Allen recalled, "He had only recently come abroad then, and his adoptive parents would often bring him to Chinatown. When I met him, his English wasn't very good yet, but because of family reasons, I had learned Chinese since childhood, so communicating with him was no problem. We became friends."
Susu did not interrupt him further.
"But in the year he turned eighteen, he didn't visit me for a long time. I found it strange, so I went to his house to look for him. His adoptive parents said he was hospitalized but didn't mention which hospital. I inquired everywhere and found the hospital he was in. When I saw him, one of his kidneys had already been removed. After learning the reason, I wanted to help him, but his handwritten signature was on the surgical consent form, which only proved he had voluntarily donated it."
The more Susu listened, the more she felt a chill run down her spine.
"Later, he escaped from his adoptive parents and secretly enrolled in a military academy. Only in the military academy could his adoptive parents not do anything to him. At that time, I was studying at a university in Europe, and we hadn't been in contact. One day, he suddenly appeared at the university where I was studying. I found out he had been expelled from the military academy. We were quite happy then, and without any ties, we traveled around Europe on a shoestring budget, spending a year abroad. My parents were furious when they learned I had taken a leave of absence to travel and forced me back to school to continue my studies. That's how we were separated again. When we parted, he didn't want to spend my money anymore, saying he wanted to support himself."
It was only then that Susu truly understood what Yang Sijie had gone through.
"Then we didn't see each other for another four or five years. During this time, I tried to contact him, but I couldn't. When we met again, I was already an intern doctor at the hospital, and he was doing very well. That time, he asked me many questions about medicine, and I realized he was preparing for revenge." Allen sighed and said, "Alas, although we were very good friends, I never asked about things he didn't want to talk about. Later, he even asked me to treat his injuries a few times. Once, I don't know who beat him up, it almost cost him his life."
Susu said slowly, "Then he really treated you as a friend, unwilling to involve you in some matters."
Allen just smiled and sighed, "You ultimately had no destiny together."
At this moment, the shop assistant brought over the packed desserts and placed them in front of Susu, saying, "Your order is complete."
Susu felt that since Yang Sijie had not wanted Allen to know about his dirty deeds when he was alive, she didn't need to say anything more.
She picked up the packed desserts and said, "Allen, thank you for telling me this."
"I knew he wouldn't tell you these things. If you had known these things earlier, would you still have broken up with him?"
"As a friend, I feel very heartbroken for his experiences, but this has nothing to do with feelings. The person I like is ultimately not him," Susu said with a wry smile.
"Miss Gu, regardless of whether you and Frank get together, will you still consider me a friend?"
Susu nodded and smiled, "As long as your little shop is still open, I will come to patronize it often."
"You are most welcome."
Allen stared blankly at her retreating back until she disappeared at the end of the alley.
He turned back into the shop, pushed open the wooden door behind the cash register, and looked at Yang Sijie, who was sitting in a wheelchair with a foolish expression, and asked sadly, "Did you hear what the woman you've been thinking about said? Do you still remember her?"
Yang Sijie looked bewildered, wanting to smile at him, but his mouth was severely crooked to one side.
Allen took out a tissue and wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, as if talking to himself, "You and she ultimately had no fate."
No one knew that Yang Sijie was miraculously still alive. He was shot and fell off a cliff, into the sea, and was washed by the tide onto a reef, where he was rescued by a fishing boat setting out to sea.
The bullet did not hit a vital spot in his brain, but it still caused permanent damage. After waking up, he became foolish, with an intelligence less than that of a three-year-old child.
On that small island, he couldn't say anything about himself, only repeatedly reciting a string of numbers.
The local fishermen tried dialing this number, and it turned out to be Allen's mobile number. In the end, the only thing he remembered in his mind was Allen's mobile number.
Allen rushed over, borrowed the identity of a local fisherman to bring him back, and also took him to see brain specialists. The brain damage he sustained was permanent and could not be cured in this lifetime.
However, Allen was willing to take care of him for the rest of his life. He would never know that when they were traveling through a small town in Switzerland, which resembled a paradise, during their shoestring trip in Europe, Allen had wished they could stay there forever.
...
Susu returned to the hospital ward with the packed desserts.
She really wanted to forget everything related to Yang Sijie, but after learning about Yang Sijie's experiences from Allen, her heart felt constantly uneasy.
As soon as she entered the ward, she tried her best to cheer herself up and said to Tianyi with a smile, "Are you hungry? Look what delicious food I bought for you."
Qin Tianyi replied, "I'm tired of the hospital food when you're not here. My wife is the best, knowing what I like to eat."
Susu helped him up slowly, adjusted the small table placed on the hospital bed, and opened the takeaway bag. "You must be hungry. These sesame glutinous rice balls smell so good."
Qin Tianyi picked up the spoon and noticed a few words on the disposable takeaway box: "Wonderful Desserts."
He couldn't help but freeze for a moment, feeling that the shop name was somewhat familiar.
Susu helped him open the lid and said with a smile, "Try it quickly."
Qin Tianyi suddenly remembered that a friend of Yang Sijie's used to own a dessert shop with this name. He had gone there to look for Susu and had seen their shop sign.
"You went to Yang Sijie's dessert shop? That shop is still open?"
Seeing his expression change slightly, Susu quickly explained, "That's not Yang Sijie's shop. The owner is named Allen. Although he knew Yang Sijie, but..."
"Yang Sijie still has accomplices who weren't caught. You must quickly tell Su Kangxi about this and have the police investigate," Qin Tianyi said, hating everything related to Yang Sijie.
Susu felt he was being overly anxious and said, "Allen is not his accomplice. They are just ordinary friends. Allen was not involved in his affairs. He runs a legitimate dessert shop, so don't be so suspicious."
"Close to vermilion, one gets stained red; close to ink, one gets stained black. His relationship with Yang Sijie is probably not that simple," Qin Tianyi retorted.
The thought of all the things Yang Sijie had done to break them up made him feel that even if Yang Sijie died a thousand times over, it wouldn't be enough to appease his anger.
"Allen and he met when they were both struggling, but Yang Sijie really didn't drag him into those dirty deeds. His friendship with Yang Sijie was also limited; he's not a bad person..."
"Why do you still see everyone as a good person? Haven't you suffered enough losses in this regard..."
Susu interrupted him, "If you don't want to drink these glutinous rice balls, I'll pour them away! If you have something to say, just say it directly, so you don't have to hold it in. I also know that you still have a lingering issue with what happened between Yang Sijie and me. If you dislike me, I have nothing to say."