"Is there anything I can help with?"
Though the man said this, he made no actual move to help. With a casual flick of his eyes, two men stepped out from behind him.
From the moment she saw this man, Mei Mengran's assistant had felt a twist in her gut. Now, watching her charge disheveled and plastered on the floor, belching drunkenly every so often, she felt like she was about to cry herself to death on the spot:
"What do I do? What do I do?! If Sister Ran finds out she was in such a wretched, undignified state in front of the man she likes, she'll definitely beat me to death!"
The two men efficiently hauled Mei Mengran to her feet, propping her up on either side as they marched her out. Mei Ran gathered her wits, but by the time she thought to say thank you, the man was already vanishing down the corridor. She could only glimpse his straight, tall silhouette and the hem of his sleeve swaying slightly in the draft.
That "thank you" died on her lips.
Seeing everyone had left, the assistant hurried after them. "Miss Mei," she asked, "do you know that Mr. Fu from just now?"
Mei Ran hesitated. "Sort of." Seeing she seemed unwilling to elaborate, the assistant, though brimming with questions, wisely didn't press further.
Mei Mengran's beige van was parked by the roadside. In the flurry of boarding, she stumbled and smacked her forehead again. The jolt seemed to rouse her slightly. She clawed at the doorframe, launching into a full-blown drunken scene.
Before leaving town, her manager had drilled it into the assistant's head: this young miss was riding high right now; any scandals were absolutely off-limits. Imagining this whole scene being captured by lurking paparazzi, guaranteed front-page news tomorrow, Assistant Xia felt her face drain of color in fear. "What do I do? What do I do?!"
This was her first job; she didn't want to lose it this quickly!
Mei Ran was also getting a headache. She found Mei Mengran's hand and applied forceful pressure to the Hegu acupuncture point at the union of the thumb and index finger. A yelp of pain later, her grip on the door loosened.
Giving her a timely shove, Mei Ran settled her firmly into the seat.
"Mei Ran?"
Mei Mengran forced her blurry eyes open, recognizing the person before her. "Hehehehe," she giggled, "I'm telling you, I finally saw him!"
Writhing restlessly, her cheeks flushed crimson, she went on, "They kept forcing me to drink, saying if I finished it all, they'd tell me news about Ansel... I never imagined he'd be right there, on the scene!"
"You don't know how important he is to me," she slurred, her voice thick with emotion. "My biggest dream in life is to sing just one song he's written..."
"No matter what, I want to pursue him, I will pursue him, I WILL! I absolutely have to get him in the end!"
Mei Ran leaned away from the overwhelming fumes of alcohol. "You're drunk. Go back and get a good night's sleep." She turned to the assistant, instructing, "Make her a cup of honey water when you get back. Don't set the air conditioning too low; she kicks off the covers in her sleep."
Assistant Xia responded with a flurry of "yeses," then ventured cautiously, "Miss Mei... about tonight... could you please keep it to yourself?" Especially the part concerning Mr. Fu.
Mei Ran understood. She nodded. "Get going. Rest early."
A breeze sprang up from somewhere, carrying a chill as it swept wantonly through this hub of worldly commotion.
Mei Ran walked a fair while before she finally flagged down a cab at a taxi stand. On the way, she sent a text to her cousin Mei Liangzhi: *Mission accomplished*. The rest of the ride home passed in silence.
By the time she dried her hair, it was past ten. Mei Ran settled on the edge of her bed, lighting only the small bedside lamp.
Warm orange light spilled into the room's quietude.
After a while, a crisp female voice emerged from her tablet: "I'm Yu Sheng. I'm truly honored to be participating in *The Voice of China*. I've been waiting for someone to return... Tonight, this song, *You Are the World's Finest Encounter*, is for her."
Familiar melody filled the air. Mei Ran listened quietly till the end, letting out a soft sigh.
Closing the video, she idly picked up a book from her bedside. As she flipped it open, a dried purple sprig of lavender sprang into view.
Some songs aren't meant for the deep of night. Some memories, however, seem perfectly suited to be revisited when the world is still and the night is deep.
Three years ago, she and her childhood friend Yu Sheng were staying in France. It was the season when lavender bloomed in wild, riotous abundance across the hills. They'd made plans for a day trip, but driving from Simiane-la-Rotonde towards a Provençal manor, their car broke down.
They looked inside and out, but couldn't pinpoint the problem, leaving them at a standoff.
At that time, Yu Sheng was having a 'visit from a relative' and her temper was short. Giving the car door a few frustrated kicks, she must have triggered some internal device, because the car started emitting a series of increasingly shrill alarm blasts.
"Dammit! I guess we'll have to call for help." Knowing Mei Ran was hopelessly lost when it came to French, Yu Sheng didn't think to rely on her. Fortunately, she'd crammed a week's worth of French lessons before the trip. Without a word, she pulled out her phone to summon help.
Mei Ran listened as her friend jabbered away with someone. It was impossible to tell what was being said on the other end, but Yu Sheng's expression grew increasingly stormy, finally erupting into English with a sharp, "*!"
"What happened?"
"I have no idea!" Yu Sheng huffed angrily, throwing her hands up. "Who knows what gibberish that French guy was spewing? Total priss! He kept asking 'what did you say?' What a lunatic!"
Mei Ran: "..."
"So... what do we do now?"
Yu Sheng was quite accepting of their fate. She plopped right down on the ground. "We wait."
They waited until dusk began to settle into evening. A cool mountain breeze whispered down through the vast, flowering lavender fields, carrying elusive drifts of their fragrance. In the distant valley, the faint chime of bells and the cries of the shepherd drifted up, lending a sudden, vibrant life to the wilderness at dusk.
"Look! A car's coming!"
Mei Ran had scarcely spoken when a blur shot past her. Focusing, she saw her friend sprinting to the roadside, a hopeful thumb raised high. "Help! Please help!!"
The black Cadillac slowed to a halt. The setting sun stretched its silhouette long and skewed across the ground. A good while later, someone finally emerged.
Yu Sheng saw it was a standard French gentleman who got out and went a little blank. She gestured vaguely towards their broken-down car, tossing in a few French words, but it resulted in nothing but mutual confusion. Reluctantly, she fell back on, "English?"
The gentleman laughed genially, "Sure!"
With that, the two found a common channel and cheerfully went about examining the car. Mei Ran couldn't contribute, so she simply waited where she was, using the dark bulk of the car to shield her from the mountain's chill.
In the wilderness, ink-black night pressed in from all sides. Above, stars twinkled like clusters of quiet flame burning in the sky. Mei Ran was momentarily mesmerized. When she finally pulled her gaze down, it fell, quite by chance, into the car's interior. She froze.
In the backseat sat a man dressed in formal attire, his long legs casually crossed. He must have been returning from a formal event; traces of weariness lingered between his brows as he rested with his eyes lightly closed.
This man's entire bearing spoke of a refined elegance that clearly set him apart from the common fold.
Perhaps sensing an outsider's gaze, he suddenly opened his eyes.
Caught off guard, Mei Ran's eyes were captured by a pair that was profoundly calm and cool.
The shifting play of light and shadow danced across his deep-set eyes and prominent nose. Those eyes resembled deep pools, bottomless, as if containing countless swirling eddies that exerted a nameless pull.
Thankfully, the moment passed as his gaze shifted elsewhere. For some inexplicable reason, Mei Ran's heart started to race, only now noticing a thin film of perspiration in her palms.
The sound of her friend's clear voice expressing gratitude drifted over. The car was fixed, it seemed. Mei Ran thought for a moment, then gently placed a purple sprig of lavender she'd been wearing in her hair under the windshield.
Suddenly, she understood why the driver had taken such a long time to emerge earlier. Just as she felt inexplicably certain that the aloof man in the car, for all his detachment, held a gentle heart — because he had the kindest, most compassionate eyes she'd ever seen.
Their own car roared back to life. Mei Ran, seated inside, looked back to see the black vehicle pierce the deepening night and race away, its taillights blinking like fireflies, vanishing from sight all too soon.
The Château Roto de Ro stood half-hidden against the far mountains, mirroring the vague sense of loss that stirred in her heart, a melancholy whose origin she couldn't quite place.
Now, that faint, almost intangible feeling was stirred up again. Mei Ran gently twirled the lavender stalk between her fingers and smiled softly.
Fu... Shi... Jin.
So, that was his name.
With tonight included, they had met three times. Perhaps... even more.
Fu Shijin had just arrived home when the old lady, hearing the commotion, came out to greet him. "Shijin? You're back?"
The old lady was a former maid who came as part of Fu Shijin's maternal grandmother's dowry. Having been a widow most of her life, she had watched him grow up. Fu Shijin respectfully addressed her as "Great Aunt."
Though not bound by blood, their affection for each other was deep and sincere.
"How long are you planning to stay this time?"
"Around three months."
He had two main reasons for returning this time: one was an invitation to help with some antique authentication work, and the other was to seek treatment for his migraines. The latter would require a more extended stay.
Upon hearing this, she couldn't hide her delight. "Really? You're not teasing me, are you?!"
Fu Shijin's brow softened slightly. "No."
"Wonderful!" Her worries now laid to rest, she began to chatter happily. "Before, you'd come back once a year if we were lucky, and even then you'd only stay two or three days before rushing off again... Even though half your blood is French, this is your roots! You really ought to come back more often... Huh? What's that you're holding?"
"Traditional medicine. From the hospital."
Knowing his condition, her brows knit together in pained concern. "Still having insomnia every night? You really should stay away from alcohol altogether. You ought to take better care of yourself. Listen to the doctor, and make sure you eradicate this illness from the root..."
She proceeded to lecture him further in a gentle, grandmotherly manner before finally tottering into the kitchen to brew his prescription.
Whatever miraculous concoction it was, that night Fu Shijin experienced the unprecedented phenomenon of falling asleep sometime around midnight. He woke to find the sky already bright.
Having heard of his return, his friend Ye Qihan had specially called first thing in the morning. "Feeling any better with the migraines?"
Remembering the rare night of good sleep, Fu Shijin gave a faint "Hm" of acknowledgment.
The friend sounded even more pleased. "This Doctor Mei I recommended to you is absolutely reliable. She specializes in integrated Chinese and Western medicine, with loads of clinical experience. She's practically tailor-made for you!"
"By the way," the voice continued, a note of mischief seeping through the line, "I hear a certain up-and-coming songstress latched onto you last night? Seems even after you've been out of the scene for so long, folks are still lining up for the chance to have the great lyricist and composer Fu write them a song!"
"Seven years," Ye Qihan abruptly changed his tone, sounding rather regretful. "MR vanished seven years ago. If you two had ever gotten the chance to collaborate back then, what a masterpiece it might've..."
The sudden, deadening silence on the other end made Ye Qihan realize he'd likely stepped on a landmine. He hurriedly steered the conversation elsewhere. "Heard there's an MR memorial get-together in City A this weekend. Do you..."
MR, MR. It was always MR.
Ye Qihan inwardly groaned. Was he also going to become fixated on this person, whose very existence was now uncertain, just like Fu Shijin?
"She's definitely alive. Somewhere in this world. In a place unknown to me."
Ye Qihan stared at the silent phone for a long moment after the disconnection tones faded, his feelings a tangled knot.
Meanwhile, at the Traditional Chinese Medicine hospital, Mei Ran suddenly sneezed. She turned to ask, "Tiantian, are you wearing perfume?"
"Yes!" Her little assistant beamed, giving a happy spin on the spot. "You noticed?"
"Senior Sister," Tiantian gushed, "can you believe we had such amazing luck? We just go to a restaurant for a meal, and they gave us a whole set of French perfume!". She was still dizzy from the unexpected bounty. "I looked it up online — it's a limited edition!"
Mei Ran smiled but said nothing. After a moment's thought, she did offer some advice. "You don't need to use quite so much perfume going forward. A touch is sufficient."