You're my wife, don't doubt it!

This song was sung by Xiao Yao during a performance at the start of his first year of high school military training. For a while afterward, some people in his class called him "Hua'er" (meaning "flower"), until he was ostracized by the whole class, and this well-intentioned nickname gradually disappeared.

Most of Pu Shu's songs have a magical power that can unconsciously draw people into a sad mood.

Xiao Yao leaned back in the passenger seat and had a dream.

In his dream, he stood on Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street, with the towering Oriental Pearl TV Tower in the distance.

Everything around seemed to be distorted by time and space, with only two figures remaining clear.

Shen Jie and Yu Luying, now adults, walked past each other from opposite directions. Both had grown long, flowing hair again. Shen Jie wore a green top and a smile played on her lips, while Yu Luying held a scripture in her hand, her eyes carrying a hint of…melancholy? Disdain?

Xiao Yao felt that they were all shrouded in an indescribable sadness.

As they passed each other, the two girls—no, the two young women—both looked in the direction where Xiao Yao was standing, but as if neither of them knew him, they walked past lightly.

"Wait!" Xiao Yao tried to call out to them, to shout their names, but his vocal cords could only produce a hissing sound.

The boy watched helplessly as they disappeared into the vast crowd, as if the three of them had never met.

Xiao Yao woke up and found that the seatbelt had indeed been pressing against his heart.

The car sped along the main road, driving very fast, so fast that even the cross hanging below the rearview mirror was swinging wildly.

The background music in the car had changed from "Those Flowers" to "NEW BOY".

As Yu Bo drove, he sang along: "Yes, I see sunshine everywhere, happiness floats in the city sky..."

“All those who went crazy are gone, all those who were awesome are now dejected,” Xiao Yao sang in the exact same melody.

Yu Bo glanced at Xiao Yao and continued singing along with the music: "The new century came like a dream, making me feel warm and cozy."

Xiao Yao and Yu Bo sang in unison with the same melody: "All those who were ignorant of their own limitations have fallen silent."

Yu Bo: "Is your old pocket watch still ticking? Are your old leather shoes still wearable? Here's a Future brand cigarette, wouldn't you like to try it?"

Xiao Yao: "Everything you own is outdated, everything you love is old. All those you once laughed at, you've become like them."

Yu Bo: "Oh, tomorrow morning, I guess the sun will be shining. I'm going to clean myself up and sell all the old and worn-out stuff..."

Xiao Yao: "Oh, time has passed. It's no longer our world. Everything has changed, leaving us devastated, disheartened, and heartbroken..."

Yu Bo: "Oh, that's great! Come on, Pentium computers, let them do the thinking for me."

Xiao Yao: "Oh, sometimes you're scared, not knowing where the future lies. This world is getting crazier and crazier, and it will bury us all sooner or later."

Yu Bo reached out and cut the song off, gave Xiao Yao a deep look, and said half-jokingly, "Now I know why you're isolated in class."

"Uncle!" Yu Luying said discontentedly.

“Father Yu, you may not know this,” Xiao Yao explained, “This song, ‘Forever Young,’ is from Pu Shu’s 2018 album, ‘Orion.’ It’s a rewritten version of the lyrics to the tune of ‘New Boy.’”

“Just rewrite the lyrics and sell it as a new song, that’s a good business,” Yu Bo commented.

“It seems that Pu Shu’s depression worsened in 2018,” Yu Luying said from the back seat of the car.

"Don't you find it interesting?" Xiao Yao said, "Twenty years apart, the same melody, two sets of lyrics, every line corresponds perfectly. From an innocent boy to a melancholy and composed middle-aged man, he lost his dreams and became a couch potato..."

"I'm a middle-aged man, but I still have dreams," Yu Bo said with great enthusiasm.

"My uncle can only be considered an older youth."

"Father Yu seems to be in a good mood today?" Xiao Yao said.

“Yes, it’s rare to see Uncle so happy.” Yu Luying, sitting in the back seat, tugged at the back of Yu Bo’s chair.

"What? Can't an old man like me be happy? -- We're almost there, get ready to get off."

As they spoke, the hospital came into view. The three of them got out of the car, closed the doors, and Yu Bo led the way towards the inpatient department.

As Xiao Yao walked, he sent Shen Jie MMS messages.

Don Quixote: Suddenly I remembered the days when we were both in the hospital. I miss them so much.

Seriously, has she not replied to my messages for several hours again?

Yu Bo led Xiao Yao and Yu Luying through the main gate of the inpatient department, where they were greeted by the smell of disinfectant. They took the elevator to the fifth floor, walked through a winding corridor, and arrived at Zhou Qi's ward.

A nurse was standing at the door, peering inside.

She saw Xiao Yao and the other two walking towards the ward, so she went up to them and asked if they were Zhou Qi's family members.

After receiving a negative answer, she looked somewhat confused and explained that some criminal police officers were questioning Zhou Qi, and asked Xiao Yao and the others to wait outside the door.

There was a sign hanging at the door that read "Do Not Disturb".

Yu Bo and Xiao Yao also peered inside through the glass window in the door.

The ward was empty, with only two beds and a pot of fresh flowers.

Zhou Qi's thin body lay on the bed, the curtains were drawn, and faint sunlight shone through the window, illuminating the girl's pale face.

A policewoman sat beside the hospital bed. She had short hair, but judging from the style of her hat, she was a policewoman. She held a small notebook in her right hand and was writing something down as she asked questions.

Zhou Qi glanced in the direction where Xiao Yao and the others were standing.

Chapter 198 Old Flame II

2023-05-20

The ward was so quiet it felt empty; apart from two beds and a pot of flowers, there was nothing else.

One bed was placed against the wall, on which lay a thin girl, while the other bed was near the window, empty, as if waiting for the next patient to arrive.

The curtains were drawn, with only a faint ray of sunlight filtering through the window, illuminating the girl's pale face. The atmosphere in the ward was somewhat somber, as if tinged with a gloomy hue by the air around it.

The ward was rather monotonous in color, almost entirely white and gray. A ventilator, IV drips, and various medical equipment hung above the bed, giving it a cold and deserted feel.

Beside the hospital bed, a woman in a police uniform sat, seemingly engrossed in asking questions and taking notes. She held a small notebook in her hand, occasionally turning the pages.

The nurse said she was there to visit Zhou Qi and might be questioning her. In the predominantly light-colored ward, her navy blue police uniform stood out conspicuously.

Xiao Yao remembered Zhou Qi as a girl with a well-proportioned figure, neither tall nor short, about 1.65 meters tall. She used to be a cute girl, but now, she was so thin that even her chin had become somewhat pointed.

Zhou Qi's face was pale, with a sickly glow. Her eyes were somewhat sunken, but her gaze was still clear and bright. Her eyebrows were thick and slightly arched, making her look very energetic.

At that moment, she was wearing a blue and white striped hospital gown, looking very thin. A needle was inserted into her wrist, administering some kind of IV fluid.

The policewoman noticed someone coming and glanced back at the door. Xiao Yao and Yu Bo tried to avoid her, but obviously failed. The policewoman closed her notebook, stood up, leaned down and whispered a few words in Zhou Qi's ear, then walked to the door and opened it.

She was wearing sunglasses commonly worn by traffic police, obscuring her face, and also a pair of thin white silk gloves—an outfit that seemed somewhat unusual indoors.

The policewoman said goodbye to the nurse and then ignored Xiao Yao and the other two, brushing past them and leaving the ward.

As her figure disappeared around the corner of the corridor, Yu Bo turned around and looked back.

"I'm not the kind of lecherous guy like me who would turn around and stare at pretty girls passing by," Xiao Yao thought to himself.

Is it possible that Brother Bo's spring is finally coming?

Unfortunately, priests cannot marry.

“Xiao Yao…” After recognizing the person, Zhou Qi’s eyes flashed with unusual excitement, and he struggled to sit up.

"Zhou Qi, lie down." Yu Luying, who had been ignored, quickly stepped forward and supported Zhou Qi's arm.

"Xiao Yao." A voice came from behind the boy: "Come with me for a moment."

Xiao Yao turned around, puzzled, and looked at Yu Bo.

"Yingying, you talk to your classmate for a bit, we'll be right back." Yu Bo gave the brief instructions, then grabbed Xiao Yao's arm and headed towards the ward door.

Yamete, yamete, what are you doing? Let me go...

Xiao Yao followed closely behind Yu Bo, whose face was ashen, as they walked down the quiet corridor of the inpatient department. The boy asked Yu Bo what he was up to, but the latter ignored him. Then, only the sound of their hurried footsteps echoed in the corridor.

The two chased after her out of the lobby on the first floor of the inpatient department, but the policewoman had already disappeared from sight.

Looking around, I suddenly heard the sound of a motorcycle engine.

The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw a person with very short hair starting a motorcycle—she had taken off her hat and police uniform jacket, revealing a light blue long-sleeved shirt underneath.

If it weren't for her conspicuous sunglasses and inappropriate white gloves, Xiao Yao would almost have mistaken her for a completely different man.

The motorcycle was called a motorcycle, but it wasn't one of those big police motorcycles. It was just a small 50cc scooter. Class monitor Chen Lu had a similar one and rode it to and from school every day.

The policewoman's small motorcycle slowly drove out of the hospital gate, while Yu Bo ran all the way to his car and opened the driver's side door.

"Hurry up," Yu Bo urged, while Xiao Yao, panting, got into the passenger seat.

"You've got your eye on her? You don't have to be like this, do you?" Xiao Yao said, then suddenly leaned back and pressed against the back of the chair.

Yu Bo stepped on the gas and left the hospital. Paying the bill took up too much time, and by the time he reached the main road, the policewoman was nowhere to be seen.

The priest followed his intuition and chose a direction, chasing after it through a traffic light—luckily, the slow-moving little scooter came into view again.

"Drive your car up there, roll down my window, and I'll help you strike up a conversation and get her number," Xiao Yao suggested.

"What the hell is going on in your head?" Yu Bo slowed down the car and finally had time to explain: "This policeman is probably an imposter."

"Impersonating someone? What makes you say that?" Xiao Yao said dismissively, "Just because she came out and took off her police uniform, does that mean all police officers have to drive police cars?"

“There are rules for criminal police investigations, you don’t know that?” Yu Bo’s eyes were fixed on the license plate number of the motorcycle: “When the public security organs conduct investigations and collect evidence, such as questioning, identification, inspection, examination, and implementation of administrative coercive measures, there must be no fewer than two police officers.”

“Oh right,” Xiao Yao recalled the movies and TV shows he had watched, “you need a partner.”

“Police cars are certainly not necessary,” Yu Bo continued, “but I do have some connections in the criminal investigation team in Beihong District. As far as I know, there are very few female officers in the criminal investigation team who go out on patrol; they are all familiar faces—not this one.”