Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

Night fell like a piece of black velvet soaked in water, pressing heavily on Victoria Peak. The air carried the cool, damp air unique to the mountaintop, mixed with the fragrance of grass and trees, and the faint, wind-blown whistles of ships echoing from Victoria Harbour in the distance. Ho Ta-min's villa lay like a giant beast crouching in the valley, quietly nestled in this tranquility.

The children's room area on the second floor was already quiet. The six children, like baby birds just brought back to their nest, were all fast asleep. Before bed, they had been fussing for a story, and it took Chen Xueru a long time to soothe them to sleep. In the entire building, only the study window was still lit, like an awake eye.

He Damin sat at his large rosewood desk, a thick quarterly report clutched in his hand. John had just delivered it that afternoon, containing the operational status of Asia Satellite Television and several of its subsidiaries. The report was neatly printed, the data charts clear at a glance, but his eyes seemed clouded, unable to absorb a single word. His fingers unconsciously traced the smooth edges of the paper, his thoughts drifting back to the afternoon.

In the afternoon, the phone call from his elder brother He Yuzhu, with his heavy Beijing accent, felt like a fishbone stuck in his throat, neither going up nor down.

With a creak, the study door was gently pushed open. Chen Xueru walked in carrying a white porcelain tray with two blue-and-white teacups on it, steaming gently. The tea was freshly brewed Longjing tea; the leaves unfurled in the hot water, releasing a refreshing aroma that dispelled the stuffy atmosphere in the study.

She gently placed a cup of tea beside He Damin, the bottom of the cup making a soft "tap" as it touched the table. Then, she took another cup for herself and sat down in the rosewood chair opposite him, leaning slightly forward and looking at him with gentle eyes.

"Still thinking about the rain?" Her voice was soft, like a feather brushing against the heart, carrying a soothing power.

He Damin seemed to be startled from his reverie, slowly putting down the report in his hand and letting out a long sigh, a sigh that seemed to have been held back for a long time, filled with helplessness and exhaustion. "My older brother called again today." He picked up his teacup, feeling the warmth on his fingertips, "He said that Yushui is already twenty-nine, and if she doesn't get married soon, she'll really be considered an old maid back in our hometown, and the neighbors will gossip about her behind her back."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xueru couldn't help but chuckle, her eyes and brows radiating warmth. "How can twenty-nine be considered an old maid? Our Yushui, a Cambridge PhD, is young and promising. She's now the head of Asia TV, managing such a large media group. Her every move shakes the entire Southeast Asian entertainment industry. The men who want to marry her are so numerous they could stretch all the way to Kowloon, I bet they'd be lining up in Tsim Sha Tsui."

He Damin gave a wry smile, took a sip of hot tea. The tea slid down his throat, bringing a touch of warmth, but it couldn't relieve the restlessness in his heart. "But she herself isn't in a hurry. Every time I bring it up with her, she either laughs it off or says she's busy with work."

"She's not in a hurry, so why are you?" Chen Xueru put down her teacup, holding the cup with both hands. "Children and grandchildren have their own blessings."

"I'm not in a hurry, but my brother is." He Damin put down his teacup and tapped his fingers lightly on the table. "On the phone, I could almost picture him yelling and glaring through the phone line. He said that Yushui is the only daughter in the He family. She's beautiful and well-educated. If she can't get married in the end, he, as her father, will have no face to face the ancestors of the He family."

Chen Xueru gently shook her head, her eyes showing a hint of understanding mixed with a touch of disapproval. "Big brother is just old-fashioned, still stuck in the old ways of thinking like 'a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent' and 'she should get married when she reaches a certain age.' A girl like Yushui is top-notch anywhere. It's not that she can't get married, it's that ordinary people simply don't meet her standards, they're not good enough for her."

He Damin raised his head, his gaze sharp as he looked at Chen Xueru, as if he had suddenly caught something. "You're saying this... do you know something?" He knew Chen Xueru; she wasn't one to speak empty words.

Chen Xueru's smile faded. She remained silent for a moment, as if carefully choosing her words, before gently setting down her teacup, the bottom of which made a soft clinking sound against the table. "Yesterday... I asked Yushui." She paused, her voice lowering slightly, "She told me."

"What did he say?" He Damin's heart jumped, and his body involuntarily leaned forward.

Chen Xueru met his gaze but did not answer immediately. The study fell silent instantly, with only the old-fashioned wall clock on the wall, its second hand ticking away, each sound like a clear and heavy blow to the heart. The night outside seemed even darker, and even the distant sound of ship whistles could not be heard.

"Bruce Lee." After a long while, Chen Xueru finally uttered these three words softly, her voice so soft as if she were afraid of disturbing something.

He Damin froze, as if struck by lightning. He opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but found his throat blocked by something, unable to make a sound. He closed his mouth again, swallowed hard, and opened it once more, his voice dry and hoarse: "Rain... Rainwater said it?"

"Yes." Chen Xueru nodded, a complex emotion in her eyes. "She said she likes someone. She's liked him for a very, very long time. It's Bruce Lee."

"How could she... how could she..." He Damin's mind was a bit confused. He couldn't connect his calm, rational, and decisive niece with the martial arts star on screen who was full of wild charm and had impressive fighting skills.

“Rain said,” Chen Xueru continued, her voice soft, as if telling a long-buried secret, “that she liked him from the first time she saw him at the film studio. She was only in her early twenties then, just returned from graduating from Cambridge, still clueless about everything in the entertainment industry, like a blank sheet of paper. Bruce Lee was filming 'The Green Hornet' at the time, and she went to visit the set as a representative of Asia Television. In that messy studio, with its glaring lights and roaring machines, she saw him practicing his kung fu in a corner.”

Chen Xueru spoke slowly, as if recreating the scene: "He was wearing simple training clothes, drenched in sweat, the back of his clothes soaked through, clinging tightly to his body, revealing the outline of his muscles. His eyes were incredibly focused, as if all the noise around him didn't exist, and the whole world consisted only of him and his fists. Yu Shui said that at that moment, she knew that she would probably never like anyone else again in her life."

He Damin remained silent for a long time, the only sound in the study the ticking of the wall clock. He leaned back in his large chair, closed his eyes, and his mind raced through countless scenes like a movie. He remembered how, in those years, whenever Yu Shui heard that Bruce Lee's film crew was coming to Hong Kong to shoot a movie, he would always be exceptionally proactive in arranging reception and personally going to the set. He remembered how, whenever a new Bruce Lee movie was released, Asia Television was always one of the biggest investors, and Yu Shui would book several screenings, inviting the entire company's employees to watch, ostensibly for "study and research." He had always thought that it was Yu Shui's dedication as the president of a media group, and his respect for important partners. So… it wasn't like that at all. Behind those seemingly ordinary actions lay such a deep and hidden thought.

"She...she knew Bruce Lee had a wife." After a long while, He Damin finally opened his eyes and said in a low voice, with a hint of barely perceptible fatigue.

"I know." Chen Xueru nodded, her tone somewhat heavy. "She knew that Bruce Lee had a wife named Linda and a son named Brandon Lee. She also knew that Bruce Lee had a mistress in Hong Kong. She knew all of this."

He Damin suddenly raised his head, looking at Chen Xueru with a mixture of confusion and heartache in his eyes: "Then she...she's still so foolish?"

"She said she didn't care." Chen Xueru's voice was a little hoarse, as if there was sand stuck in her throat. "Yushui said that she just liked him, simply liked him. She didn't need him to like her back, didn't need him to marry her, and didn't need him to make any promises. She just liked him, watched him make movies, watched him stand in the spotlight, watched him live a good life, and that was enough for her."

Silence fell over the study once more. He Damin leaned back in his chair, his gaze blankly fixed on the exquisite crystal chandelier on the ceiling. Yu Shui had personally chosen that chandelier, saying she wanted it brighter to appear more vibrant. He recalled the first time he met He Yu Shui many years ago. She was only seven then, thin and small, like a malnourished bean sprout, timidly hiding behind He Yuzhu, her large eyes blinking as she looked at him, softly calling him "Uncle." Later, he took her to Hong Kong, sent her to the best schools, and watched her grow taller and more beautiful, transforming from a timid little girl into a confident young woman. Later still, she went to Cambridge University in England, earned her doctorate, and returned to take over Asia Television, which he had founded. He still remembered her first time chairing a high-level meeting; though somewhat nervous, she was clear-headed, her gaze firm, convincing a group of seasoned veterans. She managed Asia Television impeccably, its business expanding continuously, becoming one of the leading media giants in Southeast Asia. He always thought that his daughter had everything: a successful career, a comfortable life, and was the envy of everyone. But it turned out she had nothing. In her heart, she harbored a secret, a secret she had kept for almost ten years, a secret so deep, so painful.

"Brother Damin," Chen Xueru's voice rang out softly, tinged with a hint of caution, "You...you knew all along, didn't you?"