Really Lost Memory

Tomorrow was the day of the school sports meet, and while Yinshan Academy was bustling with preparations—Ye Shuang received a call from Chen Hai in the evening.

The other end didn’t say much, just abruptly asked,

"Drink?"

"Sure, let’s drink."

Before the sun had fully set, Ye Shuang found Chen Hai squatting by the roadside, smoking and sighing. Though they hadn’t seen each other in a while, Ye Shuang noticed he seemed to have lost some weight.

Dressed in a simple polo shirt and without his usual gold-rimmed glasses, he looked a bit rough around the edges.

"Get in the car. Squatting there like some stray," Ye Shuang said, rolling down the window.

Chen Hai’s mood visibly lifted when he saw Ye Shuang. He stubbed out his cigarette and retorted,

"Screw you. Like you’ve never squatted like this before."

Once inside, Chen Hai took the passenger seat and suddenly asked, "This isn’t some girlfriend-only seat, is it?"

"Don’t be ridiculous," Ye Shuang replied before asking,

"Where to?"

"Anywhere’s fine. Just find a place to drink."

Ye Shuang thought for a moment. "Fugui’s place?"

"Works for me."

Ye Shuang drove into an urban village—a stark contrast to the towering, glitzy buildings outside. Here, the streets were alive with the hum of everyday life: roadside food stalls, vendors prepping skewers for the evening barbecue rush.

Occasionally, the laughter of a family heading home with their child could be heard.

"Ah…" Chen Hai sighed heavily at the sight.

"What’s with the sighing?"

"You wouldn’t get it. The life of a married man," Chen Hai muttered, gazing out the window with a melancholic air, clearly needing a drink to vent his frustrations.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, he turned to Ye Shuang. "Chen Qin told me you lost your memory?"

"Why would I fake that?"

Ye Shuang rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right."

"Cut the crap. This isn’t some TV drama or novel. Who just randomly loses their memory? Did someone whack you with a stick or something?" Chen Hai shot back.

"I don’t really know either," Ye Shuang mused.

To him, it didn’t feel like memory loss—just that his longtime girlfriend, Chen Qin, suddenly wasn’t his girlfriend anymore.

But thinking back, there were indeed many inconsistencies in the details.

It was like his mind had been stuffed with a jumble of mismatched memories.

"You… you really lost your memory?" Chen Hai stared at him, stunned by his serious expression.

"Do I look like the joking type?" Ye Shuang said dryly.

"Holy shit, I thought you were just making excuses to brush off Chen Qin. Though even a dog wouldn’t buy that."

"I’m not joking."

"Zhao Mengyao—the woman you were head over heels for, the ultimate simp, the queen of all queens—you seriously don’t remember her at all?!" Chen Hai pressed.

"Not a single trace. Well, except for one thing that stuck with me."

"What?"

"Her head’s gone."

Chen Hai: "…"

Ye Shuang shrugged it off. "Gone is gone. If she’s really like what you all say, then maybe it’s better forgotten."

"Man, back then, we all envied you for landing Zhao Mengyao. A girl who wore princess dresses but danced like… well, let’s just say she had that whole ‘innocent but wild’ vibe going on," Chen Hai said, though he still treaded carefully despite believing Ye Shuang’s amnesia.

Back in their school days, Zhao Mengyao had been the campus goddess.

"In my memories, Chen Qin’s always been my girlfriend…" Ye Shuang said quietly as he drove.

"Damn, then just go for it! If she’s your girl in your head, and she’s crazy about you, what’s stopping you?" Chen Hai urged.

Ye Shuang chuckled. "That’s what I thought at first, but…"

"Chen Qin’s personality is as strong-willed as ever."

Chen Hai clicked his tongue in understanding. "Tch, you two are such a mess. Not like me—one shot, one kill."

But as he spoke, his mood darkened again.

"Ah, but my life’s no picnic either. Sometimes I envy you being single."

Ye Shuang: "Come on, you’re a father of two now. Quit moping. Let’s go."

They had arrived. Since it was an urban village, there were no proper parking lines. Ye Shuang pulled over as close to the curb as possible to avoid scratches.

Outside, a flashy neon sign screamed "Sweetie Bar" in all its tacky, early-2000s glory.

"Let’s go."

"Fugui’s been here lately?"

"Probably. You know how he is—one day a hairstylist, the next a bar owner."

As they pushed open the door, a sickly sweet voice cooed through the rainbow-colored lights, "Ooooh, who’s this cutie walking in~?"

It wasn’t Fugui, but a strikingly cute girl with a mischievous glint in her eye.

Her green hair, tied into a messy ponytail, clashed gloriously with her otherwise doll-like face.

"Me," Ye Shuang greeted.

"Ohhh, if it isn’t Boss Ye and Chubby Chen! Sit, sit!" the girl—Little Lv—cheerfully waved them over.

"Hey, Little Lv, why’s he ‘Boss’ and I’m ‘Chubby’?" Chen Hai grumbled.

"Because you still owe me 1,290 from last time!" she snapped, hands on hips. "Pay up!"

Little Lv co-owned the bar with Fugui, though Fugui mostly left her to run things while he popped in whenever the mood struck. She was an old friend of the group.

"Where’s Fugui?" Ye Shuang asked.

"Sweetie’s upstairs entertaining guests," Little Lv said before suddenly yelling, "Sweetie—!"

"Coming, coming! Why so loud?" A flamboyant figure descended the stairs—Aunt Li, who gasped dramatically at the sight of them. "Oh my, if it isn’t my little Shuang-Shuang! What brings you here?"

Her purple lips curled as she studied them. "Hmm~ Let me guess…"

"Is it Chen Hai’s drama again?"

"Duh. He’s grinning like an idiot, and I look like I bit into a lemon," Chen Hai muttered, plopping onto a couch.

"Never mind that. Get Fugui down here. I need a drink."

"Sweetie, the fatty still hasn’t paid his tab," Little Lv reminded Aunt Li.

"Put it on my bill. And bring us some bottles," Aunt Li said.

"Fine."

Time for some juicy gossip.