Tianxing Amusement Park closed at nine in the evening.
It was now ten fifty, ten minutes before the hour of the Rat.
There were security guards at the main entrance, and they certainly wouldn't let me in.
I could only climb over the wall.
The last time I had come here was two months ago, when Fang Man was still around. We had come together.
Despite being an adult, I loved places like this, and I loved a lively atmosphere.
But now that Fang Man was gone, these places had somehow become rather dull to me.
What had once been a bustling place now held a hint of desolation.
I suddenly froze.
Ever since I had come in, my negative emotions seemed to have been amplified.
Even the liveliest places emptied out eventually, but once the sun rose tomorrow, this place would be bustling again. Why should it feel desolate?
Perhaps it was my own heart that was desolate.
I walked through the empty amusement park, where all the rides had stopped running.
I wandered aimlessly until the hour of the Rat arrived.
I didn't understand why Du Yuwei had asked me to meet her here, or whether she wanted me to meet someone.
But I was already here, and I hadn't seen anyone.
By now, I had walked through more than half the park. Up ahead seemed to be the swings.
From a distance, I saw a woman in a red bridal gown on a swing, holding a baby only a few months old.
Both of them were sitting on it, and no one was pushing, yet the swing kept swaying.
I swallowed, instinctively about to pretend I hadn't seen them, then turn and leave.
But before I could leave, a familiar voice came from behind me.
"Don't go."