Apology for being late by 5 years

  There was a private room for singing, and after everyone finished dinner, they went to sing. Wen Xin got drunk, grabbed the microphone, and his voice was originally that of a rough old man, which was unbearable to listen to. Everyone didn't dare go up to stop him, occasionally someone would come forward to flatter him, and Wen Xin would get carried away, holding his own personal concert.

  Wen Xin was singing and felt uninterested, so he handed the microphone to Lin Yuhang. Unbeknownst to him, someone had intentionally made things difficult for him by choosing a song sung by a female singer, Zhang Ziyi's "Starry Night Wish". I sat on the sofa, listening to Lin Yuhang sing out the sorrow of the song in his hoarse voice.

  He has been low-key all along, otherwise with his strength he would have become popular long ago. The people below asked him to sing a few more songs, Lin Yuhang was very good-tempered and did so one by one. Later, Wen Xin called Lin Yuhang to leave, only then did he put down the microphone and followed behind Wen Xin's butt.

  Chen Sang personally escorted Wen Xin to the entrance of the restaurant. Before getting on the car, Wen Xin turned back to Chen Sang and asked, "How's the thing I told you about going?" Chen Sang replied that there was no problem and he would hand over the things tomorrow.

  I stood by and pretended I hadn't heard anything, but from the tone of Ba Wang's warning, I also understood what Chen Sang and Wen Xin were doing. It was best for me not to intervene and ask questions.

  Even if Wen Xin got drunk, he couldn't change his lecherous habit. He raised his hand and pinched Chen Sang's chest, telling her to come over earlier tomorrow night because he had just brought back a new toy from the US.

  I took one look at Wen Xin's deadpan expression and I could tell it wasn't going to be anything good. Chen Sang agreed, speaking softly and gently coaxing Wen Xin into the car.

  Wen Xin finally left, Chen Sang's face relaxed a lot. She took out a cigarette and lit it up. Today she had quite a bit of wine, her movements were not very agile, and she struck the lighter several times but couldn't light the cigarette. I took the lighter from her and lit the cigarette for her.

  She was wearing a long black windbreaker, standing at the entrance of the alley, with her index finger holding a long cigarette, slowly taking a drag. A year later, when Zhang Yimou's "The Flowers of War" was released, I saw Yu Mo in the movie and thought she looked like Chen Sang, but Chen Sang's face is more delicate and her eyes are sharper.

  She took puff after puff of the cigarette, as if trying to control her fear through smoking. I put my hand on her shoulder and asked if she was okay? She shook her head saying she was fine, but lit another cigarette.

  She had quite a bit to drink, probably can't drive, I patted the Volkswagen Beetle as I walked towards her. Now she has plenty of money, maybe the Beetle was given by Ah Guang, and she never changed cars.

  I threw Chen Sang into the car and was about to walk towards the driver's seat. I saw Akane. She came out of the restaurant, dressed simply and wearing a pair of black-framed glasses, looking just like a college student, without any hint of the queen-like demeanor she had at the nightclub.

  She wasn't alone, standing next to her was the middle-aged woman I had met last time, of course, I knew that was Akane's mother, and there was also a stout middle-aged man. The man put his left arm around Akane's arm and his right hand on Akane's mother's waist, looking like he was embracing them both.

  Chen Sang saw that I wasn't moving and asked me what was going on. She also looked towards the crimson direction, and she let out a "wow!" sound. She said in surprise, "Xiao Wen, take a look, isn't that Li Ze Yuan, the big boss?"

  As soon as I heard the three words "Li Ze Yuan", I immediately widened my eyes and stared at him carefully. I had never seen him in person, but after all, I had been in the nightclub for three years, those people were awesome, so I still had some idea.

  Chen Sang suddenly got out of the car and stared straight at the middle-aged man. The red-haired group got into a BMW, and Chen Sang only withdrew her gaze then. She shook her head, making a "bah" sound with her mouth, seemingly not quite believing it. She turned around to ask me, "Did Red Hair's mother really follow Li Ze Yuan?"

  I didn't know that! Chen Sang didn't wait for me to respond, she took out her phone from her bag and made a call. She instructed Ah Guang to help her investigate whether her mother was Li Ze Yuan's mistress.

  Chen Sang hung up the phone and let out a long sigh. She patted her chest, muttering to herself, "Fortunately, I didn't get emotional, or else I would have gotten into big trouble."

  I knew that Hong's mother was Li Ze-yuan's mistress, but Chen Sang didn't seem to understand. She asked me, "You say her family has money and power, why would she come to our nightclub to be a hostess? Isn't she just bored with nothing better to do?"

  I'm not a prostitute, how would I know? My heart is also filled with fear afterwards. Luckily, I didn't hit the prostitute for the sake of saving face at that time. It's normal for people to want to make money by working as a hostess in a nightclub. But this prostitute clearly doesn't lack money, maybe she's the daughter of a rich family, just wanting to have some thrilling fun!

  She's someone's daughter, with some status and nothing to do with me anymore. Anyway, I don't work at the nightclub anymore. I got into the driver's seat and drove, the car moving at a turtle's pace. I didn't have a driver's license and hadn't received formal training, it was just that Chen Sang sometimes had nothing better to do, so he'd take me out for a spin and teach me a bit.

  Chen Sang urged me several times, she really couldn't stand the speed of the car and said she wanted to drive herself. I simply ignored her, after all, safety comes first.

  The next day, Chen Sang and I went to Hong Kong early in the morning. Neither of us had a permit for traveling between Hong Kong and Macau. As a resident of Shenzhen, Chen Sang could have obtained a temporary one, but she never spent money unnecessarily, so we both snuck across. The first time was nerve-wracking, but after that it became routine - every now and then we'd sneak over and go on a wild shopping spree. The customs inspectors even got to know Chen Sang, adding her QQ number and occasionally exchanging flirtatious messages with her.

  That night, we returned to Shenzhen. Chen Sang went to see Wen Xin, and I stayed in the accommodation to pack my luggage. I also thoroughly cleaned the place. It had been a long time since I did any household chores, as our place was usually dirty and Chen Sang would hire cleaning staff. After a tiring night, my whole body ached with back pain.

  The next day at noon, I pulled my luggage and rushed to the airport. Chen Sang didn't come to see me off, she's a carefree person, and I'm not a sentimental person either, so that kind of tearful farewell scene doesn't suit me. When I got into the taxi, I sent her a text message telling her that the braised pork ribs, stir-fried noodles with chili peppers were on the dinner table, just heat them up and eat. Actually, I knew even if they were cold, she would be too lazy to throw them in the microwave.

  Not long after, she texted me back. She said she knew and wished me a smooth journey. I looked at the message and couldn't help but laugh. She clearly knew that "a smooth journey" wasn't suitable for taking a plane, it seemed like she still had some resentment in her heart.

  I arrived too early, and I still had an hour to kill after entering the waiting room before boarding the plane. I sat on a chair playing with my phone, and there was still 50 yuan left on my mobile card. I wanted to use it up, as China Mobile usually makes a fortune from me, so I couldn't let them get away with it cheaply.

  Next to me sat a lovely girl, she spoke in a particularly soft and delicate voice. Just listening to the sound of her voice, others would definitely think that she was a **-year-old little girl, probably what people call a "baby voice". It's even softer than Chen San's voice, especially when she says "I hate you to death", it sends shivers down my spine.

  I glanced at her, she didn't look great, but dressed in a trendy and avant-garde style. Then what she said next shocked me, "You dare to call someone when your wife is not around? I'll arrive at 6 pm this afternoon, remember to come pick me up!" I've told you before! I want to stay in a big hotel with a comfortable and spacious bed. What kind of room did you book last time? It was so uncomfortable that I didn't even feel like it.

  "Alright! I'm speechless, today was really an eye-opener, I finally understand what 'hooking up' means. I think it's even more shameless than prostitution. You say prostitutes have no dignity, but at least they're upfront about their prices and don't play games with emotions. We just do our job at night. Some women are even worse than prostitutes, openly seducing other people's husbands."

  The woman's voice was not small, and the people around her more or less heard it. She opened her bag with a nonchalant attitude, took out Estee Lauder cosmetics, and reapplied her makeup as if no one was watching. After putting down the cosmetics, she put on a gold bangle and assumed an air of superiority.

  This flashy appearance reminds me of those shallow girls in nightclubs, *** , damn it, if you're so rich why don't you just fly first class.

  I really couldn't bear it anymore, I might vomit at any moment, so I got up and ran to sit in another row of chairs.

  The broadcast announced that the boarding procedures had been suspended, and the plane was still 40 minutes away from taking off! I picked up the phone, hesitated for a moment, and called Song Mu-zhi. After all, he had given me one million yuan, so I should at least let him know that I was leaving.

  His phone was turned off, so I simply sent him a text message telling him that I had left.

  When I was about to board the plane, he called me and told me that he had just finished a meeting. His tone was polite and courteous, as always. He asked me what time my flight was, and I told him I was boarding now.

  He was silent on the other end of the phone for a moment before saying "be careful on your way", I responded with an "uh-huh" and realized that there wasn't much to talk about between us. Just as I was about to hang up politely, he suddenly spoke up and said, "Xiao Wen, sorry!"

  When I heard what he said, at first I thought I had an auditory error, but in my heart I was sure that he really said those three words. I didn't expect the usually arrogant and self-conceited him to apologize.

  His apology came five years late, I thought I wouldn't care anymore, but my eyes blurred and my heart still ached. I held the phone, not knowing what to say or wanting to say anything. Forgive? The mistakes of the past were made by us together, and I don't regret my past self and Song Mu's silly memories. A girl only becomes a true woman after she has truly been foolish.

  The flight attendant kindly reminded me that I should turn off my phone, and I hastily told Song Mu-zhi that I was going to turn it off.

  The plane was delayed for half an hour and arrived in N city. I left my mobile phone on the plane, which is an Apple iPhone 3GS that I bought six months ago.