area51novel Chapter 11 He finally hated growing up
Chapter 11 He finally hated growing up
He treated that broken thing, which only had 600 units in the world, like a grandson, running around to three cities, carrying it around more preciously than his own mother's urn—he had completely come to hate the whole "growing up" thing!
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Zeng Jia returned to Beijing from Gaoyou, exhausted. The platform was crowded with people, but Wang Haowen ultimately failed to show up to pick her up as promised.
It wasn't that Wang Haowen didn't want to go; it was just before he was to leave that Yu Li urgently "exiled" him to Shanghai with a phone call. Ostensibly, it was a business trip, but in reality, it was all for a lipstick—a one-of-a-kind piece that Yu Li had been longing for for many years: the 2016 Givenchy Gold Foil Lipstick, a limited edition of only 600 pieces worldwide.
Wang Haowen was crammed into the aisle of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed train, his backpack a heavy burden on his chest, his expensive Burberry trench coat crumpled like dried pickled vegetables. His journey was too rushed; he had only managed to snag a standing ticket, with no seat available. The five-hour train ride left him with a sore back and numb legs, only able to watch the scenery rush past the window. He couldn't bear to sit on the floor and ruin his clothes, so he could only occasionally lean against the cold carriage wall to catch his breath.
After finally making it to Shanghai, he rushed through three subway lines. He didn't even bother comparing which subway was more crowded, Shanghai's or Beijing's; all he wanted was to buy lipstick and get back to Beijing as soon as possible. The biting, damp cold of the southern winter was unbearable.
The old alleyway was narrow, damp, and the stone slabs creaked underfoot. The air was thick with the scent of moss from bygone days. Wang Haowen searched diligently according to the address. Finally, he found a secondhand shop in a shady corner. The owner was a thin, middle-aged man. He was sitting cross-legged in a creaking wicker chair, barely lifting his eyelids.
After Wang Haowen explained his purpose, the boss slowly took out a black velvet gift box from the depths of the drawer, his movements carrying a deliberate air of restraint, as if he were displaying a rare treasure that was not easily shown to others.
Upon opening the box, Wang Haowen's eyes lit up. He was about to reach for the lipstick, which shimmered with a luxurious sheen, when his gaze suddenly froze before his fingertips even touched the soft lambskin case. There was a bright, glaring scratch on the beautiful gold foil inlay, and the limited edition number underneath, which flaunted its status, was worn away.
"This...isn't new?" Wang Haowen's heart sank, feeling utterly disheartened. Given Yu Li's perfectionist and picky nature, she'd condemn even a crease on the packaging, let alone such an obvious damage!
"You know what I mean?" The shopkeeper glanced at him sideways, speaking with a heavy Shanghai accent, as if he were used to it. "You've only used it twice! This lipstick is a handmade design, a collaboration between Givenchy's creative director and a Japanese gold leaf master. The gold leaf is embedded in the leather, and each one has a unique pattern. You won't find another one exactly like it in Shanghai or the world!"
He emphasized the words "one of a kind," adopting a "take it or leave it" attitude. "This kind of rare stuff is already incredibly hard to come by, okay? Why are you being so picky? You're lucky if you can even get your hands on it!"
Wang Haowen had no choice but to take out his phone, take a clear picture of the lipstick's flaws and blurry serial number, and send it to Yu Li for instructions.
Ten minutes later, the phone screen lit up with a "snap," and Yu Li's reply was short and awkward, but its chilling message was deadly: "Wait there."
This wait lasted a long two hours.
Wang Haowen sat listlessly on the steps in front of the old house, watching people come and go in the alley and listening to the hustle and bustle of the city. He tried to clear his mind and give his legs a rest, but his stomach started growling uncontrollably. He got up and went to the convenience store next door to buy a sandwich. Leaning against the wall, he wolfed it down, filling his stomach in just a few bites.
He also texted Zeng Jia, telling her he had arrived in Shanghai and checking what time the last high-speed train back to Beijing was. But Yu Li's reply made his head buzz, as if he'd been hit over the head with a club. It was a new address—Hangzhou.
Fortunately, Shanghai is close to Hangzhou, so he picked up his backpack again and ran like the wind, dragging his aching body. This time, he was lucky and managed to snag a seat on the next high-speed train.
By the time they arrived in Hangzhou, it was already dusk, the sky as overcast as if ink had been spilled. A cold drizzle slanted down, carrying the bone-chilling cold characteristic of late autumn in Jiangnan. Wang Haowen grabbed a thin, paper-thin "tourist umbrella" from a convenience store for thirty yuan. The umbrella's ribs were so flimsy that a gust of wind blew it askew as soon as they stepped out of the station, offering absolutely no protection.
Water droplets dripped from the large camphor tree by the roadside, sliding down the crooked edge of its canopy and instantly soaking his backpack and trouser legs, leaving them cold and sticky. Wang Haowen ignored them, his head down, trudging along the slippery stone path, focused solely on getting rid of Yu Li's lousy lipstick incident!
He finally found the secondhand shop that Yu Li had pointed out. As soon as he pushed open the door, he brought in a damp and chilly smell.
"I'm so sorry, young man," the shopkeeper said apologetically, though his attitude was quite good. "That lipstick... someone snatched it from me. That young lady offered ten times the price and kept pestering me until I had no choice but to sell it to her. If I don't sell it to her, I'm afraid my little shop will have to close down."
"ten times?!"
Wang Haowen felt a surge of frustration welling up inside him, only to be forcefully suppressed by reality. He simply couldn't understand why anyone, besides Yu Li, would be willing to spend ten times the price of a lipstick priced at several thousand yuan—a complete waste!
Just for that empty title of "the pinnacle of unique products"? Someone who dares to waste money like that is clearly not someone he can mess with. He could only grit his teeth and dial Yu Li's number.
The moment the call connected, even through the airwaves, he could clearly feel the suppressed, almost explosive anger on the other end of the line.
"Stay in Hangzhou for the night and wait for my message." Yu Li's voice was as cold as a Siberian blast, and she hung up without giving him any chance to explain or ask any questions.
Completely exhausted, Wang Haowen could only find a cheap hotel nearby. While checking in, he took out his phone and sent Zeng Jia a text message: "Did you get home safely?"
He didn't even bother to check if Zeng Jia had replied to his message. The moment his body touched the bed, his eyelids became so heavy that he couldn't keep them open any longer and fell asleep right away. Traveling to two cities in one day, standing on the high-speed train for five hours, and then "flopping around" in the cold rain, even though he's only 25 this year, he's already exhausted to the point where all his bones are falling apart.
The next morning, the shrill ring of his cell phone yanked him awake from his deep sleep. Yu Li was calling again, this time with the destination—Tianjin.
"You don't need to rush today. Once you arrive in Tianjin, wait another day, and Japan will send you a brand new lipstick directly."
Wang Haowen rubbed his throbbing temples, and couldn't help but mutter to himself: Japan has already sent it directly to Tianjin, couldn't they have asked that commissioner to take it for another half hour by intercity train to Beijing? Why does he have to waste a whole day in Tianjin?
Yu Li's orders were like imperial edicts, and he dared not utter a single word of dissent. He could only resign himself to his fate and quickly book a flight to Tianjin.
Sitting by the window, he gazed at the churning sea of clouds outside. He couldn't help but marvel at how amazing the transportation network was these days, so amazing that he could travel to three different places in three days just for an incredibly expensive lipstick that was beyond his reach.
After waiting idly in Tianjin all day, Wang Haowen finally received the limited-edition lipstick locked in a specially made safe from a well-dressed, Japanese-speaking, and extremely respectful agent in the evening.
He dared not be careless in the slightest and immediately dialed Yu Li's video call.
Under the other person's icy gaze, he carefully and gently unwrapped each layer of packaging, as if performing some sacred ritual.
When the flawless lipstick was revealed, he felt his breathing become lighter: the lambskin case was smooth and brand new, the hand-inlaid gold foil pattern shimmered with a rich light under the lamp, the exclusive limited edition number was crystal clear, and the plastic seal was tight, without the slightest flaw!
"That's enough, come back now." Yu Li's voice remained flat and emotionless.
Wang Haowen breathed a long, silent sigh of relief, as if he had been granted a pardon.
He carefully repackaged the lipstick and held it tightly in his arms all the way back, as if he were holding a fragile porcelain doll, afraid of bumping or damaging it.
He suddenly remembered when he was fifteen, when he carried his mother's urn to the burial, and he didn't seem to be this careful. Back then, what he was carrying was a heavy farewell and sorrow, but his father was there to bear that sorrow, and he could rely on being under eighteen to hide under that protection.
But things are different now. The little lipstick in his arms is the key to his livelihood.
He was 100% certain that if he lost this lipstick, he would definitely lose his job. What could he do after losing his job? Go home and sponge off his parents? Or... rely on Zeng Jia to support him and live off her, then he would truly become a spineless coward.
For the first time, he felt a little resentful of growing up.