She hesitated for a long time. Finally, I heard her slowly exhaling, seeming to relax, and then went on to talk to Xiaohua about the card business again.

  I know she didnt recognize me.

  Just like two people who meet by chance in a fleeting encounter, she will come here to repair her car and may even return to wash it. But as for us, we wont have any further connection with each other.

  I lowered my head and focused on touching up the paint. These days, doing these meticulous, heavy, quiet tasks can calm my heart down. But today, perhaps because the store was too quiet, the other repair workers were more or less paying attention to her, her soft voice, speaking with Xiao Hua, sounded particularly clear in the store. Like a piece of satin, faintly shimmering with luster, floating behind me.

  She said: "The words next to speech are Tan, the bright moon is bright."

  I spaced out for a moment, but it seemed like she sensed something and stared at me. I turned my face away, expressionless, and continued working.

  She finally didnt look over again.

  Her car was a small job, I finished it quickly. When I looked up, she was standing at the counter paying. I walked past her without acknowledging her and sat down with several repairmen. Another repairman handed me a cigarette, and I continued to smoke slowly. My hands were covered in oil stains, spread out on my jeans, which also had many new and old scratches. I calmly looked at my own hands, always feeling like her gaze was falling on me, but maybe not.

  After a while, Xiaohua ran over with a strange smile on his face, patted me on the shoulder and said: "Ge, I want to discuss something with you."

  "Whats wrong?"

  He glanced in the direction of Tan Jiaos station, she was lowering her head to look at her phone, with an air of not caring about anything. She had always been like that. Xiao Hua smiled and said: "Miss Tan is willing to buy a 300 yuan car wash card. My sales task for this month is completed! But she has one condition, every time she meets Brother Ge after this, he must give her a car wash."

  The men next to me were taken aback, and they all burst out laughing, almost cheering. I didnt expect her to make such a request either, so I looked up. She must have heard the commotion of the men, and everyone was staring at her, of course, some people were also looking at me with admiring eyes.

  But she remained calm and serene, as if she hadnt heard anything. If you didnt look closely, you wouldnt notice the faint blush on her cheeks.

  What does she want to do? Probe, provoke, humiliate or sympathize? I felt a surge of heat churning in my chest, but it cooled down instantly. I said: "Wash if you want, I dont care." The store was small anyway, and I knew she must have heard me.

  Then I got up, pulled out the hose to wash her car. The repairmen jeered and then stopped making trouble. I stood at the entrance of the store under the bright light washing the car, she was still waiting inside without coming out.

  Her car is very new, the kind that a typical young and wealthy girl would buy. The interior is quite tidy, with some unopened books on the back seat, all written by "Qī Zhū". Theres also a box of signed pens. Only the drivers seat cushion is slightly wrinkled, with a few strands of her hair left behind. The other cushions are very new, clearly rarely sat upon. It turns out she still lives alone, coming and going by herself, without anyone to accompany her regularly.

  I washed the car very carefully and cleanly. After finishing, I threw away the hose and my vest was also wet for more than half. Wanting to take it off, I hesitated because she was there, so I didnt move.

  At this time, she finally put down the phone that had been playing for half a day and walked out of the store. She looked at me, her eyes flashing with a hint of shyness, not looking directly at me. I didnt know what she was shy about. She said: "Thank you, Master."

  I stared at her and asked: "Why did you specify me to wash?"

  "Oh, because Master Hua said your skills are the best." she said.

  I tossed her the key and she hastily reached out to catch it, saying "Well... goodbye."

  I didnt say anything and walked straight into the store.

  I heard the sound of an engine starting from behind. I tore off the wet vest and threw it aside, grabbing a hose to pour water directly over my head.

  Ive gotten used to this rough life.

  The sound of the water fell, and I unconsciously turned my head. Her car had already turned a corner and was about to drive away from the empty space in front of the door, but her eyes were still staring at me from afar. Through the scattered raindrops, I saw that her eyes were clear and calm.

  Thats how women look at men.

  Her car drove away. Water poured down from the top of my head, instantly cooling me off. I dropped the hose on the ground and fished out a cigarette that had been soaked halfway through from my pocket and lit it up.

  She didnt recognize me after all.

  She took me for another man and even asked me to wash her car.