Jiayin on the other side was completely the opposite. She watched the screen intently, her feet hitting the pads with accurate precision, as if they had built-in trackers. Her body swayed with the rhythm of the music, exhibiting an effortless ease.

Zhen Zhen completely forgot how she managed to endure until the end of the dance track. The sound effects of falling coins rang incessantly, and the surrounding onlookers cheered enthusiastically, all for Lu Jiayin. Lu Jiayin proudly waved her hand, dragging Zhen Zhen off the dance machine like a victorious princess.

After the strenuous exercise, her almond eyes looked especially charming, twinkling like two sweet crescent moons at Zhen Zhen. To avoid revealing her identity, she didn’t dare remove her mask, only leaning in close to Zhen Zhen’s ear and whispering: “I’m so hot.”

Her breath carried the same heat, making Zhen Zhen’s earlobe burn. Whether it was a psychological effect or dopamine produced after exercise, the previous melancholy mood seemed to have completely vanished without her realizing it.

Lu Jiayin smiled and pinched her red earlobe: “Let’s go play something else.”

Living up to her title of “Little Princess of the Arcade,” Zhen Zhen discovered that Lu Jiayin was truly skilled at arcade games. Holding the small basket like a treasure chest to a castle of happiness, she was led through the crowd by Lu Jiayin. The rabbit ears on Lu Jiayin’s head bounced, dancing with every movement.

From basketball shooting to racing games, and from Taiko no Tatsujin to End of the World Crisis, the endless variety of new arcade games kept coming. Zhen Zhen went from initial constraint to completely letting go, immersing herself in the intense games, shouting and cheering for victory with a group of children.

The final basketball was shot into the hoop. Gazing at the sparkling “VICTORY” on the screen, she turned back excitedly, like a child who scored a perfect mark on an exam waiting for praise, casting her gaze toward Lu Jiayin on the sidelines.

Lu Jiayin immediately reached out and gave her a big hug.

By this time, two hours had passed since they arrived at the arcade. Along with the rapidly passing time, their physical stamina was almost completely depleted.

“Let’s go eat,” Zhen Zhen said, checking her wrist watch and shaking the empty little basket. After all that playing, the whole basket of tokens was used up without them noticing.

Lu Jiayin nodded, intimately linking her arm with Zhen Zhen’s. Just as they reached the passageway, Lu Jiayin suddenly gasped: “Ah!”

“I forgot something important!” Her gaze fixed on the row of claw machines near the entrance wall. “I haven’t gotten you a birthday doll yet.”

The claw machines had clearly just been restocked. Through the transparent window, various types of plush toys could be seen, piling up the prize pool, seemingly within reach.

“But we don’t have any tokens left,” seeing her reluctant gaze, Zhen Zhen couldn’t help but smile. “I’ll go buy some more…”

However, there was a long queue at the token counter. Lu Jiayin pulled Zhen Zhen back: “It’s okay, I have a way.”

She smiled mysteriously at Zhen Zhen, her gaze slowly beginning to search for a target among the arcade machines.

Zhen Zhen was puzzled. Her sight followed Lu Jiayin as she expertly walked up to a few of the machines, bent down, and reached her hand into the slot beneath the coin insert.

One machine after another was searched. Seeing her seriousness, Zhen Zhen couldn’t help but advise: “How about I just go buy some…”

“Found it!”

Lu Jiayin straightened up in surprise, a slight gleam flashing on her pale fingertips—it was a single, overlooked game token.

Zhen Zhen took the token, asking with a bit of confusion: “But how is one token enough?”

Lu Jiayin gently tapped her palm: “As the Little Princess of the Arcade, I’ll now perform a magic trick exclusively for little Zhen Zhen.”

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