Beijing, after all, has nothing to do with me

Chapter 32 Is this the end (2)
Li Yaoming took it wordlessly, he looked at her clearly with reluctance in his eyes, Tao Jie couldn't bear to look any further, don't turn away, she thought she should leave quickly.

"Tao Zi..." Li Yaoming suddenly called her forgetfully.

Tao Jie couldn't hold back any longer, she suddenly turned her head to look at him, and there were crystal tears in her eyes.

At this moment, Li Yaoming's cell phone rang, and when he heard the sound, the light in his eyes quickly disappeared until it was overshadowed.

"...Not yet, it will take about two hours... Well, I know, you go first." Li Yaoming answered the phone in a low voice, as if he was afraid that Tao Jie would figure out something.

Tao Jie took a deep breath, smiled inwardly, her eyes were instantly dry, she knew who he was answering the phone without asking.

She stretched out her hand to pick up the bag containing the things, it was a bit heavy, but it should be no problem to persist until the station.

"It's time for me to go," she tried to keep her tone light, "I only took two hours off."

Li Yaoming strode forward, and couldn't help but say that he wanted to grab the bag from her hand, "I'll take you to the station."

"No need." Tao Jie stopped him.

"It's very heavy, you can't lift it by yourself!" Li Yaoming insisted on helping, one hand had already grabbed the strap, "Give it to me, be obedient!"

The two fought back and forth for a bag, Tao Jie finally couldn't take it anymore, and shouted loudly: "Let go! I said no!"

Li Yaoming was stunned, and in front of Tao Jie's stern expression, he let go of his hand.

Tao Jie also understood that she had lost her composure, but she didn't regret it. She brushed the hair on her forehead with her hand, softened her voice, and said in a low voice, "I can do it myself."

Li Yaoming stood motionless, watching Tao Jie walk towards the door.

When she was about to step out of the door, Tao Jie heard a "boom" sound behind her, a very dull impact sound, she turned her head suddenly, and saw Li Yaoming sitting back on the edge of the bed in frustration, with his head down, and his hands were violently tearing at his chest. hair.

Tao Jie was stunned for a few seconds, put down the bag in her hand, walked back slowly, stood in front of him, bit her lip for a while, and then said: "Xiao Yang is actually... very suitable for you, if you want to start a business, yes You should find a girl who can do better. I... can't help you."

"Stop it." Li Yaoming was in great pain, "I beg you to stop it."

Tao Jie stared at the back of his head with thick hair, a burst of sadness welled up from the bottom of her heart, she knew that she was still reluctant to part with him after all.

She really wanted to reach out her hand to touch his stubble, to comfort him as she did in the past, but as soon as she stretched out her hand, she immediately retracted it.

This man no longer belongs to her.

In the evening, Tao Jie and Mai Zhiqiang went to a Japanese restaurant.

It will be Christmas in two weeks, and some active stores have posted the head of Santa Claus and huge ice flower patterns on the clean glass doors and windows. Bright window grilles, a feeling of homesickness arises spontaneously from the bottom of my heart.

The dinner time had a great time.

Tao Jie has never dared to eat raw food, so no matter how Mai Zhiqiang praised the deliciousness of sashimi, she still shook her head firmly.

"Why not try it once? Everything is difficult at the beginning."

Tonight's Mai Zhiqiang was a bit different from usual, Tao Jie remembered that he never liked to force others.

"...Well, let's try it." She was a little overwhelmed by his kindness.

Under the guidance of Mai Zhiqiang, Tao Jie put a piece of green mustard into the small sauce dish, smashed it with chopsticks, and carefully removed the smallest piece of salmon from the ice.

The salmon dipped in mustard sauce still didn't look so pleasing to the eye, Tao Jie hesitated and refused to stuff it into his mouth.

"Taste it, if you really find it hard to accept, just close your eyes." Mai Zhiqiang encouraged her with a smile, "Don't keep thinking that it is raw."

Tao Jie really closed her eyes, frowned, threw the fish fillet into her mouth like poison, and then held her breath to chew.

"How is it?" Mai Zhiqiang asked with concern in his ear.

The pungent smell of mustard gushed out of her nostrils. Tao Jie insisted on chewing it five or six times, but she couldn't forget that the piece of meat in her mouth was raw meat. She suddenly felt sick, and she hurriedly dragged the bone plate and spat out the fish!
"I didn't eat anything, just a piece of raw fish." She explained to Mai Zhiqiang a little sorry and aggrieved.

Seeing her embarrassed appearance, Mai Zhiqiang couldn't help laughing, shook his head and sighed, "It seems that habit is really a stubborn and arrogant thing, but it's a pity, you can't get used to such delicious food."

Tao Jie rinsed her mouth with tea several times before the mustard smell disappeared from her mouth. Seeing Mai Zhiqiang who was opposite him eating with gusto, her face twisted a bit.

Fortunately, there are many delicious Japanese dishes that make her greedy, such as grilled lamb chops, stone pot beef, and tempura hand rolls, which are enough for her to have a good meal.

"What are your plans when you go back?" Mai Zhiqiang asked her leisurely.

Tao Jie was poking the shrimp shell with her fingers, "I haven't thought about it yet, maybe I will go on a trip."

"Oh?" Mai Zhiqiang's eyes lit up, "Where do you want to go?"

Tao Jie tilted her head and thought for a while, "Of course I have to go to places I haven't been to before." She suddenly smiled shyly, "Actually, I have always envied those backpackers who travel alone. I have never had so many worries. But I can’t. Every time I have this thought, it is followed by a bunch of worries, worrying about my personal safety on the road, worrying about what to do if I am cheated, worrying about the bad sanitation facilities outside, Alas, in short, it is 'there is evil heart, but no courage'. So this time I want to make a breakthrough."

"Good idea." Mai Zhiqiang nodded.Looking at her eyes ignited with excitement, he asked her again casually, "Leaving Beijing like this? Beijing...is there nothing worthy of your nostalgia?"

Tao Jie glanced at him, she could feel the obvious exploration and a trace of expectation in Mai Zhiqiang's eyes at this time, she suddenly became flustered.

"Cough, of course!" She smiled at him pretending to be relaxed, "Although I have not been in BR for a long time, I am really lucky to know so many elites in the industry."

Mai Zhiqiang couldn't help but laugh at her clumsy lines, and because of this, he felt her nervousness, and sighed slightly in his heart, maybe, once the window paper between men and women is pierced, it is really difficult to do it again. He has no grievances in his heart, and his so-called "still friends" is just an excuse to get close to her.

"Actually, if you think about it carefully, I didn't come to Beijing to have a so-called personal plan for myself." Tao Jie suddenly felt a little sad, "It's all because of the courage of a newborn calf who is not afraid of tigers. I just think that wherever he is, I should go. Where. Then, I went all the way to the present in a reckless way."

Mai Zhiqiang watched her quietly and listened silently.

"So, what I just said is the truth. I think I am lucky, because I met Betty, Alice, and so many colleagues who helped me. Although there were unpleasant experiences in the process, but now I am back. Thinking about it in the past, it was quite interesting. Of course," Tao Jie slowly raised her head to meet him, "I'm even more fortunate that I also met you."

Under her so focused gaze, Mai Zhiqiang suddenly felt unable to breathe steadily, and he slowly avoided her eyes.

"I always want to thank you, Mr. Mai, you are the only one who has always been open to help me since I first joined the company."

Tao Jie has always felt that she is relatively clumsy in terms of etiquette, but at this moment, when she said these things in her heart to Mai Zhiqiang, she found that she didn't need to prepare or prepare a draft at all, as long as she wanted to say something sincerely, she could No need for those cumbersome mental preparations.

She admitted that she was full of gratitude to the person in front of her, but whether there was anything else besides this gratitude, she couldn't tell for a while.She knew what he wanted for her, but for Tao Jie who had just gotten rid of a sad relationship, there was only so much she could do and say now.

Mai Zhiqiang understood that the more solemn Tao Jie thanked him, the less likely she would accept him from another perspective, even though he already knew about her breaking up with her boyfriend and that she left Beijing For him, this seemed to be a rare good opportunity, but, facing Tao Jie in front of him, he gradually hesitated in his heart.

He likes to hit the mark when he does things. Repeated and repeated entanglements tend to change the original intention of things, make the originally simple steps more complicated, and the final results are predictable and often unsatisfactory. .Therefore, after failing to express his love for the first time, Mai Zhiqiang had to become cautious.

Now, is it really a good time?

At Tao Jie's insistence, she paid the bill for the dinner.

After leaving the restaurant, Mai Zhiqiang didn't want to leave her immediately, so he proposed to walk her back to her residence. This Japanese restaurant is only 10 minutes away from the small hotel where Tao Jie lives.

Tao Jie enthusiastically talked to him about some preliminary ideas about her travel, "Starting from Yunnan, you can first turn around Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar, and then fly directly to India from Myanmar!" She frowned suddenly, " But I heard that the environment in India is not very clean. Hey, no matter, I just want to see the ancient Ganges..."

"Will your parents allow you to travel alone?" Mai Zhiqiang's question interrupted Tao Jie's imagination.

"Well..." Tao Jie also had a headache, "I don't know, but I have to try."

She thought about it, and a light smile flowed across her face, "I believe they will support me in the end. I thought my mother would chase after me to ask questions when she heard the news that I had resigned and left Beijing. Without asking, I just said, 'It's good that you are willing to come back'."

The smile on her face gradually disappeared, and a series of incidents flashed across her heart accompanied by indescribable emotions, and Tao Jie became a little sad again.

"Then, I wish you a successful trip." Mai Zhiqiang encouraged her with a smile, "By the way, you must send me a postcard when you go out. I can know about every stop of your itinerary."

"No problem!" Tao Jie laughed again, she shook her head, trying to put all the unhappy things behind her, "I have made up my mind, once I set off, I will create a blog on the Internet, and I will write about it every day. How interesting it is to share what you have seen and heard with others!"

Mai Zhiqiang smiled brightly along with her.

Tao Jie turned her face sideways, looking at his not-so-handsome but always so determined and steady face, suddenly there was a surge of emotion beyond touching in her heart.

"Do you know?" She whispered, "When I went to your house that day, I was actually..." She was a little embarrassed, but she insisted on saying, "At that time, I was very determined..."

She looked up at him again, her eyes filled with gratitude, "But, you didn't..."

Mai Zhiqiang was taken aback for a moment, and immediately understood what she meant.

"I know." With the smile still on Mai Zhiqiang's face, he said slowly, "You said that you have always trusted me, so I can't live up to your trust."

When he said that, the smile on his face became a little playful. Tao Jie was very moved and said sincerely: "Thank you, you are right, I was very confused at the time."

"No, don't thank me." Mai Zhiqiang took a deep breath, "Now... I really regret it."

Tao Jie froze for a moment, then caught a hint of slyness flashing in his eyes, and couldn't help giggling.

The laughter of two people may be as small and insignificant as dust in the vast space, only they themselves understand how clear and moving they have experienced in this short moment.

Looking up, there are no stars shining in the dark night.

However, the night sky without stars is just as beautiful.

Tao Jie didn't inform anyone on the day she left Beijing. She didn't like parting, and she didn't like a bunch of people sending her away. She was afraid that she wouldn't be able to hold back her tears when she turned around.

A week after she went to rent a house to take away her belongings, Li Yaoming called her again. He learned from others that Tao Jie had resigned and was going home.

He didn't mean anything else when he called her, but simply asked her if there was anything she could do for her, but she politely declined.

On the phone, his voice sounded a little depressed, Tao Jie didn't ask him how he was doing recently, or where he moved to live and other boring topics, even from the standpoint of the most ordinary friend, she She didn't even bother to ask, because she clearly knew that the relationship between her and Li Yaoming was completely over, and what she needed was a period of time to calm down.

It's embarrassing for two people who were once so close to end up like this.

At this time, she was sitting alone in the departure hall of the Capital Airport, her heart was calm and unwavering. She liked the state of herself, she didn't have to be nervous or hesitant, and there was a kind of tranquility in her mind like steaming.

She was about to leave, leaving the city that had brought her both laughter and tears.

Maybe it's because she's already set off here several times, and the real taste of parting hasn't invaded her blood yet, and her whole thinking consciousness has a dull sense of post-mortem.

Three days ago, Betty's newly recruited assistant officially arrived, and Tao Jie spent two days handing over the affairs in hand to her.

The girl had a pair of big bright eyes similar to hers, and quietly asked her when no one was there, "Is work here troublesome?"

Tao Jie was a little surprised why she asked such a question.

The girl looked at her with distressed eyes, "I heard that BR's work pressure is very high. When he came in, he was a fish, and when he went out, there was only a pair of fish bones left. I only heard people say that after receiving the admission letter. Yes, I'm afraid I won't be able to do it."

Tao Jie couldn't help but laugh at this metaphor. She couldn't answer the girl's consultation for a while. Bitterness or sweetness depends on everyone's feelings, and there is no uniform standard.

"You'd better try it yourself, I don't think it's as scary as you said." She could only comfort him in such a general way.

On the last day in BR, Betty organized a dinner for the staff of the entire training department to see Tao Jie off.

Because this farewell may really mean that there will be no future, every colleague in Tao Jie's eyes becomes cute and kind, and in the atmosphere of relaxed conversation, the figure of Mai Zhiqiang often appears in her mind , thinking of the wonderful evening she had invited him to dinner.

Is there no future date with him?A deep reluctance welled up in her heart.

After that night, she didn't see Mai Zhiqiang again. She heard that she was on a business trip again. Before leaving, she didn't see him again. Tao Jie felt that something was missing.

But everything is not perfect, she thought, it was enough for her and him to have such a pleasant night in her memory.

Started boarding.

Tao Jie surged forward with the crowd, and at this moment, she received a call from Mai Zhiqiang.

She stared at the familiar number in a daze, connected it in a daze, and listened to his request in the same daze. She didn't know if she had been expecting this call from him deep in her heart, or was she afraid that he would really call him? call?

"Please don't go." He said this, with a mask of embarrassment and sincerity in his voice, "I take back what I said before, I don't want you to go back, I hope..." He said very clearly, "You can stay in Beijing ,stay with me."

Touched and contradictory filled Tao Jie's heart at the same time. At such a crucial moment, she finally realized that her feelings for him were not as simple as gratitude.

However, the phrase "I do" was unable to break through her throat and pass it to him on the other end of the phone.

Is the time yet?Or is she unwilling to stay in this city?or something else?
She couldn't tell.

Mai Zhiqiang waited quietly and patiently for her verdict.

Finally, Tao Jie took a deep breath, "I'm sorry."

Hearing these three words, Mai Zhiqiang sadly closed his eyes on the other end of the phone.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Mai." Tao Jie whispered slowly, "I... want to go home." When he closed the phone, tears still wet his eyes.

One day, maybe she will regret today's choice, but at this moment, she is so eager to go home, even if that is not her final destination, she still wants to go back.

Back to the environment she is most familiar with and kindest, that is her own spiritual post, whether she is acting like a baby, being lazy, or doing whatever she wants.

She believes that one day, she will adjust her mood and start again.

The plane soared into the clouds.

Tao Jie opened the light baffle and cast a glance at the ground that was getting farther and farther away.

Beijing is moving away from her...

(End of this chapter)