Chapter Twenty-Six: Truth and falsehood
If the scene had been divided down the middle, the contrast would have been striking. Su Can crouched outside a large lecture hall at Nanjing University, where a lecture was proceeding at a leisurely pace. He looked rather like one of the migrant workers laying cement beneath the university's landmark Guangming Building, still under construction, taking an occasional break to draw on a cigarette. Leaves spiraled down from the trees beside him, fluttering through the air...
Meanwhile, Ye Huishang stood against a backdrop of cars circling the track at a rally training ground in Shanghai. The red BMW sports car complemented her slender, jeans-clad figure. Put the sun forty-five degrees behind her, and the image could have gone straight onto a magazine cover. In fact, she had the potential to enter show business as a star of film, television, and music. Many friends in her circle were much the same, so there was nothing unusual about it.
Today was the day Su Can had taken a tumble after feeling pleased with himself, a day when, even in his second life, he had to remind himself not to get too smug or arrogant. It was also the first day he felt his composure was insufficient and wanted to swear at someone.
Su Can could have simply ignored it all and struck back in his own way. But a weight pressed on his heart. Now and then, he still remembered seeing Ye Huishang during his time at an American high school. It had undoubtedly been a delightful surprise. Denying that would have been hypocritical and affected. How exciting it had been to meet someone familiar in a foreign country, where he and Tang Wu had only each other to rely on.
Although the person he had met