"Teacher Lin, what happened?" The old doorkeeper opened the door and came in. Lin Wenxi screamed even more miserably.
"There was a weasel. I struck it away." Lin Wenxi said.
The old doorkeeper nodded in disbelief. Then he walked out with a fatuous smile.
Zhao Yuan popped his head out of the mosquito net. "Luckily I hide fast! Wait, who did you say was the weasel?"
"Zhao Yuan, if you turn around once again, get the hell out of here!" Lin Wenxi was obviously really annoyed.
"I just think that the pair of gray briefs you wear is an eyesore, or let me take it off for you."
"Piss off!"
...
After taking a warm refreshing shower, Lin Wenxi quickly lay down on the wooden bed with a bamboo mat. His back accidentally bumped against a raised wooden board and his face twisted because of the pain. He looked toward Zhao Yuan, and then he couldn't help but cry out with his hands covered
Early the next day, the only telephone in the dormitory which was connected to the outside rang. Zhao Yuan was afraid that it would awake Lin Wenxi, so he answered it himself. "Wenxi, I will come over and pick you up at noon. Have you packed up your things?" A deep voice of a man and it sounded a little familiar to Zhao Yuan. The person who called was Hong Xuan of course. Zhao Yuan hung up the telephone in a hurry because any answer he gave now would be wrong. The phone rang again, and Lin Wenxi got up with his sleepy eyes. "Why did you hang up just now? Have you packed up all your things?" Hong Xuan asked. "Just now..." Lin Wenxi looked at Zhao Yuan and answered, "I couldn't hear you just now. I guess the signal is not good." Zhao Yuan gave him a thumbs up. "Well, I will set off at once and will arrive around 11 o'clock." Hong Xuan said. Lin Wenxi vaguely responded with a
When they finished speaking, both of them sank to the ground. Looking at each other, Lin Wenxi and Zhao Yuan smiled and then shook their heads. In an instant, they couldn't figure it out. "Why did we run away?" They were very clear that it was not surprising that Zhao Yuan would never choose to abandon his father who had just recovered from a severe illness. While Lin Wenxi, even if he was willing to part with his parents for a few years, he knew he couldn't prevent Lin Ziwei from digging deep to find him. If that happened, everything would go out of control. However, if Lin Wenxi was back, when would they meet each other again? No matter how Zhao Yuan was good at making connections, he couldn't leave Jifu University and get transferred to the school that Lin Wenxi would go. Or Zhao Yuan could drop out of his school to accompany Lin Wenxi in other provinces. But Zhao Ming was obsessed with the wish of Zhan Yuan's future success, so he would never allow th
It was still drizzling outside. Zhao Yuan raised the torch in his hand and the fire swayed in the fine rain. The two of them put on their clothes. Lin Wenxi's clothes were now dry but Zhao Yuan's clothes were still soaked. Only then did he recall that Zhao Yuan had placed his clothes in front of the campfire and his behind. Lin Wenxi touched the lapel of his clothes to try and wring it dry. Zhao Yuan looked at him like he was a complete idiot. Out of the blue, Lin Wenxi grabbed his torch and placed it in front of him to illuminate the way. Zhao Yuan got dressed and chased after him. "I think we're still get soaked in the rain walking the trail. Let's speed up." Lin Wenxi laughed. "The saying goes that, 'Flowers are blooming on your way home, so enjoy them while ambling along' but look at you. You won't even let me catch a break." "The only thing blossoming now is rainwater. What's there to be happy about?" While tugging Lin Wen
Lin Wenxi woke up early the next morning. He was just stretching his back when he got such a bad fright that he straightened his back. What he saw were none other than a furious-looking Lin Ziwei, a teary-eyed Huang Xiya, and a steely, expressionless Hong Xuan. "No!" Lin Wenxi blurted out. "No, how could we only have one day? How could our reunion last only one day?!" "You don't look ill!" Lin Ziwei sneered. Zhao Yuan stood behind her and gave Lin Wenxi a meaningful look. Lin Wenxi immediately understood what he meant. "I was feeling under the weather when I met my university classmate. That's why I decided to come here and rest." "Then why didn't you inform your Uncle Hong Xuan over the phone? Are you so ill that you can't even make the call?" Lin Ziwei asked coolly. "After ending the call, I felt dizzy and had to lie down for a day. I'm only feeling better now," Lin Wenxi said. He was
When Lin Wenxi's car drove past the former compound of the countryside government office, he loudly insisted on getting down. "I want to take a look! Just a look!" Lin Wenxi yelled. "What's there to see?" Lin Ziwei's voice rose alongside his anger. Lin Wenxi swiftly lowered the window and poked his neck out. In a moment of desperation, Hong Xuan pulled up by the road and steadily stopped the car. After the car was unlocked, Lin Wenxi threw the door open and flew out of the car so quickly that his father couldn't grab him in time. "What's going on, Hong Xuan?" Lin Ziwei asked, easing his tone. "Brother Wei, I watched this kid grow up. His happiest childhood days were all spent here. Besides, the building will be demolished soon. Let him take a look so he can have something to remember it by," Hong Xuan answered. "You've become sentimental." Lin Ziwei was unhappy. "Heh. Wenxi sometimes ca
Zhao Yuan lost the mood to enjoy the beautiful early autumn scenery in the countryside. He sped past Liu Lanhua and Cao Damiao and returned home. Lin Wenxi's calls had become his daily sustenance. "Are you up?" he asked. "Yeah." "Did you sleep well last night?" "Not bad. What about you?" "I… slept pretty well too. Have you ate?" In reality, Zhao Yuan had been suffering from frequent bouts of insomnia ever since he came home. "Yeah. What about you?" "I've eaten too. What did you today?" "Reading… some stuff." In reality, Lin Wenxi was reading his new university's brochure on admissions, rules, regulations, schedule, and so on. Lin Ziwei gave little explanation of these things and made him settle the rest. Days later, Zhao Yuan finally reached the end of his patience. "Is someone watching your home…?" he asked. "My mom
"State your condition," Zhao Yuan said in a low voice. "Be my boyfriend. And I want you to stop all forms of communication with Lin Wenxi!" Chen Wanxin said. "Impossible!" Zhao Yuan said. "Then it's impossible for me as well!" Chen Wanxin replied coolly. "Wanxin, I have nothing but gratitude for you. I thought of many ways to repay your kindness but it's not something like being your boyfriend. A relationship that exists only in name has no meaning whatsoever! Why will you slowly reduce the affection between us into dust? We're at least good friends, aren't we?" Zhao Yuan said sincerely. "To me, you being my boyfriend in itself is the meaning of everything!" Chen Wanxi retorted loudly. "The 'boyfriend' title is the most meaningless one in the world," Zhao Yuan said. "I'll make sure that the title will become meaningful." Chen Wanxin chuckled softly. "So is that a yes or a no?"
After packing his luggage and ordering bus tickets, Lin Wenxi was off. "Remember not to come home often. Better yet, don't come home at all!" Lin Ziwei said solemnly. "Hm." Lin Wenxi nodded but thought that it wasn't a bad idea to visit Zhao Yuan's home for Chinese New Year instead of his own. "I'm saying that you should avoid Yangzi County as much as possible!" Lin Ziwei emphasized. It was as if he could see through his son's thoughts. Lin Wenxi nodded silently. When his bus was about to leave Yangzi County, he sent one final text message to Zhao Yuan: "I'm thankful to you." The reply: "I hope it's not too late." While he was still reading the text message, another person was receiving a phone call. Hong Xuan's face darkened after the call and his grip tightened on his Nokia phone, causing the keys on the device to pop out of their sockets nearly. Confused, Lin Wenxi stared solemnly at