【Panjiayuan Night Market】
Now it was Wang Luxi’s turn to fall silent. Her brain seemed to have been doused with ice water, short-circuiting instantly. Before shutting down completely, it sparked one last time with a small pop.
She wanted to type a reply, but her fingers hovered, unable to press down.
Fortunately, Yuan Bei was skilled at giving people an out—saving others while also saving himself.
He sent a voice message explaining, his tone matching Wang Luxi’s impression of him: lazy and unhurried. “What I meant was, parking is difficult near the National Museum. When you get back to your hotel tonight, send me your location. I’ll call you when I arrive, and you can come down.”
“The photo,” he added.
Wang Luxi took a deep breath.
She had wanted to reply with a voice message too, but when she opened her mouth, she found herself thrown off by Yuan Bei’s Beijing accent. Somehow, she couldn’t find her own voice and tone.
Wang Luxi: [Oh, that works too, but won’t it be too much trouble?]
Yuan Bei: [I need to go out anyway.]
Wang Luxi: [Where are you going?]
Yuan Bei glanced at the living room, where two cats were sleeping in the same round corrugated paper cat bed, head to tail, looking like a fluffy yin-yang symbol.
Yuan Bei: [Taking my cat to the vet for a check-up.]
Wang Luxi: [You actually keep pets???]
Yuan Bei: [I’m quite curious about your use of “actually” here.]
Wang Luxi: [Just expressing my surprise!]
Wang Luxi: [Well, you go ahead with your business. See you tonight!]
Yuan Bei: [Okay.]
…
Yuan Bei got up, first rummaging through the cabinet.
Then he opened a drawer to find his cats’ medical records.
Hearing the sound of the drawer opening, both cats sprang up, ready to receive treats. But when they saw Yuan Bei take out the travel carrier, they turned and fled, drifting across the smooth floor tiles.
…Later, Yuan Bei grabbed one by the scruff of its neck and stuffed it into the carrier.
This cat had previously contracted FIP, one of the most dangerous feline diseases with an extremely high mortality rate. Even after recovery, regular check-ups were necessary. The doctor recommended every six months, but Yuan Bei, being cautious, increased the frequency to once every three months.
Pet illnesses were emotionally draining.
During that period, Yuan Bei happened to be working on a project that was about to launch. He practically lived at the office, only managing to drive home during lunch breaks to take the cat to the hospital for injections, then rushing back to work.
For two whole months.
The cat endured two months of injections to save its life, while Yuan Bei hadn’t eaten a proper lunch in that time. Even now, just the sight of 7-11 sandwiches and rice balls made his stomach turn.
Fortunately, each follow-up exam had been reassuring. The efforts of both man and cat hadn’t been in vain.
…
Yuan Bei left the veterinary clinic and followed the navigation directly to find Wang Luxi.
When he arrived at the hotel, the streetlights had just come on, their orange glow seemingly pushing the summer night’s warmth up another notch.
…She was already waiting downstairs.
Wang Luxi had just finished showering, her hair only half-dried. When she received the call, she hurried downstairs, the damp ends of her hair wetting her collar.
“Here you go. I think I did a good job,” she said proudly.
Yuan Bei caught a whiff of orange blossom shampoo in the evening breeze. He took the photo but didn’t look at it carefully, simply pocketing it. Then he opened the rear car door, pulled out a plastic bag, and handed it to her. “Thank you. A return gift.”
“Oh!”
A return gift—this was something Wang Luxi hadn’t expected.
Compared to a single thin photo, Yuan Bei’s gift seemed almost too “substantial.” She opened the plastic bag to find several unopened creative gifts of various sizes, all bearing the National Museum logo.
“Found these at home. Take them if you like; they’re just collecting dust at my place.”
Yuan Bei couldn’t remember exactly when he got them. It seemed to be on a weekend when he had covered a shift for a colleague who had just started dating and wanted to go on a date with his girlfriend to the National Museum. The colleague couldn’t cancel, so he asked Yuan Bei for help. Afterward, the couple treated him to dinner and gave him a bunch of souvenirs.
He was thankful for Wang Luxi’s complaint, which had made him remember this.
“I don’t know if it includes what you wanted but couldn’t buy.”
Of course not.
Because those were this year’s new designs.
Wang Luxi thought this but didn’t say it aloud. She just hugged the bag and smiled at Yuan Bei. “Thank you. It’s not right to accept gifts without doing anything in return. This is too kind.”
“You’re welcome.”
With those words, the conversation died.
During the evening rush hour, cars came and went around them. Both seemed a bit awkward, though the reason for their awkwardness was hard to pinpoint.
The warm evening breeze made Wang Luxi unconsciously grip the edge of the plastic bag. She wanted to say something more, but it seemed she and Yuan Bei truly had nothing to talk about. Online confrontations were one thing, but now, under Yuan Bei’s gaze, she felt inexplicably nervous.
The streetlight was so hot.
No, that’s not it—so bright.
Fidgeting with her not-quite-dry hair, she looked up, meeting Yuan Bei’s gaze. Suddenly, she realized something about him seemed different today.
What was different?
After a moment, she finally figured it out and blurted, “You actually styled your hair before going out, Yuan Bei?”
“…”
He had gotten a haircut that morning, styled by the salon’s Tony, and it had held up until now.
Yuan Bei was a bit speechless. He unconsciously raised his hand, but Wang Luxi stopped him: “Don’t touch it! It looks good. Makes you look younger.”
…Thanks a lot.
Making others uncomfortable to ease her own awkwardness was Wang Luxi’s personal philosophy. She continued smiling at Yuan Bei, showing two rows of white teeth, until he frowned, finally turning away with a wave of his hand. “You should head back.”
“I’m not going back,” Wang Luxi said. “I’m going to Panjiayuan later. It’s Friday, you know!”
Panjiayuan “Ghost Market,” the famous night market, sold everything—antiques, jade, second-hand goods. Recently, many young people had set up stalls selling figurines, bead strings, small ornaments, and souvenirs. It only operated until midnight on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Wang Luxi was too curious. She’d heard it was incredibly lively and wanted to see if she could find something to take home.
Yuan Bei looked at her excited face, eyes sparkling, with an expression that was hard to read. “Your daytime itinerary wasn’t full enough?”
Didn’t get tired, did you?
“I am tired!” Wang Luxi nodded repeatedly. “But I want to go see it—the Ghost Market! Aren’t you interested?”
Then she answered her own question: “Oh, I forgot. You’re the type who can’t get interested in anything.”
“…” Yuan Bei glanced at the traffic. “How are you getting there?”
“By subway, of course. I checked already.” Wang Luxi waved her phone screen. “I’ll scan a shared bike to get to the subway station first.”
The nearest subway station was about 1.1 kilometers away—not far, but at this time…
It was right during rush hour. Buses were packed, inching forward like caterpillars. On the side roads, electric bikes and bicycles were bumper to bumper, everyone with sweat on their foreheads. Looking at Wang Luxi, the young woman clutching the plastic bag to her chest, just staring at him… and his hair.
Another moment of mutual silence.
Finally, he gave in under her intense gaze.
Yuan Bei checked the time, silently sighed, and took the plastic bag from Wang Luxi’s hands. With his other hand, he opened the passenger door: “Get in.”
Wang Luxi asked carefully: “Is it on your way?”
“…Yes.”
“Thank you! I’m grateful! You’re so kind!” Having received an affirmative answer, Wang Luxi obediently and naturally slipped into Yuan Bei’s car without a moment’s hesitation. Accepting help and expressing genuine gratitude was always better than being coy.
She sat down and had just fastened her seatbelt when she heard a small “meow” from the back seat.
“A cat!”
Wang Luxi was delighted.
The source of the sound was hiding in the carrier. Hearing this unfamiliar voice, it became even more nervous, burrowing completely into the small blanket Yuan Bei had laid out, leaving no gap and giving Wang Luxi no chance to peek.
“…Oh no, I think I scared it.”
“Then apologize to it.”
“I’m sorry!” Wang Luxi genuinely apologized, her attitude sincere. She even turned halfway to the back seat and reached out to help tuck in the other side of the cat’s blanket. “I’m so sorry.”
Yuan Bei was amused, laughing softly before quickly stopping and putting on a stern face: “Sit properly!”
“Okay, okay, okay.” Wang Luxi sat up straight, the plastic bag on her lap. After staying quiet for just a moment, she couldn’t help but ask, “Why did you decide to keep cats?”
Yuan Bei, driving, kept his eyes on the road: “What do you think I should keep?”
“…A turtle? Goldfish?” Wang Luxi answered seriously.
She was thinking of herself. Kittens, puppies, and bunnies were cute, but they required too much time and energy. Cats shed fur, dogs needed walks, rabbits required odor control… Thinking about it, taking care of herself was already challenging enough. If she were to keep a pet for companionship, she’d probably choose something that required minimal effort.
She’d heard that keeping small stones or algae was trending now—just put them in a tank with some water, and you didn’t need to do anything.
Wang Luxi thought this would be perfect for her.
“…”
Yuan Bei couldn’t follow Wang Luxi’s train of thought anymore.
He couldn’t imagine someone talking to a stone in a tank.
“…The cat can’t stay in the car too long. I’ll take it home first, then drive you.”
“Great! No problem!”
Wang Luxi looked back again and this time caught sight of a cat’s tail sticking out from the blanket, twitching slightly.
…
After passing an intersection, while waiting at a red light, Yuan Bei answered Wang Luxi’s persistent questions about how he got the cat: “When I found it, it was next to a garbage bin—a cat carrier, a cat, and money in the cat food.”
“It probably had gotten sick, so the owner abandoned it.”
Yuan Bei recalled that moment with resignation.
But seeing the three hundred-something yuan in the cat food bag, he felt that the cat’s owner might have been even more helpless. Not everyone could afford the expensive cost of treating a pet’s illness. This was probably the best they could do.
He spent half an hour in moral deliberation next to the garbage bin before taking the carrier home.
Being a natural cat person, this wasn’t exactly a coincidence.
A few months later, a similar scenario occurred. This time at his company—Yuan Bei was leaving work when he heard meowing under his car. He bent down to look and found a little tabby cat seeking warmth. It was filthy, like a small rag.
It was late December, cold, and about to snow.
Yuan Bei’s household gained another member.
…
Wang Luxi imagined the scene of man and cat making eye contact under the car and found it amusing.
Panjiayuan Night Market was divided into sections. Wang Luxi skipped the antiques and jewelry areas, which she didn’t understand, and rushed to the section where young people sold small items. Although these were mostly common things, the crowd was lively, and bargaining was fun.
Yuan Bei followed slowly behind.
Afraid he might lose her, Wang Luxi frequently looked back… though he was always within her sight. She could tell he wasn’t very enthusiastic, as she never saw him stop at any stall.
“Yuan Bei! What are your cats’ names? Don’t tell me you actually call one ‘Little Rag’?” She stopped at a stall selling pet supplies that had handmade cat scarves and silent bells that could be engraved. “I want to give them a gift too!”
“No,” Yuan Bei stopped beside Wang Luxi. “They don’t have names.”
“No names?”
“Mm-hmm.”
Yuan Bei actually had no interest in keeping pets either and hadn’t planned to care for them long-term. Once they were healthy, he posted notices online to find new homes for the cats. It wasn’t going very smoothly—both were domestic shorthairs with medical histories.
“They’re just staying with me temporarily,” Yuan Bei put the bell back. “Their new owners will give them new names.”
Otherwise, the cats might get confused with too many names.
Wang Luxi didn’t understand. “…But you’re the one who rescued them.”
“They’ll have to leave eventually.”
For many things, if you already know the continuation or even the ending, people tend to develop inertia and resist investing genuine feelings. After all, the ending is more worthy of anticipation than the process. Those moments are like fleeting stars glimpsed on a journey, or flowers that bloom for one night and wither the next day.
Given that, is it worth putting in more effort?
…
Wang Luxi didn’t understand.
She wanted to argue with Yuan Bei, but couldn’t find the right words.
“Thirsty?” Yuan Bei interrupted her thoughts. “I’ll go buy water.”
There was a convenience store just ahead.
“I want ice cream,” Wang Luxi fanned herself. “Do they have any?”
…
Two minutes later, she received a big red fruit popsicle.
Yuan Bei said it was a taste from his childhood.
Wang Luxi thought Yuan Bei’s childhood flavor was nice, though the popsicle was frozen too solid and had to be sucked on slowly.
There was also a bottle of old Beijing-style yogurt in a glass bottle, with condensation forming on the outside.
“Didn’t you say you couldn’t buy this earlier today?” Yuan Bei handed it to her along with a straw.
They sat together on some steps, looking up at the sky.
As night fell, the heat in the air finally subsided a bit. Wang Luxi’s hair had dried, and she had clipped it at the back of her head, looking like a loose shuttlecock.
She had originally planned to leave it that way, but after noticing Yuan Bei’s half-smiling glances several times, she removed a hair tie from her wrist and properly tied her hair in a ponytail.
Their conversation was relaxed and scattered.
“How many more days for your tour group?”
“Two days.” Wang Luxi bit into her popsicle, secretly observing Yuan Bei’s profile—the shape of his ear, his jawline, that patch of very white skin on his neck, and the faint veins.
A light breeze passed by.
“What’s your plan after that?”
“There’s still some time before I need to report to school, and I can’t move into the dormitory yet. I’ll probably find a cheap hostel and explore on my own.”
“Mm.” Yuan Bei said, “Be careful.”
…
The conversation died there.
Wang Luxi bit off the last piece of her melting popsicle.
The red fruit flavor was slightly sour. Looking at the half-red stain on the wooden stick, her mood suddenly and inexplicably turned sour too.
After another round of browsing, she still didn’t buy anything and returned to the hotel empty-handed.
…
The elderly lady sharing her room was already asleep.
Wang Luxi had to tiptoe to the bathroom to shower. Back in bed, she looked through the photos she’d taken that evening.
Those bustling stalls, the crowded sea of heads… Her moments received many likes, with people praising her energy.
But Yuan Bei wasn’t among them.
He was still someone who never posted on Moments—just a single dash, viewable for half a year.
Something itched in her heart like a mosquito bite.
Wang Luxi arranged all the creative gifts Yuan Bei had given her on the bed, including the clean yogurt glass bottle. In the faint light of the bedside sensor lamp, she took a group photo and sent it to him.
Wang Luxi: [Yuan Bei, are you home yet?]
No reply.
Wang Luxi: [Thank you for the gifts today, and for accompanying me to the night market.]
No reply.
Wang Luxi: [Can I see your other cat? What does it look like?]
Still no reply.
She rolled around on the bed several times, then stretched her arms and kicked her legs in frustration. She picked up her phone to check, put it down, thought wildly for a long time, then checked again—but only a minute had passed.
…She couldn’t bear it anymore.
Time to complain to a friend.
Wang Luxi: [Help! What should I do! I met a guy!]
Friend: [? Has the capital already started restricting people by gender?]
Wang Luxi: […]
Wang Luxi: [I mean, a very good-looking, heart-fluttering guy.]
Her friend understood: [Oh, a crush?]
Wang Luxi considered the term carefully: [You could say that.]
Friend: [Tell me more.]
Tell more, but how to elaborate? Wang Luxi recalled the days since she met Yuan Bei, the words they’d exchanged, the moments they’d shared—everything like a suddenly ignited firework, rising, exploding, scattering into countless sparks that dispersed throughout her heart.
These feelings were too numerous, too chaotic, too complex—impossible to explain.
And too subjective.
She simply selected all her chat records with Yuan Bei and sent them to her friend, asking for judgment.
A few minutes later.
Her friend’s assessment came: [God, this guy is so fake.]
Wang Luxi: [?]
Wang Luxi: [No way!!!]
Guessing that online chats might be too one-dimensional, she provided as many details as possible about her in-person encounters with Yuan Bei. But after hearing them, her friend was even more certain: [I’m sure he’s an old hand, deliberately flirting with you. Stay away from this type—you can’t handle him.]
“Just from the chat records, I can tell he’s the sly type,” her friend was getting worked up and sent a long voice message. “Let’s not even get into other things—in all these days you’ve known him, how much do you actually know about him? Or rather, how much has he revealed about himself? What does he do? What’s his job? How old is he? Where does he live?”
Wang Luxi: [I know that! Tonight I went with him to take his cat home, so I know which community he lives in!]
“…”
Her friend laughed in exasperation.
“Are you stupid? Forgive my bluntness, but his name might not even be real. You can’t take someone you met while traveling seriously! Only you would be so transparent, laying yourself bare. Besides, he’s quite a bit older than you, right? With those good looks, he’s probably experienced in relationships, very clever, with high emotional intelligence—handling you is child’s play. Don’t be so stubborn.”
Wang Luxi pressed her lips tightly together, unconvinced.
Her friend continued twisting the knife: “Don’t be defiant. He’s deliberately acting cold and mysterious to pique your interest—playing hard to get before making his move. If you don’t believe me, test him.”
…But how to test him?
Wang Luxi opened Yuan Bei’s chat again and found he had just sent a message, briefly replying that he was home and telling her to sleep early.
After much deliberation, she typed: [Yuan Bei, why do you never post on Moments?]
Was he really deliberately acting mysterious?
Was he really playing her because he knew she would fall for it?
Or was it that she didn’t yet have the privilege to glimpse a corner of his life?
Including their conversation tonight… was Yuan Bei truly the Yuan Bei she thought she knew?
Wang Luxi felt an inexplicable panic. She suddenly sat up, and the items displayed on her bed fell to the carpet with muffled thuds. The yogurt glass bottle rolled far away.
Wang Luxi: [Yuan Bei, you’re not a bad person, are you?]
Wang Luxi: [Yuan Bei?]
…
On the other end of the phone, after typing for a long time: [Sleep early. Good night.]
!!!
Damn it!!!
Wang Luxi was furious, but her fighting spirit was ignited as well.
She composed a long message, including but not limited to her thoughts that Yuan Bei was a good person who knew Beijing well, that they had common topics and enjoyed talking together.
Her tour was about to end, and since Yuan Bei was currently between jobs, would it be possible to invite him to explore Beijing with her?
Wang Luxi: [I can’t afford a private tour guide fee, but I can cover your three meals a day. You choose where, my treat.]
Afraid it wasn’t formal enough, she added: [I’m serious.]
Then she fell into another long wait.
During the wait, she opened Moments again to check new likes, but unexpectedly discovered that Yuan Bei had posted a photo—the most recent update.
This person who never updated his Moments had made a move today—in the photo, two cats were sleeping on a table. The table setting was natural and casual, unorganized. Wang Luxi noticed a cup, a bookshelf, a keyboard… but these weren’t the focus; they were all blurred out. What remained clear due to the focus was only a picture frame on the table.
Wang Luxi moved her finger to zoom in on the photo, finally seeing clearly what was in the frame.
It was Yuan Bei in graduation robes, and behind him, clearly visible, was the university gate.
The gate of the university she was about to enroll in.
The caption was just two words: “Looking at cats.”
Wang Luxi suddenly found it hard to breathe.
It felt like being wrapped in a hot air balloon and rising into the sky—a mix of guilt, shame, and the embarrassment of being seen through.
Her friend was right about one thing: Yuan Bei really was clever, with high emotional intelligence.
[You haven’t answered me yet.]
She poked Yuan Bei’s profile picture.
Are you willing to join me?
You, and me, the two of us?
This time, Yuan Bei didn’t hesitate: [Sorry.]
His reply was quick and proper: [Enjoy yourself. If you run into any difficulties, you can find me. Stay safe.]
…
The hot air balloon exploded.
Bang.
Wang Luxi plummeted from mid-air, her body seeming to pass through clouds, experiencing tremendous weightlessness before hitting rock bottom without any cushioning, completely disheveled.
Fighting back her emotions, she replied: [I understand. Good night.]
Then she took a screenshot and sent it to her friend: [There, I tried.]
I tried.
He’s not the kind of person you described.
The bedside sensor light went out, and her phone screen darkened.
Wang Luxi lay in the darkness with her eyes open, not knowing whether to be happy or sad about this.
