Let Me Meet You chapter 26

I Know Everything

“Ge.. I couldn’t find him… Did he come back?” As Li Xuan walked out, he called Yang Xu, who sounded out of breath from the search.

“Where did you look?” Li Xuan could hear a faint echo on the other end. “Where are you now?”

“The parking lot. If he was leaving, wouldn’t he go through here?”

“All the car keys are with you; why would he go to the parking lot? I asked you to find him; did you think he’d be waiting for you in the car?” Li Xuan was getting a headache.

“Ge, I’m not an idiot,” Yang Xu replied, exasperated. “I even took the stairs instead of the elevator and checked the stairwells.”

“Did you find him?”

“No…”

“Then what’s the point of getting so worked up?!”

Two staff members approached him, looking as if they wanted a photo. Li Xuan shook his head, motioning that he was on a call, and walked quickly past them.

“So what should I do then?” Yang Xu asked, “How could he have just disappeared… Did you guys have an argument today?”

From his tone, Li Xuan could tell that Yang Xu had convinced himself that he and Sheng Min had a secret relationship. “What argument? Why don’t you assume that you’re the one who upset him?”

“I didn’t!” Yang Xu protested immediately.

“Alright, alright, I know. I wasn’t scolding you.” Li Xuan pressed his fingers to his brow.

“Should I come to you now? Are you still upstairs?”

“No, stay where you are. Wait in the car, just in case he comes back. Someone has to be there.” Li Xuan said casually.

“True.” Yang Xu readily accepted the excuse, sounding instantly cheerful again. Li Xuan said a few words and hung up.

He figured Sheng Min hadn’t gone too far—he wasn’t the type to just leave irresponsibly. Li Xuan took a picture of the layout map at the end of the corridor and searched the most likely places.

The building wasn’t huge, but it was still exhausting to search thoroughly. He asked the staff he encountered, but most either hadn’t seen Sheng Min or could only give vague impressions, which were hardly helpful.

Growing frustrated as he couldn’t find him, Li Xuan started to doubt his own certainty. Anxiety gradually crept in. Finally, when he spotted a familiar figure on the rooftop, he let out a sigh of relief.

It had been nearly an hour by then. Sheng Min stood with his back turned, unaware of Li Xuan’s presence.

Li Xuan had every reason to be angry, logically speaking. He’d wasted time searching, felt anxious along the way, but seeing Sheng Min in that moment, he found no trace of anger within himself.

The sky was darkening, layered clouds folding over one another, creating a deep blue hue. The shadows from the high-rise behind them cast most of the rooftop in darkness. The rooftop was far from open and bright, but Sheng Min’s moon-white shirt stood as the only touch of light.

Li Xuan didn’t disturb him and quietly texted Yang Xu to let him know he’d found Sheng Min and that he could leave. Then he simply stood silently by the rooftop door. He knew he should call out to Sheng Min, but he had no desire to break the silence.

Sheng Min’s shadow stretched long in the setting sun, almost reaching Li Xuan’s feet. He lowered his gaze to the shadow on the ground, then traced it up to Sheng Min’s figure, so still and delicate, like a sculpture.

For a while, he felt as if his gaze was unfocused, unsure of where he was looking. But perhaps it was only an illusion. When Sheng Min suddenly moved toward the edge of the rooftop, Li Xuan instinctively rushed over and firmly grabbed his hand.

“What are you doing?” After a few seconds, Li Xuan finally found his voice.

His sudden appearance startled Sheng Min. Caught by the hand, he forgot to speak, just staring at Li Xuan’s eyes. After a while, he tried to pull his hand away, and a thin layer of sweat had already formed on it.

“Don’t move.” Li Xuan tightened his grip. “What were you doing?”

“There’s a cat,” Sheng Min explained.

“What?” Li Xuan was surprised. Only then did he notice a black cat huddled on the ledge outside the railing, its tail trembling nervously.

“It jumped over from the neighboring building,” Sheng Min clarified. “Let go, and I’ll get it. It’s small; it might fall.”

Li Xuan knew he’d misunderstood, though he didn’t know why he still felt unwilling for Sheng Min to go to the edge. He didn’t release his grip.

“What’s wrong?”

“Don’t go over there.”

Sheng Min looked at him, puzzled. Li Xuan could have handled it himself without explaining. Sheng Min wasn’t one to press for details.

But Sheng Min would definitely overthink it if he didn’t say anything. Reluctantly, Li Xuan made up an excuse: “I’m allergic to cat fur.”

“Huh?”

“Allergic.” Li Xuan repeated, then asked seriously, “Are you?”

Sheng Min hesitated, then shook his head.

“Alright, I’ll get it.” Li Xuan finally let go, striding over to the ledge and reaching through the railing to grab the little black cat, lifting it carefully.

The cat, frightened, was oddly calm in the unfamiliar arms, only letting out a soft meow.

He held the cat and, planning to stick to his allergy excuse, was about to release it after letting Sheng Min take a look. But Sheng Min’s eyes brightened when he saw the cat, like a child looking at candy. Unable to resist, Li Xuan asked, “Do you want to hold it?”

“Aren’t you allergic…?”

“Only a bit. If you want to hold it, go ahead.”

Sheng Min glanced at him, hesitating before saying, “You’re not really allergic, are you?” He sighed, glancing at where the cat had been, his voice softening. “The railing’s high. I wouldn’t have jumped—I didn’t plan on it.”

Li Xuan knew he’d been caught in his lie, though he didn’t want Sheng Min to dwell on it.

“I didn’t think that way,” he replied honestly, a bit embarrassed. “I just didn’t think it through.”

This was true. Li Xuan believed that when Sheng Min promised to stay alive, he would take it seriously. If he’d thought otherwise, he wouldn’t have dealt with things first before looking for him. But now that he’d told a half-truth before the real reason, it lost some credibility. Li Xuan, unaccustomed to feeling so awkward, pressed, “Are you going to hold it or not?”

Sheng Min reached out but hesitated. “Are you really not allergic?”

“Yes.” Li Xuan chuckled at his own awkwardness. “Come on, take it—I don’t like animals.”

Sheng Min pursed his lips slightly but finally took the cat. The black cat, unafraid, stayed calm in his arms, only licking his hand gently. Sheng Min stroked its soft fur.

“Do you want to keep it?” Li Xuan asked, seeing how much he seemed to like it.

Sheng Min looked up, prompting Li Xuan to quickly add, “I honestly don’t like animals, but if you want to keep it, I’m fine with that.”

“No, I won’t keep it,” Sheng Min replied, shaking his head. “It’s been a long time since I had any pets.”

“Why?” Li Xuan asked, taken aback.

Sheng Min hesitated, clearly reluctant to answer, but Li Xuan waited expectantly, and he finally relented. “I had a dog once… Not really mine, just a stray hanging around the market near my building. After school, if I had money, I’d buy it a sausage… It got used to me over two or three months and would wag its tail when it saw me. Then I went off to film, and when I came back, it was gone… It was a yellow dog with a tuft of white fur on its head. Probably went somewhere else.”

They both knew the usual fate of a stray dog that disappeared.

Li Xuan stayed silent, and Sheng Min gave a small, fleeting smile. “Small animals are too fragile and precious. I barely take care of myself. I can’t take care of them, so I don’t keep pets.”

As he spoke, he petted the black cat’s head, then decided to set it down. But he worried it might go back to the edge, so he carried it to the stairwell, crouched, and let it go, watching as it dashed down the stairs.

The sky grew darker, and the rooftop had no lights. Sparse light from the building across them illuminated Li Xuan’s shoulder, but none reached where Sheng Min was crouched, as if he were about to dissolve into the night.

The thought came to him, and Li Xuan couldn’t hold back from taking a few steps forward. Sheng Min heard his footsteps, turned, and stood up.

Li Xuan stopped just a couple of steps away. The rooftop was very quiet; aside from the faint sounds of people in the building and the occasional car honk from below, there was only the sound of their breathing.

Li Xuan felt he should say something. He wasn’t a talkative person, but when he wanted to, words came easily. Yet, at this moment, he couldn’t quite think of anything to say.

In the end, it was Sheng Min who spoke first, apologizing sincerely.

“Why are you telling me this?” Li Xuan frowned deeply.

“It’s what I should say,” Sheng Min replied seriously. “This afternoon… The recording studio was too stuffy; I couldn’t stand it and just wanted to get some fresh air. I lost track of time. You must have looked for me for a while… Did you call? I didn’t hear it…” He took out his phone and saw that it had shut down because the battery was dead.

“I didn’t look for long,” Li Xuan replied, still frowning. “It was indeed stuffy.”

Sheng Min paused slightly, then continued, “And… I didn’t expect…”

“It’s fine.” Li Xuan didn’t let him finish, but Sheng Min insisted on completing his thought, “I didn’t expect today’s situation and that you’d have to cover for me on stage. I shouldn’t have left, but at the time…” He didn’t finish the sentence, instead saying, “If something like this happens again, you don’t need to record for me; it’s fine.”

His tone was sincere, and even the evening shadows couldn’t hide the guilt on his face.

“Would you not record if you were in my place?”

“It’s different.” Sheng Min looked into his eyes. “Even with how things are between us now, there’s no reason for you to go through this for me. It’s not fair to you.”

Li Xuan wanted to ask, Is it fair to you? But he didn’t say it, and just frowned even more.

Sheng Min looked down and kicked a pebble by his foot, then looked up, trying to sound a bit more cheerful: “So, as you can see, I really should apologize… Come on, stop frowning. You don’t like it, so I’ll stop talking.”

“You say everything anyway, whether I like it or not.” Li Xuan flicked his hand as if to leave, but Sheng Min quickly grabbed his arm. He didn’t use much strength; Li Xuan could have easily pulled away, yet he didn’t. Irritated, he asked, “What else is there to say?”

There wasn’t anything more. But seeing Li Xuan’s unhappy expression, Sheng Min hesitated, then let go, speaking again: “It’s not stomach cancer; it’s a problem with his pancreas. And I didn’t start acting after he got sick. Kids like to show off. When I started acting, it was just like a game to me… Anyway, it’s not all true…”

He hadn’t planned to say all that and spoke quickly, almost casually. After finishing, he sighed with relief, saying, “That’s it, really… So don’t be angry. I’m sure you’ve been angry enough today. I…”

“I know,” Li Xuan said, still looking rather unhappy.

Sheng Min smiled lightly: “What is it you know?”

“Whatever you need me to know, I know.”

He spoke with complete certainty, as if it were just an offhand comment. Then, not continuing the topic, he gave Sheng Min a gentle push: “You’ve been getting fresh air long enough. Your hands are cold. Let’s go downstairs.”